The News of the Day in a Flippant Way
The Panel, Radio New Zealand National, Tuesday 26 March 2013
Jim Mora, Anna Chinn, Bernard Hickey
It’s billed as “The News of the Day in a Different Way”, but in fact Radio NZ National’s chat show “The Panel” is rarely much different from the insultingly vulgar rubbish on commercial talk radio. Look at the way Jim Mora handles the horrifying first story here: it is typical of his approach to many issues. First there is the unctuous protestation of concern, then the flippant comment that betrays a lack of moral seriousness or substantial engagement with the issue….
JIM MORA: Okay it’s quarter to four, and Noelle McCarthy is here, with what the WORLD is talking about! What have you got for us today?
NOELLE McCARTHY: Well, first up is this terrible story from Texas, about a high school cheerleader who was kicked off the squad because she refused to cheer for the basketball player who raped her.
….[Mora is silent for several seconds, to emphasize how appalled he is.]
JIM MORA:[incredulous tone] How could this BE?
NOELLE McCARTHY: She has now been ordered to pay forty-five thousand dollars for “filing a frivolous lawsuit”.
MORA: But SURELY, this cannot BE. Mind you, the question has to be: why did she let herself get into this situation?
….Another long silence ensues, with Noelle McCarthy no doubt biting her tongue.….
MORA: Okay, what else have you got?
NOELLE McCARTHY: A Swedish firm has come up with the idea of letting people experience what it is like to be HOMELESS. They pay a twenty-dollar fee and they can sleep for a night on the street, or on a park bench or—-
MORA:[fervently] Oh now, surely, THIS is frivolous. SURELY….
A $1 million multi-purpose training facility is under way at the Mines Rescue station, although the number of underground miners on the West Coast has plummeted with the closure of the Pike River and Spring Creek mines.
They should have done this before 29 men lost their lives
It seems a bit late in the piece to invest in such things now. After the deaths, the scandal, the economic uncertainty, the climate worries, the continuing pollution of air and water, all pointing toward the terminal decline of this industry.
The new safety training and rescue facility is available for other industries as well. So it won’t be a complete waste. Otherwise they would have just wasted $1 million on asbestos mine rescue, and dodo conservation.
Maybe the money would have been better, divested to the remaining 56 underground coal miners still remaining on the coast, to help them exit this dieing industry.
After all, prevention is better than cure.
Mines Rescue West Coast general manager Trevor Watts said today that although there were now only 56 underground miners left on the Coast, the development was still needed.
While the coal industry was going through hard times currently he was sure it would bounce back.
I think there were reasons why Pike River was not open cast. Something to do with it not being economical to move about 130m of solid rock from above the bits they wanted to get at.
A report commissioned by the Climate Vulnerable Forum, a partnership of 20 developing countries threatened by climate change was released to the media in September 2012. The report concluded that:
More than 100 million people will die…
The causes of this mega-death were listed as:
….five million deaths occur each year from air pollution, hunger and disease as a result of climate change and carbon-intensive economies, and that toll would likely rise to six million a year by 2030 if current patterns of fossil fuel use continue.
More than 90 percent of those deaths will occur in developing countries….
Reuters LONDON, Sept 26, 2012
“A combined climate-carbon crisis is estimated to claim 100 million lives between now and the end of the next decade,” the report said.
Yesterday lots of people here banged on with solutions to the woes of our economy etc, with traditional formulae…”.if only we printed money”….”tax companies”…”create jobs”….etc etc etc . I said game up, whose phantom cash do you wish to spend on yourself? What chimera of reality? Orlov summed it up well for me this morning…
Quite a few people wrote to me over the past week asking about all the noise coming out of Cyprus. If you haven’t heard, there is a financial collapse that is unfolding there: banks are closed and people can’t get at their money. The Cypriot banks are insolvent. This is no surprise: all banks everywhere are insolvent, and would fail immediately were the various types of ongoing bailouts to suddenly stop. These bailouts include an ever-longer list of annoying financial jargon—liquidity injections, quantitative easing, toxic-asset-purchasing by central banks, accounting tricks such as “mark-to-fantasy,” which allows them to make bogus claims as to the value of their assets, yadda-yadda. The point is, the financial system failed in 2008, and stayed that way. The faulty formula behind all modern finance is debt raised to the power of time, and only works when there is exponential growth in economic activity and energy. Energy’s exponential growth stopped in 2005 due to resource depletion; three years later finance collapsed. Permanently. Since then we have been witnessing a global game of “extend and pretend,” which cannot be played indefinitely. If something can’t go on forever, it doesn’t.
Banksters are like mafiosos. Get read of the head man and another slides right into place. Need to pull the whole thing out by the root. Put an end to the debt based monetary system.
All money is fiat. No getting away from that and so we need rules governing it that essentially bring modern banking to an end. We may no longer have the banking sector but we will still need the economy and that’s where the government printing money comes in and even then I believe that will only be short term as, over time, we go to full democratic control of resources.
The monetary system doesn’t work. The Great Depression, the GFC and every other recession and depression of the last two or three centuries proves that it’s just that now it’s coming to its natural end and people are seeing the absolute BS that is being done by the politicians at seemingly the demand of business to prop it up at their expense and they’re getting pissed off with it. So what we need is a valid system and a vision of how that system works that can take us away from the inherent corruption of the capitalist system. Some of us are trying to build that system and vision.
You are right we need to bring modern finance to an end….I suspect it will reach that point regardless. What follows who knows?
One reassuring thing to remember is that we have endured most of human trading history where transactions were not based upon cash….we traded one thing for another, no money. We may need to get that going again, and perhaps trade social “capital” as well as good.
How about this load of tosh contained in DOC’s press release about the savage cuts the conservation estate is going to experience:
The Department of Conservation (DOC) is proposing a new streamlined and outwardly focused operational structure to better position DOC for the future.
DOC presented the new structure to staff at a series of meetings around the country today.
Director-General Al Morrison says the new structure will maintain DOC’s own conservation delivery work while setting the department up to work more effectively with external partners.
“DOC must adapt if it is going to meet the conservation challenges that New Zealand faces – even if you doubled DOC’s budget tomorrow we would still be going ahead with this proposal.”
Mr Morrison says the proposal will mean changes in the way DOC is organised across the country and will involve the loss of about 140 largely regional management and administration positions.
He says DOC will continue to operate out of the same number of offices as it currently does with more than 1200 operational staff.
The proposal removes DOC’s existing 11 regional conservancy boundaries and replaces them with six new regions. The regions will be managed across two functions; delivering field conservation work and growing conservation through partnerships.
He says the resulting flatter organisational structure will see the loss of about 118 management and administrative positions.
“There will also be a reduction in 22 operational roles through efficiencies gained by setting up new support hubs for activities such as asset management, inspections and work planning.”
Al Morrison says the proposal has been sized to ensure DOC meets its current $8.7 million savings targets and continues to meet its current delivery work.
Mr Morrison said DOC has begun consulting with staff about the proposals and no final decisions will be taken until staff feedback has been considered.
Mr Morrison says DOC will work with staff and their representatives on the new proposals and any changes will not take effect for some months.
“I acknowledge this will mean a difficult period for many staff and we will be making every effort to ease the impact of these proposals.”
Mr Morrison said DOC has had a freeze on hiring new staff and is currently holding about 160 vacancies.
“It is simply too early to say what impact these proposals will have on individuals – we will look at all options such as redeployment and relocation to minimise redundancies.”
If it contained any more buzzwords it would become a bee.
I just wish that the Government would use plain English.
I knew him a little bit in previous life.
Imo, no he doesn’t. He’s doing what he is very well-paid to do, and he is excelling in his profession – PR for whoever pays the piper.
Decrease the resources and the manpower that an organisation has available to it and there’s no way that they will be able to do the same work especially when that organisation is as hands on as DoC. On top of that they’re cutting the administrative staff – so who’s going to actually coordinate what the people in the field are doing?
No, this is just more of Nationals attack on the environment so as to improve the profits of their rich mates.
Reducing the wage gap between NZ & OZ http://m.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10873868 was just a snake oil pitch used to gain power for National in 2008. They formed a working group on the issue and then disbanded it when the groups recommendations were released. Salt to the wound is the recent introduction of the youth rates, which will drive the wage gap wider!
Ok you are a go getter & used it as a stepping stone which is great, however many people for varies reasons don’t get out of a low paying job.
Like many your being fooled as youth rates put downward pressure on adult rates also. If you applied for a job & were told the paying rate was the minimum adult rate, & you queried the rate as a bit below what you were expecting. The boss can put pressure back on you by saying I was thinking of taking on a younger person…take it or leave it. If you were unemployed & claiming a benefit the new welfare changes will see your entitlement to the dole axed for refusing to take a job opportunity.
Most probably, and infused would be typical of many small business owners.
Enough nous to fill in a form, not enough to realise how to actually manage staff. So they think that trial periods are a new idea, the concept of “good faith” perplexes them, and they expect employees to carry the same risk as the manager but without the same reward.
Let’s not argue about who sucks more.
They both suck – big businesses institutionalise all the abuses they can get away with, while small businesses have no idea what they are supposed to do or not do.
“I think at times people could be more hungry and more ambitious for growth and prosperity than they demonstrate – sometimes they do seem content to enjoy the lifestyle they have got rather than improve and build on it.”
When people don’t have the resources available to make a difference because they’re all going to the rich few then they can’t actually do anything no matter how much they want to.
CV is just repeating the kind of line from Shearer’s supporters who keep saying Shearer is improving and will come good soon – with CV’s tongue firmly in his cheek.
Well, to be fair Shearer is improving in his media performances and framing. He’d be a more than capable Minister for a middling size portfolio in 2014.
He’s better on talkback, but there’s just something about him. He sounds regressive, but it comes across really ‘try hard’. Like someone said a long time ago, he’s not being himself, and it’s obvious.
Key does so well, because his ‘laid back’ approach is him being himself. It’s not forced like Shearer.
I’ve maintained for a while that Labour (since 1984) is National’s natural coalition partner… perhaps Labour is doing what it has to to ensure National return to power in 2014? Damn… should’ve seen it earlier!
It was good to hear this morning that the government has thrown the Ombudsman a bone with funding for 6 new lawyers. Of course, it would be cheaper if organisations were a bit more open with information.
In large and complex organisations it’s easy for large numbers of people to be involved in a negligently run project with no one person left holding the smoking gun.
Surely if large numbers are involved then large numbers need to be held accountable. Yes, some will be more accountable than others but everyone involved in a project that causes death needs to be held responsible.
DTB… You’re mixing up responsibility and accountability. Accountability lies at the top… the CEO and/or Board (or Minister with Government bodies). Responsibility can be shared.
The Government said yesterday that it was putting 8261 square kilometres of land up for tender to gold prospectors later this year, and had already begun consulting local iwi and councils.
The 38 year old state prosecutor pressing investigating charges against the 2002 Venezuelan coup leaders was killed by a remote controlled car bomb in 2004.
Due to the nature of the death you can’t run your skeptics ‘tin foil hat’ argument, in that particular case.
A few days ago, the chief of Colorado’s prison system was shot dead as he opened his front door. Nothing was taken from his body.
There are lots of ways to send political messages, some of them not very nice at all. With very highly skilled people well trained and available to take such actions. And they are used.
Sandy Hook malarky?!? Is that your name for when the coroner and the judiciary suppress information and standard procedures for a mass casualty incident are disregarded? Or does it describe the appearance of the response units before the initial shooting takes place?
The selection and arrangement of experts by corporate media guarantees a continued monopoly on “truth,” particularly when presented to an uninquisitive and politically dormant public. Yet this phenomenon extends to ostensibly more trustworthy media outlets such as public broadcasting, where a heightened utilization of credentialed expertise is required to ensure the consensus of those who perceive themselves as more refined than the Average Joe…
The net is an ever shifting place with a lot of sites that we have links to and a ever changing set of “problem site” references. Hell I have seen the Granny come up on one of those blockers.
There are several reasons that could be happening. A likely reason is that the block is manual and they put sites with a lot of traffic on it and few people in NZ actually read Whaleoil (and they do read KB and TS). From the type of content he has been posting recently, it appears to be mostly orientated towards picking up international page views and visitors. It is what you do when you want to drive ad revenue.
However, in this case I suspect it is a differnet cause. Google sitemaps last week informed me of a problem on an early post from 2007 that had a iframe in it linking to wp-stats.com page that has recently been tagged for having malware on it. The iframe looks like some kind of mistake in a plugin dropping into the post. But I scanned the database for the entire rest of the site and didn’t find another iframe apart from some old youtude and vimeo embedds. Was fixed on the weekend.
It will now take some time to clear out of all of the reference sites that read off google’s problem post list.
Well, there are a couple of alternative possibilities.
One is that Cameron’s blog is considered less offensive than thestandard or kiwiblog. Another is that Cameron likes to play silly games by making complaints about other blogs.
Few if any of the blockers consider complaints about content apart from malware any more because of silly buggers complaining. The only ones that do are the ones that cater for kiddie blockers or corporate download issues like porn or traffic volumes – and they all do their own checks before they believe a complaint.
As childish as I find Whaleoil to be, it is unlikely he would pass a kiddie site filter.
We don’t have porn and the only way that we’d cause traffic problems is with obsessive reading because we don’t have much on download.
So I think you’re deluding yourself. It is most likely the malware link that google found in a 5 and a half year old post. It wouldn’t surprise me if Kiwiblog has the same kind of issue. WP_stats was around and used by many sites because it gave some good stats on who wrote comments.
Occasional, yes, and usually jumped on by other commenters or mods, compared to the near constant threats of violence at Cameron’s site which are such a normalised part of the culture there that you probably don’t even see it anymore.
However on this site threats of violence are condoned and justified, if they’re from the left.
Link to example comments where a threat of violence has been issued… And please these have to be actual threats of violence. I’m afraid that being called a dickhead doesn’t qualify.
I suspect that you are confusing it with abuse (as in your first paragraph) which isn’t controlled apart from “pointless abuse” which has a specific meaning in the policy and attacking authors which is also in the policy. The rules for left or right are exactly the same – there is no cordoning.
The only real difference between how people are treated by moderators is a question of repeated behaviour and previous good behaviour. Basically if you’re a newbie on site or have a history of causing us to warn or ban you, then your probability of getting abrupt or harsh treatment goes up a lot. Newbies to a site should always learn the rules of the site, and wasting moderator time makes us grumpy – both forewarned in the policy.
r0b is pretty damn clear on what he considers to be threats and deals with them abruptly, as do I if I see them. They seem to have disappeared since he started banning heavily for uttering them.
Although it seems odd to me that the economic violence of throwing whole families out of their homes into the street, destroying peoples dignities and self respect, doesn’t count to the Right as being “violence”.
You’re absolutely deluded. WhaleSpew is full of exhortations to violence, gutshots, police dogs to be used on protestors, anal rape for prisoners, police to use Glocks on almost everyone……….
Not to mention the great grub himself carrying on about how physically tough he is, which he proves by calling ten year olds dumb.
The fact that they’re just masturbatory fantasies by net jockeys doesn’t make them any less offensive.
I can’t remember seeing anything remotely comparable here.
The standard approach to policymaking and advice in economics implicitly or explicitly ignores politics and political economy, and maintains that if possible, any market failure should be rapidly removed. This essay explains why this conclusion may be incorrect; because it ignores politics, this approach is oblivious to the impact of the removal of market failures on future political equilibria and economic efficiency, which can be deleterious. We outline a simple framework for the study of the impact of current economic policies on future political equilibria — and indirectly on future economic outcomes. We then illustrate the mechanisms through which such impacts might operate using a series of examples. The main message is that sound economic policy should be based on a careful analysis of political economy and should factor in its influence on future political equilibria.
Interesting. I’m reading their book Why Nations Fail at the moment. I’m only a couple of chapters in, and it seems like they’re economists who are trying to save their academic discipline from irrelevance as a social science by throwing in a theory of politics to bolster it. They have huge dislike of the imbalance of power and opportunities for greed in extractive regimes.
So far I’ve been thinking that if they’re going to go down that road they can only but become more left wing in their thinking. Good to see that might be the case. Unions would fit their theory because it’s all about the strength and balance of institutions in holding back the exploiters – and they’re right in that traditional economics doesn’t deal with this very well.
“Housing shortages in ChCh, yet commercial construction permits up.”
RNZ- Sexual assault convictions have risen by 30% over last 5 years. (Collins reckons this is due to increased reporting based on increased confidence in police process.) Yet, only 10% of victims report such assaults to police.
According to “award-winning” MSM columnist Eva Bradley, the new fashion trend for young women is “Skank” and today I read an editorial that identifies the “thigh gap” as the new “must have” body image requirement of young women keeping up with the Kardashians. *sigh*.
…same as it ever was…same as it ever was…watching the days go by…Once In A Lifetime…water flowing underground (read today that the underground gas they want to extract round these here parts is often so close to the aquifiers that a lighted match near a flowing water tap can produce a glow.
*Sigh #2*
Loved these lines, “This is what people who aren’t from America, or who grew up somewhere like Portland or whatever, don’t get: America’s love of guns in most cases has nothing to do with actually using them. It’s all about what they symbolize. And what they symbolize is God, and cocks.”
The other thing I found fascinating was the gas oven and bridge barriers thing. Delay the impulse fulfilment by a few seconds or minutes, and they don’t usually make another attempt.
the analysis of the columbine shooters fitted with what I think the situation is – that they are either mad, bad or sad rather than employed by a quasi-government department to sow seeds of panic and wreck destruction on innocent people
Question time a debacle with the Speaker’s performance abysmal, resulting in Mallard and Hipkins having to leave.
And now Judith Collins in General Debate has just referred to Eddie’s post on the internal Labour Caucus positions. And tried to ‘out’ Eddie as being a female who works for the EPMU….
The Virulent Judith Collins had a field day after Question Time, leaning heavily on Eddie’s homework which fitted in so well with the National Agenda. Saved Judith Collins a lot of work. Well done Eddie.
yes, QT was a joke indeed;
talk about a “spinning top”; That Speaker is turning the House into a farce Indeed, in front of the “international guests” he referred to; nothing like the children playing up in front of invited company! (put me off me Merlot Pinotage it did).
Collins calls “Mr Robinson” (a slip methinks), and then the TS ammo; oh well, interesting to establish the link between the “woman” Eddie, the EPMU and Little. *sigh*; even the normally composed Metiria shook her head…
still, try to remember, Lest We Forget (John), NZ’s International Liabilities as a % of GDP, with the government / public component increasing under National.
The Ghost Rider does enjoy that Michael Woodhouse though…
Come on ian – all the labour mp’s had to do was issue individual, or a collective press release detailing that they weren’t in the faction described or that there were in fact no factions, or different ones, and the whole thing would have stayed as a molehill and not be used against them – sheesh mate political knife-fighting 101.
A collective press release in denial gives Eddie’s post the credibility of having to be denied.
Personally I might have gone more for the “If the minister believes everything she reads on the internet, how much money does her department spend on tinfoil hats?” response.
re:rhino – Nah. S/he’s probably busy at work or something. I kind’ve figured if we didn’t sort it there the months-old argument would be rehashed somewhere else. Apologies to Eddie – between Collins crowing and us two, their analysis has been detracted from, imo. Even if the names of members and some of the labels might be widened, it’s probably a fair reflection of the policy/personality pressures within labour and other left wing parties.
I suspect national is a more complex beast of patronage and rural/urban pressures.
Oh please, if Labour sorted itself out and got a decent leader Eddie wouldn’t have written his piece. The presence of Shearer, Mallard, and others at the top of the party is what saves Collins a lot of work, not anything written here.
I’m even Facebook friends with him, but I’m glad to see your idea of proof is at least consistent.
I imagine the following scenario: if Mana and the Greens both won 20 seats, who on Eddie’s list would be prepared to form a coalition with National in the interests of “national unity”? I’m pretty sure Cunliffe wouldn’t be. For all his attachment to tinkering with capitalism, I think he believes he can tinker with it in favour of the workers. Most of them see their mission as tinkering with the workers in the interests of capitalism.
Everything would be rosy for Labour if only The Standard was like Red Alert!
Is that it ianmac?
We would not be at the same level in the polls, for th past 5 years, were it not for The Standard?
We would have a united and motivated party if only those Standinistas went back to the Alliance Party?
Is that it ianmac?
Shearer would have broad support and be widely respected if only LPrent was more like Mike Smith?
Is that it ianmac?
oh, and don’t forget the NZLast MP reminding us of the Morning Report on sex-work in South Auckland; 13 years of age and Six Hundy a night (at least some family member or associate ain’t riding for free). and, and, she helpfully pointed out that 30% of Auckland sex-workers are Chinese; you don’t say! Yummy!
Lifetime membership to the Dark Side?
A soul so tarnished she’d be rejected by hell?
A letter from “A. H. in Argentina” suggesting she “chillax a bit, it’s nicht worth it, ja?”
Actual skeletons in the closet?
Love It Flockie (whats with you and Rhinocrates; jest or joust? clear that you both have Very fast minds, though I haven’t bothered “clocking” the comments) 🙂
It’s not only Collins as to whom/which you don’t know stuff Chris but really, that comment is offensive. Were I her husband, and I presume she retains the one she had years ago, (big burly Polynesian ex-cop turned lawyer and a genuinely decent man), I’d be pissed off !
In light of your nonsense about threats of violence on TS you’d better not tell us that you’d kill for a piece of the likes of her.
In that case Chris, and according to your own “standards” (lol), I’d have to denounce you not only as a sex beast but also as a violent sex beast.
furthermore, if that is a demonstration of the political “class” in this country, might as well start hewing rice terraces into Kahuranaki now, oh wait, not enough water; Beaujolais anyone?
“If you tried to sack me for joining a union I would kick the shit out of you where you stand, And I would take plesuare in it”
“Do you want to Americanise heath care. I am warning you, I will come for you if you do. I will come for you. I will kick the shit out of you 10 times over you mean nasty horrible person. All those poor and working people and unionists you denigrate will cheer me on and probably join in.”
“The best thing to happen to Thatcher is for a gunman to splatter her brains over the 10 Downing Street door.”
“Pity those IRA guys didnt succed is blowing her to bits. Would have saved a lot of UKers from the misery you wanted imposed on them.”
“Addison, if you even think about banning unions and Americanising our health care, I will, come for you.”
“You nasty fascist cunt. You should have your head kicked in for that.”
“Im sick of people who want to lock up unionists and bring back slavery. They derserve to be strung up with piano wire”
Probably more but thats probably enough to get my point across. I will concede it was from one person, though some people agreed with him (and others didn’t)
[lprent: Is that what you describe as ‘condoning’ – pointing to a single commentator who regularly gets warnings and has spent extended periods banned for it. I notice that you skipped the dates and links. Probably because having someone sprouting crap with weeks or months between (often because they are banned) instances doesn’t exactly follow your thesis.
FFS are you really so stupid that you can’t recognize yourself sprouting a myth? Silly nutters standing around telling each other tales and never bothering to check. ]
we all know millsy is over the top, down the hill, and up the other side but that is just bigbad talk which I’m sure you’ve heard enough of over the years – hardly credible enough for you to say, “I can quite easily say there are more realistic threats of violence and abuse on this site in comparison to whaleoil” – that statement is just not true.
btw – there have been a lot more piano wire ones which is weird because keyboards are the rage and have been for a while now.
You have every right to be offended as I have every right to state what I feel. What a great society we live in that we can have differing views aired out in public.
So you unprompted, linked to comments from someone you think you know and who has not threatened you, to show how there are lots of threats on this site – that’s called a fail chris.
Merely pointing out why, and with examples, this site is as bad as and sometimes worse than whaleoils (yes I realize I’m speaking heresy)
[lprent: I would described it as simple lying myself. But I guess you came directly from Whale so I guess we could be generous and just describe as stupid gullibility of someone listening to a congenital liar. Just look at who he has asserted our authors are in real life.. ]
Depends on how one imparts values on a tool.
You believe they are useful, where as I’d have written they have a use. Almost the same, but not quite.
Trust me, mr conditioned, you can let your belly and chest flop out and down now, and you don’t have to polish your shoes until you see your twin heads in them all stood to attention.
The France 24 Debate a few days ago had a commentator (Thomas Klau – Head of the Paris Bureau, European Council on Foreign Relations) who made similar points about Germany’s role in the Eurozone crisis as the last of your links. One comment he made really caught my attention – that for historic reasons a Europe perceived as having the authority for Eurozone issues looking like they are coming out of Berlin was not a good things for Europe or for Germany!
His view was that the issue for the Eurozone is that there is no Government body directly answerable to the citizenry – as he expressed it “someone electable, who is then ejectable”. It means it makes decisions on things like the Cyrus bailout look like it is being made by bureaucrats behind closed doors and citizens have no recourse to hold them accountable.
I like a lot of what Costas Lapavitsas was saying though – really challenging the orthodoxy of the “solutions” to this Global Depression.
As an aside I prefer France 24 (in English – my French isn’t good enough!) to any of the other cable news providers – including BBC and Al Jazeera. They give a different perspective from the usual suspects.
It means it makes decisions on things like the Cyrus bailout look like it is being made by central banker nominated Goldman Sachs alumni behind closed doors and citizens have no recourse to hold them accountable.
I am getting a bit sick of the Berlin and Germany focus of the blame to be laid for Cyprus, Spain, Greece, Italy and so forth. It was a problem with the way the common Euro currency was designed and introduced, not something that happened in Germany that brought it all about. Others assented and agreed, and the Greeks were overly keen to join.
So this is crap populism, especially comparing Merkel with Hitler and stuff. Hey, get some real info and learn what really happened, perhaps. I do not hit out at you as commenter, but the media and others are blind on one eye.
Every country involved made mistakes and has to carry some shit.
It is disgusting to blame Germany for every thing.
All debt is subordinate primarily to German creditors. Including French, Italian, Greek, Spanish debt.
Don’t think that this is by accident, or that Germany has not been exporting its manufacturing unemployment to other countries using the Eurozone as a mechanism.
Also notice that Merkel is pushing the hardline on Eurozone defaulters…because she has elections to face in a few months.
It was a problem with the way the common Euro currency was designed and introduced, not something that happened in Germany that brought it all about. Others assented and agreed, and the Greeks were overly keen to join.
Yes, this has been a phenomenon which has come from the Eurozone’s intrinsic design. A design which said that capital could move freely across every border, and where sovereign governments no longer had any say over the value of their own currency. The engineering firms of Greece had to compete on the same terms as the engineering firms of Germany. Guess who the loser in such a fight was.
Yes, the governments of these countries got short term highs from voluntarily signing up to the Eurozone. But its the ordinary people of those same countries suddenly realising that they’ve had to wake up with very bad hangovers. Where are the leaders who originally signed their peoples up to this pact? Staying very quiet and out of the way, I notice.
“All debt is subordinate primarily to German creditors. Including French, Italian, Greek, Spanish debt.”
Sorry, CV, the European banking network and the interwoven creditor and debtor dependencies are actually quite a bit more complex and diverse than what you imply here.
Like the French banks have a lot more in Greek and Spanish bonds on their books than German banks. And while some banks in Spain are rotten and about to fold, others are still fairly stable and healthy.
It was not some evil design that came out of Berlin, and there are not secret string pullers in Berlin, that hold Europe to ransom. I agree that Merkel has a fair bit to answer to, and there are other politicians in Germany, especially in the opposition SPD and Green parties, that follow a different approach to Merkel and her government, which is more in line with what Hollande in France may also wish to follow.
I was thinking of the average man and woman in the streets of Nikosia, Athens or Madrid or Rome, holding up pictures of Merkel with a swastika on her chest. That is stupid ignorant populism there. And it must be accepted that certain governments in Greece and Italy especially have some responsibility for the present situation. Berlusconi gave tax cuts to his supporters and let the finances stay too much in the red at the same time.
Now is the NZ government not doing something similar at present?
“Yes, this has been a phenomenon which has come from the Eurozone’s intrinsic design. A design which said that capital could move freely across every border, and where sovereign governments no longer had any say over the value of their own currency. The engineering firms of Greece had to compete on the same terms as the engineering firms of Germany.”
As for the Euro, it ran into trouble (once the GFC sped up the process) due to every country in the Eurozone and EU still running their own finance, taxation, social, internal economic and other differing regulatory systems.
One currency necessitates to also introduce the same fiscal and some other policies (primarily economic) to make the one currency system function.
Allowing different countries to follow different policies in such areas, and also having very differing economic and social realities to face, yet take advantage of the same low interest rates to take up credit, this led to distortions, which now have come back to bite in certain countries like Greece, Spain, Portugal and increasingly Italy. Cyprus is a special case, and it stuffed up due to some exposure to the Greek banking system, also having attracted deposits from other foreign sources, by running a banking system inviting tax evaders from Russia and so forth.
You cannot have one common economic zone and especially not one common currency, and at the same time quite different taxation, fiscal, economic and other policies in member countries.
“Accumulation of wealth at one pole is at the same time accumulation of misery, agony of toil, slavery, ignorance, brutality, mental degradation, at the opposite pole,” Marx wrote.
A growing dossier of evidence suggests that he may have been right. It is sadly all too easy to find statistics that show the rich are getting richer while the middle class and poor are not. A September study from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) in Washington noted that the median annual earnings of a full-time, male worker in the U.S. in 2011, at $48,202, were smaller than in 1973. Between 1983 and 2010, 74% of the gains in wealth in the U.S. went to the richest 5%, while the bottom 60% suffered a decline, the EPI calculated. No wonder some have given the 19th century German philosopher a second look. In China, the Marxist country that turned its back on Marx, Yu Rongjun was inspired by world events to pen a musical based on Marx’s classic Das Kapital. “You can find reality matches what is described in the book,” says the playwright.
The evidence grows daily – Marx was right about capitalism.
This raises an important point. Thirty-five percent, mainly the upper middle class have been improving their lot. That’s quite a big chunk of the middle class with a vested interest in the status quo. Often these people are richer than they could have imagined themselves to be. There are a disproprtionate number of baby boomers in this statistic.
And most will fight for every last designer kitchen fitting.
We also might need to start talking households, not voters, when it comes to political economic income brackets (which is what you might have done above? Top 35% of households probably have an annual income of $85K and up).
For instance, if I earn fuck all income but my corporate exec spouse pulls in an income in the high $200K range. I’m going to be counted in the bottom 10% of earners (sub $15K pa). But I’m not going to be struggling in poverty and the people I socialise with are not going to be unwashed losers. My voting patterns will be influenced accordingly.
That’s a very good point CV. There are a lot of wealthy people with partners earning a huge whack, but whose household income is no reflection of the comparative ‘pin money’ they bring in themselves. Their own personal income may be going backwards but their household income is steaming ahead.
I’m often struck by the relatively large numbers of people who live very comfortably – huge houses, flash baches, overseas hols etc., and I’ve been puzzled about why their numbers aren’t entirely reflected in income stats.
Next time you hear elected officials or advocates say they want more tests, ask them if they are willing to take the high school graduation test themselves.
Anyone note the gliding swagger of Commissioner of Police Marshall on 3 News tonight, in the lift lobby of the Beehive I think. Bedecked in more fruit salad than a Jakarta hotel carpark attendant !
Refusing to comment on the appallingly grave miscarriage of justice in the Teina Pora case. When asked whether he would resign were the obvious to be exposed there was the hint of a Freudian stammer. In unmistakeable contrast to the glide. The Teina Pora case is huge and he clearly knows it.
But, the underlying morality betrayed by the stammer was quickly rectified by the crushed car vixen Madame Tolley who quickly got things back on track with – “it’s not a good look…..”, “decided in the media……” , “blah blah blah”.
You bet it’s not a good look, privileged, mutton-dressed-up-as-lamb worse than Shitley cow ! A 17 year old, I’d suspect illiterate (then) kid, used as an ingredient in a police “cook-a- cake-of- your-choice” exercise for which no doubt the very senior police personnel involved were lauded to Kingdom Come.
20 years in the slammer poor little bugger.
Good to see Toryana and Peter exercised about the boy. They might finally prove of some worth. Pity it took the destruction of a young man’s life.
John Key, please, please don’t let Chris 73’s self-gratification fodder Judy Collins anywhere near the compensation issue.
I wander if the anger in Cyprus begins to have a feedback loop to Greece? It will be interesting to see if the protests in Greece continue again after the latest wave in February and early March.
To be fair they’re holding up their hands because they have ‘NO’ written on their palms.
However, yeah, a re-run of Germany in the ’30s somewhere else is a scary prospect and all too likely if political/bureaucratic decisions inflicting joblessness, increasing wealth divisions within and between nations, and hopelessness in the general population aren’t changed soon.
While I wrote the post above I had a weather-eye on “3rd Degree” on TV3.
A debate ??? What alot of shit ! In part at least a bunch of wannabee TV celebrities-in-training with Garner, the lisping wee Gee-On, and the perennial yet newly-careered “lawyer” Linda Clark.
They’ll have graduated and be on “Afternoons With Jimmy” within a month.
Still, all of the above said, I give real heartfelt thanks to 3rd Degree for its Teina Pora investigation.
What’s happened to that poor guy is absolutely disgusting. Any police involved in this carriage of injustice should have to do time equal to what they got him sentenced to.
In paragraph 3.34, the [UK] Treasury makes plain that the monetary authorities could finance increased government spending on infrastructure “through the creation of money“.
There is a money tree, and it’s called the Bank of England.
Same applies to the RBNZ. Now just need to the politicians of the left (the ones on the right will only ever have the country borrowing from their rich mates) to realise it.
New Zealand is again having to reconcile conflicting pressures from its military and its trade interests. Should we join Pillar Two of AUKUS and risk compromising our markets in China? For a century after New Zealand was founded in 1840, its external security arrangements and external economics arrangements were aligned. ...
The ‘50 Shades of Green’ farmers’ protest in 2019 was heavy on climate change denial, but five years on, scepticism and criticism about the idea that pine forests can save us is growing across the board. File photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s the top six news items of note in climate ...
This morning the sky was bright.The birds, in their usual joyous bliss. Nature doesn’t seem to feel the heat of what might angst humans.Their calls are clear and beautiful.Just some random thoughts:MāoriPaul Goldsmith has announced his government will roll back the judiciary’s rulings on Māori Customary Marine Title, which recognises ...
In 2003, the Court of Appeal delivered its decision in Ngati Apa v Attorney-General, ruling that Māori customary title over the foreshore and seabed had not been universally extinguished, and that the Māori Land Court could determine claims and confirm title if the facts supported it. This kicked off the ...
Earlier this week at Parliament, Labour leader Chris Hipkins was applauded for saying that the response to the final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care had to be “bigger than politics.” True, but the fine words, apologies and “we hear you” messages will soon ring ...
TL;DR: In news breaking this morning:The Ministry of Education is cutting $2 billion from its school building programme so the National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government has enough money to deliver tax cuts; The Government has quietly lowered its child poverty reduction targets to make them easier to achieve;Te Whatu Ora-Health NZ’s ...
Kia ora. These are some stories that caught our eye this week – as always, feel free to share yours in the comments. Our header image this week (via Eke Panuku) shows the planned upgrade for the Karanga Plaza Tidal Swimming Steps. The week in Greater Auckland On ...
1. What's not to love about the way the Harris campaign is turning things around?a. Nothingb. Love all of itc. God what a reliefd. Not that it will be by any means easye. All of the above 2. Documents released by the Ministry of Health show Associate Health Minister Casey ...
Trust in me in all you doHave the faith I have in youLove will see us through, if only you trust in meWhy don't you, you trust me?In a week that saw the release of the 3,000 page Abuse in Care report Christopher Luxon was being asked about Boot Camps. ...
TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking about the Royal Commission Inquiry into Abuse in Carereport released this week, and with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on a UN push to not recognise carbon offset markets and ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 26, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Transport: Simeon Brown announced$802.9 million in funding for 18 new trains on the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines, which ...
The northern expressway extension from Warkworth to Whangarei is likely to require radical changes to legislation if it is going to be built within the foreseeable future. The Government’s powers to purchase land, the planning process and current restrictions on road tolling are all going to need to be changed ...
Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedFirst they came for the doctors But I was confused by the numbers and costs So I didn't speak up Then they came for our police and nurses And I didn't think we could afford those costs anyway So I ...
Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on UnsplashWe’re back again after our mid-winter break. We’re still with the ‘new’ day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when we have our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream ...
Notes: This is a free article. Abuse in Care themes are mentioned. Video is at the bottom.BackgroundYesterday’s report into Abuse in Care revealed that at least 1 in 3 of all who went through state and faith based care were abused - often horrifically. At least, because not all survivors ...
Luxon speaks in Parliament yesterday about the Abuse in Care report. Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:PM Christopher Luxon said yesterday in tabling the Abuse in Carereport in Parliament he wanted to ‘do the ...
About a decade ago I worked with a bloke called Steve. He was the grizzled veteran coder, a few years older than me, who knew where the bodies were buried - code wise. Despite his best efforts to be approachable and friendly he could be kind of gruff, through to ...
Some of the recent announcements from the government have reminded us of posts we’ve written in the past. Here’s one from early 2020. There were plenty of reactions to the government’s infrastructure announcement a few weeks ago which saw them fund a bunch of big roading projects. One of ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Thursday, July 25 are:News: Why Electric Kiwi is closing to new customers - and why it matters RNZ’s Susan EdmundsScoop: Government drops ...
Hi,I felt a small wet tongue snaking through one of the holes in my Crocs. It explored my big toe, darting down one side, then the other. “He’s looking for some toe cheese,” said the woman next to me, words that still haunt me to this day.Growing up in New ...
Yesterday I happily quoted the Prime Minister without fact-checking him and sure enough, it turns out his numbers were all to hell. It’s not four kg of Royal Commission report, it’s fourteen.My friend and one-time colleague-in-comms Hazel Phillips gently alerted me to my error almost as soon as I’d hit ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Thursday, July 25, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day were:The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquirypublished its final report yesterday.PM Christopher Luxon and The Minister responsible for ...
The Official Information Act has always been a battle between requesters seeking information, and governments seeking to control it. Information is power, so Ministers and government agencies want to manage what is released and when, for their own convenience, and legality and democracy be damned. Their most recent tactic for ...
TL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:Transport and Energy Minister Simeon Brown is accelerating plans to spend at least $10 billion through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) to extend State Highway One as a four-lane ‘Expressway’ from Warkworth to Whangarei ...
I live my life (woo-ooh-ooh)With no control in my destinyYea-yeah, yea-yeah (woo-ooh-ooh)I can bleed when I want to bleedSo come on, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)You can bleed when you want to bleedYea-yeah, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)Everybody bleed when they want to bleedCome on and bleedGovernments face tough challenges. Selling unpopular decisions to ...
Please note:To skip directly to the- parliamentary footage in the video, scroll to 1:21 To skip to audio please click on the headphone iconon the left hand side of the screenThis video / audio section is under development. ...
Given the crackdown on wasteful government spending, it behooves me to point to a high profile example of spending by the Luxon government that looks like a big, fat waste of time and money. I’m talking about the deployment of NZDF personnel to support the US-led coalition in the Red ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:40 am on Wednesday, July 24 are:Deep Dive: Chipping away at the housing crisis, including my comments RNZ/Newsroom’s The DetailNews: Government softens on asset sales, ...
As I reported about the city centre, Auckland’s rail network is also going through a difficult and disruptive period which is rapidly approaching a culmination, this will result in a significant upgrade to the whole network. Hallelujah. Also like the city centre this is an upgrade predicated on the City ...
Today, a 4 kilogram report will be delivered to Parliament. We know this is what the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care weighs, because our Prime Minister told us so.Some reporter had blindsided him by asking a question about something done by ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Wednesday, July 24, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Beehive:Transport Minister Simeon Brownannounced plans to use PPPs to fund, build and run a four-lane expressway between Auckland ...
NewstalkZB host Mike Hosking, who can usually be relied on to give Prime Minister Christopher Luxon an easy run, did not do so yesterday when he interviewed him about the HealthNZ deficit. Luxon is trying to use a deficit reported last year by HealthNZ as yet another example of the ...
Back in January a StatsNZ employee gave a speech at Rātana on behalf of tangata whenua in which he insulted and criticised the government. The speech clearly violated the principle of a neutral public service, and StatsNZ started an investigation. Part of that was getting an external consultant to examine ...
Renting for life: Shared ownership initiatives are unlikely to slow the slide in home ownership by much. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:A Deloittereport for Westpac has projected Aotearoa’s home-ownership rate will ...
You're broken down and tiredOf living life on a merry go roundAnd you can't find the fighterBut I see it in you so we gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsWe gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsAnd I'll rise upI'll rise like the dayI'll rise upI'll rise unafraidI'll rise upAnd I'll ...
There’s been a change in Myers Park. Down the steps from St. Kevin’s Arcade, past the grassy slopes, the children’s playground, the benches and that goat statue, there has been a transformation. The underpass for Mayoral Drive has gone from a barren, grey, concrete tunnel, to a place that thrums ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Global society may have finally slammed on the brakes for climate-warming pollution released by human fossil fuel combustion. According to the Carbon Monitor Project, the total global climate pollution released between February and May 2024 declined slightly from the amount released during the same ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Tuesday, July 23 are:Deep Dive: Penlink: where tolling rhetoric meets reality BusinessDesk-$$$’sOliver LewisScoop:Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Tuesday, July 23, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Health: Shane Reti announcedthe Board of Te Whatu Ora-Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the “botched merger” of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...
Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...
As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic party’s primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...
TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...
The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...
Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...
This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...
A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...
A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Orderimage, ...
Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
The Minister of Housing’s ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Minister’s metaphor of ‘flooding the market’ I do not see how the ...
As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
Waiting In The Wings:For truly, if Trump is America’s un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is America’s Octavian, the Republic’s youthful undertaker – and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMP’S SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the “illiberal” prime ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSAannounced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent talking about the National-ACT-NZ First Government’s release of its first Emissions Reduction Plan;University of Otago Foreign Relations Professor and special guest Dr Karin von ...
Open access notablesImproving global temperature datasets to better account for non-uniform warming, Calvert, Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society:To better account for spatial non-uniform trends in warming, a new GITD [global instrumental temperature dataset] was created that used maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) to combine the land surface ...
A late change to charter school legislation will cheat educators out of fair pay and negotiating power proving charter schools are just a vehicle to make profit out of our education system. ...
In 2004 te iwi Māori rallied against the Crown’s attempt to confiscate our coastlines and moana with the Foreshore and Seabed Act. This led to the largest hīkoi of a generation and the birth of Te Pāti Māori. 20 years later, history is repeating itself. Today the government has announced ...
It has been five and a half years since the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care was established to investigate the abuse of children, young people, and vulnerable adults within state and faith-based institutions. Yesterday, the final report - Whanaketia through pain and trauma, from darkness to light ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to take action off the back of the International Court of Justice ruling on Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine. ...
On Friday the International Court of Justice reaffirmed what Palestinian’s have been telling us for decades: that the occupation and colonisation of Palestinian lands by Israel is illegal and must end immediately. They also called for reparations for Palestinian’s who have lived under Israeli occupation since it began in 1967. ...
Labour calls on the Government to act after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian Territories is illegal. ...
The 53.7 percent rise in benefit sanctions over the last year is more proof of this Government’s disdain for our communities most in need of support. ...
Aotearoa could be a country where every child grows up feeling safe, loved and with a sense of belonging in their whānau and community. But for some of our children, this is far from reality. Instead, they are trapped in a maze of intergenerational harm that they can’t escape on ...
Te Pāti Māori are calling for David Seymour to resign as Associate Health Minister in response to his call for Pharmac to ignore the Treaty of Waitangi. “This announcement is just another example of the government’s anti-Tiriti, anti-Māori agenda.” Said Co-leader and spokesperson for health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. “Seymour thinks it ...
The soaring price of renting is driving the rise of inflation in this country - with latest figures from Stats NZ showing rents are up 4.8 per cent on average while annual inflation is at 3.3 per cent. ...
National’s Emissions Reduction Plan will take New Zealand further from the economy we need to ensure the next generation has a stable climate and secure livelihoods. ...
Following consultation with named parties and thorough consideration of privacy interests, the Green Party is in a position to release the Executive Summary of the final report from the independent investigation into Darleen Tana. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon should be asking serious questions of his Minister for Resources Shane Jones now it’s been revealed he misled the public about a dinner with mining companies that he didn’t declare and said wasn’t pre-arranged. ...
Te Pāti Māori have submitted to the Justice Select Committee against the Sentencing (Reinstating Three Strikes) Amendment Bill. The bill will further entrench racism in our justice system and fails to focus on rehabilitation. “Reinstating Three Strikes will empower a systematically racist system and exacerbate the overrepresentation of Māori in ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee is set to make a determination on the Residential Tenancies Amendment (RTA) Bill in the coming weeks. “This legislation will give landlords the power to kick our whānau out onto the street for no reason” said Housing spokesperson, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “Their solution to the housing ...
“National’s campaign was about tackling crime and the best they can do is a two-year long Ministerial Advisory Group,” Labour justice spokesperson Duncan Webb said. ...
“There are more examples of charter schools failing their students than there are success stories. The coalition Government is driving to dismantle our public school system and instead promote a privatised, competitive structure that puts profits before kids,” Jan Tinetti said. ...
“This government is choosing to deliberately mislead and withhold information, keeping our people in the dark about this government’s agenda and the future of our mokopuna,” said co-leader and spokesperson for Health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. The call comes after the demand from the Chief Ombudsman that Associate Minister of Health, Casey ...
“Today’s climate announcement by Simon Watts makes clear the National Government is simply paying lip service to meeting its climate change targets,” Megan Woods said. ...
National is choosing to make life harder for workers by taking away the rights our communities have fought hard for. Here's how they’re taking workers backwards. ...
Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue. We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. “The Abuse in Care Inquiry’s report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faith‑based institutions were ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government’s online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views. “It is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
Tēnā tātou katoa, Ngā mihi te rangi, ngā mihi te whenua, ngā mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
New Zealand’s payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts. “The Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre – Te Pokapū Wāina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. “The research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Regions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “Indonesia is important to New Zealand’s security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,” says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kōrero, he kōrero, he kōrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of Ngāti Maniapoto, Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka says. “My thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust – Ngāti Maniapoto for bringing their important kōrero to a ministerial ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.“I have received Ms Fredric’s resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,” Mr Brown says.“On behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...
The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliament’s test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Section 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are ‘dangerous changes’ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet. “Issues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...
After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks. “The level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations I’ve been ...
The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawke’s Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...
Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. It’s the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. At the heart of this report are the ...
For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care “Whanaketia – through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,” was tabled in Parliament ...
The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry “Whanaketia – through ...
With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “Tax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...
Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. “It includes a change ...
Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...
New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Competitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. “Under current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...
The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and Whangārei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “For too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...
Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “It is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,” Mr ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024. “I am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane. “ASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Mr Peters says. “This will be our third visit to ...
Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “This $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,” Mr Doocey says. ...
New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. “This support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealand’s commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. “Cabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...
In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today. “The previous government’s botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...
Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum. While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation. “New Zealand has a thriving space ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will travel to China on Saturday to attend the Ministerial on Climate Action meeting held in Wuhan. “Attending the Ministerial on Climate Action is an opportunity to advocate for New Zealand climate priorities and engage with our key partners on climate action,” Mr Watts says. ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is travelling to the Solomon Islands tomorrow for meetings with his counterparts from around the Pacific supporting collective management of the region’s fisheries. The 23rd Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Committee and the 5th Regional Fisheries Ministers’ Meeting in Honiara from 23 to 26 July ...
The Government today launched the Military Style Academy Pilot at Te Au rere a te Tonga Youth Justice residence in Palmerston North, an important part of the Government’s plan to crackdown on youth crime and getting youth offenders back on track, Minister for Children, Karen Chhour said today. “On the ...
The Government has welcomed news the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has begun work to replace nine priority bridges across the country to ensure our state highway network remains resilient, reliable, and efficient for road users, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“Increasing productivity and economic growth is a key priority for the ...
Acting Prime Minister David Seymour has been in contact throughout the evening with senior officials who have coordinated a whole of government response to the global IT outage and can provide an update. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has designated the National Emergency Management Agency as the ...
New Zealand and Japan will continue to step up their shared engagement with the Pacific, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “New Zealand and Japan have a strong, shared interest in a free, open and stable Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says. “We are pleased to be finding more ways ...
New developments in the heart of North Island forestry country will reinvigorate their communities and boost economic development, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones visited Kaingaroa and Kawerau in Bay of Plenty today to open a landmark community centre in the former and a new connecting road in ...
President Adeang, fellow Ministers, honourable Diet Member Horii, Ambassadors, distinguished guests. Minasama, konnichiwa, and good afternoon, everyone. Distinguished guests, it’s a pleasure to be here with you today to talk about New Zealand’s foreign policy reset, the reasons for it, the values that underpin it, and how it ...
Last summer when Matairangi burned, Ginny and Tom stood at the window of their lounge, watching kākā shoot skyward from the burning trees. From the distance, they looked to Ginny like pages torn from books and thrown into a bonfire. It was Tom, voice tight, who told her it was ...
Opinion: The Canadian short story writer Alice Munro – winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013 – died in May at the age of 92. Her work was about “the damage people inflict on one another in the name of love”, Deborah Treisman wrote in the New Yorker. ...
This month marks two years since the most powerful telescope ever built sent its first pictures back to earth. From its lofty vantage point, beyond the moon in orbit around the sun, the James Webb Space Telescope was tuned to observe the first stars and galaxies being born soon after ...
Comment: After Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ preview several weeks ago, I had some optimism about the Government’s emissions reduction plan. Now I’ve read the discussion document, that hope has been dashed. How can the Government propose a plan that wants to take New Zealand taxpayers’ hard-earned money, and spend ...
Christopher Luxon: hurdles The little man from National jumps hurdles in his sleep. He’s quite good at it in his dreams and even though the reality doesn’t quite match up you have to give him credit for getting up every morning and crashing into the very first hurdle of the ...
Comment: It was a good two hours into the conversation when Tyrone Marks raised the most basic of questions when I first spoke to him in 2017. “They didn’t explain the things they did to me. They never told me why. And they still haven’t. There’s no explanation for it. ...
Madeleine Chapman rounds out Death Week on The Spinoff with a final recommendation. You can read all of our Death Week coverage here. Nothing forces you to reflect on your life and relationships quite like proximity to death. For those whose nearest and dearest have died, there are reasonably obvious ...
Whitney Greene takes us through her life in television, including the TV character she’d like to plan a funeral for and her cow lung catastrophe on The Traitors NZ. “If the phone rings, I have to answer it,” Whitney Greene from The Traitors NZ warns as we begin our My ...
Maddie Ballard reviews the debut essay collection of Pōneke writer Flora Feltham.In ‘The Raw Material’, the longest essay in Flora Feltham’s dazzling debut collection, the author heads out for a run after hours of weaving and sees the world turn to textile. “Pounding along the Parade, I saw the ...
Andy Christiansen, one half of the experimental rock-pop duo TRiPS, shares the tunes inspiring the band’s perfect weekend and new release. “Good speakers, good food, good music, no distractions”: that’s all you need to enjoy the psychedelic stylings of TRiPS, a new band formed by Fly My Pretties’ Barnaby Weir ...
Celebrating our quadrennial opportunity to become experts in a bunch of sports we never normally watch.The games of the XXXIII Olympiad are upon us. Paris will host this year’s showcase of sporting and athletic prowess, which means some late-night and early-morning viewing for us in Aotearoa.But what sports ...
The photograph is striking and beautiful, but also disturbing – a reminder that my love for John was often entangled in shame.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.In the spring of 1980, in Dunedin, shortly before his death, someone took a photograph ...
Get to know Babushka, our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Babu’s humans, Jo and Isabel, for their support. Dog name: Babushka (Babu for short) Age: 2Breed: Border Collie X poodleIf rescued, ...
Pacific Media Watch A Lebanese photojournalist who was severely wounded during an Israeli air strike in south Lebanon carried the Olympic torch in Paris this week in honour of her peers who have been wounded and killed in the field — especially in Gaza and Lebanon. Christina Assi of Agence ...
The first report in a five-part web series focused on the 15th Triennial Conference of Pacific Women taking place in the Marshall Islands this week.SPECIAL REPORT:By Netani Rika in Majuro Women continue to fight for justice 70 years after the first nuclear tests by the United States caused ...
Christopher Luxon has joined with Australia and Canada's leaders in voicing support for US President Joe Biden's ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The 2022 election brought the “teal wave” into parliament. The next election will test whether teals, who occupy what were Liberal seats, and other independents can maintain their momentum. Joining us on the Podcast ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Musgrave, Senior lecturer in Pharmacology, University of Adelaide Pixavri/Shutterstock A major Federal Court class action has been dismissed this week after Justice Michael Lee ruled there was not enough evidence to prove the weedkiller Roundup causes cancer. Plaintiff Kelvin ...
In The Week in Politics: politicians have to decide what to do about child abuse, Health NZ is booked in for major surgery and Darleen Tana returns. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Corbould, Associate Professor, Contemporary Histories Research Group, Deakin University Mainstream media are surprisingly muted at the prospect of the world’s most powerful nation being led for the first time by a woman – specifically a woman of colour, Vice President Kamala ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rebecca Bennett, PhD Student, Associate Research Fellow, Deakin University Last week, a drone delivery company called Wing (owned by Google’s parent company, Alphabet) started operating in Melbourne. Some 250,000 residents in parts of the city’s eastern suburbs can now order food from ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Foo, Lecturer, Physiotherapy, Monash University pikselstock/Shutterstock In the next 40 years in Australia, it’s predicted the number of Australians aged 65 and over will more than double, while the number of people aged 85 and over will more than triple. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katrina Grant, Research Associate, Power Institute for Arts and Visual Culture, University of Sydney Jonas Åkerström’s 1790 work, Session of the Accademia dell’Arcadia on August 17 1788.Nationalmuseum/Cecilia Heisser Ever wondered whether you’d have a better chance at winning an Olympic gold ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexandra Jones, Program Lead, Food Governance, George Institute for Global Health wavebreakmedia/Shutterstock On Thursday, Australian and New Zealand food ministers at state, federal and national levels met to thrash out what’s next for health star ratings on packaged foods. Now, after ...
The Abuse in Care report found many Pacific survivors lost their connections to their culture and language, resulting in trauma that has been carried from generation to generation. ...
In the regulatory review, ECC intends to suggest that ERO focus on curriculum delivery reviews rather than the Ministry, because it’s not efficient or effective to have two agencies with radically different approaches climbing over each other. ...
Te Rūnanga Nui o Ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori invites the current government to work in partnership with them to develop a pathway forward, including the development of a parallel pathway and meaningful policy and strategy for Kura Kaupapa Māori ...
If you haven’t started watching yet, Tara Ward begs you to reconsider. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. In the world of New Zealand reality television, we have many gems in our crown. There’s the delicious second season of the Celebrity Treasure ...
A new poem by Fiona Kidman. The clothes of the dead I did not keep my mother’s furry red beret for long nor the stringy scarves that adorned the necks of my aunts, although I have kept tag ends of gold, the rings and trinkets they wore, the brooches no ...
The government’s announcement that it will re-open the foreshore and seabed controversy by changing the rules on recognising centuries-old Māori customary title for a third time goes against the rule of law and New Zealand values,” Mr Tipa says. ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Lioness by Emily Perkins (Bloomsbury, $25) Roarrrr! Perkins’ brilliant, award-winning, Marian-Keyes anointed, darkly funny, long ...
The 2004 Act vested ownership of the foreshore and seabed in the Crown, extinguishing any Māori claims to ownership and causing widespread outrage and protests among Māori communities. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Antje Deckert, Associate Professor (Criminology), Auckland University of Technology Getty Images Despite the connection between institutional harm and gang membership made clear in this week’s mammoth royal commission abuse-in care report, the government seems unlikely to soften its “get tough on ...
From Lewis Clareburt in the swimming to the start of the rowing – the first seven days of Paris 2024 promise to be big for New Zealand. There are few events that bring the country together quite like an Olympic Games. Nothing quite matches the excitement of getting up in ...
Groundbreaking local science just showed up in the most surprising of places: the season finale of The Kardashians. In the season five finale of The Kardashians last night, several members of the family gathered together in one of their signature empty, cream-coloured rooms to hear test results that had been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Saikal, Emeritus professor of Middle Eastern and Central Asian Studies, Australian National University The Middle East is on the brink of a possibly devastating regional war, with hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah reaching an extremely dangerous level. Washington has engaged in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Elizabeth Eades, Rheumatologist, Monash University Lupus is an inflammatory autoimmune illness, where the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks itself. Lupus can affect virtually any part of the body, although it most commonly affects the skin, joints and kidneys. The symptoms ...
A law firm that specialises in working with survivors of abuse in State care is disappointed that the Government fails to recognise that its boot camps can be directly compared to previous boot camps from the 1990s and 2000s. ...
Dying is a natural part of life, like updating your Wof or seeing your hairdresser, but without the word-of-mouth recs that help guarantee a good service. What if we changed that? Dying Reviews received by The Spinoff have had the names of organisations redacted while Hospice NZ collects further data. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonti Horner, Professor (Astrophysics), University of Southern Queensland Mike Lewinski/Flickr, CC BY On any clear night, if you gaze skywards long enough, chances are you’ll see a meteor streaking through the sky. Some nights, however, are better than others. At ...
Despite having no bars or other designated spaces for lesbians, Auckland boasts a small but mighty lesbian museum. So how did it get here? The past 18 months has brought increasing hostility towards the queer community across Aotearoa. Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull’s anti-trans rally in Tamaki Makaurau last March led to a ...
Poneke Antifascist Coalition has invited Wellingtonians to stand in solidarity with the Kanak people at 12pm today outside the French Embassy in Wellington. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Layton, Visiting Fellow, Strategic Studies, Griffith University Drones are the signature technology of the Ukraine war. A few miniature aircraft designs were used in the war’s early days, but an incredible array of drones have now evolved. There are different types, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Slee, Associate Professor, Clinical Academic Neurologist, Flinders University Francisco Gonzelez/Unsplash Migraine is many things, but one thing it’s not is “just a headache”. “Migraine” comes from the Greek word “hemicrania”, referring to the common experience of migraine being predominantly ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lee White, Senior Lecturer and Horizon Fellow, School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Sydney Australia was slow to introduce minimum building standards for energy efficiency. The Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS) only came into force in 2003. Older homes ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Steven Sherwood, Professor of Atmospheric Sciences, Climate Change Research Centre, UNSW Sydney The past century of human-induced warming has increased rainfall variability over 75% of the Earth’s land area – particularly over Australia, Europe and eastern North America, new research shows. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Heynen, Program Coordinator, Sustainable Energy, The University of Queensland A temporary stadium in the Champ-de-Mars, ParisEkaterina Pokrovsky/Shutterstock As Paris prepares to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the sustainability of the event is coming under scrutiny. The organisers have promoted ...
A night of karaoke and community in a pub that feels like a memory. You’d barely even notice it, unless you knew to look. Tucked away behind a liquor store on busy Constable Street is the capital’s last great pub. Newtown Sports Bar is an emblem of the pub culture ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Wright, Professor in Marine Geology, University of Canterbury Louise Corcoran/Getty Images The decline in the number of doctoral candidates at New Zealand universities is a worrying sign for the country’s effort to build a knowledge-based economy. Aotearoa New Zealand’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laurie Berg, Associate Professor, University of Technology Sydney defotoberg/Shutterstock Migrant worker exploitation is entrenched in workplaces across Australia. Tragically, a deep fear of immigration consequences means most unlawful employer conduct goes unreported. On Wednesday, however, the government officially launched a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Vaughan Cruickshank, Senior Lecturer in Health and Physical Education, University of Tasmania Paris is about to host its third summer Olympics. While we don’t yet know what the legacy of this year’s games will be, let’s take the opportunity to reflect on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Hugh Breakey, Deputy Director, Institute for Ethics, Governance & Law, Griffith University In the wake of the assassination attempt on former US President Donald Trump, there were calls from bothsides of US politics, as well as internationally, to reduce the brutal, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Keith Rathbone, Senior Lecturer, Modern European History and Sports History, Macquarie University Two high-profile assaults on Australians in Paris have raised concerns about security ahead of the Olympic Games. On Saturday evening, a young woman was allegedly sexually assaulted by a ...
Dying is inevitable and, so it seems, is it costing a lot, writes Stewart Sowman-Lund in today’s extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here.The cost of dying ...
The government took Joyce Harris's first baby and sent her off to a girls' home. Half a century on - and out of oceans of hurt - it asked her to be a mother figure. ...
It’s the deadliest fictional town in the country, but which death has been the most bonkers? Alex Casey looks back at 10 seasons of The Brokenwood Mysteries to find out. Warning: The following ranking story contains famous New Zealand actors appearing to be dead (not alive). The Spinoff has been ...
Water cremation is the biggest thing to happen to the death industry in the last 100 years. Alex Casey meets the people trying to bring it to Aotearoa. Through a set of mirrored doors down the industrial end of Christchurch’s St Asaph Street, death is getting a new lease on ...
The News of the Day in a Flippant Way
The Panel, Radio New Zealand National, Tuesday 26 March 2013
Jim Mora, Anna Chinn, Bernard Hickey
It’s billed as “The News of the Day in a Different Way”, but in fact Radio NZ National’s chat show “The Panel” is rarely much different from the insultingly vulgar rubbish on commercial talk radio. Look at the way Jim Mora handles the horrifying first story here: it is typical of his approach to many issues. First there is the unctuous protestation of concern, then the flippant comment that betrays a lack of moral seriousness or substantial engagement with the issue….
JIM MORA: Okay it’s quarter to four, and Noelle McCarthy is here, with what the WORLD is talking about! What have you got for us today?
NOELLE McCARTHY: Well, first up is this terrible story from Texas, about a high school cheerleader who was kicked off the squad because she refused to cheer for the basketball player who raped her.
….[Mora is silent for several seconds, to emphasize how appalled he is.]
JIM MORA: [incredulous tone] How could this BE?
NOELLE McCARTHY: She has now been ordered to pay forty-five thousand dollars for “filing a frivolous lawsuit”.
MORA: But SURELY, this cannot BE. Mind you, the question has to be: why did she let herself get into this situation?
….Another long silence ensues, with Noelle McCarthy no doubt biting her tongue.….
MORA: Okay, what else have you got?
NOELLE McCARTHY: A Swedish firm has come up with the idea of letting people experience what it is like to be HOMELESS. They pay a twenty-dollar fee and they can sleep for a night on the street, or on a park bench or—-
MORA: [fervently] Oh now, surely, THIS is frivolous. SURELY….
….et cetera, et cetera, ad nauseam….
http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2011/05/06/164194/scotus-texas-cheerleader/?mobile=nc
“Radio NZ National’s chat show “The Panel” is rarely much different from the insultingly vulgar rubbish on commercial talk radio.”
This, a thousand times this.
How did he let himself get in that situation? Oh right, he raped.
Christ! Thanks Morrisey, these are always illuminating.
‘
When it comes to safety; As for coal industry tragedies, as it is for climate change. Prevention is better than cure.
“Mines Rescue presses ahead with expansion”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10873533
They should have done this before 29 men lost their lives
It seems a bit late in the piece to invest in such things now. After the deaths, the scandal, the economic uncertainty, the climate worries, the continuing pollution of air and water, all pointing toward the terminal decline of this industry.
The new safety training and rescue facility is available for other industries as well. So it won’t be a complete waste. Otherwise they would have just wasted $1 million on asbestos mine rescue, and dodo conservation.
Maybe the money would have been better, divested to the remaining 56 underground coal miners still remaining on the coast, to help them exit this dieing industry.
After all, prevention is better than cure.
Yeah Right
Over our dead bodies
This is the key bit…..
“that although there were now only 56 underground miners left on the Coast”
Right, it’s all open cast now – as Pike River should have been.
I am going to vote for a government which bans farming so as to turn all farmland back into native flora and fauna.
I think there were reasons why Pike River was not open cast. Something to do with it not being economical to move about 130m of solid rock from above the bits they wanted to get at.
This may be a new concept to you but the rest of us don’t actually want to destroy our environment.
‘
Above ground, or below ground, no one is safe
More deadly than asbestos. More poisonousness than uranium.
Coal kills minors
Coal Kills!
Kill Coal!
Jenny, chill. Coal is not more deadly than asbestos.
While it’s common sense to look after your environment, the issue has become as politicised as the threat of Al CIAda,
Really?
A report commissioned by the Climate Vulnerable Forum, a partnership of 20 developing countries threatened by climate change was released to the media in September 2012. The report concluded that:
The causes of this mega-death were listed as:
“A combined climate-carbon crisis is estimated to claim 100 million lives between now and the end of the next decade,” the report said.
Yesterday lots of people here banged on with solutions to the woes of our economy etc, with traditional formulae…”.if only we printed money”….”tax companies”…”create jobs”….etc etc etc . I said game up, whose phantom cash do you wish to spend on yourself? What chimera of reality? Orlov summed it up well for me this morning…
Quite a few people wrote to me over the past week asking about all the noise coming out of Cyprus. If you haven’t heard, there is a financial collapse that is unfolding there: banks are closed and people can’t get at their money. The Cypriot banks are insolvent. This is no surprise: all banks everywhere are insolvent, and would fail immediately were the various types of ongoing bailouts to suddenly stop. These bailouts include an ever-longer list of annoying financial jargon—liquidity injections, quantitative easing, toxic-asset-purchasing by central banks, accounting tricks such as “mark-to-fantasy,” which allows them to make bogus claims as to the value of their assets, yadda-yadda. The point is, the financial system failed in 2008, and stayed that way. The faulty formula behind all modern finance is debt raised to the power of time, and only works when there is exponential growth in economic activity and energy. Energy’s exponential growth stopped in 2005 due to resource depletion; three years later finance collapsed. Permanently. Since then we have been witnessing a global game of “extend and pretend,” which cannot be played indefinitely. If something can’t go on forever, it doesn’t.
http://cluborlov.com/
So who disagrees? Enjoy the cliff face or make your own plans.
The Global Finance sector needs cleaning out – shoot some Banksters like Jamie Dimon head of JP Morgan.
Things would improve a lot then.
[awaiting lprent]
Banksters are like mafiosos. Get read of the head man and another slides right into place. Need to pull the whole thing out by the root. Put an end to the debt based monetary system.
All money is fiat. No getting away from that and so we need rules governing it that essentially bring modern banking to an end. We may no longer have the banking sector but we will still need the economy and that’s where the government printing money comes in and even then I believe that will only be short term as, over time, we go to full democratic control of resources.
The monetary system doesn’t work. The Great Depression, the GFC and every other recession and depression of the last two or three centuries proves that it’s just that now it’s coming to its natural end and people are seeing the absolute BS that is being done by the politicians at seemingly the demand of business to prop it up at their expense and they’re getting pissed off with it. So what we need is a valid system and a vision of how that system works that can take us away from the inherent corruption of the capitalist system. Some of us are trying to build that system and vision.
Not all fiat currency is the same. Bitcoin redistributes wealth in a reasonably random fashion, unlike the system used by the banksters.
You are right we need to bring modern finance to an end….I suspect it will reach that point regardless. What follows who knows?
One reassuring thing to remember is that we have endured most of human trading history where transactions were not based upon cash….we traded one thing for another, no money. We may need to get that going again, and perhaps trade social “capital” as well as good.
It will get there regardless, it’s just a question of time.
An ideal opportunity to switch to an honourable currency.
How about this load of tosh contained in DOC’s press release about the savage cuts the conservation estate is going to experience:
If it contained any more buzzwords it would become a bee.
I just wish that the Government would use plain English.
This piece of fiction can be found at http://doc.govt.nz/about-doc/news/media-releases/doc-proposes-changes-to-increase-conservation/
I doubt there was ANYONE who believed Al Morrison DoC CEO when he spouted forth at his press conference – but maybe some people are still gullible !
Corporate gobble-de-gook… yuk! Do you think Al Morrison actually believes what he said?
I knew him a little bit in previous life.
Imo, no he doesn’t. He’s doing what he is very well-paid to do, and he is excelling in his profession – PR for whoever pays the piper.
Decrease the resources and the manpower that an organisation has available to it and there’s no way that they will be able to do the same work especially when that organisation is as hands on as DoC. On top of that they’re cutting the administrative staff – so who’s going to actually coordinate what the people in the field are doing?
No, this is just more of Nationals attack on the environment so as to improve the profits of their rich mates.
Reducing the wage gap between NZ & OZ http://m.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10873868 was just a snake oil pitch used to gain power for National in 2008. They formed a working group on the issue and then disbanded it when the groups recommendations were released. Salt to the wound is the recent introduction of the youth rates, which will drive the wage gap wider!
Vote these Tory barstards out!
At least it will get some young people in to work. Once things pick up again, then it can be changed.
“At least it will get some young people in to work.”
You mean into debt slavery/serfdom.
[awaiting lprent]
You don’t sit in the job forever. My first job was at bk on youth rates… I was there 10 months and never had those rates again.
It’s fine to start on.
So you think it’s fine to get paid youth rates once?
Ok you are a go getter & used it as a stepping stone which is great, however many people for varies reasons don’t get out of a low paying job.
Like many your being fooled as youth rates put downward pressure on adult rates also. If you applied for a job & were told the paying rate was the minimum adult rate, & you queried the rate as a bit below what you were expecting. The boss can put pressure back on you by saying I was thinking of taking on a younger person…take it or leave it. If you were unemployed & claiming a benefit the new welfare changes will see your entitlement to the dole axed for refusing to take a job opportunity.
Did you consider things like I’ve mentioned ?
People need to be able to pay their rent/bills etc. Youth rates will leave a lot of people unable to cover basic living expenses.
To endorse this is criminal. Plain and simple.
“Once things pick up again, then it can be changed.”
do you honestly think thats going to happen?
Yeah, just like the 90 day Fire at Will bill got people into work…
Oh, wait…
Well it did, actually. I hired because of it, my first employee at the time. Many of the businesses I look after have said the same.
what was stopping you specifying a trial period pre 90 day bill?
it was covered by legislation so completely legal and all that
In infused case, probably ignorance.
Most probably, and infused would be typical of many small business owners.
Enough nous to fill in a form, not enough to realise how to actually manage staff. So they think that trial periods are a new idea, the concept of “good faith” perplexes them, and they expect employees to carry the same risk as the manager but without the same reward.
It’s bigger business owners and executives who are the main problem.
Think of the shift “manager” at a standard Burger King. On less than $15/hr, in charge of half a dozen or more staff.
It’s a sick joke.
Let’s not argue about who sucks more.
They both suck – big businesses institutionalise all the abuses they can get away with, while small businesses have no idea what they are supposed to do or not do.
When people don’t have the resources available to make a difference because they’re all going to the rich few then they can’t actually do anything no matter how much they want to.
Hang on. I already have the beemer and the yacht.
Why should I spend then turn around and try and find ever more creative ways of ripping off my fellows, to make more money, when I have enough.
I prefer to spend my time helping make sure that everyone has the same opportunities I had.
And going sailing!
Both infused and KP avoided the original point – National pretended to be serious about closing the wage gap, but it was just a rouse from the start.
Labour desperately needs to get rid of Shearer.
Just give him 6 (or so) more months.
Even so, would he actually step down? I don’t think so some how.
CV is just repeating the kind of line from Shearer’s supporters who keep saying Shearer is improving and will come good soon – with CV’s tongue firmly in his cheek.
Ah right. too early for me. Need a coffee
Well, to be fair Shearer is improving in his media performances and framing. He’d be a more than capable Minister for a middling size portfolio in 2014.
He’s only barely improving. He looks to me like his press conferences are well rehearsed and he has to try and remember what it is he’s meant to say.
He’s improved from consistently disasterous to occasionally competent.
He’s better on talkback, but there’s just something about him. He sounds regressive, but it comes across really ‘try hard’. Like someone said a long time ago, he’s not being himself, and it’s obvious.
Key does so well, because his ‘laid back’ approach is him being himself. It’s not forced like Shearer.
Meh dunno about that, Key always seems like he’s forcing it too.
Thing is everyone expects him to be a phoney salesman, so his phoney schtick just comes across as “being himself” anyway.
So how do you save 50 million lives with one half eaten mango skin any way?
The standard neo-liberal way – the magical market will provide.
No they don’t, they need to keep him where he is. I’d also suggest promoting T. Mallard and C. Curran and give them as much air time as possible.
I’ve maintained for a while that Labour (since 1984) is National’s natural coalition partner… perhaps Labour is doing what it has to to ensure National return to power in 2014? Damn… should’ve seen it earlier!
Labour has had 54 months and counting…….
http://www.cbs6albany.com/news/features/top-story/stories/state-500-reward-turning-illegal-gun-owners-7024.shtml
Think this could happen here?
nah, not really needed here. Lots of NZers report criminals with no expectation of reward.
It was good to hear this morning that the government has thrown the Ombudsman a bone with funding for 6 new lawyers. Of course, it would be cheaper if organisations were a bit more open with information.
yep. they gotta recruit them now; overwhelmed with a backlog of files.
Corporate manslaughter Bill already on the cards
Surely if large numbers are involved then large numbers need to be held accountable. Yes, some will be more accountable than others but everyone involved in a project that causes death needs to be held responsible.
DTB… You’re mixing up responsibility and accountability. Accountability lies at the top… the CEO and/or Board (or Minister with Government bodies). Responsibility can be shared.
And more mining on conservation land:-
Failed to consult the people though.
umm iwi are comprised of people too
but you are correct in that the consultation with iwi is a sham much like the approach used in yesteryear
http://mars2earth.blogspot.co.nz/2013/03/killing-me-softly-with-his-song.html
The way I read it was that they asked the iwi leaders and the councils but didn’t even think of asking the people.
perhaps iwi leaders who might agree with them I suspect. Sorry didn’t mean to be pedantic.
If it shifts us that bit closer to understanding then it’s not a prob.
Ah, I thought it came from the Shearer faction.
I gather that the use of the rack is now being officially discouraged.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/expanding-guantanamo/5328583
A penal colony on an outlying island near an Australian refugee camp, perhaps – without an internet connection ?
Don’t laugh, someone is bound to take it seriously.
[lprent: Off topic – moved to OpenMike. ]
What do you reckon conspiracy theorists?
http://beforeitsnews.com/strange/2013/03/5-mississippi-lawmakers-die-in-months-pro-agenda-21-legislator-jessica-upshaw-found-dead-of-gunshot-wound-2447982.html
I reckon it’s a bunch of bullshit myself, but still more likely than all ya’ll ‘spree shooter was a false flag’ malarky.
The 38 year old state prosecutor pressing investigating charges against the 2002 Venezuelan coup leaders was killed by a remote controlled car bomb in 2004.
Due to the nature of the death you can’t run your skeptics ‘tin foil hat’ argument, in that particular case.
A few days ago, the chief of Colorado’s prison system was shot dead as he opened his front door. Nothing was taken from his body.
There are lots of ways to send political messages, some of them not very nice at all. With very highly skilled people well trained and available to take such actions. And they are used.
So?
Would make a good movie.
Sandy Hook malarky?!? Is that your name for when the coroner and the judiciary suppress information and standard procedures for a mass casualty incident are disregarded? Or does it describe the appearance of the response units before the initial shooting takes place?
Yeah, that’s the one.
But what do you think of the thing I linked to?
http://www.globalresearch.ca/false-flags-fake-media-reporting-deceiving-the-public-social-engineering-and-the-21st-century-truth-emergency/5325982
🙂
You’ll like this…maybe
http://www.whaleoil.co.nz/2013/03/so-who-are-the-notorious-bloggers-then/
The net is an ever shifting place with a lot of sites that we have links to and a ever changing set of “problem site” references. Hell I have seen the Granny come up on one of those blockers.
There are several reasons that could be happening. A likely reason is that the block is manual and they put sites with a lot of traffic on it and few people in NZ actually read Whaleoil (and they do read KB and TS). From the type of content he has been posting recently, it appears to be mostly orientated towards picking up international page views and visitors. It is what you do when you want to drive ad revenue.
However, in this case I suspect it is a differnet cause. Google sitemaps last week informed me of a problem on an early post from 2007 that had a iframe in it linking to wp-stats.com page that has recently been tagged for having malware on it. The iframe looks like some kind of mistake in a plugin dropping into the post. But I scanned the database for the entire rest of the site and didn’t find another iframe apart from some old youtude and vimeo embedds. Was fixed on the weekend.
It will now take some time to clear out of all of the reference sites that read off google’s problem post list.
A likely reason is that the block is manual and they put sites with a lot of traffic on it and few people in NZ actually read Whaleoil.
– Lol
Well, there are a couple of alternative possibilities.
One is that Cameron’s blog is considered less offensive than thestandard or kiwiblog. Another is that Cameron likes to play silly games by making complaints about other blogs.
But clearly both of those are absurd.
One is that Cameron’s blog is considered less offensive than thestandard…might be onto something there
Few if any of the blockers consider complaints about content apart from malware any more because of silly buggers complaining. The only ones that do are the ones that cater for kiddie blockers or corporate download issues like porn or traffic volumes – and they all do their own checks before they believe a complaint.
As childish as I find Whaleoil to be, it is unlikely he would pass a kiddie site filter.
We don’t have porn and the only way that we’d cause traffic problems is with obsessive reading because we don’t have much on download.
So I think you’re deluding yourself. It is most likely the malware link that google found in a 5 and a half year old post. It wouldn’t surprise me if Kiwiblog has the same kind of issue. WP_stats was around and used by many sites because it gave some good stats on who wrote comments.
Less offensive to RWNJs, perhaps.
“One is that Cameron’s blog is considered less offensive than thestandard…might be onto something there”
Only if you’re not offended by sexism, racism, homophobia, and religious intolerance.
But apart from that, yeah probably.
As opposed to occasional threats of violence you get on here…
Occasional, yes, and usually jumped on by other commenters or mods, compared to the near constant threats of violence at Cameron’s site which are such a normalised part of the culture there that you probably don’t even see it anymore.
I can quite easily say there are more realistic threats of violence and abuse on this site in comparison to whaleoil
However on this site threats of violence are condoned and justified, if they’re from the left.
“Hes passionate” or blaming the govt is a good one “what do you expect the reaction to be when the govt does…”
Link to example comments where a threat of violence has been issued… And please these have to be actual threats of violence. I’m afraid that being called a dickhead doesn’t qualify.
I suspect that you are confusing it with abuse (as in your first paragraph) which isn’t controlled apart from “pointless abuse” which has a specific meaning in the policy and attacking authors which is also in the policy. The rules for left or right are exactly the same – there is no cordoning.
The only real difference between how people are treated by moderators is a question of repeated behaviour and previous good behaviour. Basically if you’re a newbie on site or have a history of causing us to warn or ban you, then your probability of getting abrupt or harsh treatment goes up a lot. Newbies to a site should always learn the rules of the site, and wasting moderator time makes us grumpy – both forewarned in the policy.
r0b is pretty damn clear on what he considers to be threats and deals with them abruptly, as do I if I see them. They seem to have disappeared since he started banning heavily for uttering them.
You’re a bit of a knob, Chris.
What threats have you seen here that made you fear for your own or the safety of someone else?
Surely an ex boot camp, toy soldier like you should be looking right past piddle on the internet.
Although it seems odd to me that the economic violence of throwing whole families out of their homes into the street, destroying peoples dignities and self respect, doesn’t count to the Right as being “violence”.
You’re absolutely deluded. WhaleSpew is full of exhortations to violence, gutshots, police dogs to be used on protestors, anal rape for prisoners, police to use Glocks on almost everyone……….
Not to mention the great grub himself carrying on about how physically tough he is, which he proves by calling ten year olds dumb.
The fact that they’re just masturbatory fantasies by net jockeys doesn’t make them any less offensive.
I can’t remember seeing anything remotely comparable here.
Some sanity?.
http://crookedtimber.org/2013/03/19/economists-and-the-theory-of-politics/
abstract:
The standard approach to policymaking and advice in economics implicitly or explicitly ignores politics and political economy, and maintains that if possible, any market failure should be rapidly removed. This essay explains why this conclusion may be incorrect; because it ignores politics, this approach is oblivious to the impact of the removal of market failures on future political equilibria and economic efficiency, which can be deleterious. We outline a simple framework for the study of the impact of current economic policies on future political equilibria — and indirectly on future economic outcomes. We then illustrate the mechanisms through which such impacts might operate using a series of examples. The main message is that sound economic policy should be based on a careful analysis of political economy and should factor in its influence on future political equilibria.
Interesting. I’m reading their book Why Nations Fail at the moment. I’m only a couple of chapters in, and it seems like they’re economists who are trying to save their academic discipline from irrelevance as a social science by throwing in a theory of politics to bolster it. They have huge dislike of the imbalance of power and opportunities for greed in extractive regimes.
So far I’ve been thinking that if they’re going to go down that road they can only but become more left wing in their thinking. Good to see that might be the case. Unions would fit their theory because it’s all about the strength and balance of institutions in holding back the exploiters – and they’re right in that traditional economics doesn’t deal with this very well.
“Housing shortages in ChCh, yet commercial construction permits up.”
RNZ- Sexual assault convictions have risen by 30% over last 5 years. (Collins reckons this is due to increased reporting based on increased confidence in police process.) Yet, only 10% of victims report such assaults to police.
According to “award-winning” MSM columnist Eva Bradley, the new fashion trend for young women is “Skank” and today I read an editorial that identifies the “thigh gap” as the new “must have” body image requirement of young women keeping up with the Kardashians. *sigh*.
…same as it ever was…same as it ever was…watching the days go by…Once In A Lifetime…water flowing underground (read today that the underground gas they want to extract round these here parts is often so close to the aquifiers that a lighted match near a flowing water tap can produce a glow.
*Sigh #2*
Here’s acool thying on the gun control debate that some have been talking about:
http://www.cracked.com/article_20396_5-mind-blowing-facts-nobody-told-you-about-guns.html
Yeah, Cracked magazine, but yeah, it’s good.
That was very good – thanks Pb
Loved these lines, “This is what people who aren’t from America, or who grew up somewhere like Portland or whatever, don’t get: America’s love of guns in most cases has nothing to do with actually using them. It’s all about what they symbolize. And what they symbolize is God, and cocks.”
Some interesting points, especially how overall gun deaths are down and dropping.
laugh.
Dunno why’d you’d find that to be the especially interesting part. Haven’t you been banging on about that all week?
What did you think about the ads that pretty clearly show that the target market has insecurities in the penis related area?
Or the fact that owning a gun is the biggest risk factor for suicide?
The other thing I found fascinating was the gas oven and bridge barriers thing. Delay the impulse fulfilment by a few seconds or minutes, and they don’t usually make another attempt.
and that stuff about the spree-shooters really dispelled the old ‘false flag’ bullshit I thought
Why did you think that Marty ?
the analysis of the columbine shooters fitted with what I think the situation is – that they are either mad, bad or sad rather than employed by a quasi-government department to sow seeds of panic and wreck destruction on innocent people
Parliament today
Question time a debacle with the Speaker’s performance abysmal, resulting in Mallard and Hipkins having to leave.
And now Judith Collins in General Debate has just referred to Eddie’s post on the internal Labour Caucus positions. And tried to ‘out’ Eddie as being a female who works for the EPMU….
The Virulent Judith Collins had a field day after Question Time, leaning heavily on Eddie’s homework which fitted in so well with the National Agenda. Saved Judith Collins a lot of work. Well done Eddie.
The buck stops with Team Shearer, because of mismanagement of the caucus.
PS: As for Collins, which National faction does she lead again, and who is in her faction?
yes, QT was a joke indeed;
talk about a “spinning top”; That Speaker is turning the House into a farce Indeed, in front of the “international guests” he referred to; nothing like the children playing up in front of invited company! (put me off me Merlot Pinotage it did).
Collins calls “Mr Robinson” (a slip methinks), and then the TS ammo; oh well, interesting to establish the link between the “woman” Eddie, the EPMU and Little. *sigh*; even the normally composed Metiria shook her head…
still, try to remember, Lest We Forget (John), NZ’s International Liabilities as a % of GDP, with the government / public component increasing under National.
The Ghost Rider does enjoy that Michael Woodhouse though…
+1 Karol.
Hopefully she’ll be the next leader of National (and of course the country)
The last thing we need is a poor man’s Maggie Thatcher.
Come on ian – all the labour mp’s had to do was issue individual, or a collective press release detailing that they weren’t in the faction described or that there were in fact no factions, or different ones, and the whole thing would have stayed as a molehill and not be used against them – sheesh mate political knife-fighting 101.
I dunno.
A collective press release in denial gives Eddie’s post the credibility of having to be denied.
Personally I might have gone more for the “If the minister believes everything she reads on the internet, how much money does her department spend on tinfoil hats?” response.
I was being facetious but good point you making are.
btw – have you and rhino sorted it out yet I haven’t been over to that thread to check yet.
Ah. lol 🙂
re:rhino – Nah. S/he’s probably busy at work or something. I kind’ve figured if we didn’t sort it there the months-old argument would be rehashed somewhere else. Apologies to Eddie – between Collins crowing and us two, their analysis has been detracted from, imo. Even if the names of members and some of the labels might be widened, it’s probably a fair reflection of the policy/personality pressures within labour and other left wing parties.
I suspect national is a more complex beast of patronage and rural/urban pressures.
Oh please, if Labour sorted itself out and got a decent leader Eddie wouldn’t have written his piece. The presence of Shearer, Mallard, and others at the top of the party is what saves Collins a lot of work, not anything written here.
With this comment you have clearly proven that you are a Priest at the Temple of Cunliffe.
I’m even Facebook friends with him, but I’m glad to see your idea of proof is at least consistent.
I imagine the following scenario: if Mana and the Greens both won 20 seats, who on Eddie’s list would be prepared to form a coalition with National in the interests of “national unity”? I’m pretty sure Cunliffe wouldn’t be. For all his attachment to tinkering with capitalism, I think he believes he can tinker with it in favour of the workers. Most of them see their mission as tinkering with the workers in the interests of capitalism.
Everything would be rosy for Labour if only The Standard was like Red Alert!
Is that it ianmac?
We would not be at the same level in the polls, for th past 5 years, were it not for The Standard?
We would have a united and motivated party if only those Standinistas went back to the Alliance Party?
Is that it ianmac?
Shearer would have broad support and be widely respected if only LPrent was more like Mike Smith?
Is that it ianmac?
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10873858
Seems private run prisons aren’t so bad after all…
http://norightturn.blogspot.co.nz/search?q=private+prison
After reading that article I’d take what was said with a truck load of salt.
So you reckon they should privatise the army? Perhaps the police?
oh, and don’t forget the NZLast MP reminding us of the Morning Report on sex-work in South Auckland; 13 years of age and Six Hundy a night (at least some family member or associate ain’t riding for free). and, and, she helpfully pointed out that 30% of Auckland sex-workers are Chinese; you don’t say! Yummy!
The last 11 mins of question time today in which Speaker Carter loses his rag: http://inthehouse.co.nz/node/17831
Andrew Little is an angry little man
Yep. Doesn’t mean he’s wrong though.
Carter is thick as pigshit, wrong about everything, and an angry little man.
Judith Collins has something though…
yeah, a comb-over her forehead.(though definite in Black and White)
Really? What?
Lifetime membership to the Dark Side?
A soul so tarnished she’d be rejected by hell?
A letter from “A. H. in Argentina” suggesting she “chillax a bit, it’s nicht worth it, ja?”
Actual skeletons in the closet?
Love It Flockie (whats with you and Rhinocrates; jest or joust? clear that you both have Very fast minds, though I haven’t bothered “clocking” the comments) 🙂
Judith Collins has something though…
yep. An empty place where her apology and retraction from Mallard and Little was supposed to be.
A certain je ne sais quoi, her husbands a lucky man…
“… her husbands a lucky man…”
He will be the guy with all the bruises.
It’s not only Collins as to whom/which you don’t know stuff Chris but really, that comment is offensive. Were I her husband, and I presume she retains the one she had years ago, (big burly Polynesian ex-cop turned lawyer and a genuinely decent man), I’d be pissed off !
In light of your nonsense about threats of violence on TS you’d better not tell us that you’d kill for a piece of the likes of her.
In that case Chris, and according to your own “standards” (lol), I’d have to denounce you not only as a sex beast but also as a violent sex beast.
.
Yeah she would have the same infections that other sewer rats carry.
Is she Slaters mother?
A front bum where her cock should be is what I imagine JT would say.
furthermore, if that is a demonstration of the political “class” in this country, might as well start hewing rice terraces into Kahuranaki now, oh wait, not enough water; Beaujolais anyone?
The Al1en …
27 March 2013 at 4:47 pm
You’re a bit of a knob, Chris.
What threats have you seen here that made you fear for your own or the safety of someone else?
Surely an ex boot camp, toy soldier like you should be looking right past piddle on the internet.
You’re a bit of a bell-end, The Allen.
Nowhere did I say I was worried about the safety of myself or others however to back up my point about threats on this site
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-02032013/#comment-598141
“If you tried to sack me for joining a union I would kick the shit out of you where you stand, And I would take plesuare in it”
“Do you want to Americanise heath care. I am warning you, I will come for you if you do. I will come for you. I will kick the shit out of you 10 times over you mean nasty horrible person. All those poor and working people and unionists you denigrate will cheer me on and probably join in.”
“The best thing to happen to Thatcher is for a gunman to splatter her brains over the 10 Downing Street door.”
“Pity those IRA guys didnt succed is blowing her to bits. Would have saved a lot of UKers from the misery you wanted imposed on them.”
“Addison, if you even think about banning unions and Americanising our health care, I will, come for you.”
“You nasty fascist cunt. You should have your head kicked in for that.”
“Im sick of people who want to lock up unionists and bring back slavery. They derserve to be strung up with piano wire”
Probably more but thats probably enough to get my point across. I will concede it was from one person, though some people agreed with him (and others didn’t)
[lprent: Is that what you describe as ‘condoning’ – pointing to a single commentator who regularly gets warnings and has spent extended periods banned for it. I notice that you skipped the dates and links. Probably because having someone sprouting crap with weeks or months between (often because they are banned) instances doesn’t exactly follow your thesis.
FFS are you really so stupid that you can’t recognize yourself sprouting a myth? Silly nutters standing around telling each other tales and never bothering to check. ]
Sorry I missed this link as well
http://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/2012/01/hate-mongering.html
we all know millsy is over the top, down the hill, and up the other side but that is just bigbad talk which I’m sure you’ve heard enough of over the years – hardly credible enough for you to say, “I can quite easily say there are more realistic threats of violence and abuse on this site in comparison to whaleoil” – that statement is just not true.
btw – there have been a lot more piano wire ones which is weird because keyboards are the rage and have been for a while now.
Well that maybe but his views are tolerated if not down right encouraged.
Bullshit chris, he regularly gets banned for those sort of comments.
On Cameron’s site they would be so commonplace as to go unnoticed.
In fact lol of lols, the very comments you quoted got him banned.
And you linked to it you fucking numpty. Do not pass go do not collect $200.
I find your wet dream fantasies of Collins as PM far more offensive.
Why don’t you go chat with the mirror some more or go back home to whalespew.
You have every right to be offended as I have every right to state what I feel. What a great society we live in that we can have differing views aired out in public.
” What a great society we live in that we can have differing views aired out in public.”
Collins will put an end to that.
Attractive woman that Collins.
She could whip me any day.
Hey look, chris – offensive bullshit.
B(DS)M,
Attractiveness comes from within, Collins is full of highly toxic pus.
Unsweetened cranberry juice.
Millsy, ha,ha he’d be as weak as old woman wees.
If you got in his face, I’m betting he’d piss his pants.
I saw a picture of him on the interwebs, he’s a chubby four eyed chappie, couldn’t intimidate a mouse if he tried.
I sort of know him in real life (kind of) or rather people who know me also know him…sort of, which is why he doesn’t try to threaten me.
“….which is why he doesn’t try to threaten me.”
This is also a threat, subtle but a threat nevertheless.
So you unprompted, linked to comments from someone you think you know and who has not threatened you, to show how there are lots of threats on this site – that’s called a fail chris.
Years ago Chris — on another internet forum.
“You’re a bit of a bell-end, The Allen.”
Been called worse, but go on…
“Nowhere did I say I was worried about the safety of myself or others however to back up my point about threats on this site”
So you’re having a little cry about nothing. Those threats you allude to, that you aren’t really worried about, can’t be that bad then.
Those ‘threats’ you quote, apart from number two and five, which are a bit weird = no problem.
Merely pointing out why, and with examples, this site is as bad as and sometimes worse than whaleoils (yes I realize I’m speaking heresy)
[lprent: I would described it as simple lying myself. But I guess you came directly from Whale so I guess we could be generous and just describe as stupid gullibility of someone listening to a congenital liar. Just look at who he has asserted our authors are in real life.. ]
No, you’re speaking bullshit.
You haven’t yet pointed to anything that would even stand out on Cameron’s site. And the examples you did point to got the commenter banned.
” (yes I realize I’m speaking heresy)”
Felix has already marked your card.
“Merely pointing out why, and with examples, this site is as bad as and sometimes worse than whaleoils”
No, you’re not, and just like most soldiers, you’re still a tool. 😆
Tools are useful, are you?
“Tools are useful”
Depends on how one imparts values on a tool.
You believe they are useful, where as I’d have written they have a use. Almost the same, but not quite.
Trust me, mr conditioned, you can let your belly and chest flop out and down now, and you don’t have to polish your shoes until you see your twin heads in them all stood to attention.
“are you?”
That all depends on how you’re defining useful. 😉
stuff you don’t read on Stuff
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/mar/26/north-korea-combat-mode-targets-us
Eurozone, becoming a “zombie zone”
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/mar/26/europes-flesheaters-threaten-to-devour-all
Return of The Reich (a “German Europe”)
http://www.businessspectator.com.au/article/2013/3/27/economy/crisis-and-making-german-europe
(schnitzel anyone?)
The France 24 Debate a few days ago had a commentator (Thomas Klau – Head of the Paris Bureau, European Council on Foreign Relations) who made similar points about Germany’s role in the Eurozone crisis as the last of your links. One comment he made really caught my attention – that for historic reasons a Europe perceived as having the authority for Eurozone issues looking like they are coming out of Berlin was not a good things for Europe or for Germany!
His view was that the issue for the Eurozone is that there is no Government body directly answerable to the citizenry – as he expressed it “someone electable, who is then ejectable”. It means it makes decisions on things like the Cyrus bailout look like it is being made by bureaucrats behind closed doors and citizens have no recourse to hold them accountable.
I like a lot of what Costas Lapavitsas was saying though – really challenging the orthodoxy of the “solutions” to this Global Depression.
As an aside I prefer France 24 (in English – my French isn’t good enough!) to any of the other cable news providers – including BBC and Al Jazeera. They give a different perspective from the usual suspects.
Edited for clarity 😈
Indeed! 🙂
I am getting a bit sick of the Berlin and Germany focus of the blame to be laid for Cyprus, Spain, Greece, Italy and so forth. It was a problem with the way the common Euro currency was designed and introduced, not something that happened in Germany that brought it all about. Others assented and agreed, and the Greeks were overly keen to join.
So this is crap populism, especially comparing Merkel with Hitler and stuff. Hey, get some real info and learn what really happened, perhaps. I do not hit out at you as commenter, but the media and others are blind on one eye.
Every country involved made mistakes and has to carry some shit.
It is disgusting to blame Germany for every thing.
All debt is subordinate primarily to German creditors. Including French, Italian, Greek, Spanish debt.
Don’t think that this is by accident, or that Germany has not been exporting its manufacturing unemployment to other countries using the Eurozone as a mechanism.
Also notice that Merkel is pushing the hardline on Eurozone defaulters…because she has elections to face in a few months.
Yes, this has been a phenomenon which has come from the Eurozone’s intrinsic design. A design which said that capital could move freely across every border, and where sovereign governments no longer had any say over the value of their own currency. The engineering firms of Greece had to compete on the same terms as the engineering firms of Germany. Guess who the loser in such a fight was.
Yes, the governments of these countries got short term highs from voluntarily signing up to the Eurozone. But its the ordinary people of those same countries suddenly realising that they’ve had to wake up with very bad hangovers. Where are the leaders who originally signed their peoples up to this pact? Staying very quiet and out of the way, I notice.
“All debt is subordinate primarily to German creditors. Including French, Italian, Greek, Spanish debt.”
Sorry, CV, the European banking network and the interwoven creditor and debtor dependencies are actually quite a bit more complex and diverse than what you imply here.
Like the French banks have a lot more in Greek and Spanish bonds on their books than German banks. And while some banks in Spain are rotten and about to fold, others are still fairly stable and healthy.
It was not some evil design that came out of Berlin, and there are not secret string pullers in Berlin, that hold Europe to ransom. I agree that Merkel has a fair bit to answer to, and there are other politicians in Germany, especially in the opposition SPD and Green parties, that follow a different approach to Merkel and her government, which is more in line with what Hollande in France may also wish to follow.
I was thinking of the average man and woman in the streets of Nikosia, Athens or Madrid or Rome, holding up pictures of Merkel with a swastika on her chest. That is stupid ignorant populism there. And it must be accepted that certain governments in Greece and Italy especially have some responsibility for the present situation. Berlusconi gave tax cuts to his supporters and let the finances stay too much in the red at the same time.
Now is the NZ government not doing something similar at present?
“Yes, this has been a phenomenon which has come from the Eurozone’s intrinsic design. A design which said that capital could move freely across every border, and where sovereign governments no longer had any say over the value of their own currency. The engineering firms of Greece had to compete on the same terms as the engineering firms of Germany.”
As for the Euro, it ran into trouble (once the GFC sped up the process) due to every country in the Eurozone and EU still running their own finance, taxation, social, internal economic and other differing regulatory systems.
One currency necessitates to also introduce the same fiscal and some other policies (primarily economic) to make the one currency system function.
Allowing different countries to follow different policies in such areas, and also having very differing economic and social realities to face, yet take advantage of the same low interest rates to take up credit, this led to distortions, which now have come back to bite in certain countries like Greece, Spain, Portugal and increasingly Italy. Cyprus is a special case, and it stuffed up due to some exposure to the Greek banking system, also having attracted deposits from other foreign sources, by running a banking system inviting tax evaders from Russia and so forth.
You cannot have one common economic zone and especially not one common currency, and at the same time quite different taxation, fiscal, economic and other policies in member countries.
Marx’s Revenge: How Class Struggle Is Shaping the World
The evidence grows daily – Marx was right about capitalism.
This raises an important point. Thirty-five percent, mainly the upper middle class have been improving their lot. That’s quite a big chunk of the middle class with a vested interest in the status quo. Often these people are richer than they could have imagined themselves to be. There are a disproprtionate number of baby boomers in this statistic.
And most will fight for every last designer kitchen fitting.
We also might need to start talking households, not voters, when it comes to political economic income brackets (which is what you might have done above? Top 35% of households probably have an annual income of $85K and up).
For instance, if I earn fuck all income but my corporate exec spouse pulls in an income in the high $200K range. I’m going to be counted in the bottom 10% of earners (sub $15K pa). But I’m not going to be struggling in poverty and the people I socialise with are not going to be unwashed losers. My voting patterns will be influenced accordingly.
That’s a very good point CV. There are a lot of wealthy people with partners earning a huge whack, but whose household income is no reflection of the comparative ‘pin money’ they bring in themselves. Their own personal income may be going backwards but their household income is steaming ahead.
I’m often struck by the relatively large numbers of people who live very comfortably – huge houses, flash baches, overseas hols etc., and I’ve been puzzled about why their numbers aren’t entirely reflected in income stats.
Would you take the test?
And NACT are following this prescription.
Anyone note the gliding swagger of Commissioner of Police Marshall on 3 News tonight, in the lift lobby of the Beehive I think. Bedecked in more fruit salad than a Jakarta hotel carpark attendant !
Refusing to comment on the appallingly grave miscarriage of justice in the Teina Pora case. When asked whether he would resign were the obvious to be exposed there was the hint of a Freudian stammer. In unmistakeable contrast to the glide. The Teina Pora case is huge and he clearly knows it.
But, the underlying morality betrayed by the stammer was quickly rectified by the crushed car vixen Madame Tolley who quickly got things back on track with – “it’s not a good look…..”, “decided in the media……” , “blah blah blah”.
You bet it’s not a good look, privileged, mutton-dressed-up-as-lamb worse than Shitley cow ! A 17 year old, I’d suspect illiterate (then) kid, used as an ingredient in a police “cook-a- cake-of- your-choice” exercise for which no doubt the very senior police personnel involved were lauded to Kingdom Come.
20 years in the slammer poor little bugger.
Good to see Toryana and Peter exercised about the boy. They might finally prove of some worth. Pity it took the destruction of a young man’s life.
John Key, please, please don’t let Chris 73’s self-gratification fodder Judy Collins anywhere near the compensation issue.
Cyprus youth rise up. They’ve figured out their ‘elders and betters’ have screwed their futures, permanently.
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-03-26/cypriot-youth-rise-pictures-they-just-got-rid-all-our-dreams
Notice one of the photos there where the salutes look very much like seig heils.
Give it a few more years, Europe’s history is coming back.
I wander if the anger in Cyprus begins to have a feedback loop to Greece? It will be interesting to see if the protests in Greece continue again after the latest wave in February and early March.
To be fair they’re holding up their hands because they have ‘NO’ written on their palms.
However, yeah, a re-run of Germany in the ’30s somewhere else is a scary prospect and all too likely if political/bureaucratic decisions inflicting joblessness, increasing wealth divisions within and between nations, and hopelessness in the general population aren’t changed soon.
While I wrote the post above I had a weather-eye on “3rd Degree” on TV3.
A debate ??? What alot of shit ! In part at least a bunch of wannabee TV celebrities-in-training with Garner, the lisping wee Gee-On, and the perennial yet newly-careered “lawyer” Linda Clark.
They’ll have graduated and be on “Afternoons With Jimmy” within a month.
Still, all of the above said, I give real heartfelt thanks to 3rd Degree for its Teina Pora investigation.
What’s happened to that poor guy is absolutely disgusting. Any police involved in this carriage of injustice should have to do time equal to what they got him sentenced to.
It’s Official: There Is a Money Tree
Same applies to the RBNZ. Now just need to the politicians of the left (the ones on the right will only ever have the country borrowing from their rich mates) to realise it.
Damn the misleading headlines this week.
First it was “Collins in jail” – turned out to be some rugby player
Then it was “Farewell to Gerry” – turned out to be Marsden
Next it was “Labour MP’s kicked out” but it was only the speaker throwing a tantrum not the party.
Food stamp debit cards stop welfare being used for alcohol and cigarettes
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2013/mar/26/payment-cards-emergency-assistance-food-stamps
Got to love the UK Tories. Bash a few more bennies.
Best thing is to just provide soup kitchens and poor houses, that way you know exactly what the bennies are doing and spending every minute of the day