A creativity competition – to start the day with both humor and a bit of financial meat.
Please excuse my legal terms, but are the folk here aware of the orthodox or neo-liberal octopusy of dildos that blocks all innovation around fiscal and financial control? (Well covered in the book “The FIRE Economy”)
Who has the most creative excuse for “Emergency Powers” for our next Minister of Finance?
(Sorry, but this is the only realistic way we can save the country – the otherwise required changes to the labyrinth of Finanical and Fiscal Acts would take decades.)
“Tsunami from falling house prices.” Seems the most obvious. But requires QE to finally implode, or hit the wall in the European Courts. But lets not risk that slow death and warming wars. Lets think quick.
How about this?
“Loss of photosynthesis leads to agricultural collapse, as house prices block the sun!”
“The new Govt declares a national disaster and emergency powers are handed to the new Minister of Finance, Gareth Huges! A break through in NZ politics, creating the first every fully tele-scripted ministerial position. A team of real economics hide in bunkers and gently guide house prices in for landing”
(We could also give the Finance Minister the secondary roll of Minister of Beach Cricket, which they could safely manage from the Bay of Islands.)
Ecoterrorism is the obvious scare claim for the flailing right – grants them extraordinary powers and demonizes the part of the left that really frightens them.
A wise warning Stu, but hope you’re not hinting that I’m flat-earth and fascism – Riddle me this:
Fly around a globe East,
Return from the West, right?
Fly around our globe left,
You return as Roger Douglas, right?
Just values, left on the ground,
The plane never took flight.
How shall Ardern’s values take their flight?
Financial innovation, but that’s out of her sight?
Coming in on a Westerly, not politically from the right.
It’s values-based centre,
That’s due to take flight,
Around this globe,
Even in the dark of night.
Bennett is my first pick too Ed. There’s been rumours floating around about her solo mum days for a long time now. And here we are only 4 weeks out from an election and the Deputy PM seems to have gone to ground.
I have come to the conclusion that the mention of Royal Flush, in the context of “explosive convulsions” in this election so far, is a reference to adding to the collection of party leaders who have stepped down. i.e.
I guess it depends on how much he was overpaid by. From 2010 to 2017 is a seven year period, so it could be a fair bit of money he was overpaid by WINZ. Newshub broke the news, link below …
From reading the item Peters didn’t seem too happy about being contacted by media and at first more or less told the journalist he wasn’t going to discuss it at the present time. Then decided (probably after a few words with his spin doctor) to contact the media himself and give ‘his side’ of the story.
You’d think, being in his position, Peters would be fully aware of what his super payments should be. After all, most super recipients know what they are paid each fortnight!
According to Newshub the story is still unfolding … “more to come.”
Be interesting what is released tomorrow, whether or not this is the #motherofallscandals, or there is something else out there!
Agree.
The Winnie thing plays straight to the nats- the greens on the ropes, any hit to nz first in terms of votes likely go to national, and labour runs out of running mates.
Dirty politics 101.
Fortunately looks like a pretty lame ” scandal” so far. Desperation?
Most super recipients know what they are paid each fortnight. Most super recipients don’t get what Winston gets by automatic payment from Parliament.
Many super recipients would have the money go into their bank account and never check, it started, it keeps going in, it happens and keeps happening. And, I’d proffer, a lot have an idea of ‘sort of’ how much it is but the actual amount they wouldn’t know.
A lot getting super are on the bones of their arse and know about every dollar. For a helluva lot it’s just money going in.
Is Nationals modus operandi to neglect our country and our people, and then come election time to offer solutions to the problems they have created in the first place?
Cause that’s what it’s been feeling like these last few weeks.
How about yesterday when National were giving labour a hard time about their health announcements… oh they are copying us… ummm pot, kettle, black, much?
In the last forty years I’ve never seen an election like this one.
How about David Tua proudly standing behind Jacinda showing his support yesterday, and the masses of people that came out to see her, support her and hear her speak? Wow!!!
How about those close up camera angles of Bill in Queenstown as he attempted to offer some bait of freedom camper rule changes?
Close up camera angles so as not to reveal the lack of supporters around him (all I saw were a few of his Mp’s) and a young lady in the background.
Wonder what will happen on the election campaign trails today?
Yes, lots of photos showing barely anyone (apart from Nat MPs and the (press) at the National campaign launches.
Is their campaign just a PR photo shoot?
Announcing hike in Great walk fees.
I count 4 and it looks like none are regular punters.
It would be good to do a thread on the levels of support Bill is getting.
A few more journalists and witnesses should take photos from different angles so we see truth not the pr….
You might get your wish. According to the young gnats facebook page Paula Bennett wants to be Deputy Prime “Minster.”
Religion and the gnats – getting together since forever!
We’re back to having religious groups running schools, running homeless shelters, providing religious brainwashing in state schools, providing parenting courses, etc.
Won’t be long til they are running poorhouses, orphanages and homes for unmarried mothers!
For people who don’t pay tax they sure take a lot of it.
Wonder how they got their hands on Sir Ed’s property? He probably donated it to charity, as he was a pretty staunch Labour supporter.
A Citizen for Rowling, no less.
lol that reporting was from Claire Trevett. Don’t believe all that you read, Alwyn. Labour’s launch had Town Hall and Concert chamber at full capacity (2,000 according to wiki), Q theatre full (capacity between 350 to 450), plus overflow in downstairs of Q theatre (200 people, at a guess).
“Mōrena_Can @matuashane win the National safe seat of Whangarei? We’ve got the results of our #NZQandA @ColmarBruntonNZ snap poll” https://twitter.com/NZQandA
At least 2 Australian tries were against the run of play. The intercept and the one from the base of an Australian scrum that collapsed so fast the NZ defence lost shape. So always felt NZ were likely to win though Wallabies played well in the 2nd half. Overall pretty ugly and error-riddled I thought. Personally looking forward to summer and Kane piling on the runs agains WI and England. New Labour government in place by then too so it will be “all good”.
Hmm, it’s a toughie, the tax dodging thug who leaves most of the women in his life bloodied, beaten and afraid for their lives versus the loud mouthed Irishman…..nah not my thing. But you go right ahead Jimmie, spend your forty bucks and who knows, you might even crack a Connor….
Imagine bragging that a 28 year old went 10 rounds with a 40 year old who retired 2 years ago #MayweathervMcgregor— New Whip In Avi🙏 (@PrimeCarmelo) August 27, 2017
My goodness, the Labour Party vote in Whangarei has increased dramatically from last election – according to Colmar-Brunton Poll on Q & A this morning. Last election it was about 14% – now its risen to 37% with the Nat Party vote at 41%. (NZF 16%).
The sitting Nat MP still has a striking majority poll – 42%, with Shane Jones at 24% and Labour’s Tony Savage at 22%.
I think Mr Jones will have to put a deal more work in to catch up with Shane Reti.
Yes, the party vote is very interesting in that snap poll.
2014 had nats on 50ish and labour under 20.
Today it shows 41 to 37. Not a bad sounder in a safe? blue seat.
My only worry about this election is that people who really lean Green will get swept up in JA’s charisma and vote Labour such that the Greens don’t get 5%. This is unlikely I know (the Greens have polled over 10% for 6 years) but if this happened it would doom us to a coalition with Winston.
A progressive government needs the Greens, and the way things are going it is entirely feasible that Labour 40 Greens 8 could be the result enabling just these 2 parties to form a government.
Q & A tended to focus on the candidate vote in this poll which is what they do I guess. But I thought the Party Vote numbers in what has been a safe National seat for a long time are pretty amazing. Ardern has got Labour to within the margin of error with National and Lab+Greens equals National. Imagine what the Party Vote swing is like in seats that Labour tend to do better in.
For good measure here also is the link to original article (translated from French) by Pierre Bourdieu: http://mondediplo.com/1998/12/08bourdieu [it’s not the easiest read]
Utopia of endless exploitation
The essence of neoliberalism
What is neoliberalism? A programme for destroying collective structures which may impede the pure market logic.
Although written in 1998 now, more than ever before, and here in NZ, as much as elsewhere in the so-called developed world, it strengthens the argument that neoliberalism has been and is catastrophic and thus urgent action is required to move away from it as soon and fast as is feasible.
I have another older article, lest we forget the bigger picture.
Green Capitalism: The God That Failed by Richard Smith – Truthout, from 2014 (it’s an old article, but a goodie)
This is not a quick read, but is well worth spending a spare half hour on this review article.
Ardern stated that climate change is her generation’s nuclear issue. If she is serious about this, Labour needs to sort out the intractable problem facing progressive environmentalists/conservationists/survivalists: that of avoiding economic suicide and massive social unrest as humanity switches away from it’s current economic system.
If it is not just political rhetoric from Ardern, then Labour NEEDS the Green Party. Utopian thinking, but my ideal would be that Ardern with the Greens leads the charge in a positive transformative process, that gets replicated across the world. We have had transformative progressive social policies in the past…..why not again now?
A (more) succinct post by George Monbiot Natural Language suggests that there are some (read: environmental) issues that cannot be measured in/by money and that environmental harm & destruction cannot be redeemed by money.
Anybody who suggests or argues differently has an agenda to generate profit at the expense of the environment and ultimately of (human) civilisation; he/she is sui-ecocidal.
Great Monbiot article – thanks for link. Raises lots of interesting questions and thoughts for me.
1. Yes, words matter: how we frame political discourse is important.
2.I think the framing of the term “natural capital” is important, as it couched the debate in the language of business and economics. Businesses and government’s had to pay attention to it. Natural capital brought values to the debate, which were largely ignored prior to that. So Costanza et al did a great service in the 1990s in this regard.
3. Yes, there are limits to natural capital as a useful construct. It is anthropocentric and self serving to humans. Maori value sets and their sharing of those value sets to pakeha are a good example here in NZ of natural capital limitations. (Natural capital is completely inadequate to encompass Maori values, although there is some overlap). We are unique in Aotearoa that we have a rich set of, sometimes competing, values: which make this a great country. Maori tirelessly protect their cultural and spiritual values, and teach the rest of us so much. That needs to be celebrated more, and strengthened at a political level.
4. Monbiot says that awe of nature is akin to religion. I agree with that. I think my political belief set is an act of faith, based on my life experiences and how I have come to view the world. I think everyone else’s political leanings are also a belief set, though very few people acknowledge that!….and most people think they are “enlightened”, “rational” and correct in their political belief. All I know is that we all are wrong. There are no absolutes. Science, knowledge and understanding proves us wrong, time and time again.
5.I find the cognitive/behavioural theories fascinating; particularly how we revert from an individualistic and selfish neoliberal system to a more collective, common good. I think Lin Ostrom did a huge service in this regard, again, as she brought it to the economic and business debate.
Whew! A lot of thoughts from the succinct article! Thanks
It is really a blog/book review of What about Me? The Struggle for Identity in a Market-based Society, a book written by Paul Verhaeghe. [BTW, he’s Belgium, not Dutch]
I support Death taxes because whom needs money when one is dead well maybe if one is cryogenically frozen. And the theory works in the future then one would need money after death. Obama backed Death taxes as they would not put a strain on our elderly citizens. like I have said before don’t pick on the elderly as $370.00 a week in tuppence .
Our elderly s peoples health are slowly deteriorating there eye sights mobility e.c.t.
We need to give death tax a name that is not so scary. Most of our elderly want to contribute more to have a better society. But not when they need there money the most.!!!!!!!!!!
I support U.B.I as with the technology that is coming to us rapidly most jobs will be obsolete driving checkout staff lawyers planners e.c.t. Because of this fact I will encouraging my Moko,s to become computer coders as this industry is a safer bet to be around longer than most other jobs.
And with the U.B.I IT would level out the employment advantages that foreign workers have over our local work force and encourage our youth to work and pass a work culture on to our children / moko. I want to see a government that taxes large multinational company’s and not put this issue in the to hard to achieve basket.
A government that takes on all these issues that we have to make our society fair and human for everyone that lives in New Zealand
It struck me while musing on the All Black victory how that chimes with the rise of the Labour Party under Ardern. Down 17 Nil and to come back and then with a bit of smart passing score the winning try, taking the lead just before the final whistle.
To refuse to take the easy penalties but to always stay positive and believing, playing for good field position, possession and the chance to score tries.
And to recognise the positive role of the leader, in re-energising the team and supporters, in staying focussed and with quiet but evident authority playing the game to the rules and in true spirit of sportsmanship.
Notice also that the opposition were not bagged but given due praise for their contribution.
And finally, to note that the opposition failed because their kicking game (for that part of the analogy read “attack ads”) kept hitting the posts and not going over the bar.
Sure hands, tackling the problems squarely, fairly and head on, few infringements, capable substitutions, self-belief, a good game plan and ability to react to adversity and to adapt.
I knew this prick was a bad hombre but I didn’t realise just how awful he is.
We've been covering Joe Arpaio for more than 20 years. Here's a couple of things you should know about him… 1/many— PhoenixNewTimes (@phoenixnewtimes) August 26, 2017
My first law-related experience was as a lowly intern in DOJ civil rights division in 2008. They were on the case of this dude Joe Arpaio.— Jay Willis (@jaywillis) August 26, 2017
..and JJ on the larger picture – succor to extremists.
The pardon of Joe Arpaio is wrong. The guy violated the 4th Amend repeatedly & shat on our judicial system. But there's another problem. 1/— JJ MacNab (@jjmacnab) August 26, 2017
The longer Trump uses ethnic division stories as his primary political fuel, the more he crushes Democrat capacity of switching core narratives back to wages, labour, education, and tax as core Democrat issues.
Trump is touring Arizona – and soon Texas – to prepare his 2020 run for the White House, one electoral college vote at a time.
What he needs is more Charlottevilles, more Arpaios, more stories that assist in grouping poor and middle class white together, against poor minorities. That eradicates any Democrat discussion of class mobility.
When’s the last time we heard about the Democrat re-start of issues important to them?
Trump may be down, but every state he visits, he shows he’s not out and he’s damn smart.
Trevor Noah is funny about the theatrical bits, but really weak on “the other half of the Presidency: governance”.
Trump is doing substantive though unseen things without Congress or the Senate – because Like Obama he can’t trust them.
The big key to Trump’s substantive governance record is to be a superior marketer: if you get 10% of what you’ve promised, you’ve won big because you promised big. Obama’s gradualist approach was the opposite.
I am not yet sure who will be more effective after two terms: Obama or Trump. Trump is already going to leave a legacy in which the White House is absorbed into the Pentagon, submerged into commercial benefits of corporations, and no longer has any diplomatic power. Those are all big changes from the scandal-free and highly disciplined Obama White House.
Trump’s other big legacy may well be to accelerate the permanent eclipse of the tv MSM, and the rise of web discourse as most powerful messenger in US life.
Oh FFS! This is governance??
It’s simply pandering to the gun lobbying, red neck, xenophobic, racist, dipsticks who unfortunately constitute around 30% of the US population.
As he will soon fail to deliver anything to them, through failing to build his “beautiful” wall, failing to deliver his “beautiful” health plan (for which they will pay nothing and receive free medication and health care), failing to deliver more higher paying jobs (as the US economy collapses in around a months time because the administration runs out of money), and failing on just about everything else to deliver a more caring society; even these slow learners will eventually wake up to the fact that they have elected the most incompetent blowhard that it is possible to imagine. He couldn’t govern his way out of a paper bag! He hasn’t spoken to Mitch in weeks –
and the last time they spoke on the phone it was according to reports rather heated.
Even the Republicans are now circling. It will only take 17 Republican Senators to wake up to the fact that their election chances are rapidly eroding, and that he is doing unconscionable damage to the country and his impeachment will occur.
We don’t have to like it, and certainly the Republicans don’t like it.
But here’s the thing. Trump could deliver absolutely nothing except a sky-wide shit-rainbow of failures and he could turn the trick into his own personal victimhood. Kinda “Mr Smith Goes To Washington” for the Dukes of Hazzard set.
Think as if you were preparing his 2020 campaign bid by electoral college votes:
– Signal to the northern states that you will approve any pipeline or pastoral lease or mine they want.
– Signal to the central east that you respect their culture (Charleston), and will keep as many coal mines going as possible (Kentucky)
– Signal to the south that you will protect the dominant race (Arpaio + Wall)
– Signal to the New York and Atlanta tv elites that you will neutralize them with unprecedented offense
– Isolate the remaining California and north-east states.
There you have the preparation to harvest those electoral college votes, just like last time.
Yes I can see what he is doing with his campaign rallies as well as you Ad – but you overlook the fact that he is leaking support by the day. http://www.gallup.com/poll/203198/presidential-approval-ratings-donald-trump.aspx
Furthermore, Impeachment gets closer by the day. The current Grand Juries focus on Flynn, Manafort, Trump Jnr, and Krushner. While they have been given the signal to say nothing with this unspeakable “Pardon”, were he then to Pardon one of these, we can rest assured all hell will break loose, and strengthen the resolve of many conservatives who value their constitution.
Furthermore, the recent departures of Bannon and Gorka represent a loss of Alt Right influence in the White House (which will disappoint many of the lunatic fringe). And now that Chief of Staff Kelly will personally supervise all correspondence that goes across Trump’s desk we can hopefully expect less scatter brained and many times contradictory pronouncements to delight the red neck masses.
Interestingly in the last few days Trump’s job approval rating is below 40% in three key states that won him the White House. Six-in-10 voters in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin also say Trump’s conduct as president has embarrassed them. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/first-read/new-polls-show-trump-s-presidency-stands-perilous-ground-n794436
“Deep-pocketed donors, mostly wealthy Chinese business leaders, filtered through the doors after 6pm for one of National’s more lavish fundraising dinners and auctions.”
”
A Chinese community leader said such appearances would hold enormous prestige within the culture.
“The implied Chinese business culture is around guanxi, which means relationship. Whoever won that dinner would be highly regarded because they hold a special bond with New Zealand Prime Minister.””
Which party has the strictest policy on political donations?
Whilst there are some Chinese values I would not mind to see figuring more prominently in New Zealand life – respecting and taking care of the elderly, and respect for education, for just two examples – the purchasing of influence this describes is just pernicious.
Using piles of dosh to cosy up to the big man in the village does not benefit the general public.
It is a tradition we can do without. No thanks. Keep it in China.
Yip,
so the next govt needs to call “The Housing Crisis is a National Disaster” and give emergency power to a Finance Minister, to go around the octopus of Financial Acts.
Bomber’s been working on a story for 8 months? That’d be going back to about when John Key resigned – and Bomber reckoned the media weren’t looking at the Panama Papers as the reason – and should have been.
Gee that newshub piece on the Nats education gambit today with the back and forth between English and Kaye looked pretty shit. Not the first time in this campaign he’s hesitated and deferred to the relevant minister.
“The environment, already a hot topic in this election, will be the greatest policy challenge for the next government, writes Rod Oram…..”
“There is a clear party-political divide on these three biggest environmental issues of climate, water and legislation:
On one side, National is arguing for more of the same that has got us into this mess, while ACT wants wholesale abandonment of even those measures, and NZ First has a hodgepodge of contradictory policies.
On the other side, Labour, the Greens and The Opportunities Party clearly articulate the challenges, are ambitious for change and have substantial policies to deliver on the strategy the OECD advised in March in its 10-year review of our environmental performance:
“Developing a long-term vision for a transition towards a low-carbon, greener economy would help New Zealand defend the ‘green’ reputation it has acquired at an international level.”
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Climate change is expected to generate more and more extreme events, delivering a sort of structural shock to inflation that central banks will have to react to as if they were short-term cyclical issues. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s ...
It’s a simple deal. We pay taxes in order to finance the social services we want and need. The carnage now occurring across the public sector though, is breaking that contract. Over 3,000 jobs have been lost so far. Many are in crucial areas like Education where the impact of ...
Hi,A friend had their 40th over the weekend and decided to theme it after Curb Your Enthusiasm fashion icon Susie Greene. Captured in my tiny kitchen before I left the house, I ending up evoking a mix of old lesbian and Hillary Clinton — both unintentional.Me vs Hillary ClintonIf you’re ...
This is a re-post from Andrew Dessler at the Climate Brink blogIn 2023, the Earth reached temperature levels unprecedented in modern times. Given that, it’s reasonable to ask: What’s going on? There’s been lots of discussions by scientists about whether this is just the normal progression of global warming or if something ...
The schools are on holiday and the sun is shining in the seaside village and all day long I have been seeing bunches of bikes; Mums, Dads, teens and toddlers chattering, laughing, happy, having a bloody great time together. Cheers, AT, for the bits of lane you’ve added lately around the ...
Today in our National-led authoritarian nightmare: Shane Jones thinks Ministers should be above the law: New Zealand First MP Shane Jones is accusing the Waitangi Tribunal of over-stepping its mandate by subpoenaing a minister for its urgent hearing on the Oranga Tamariki claim. The tribunal is looking into the ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. ...
Citizen Science writes – Last week saw two significant developments in the debate over the treatment of trans-identifying children and young people – the release in Britain of the final report of Dr Hilary Cass’s review into gender healthcare, and here in New Zealand, the news that the ...
One night while sleeping in my bed I had a beautiful dreamThat all the people of the world got together on the same wavelengthAnd began helping one anotherNow in this dream, universal love was the theme of the dayPeace and understanding and it happened this wayAfter such an eventful day ...
This is a guest post by Oscar Simms who is a housing activist, volunteer for the Coalition for More Homes, and was the Labour Party candidate for Auckland Central at the last election. ...
Turning what Labour called the “holiday highway” into a four-lane expressway from Auckland to Whangarei could bring at least an economic benefit of nearly two billion a year for Northland each year. And it could help bring an end to poverty in one of New Zealand’s most deprived regions. The ...
Tonight’s six-stack includes: launching his substack with a bunch of his previous documentaries, including this 1992 interview with Dame Whina Cooper. and here crew give climate activists plenty to do, including this call to submit against the Fast Track Approvals bill. writes brilliantly here on his substack ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
You're in the mall when you hear it: some kind of popping sound in the distance, kids with fireworks, maybe. But then a moment of eerie stillness is followed by more of the fireworks sound and there’s also screaming and shrieking and now here come people running for their lives.Does ...
Karl du Fresne writes – There’s a crisis in the news media and the media are blaming it on everyone except themselves. Culpability is being deflected elsewhere – mainly to the hapless Minister of Communications, Melissa Lee, and the big social media platforms that are accused of hoovering ...
I don’t normally send out two newsletters in a day but I figured I’d say something about… the news. If two newsletters is a bit much then maybe just skip one, I don’t want to overload people. Alternatively if you’d be interested in sometimes receiving multiple, smaller updates from me, ...
Buzz from the Beehive David Seymour and Winston Peters today signalled that at least two ministers of the Crown might be in Wellington today. Seymour (as Associate Minister of Education) announced the removal of more red tape, this time to make it easier for new early learning services to be ...
Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. Our political system is suffering from the ...
David Farrar writes – The Broadcasting Standards Authority ruled: Comments by radio host Kate Hawkesby suggesting Māori and Pacific patients were being prioritised for surgery due to their ethnicity were misleading and discriminatory, the Broadcasting Standards Authority has found. It is a fact such patients are prioritised. ...
PRC and its proxies in Solomons have been preparing for these elections for a long time.A lot of money, effort and intelligence have gone into ensuring an outcome that won’t compromise Beijing’s plans. Cleo Paskall writes – On April 17th the Solomon Islands, a country of ...
Is speeding up the trip to and from Wellington airport by 12 minutes worth spending up more than $10 billion? Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me in the last day to 8:26 am today are:The Lead: Transport Minister Simeon Brownannounced ...
You're a fraud, and you know itBut it's too good to throw it all awayAnyone would do the sameYou've got 'em goingAnd you're careful not to show itSometimes you even fool yourself a bitIt's like magicBut it's always been a smoke and mirrors gameAnyone would do the sameForty six billion ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections The June general election in Mexico could mark a turning point in ensuring that the country’s climate policies better reflect the desire of its citizens to address the climate crisis, with both leading presidential candidates expressing support for renewable energy. Mexico is the ...
2024, it feels, keeps presenting us with ever more challenges, ever more dismay.Do you give up yet? It seems to ask.No? How about this? Or this?How about this?When I say 2024 I really mean the state of humanity in 2024.Saturday night, we watched Civil War because that is one terrifying cliff we've ...
Buzz from the Beehive A pet project and governmental tunnel vision jump out from the latest batch of ministerial announcements. The government is keen to assure us of its concern for the wellbeing of our pets. It will be introducing pet bonds in a change to the Residential Tenancies Act ...
A recent report generated from a Growing Up in New Zealand (GUiNZ) survey of 1,224 rangatahi Māori aged 11-12 found: Cultural connectedness was associated with fewer depression symptoms, anxiety symptoms and better quality of life. That sounds cut and dry. But further into the report the following appears: Cultural connectedness is ...
David Farrar writes – The Herald reports: From the gory details of job-cuts news, you’d think the public service was being eviscerated. While the media’s view of the cuts is incomplete, it’s also true that departments have been leaking the particulars faster than a Wellington ...
Remember the good old days, back when New Zealand had a PM who could think and speak calmly and intelligently in whole sentences without blustering? Even while Iran’s drones and missiles were still being launched, Helen Clark was live on TVNZ expertly summing up the latest crisis in the Middle ...
Costello did not pass on analysis of the benefits of the smokefree reforms to Cabinet, emphasising instead the extra tax revenues of repealing them. Photo: Hagen Hopkins, Getty Images TL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me at 7:26 am today are:The Lead: Casey Costello never passed on ...
True loveYou're the one I'm dreaming ofYour heart fits me like a gloveAnd I'm gonna be true blueBaby, I love youI’ve written about the job cuts in our news media last week. The impact on individuals, and the loss to Aotearoa of voices covering our news from different angles.That by ...
While commentators, including former Prime Minister Helen Clark, are noting a subtle shift in New Zealand’s foreign policy, which now places more emphasis on the United States, many have missed a key element of the shift. What National said before the election is not what the government is doing now. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
The Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...
The Government must commit to the Maitai School building project for students with high and complex needs, to ensure disabled students from the top of the South Island have somewhere to learn. ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey and his Government colleagues have made a meal of their mental health commitments, showing how flimsy their efforts to champion the issue truly are, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Māori are yet to see anything from this Government except cuts, reversals and taking our people backwards, Māori Development spokesperson Willie Jackson said. ...
The Coalition Government’s refusal to commit to ongoing funding for social housing is seeing the sector pull back on developments and families watch their dreams of securing a home fade away, says Labour Housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty. ...
Changes to minimum wage and benefit indexation means many New Zealanders will get less this year, as the Government gives a big tax break to landlords instead. ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today paid tribute to Singapore’s outgoing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Meeting in Singapore today immediately before Prime Minister Lee announced he was stepping down, Prime Minister Luxon warmly acknowledged his counterpart’s almost twenty years as leader, and the enduring legacy he has left for Singapore and South East ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. While in Singapore as part of his visit to South East Asia this week, Prime Minister Luxon also met with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and will meet with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has made further appointments to the Board of Antarctica New Zealand as part of a continued effort to ensure the Scott Base Redevelopment project is delivered in a cost-effective and efficient manner. The Minister has appointed Neville Harris as a new member of the Board. Mr ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis will travel to the United States on Tuesday to attend a meeting of the Five Finance Ministers group, with counterparts from Australia, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. “I am looking forward to meeting with our Five Finance partners on how we can work ...
The coalition Government has today announced purrfect and pawsitive changes to the Residential Tenancies Act to give tenants with pets greater choice when looking for a rental property, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Pets are important members of many Kiwi families. It’s estimated that around 64 per cent of New ...
State Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the Government has also asked NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) to consider and provide advice on a Long Tunnel option, Transport Minister Simeon Brown ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Foreign Minister Winston Peters have condemned Iran’s shocking and illegal strikes against Israel. “These attacks are a major challenge to peace and stability in a region already under enormous pressure," Mr Luxon says. "We are deeply concerned that miscalculation on any side could ...
Hundreds of people in little over a week have turned out in Northland to hear Regional Development Minister Shane Jones speak about plans for boosting the regional economy through infrastructure. About 200 people from the infrastructure and associated sectors attended an event headlined by Mr Jones in Whangarei today. Last ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti has today thanked outgoing Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora Chair Dame Karen Poutasi for her service on the Board. “Dame Karen tendered her resignation as Chair and as a member of the Board today,” says Dr Reti. “I have asked her to ...
The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has signalled their proposed delivery approach for the Government’s 15 Roads of National Significance (RoNS), with the release of the State Highway Investment Proposal (SHIP) today, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Boosting economic growth and productivity is a key part of the Government’s plan to ...
New Zealand is renewing its connections with a world facing urgent challenges by pursuing an active, energetic foreign policy, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “Our country faces the most unstable global environment in decades,” Mr Peters says at the conclusion of two weeks of engagements in Egypt, Europe and the United States. “We cannot afford to sit back in splendid ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced the Australian Governor-General, His Excellency General The Honourable David Hurley and his wife Her Excellency Mrs Linda Hurley, will make a State visit to New Zealand from Tuesday 16 April to Thursday 18 April. The visit reciprocates the State visit of former Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced that Medsafe has approved 11 cold and flu medicines containing pseudoephedrine. Pharmaceutical suppliers have indicated they may be able to supply the first products in June. “This is much earlier than the original expectation of medicines being available by 2025. The Government recognised ...
New Zealand and the United States have recommitted to their strategic partnership in Washington DC today, pledging to work ever more closely together in support of shared values and interests, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The strategic environment that New Zealand and the United States face is considerably more ...
April 11, 2024 Joint Declaration by United States Secretary of State the Honorable Antony J. Blinken and New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs the Right Honourable Winston Peters We met today in Washington, D.C. to recommit to the historic partnership between our two countries and the principles that underpin it—rule ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced further New Zealand cooperation with the United States in the Pacific Islands region through $16.4 million in funding for initiatives in digital connectivity and oceans and fisheries research. “New Zealand can achieve more in the Pacific if we work together more urgently and ...
Kia Ora Gaza A passionate haka reverberated through Auckland International Airport as a medical team of three New Zealand doctors received an emotional farewell from a big crowd of supporters before flying to Turkey to join the international Freedom Flotilla to Gaza. The doctors, who left Auckland yesterday, hope to ...
With submissions closing today, Macassey-Pickard says groups around the country have been supporting a huge range of people to make their submissions. ...
Our response to the new legislation is informed by targeted conversations with practitioners working in the system and through an implementation lens. ...
The new ‘Fast-track Approvals Bill’ would give just three Ministers the power to approve or deny development projects. They would avoid the usual checks and balances that are in place to protect rivers, land, the ocean, and communities. ...
COMMENTARY:By Eugene Doyle Helen Clark, how I miss you. The former New Zealand Prime Minister — the safest pair of hands this country has had in living memory — gave a masterclass on the importance of maintaining an independent foreign policy when she spoke at an AUKUS symposium held ...
The government's released the list of organisations provided with information on how to apply - just hours before public submissions on the bill close. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Milton Speer, Visiting Fellow, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Technology Sydney Before climate change really got going, eastern Australia’s flash floods tended to concentrate on our coastal regions, east of the Great Dividing Range. But that’s changing. Now ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elizabeth Finkel, Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow, La Trobe University Sia Duff / South Australian Museum In February, the South Australian Museum “re-imagined” itself. In the face of rising costs and inadequate government funds, CEO David Gaimster, who took the reins last June, declared ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alan Pearce, Professor, School of Allied Heath, Human Services & Sport, La Trobe University, La Trobe University This week, Collingwood AFL player Nathan Murphy announced his retirement, brought on by his concussion history and ongoing issues. The 24-year-old’s seemingly sudden retirement, ...
The Mental Health Foundation provides support and resources for those facing the loss of their job, so it’s wrong in the very week the Government adds another 1000 jobs to its tally of cuts, that this is happening. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Howard, Senior Lecturer, Discipline of English and Writing, University of Sydney Daniel Boud/Sydney Theatre Company Decay, terror, revulsion. These are three of the central themes of Thomas Bernhard’s rarely performed play The President. The Austrian is one of the greatest ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says threats by ministers Shane Jones and David Seymour to reform or close down the Waitangi Tribunal were “ill-considered”, as legal experts say the ministers may have breached Cabinet Manual conventions. “I think those comments are ill-considered and we expect all ministers to actually exercise good ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ye In (Jane) Hwang, Postdoctoral Research Associate at School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney Shutterstock You’d be hard pressed to find any aspect of daily life that doesn’t require some form of digital literacy. We need only to look back ten ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rob Newton, Professor of Exercise Medicine, Edith Cowan University Pexels/RDNE stock project You’re not in your 20s or 30s anymore and you know regular health checks are important. So you go to your GP. During the appointment they measure your waist. ...
A new poem by Evangeline Riddiford Graham. Mitochondrial Problem I. It was long drive to Kansas for the man and his dog but you have to understand he said She doesn’t fly. Which calls to mind not carsick shitting barking or whining but a dog who chooses not to as ...
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 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)Hot off the press, this debut ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Wajnryb McDonald, PhD candidate in Criminology, University of Sydney Less than 24 hours after Ashlee Good was murdered in Bondi Junction, her family released a statement requesting the media take down photographs they had reproduced of Ashlee and her family without ...
Chief executive Shaun Robinson said it has not had any government funding cut, but government-funded contracts have not kept pace with rising costs. ...
The Ministry of Health has delayed the release of its evidence brief on the safety, reversibility and mental health and wellbeing outcomes for puberty blockers. While we wait, Julia de Bres speaks to those with firsthand experience. Best practice gender-affirming healthcare is based on trans people’s self-determination and agency. The ...
Barcelona’s city streets have gone from traffic-clogged to pedestrian-friendly. How? Superblocks. Ellen Rykers explains. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week I read a great interview with renowned urbanist Janette Sadik-Khan by The Spinoff’s Wellington editor Joel MacManus: “You can reimagine streets, ...
Student groups ‘Climate Action VUW’, Schools Strike 4 Climate and VUWSA will be on the street in Wellington today, the last day for submissions on the Fast-track Approvals Bill, with a message that the fight against the Government’s ‘War on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sofia Ammassari, Research Fellow, Griffith University Since 2014, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity has grown exponentially – and so has the formidable organisational machine of his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). These two factors will be key to delivering the BJP a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brendon Hyndman, Associate Professor of Education (Adjunct) & Senior Manager (BCE), Charles Sturt University During COVID almost all Australian students and their families experienced online learning. But while schools have long since gone back to in-person teaching, online learning has not gone ...
Yes, they’re better for the environment. No, that’s not a good enough reason for me to use them. Once every 26 days or so, my period arrives, and if struck by an act of God, I am caught red-crotched without products. How, after 17 years of this, do I still ...
“It will cause significant harm to our environment and communities. It is completely at odds with New Zealanders’ relationship with nature and our need for a low-carbon, sustainable economic future." ...
The Chair of the National Maori Authority, Matthew Tukaki, has warned a Parliamentary Select Committee that fast-tracking legislation is a perilous practice that undermines the core tenets of democracy, transparency, and accountability. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Tenbensel, Associate Professor, Health Policy, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Getty Images Since coming into power, the coalition government has adopted a simple but shrewd see-how-fast-we-can-move political strategy. However, in the health sector this need for speed entails ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Hronis, Clinical Psychologist, University of Technology Sydney Darya Sannikova/Pexels Whether you’re watching TV, attending a footy game, or eating a meal at your local pub, gambling is hard to escape. Although the rise of gambling is not unique to Australia, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Wong, Forrest Fellow, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia Have you ever wondered if there are more insects out at night than during the day? We set out to answer this question by combing through the scientific ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Carol T Kulik, Research Professor, University of South Australia IR Stone/Shutterstock In Australia, it’s not the done thing to know – let alone ask – what our colleagues are paid. Yet, it’s easy to see how pay transparency can make pay ...
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) is sounding a warning to migrants, that running foul of the law may see them leaving the country prematurely. ...
The government’s plan to get 50,000 people off jobseeker support by 2030 has had a rocky start, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. Beneficiary numbers are up – and so are ...
Raglan Roast is a staple of Wellington coffee culture. But with five branches across the capital, which one is the best? I am a die-hard Raglan Roast fan. It’s consistently the most affordable cafe in Wellington, and one of the only places you can get a coffee after 3pm. So, ...
Residents of University of Auckland halls are being urged to withhold their accommodation fees from May 1, in a bid to force the university to take student concerns over rent hikes seriously.The University of Auckland is facing a strike from students over the cost of on-campus accommodation. The Students ...
New Zealand and the Philippines have signed a new maritime security agreement and stated their concerns over activity in the South China Sea, as Chinese vessels continue to flout international law. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Philippines President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos committed to signing a Mutual Logistics Supporting Arrangement by ...
The thousands of government “back-office” job cuts are causing widespread pain in the capital city. In today’s episode of The Detail, we speak to three journalists and a think tank researcher, looking at the larger picture around the cuts and what effect it will have on Wellington, a city that’s ...
Opinion: The famed American architect and urban designer Daniel Burnham once said, “Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men’s blood!” Burnham wouldn’t have been referring to the transport plans in Aotearoa New Zealand over the past five years; projects so big they hadn’t the credibility to ...
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A creativity competition – to start the day with both humor and a bit of financial meat.
Please excuse my legal terms, but are the folk here aware of the orthodox or neo-liberal octopusy of dildos that blocks all innovation around fiscal and financial control? (Well covered in the book “The FIRE Economy”)
Who has the most creative excuse for “Emergency Powers” for our next Minister of Finance?
(Sorry, but this is the only realistic way we can save the country – the otherwise required changes to the labyrinth of Finanical and Fiscal Acts would take decades.)
“Tsunami from falling house prices.” Seems the most obvious. But requires QE to finally implode, or hit the wall in the European Courts. But lets not risk that slow death and warming wars. Lets think quick.
How about this?
“Loss of photosynthesis leads to agricultural collapse, as house prices block the sun!”
“The new Govt declares a national disaster and emergency powers are handed to the new Minister of Finance, Gareth Huges! A break through in NZ politics, creating the first every fully tele-scripted ministerial position. A team of real economics hide in bunkers and gently guide house prices in for landing”
(We could also give the Finance Minister the secondary roll of Minister of Beach Cricket, which they could safely manage from the Bay of Islands.)
Ecoterrorism is the obvious scare claim for the flailing right – grants them extraordinary powers and demonizes the part of the left that really frightens them.
A wise warning Stu, but hope you’re not hinting that I’m flat-earth and fascism – Riddle me this:
Fly around a globe East,
Return from the West, right?
Fly around our globe left,
You return as Roger Douglas, right?
Just values, left on the ground,
The plane never took flight.
How shall Ardern’s values take their flight?
Financial innovation, but that’s out of her sight?
Coming in on a Westerly, not politically from the right.
It’s values-based centre,
That’s due to take flight,
Around this globe,
Even in the dark of night.
This looks intriguing from Tim Murphy at Newsroom.
‘Turns out those who said this mad election had one more explosive convulsion to come weren’t wrong. Could be soon. #motherofallscandals’
https://twitter.com/tmurphyNZ/status/901252037165277184
Dang! I know the newsroom stories are usually published around 7am week days online.
Cheers for the link/info Ed, roll on monday morning
Just to knock a few things on the head, Murphy has ruled out a sex scandal, or that it’s about Todd Barclay.
Bennett?
is a potential royal flush …suggests a high group….cabinet?
Lorde appointed GG?
Nick Smith addicted to “truth serum”.
A royal flush is also a winning hand.
And a gang who are ordered about be The Joker..far more likely than a card reference when applied to politics
No jokers in five card stud, nor Texas hold’em for that matter.
All this speculation is like trying to stab serendipity in the dark.
And why the assumptions that it is scandal on the Right. Nats have a deep wallet to dig deep in dark places
Bennett is my first pick too Ed. There’s been rumours floating around about her solo mum days for a long time now. And here we are only 4 weeks out from an election and the Deputy PM seems to have gone to ground.
She was front and centre today. Telling everyone that Labour do not have the experience to be in Cabinet. Flash back to 2008 Paula
If it is about Bennett as a beneficiary it will make me sad. Cos Key and others, including Bennett have done far worse as Cab members and survived.
Well said.
I’d pick Bennett too, but only because she’s never been this quiet. Either that or some financial insider trading that nobody will be able to follow.
If it is Bennett I hope its over quickly.
Someone actually told me that they reckoned if National got rid of Paula Bennett they would do a lot better in the coming election.
Nats dug dirt on Left?
Maybe why John Key resigned and others involved.
One more sleep until the #motherofallscandals
Any ideas?
Nothing more than what others have mentioned. I’ll wait.
Nat’s top table (tax fraud, funding fraud, dirty politics, cash-for-policies, surveillance scams, etc); Kingmaker NZ First; Kingitanga?; gambling; collateral damage as in involvement in foreign wars.
Assuming it damages the National Party, that is.
Hmmm… yes. An alternative might be NZ First – some party gaining by the loss of GP, UF, and NZF leaders….? And something to do with gambling.
Another alternative is that it damages the Greens or Labour and/or National, the Greens and Labour or any combination of the above.
The Mother of All [political election] Scandals probably has to involve the government in some way, but who cares? We’ll find out soon enough.
We will find out soon enough.
I have come to the conclusion that the mention of Royal Flush, in the context of “explosive convulsions” in this election so far, is a reference to adding to the collection of party leaders who have stepped down. i.e.
Key, Turei, Little, Dunne…. and?
And possibly to do with racing or gambling.
Paula?
National’s phone call to the Russians, in search of election influence in the face of sliding polls, was busted?
@ Ed (2.4.1)
Could it be this I wonder, which is just breaking on Newshub? Peters being overpaid superannuation. More to come I believe.
http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/election/2017/08/winston-peters-admits-being-overpaid-on-superannuation.html
If so that was a waste of a good build up
can’t be this…could hardly be classed as an “explosive convulsion”
English
Away…
Not Winnie’s super overpayment? Bit of a fizzer. (royal flush, Winnie king maker)?
@ Keepcalmcarryon … (2.6)
I guess it depends on how much he was overpaid by. From 2010 to 2017 is a seven year period, so it could be a fair bit of money he was overpaid by WINZ. Newshub broke the news, link below …
http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/election/2017/08/winston-peters-admits-being-overpaid-on-superannuation.html
From reading the item Peters didn’t seem too happy about being contacted by media and at first more or less told the journalist he wasn’t going to discuss it at the present time. Then decided (probably after a few words with his spin doctor) to contact the media himself and give ‘his side’ of the story.
You’d think, being in his position, Peters would be fully aware of what his super payments should be. After all, most super recipients know what they are paid each fortnight!
According to Newshub the story is still unfolding … “more to come.”
Be interesting what is released tomorrow, whether or not this is the #motherofallscandals, or there is something else out there!
Agree.
The Winnie thing plays straight to the nats- the greens on the ropes, any hit to nz first in terms of votes likely go to national, and labour runs out of running mates.
Dirty politics 101.
Fortunately looks like a pretty lame ” scandal” so far. Desperation?
Most super recipients know what they are paid each fortnight. Most super recipients don’t get what Winston gets by automatic payment from Parliament.
Many super recipients would have the money go into their bank account and never check, it started, it keeps going in, it happens and keeps happening. And, I’d proffer, a lot have an idea of ‘sort of’ how much it is but the actual amount they wouldn’t know.
A lot getting super are on the bones of their arse and know about every dollar. For a helluva lot it’s just money going in.
That twitter feed is hilarious btw
Is Nationals modus operandi to neglect our country and our people, and then come election time to offer solutions to the problems they have created in the first place?
Cause that’s what it’s been feeling like these last few weeks.
How about yesterday when National were giving labour a hard time about their health announcements… oh they are copying us… ummm pot, kettle, black, much?
In the last forty years I’ve never seen an election like this one.
How about David Tua proudly standing behind Jacinda showing his support yesterday, and the masses of people that came out to see her, support her and hear her speak? Wow!!!
How about those close up camera angles of Bill in Queenstown as he attempted to offer some bait of freedom camper rule changes?
Close up camera angles so as not to reveal the lack of supporters around him (all I saw were a few of his Mp’s) and a young lady in the background.
Wonder what will happen on the election campaign trails today?
Yes, lots of photos showing barely anyone (apart from Nat MPs and the (press) at the National campaign launches.
Is their campaign just a PR photo shoot?
Announcing hike in Great walk fees.
I count 4 and it looks like none are regular punters.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DIB5pHWU0AAI5Vm.jpg
In Christchurch announcing stadium rebuild.
I count about 30 and it looks like none are regular punters.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DH9VYx6UwAAW6E5.jpg
In Pukekohe announcing next steps in NZs trade agenda at a factory.
I count 0.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DHyo4ZOU0AEB0O_.jpg
And another tiny group of supporters for English
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DIDQKIgV0AAf5D3.jpg
Thanks for the photo links Ed.
I wonder when NZ media will start stating the obvious… a handful of people turned out to hear Bills latest announcement.
Am really interested in the turnout at skycity this afternoon.
It would be good to do a thread on the levels of support Bill is getting.
A few more journalists and witnesses should take photos from different angles so we see truth not the pr….
Were the people commenting here really at the same place Bill was?
Audrey Young seems to have seen a lot of people listening to him.
“English made the announcement to a rally of at least 2500 people at Henderson in West Auckland today.”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11912050
Why that is a lot more than Jacinda Arden managed isn’t it?
“The campaign was attended by more than 1000 people”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11907698
Great, with such a huge crowd there is bound to be lots of photos showing Bill with his 2500 supporters. Or not.
Give me that old time religion
Tis the old time religion,
Tis the old time religion,
And it’s good enough for me.
It will do when I am dying.
It will do when I am dying.
It will do when I am dying.
And it’s good enough for me
/
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DIM9cClVYAE56kT.jpg:large
You might get your wish. According to the young gnats facebook page Paula Bennett wants to be Deputy Prime “Minster.”
Religion and the gnats – getting together since forever!
We’re back to having religious groups running schools, running homeless shelters, providing religious brainwashing in state schools, providing parenting courses, etc.
Won’t be long til they are running poorhouses, orphanages and homes for unmarried mothers!
For people who don’t pay tax they sure take a lot of it.
On the stump no-one turns up.
And here is their support.
Money.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/96019247/national-party-auctions-off-ice-axe-signed-by-sir-edmund-hillary-to-raise-funds-for-campaign
Wonder how they got their hands on Sir Ed’s property? He probably donated it to charity, as he was a pretty staunch Labour supporter.
A Citizen for Rowling, no less.
Replica. Someone will have bought it and then donated it but Nats want peeps to think Sir Ed supports them from beyond the grave?
lol that reporting was from Claire Trevett. Don’t believe all that you read, Alwyn. Labour’s launch had Town Hall and Concert chamber at full capacity (2,000 according to wiki), Q theatre full (capacity between 350 to 450), plus overflow in downstairs of Q theatre (200 people, at a guess).
Alwyn believes Trevett and the other media shills.
They must have used GPS to find their way to Henderson…
agree
The only support which counts is the support on election day. If the ‘on the ground’ support evident translates to votes, that would be good.
You won’t get a throng cheering and yelling and want to hug David Seymour, but the Epsomites will vote for him in their hordes.
The nat minders really should try and get Mary out of the shot, but maybe not…
Captions please
Just like Trumps crowd ?.
Nice article – interview with JA and some good questions/answers around some Māori angles – Kia ora Dale.
https://e-tangata.co.nz/news/jacinda-lofty-goals-and-small-town-values
“Mōrena_Can @matuashane win the National safe seat of Whangarei? We’ve got the results of our #NZQandA @ColmarBruntonNZ snap poll”
https://twitter.com/NZQandA
On Q+A this morning… live stream link, starts at 9am
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/live-stream-q-a-q15157?autoPlay=4362722438001
Twyford is comprehensively winning the debate over housing on Q&A.
Awesome
An amazing game of rugby last night with the win against the wallabies. And then the black ferns beating England.
Now for the big fight today.
Great weekend of sport for those of us who enjoy it.
Always hate to agree with you James, but that was the best game of rugby I have ever seen.
+1
At least 2 Australian tries were against the run of play. The intercept and the one from the base of an Australian scrum that collapsed so fast the NZ defence lost shape. So always felt NZ were likely to win though Wallabies played well in the 2nd half. Overall pretty ugly and error-riddled I thought. Personally looking forward to summer and Kane piling on the runs agains WI and England. New Labour government in place by then too so it will be “all good”.
Hmm, it’s a toughie, the tax dodging thug who leaves most of the women in his life bloodied, beaten and afraid for their lives versus the loud mouthed Irishman…..nah not my thing. But you go right ahead Jimmie, spend your forty bucks and who knows, you might even crack a Connor….
/
A bunch of wealthy WASPs watching a black man and an Irishman bash the crap our of each other.
Seems a bit Mandingo-ish to me.
And that weigh-in ceremony felt like homo-erotic porn to me.
They should make the whole show – fighters, ref, and crowd clothes free and cut the pretense imo – not sure what sort it is but it is porn.
You getting excited about seeing more of these guys?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9o7KPoS0HGs
And again, the interwebs don’t disappoint.
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
https://twitter.com/hashtag/MayweathervMcgregor
My goodness, the Labour Party vote in Whangarei has increased dramatically from last election – according to Colmar-Brunton Poll on Q & A this morning. Last election it was about 14% – now its risen to 37% with the Nat Party vote at 41%. (NZF 16%).
The sitting Nat MP still has a striking majority poll – 42%, with Shane Jones at 24% and Labour’s Tony Savage at 22%.
I think Mr Jones will have to put a deal more work in to catch up with Shane Reti.
Yes, the party vote is very interesting in that snap poll.
2014 had nats on 50ish and labour under 20.
Today it shows 41 to 37. Not a bad sounder in a safe? blue seat.
Wow….that is some % change.
My only worry about this election is that people who really lean Green will get swept up in JA’s charisma and vote Labour such that the Greens don’t get 5%. This is unlikely I know (the Greens have polled over 10% for 6 years) but if this happened it would doom us to a coalition with Winston.
A progressive government needs the Greens, and the way things are going it is entirely feasible that Labour 40 Greens 8 could be the result enabling just these 2 parties to form a government.
Yep. The issue now is to get the GP vote as high as possible – especially to counter the NZ First vote.
I hope Shane Jones loses. I do not want to see him an influential player in relation to a Labour-led government.
Particularly given his apparent relationship with Talley. http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/96106426/Fishing-company-Talleys-bankrolling-Shane-Jones-NZ-First-campaign?
Whangarei
2017 CB Poll … 2014 Party Vote
Labour 37% …… 18% … + 19
Greens 4% ………10% … – 6
L+G 41% ………… 28% … + 13
NZF 16% …………13% … + 3
Oppo 57% ….…..41% … + 16
Nat 41% ….…….. 50% … – 9
Other 2% ….….…. 9% … – 7
Nat +
Other 43% ..……. 59% … – 16
( Other largely Right Bloc – Govt)
Q & A tended to focus on the candidate vote in this poll which is what they do I guess. But I thought the Party Vote numbers in what has been a safe National seat for a long time are pretty amazing. Ardern has got Labour to within the margin of error with National and Lab+Greens equals National. Imagine what the Party Vote swing is like in seats that Labour tend to do better in.
While the election campaign is in full swing and the Jacinda Tsunami and poll storms are battering the country I look for solace in places elsewhere.
I found this very good blog post on The essence of neoliberalism
http://thoughtleader.co.za/bertolivier/2017/06/04/the-essence-of-neoliberalism/
For good measure here also is the link to original article (translated from French) by Pierre Bourdieu: http://mondediplo.com/1998/12/08bourdieu [it’s not the easiest read]
Although written in 1998 now, more than ever before, and here in NZ, as much as elsewhere in the so-called developed world, it strengthens the argument that neoliberalism has been and is catastrophic and thus urgent action is required to move away from it as soon and fast as is feasible.
I have another older article, lest we forget the bigger picture.
Green Capitalism: The God That Failed by Richard Smith – Truthout, from 2014 (it’s an old article, but a goodie)
This is not a quick read, but is well worth spending a spare half hour on this review article.
Ardern stated that climate change is her generation’s nuclear issue. If she is serious about this, Labour needs to sort out the intractable problem facing progressive environmentalists/conservationists/survivalists: that of avoiding economic suicide and massive social unrest as humanity switches away from it’s current economic system.
If it is not just political rhetoric from Ardern, then Labour NEEDS the Green Party. Utopian thinking, but my ideal would be that Ardern with the Greens leads the charge in a positive transformative process, that gets replicated across the world. We have had transformative progressive social policies in the past…..why not again now?
Ido not hold your bteath. Thanks for the links
A brilliant albeit very long read, thank you.
A (more) succinct post by George Monbiot Natural Language suggests that there are some (read: environmental) issues that cannot be measured in/by money and that environmental harm & destruction cannot be redeemed by money.
Anybody who suggests or argues differently has an agenda to generate profit at the expense of the environment and ultimately of (human) civilisation; he/she is sui-ecocidal.
Great Monbiot article – thanks for link. Raises lots of interesting questions and thoughts for me.
1. Yes, words matter: how we frame political discourse is important.
2.I think the framing of the term “natural capital” is important, as it couched the debate in the language of business and economics. Businesses and government’s had to pay attention to it. Natural capital brought values to the debate, which were largely ignored prior to that. So Costanza et al did a great service in the 1990s in this regard.
3. Yes, there are limits to natural capital as a useful construct. It is anthropocentric and self serving to humans. Maori value sets and their sharing of those value sets to pakeha are a good example here in NZ of natural capital limitations. (Natural capital is completely inadequate to encompass Maori values, although there is some overlap). We are unique in Aotearoa that we have a rich set of, sometimes competing, values: which make this a great country. Maori tirelessly protect their cultural and spiritual values, and teach the rest of us so much. That needs to be celebrated more, and strengthened at a political level.
4. Monbiot says that awe of nature is akin to religion. I agree with that. I think my political belief set is an act of faith, based on my life experiences and how I have come to view the world. I think everyone else’s political leanings are also a belief set, though very few people acknowledge that!….and most people think they are “enlightened”, “rational” and correct in their political belief. All I know is that we all are wrong. There are no absolutes. Science, knowledge and understanding proves us wrong, time and time again.
5.I find the cognitive/behavioural theories fascinating; particularly how we revert from an individualistic and selfish neoliberal system to a more collective, common good. I think Lin Ostrom did a huge service in this regard, again, as she brought it to the economic and business debate.
Whew! A lot of thoughts from the succinct article! Thanks
I believe you will like reading this article as well (don’t worry, it’s neither long nor hard): http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/The-stories-in-our-heads/article14985530.ece
It is really a blog/book review of What about Me? The Struggle for Identity in a Market-based Society, a book written by Paul Verhaeghe. [BTW, he’s Belgium, not Dutch]
That moment when you realise you are a neo-flippin’-liberal!! Thanks Incognito (not!). lol.
Another label to add to my anxieties.
I support Death taxes because whom needs money when one is dead well maybe if one is cryogenically frozen. And the theory works in the future then one would need money after death. Obama backed Death taxes as they would not put a strain on our elderly citizens. like I have said before don’t pick on the elderly as $370.00 a week in tuppence .
Our elderly s peoples health are slowly deteriorating there eye sights mobility e.c.t.
We need to give death tax a name that is not so scary. Most of our elderly want to contribute more to have a better society. But not when they need there money the most.!!!!!!!!!!
I support U.B.I as with the technology that is coming to us rapidly most jobs will be obsolete driving checkout staff lawyers planners e.c.t. Because of this fact I will encouraging my Moko,s to become computer coders as this industry is a safer bet to be around longer than most other jobs.
And with the U.B.I IT would level out the employment advantages that foreign workers have over our local work force and encourage our youth to work and pass a work culture on to our children / moko. I want to see a government that taxes large multinational company’s and not put this issue in the to hard to achieve basket.
A government that takes on all these issues that we have to make our society fair and human for everyone that lives in New Zealand
It struck me while musing on the All Black victory how that chimes with the rise of the Labour Party under Ardern. Down 17 Nil and to come back and then with a bit of smart passing score the winning try, taking the lead just before the final whistle.
To refuse to take the easy penalties but to always stay positive and believing, playing for good field position, possession and the chance to score tries.
And to recognise the positive role of the leader, in re-energising the team and supporters, in staying focussed and with quiet but evident authority playing the game to the rules and in true spirit of sportsmanship.
Notice also that the opposition were not bagged but given due praise for their contribution.
And finally, to note that the opposition failed because their kicking game (for that part of the analogy read “attack ads”) kept hitting the posts and not going over the bar.
Sure hands, tackling the problems squarely, fairly and head on, few infringements, capable substitutions, self-belief, a good game plan and ability to react to adversity and to adapt.
My team!
I knew this prick was a bad hombre but I didn’t realise just how awful he is.
https://twitter.com/phoenixnewtimes/status/901263384087334914
that’s a very good twitter thread.
This, too..
https://twitter.com/jaywillis/status/901312778790686721
..and JJ on the larger picture – succor to extremists.
https://twitter.com/jjmacnab/status/901485168900284416
The longer Trump uses ethnic division stories as his primary political fuel, the more he crushes Democrat capacity of switching core narratives back to wages, labour, education, and tax as core Democrat issues.
Trump is touring Arizona – and soon Texas – to prepare his 2020 run for the White House, one electoral college vote at a time.
What he needs is more Charlottevilles, more Arpaios, more stories that assist in grouping poor and middle class white together, against poor minorities. That eradicates any Democrat discussion of class mobility.
When’s the last time we heard about the Democrat re-start of issues important to them?
Trump may be down, but every state he visits, he shows he’s not out and he’s damn smart.
I think this sums him up best:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFO2howUv4w
Trevor Noah is funny about the theatrical bits, but really weak on “the other half of the Presidency: governance”.
Trump is doing substantive though unseen things without Congress or the Senate – because Like Obama he can’t trust them.
The big key to Trump’s substantive governance record is to be a superior marketer: if you get 10% of what you’ve promised, you’ve won big because you promised big. Obama’s gradualist approach was the opposite.
I am not yet sure who will be more effective after two terms: Obama or Trump. Trump is already going to leave a legacy in which the White House is absorbed into the Pentagon, submerged into commercial benefits of corporations, and no longer has any diplomatic power. Those are all big changes from the scandal-free and highly disciplined Obama White House.
Trump’s other big legacy may well be to accelerate the permanent eclipse of the tv MSM, and the rise of web discourse as most powerful messenger in US life.
Oh FFS! This is governance??
It’s simply pandering to the gun lobbying, red neck, xenophobic, racist, dipsticks who unfortunately constitute around 30% of the US population.
As he will soon fail to deliver anything to them, through failing to build his “beautiful” wall, failing to deliver his “beautiful” health plan (for which they will pay nothing and receive free medication and health care), failing to deliver more higher paying jobs (as the US economy collapses in around a months time because the administration runs out of money), and failing on just about everything else to deliver a more caring society; even these slow learners will eventually wake up to the fact that they have elected the most incompetent blowhard that it is possible to imagine. He couldn’t govern his way out of a paper bag! He hasn’t spoken to Mitch in weeks –
and the last time they spoke on the phone it was according to reports rather heated.
Even the Republicans are now circling. It will only take 17 Republican Senators to wake up to the fact that their election chances are rapidly eroding, and that he is doing unconscionable damage to the country and his impeachment will occur.
We don’t have to like it, and certainly the Republicans don’t like it.
But here’s the thing. Trump could deliver absolutely nothing except a sky-wide shit-rainbow of failures and he could turn the trick into his own personal victimhood. Kinda “Mr Smith Goes To Washington” for the Dukes of Hazzard set.
Think as if you were preparing his 2020 campaign bid by electoral college votes:
– Signal to the northern states that you will approve any pipeline or pastoral lease or mine they want.
– Signal to the central east that you respect their culture (Charleston), and will keep as many coal mines going as possible (Kentucky)
– Signal to the south that you will protect the dominant race (Arpaio + Wall)
– Signal to the New York and Atlanta tv elites that you will neutralize them with unprecedented offense
– Isolate the remaining California and north-east states.
There you have the preparation to harvest those electoral college votes, just like last time.
“We don’t have it like that,..”(Ad)
True bro, life is totally different in the Shire. Hobbits do Democracy the honest Kiwi way.
You misquoted.
“We don’t have to like it,”
Yes I can see what he is doing with his campaign rallies as well as you Ad – but you overlook the fact that he is leaking support by the day.
http://www.gallup.com/poll/203198/presidential-approval-ratings-donald-trump.aspx
Furthermore, Impeachment gets closer by the day. The current Grand Juries focus on Flynn, Manafort, Trump Jnr, and Krushner. While they have been given the signal to say nothing with this unspeakable “Pardon”, were he then to Pardon one of these, we can rest assured all hell will break loose, and strengthen the resolve of many conservatives who value their constitution.
Furthermore, the recent departures of Bannon and Gorka represent a loss of Alt Right influence in the White House (which will disappoint many of the lunatic fringe). And now that Chief of Staff Kelly will personally supervise all correspondence that goes across Trump’s desk we can hopefully expect less scatter brained and many times contradictory pronouncements to delight the red neck masses.
Interestingly in the last few days Trump’s job approval rating is below 40% in three key states that won him the White House. Six-in-10 voters in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin also say Trump’s conduct as president has embarrassed them.
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/first-read/new-polls-show-trump-s-presidency-stands-perilous-ground-n794436
Bannon is much better as a proxy than inside the White House. He can see that.
I’m not convinced Trump will be impeached at all, no matter how good Muller’s case gets.
I agree that he’s not doing well.
It’s just, everyone else (especially any Presidential contenders in either the Republican or Democratic parties) is doing even worse.
This what corruption of our political process looks like
https://i.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/96019247/national-party-auctions-off-ice-axe-signed-by-sir-edmund-hillary-to-raise-funds-for-campaign
“Deep-pocketed donors, mostly wealthy Chinese business leaders, filtered through the doors after 6pm for one of National’s more lavish fundraising dinners and auctions.”
”
A Chinese community leader said such appearances would hold enormous prestige within the culture.
“The implied Chinese business culture is around guanxi, which means relationship. Whoever won that dinner would be highly regarded because they hold a special bond with New Zealand Prime Minister.””
Which party has the strictest policy on political donations?
Whilst there are some Chinese values I would not mind to see figuring more prominently in New Zealand life – respecting and taking care of the elderly, and respect for education, for just two examples – the purchasing of influence this describes is just pernicious.
Using piles of dosh to cosy up to the big man in the village does not benefit the general public.
It is a tradition we can do without. No thanks. Keep it in China.
At the Labour Party rally in Christchurch at Riccarton Racecourse, starts at 1pm, standing room only and people are outside to watch as well.
Let’s do this!
Policy announcements:
-$300 million fund for capital projects in Chch
-Royal Commission into EQC
-Arbitration Tribunal to resolve the last EQC claims
… And restore full democracy to Environment Canterbury!!
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/338113/labour-pledges-300m-christchurch-rebuild-fund
Great feeling at the meeting – and a large crowd.
Labour/Greens in a landslide on 23rd September!
intent://video/?id=%7B10154942124866452%7D&ref=msite%2F#Intent;scheme=fb;package=com.facebook.katana;end
Is the starting again? Global economic meltdown. Same mistakes being repeated.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-08-22/provident-financial-ceo-steps-down-on-loss-dividend-scrapped
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2017/08/26/provident-woes-mount-35m-boss-walks/
Starting? When did it stop? That’s MSM propaganda, bro.
They are buying our houses on 1% interest rates, hello! To stimulate, Mr Growth. Damm de dooo doo dumm.
Michelle Obama murdered Joan Rivers to prevent being outed as transgender!
More loopiness from CV’s favourite investigative journalist. File it alongside child slave camps on Mars and Pizzagate:
https://rdtdaily.com/alex-jones-michelle-obama-penis-may-murdered-joan-rivers/
I never ceased to be amazed that people here were referring to Infowars as a serious source last year.
The trouble is, it is a serious source for a significant minority of US voters – around 30+% it would appear – that and Faux and Fiends.
Joan Rivers cracks a joke and it is taken seriously.
Transsexual or not…Michelle is intelligent, good looking and Obama is a lucky guy.
Jeez they are a loopy lot over there.
That would be a real cracker of a joke as Joan Rivers died almost three years ago.
Lack of housing in this country is scandalous
National launches its 2017 campaign with its core plank: second language teaching.
I am amazed that they failed to signal tax cuts despite the reasonable growth and surplus forecasts.
They won’t break into core Labour policy territory trying to win votes in education.
The government never needs to borrow at interest. In fact, it never needs to borrow at all.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zo9xAUOrIxg&list=LLP-w1HwANvH1lYXC29sJUNQ
Indeed
Yip,
so the next govt needs to call “The Housing Crisis is a National Disaster” and give emergency power to a Finance Minister, to go around the octopus of Financial Acts.
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-27082017/#comment-1374117
Winston Peters being overpaid superannuation, doesn’t seem to me to be a mother of all scandals.
http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/news/politics/winston-peters-reveals-he-was-overpaid-superannuation/
its colin meads funeral tomorrow ,it would not be a scandal to find he had risen either.
https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2017/08/27/winston-admits-overpayment-issue-shows-how-easy-it-is-to-get-into-debt/
more scandal to come….
Bomber’s been working on a story for 8 months? That’d be going back to about when John Key resigned – and Bomber reckoned the media weren’t looking at the Panama Papers as the reason – and should have been.
so i also recall…..Bomber has a tendency to oversell however….I don’t know if thats also true of Murphy.
Fizzer? methinks.
Some journos have scandal envy, and don’t want to be last to go public on it.
More than a fizzer – not even a a minor mis-step by Peters.
“More than a fizzer – not even a a minor mis-step by Peters.”
….and why it is hardly credible that it is the scandal referred to by Tim Murphy
Gee that newshub piece on the Nats education gambit today with the back and forth between English and Kaye looked pretty shit. Not the first time in this campaign he’s hesitated and deferred to the relevant minister.
Think piece for this eve…
“The environment, already a hot topic in this election, will be the greatest policy challenge for the next government, writes Rod Oram…..”
“There is a clear party-political divide on these three biggest environmental issues of climate, water and legislation:
On one side, National is arguing for more of the same that has got us into this mess, while ACT wants wholesale abandonment of even those measures, and NZ First has a hodgepodge of contradictory policies.
On the other side, Labour, the Greens and The Opportunities Party clearly articulate the challenges, are ambitious for change and have substantial policies to deliver on the strategy the OECD advised in March in its 10-year review of our environmental performance:
“Developing a long-term vision for a transition towards a low-carbon, greener economy would help New Zealand defend the ‘green’ reputation it has acquired at an international level.”
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2017/08/26/44728/column-oram
That is a good piece from Rod Oram
I really rate him
Houston TV station livestream –cars submerged, people trapped, rescues underway
edit: oh, and tornado warnings too
edit: floodbanks over topping with four days of rain forecast
http://www.khou.com/weather/houston-weather-forecast/62951506
better youtube stream
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTXQVOtroIQ&feature=youtu.be
Water rising a foot an hour from that feed – shit still plenty to come down. Thanks for the link mate. Good luck to everyone over there.
Aotearoa is a gentle place.