I usually put a marginal sign alongside significant usable points in any book, with a pencil: < . The sign is an arrowhead pointer, and an excellent book ends up featuring oodles of such pointers. This editorial method gives you key points for writing a summary of what the book's primary messages are, which may or may not also motivate an essay blending these with your own thoughts.
This morning I'd like to share one such initial point of his:
"Robert Frost saw civilisation as a small clearing in a great forest. We have hewn our space at no small cost, and the dark out there seems ever ready to close in again – a collapse into chaos should our ideation fail. In my book I shall consider Frost's clearing to be the disciplines of mind, reality-adjusted thinking, reason, logic, civilisation, society, culture. I shall consider the dark forest to be the primal stuff, the unconscious, the unknown potential—perhaps just an "empty category."
Collective ideation collapse seems a suitable description of our random walk into the 21st century that has since ensued, powered by fossil fuels, orchestrated by neolibs of the left/right. Within the banality of this whole you can always find diverse interesting clever stuff happening, fortunately. Frost's small clearing is too long ago – population explosion since has driven the spread of cities until the forest shrinkage became a global crisis, yet as metaphor the dark in the collective mind looms still.
The cosmic egg is nowadays represented by niche in evolutionary theory, and the crack is the path to the future out of that which featured as quest in legend, so its a nifty binary image in the signal becoming a triad when enacted by stepping onto that path & heading for the realm of possibility in the beyond. Doing so collectively is how humans make progress, so while neolib sheeple circle mindlessly in the middle of the paddock, those averse to terminal boredom gradually converge in synch heading for the open gate…
Nobody in their right mind would expect a lawyer to be capable of regenerating a neocolonial water distribution! All lawyers ever do is administer conformity to laws.
From about 1950 until the 70s, Wellington built most of its pipes with asbestos cement. It’s not dangerous to public health, but it turns out asbestos cement is a crappy material that only lasts half as long as ceramic pipes. So now they’re all breaking.
They put a Labour dude in charge of the thing! A perpetual recipe for evasion of the problem. All the guy needs to do to retain tenure is tell everyone the problem's underground, so out of sight out of mind is the way to retain normalcy.
He certainly used to be a Labour man. He was a Porirua Councillor and then Mayor from 1998 until 2016. During that time he was a member of the Labour Party. He then ran for Mayor of Wellington City but, because Labour had picked an official candidate in the form of Justin Lester he had to resign from the Labour Party or be expelled.
Unfortunately Lester won and proved to be a terrible Mayor for his only term before he in turn got dumped.
Still, our current and at least in my opinion even worse Mayor in Wellington has a solution to our problems.
Trumpet flourish for her solution "Water Meters". In Tory's own words "Water meters will help us take a smarter approach to identifying leaks and reduce waste".
I can suggest an even simpler solution, and one that they can start doing immediately. Start fixing the ones people report. There is one in my street that has been wasting water for at least 3 months. The water comes out in the middle of the road, runs down the hill and then follows the gutter for a few hundred meters before going down a drain. Not a terribly big flow but assuming 10 litres/minute it will have wasted about 1.3 million litres in the last 90 days.
Twice we have been advised it would be fixed during the "next week". On neither occasion did anything happen.
And yes I did report it on several occasions but nothing happens.
Quote from Tory are from the printed Post of 27/01/2024. I don't have access to the on-line paper.
I had already included a link, where I got the quote from Legget's wiki page, which pointed out he switched to the National Party, so I don't know why you have linked to it again.
" In August 2016, Labour Leader Andrew Little accused Leggett of being a "right-winger", alleging that his campaign manager for the Wellington Mayoral election was a well-known Act Party figure."
"Leggett then changed allegiance to the National Party later that year citing ideological differences with Labour's leadership"
The National Party was obviously a better fit for Legget.
If memory serves, Tory Whanau was supportive of Labour's Three Waters reforms that would have addressed long-standing water infrastructure issues that existed long before she had become mayor.
National binned the reforms without a replacement solution, so maybe your anger should be directed to Luxon's National led government.
Experience has told me that there is a tendency on the part of one of the moderators to insist on a link to anything I say as a fact. I quoted additional material from the Wiki entry on Leggett so, discretion being the better part of valour, I included a link to the source.
In a comment today, on a different post, I included a comment on something that John McEnroe said. "You cannot be serious". I even included a link to that spectacular rant of his, in case I was said to be inventing it.
I have no idea on whether Tory was, or was not, in favour of the 3 waters scheme. I thought it was a terrible idea though, if anyone is interested. It appeared to allow an unelected group to borrow large amounts of money which would become the responsibility of the ratepayers of the area if they could make no provision for paying of the loans.
Eight years a Nat. Calling him a 'Labour dude' is like calling Shane Jones a Labour dude. There is a reason why we have the term 'former'; and also the term 'waka-jumper'.
National and Act’s coalition agreement says the Government will amend the Overseas Investment Act 2005 to restrict ministerial decision-making to national security concerns only and make these decisions “much more timely”.
National and Act’s coalition agreement says the Government will amend the Overseas Investment Act 2005 to restrict ministerial decision-making to national security concerns only and make these decisions “much more timely”.
It would appear that NZF has compromised its long held position to enable this, something either TPM or United blocked under the Key led government (or was further than Key would go).
It means investment not in our national interest will go ahead – all so someone who owns something can get a higher price selling to a foreigner (attracted by our lack of CGT).
“Not only does the dispatch of the NZDF team to the Red Sea strengthen the impression of a diplomatic U-turn in Wellington, it also points to a selective concern about maintaining international law.
By agreeing to send an NZDF team to the Red Sea without demanding the US end its opposition to a ceasefire in Gaza, the New Zealand government seems to have retreated from an independent foreign policy based on principles and values.”
And this is only the start of the unwinding of NZ's “principles and values”. The future looks bleaker by the day.
The US and probably Luxon are desperate to unlink Gaza and Yemen but this will be increasingly difficult especially with the ICJ ruling and the consequence that all nations are obliged to now intervene to ensure Palestinians are protected.
The US, Canada, Australia and Italy have now ceased funding UNRWA simply on allegations by Israel of involvement of 12 workers in Oct 7 without waiting for the investigation findings. Even if all 12 were complicit, this would be 0.0004% of a staff of over 30 000. This will have huge ramifications for aid to Gaza. Are we about to follow?
"The US and probably Luxon are desperate to unlink Gaza and Yemen… "
Bald lies since the Houthis are on record as saying they will continue the attacks until the Israelis stop their attacks on Gaza. Luxon is also on record as repeating the mantra that there is "no link between the Red Sea attacks and the Gaza attacks". Unbelievable!
I also note Luxon's latest buzz word is "values". He has been flinging it around a lot lately:
"my government believes in upholding our values etc. etc…"
when in fact they are dismantling them one by one.
"…no link between the Red Sea attacks and the Gaza attacks"
Obviously there is a link but it isn't what some people seem to believe (the Houthis support for the Palestinians), because they couldn't care less about them. The link between the two is Iran, who have been arming, training and supporting their fellow Shia groups the Houthis, Hezbollah and Hamas for years. There aim is to destabilize the middle east, with the ultimate goal being to destroy Israel.
It's fine for the US to give billions to Israel to buy arms to carry out genocide in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, but when a small number of employees in a vast humanitarian aid organisation are accused of something the US doesn't like, funding for humanitarian aid is immediately shut off.
No wonder young people are not going to vote for Biden.
Defence of shipping is in accord with international law.
A nation has a right in international law to take military action in response to an attack.
Patman seems confused by the complexity of some diplomatic circumstances.
The real issue of the moment is the ICJ wants some focus from Israel on the well being of civilians. Yet USA and now the UK have cut off funding to UNRWA, whose work Israel has been impeding – lack of safe areas for operating and lack of supplies getting through.
New Zealand should say its funding will continue because the world should be helping here, not making things worse because of politics.
The Israeli appointee supported 2 interim decisions – end to incitement and improved well-being for the civilians, so the least that Israel and those who support its right to self-defence can do, is not play politics and get more aid in.
Shipping that is in the service of the Israeli genocide is no longer legal. Nations are on notice that any support of the destruction of the Palestinian people will bring consequences. The UNSC resolution supporting free passage in the Red Sea has now been superseded by the ICJ ruling. The ICJ is in effect the supreme court of the UN. To have the UNSC resolution and the ICJ ruling effective at the same time would be ludicrous.
A further consequence of the ICJ ruling is that the naval blockade of Gaza is now illegal. There are only two options that would allow the proper fulfillment of the protection orders given the infrastructure damages in Gaza. Either a complete ceasefire by Israel or a massive maritime aid convoy.
Israel has destroyed almost all hospitals. 85% of the Gazan population is internally displaced and at best, living in tents. It is winter. There is little to no access to food and no sanitation. Famine and disease are already taking hold. These kinds of deaths will now be tallied up in the list of genocidal behaviour. Famine and disease are not legitimate weapons of war. Neither is freezing to death. To prevent these kinds of deaths is exactly what the ICJ judgement is about and at this stage, it will take a massive humantarian effort. A naval blockade of Gaza makes this impossible. Continuing the destruction of Gaza makes this impossible. Israel is so far down the rabbit hole of destruction that these are the only options by which they can comply with the conditions that have been set
(of a stimulus or mental process) below the threshold of sensation or consciousness; perceived by or affecting someone's mind without their being aware of it."
Act’s strategy seems to be to offer fake Treaty principles to the public, generate a few hundred thousand supportive online select-committee submissions, hold six months of heated hearings, hope for civil unrest, produce polls showing a majority wishes the Treaty had been written by Mill, and then accuse National of siding with Māori radicals against “mainstream New Zealanders”
No. I didn't watch the video. Listening to 45 minutes of him was too much to ask.
A small taster:
ACT Party Leader David Seymour reiterated his stance and plans for “real change” from the new Government in his “state of the nation” address at Auckland’s Westhaven on Sunday morning…
He outlined that New Zealand had become a “more divided” nation, and had experienced “lost decades” under previous Governments. “The good news is we have a Government prepared to accept reality and solve problems, with policies based on the right values,” he said.
That word "values" again. We've got three years of values, values and more values.
What values I hear you ask? We'll never know.
One rule for all (no Treaty, no UNDRIP), one income tax rate for all (no CGT, no wealth tax, no estate tax, no land tax, no stamp duty), one voucher to access (X Y and Z) providers. Only one party can provide liberty from other – those of ethnic or racial difference, those of lower income, those with less wealth.
Majority values, just do not expect any morality. Epsom values, our school zone.
Finish with a truth, lock out the underclass (when they cannot afford the rent).
What a Charade this "Values" laden government is!! What they say, and what they do are two different planets. Unity and Values Tui Tui .. Forked tongues!!!
Typical Randian nonsense from Seymour. The pinnacle of human achievement shall be the extraction and abuse of resources, environmental and human, for profit.
What the court ordered of Israel, where the judges came down, and what’s next for South Africa’s case alleging Israel’s violation of the Genocide Convention in Gaza
The Ugandan justice’s opine that this is a matter for diplomacy and not the court explains her voting.
Benjamin Nethanyahu's reaction, is similar to that after Oct 7, which led to statements by Gallant and Herzog that the court found incitement to genocide. Reaction, rather that a considered response. The sort of thing one would expect of the Religious Zionists group (fascists) created by Netanyahu to pose Likud as of a new centre.
The singular practice of a response by overwhelming force and then negation of any call for restraint.
When the Ottoman empire practiced this in the region pre 1900, a ME legend was created, of the flea that bit a Turk and the camel which hosted the flea was killed. A reference to collective punishment.
It is past time, Gantz demonstrated that the decision to appoint Gallant ahead of him in 2010-2011 was wrong and why. Gallant’s Dahiya doctrine getting rewarded despite the international cost reprised here on steroids.
When it failed last time, Israel had to hand over 1000 Hamas prisoners to get one captured IDF person back. Some do not learn from history – Hamas made the move because Gallant was Defence Minister and could be played.
The GOP on Capitol Hill explain that they are not hypocrites, they merely support the powerful against the weak – not international law, not collective security.
They will cut off aid to Ukraine and provide hope to those in the Kremlin that want to rule to NATO borders and then wait for the USA to withdraw from co-operation with Europe in trade and security (Trump's isolationism).
They will support Likud's rule over Palestinians from the river to the sea. Part of their Christian Zionism, or more simply God and mammon prosperity religion (belief where America is blessed, if they support Israel has become their imperial religion – outcome of their creationism and end time judgment fundamentalism cultural heritage).
The ram raid publicity was obviously politically motivated, it shows how a significant number of voters are easily manipulated……or you could say 'rightly ram raided'….
Great question re ram raids, love to know the answer. Seriously… All a campaign by dairy owners? Paid by their trade association? What was the role of the tobacco industry? Who set up any Facebook pages? Are ram raids still happening? Should be, its summer. Or was it great policing, social services?
My guess, joking… the dairy owners kids diddit. Grabbed the gear, gave it back to the owners, insurance for the rest and a grant for security. And a new government. Win, win, win.
I have a brother who lives in Ireland. He tells me that he used to buy a lot of stuff online from the UK when they were in the EU. It was easy and thigs would be delivered in one or two days.
Now – it is hard, there is Customs stuff and a whole bunch of extra problems. So, he now buys from France, or Belgium, or Spain and still gets the same delivery times and none of the problems.
The State Department said it would allow the sale of some $23 billion worth of fighter jets and equipment to Turkey, among the final steps in a much delayed transaction that has severely strained the relationship between Ankara and Washington.
The sale of the 40 F-16 fighter jets and upgrades to dozens of other jets became linked to Sweden's accession to NATO, with the U.S. postponing the transfer of the Lockheed Martin-produced aircraft until the Turkish government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan approved Sweden's membership this past week.
New Zealand is again having to reconcile conflicting pressures from its military and its trade interests. Should we join Pillar Two of AUKUS and risk compromising our markets in China? For a century after New Zealand was founded in 1840, its external security arrangements and external economics arrangements were aligned. ...
The ‘50 Shades of Green’ farmers’ protest in 2019 was heavy on climate change denial, but five years on, scepticism and criticism about the idea that pine forests can save us is growing across the board. File photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s the top six news items of note in climate ...
This morning the sky was bright.The birds, in their usual joyous bliss. Nature doesn’t seem to feel the heat of what might angst humans.Their calls are clear and beautiful.Just some random thoughts:MāoriPaul Goldsmith has announced his government will roll back the judiciary’s rulings on Māori Customary Marine Title, which recognises ...
In 2003, the Court of Appeal delivered its decision in Ngati Apa v Attorney-General, ruling that Māori customary title over the foreshore and seabed had not been universally extinguished, and that the Māori Land Court could determine claims and confirm title if the facts supported it. This kicked off the ...
Earlier this week at Parliament, Labour leader Chris Hipkins was applauded for saying that the response to the final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care had to be “bigger than politics.” True, but the fine words, apologies and “we hear you” messages will soon ring ...
TL;DR: In news breaking this morning:The Ministry of Education is cutting $2 billion from its school building programme so the National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government has enough money to deliver tax cuts; The Government has quietly lowered its child poverty reduction targets to make them easier to achieve;Te Whatu Ora-Health NZ’s ...
Kia ora. These are some stories that caught our eye this week – as always, feel free to share yours in the comments. Our header image this week (via Eke Panuku) shows the planned upgrade for the Karanga Plaza Tidal Swimming Steps. The week in Greater Auckland On ...
1. What's not to love about the way the Harris campaign is turning things around?a. Nothingb. Love all of itc. God what a reliefd. Not that it will be by any means easye. All of the above 2. Documents released by the Ministry of Health show Associate Health Minister Casey ...
Trust in me in all you doHave the faith I have in youLove will see us through, if only you trust in meWhy don't you, you trust me?In a week that saw the release of the 3,000 page Abuse in Care report Christopher Luxon was being asked about Boot Camps. ...
TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking about the Royal Commission Inquiry into Abuse in Carereport released this week, and with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on a UN push to not recognise carbon offset markets and ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 26, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Transport: Simeon Brown announced$802.9 million in funding for 18 new trains on the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines, which ...
The northern expressway extension from Warkworth to Whangarei is likely to require radical changes to legislation if it is going to be built within the foreseeable future. The Government’s powers to purchase land, the planning process and current restrictions on road tolling are all going to need to be changed ...
Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedFirst they came for the doctors But I was confused by the numbers and costs So I didn't speak up Then they came for our police and nurses And I didn't think we could afford those costs anyway So I ...
Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on UnsplashWe’re back again after our mid-winter break. We’re still with the ‘new’ day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when we have our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream ...
Notes: This is a free article. Abuse in Care themes are mentioned. Video is at the bottom.BackgroundYesterday’s report into Abuse in Care revealed that at least 1 in 3 of all who went through state and faith based care were abused - often horrifically. At least, because not all survivors ...
Luxon speaks in Parliament yesterday about the Abuse in Care report. Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:PM Christopher Luxon said yesterday in tabling the Abuse in Carereport in Parliament he wanted to ‘do the ...
About a decade ago I worked with a bloke called Steve. He was the grizzled veteran coder, a few years older than me, who knew where the bodies were buried - code wise. Despite his best efforts to be approachable and friendly he could be kind of gruff, through to ...
Some of the recent announcements from the government have reminded us of posts we’ve written in the past. Here’s one from early 2020. There were plenty of reactions to the government’s infrastructure announcement a few weeks ago which saw them fund a bunch of big roading projects. One of ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Thursday, July 25 are:News: Why Electric Kiwi is closing to new customers - and why it matters RNZ’s Susan EdmundsScoop: Government drops ...
Hi,I felt a small wet tongue snaking through one of the holes in my Crocs. It explored my big toe, darting down one side, then the other. “He’s looking for some toe cheese,” said the woman next to me, words that still haunt me to this day.Growing up in New ...
Yesterday I happily quoted the Prime Minister without fact-checking him and sure enough, it turns out his numbers were all to hell. It’s not four kg of Royal Commission report, it’s fourteen.My friend and one-time colleague-in-comms Hazel Phillips gently alerted me to my error almost as soon as I’d hit ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Thursday, July 25, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day were:The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquirypublished its final report yesterday.PM Christopher Luxon and The Minister responsible for ...
The Official Information Act has always been a battle between requesters seeking information, and governments seeking to control it. Information is power, so Ministers and government agencies want to manage what is released and when, for their own convenience, and legality and democracy be damned. Their most recent tactic for ...
TL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:Transport and Energy Minister Simeon Brown is accelerating plans to spend at least $10 billion through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) to extend State Highway One as a four-lane ‘Expressway’ from Warkworth to Whangarei ...
I live my life (woo-ooh-ooh)With no control in my destinyYea-yeah, yea-yeah (woo-ooh-ooh)I can bleed when I want to bleedSo come on, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)You can bleed when you want to bleedYea-yeah, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)Everybody bleed when they want to bleedCome on and bleedGovernments face tough challenges. Selling unpopular decisions to ...
Please note:To skip directly to the- parliamentary footage in the video, scroll to 1:21 To skip to audio please click on the headphone iconon the left hand side of the screenThis video / audio section is under development. ...
Given the crackdown on wasteful government spending, it behooves me to point to a high profile example of spending by the Luxon government that looks like a big, fat waste of time and money. I’m talking about the deployment of NZDF personnel to support the US-led coalition in the Red ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:40 am on Wednesday, July 24 are:Deep Dive: Chipping away at the housing crisis, including my comments RNZ/Newsroom’s The DetailNews: Government softens on asset sales, ...
As I reported about the city centre, Auckland’s rail network is also going through a difficult and disruptive period which is rapidly approaching a culmination, this will result in a significant upgrade to the whole network. Hallelujah. Also like the city centre this is an upgrade predicated on the City ...
Today, a 4 kilogram report will be delivered to Parliament. We know this is what the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care weighs, because our Prime Minister told us so.Some reporter had blindsided him by asking a question about something done by ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Wednesday, July 24, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Beehive:Transport Minister Simeon Brownannounced plans to use PPPs to fund, build and run a four-lane expressway between Auckland ...
NewstalkZB host Mike Hosking, who can usually be relied on to give Prime Minister Christopher Luxon an easy run, did not do so yesterday when he interviewed him about the HealthNZ deficit. Luxon is trying to use a deficit reported last year by HealthNZ as yet another example of the ...
Back in January a StatsNZ employee gave a speech at Rātana on behalf of tangata whenua in which he insulted and criticised the government. The speech clearly violated the principle of a neutral public service, and StatsNZ started an investigation. Part of that was getting an external consultant to examine ...
Renting for life: Shared ownership initiatives are unlikely to slow the slide in home ownership by much. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:A Deloittereport for Westpac has projected Aotearoa’s home-ownership rate will ...
You're broken down and tiredOf living life on a merry go roundAnd you can't find the fighterBut I see it in you so we gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsWe gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsAnd I'll rise upI'll rise like the dayI'll rise upI'll rise unafraidI'll rise upAnd I'll ...
There’s been a change in Myers Park. Down the steps from St. Kevin’s Arcade, past the grassy slopes, the children’s playground, the benches and that goat statue, there has been a transformation. The underpass for Mayoral Drive has gone from a barren, grey, concrete tunnel, to a place that thrums ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Global society may have finally slammed on the brakes for climate-warming pollution released by human fossil fuel combustion. According to the Carbon Monitor Project, the total global climate pollution released between February and May 2024 declined slightly from the amount released during the same ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Tuesday, July 23 are:Deep Dive: Penlink: where tolling rhetoric meets reality BusinessDesk-$$$’sOliver LewisScoop:Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Tuesday, July 23, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Health: Shane Reti announcedthe Board of Te Whatu Ora-Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the “botched merger” of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...
Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...
As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic party’s primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...
TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...
The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...
Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...
This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...
A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...
A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Orderimage, ...
Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
The Minister of Housing’s ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Minister’s metaphor of ‘flooding the market’ I do not see how the ...
As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
Waiting In The Wings:For truly, if Trump is America’s un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is America’s Octavian, the Republic’s youthful undertaker – and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMP’S SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the “illiberal” prime ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSAannounced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent talking about the National-ACT-NZ First Government’s release of its first Emissions Reduction Plan;University of Otago Foreign Relations Professor and special guest Dr Karin von ...
Open access notablesImproving global temperature datasets to better account for non-uniform warming, Calvert, Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society:To better account for spatial non-uniform trends in warming, a new GITD [global instrumental temperature dataset] was created that used maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) to combine the land surface ...
A late change to charter school legislation will cheat educators out of fair pay and negotiating power proving charter schools are just a vehicle to make profit out of our education system. ...
In 2004 te iwi Māori rallied against the Crown’s attempt to confiscate our coastlines and moana with the Foreshore and Seabed Act. This led to the largest hīkoi of a generation and the birth of Te Pāti Māori. 20 years later, history is repeating itself. Today the government has announced ...
It has been five and a half years since the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care was established to investigate the abuse of children, young people, and vulnerable adults within state and faith-based institutions. Yesterday, the final report - Whanaketia through pain and trauma, from darkness to light ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to take action off the back of the International Court of Justice ruling on Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine. ...
On Friday the International Court of Justice reaffirmed what Palestinian’s have been telling us for decades: that the occupation and colonisation of Palestinian lands by Israel is illegal and must end immediately. They also called for reparations for Palestinian’s who have lived under Israeli occupation since it began in 1967. ...
Labour calls on the Government to act after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian Territories is illegal. ...
The 53.7 percent rise in benefit sanctions over the last year is more proof of this Government’s disdain for our communities most in need of support. ...
Aotearoa could be a country where every child grows up feeling safe, loved and with a sense of belonging in their whānau and community. But for some of our children, this is far from reality. Instead, they are trapped in a maze of intergenerational harm that they can’t escape on ...
Te Pāti Māori are calling for David Seymour to resign as Associate Health Minister in response to his call for Pharmac to ignore the Treaty of Waitangi. “This announcement is just another example of the government’s anti-Tiriti, anti-Māori agenda.” Said Co-leader and spokesperson for health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. “Seymour thinks it ...
The soaring price of renting is driving the rise of inflation in this country - with latest figures from Stats NZ showing rents are up 4.8 per cent on average while annual inflation is at 3.3 per cent. ...
National’s Emissions Reduction Plan will take New Zealand further from the economy we need to ensure the next generation has a stable climate and secure livelihoods. ...
Following consultation with named parties and thorough consideration of privacy interests, the Green Party is in a position to release the Executive Summary of the final report from the independent investigation into Darleen Tana. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon should be asking serious questions of his Minister for Resources Shane Jones now it’s been revealed he misled the public about a dinner with mining companies that he didn’t declare and said wasn’t pre-arranged. ...
Te Pāti Māori have submitted to the Justice Select Committee against the Sentencing (Reinstating Three Strikes) Amendment Bill. The bill will further entrench racism in our justice system and fails to focus on rehabilitation. “Reinstating Three Strikes will empower a systematically racist system and exacerbate the overrepresentation of Māori in ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee is set to make a determination on the Residential Tenancies Amendment (RTA) Bill in the coming weeks. “This legislation will give landlords the power to kick our whānau out onto the street for no reason” said Housing spokesperson, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “Their solution to the housing ...
“National’s campaign was about tackling crime and the best they can do is a two-year long Ministerial Advisory Group,” Labour justice spokesperson Duncan Webb said. ...
“There are more examples of charter schools failing their students than there are success stories. The coalition Government is driving to dismantle our public school system and instead promote a privatised, competitive structure that puts profits before kids,” Jan Tinetti said. ...
“This government is choosing to deliberately mislead and withhold information, keeping our people in the dark about this government’s agenda and the future of our mokopuna,” said co-leader and spokesperson for Health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. The call comes after the demand from the Chief Ombudsman that Associate Minister of Health, Casey ...
“Today’s climate announcement by Simon Watts makes clear the National Government is simply paying lip service to meeting its climate change targets,” Megan Woods said. ...
National is choosing to make life harder for workers by taking away the rights our communities have fought hard for. Here's how they’re taking workers backwards. ...
Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue. We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. “The Abuse in Care Inquiry’s report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faith‑based institutions were ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government’s online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views. “It is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
Tēnā tātou katoa, Ngā mihi te rangi, ngā mihi te whenua, ngā mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
New Zealand’s payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts. “The Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre – Te Pokapū Wāina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. “The research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Regions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “Indonesia is important to New Zealand’s security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,” says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kōrero, he kōrero, he kōrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of Ngāti Maniapoto, Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka says. “My thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust – Ngāti Maniapoto for bringing their important kōrero to a ministerial ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.“I have received Ms Fredric’s resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,” Mr Brown says.“On behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...
The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliament’s test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Section 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are ‘dangerous changes’ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet. “Issues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...
After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks. “The level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations I’ve been ...
The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawke’s Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...
Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. It’s the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. At the heart of this report are the ...
For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care “Whanaketia – through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,” was tabled in Parliament ...
The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry “Whanaketia – through ...
With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “Tax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...
Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. “It includes a change ...
Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...
New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Competitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. “Under current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...
The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and Whangārei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “For too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...
Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “It is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,” Mr ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024. “I am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane. “ASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Mr Peters says. “This will be our third visit to ...
Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “This $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,” Mr Doocey says. ...
New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. “This support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealand’s commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. “Cabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...
In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today. “The previous government’s botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...
Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum. While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation. “New Zealand has a thriving space ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will travel to China on Saturday to attend the Ministerial on Climate Action meeting held in Wuhan. “Attending the Ministerial on Climate Action is an opportunity to advocate for New Zealand climate priorities and engage with our key partners on climate action,” Mr Watts says. ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is travelling to the Solomon Islands tomorrow for meetings with his counterparts from around the Pacific supporting collective management of the region’s fisheries. The 23rd Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Committee and the 5th Regional Fisheries Ministers’ Meeting in Honiara from 23 to 26 July ...
The Government today launched the Military Style Academy Pilot at Te Au rere a te Tonga Youth Justice residence in Palmerston North, an important part of the Government’s plan to crackdown on youth crime and getting youth offenders back on track, Minister for Children, Karen Chhour said today. “On the ...
The Government has welcomed news the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has begun work to replace nine priority bridges across the country to ensure our state highway network remains resilient, reliable, and efficient for road users, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“Increasing productivity and economic growth is a key priority for the ...
Acting Prime Minister David Seymour has been in contact throughout the evening with senior officials who have coordinated a whole of government response to the global IT outage and can provide an update. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has designated the National Emergency Management Agency as the ...
New Zealand and Japan will continue to step up their shared engagement with the Pacific, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “New Zealand and Japan have a strong, shared interest in a free, open and stable Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says. “We are pleased to be finding more ways ...
New developments in the heart of North Island forestry country will reinvigorate their communities and boost economic development, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones visited Kaingaroa and Kawerau in Bay of Plenty today to open a landmark community centre in the former and a new connecting road in ...
President Adeang, fellow Ministers, honourable Diet Member Horii, Ambassadors, distinguished guests. Minasama, konnichiwa, and good afternoon, everyone. Distinguished guests, it’s a pleasure to be here with you today to talk about New Zealand’s foreign policy reset, the reasons for it, the values that underpin it, and how it ...
Opinion: The Canadian short story writer Alice Munro – winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013 – died in May at the age of 92. Her work was about “the damage people inflict on one another in the name of love”, Deborah Treisman wrote in the New Yorker. ...
This month marks two years since the most powerful telescope ever built sent its first pictures back to earth. From its lofty vantage point, beyond the moon in orbit around the sun, the James Webb Space Telescope was tuned to observe the first stars and galaxies being born soon after ...
Comment: After Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ preview several weeks ago, I had some optimism about the Government’s emissions reduction plan. Now I’ve read the discussion document, that hope has been dashed. How can the Government propose a plan that wants to take New Zealand taxpayers’ hard-earned money, and spend ...
Christopher Luxon: hurdles The little man from National jumps hurdles in his sleep. He’s quite good at it in his dreams and even though the reality doesn’t quite match up you have to give him credit for getting up every morning and crashing into the very first hurdle of the ...
Comment: It was a good two hours into the conversation when Tyrone Marks raised the most basic of questions when I first spoke to him in 2017. “They didn’t explain the things they did to me. They never told me why. And they still haven’t. There’s no explanation for it. ...
Last summer when Matairangi burned, Ginny and Tom stood at the window of their lounge, watching kākā shoot skyward from the burning trees. From the distance, they looked to Ginny like pages torn from books and thrown into a bonfire. It was Tom, voice tight, who told her it was ...
Madeleine Chapman rounds out Death Week on The Spinoff with a final recommendation. You can read all of our Death Week coverage here. Nothing forces you to reflect on your life and relationships quite like proximity to death. For those whose nearest and dearest have died, there are reasonably obvious ...
Whitney Greene takes us through her life in television, including the TV character she’d like to plan a funeral for and her cow lung catastrophe on The Traitors NZ. “If the phone rings, I have to answer it,” Whitney Greene from The Traitors NZ warns as we begin our My ...
Maddie Ballard reviews the debut essay collection of Pōneke writer Flora Feltham.In ‘The Raw Material’, the longest essay in Flora Feltham’s dazzling debut collection, the author heads out for a run after hours of weaving and sees the world turn to textile. “Pounding along the Parade, I saw the ...
Andy Christiansen, one half of the experimental rock-pop duo TRiPS, shares the tunes inspiring the band’s perfect weekend and new release. “Good speakers, good food, good music, no distractions”: that’s all you need to enjoy the psychedelic stylings of TRiPS, a new band formed by Fly My Pretties’ Barnaby Weir ...
Celebrating our quadrennial opportunity to become experts in a bunch of sports we never normally watch.The games of the XXXIII Olympiad are upon us. Paris will host this year’s showcase of sporting and athletic prowess, which means some late-night and early-morning viewing for us in Aotearoa.But what sports ...
The photograph is striking and beautiful, but also disturbing – a reminder that my love for John was often entangled in shame.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.In the spring of 1980, in Dunedin, shortly before his death, someone took a photograph ...
Get to know Babushka, our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Babu’s humans, Jo and Isabel, for their support. Dog name: Babushka (Babu for short) Age: 2Breed: Border Collie X poodleIf rescued, ...
Pacific Media Watch A Lebanese photojournalist who was severely wounded during an Israeli air strike in south Lebanon carried the Olympic torch in Paris this week in honour of her peers who have been wounded and killed in the field — especially in Gaza and Lebanon. Christina Assi of Agence ...
The first report in a five-part web series focused on the 15th Triennial Conference of Pacific Women taking place in the Marshall Islands this week.SPECIAL REPORT:By Netani Rika in Majuro Women continue to fight for justice 70 years after the first nuclear tests by the United States caused ...
Christopher Luxon has joined with Australia and Canada's leaders in voicing support for US President Joe Biden's ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The 2022 election brought the “teal wave” into parliament. The next election will test whether teals, who occupy what were Liberal seats, and other independents can maintain their momentum. Joining us on the Podcast ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Musgrave, Senior lecturer in Pharmacology, University of Adelaide Pixavri/Shutterstock A major Federal Court class action has been dismissed this week after Justice Michael Lee ruled there was not enough evidence to prove the weedkiller Roundup causes cancer. Plaintiff Kelvin ...
In The Week in Politics: politicians have to decide what to do about child abuse, Health NZ is booked in for major surgery and Darleen Tana returns. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Corbould, Associate Professor, Contemporary Histories Research Group, Deakin University Mainstream media are surprisingly muted at the prospect of the world’s most powerful nation being led for the first time by a woman – specifically a woman of colour, Vice President Kamala ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rebecca Bennett, PhD Student, Associate Research Fellow, Deakin University Last week, a drone delivery company called Wing (owned by Google’s parent company, Alphabet) started operating in Melbourne. Some 250,000 residents in parts of the city’s eastern suburbs can now order food from ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Foo, Lecturer, Physiotherapy, Monash University pikselstock/Shutterstock In the next 40 years in Australia, it’s predicted the number of Australians aged 65 and over will more than double, while the number of people aged 85 and over will more than triple. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katrina Grant, Research Associate, Power Institute for Arts and Visual Culture, University of Sydney Jonas Åkerström’s 1790 work, Session of the Accademia dell’Arcadia on August 17 1788.Nationalmuseum/Cecilia Heisser Ever wondered whether you’d have a better chance at winning an Olympic gold ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexandra Jones, Program Lead, Food Governance, George Institute for Global Health wavebreakmedia/Shutterstock On Thursday, Australian and New Zealand food ministers at state, federal and national levels met to thrash out what’s next for health star ratings on packaged foods. Now, after ...
The Abuse in Care report found many Pacific survivors lost their connections to their culture and language, resulting in trauma that has been carried from generation to generation. ...
In the regulatory review, ECC intends to suggest that ERO focus on curriculum delivery reviews rather than the Ministry, because it’s not efficient or effective to have two agencies with radically different approaches climbing over each other. ...
Te Rūnanga Nui o Ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori invites the current government to work in partnership with them to develop a pathway forward, including the development of a parallel pathway and meaningful policy and strategy for Kura Kaupapa Māori ...
If you haven’t started watching yet, Tara Ward begs you to reconsider. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. In the world of New Zealand reality television, we have many gems in our crown. There’s the delicious second season of the Celebrity Treasure ...
A new poem by Fiona Kidman. The clothes of the dead I did not keep my mother’s furry red beret for long nor the stringy scarves that adorned the necks of my aunts, although I have kept tag ends of gold, the rings and trinkets they wore, the brooches no ...
The government’s announcement that it will re-open the foreshore and seabed controversy by changing the rules on recognising centuries-old Māori customary title for a third time goes against the rule of law and New Zealand values,” Mr Tipa says. ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Lioness by Emily Perkins (Bloomsbury, $25) Roarrrr! Perkins’ brilliant, award-winning, Marian-Keyes anointed, darkly funny, long ...
The 2004 Act vested ownership of the foreshore and seabed in the Crown, extinguishing any Māori claims to ownership and causing widespread outrage and protests among Māori communities. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Antje Deckert, Associate Professor (Criminology), Auckland University of Technology Getty Images Despite the connection between institutional harm and gang membership made clear in this week’s mammoth royal commission abuse-in care report, the government seems unlikely to soften its “get tough on ...
From Lewis Clareburt in the swimming to the start of the rowing – the first seven days of Paris 2024 promise to be big for New Zealand. There are few events that bring the country together quite like an Olympic Games. Nothing quite matches the excitement of getting up in ...
Groundbreaking local science just showed up in the most surprising of places: the season finale of The Kardashians. In the season five finale of The Kardashians last night, several members of the family gathered together in one of their signature empty, cream-coloured rooms to hear test results that had been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Saikal, Emeritus professor of Middle Eastern and Central Asian Studies, Australian National University The Middle East is on the brink of a possibly devastating regional war, with hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah reaching an extremely dangerous level. Washington has engaged in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Elizabeth Eades, Rheumatologist, Monash University Lupus is an inflammatory autoimmune illness, where the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks itself. Lupus can affect virtually any part of the body, although it most commonly affects the skin, joints and kidneys. The symptoms ...
A law firm that specialises in working with survivors of abuse in State care is disappointed that the Government fails to recognise that its boot camps can be directly compared to previous boot camps from the 1990s and 2000s. ...
Dying is a natural part of life, like updating your Wof or seeing your hairdresser, but without the word-of-mouth recs that help guarantee a good service. What if we changed that? Dying Reviews received by The Spinoff have had the names of organisations redacted while Hospice NZ collects further data. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonti Horner, Professor (Astrophysics), University of Southern Queensland Mike Lewinski/Flickr, CC BY On any clear night, if you gaze skywards long enough, chances are you’ll see a meteor streaking through the sky. Some nights, however, are better than others. At ...
Despite having no bars or other designated spaces for lesbians, Auckland boasts a small but mighty lesbian museum. So how did it get here? The past 18 months has brought increasing hostility towards the queer community across Aotearoa. Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull’s anti-trans rally in Tamaki Makaurau last March led to a ...
Poneke Antifascist Coalition has invited Wellingtonians to stand in solidarity with the Kanak people at 12pm today outside the French Embassy in Wellington. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Layton, Visiting Fellow, Strategic Studies, Griffith University Drones are the signature technology of the Ukraine war. A few miniature aircraft designs were used in the war’s early days, but an incredible array of drones have now evolved. There are different types, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Slee, Associate Professor, Clinical Academic Neurologist, Flinders University Francisco Gonzelez/Unsplash Migraine is many things, but one thing it’s not is “just a headache”. “Migraine” comes from the Greek word “hemicrania”, referring to the common experience of migraine being predominantly ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lee White, Senior Lecturer and Horizon Fellow, School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Sydney Australia was slow to introduce minimum building standards for energy efficiency. The Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS) only came into force in 2003. Older homes ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Steven Sherwood, Professor of Atmospheric Sciences, Climate Change Research Centre, UNSW Sydney The past century of human-induced warming has increased rainfall variability over 75% of the Earth’s land area – particularly over Australia, Europe and eastern North America, new research shows. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Heynen, Program Coordinator, Sustainable Energy, The University of Queensland A temporary stadium in the Champ-de-Mars, ParisEkaterina Pokrovsky/Shutterstock As Paris prepares to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the sustainability of the event is coming under scrutiny. The organisers have promoted ...
A night of karaoke and community in a pub that feels like a memory. You’d barely even notice it, unless you knew to look. Tucked away behind a liquor store on busy Constable Street is the capital’s last great pub. Newtown Sports Bar is an emblem of the pub culture ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Wright, Professor in Marine Geology, University of Canterbury Louise Corcoran/Getty Images The decline in the number of doctoral candidates at New Zealand universities is a worrying sign for the country’s effort to build a knowledge-based economy. Aotearoa New Zealand’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laurie Berg, Associate Professor, University of Technology Sydney defotoberg/Shutterstock Migrant worker exploitation is entrenched in workplaces across Australia. Tragically, a deep fear of immigration consequences means most unlawful employer conduct goes unreported. On Wednesday, however, the government officially launched a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Vaughan Cruickshank, Senior Lecturer in Health and Physical Education, University of Tasmania Paris is about to host its third summer Olympics. While we don’t yet know what the legacy of this year’s games will be, let’s take the opportunity to reflect on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Hugh Breakey, Deputy Director, Institute for Ethics, Governance & Law, Griffith University In the wake of the assassination attempt on former US President Donald Trump, there were calls from bothsides of US politics, as well as internationally, to reduce the brutal, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Keith Rathbone, Senior Lecturer, Modern European History and Sports History, Macquarie University Two high-profile assaults on Australians in Paris have raised concerns about security ahead of the Olympic Games. On Saturday evening, a young woman was allegedly sexually assaulted by a ...
Dying is inevitable and, so it seems, is it costing a lot, writes Stewart Sowman-Lund in today’s extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here.The cost of dying ...
The government took Joyce Harris's first baby and sent her off to a girls' home. Half a century on - and out of oceans of hurt - it asked her to be a mother figure. ...
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Half a century on, I've just got around to reading The Crack in the Cosmic Egg. The author seems onto it, very deep insight.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Chilton_Pearce
I usually put a marginal sign alongside significant usable points in any book, with a pencil: < . The sign is an arrowhead pointer, and an excellent book ends up featuring oodles of such pointers. This editorial method gives you key points for writing a summary of what the book's primary messages are, which may or may not also motivate an essay blending these with your own thoughts.
This morning I'd like to share one such initial point of his:
Collective ideation collapse seems a suitable description of our random walk into the 21st century that has since ensued, powered by fossil fuels, orchestrated by neolibs of the left/right. Within the banality of this whole you can always find diverse interesting clever stuff happening, fortunately. Frost's small clearing is too long ago – population explosion since has driven the spread of cities until the forest shrinkage became a global crisis, yet as metaphor the dark in the collective mind looms still.
The cosmic egg is nowadays represented by niche in evolutionary theory, and the crack is the path to the future out of that which featured as quest in legend, so its a nifty binary image in the signal becoming a triad when enacted by stepping onto that path & heading for the realm of possibility in the beyond. Doing so collectively is how humans make progress, so while neolib sheeple circle mindlessly in the middle of the paddock, those averse to terminal boredom gradually converge in synch heading for the open gate…
Internet Archive
https://archive.org › stream › Joseph-Chilton-Pearce-Crac…
Stuff reporter provides a useful primer for allocating blame, using the technique `spray & walk away': https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/25-01-2024/who-should-i-blame-for-wellingtons-water-shortage-a-users-guide
This will suit punters of all shapes & sizes, who have been produced by our neocolonial education system. More experienced blamers will go for the CEO of the org nominally responsible: https://www.wellingtonwater.co.nz/about-us/governance/wellington-water-committee-3/
Nobody in their right mind would expect a lawyer to be capable of regenerating a neocolonial water distribution! All lawyers ever do is administer conformity to laws.
Seems like a resilience/governance problem. So here's the governance structure: https://www.wellingtonwater.co.nz/about-us/governance/wellington-water-committee-2/
They put a Labour dude in charge of the thing! A perpetual recipe for evasion of the problem. All the guy needs to do to retain tenure is tell everyone the problem's underground, so out of sight out of mind is the way to retain normalcy.
The dude is not Labour.
Nicholas Oliver Leggett (born 1979) is a former New Zealand politician and, as of 2016, a member of the New Zealand National Party.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nick_Leggett#:~:text=Nicholas%20Oliver%20Leggett%20(born%201979,the%20New%20Zealand%20National%20Party.
He certainly used to be a Labour man. He was a Porirua Councillor and then Mayor from 1998 until 2016. During that time he was a member of the Labour Party. He then ran for Mayor of Wellington City but, because Labour had picked an official candidate in the form of Justin Lester he had to resign from the Labour Party or be expelled.
Unfortunately Lester won and proved to be a terrible Mayor for his only term before he in turn got dumped.
Still, our current and at least in my opinion even worse Mayor in Wellington has a solution to our problems.
Trumpet flourish for her solution "Water Meters". In Tory's own words "Water meters will help us take a smarter approach to identifying leaks and reduce waste".
I can suggest an even simpler solution, and one that they can start doing immediately. Start fixing the ones people report. There is one in my street that has been wasting water for at least 3 months. The water comes out in the middle of the road, runs down the hill and then follows the gutter for a few hundred meters before going down a drain. Not a terribly big flow but assuming 10 litres/minute it will have wasted about 1.3 million litres in the last 90 days.
Twice we have been advised it would be fixed during the "next week". On neither occasion did anything happen.
And yes I did report it on several occasions but nothing happens.
Quote from Tory are from the printed Post of 27/01/2024. I don't have access to the on-line paper.
Material about Leggett is from Wiki https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nick_Leggett
I had already included a link, where I got the quote from Legget's wiki page, which pointed out he switched to the National Party, so I don't know why you have linked to it again.
" In August 2016, Labour Leader Andrew Little accused Leggett of being a "right-winger", alleging that his campaign manager for the Wellington Mayoral election was a well-known Act Party figure."
"Leggett then changed allegiance to the National Party later that year citing ideological differences with Labour's leadership"
The National Party was obviously a better fit for Legget.
If memory serves, Tory Whanau was supportive of Labour's Three Waters reforms that would have addressed long-standing water infrastructure issues that existed long before she had become mayor.
National binned the reforms without a replacement solution, so maybe your anger should be directed to Luxon's National led government.
" I don't know why you have linked to it again."
Experience has told me that there is a tendency on the part of one of the moderators to insist on a link to anything I say as a fact. I quoted additional material from the Wiki entry on Leggett so, discretion being the better part of valour, I included a link to the source.
In a comment today, on a different post, I included a comment on something that John McEnroe said. "You cannot be serious". I even included a link to that spectacular rant of his, in case I was said to be inventing it.
I have no idea on whether Tory was, or was not, in favour of the 3 waters scheme. I thought it was a terrible idea though, if anyone is interested. It appeared to allow an unelected group to borrow large amounts of money which would become the responsibility of the ratepayers of the area if they could make no provision for paying of the loans.
I see. You didn't quote any additional material, it was more like a synopsis.
"an unelected group"? who are you referring to? and it was not a general election.
You appear to not know very much about the water reforms that National has shortsightedly got rid of, which will force councils to increase rates.
About the Water Services Reform Programme
https://www.dia.govt.nz/Water-services-reform-about-the-reform-programme
I thought the Kaipara Council covered the Three Waters reforms quite well.
https://www.kaipara.govt.nz/news/post/377-Three-waters-explained
Eight years a Nat. Calling him a 'Labour dude' is like calling Shane Jones a Labour dude. There is a reason why we have the term 'former'; and also the term 'waka-jumper'.
I don't recall this in NATZAZ campaign'
Pay off for support?
https://newsroom.co.nz/2024/01/26/plans-to-scale-back-ministers-powers-over-foreign-investment/
NZ put on the block to the highest bidder.
NZ citizens the low-cost labour under our wealthy overlords.
All to plan, I would think!
It would appear that NZF has compromised its long held position to enable this, something either TPM or United blocked under the Key led government (or was further than Key would go).
It means investment not in our national interest will go ahead – all so someone who owns something can get a higher price selling to a foreigner (attracted by our lack of CGT).
Robert G Patman has upended the Luxon Govt.’s confused announcements in relation to the Houthi Red Sea attacks and Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/jan/27/new-zealands-red-sea-deployment-points-to-a-selective-concern-over-international-law
And this is only the start of the unwinding of NZ's “principles and values”. The future looks bleaker by the day.
The US and probably Luxon are desperate to unlink Gaza and Yemen but this will be increasingly difficult especially with the ICJ ruling and the consequence that all nations are obliged to now intervene to ensure Palestinians are protected.
The US, Canada, Australia and Italy have now ceased funding UNRWA simply on allegations by Israel of involvement of 12 workers in Oct 7 without waiting for the investigation findings. Even if all 12 were complicit, this would be 0.0004% of a staff of over 30 000. This will have huge ramifications for aid to Gaza. Are we about to follow?
https://mondoweiss.net/2024/01/operation-al-aqsa-flood-day-113-a-day-after-icj-ruling-u-s-and-allies-withdraw-funding-to-unrwa/
My bad. As a percentage its 0.04
"The US and probably Luxon are desperate to unlink Gaza and Yemen… "
Bald lies since the Houthis are on record as saying they will continue the attacks until the Israelis stop their attacks on Gaza. Luxon is also on record as repeating the mantra that there is "no link between the Red Sea attacks and the Gaza attacks". Unbelievable!
I also note Luxon's latest buzz word is "values". He has been flinging it around a lot lately:
"my government believes in upholding our values etc. etc…"
when in fact they are dismantling them one by one.
"Are we about to follow?"
Of course.![angry angry](https://cdn2.thestandard.org.nz/wp-content/plugins/ark-wysiwyg-comment-editor/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/angry_smile.png?x42494)
To be fair, Luxon is both dishonest and deeply stupid.
"…no link between the Red Sea attacks and the Gaza attacks"
Obviously there is a link but it isn't what some people seem to believe (the Houthis support for the Palestinians), because they couldn't care less about them. The link between the two is Iran, who have been arming, training and supporting their fellow Shia groups the Houthis, Hezbollah and Hamas for years. There aim is to destabilize the middle east, with the ultimate goal being to destroy Israel.
It's fine for the US to give billions to Israel to buy arms to carry out genocide in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, but when a small number of employees in a vast humanitarian aid organisation are accused of something the US doesn't like, funding for humanitarian aid is immediately shut off.
No wonder young people are not going to vote for Biden.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/jan/07/joe-biden-youth-vote-gaza-climate-change
Like sheep into the arms of someone far, far worse.
The GOP are more hardline on support for Israel, are anti-GW action, and would reduce protection for the environment and labour.
Its really just an incredibly crap electoral system largely based on dosh.
So young people and others with a moral compass have to support Genocide Joe rather than Mussolini/Hitler Trump? Jeez. What a choice.
Exactly Grey.
Defence of shipping is in accord with international law.
A nation has a right in international law to take military action in response to an attack.
Patman seems confused by the complexity of some diplomatic circumstances.
The real issue of the moment is the ICJ wants some focus from Israel on the well being of civilians. Yet USA and now the UK have cut off funding to UNRWA, whose work Israel has been impeding – lack of safe areas for operating and lack of supplies getting through.
New Zealand should say its funding will continue because the world should be helping here, not making things worse because of politics.
The Israeli appointee supported 2 interim decisions – end to incitement and improved well-being for the civilians, so the least that Israel and those who support its right to self-defence can do, is not play politics and get more aid in.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-68119268
Shipping that is in the service of the Israeli genocide is no longer legal. Nations are on notice that any support of the destruction of the Palestinian people will bring consequences. The UNSC resolution supporting free passage in the Red Sea has now been superseded by the ICJ ruling. The ICJ is in effect the supreme court of the UN. To have the UNSC resolution and the ICJ ruling effective at the same time would be ludicrous.
A further consequence of the ICJ ruling is that the naval blockade of Gaza is now illegal. There are only two options that would allow the proper fulfillment of the protection orders given the infrastructure damages in Gaza. Either a complete ceasefire by Israel or a massive maritime aid convoy.
The ICJ did not mention any of that in its ruling. You've extrapolated a lot out of what it did say.
Israel has destroyed almost all hospitals. 85% of the Gazan population is internally displaced and at best, living in tents. It is winter. There is little to no access to food and no sanitation. Famine and disease are already taking hold. These kinds of deaths will now be tallied up in the list of genocidal behaviour. Famine and disease are not legitimate weapons of war. Neither is freezing to death. To prevent these kinds of deaths is exactly what the ICJ judgement is about and at this stage, it will take a massive humantarian effort. A naval blockade of Gaza makes this impossible. Continuing the destruction of Gaza makes this impossible. Israel is so far down the rabbit hole of destruction that these are the only options by which they can comply with the conditions that have been set
You must consider his pen name and its meaning.
"subliminal"
adjective
PSYCHOLOGY
Of course he can make out these ideas.
Thank you Alwyn
Further evidence this government stands for nothing other than the money it receives from large corporate backers.
New Zealand backs away from deep-sea trawling restrictions.
https://www.thepost.co.nz/politics/350157805/new-zealand-backs-away-deep-sea-trawling-restrictions
Also fast tracking development of coastal fisheries, mining on conservation land etc.
Waitangi is a long way for an old fart to drive.
Does anybody know of a peaceful/silent protest happening closer to auckland to demonstrate our disgust at the governments treaty proposals
Hoots on Nact's wilful disingenuity.
.
Act’s strategy seems to be to offer fake Treaty principles to the public, generate a few hundred thousand supportive online select-committee submissions, hold six months of heated hearings, hope for civil unrest, produce polls showing a majority wishes the Treaty had been written by Mill, and then accuse National of siding with Māori radicals against “mainstream New Zealanders”
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/national-and-act-are-failing-the-good-faith-test-over-treaty-principles-bill-matthew-hooton/MTKZFN6HPFBFDIT3GIYOKEFWAM/
https://archive.li/eOrVe
And right on cue:
https://www.stuff.co.nz/politics/350160501/acts-david-seymour-promises-real-change
No. I didn't watch the video. Listening to 45 minutes of him was too much to ask.
A small taster:
That word "values" again. We've got three years of values, values and more values.
What values I hear you ask? We'll never know.
One rule for all (no Treaty, no UNDRIP), one income tax rate for all (no CGT, no wealth tax, no estate tax, no land tax, no stamp duty), one voucher to access (X Y and Z) providers. Only one party can provide liberty from other – those of ethnic or racial difference, those of lower income, those with less wealth.
Majority values, just do not expect any morality. Epsom values, our school zone.
Finish with a truth, lock out the underclass (when they cannot afford the rent).
What a Charade this "Values" laden government is!! What they say, and what they do are two different planets. Unity and Values Tui Tui .. Forked tongues!!!
Typical Randian nonsense from Seymour. The pinnacle of human achievement shall be the extraction and abuse of resources, environmental and human, for profit.
The legal stuff
The Ugandan justice’s opine that this is a matter for diplomacy and not the court explains her voting.
https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/making-sense-of-the-icj%27s-provisional-measures-in-south-africa-v.-israel
Benjamin Nethanyahu's reaction, is similar to that after Oct 7, which led to statements by Gallant and Herzog that the court found incitement to genocide. Reaction, rather that a considered response. The sort of thing one would expect of the Religious Zionists group (fascists) created by Netanyahu to pose Likud as of a new centre.
The singular practice of a response by overwhelming force and then negation of any call for restraint.
When the Ottoman empire practiced this in the region pre 1900, a ME legend was created, of the flea that bit a Turk and the camel which hosted the flea was killed. A reference to collective punishment.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/world-news/350160567/netanyahu-defiant-after-un-court-ruling-deaths-gaza-offensive-continue
It is past time, Gantz demonstrated that the decision to appoint Gallant ahead of him in 2010-2011 was wrong and why. Gallant’s Dahiya doctrine getting rewarded despite the international cost reprised here on steroids.
When it failed last time, Israel had to hand over 1000 Hamas prisoners to get one captured IDF person back. Some do not learn from history – Hamas made the move because Gallant was Defence Minister and could be played.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoav_Gallant
The 37th government of Israel (the most inept in its history) had advance warning.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/30/world/middleeast/israel-hamas-attack-intelligence.html
Seymour says he believes in "equal opportunity for all"!
https://www.msn.com/en-nz/news/national/seymour-slams-opposition-to-treaty-bill-takes-aim-at-key-ardern-in-state-of-the-nation-speech/ar-BB1hmh67?ocid=msedgntp&pc=U531&cvid=0f8647e572274aba8c61568a29326154&ei=28
Does that mean he supports 100% inheritance tax?
Well, not until after he inherits. He's a silver spoon boy. Clearly evident by the whinging when someone disagrees with diddums
The GOP on Capitol Hill explain that they are not hypocrites, they merely support the powerful against the weak – not international law, not collective security.
They will cut off aid to Ukraine and provide hope to those in the Kremlin that want to rule to NATO borders and then wait for the USA to withdraw from co-operation with Europe in trade and security (Trump's isolationism).
They will support Likud's rule over Palestinians from the river to the sea. Part of their Christian Zionism, or more simply God and mammon prosperity religion (belief where America is blessed, if they support Israel has become their imperial religion – outcome of their creationism and end time judgment fundamentalism cultural heritage).
If you have any other explanation for this …
https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/2024-01-25/ty-article-magazine/.premium/republicans-are-looking-at-netanyahu-for-how-to-combat-bidens-post-war-gaza-plans/0000018d-4162-d35c-a39f-eb7a4a6e0000?gift=77e2c95918264f3585e10ec0d656c57a
Where have all the ram raids gone……..
Just asking for a friend…
Still there, but less reported???
Still happening.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/350160632/second-michael-hill-jewellery-store-targeted-many-days
Where’s the comment from the local MP? Mark Mitchell. MIA?
Not a peep out of Sunny Kaushal either.
The ram raid publicity was obviously politically motivated, it shows how a significant number of voters are easily manipulated……or you could say 'rightly ram raided'….
Great question re ram raids, love to know the answer. Seriously… All a campaign by dairy owners? Paid by their trade association? What was the role of the tobacco industry? Who set up any Facebook pages? Are ram raids still happening? Should be, its summer. Or was it great policing, social services?
My guess, joking… the dairy owners kids diddit. Grabbed the gear, gave it back to the owners, insurance for the rest and a grant for security. And a new government. Win, win, win.
If only the experts had warned someone, anyone….
//
24 hours of Brexit failures
Collapsed trade deals, rising food prices, more border checks and not enough flowers for Valentine’s Day – thanks a bunch
Edwin Hayward
[…]
The UK government gave up trying to renew our temporary rollover trade deal with Canada
[…]
Incoming border checks were deemed to increase the cost of our imported food and drink by £200 million a year
[…]
There were warnings that the new incoming border checks could lead to flower shortages in the run-up to Valentine’s Day
[…]
The EU is setting up an Entry-Exit System that will collect biometrics from every passenger
[…]
France’s Constitutional Council blocked a preferential visa clause in a new French immigration bill
[…]
Health sector professionals warned that the EU is planning to bulk buy key medicines and establish a shared stockpile for its 27 members
[…]
Rishi Sunak’s pledge that all new laws will be screened to ensure they do not create trade barriers in the Irish Sea is causing ructions
https://www.theneweuropean.co.uk/24-hours-of-brexit-failures/
https://archive.li/Q50tD
( links https://twitter.com/edwinhayward/status/1750673173069140381 )
I have a brother who lives in Ireland. He tells me that he used to buy a lot of stuff online from the UK when they were in the EU. It was easy and thigs would be delivered in one or two days.
Now – it is hard, there is Customs stuff and a whole bunch of extra problems. So, he now buys from France, or Belgium, or Spain and still gets the same delivery times and none of the problems.
It was always about the planes.
.
The State Department said it would allow the sale of some $23 billion worth of fighter jets and equipment to Turkey, among the final steps in a much delayed transaction that has severely strained the relationship between Ankara and Washington.
The sale of the 40 F-16 fighter jets and upgrades to dozens of other jets became linked to Sweden's accession to NATO, with the U.S. postponing the transfer of the Lockheed Martin-produced aircraft until the Turkish government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan approved Sweden's membership this past week.
https://www.npr.org/2024/01/27/1227418505/f-16s-turkey-sweden-nato-kurds-greece
Looks like Labour members have sent a strong message to the Labour Council – re introducing a CGT of some sort:
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/michael-wood-among-familiar-faces-to-win-labour-election-as-party-mulls-tax-discussion/MB3XPAEYIBFULNDNCMEP7RD6YQ/
Kia ora whano .
The sandflies can’t catch me legally so they cheat and use the mental health act to lock me up.
and they have people going around spreading the lies about my mental health.
In reality the sandflies have been shitting on my Mana for years .
my mental health is and has always been perfectly fine
ka kite ano