Further evidence that New Zealand is highly vulnerable to the oncoming global economic collapse.
‘Fonterra cuts farmer milk payout
Fonterra has cut its farmgate milk price forecast for the 2015/6 season to $4.15 a kg of milksolids from a previous forecast of $4.60 a kg in response to weak international prices.
Combined with the earnings per share range of 45-55 cents, the total available for payout of $4.60-$4.70 per kg and would currently equate to a forecast cash payout of $4.50-$4.55 per kg for farmers, it said.
Chairman John Wilson said global economic conditions continue to be challenging and are impacting demand for a range of commodities, including dairy.
“Key factors driving dairy demand are declining international oil prices which have weakened the spending power of countries reliant on oil revenues, economic uncertainty in developing economies and a slow recovery of dairy imports into China,” he said in a statement.’
I don’t know about anyone else’s experience but in my personal sphere of life I have yet to come across a man-made climate change denier who isn’t male, white and over 30. I am going to speculate that this is an indirect offshoot of the “white men are right” school of thought (sometimes known as “the white man’s burden) that permeated Anglo-Saxon colonised countries over the past 100-150 years. Today, remnants of this philosophy are expressed in the individual viewpoints of white males, who actually have no more power as individuals in society than women, other cultures etc, but still presume that they possess an innate wisdom thanks to their race and sex that is superior to science and the general facts of the matter.
Perhaps, the same psychological tendency (the cult of superior knowingness due to one’s sex and race) are expressed in other forms in other parts of the world.
I’ve come across one early 20s white female, educated in an engineering field, that appeared to be a climate change denier. Not a definite sighting of a very rare species, I didn’t get a chance to fully confirm it.
Interesting observation. I’d hazard a guess that some of it is the fact that AGW is going to fuck the patriarchy’s stranglehold on things and the older white men who have benefited the most from the patriarchy have the most to lose. Cognitive dissonance. Probably the sociopathic effect too (white men having more socialisation in that direction).
Interesting and plausible theory pineapple. Certainly I have observed this phenomenon in this category of people many many times.
For the record however, I do know of at least 3 women who are active climate change deniers, ages between 45- 55. They are all nat voters and think climate change is a con made up by the loony left to make us feel bad and “bad weather” happens. I kid you not.
To test for the trend amongst conservative white males, the researchers compared the demographic to “all other adults.” Results showed, for instance, that 29.6 percent of conservative white males believe the effects of global warming will never happen, versus 7.4 percent of other adults. In holding for “confident” conservative white males, the study showed 48.4 percent believe global warming won’t happen, versus 8.6 percent of other adults.
Yes, with any luck Goff will be gone but there’s still the group of dissenters, saboteurs and general trouble makers for Labour: Shearer, Nash, Cosgrove , Mallard, King.
There is a small risk that Shearer would use any punishment by Little to resign from Labour and go to his true home, National. There is nothing Mrs & Mr Shearer will not do to become Min for Foreign Affairs or at least an Ambassador.
Neonicotinoids — the pesticides threatening bees — are a vicious neurotoxin used on 100 million acres of farmland, lawns, and gardens across the US. Bees can’t avoid them because they are everywhere. They spread through soil and water, and cannot be washed off of food. A government study even found them in 29% of baby food!
The US is considering action after releasing a study showing that one of the most common neonics is “very highly toxic to adult honey bees.” But without pressure the government may only limit the use of these toxins — even though studies show that low doses can disrupt bees’ learning, memory and motor functions. We’ve already begun by funding leading scientists and engaging stakeholders. Now is the time for millions of voices to demand the US environment agency and the White House stop the use of these dangerous chemicals altogether.
Seventy out of the world’s top 100 food crops are pollinated by bees! We would have food in a world without bees, but the vivid diversity of native plants, fruits and vegetables would be lost. …ps. Bees are just totally amazing. They form matriarchal societies that communicate with each other by dancing … their honeycombs are one of the most efficient structures in nature … and their brains can actually stop aging (possibly giving us signs on how to stop dementia)! Let’s help save these incredible creatures together: https://secure.avaaz.org/en/save_the_bees_global_2016sam/?bRtXRcb&v=71926&cl=9333005379
The chemical companies would like us to believe that what happens to insects has no impact on people. But in our interconnected ecosystem the death of even tiny creatures like bees ripples through us too. As Rachel Carson, who led the charge against DDT, said: “In nature nothing exists alone.” We all depend on each other. We need the bees and the bees need us.
With hope,
Nell, Dalia, Ari, Ben, Emma, Alice, Emily and the entire Avaaz team
i have a nice garden with lots of fruit trees and i don’t use anything ever. Let nature sort it is my motto and so far it worked. However this year i have not seen a single bee, and many people that I know that garden for food are also not seeing them, but are hand pollinating, or contemplating getting someone in with a hive in the future or establishing their own hive. This is not an option for me as I rent in town, but i am contemplating a hive set up once i move permanently to the paddock of paradise.
On Thursday 4 February 2016 – from 12 noon till 1pm a non-violent, family- friendly peaceful protest against the proposed signing of the TPPA is being organised in Auckland – from Aotea Square to Britomart.
Hopefully THOUSANDS of concerned New Zealanders will fill Queen Street over this one hour lunch break – to show our opposition to the proposed signing of the TPPA.
This peaceful protest, called by the ‘It’s Our Future’ group – is NOT going to Sky City – it is going up Queen Street, in hopefully a MASSIVE display of ‘people power’.
Come on folks!
We need Queen PACKED with New Zealanders who care about our country and OUR future!
Be there!
Stand up and be counted for yourself, your family, your children and grandchildren!
Together – in our THOUSANDS let’s show this John Key led Government and THE WORLD how many genuine, caring Kiwis are opposed to increasing global corporate control over our land, our resources and our sovereignty!
Because – on 4 February 2016 – the world WILL be watching …
You could have saved yourself the trouble of typing John Key.
“Ignoring referenda is de rigueur for the Government”
There have been, if my memory is correct, five referenda that got through to a vote. Everyone of them passed and was then ignored by Parliament.
One went to the Bolger Government, two to the Clark Government and two to the Key Government.
Ignoring the results of referenda is common to the lot of them, isn’t it?
I fear you may be confusing me with someone else.
Nothing Corbyn might do would surprise me.
I think he is a total idiot.
I also haven’t the slightest interest in the Falklands except to feel sorry for the people who live in that god-forsaken place.
What happens to them is up to Britain.
If the occupation was fine, then they probably should. But if they’ve been living on stolen land for a couple of hundred years, then it’s still stolen land.
If that is the case we are going to have to hand it back to France then, although I doubt that Hollande would be keen on the idea.
According to Wiki
“The islands were uninhabited when discovered by Europeans. France established a colony on the islands in 1764. In 1765, a British captain claimed the islands for Britain. In early 1770 a Spanish commander arrived from Argentina with five ships and 1400 soldiers forcing the British to leave Port Egmont. Britain and Spain almost went to war over the islands, but the British government decided that it should withdraw its presence from many overseas settlements in 1774. Spain, which had a garrison at Puerto Soledad on East Falklands, ruled the islands from Buenos Aires until 1811 when it was forced to withdraw. In 1833, the British returned to the Falkland Islands. Argentina invaded the islands on 2 April 1982. The British responded with an expeditionary force that forced the Argentines to surrender.”
You work it out. If I read it correctly then Spain abandoned the place in 1811 and Britain has been there continuously from when they came back in 1833.
Anyhoo, not really my problem to work out. That’s what diplomatic processes and international conventions are for. Of course, if bilateral talks manage to resolve the issue to the satisfaction of both parties, for example maybe Britain negotiating compensation to Argentina to keep the territory, and agreeing some sort of sharing thing on mineral rights and fisheries, then none of those processes need to be worked through.
No reason not to talk about it – sticking to some sort of neoThatcherite jingoism might well cost a shedload more than acting like a reasonable human being.
It’s not like Corbyn demanded the islands be turned over to the Argentines as soon as possible, but curse him for daring to mention having a conversation to resolve a longstanding international dispute…
You actually sounded interested in the subject and were presenting an either/or scenario when you said
“If the occupation was fine, then they probably should. But if they’ve been living on stolen land for a couple of hundred years, then it’s still stolen land”
Being a good hearted chap I decided to try and get you something that might help resolve the confusion you were in.
I see you are one of those who do not wish to have that confusion caused by your ignorance alleviated. I shall try and abstain from taking part in your education in future. I reserve the right to point out any excessively silly comments you make though.
Technically of course it seems to me that they were never part of Argentina. They were ruled by Spain until they abandoned them in 1811. Argentina didn’t exist until 1816, I think.
The question was regarding how much weight should be given to the wishes of 1600 voting-eligible residents.
The answer is pretty simple: if the land is stolen, then very little.
The issue of ownership is a legal question that can be avoided via diplomatic negotiations.
Our opinions of the legality of the British occupation are irrelevant: I know you like thinking that you know better than multiple judicial systems, but the fact is that you probably don’t. Neither do I. And the legal opinions of commenters on a NZ blogsite will almost certainly not affect the policies of either Britain or Argentina.
Spain abandoned them to fight the Argentine war of independence. Territorial legitimacy went from Spain to the newly independent Argentina, according to their point of view. The British left them well before the Spanish did. Even the yanks had a tilt.
But that’s all irrelevant to what was asked: the easiest way to provide long term security for the residents is for Britain to negotiate with Argentina and come to some sort of settlement.
I do like the fact the Islanders were asked, though – that’s something the Chagos islanders never got from Britain.
Well there is one thing we agree on. Neither of us is a lawyer.
As far as “The British left them well before the Spanish did.” goes though it looks as if the British were forced out by the Spanish, if my Wiki extract is accurate.
That was being mean talking about the “Chagos islanders”. I had to google it. If you had said Diego Garcia I wouldn’t have needed to.
Lots of bad things have happened to people living in offshore places of course.
I don’t think the people of Goa had any say in their annexation by India.
The people of Hong Kong didn’t get a choice did they?
Neither did all the countries dominated by the USSR after WW2. At least not until the USSR collapsed.
Russia sold Alaska to the USA. Did anyone ask the residents.
Where do you want to stop. Can we send all the Scots back to Ireland?
I merely mentioned DG/Chagos because I found it humourous that a mere 40 years later the British government/media is pretending to care about what 1600 residents think.
Basically, yeah, it goes back as long as the effects go back. That’s why Canada’s working to redress wrongs against First Nations folk by creating a new province. That’s why Mt McKinly is back to being called Denali. The resolution isn’t “sending people back where they came from”, the resolution is accepting that parties feel wrongs happened and providing some manner of individual, national or systemic reparation to resolve the wrongs that occurred. It’s not being a pushover, it’s just having a conversation to see the other party’s point of view and see if the issue can be addressed, rather than letting it fester so three jerks with a license plate don’t cause a riot.
News flash Fox news becomes Trumps punching bag, how distracting, how boring, how predictable, how did this become headline TV news? Spin cycle USA has no place here
John Milford is pants. I don’t know how or why he gets so much media space. He has been growing his right wing lobbying power for over a decade now, mainly at a local level here in Wellington but alarmingly he seems to be given column space for national political issue which he knows nothing of, eg, the TPPA.
I’m not sure why fairfax look to him as such an oracle of economic wisdom when he was CE of Kirkcaldies and Staines all this time and for so long yet managed to run a successful iconic business that had been standing for over 150 years, into the ground, only to bought out by the aussies.
What an oaf. He’s really got it in for the workers too. It’s just sheer mean spiritedness to take WCC to court over their extension of the payment of the living wage from council staff to their contractors too.
To be honest Rosemary, I’ve discovered how dysfunctional and ineffective our council is, during my constant dealings with them over the last year. I could write an essay about the hypocrisy, undeclared conflicts of interest and arrogance from council managers, council officials and councillors themselves. Quite shocking as I naively thought I’d been voting in the right people over the last two terms.
I think the only thing they have managed to get right in that time is the move to the living wage for council employee’s and the recent extension of that living wage to their contractors – only for Milford to come and stick his oar in……..
That version of what happened to Kirks is a bit distorted Rosie.
It went the way of every small department store. It was to small to have the buying power of the large companies like David Jones or Myer in Australia.
Lots of them died. I remember Daimaru and Georges in Melbourne went the same way. Georges was a wonderful shop but their customers, so the firm said, stopped buying goods from Italy and France from them because they could go to Europe themselves 2 or 3 times a year.
I think Kirks did amazingly well to last as long as they did. You cannot blame the CEO for something that was inevitable.
True, the CE was only part of it, but he could have done more. I met the guy some time ago and was surprised at how out of touch he was with the reality of day to day retailing, for someone in his position.
There were changes in the retail sector and Kirks were faced with a valid challenge but a smart cookie could have done more. He could have started by listening to the floor managers.
PS. As one of our frequent WCC bashers you may be interested to read my response to Rosemary, from the other side of the ideological fence 🙂
Para one I agree with you.
However Para two.
I don’t think very much of the “Living Wage”.
It is calculated on the basis of a hypothetical married couple with two kids if I remember rightly. Then it is supposed to be paid to everyone.
I am a believer that you pay, with a limited minimum, the wage to get people to do the job. Then the state makes up, by things like working for families, the income for those who have dependents and who can’t live on the pay they receive.
Why does a 20 year old single person living with his parents need the hypothetical “living wage”.
When a Council do it it is also being paid by a lot of pensioners whose only income is National Super and whose only asset is their house, to people who are getting a higher income than they are.
alwyn, perhaps you might like to invent an explanation as to why the failed K. & S. CEO has also managed to lose half the members of the Chamber of Commerce since taking over there. It is about time he was relegated to the persona non grata status that his incompetence deserves.
I have no intention of attempting any such thing.
I don’t know the man. I have no way of knowing whether what you say about the CoC is correct and I wasn’t really talking about him at all.
I was talking about what happened to Kirks. Exactly the same thing that happened to the DIC, Radfords and James Smiths in Wellington.
It died in exactly the same way as all singleton department stores died. It was simply too small to compete with the chains and couldn’t match the range of goods in the various specialist shops. It was a business model which had passed its use by date.
Milford happened to be the CEO at the time. However it wouldn’t have mattered who it was. It didn’t fold BECAUSE of him. RIP.
What’s the rush for New Zealand to sign the TPPA when the USA may never pass the TPPA through Congress?
If YOU are opposed to NZ signing the TPPA – there will be a one hour, peaceful protest in Auckland on Thursday 4 February 2016.
Starting at Aotea Square and going up Queen Street to Britomart.
This ‘family-friendly’ peaceful protest will NOT be going to Sky City.
Looking forward to THOUSANDS of New Zealanders ‘standing up to be counted’ for that one hour in Queen St, against more corporate control of our country, our assets and resources, our democracy and national sovereignty.
This was interesting to see so far from Skycity and this far out from the 4th of February. Does anyone know of any other police intimidation tactics re the TPPA (other than announcing riot training)?
a Dunedin transgender activist who goes by the gender-neutral pronoun ‘they’, said an officer knocked on their door at about 10 this morning.
The officer wanted to know what the plans were for anti-TPP action in Dunedin… The Dunedin-based TPP action group – of which Scout is not a member – has planned a talk on the TPP tomorrow, and an “action event” is planned to take place in the Octagon from 12-2:30 on Saturday.
Police could not immediately be reached with a request for comment.
Thats a real worry Pasupial and very intimidating for someone that doesn’t even have anything to do with the anti TPP group. I wonder if Scout can find out if the police have been surveilling them – they must have been to turn up at their doorstep?
On top of that is the fact that police now carry tasers at protests:
Personally, I find this very intimidating and believe it demonstrates an unhealthy aggressive attitude from the police towards people peacefully exercising their democratic right to protest.
Something has changed. During the 2011 (2011? Lost track of time) Occupy movement, police were low key and generally fairly relaxed with people occupying civic square in Wellington. Now though, the level of police preparedness and sense of mild paranoia seems to have increased. Why?
Ha! It’s not like we’re fighting back, so whats changed?
What’s changed? Well, in Dunedin this may provide some link:
Superintendent Mike Pannett, who took over from acting district commander Jason Guthrie this week… Supt Pannett has just returned from four years in Washington DC, where he was chairperson of the Washington DC Liaison Office Association, which covered North, Central and South America.
Supt Pannett is a member of the International Chiefs of Police Committee on Terrorism
Detective Superintendent Mike Pannett, the New Zealand Police Liaison Officer in the United States, monitored “termination activities” against Dotcom’s Megaupload operations in nine countries from the FBI’s Multi-Agency Command Centre. Created by the FBI’s Law Enforcement Online (LEO) network in 2002, the Virtual Command Centre (VCC) enables enforcement agencies to post, track and spread information in a quick, secure environment.
Fed from multiple inputs in the field, the VCC exists on a secure system for any designated audience members online… “Feedback on the New Zealand operation has been extremely positive from our international law enforcement partners including the FBI and the US Department of Justice,” Mr Pannett reported in the February Police online magazine, TenOne.
Detective Superintendent Mike Pannett, New Zealand police liaison officer in Washington, has been ordered to swear an affidavit, setting out full details of the monitoring he was a party to from the FBI’s Multi Agency Command Centre.
Mr Pannett was made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2009 before he was appointed manager of intelligence operations at the National Intelligence Centre based at Police National Headquarters in Wellington
It does seem strange that when the ODT asked the Dunedin police for comment on their allegedly having harassed an activist, they; “could not immediately be reached with a request for comment”. Yet the very next story to this in the online ODT Dunedin section was a puff piece about how an establishment minion was all set to bring to peace to the region in some unspecified manner.
Which is largely based on this (if you don’t want to expose yourself to Bradbury’s words):
Prominent anti-TPP protestor Professor Jane Kelsey said such monitoring of critics to the controversial agreement was “entirely predictable” behaviour from the Government, and shows the “disrespect the Government has had throughout to people’s right to voice their dissent about this negotiation and this agreement”
“This is perfectly consistent with their attempts to shut down democratic engagement with, almost anything, but certainly with the TPPA.”
The Government was attempting to make a law and order issue out of the opposition to the agreement, she said, by painting those in opposition to it as radicals who posed a national security risk…
“If the Government could “whip up some law and order frenzy” in advance of the signing, she said, it believed it could “claw back some support … for what is largely an unpopular deal”…
Civil liberties lawyer Michael Bott said the police action would have a “chilling” effect on freedom of expression and the right to protest.
“These people haven’t committed any crime and yet the police are going to conduct a search or an interview, and there are legal concerns with that.”
Thanks Pasupial. Very interesting! I’m out of time now but want to return to this tomorrow. Saw the article on 3news about Scout, their dealings with police and Michael Bott’s response.
“Austrian athlete and daredevil, Felix Baumgartner, known for his super-sonic leap from the stratosphere, has bashed EU politicians for their “idiotic” refugee policies in a lengthy post. He added that Washington is destabilizing Europe “on purpose.” “
It is sad to learn of the passing of the very colourful former Labour minister, Bob Tizard this afternoon. I knew Bob and his close friend the late Warren Freer very well in the 1970s and 80s, and they were two of the most likeable rogues that ever graced the treasury benches. Their various escapades over the years are legendary.
A good argument for keeping most of our names hidden for having an opposing view to the Govt http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11581217 Police knocking on doors of (so called) activists to give them a heads up they are keeping an eye on them with regard to TPPA protests.
Paul give it a rest it’s becoming dull. Do you surf the Internet all day looking for doomsday articles, where do you find the time, do something a bit more cheerful some time it will be good for your spirit
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Mazda Motor Corporation, commonly known as Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automaker headquartered in Fuchu, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. The company was founded in 1920 as the Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd., and began producing vehicles in 1931. Mazda is primarily known for its production of passenger cars, but ...
Your car battery is an essential component that provides power to start your engine, operate your electrical systems, and store energy. Over time, batteries can weaken and lose their ability to hold a charge, which can lead to starting problems, power failures, and other issues. Replacing your battery before it ...
In most states, you cannot register a car without a valid driver’s license. However, there are a few exceptions to this rule. Exceptions to the RuleIf you are under 18 years old: In some states, you can register a car in your name even if you do not ...
Mazda, a Japanese automotive manufacturer with a rich history of innovation and engineering excellence, has emerged as a formidable player in the global car market. Known for its reputation of producing high-quality, fuel-efficient, and driver-oriented vehicles, Mazda has consistently garnered praise from industry experts and consumers alike. In this article, ...
Struts are an essential part of a car’s suspension system. They are responsible for supporting the weight of the car and damping the oscillations of the springs. Struts are typically made of steel or aluminum and are filled with hydraulic fluid. How Do Struts Work? Struts work by transferring the ...
Car registration is a mandatory process that all vehicle owners must complete annually. This process involves registering your car with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and paying an associated fee. The registration process ensures that your vehicle is properly licensed and insured, and helps law enforcement and other authorities ...
Zoom is a video conferencing service that allows you to share your screen, webcam, and audio with other participants. In addition to sharing your own audio, you can also share the audio from your computer with other participants. This can be useful for playing music, sharing presentations with audio, or ...
Building your own computer can be a rewarding and cost-effective way to get a high-performance machine tailored to your specific needs. However, it also requires careful planning and execution, and one of the most important factors to consider is the time it will take. The exact time it takes to ...
Sleep mode is a power-saving state that allows your computer to quickly resume operation without having to boot up from scratch. This can be useful if you need to step away from your computer for a short period of time but don’t want to shut it down completely. There are ...
Introduction Computer-Assisted Translation (CAT) has revolutionized the field of translation by harnessing the power of technology to assist human translators in their work. This innovative approach combines specialized software with human expertise to improve the efficiency, accuracy, and consistency of translations. In this comprehensive article, we will delve into the ...
In today’s digital age, mobile devices have become an indispensable part of our daily lives. Among the vast array of portable computing options available, iPads and tablet computers stand out as two prominent contenders. While both offer similar functionalities, there are subtle yet significant differences between these two devices. This ...
A computer is an electronic device that can be programmed to carry out a set of instructions. The basic components of a computer are the processor, memory, storage, input devices, and output devices. The Processor The processor, also known as the central processing unit (CPU), is the brain of the ...
Voice Memos is a convenient app on your iPhone that allows you to quickly record and store audio snippets. These recordings can be useful for a variety of purposes, such as taking notes, capturing ideas, or recording interviews. While you can listen to your voice memos on your iPhone, you ...
Laptop screens are essential for interacting with our devices and accessing information. However, when lines appear on the screen, it can be frustrating and disrupt productivity. Understanding the underlying causes of these lines is crucial for finding effective solutions. Types of Screen Lines Horizontal lines: Also known as scan ...
Right-clicking is a common and essential computer operation that allows users to access additional options and settings. While most desktop computers have dedicated right-click buttons on their mice, laptops often do not have these buttons due to space limitations. This article will provide a comprehensive guide on how to right-click ...
Powering up and shutting down your ASUS laptop is an essential task for any laptop user. Locating the power button can sometimes be a hassle, especially if you’re new to ASUS laptops. This article will provide a comprehensive guide on where to find the power button on different ASUS laptop ...
Dell laptops are renowned for their reliability, performance, and versatility. Whether you’re a student, a professional, or just someone who needs a reliable computing device, a Dell laptop can meet your needs. However, if you’re new to Dell laptops, you may be wondering how to get started. In this comprehensive ...
Two-thirds of the country think that “New Zealand’s economy is rigged to advantage the rich and powerful”. They also believe that “New Zealand needs a strong leader to take the country back from the rich and powerful”. These are just two of a handful of stunning new survey results released ...
In today’s digital world, screenshots have become an indispensable tool for communication and documentation. Whether you need to capture an important email, preserve a website page, or share an error message, screenshots allow you to quickly and easily preserve digital information. If you’re an Asus laptop user, there are several ...
A factory reset restores your Gateway laptop to its original factory settings, erasing all data, apps, and personalizations. This can be necessary to resolve software issues, remove viruses, or prepare your laptop for sale or transfer. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to factory reset your Gateway laptop: Method 1: ...
“You talking about me?”The neoliberal denigration of the past was nowhere more unrelenting than in its depiction of the public service. The Post Office and the Railways were held up as being both irremediably inefficient and scandalously over-manned. Playwright Roger Hall’s “Glide Time” caricatures were presented as accurate depictions of ...
Roger Partridge writes – When the Coalition Government took office last October, it inherited a country on a precipice. With persistent inflation, decades of insipid productivity growth and crises in healthcare, education, housing and law and order, it is no exaggeration to suggest New Zealand’s first-world status was ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – In 2022, the Curriculum Centre at the Ministry of Education employed 308 staff, according to an Official Information Request. Earlier this week it was announced 202 of those staff were being cut. When you look up “The New Zealand Curriculum” on the Ministry of ...
Chris Bishop’s bill has stirred up a hornets nest of opposition. Photo: Lynn Grieveson for The KākāTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate from the last day included:A crescendo of opposition to the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill is ...
Monday left me brokenTuesday, I was through with hopingWednesday, my empty arms were openThursday, waiting for love, waiting for loveThe end of another week that left many of us asking WTF? What on earth has NZ gotten itself into and how on earth could people have voluntarily signed up for ...
Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.State of humanity, 20242024, it feels, keeps presenting us with ever more challenges, ever more dismay.Do you give up yet? It seems to ask.No? How about this? Or this?How about this?Full story Share ...
Determining the hardest sport in the world is a subjective matter, as the difficulty level can vary depending on individual abilities, physical attributes, and experience. However, based on various factors including physical demands, technical skills, mental fortitude, and overall accomplishment, here is an exploration of some of the most challenging ...
The allure of sport transcends age, culture, and geographical boundaries. It captivates hearts, ignites passions, and provides unparalleled entertainment. Behind the spectacle, however, lies a fascinating world of financial investment and expenditure. Among the vast array of competitive pursuits, one question looms large: which sport carries the hefty title of ...
Introduction Pickleball, a rapidly growing paddle sport, has captured the hearts and imaginations of millions around the world. Its blend of tennis, badminton, and table tennis elements has made it a favorite among players of all ages and skill levels. As the sport’s popularity continues to surge, the question on ...
Abstract: Soccer, the global phenomenon captivating millions worldwide, has a rich history that spans centuries. Its origins trace back to ancient civilizations, but the modern version we know and love emerged through a complex interplay of cultural influences and innovations. This article delves into the fascinating journey of soccer’s evolution, ...
Tinting car windows offers numerous benefits, including enhanced privacy, reduced glare, UV protection, and a more stylish look for your vehicle. However, the cost of window tinting can vary significantly depending on several factors. This article provides a comprehensive guide to help you understand how much you can expect to ...
The pungent smell of gasoline in your car can be an alarming and potentially dangerous problem. Not only is the odor unpleasant, but it can also indicate a serious issue with your vehicle’s fuel system. In this article, we will explore the various reasons why your car may smell like ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
The Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...
The Government must commit to the Maitai School building project for students with high and complex needs, to ensure disabled students from the top of the South Island have somewhere to learn. ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey and his Government colleagues have made a meal of their mental health commitments, showing how flimsy their efforts to champion the issue truly are, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
Asia Pacific Report Students and activist staff at Australia’s University of Sydney (USyd) have set up a Gaza solidarity encampment in support of Palestinians and similar student-led protests in the United States. The camp was pitched as mass graves, crippled hospitals, thousands of civilian deaths and the near-total destruction of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James B. Dorey, Lecturer in Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong Australian teddy bear bees are cute and fluffy, but get a look at that massive (unbarbed) stinger! James Dorey Photography Most of us have been stung by a bee and we ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jen Roberts, Senior Lecturer, School of Humanities and Social Inquiry, University of Wollongong Aussie~mobs/FlickrVictor Farr, a private in the 1st Infantry Battalion, was among the first to land at Anzac Cove just before dawn on April 25 1915. Victor Farr ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Moore, Senior Research Associate, School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, The University of Melbourne Gregory Moore I had the good fortune to care for the sugar gum at The University of Melbourne’s Burnley Gardens in Victoria where I worked for ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Senior Lecturer, Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, University of Canberra BagzhanSadvakassov/Upsplash, CC BY-SA Australia’s inflation rate has fallen for the fifth successive quarter, and it’s now less than half of what it was back in late 2022. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rachel Ong ViforJ, ARC Future Fellow & Professor of Economics, Curtin University Just when we think the price of rentals could not get any worse, this week’s Rental Affordability Snapshot by Anglicare has revealed low-income Australians are facing a housing crisis like ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Meighen McCrae, Associate Professor of Strategic & Defence Studies, Australian National University American and Australian stretcher bearers working together near the front line during the Battle of Hamel in 1918.Australian War Memorial While the AUKUS alliance is new, the Australian-American partnership ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tracey Holmes, Professorial Fellow in Sport, University of Canberra When the news broke last weekend that 23 Chinese swimmers had tested positive to a banned drug in early 2021 and were allowed to compete at the Tokyo Olympic Games six months later ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Cally Jetta, Senior Lecturer and Academic Lead; College for First Nations, University of Southern Queensland Australian War MemorialAboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains names and images of deceased people, as well as sensitive historical information ...
RNZ News Melissa Lee has been ousted from New Zealand’s coalition cabinet and stripped of the Media portfolio, and Penny Simmonds has lost the Disability Issues portfolio in a reshuffle. Climate Change and Revenue Minister Simon Watts will take Lee’s spot in cabinet. Simmonds was a minister outside of cabinet. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Lindenmayer, Professor, Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University laurello/Shutterstock Some reports and popular books, such as Bill Gammage’s Biggest Estate on Earth, have argued that extensive areas of Australia’s forests were kept open through frequent burning by ...
Analysis - Christopher Luxon framing the demotion of two ministers as the portfolios getting "too complex" is a charitable way of saying they weren't up to the job. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra With Jim Chalmers’s third budget on May 14, Australians will be looking for some more cost-of-living relief – beyond the tax cuts – although they have been warned extra measures will be modest. As ...
Analysis: Melissa Lee has lost the media portfolio and her spot in Cabinet after multiple failed attempts to find solutions for a media industry in crisis. On Wednesday, the Prime Minister announced Lee would be losing her spot in Cabinet along with her media and communications ministerial portfolio. The job ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Simon Wilmot, Senior Lecturer, Film, Deakin University Among the many Australian who served during the second world war, there is a small group of people whose stories remain largely untold. These are the Muslim men and women who, while small in number, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kelly Saunders, PhD Candidate, University of Canberra There has been much analysis and praise of Justice Michael Lee’s recent judgement in Bruce Lehrmann’s defamation case against Channel Ten. Many people were openly relieved to read Lee’s “forensic” and “nuanced” application of law ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kathy Gibbs, Program Director for the Bachelor of Education, Griffith University zEdward_Indy/Shutterstock Around one in 20 people has attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). It’s one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders in childhood and often continues into adulthood. ADHD is diagnosed ...
The Fairer Future coalition of anti-poverty groups say Whaikaha must be properly funded going forward, and that to argue that poor financial management of the new Ministry is a red herring by the Prime Minister. ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is today congratulating Hon. Paul Goldsmith on his appointment as Minister for Media and Communications and urges him to rule out state intervention in the private media sector. ...
Asia Pacific Report The West Papuan resistance OPM leader has condemned Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and US President Joe Biden, accusing their countries of “six decades of treachery” over Papuan independence. The open letter was released today by OPM chairman Jeffrey P Bomanak on the eve of ANZAC Day ...
Welcome to The Spinoff Books Confessional, in which we get to know the reading habits and quirks of New Zealanders at large. This week: writer and one of Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people of 2024, Lauren Groff.The book I wish I’d writtenIf I wish I’d written a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Fechner, Research Fellow, Social Marketing, Griffith University mavo/Shutterstock Imagine having dinner at a restaurant. The menu offers plant-based meat alternatives made mostly from vegetables, mushrooms, legumes and wheat that mimic meat in taste, texture and smell. Despite being given that ...
“Three Strikes is a dead-end policy proposed by a dead-end government. The Three Strikes law ignores the causes of crime, instead just brutalising people already crushed by the cost of living.” ...
By Don Wiseman, RNZ Pacific senior journalist An Australian-born judge in Kiribati could well face deportation later this week after a tribunal ruling that he should be removed from his post. The tribunal’s report has just been tabled in the Kiribati Parliament and is due to be debated by MPs ...
With its clear mandate for police use, political nuances, and nuanced public trust, Denmark's insights provide valuable considerations for Australia and New Zealand. ...
Books editor Claire Mabey reviews poet Louise Wallace’s debut novel. A famous poet once said to me that he’s always suspicious when a poet publishes a novel. I never really understood why but maybe it’s something to do with cheating on your first form. Louise Wallace is a poet. She’s ...
For a few months at the turn of the millennium, TrueBliss burned bright as the biggest pop stars in the country. Alex Casey chats to two superfans who still hold the flame. During a humble backyard wedding in Nelson, 1999, one of the cordially invited guests had to excuse themselves ...
How will the recent wave of job cuts impact ethnic diversity in the media? In November last year, I was working a very busy day in the newsroom of a large online news site, interviewing whānau about their concerns over the imminent closure of one of the few puna reo ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ruth Knight, Researcher, Queensland University of Technology Have you ever felt sick at work? Perhaps you had food poisoning or the flu. Your belly hurt, or you felt tired, making it hard to concentrate and be productive. How likely would you be ...
Despite heavy criticism and an ongoing select committee process, the Police Minister says the Government will forge ahead with a ban on gang patches. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sam Whiting, Lecturer – Creative Industries, University of South Australia Shutterstock Everyone has a favourite band, or a favourite composer, or a favourite song. There is some music which speaks to you, deeply; and other music which might be the current ...
A new survey says ‘outlook not great’ for those charged with building infrastructure, while RMA changes delight farmers and depress environmentalists, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. First RMA changes announced ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Olli Hellmann, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Waikato Getty Images When New Zealanders commemorate Anzac Day on April 25, it’s not only to honour the soldiers who lost their lives in World War I and subsequent conflicts, but also ...
A leaked document shows the Canterbury/Waitaha arm of health agency Te Whatu Ora is scurrying to save $13.3 million by July. The “financial sustainability target”, which was “allocated” to Waitaha, is consistent with what’s happening in other districts, says Sarah Dalton, executive director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists. ...
A look at the state of the previous government’s affordable housing scheme, and what could come next.Remind me: What’s KiwiBuild again?First announced in 2012, KiwiBuild was a flagship policy of the Labour Party heading into both its 2014 and 2017 election campaigns. With Jacinda Ardern as prime minister, ...
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There’s relief for building owners bending under the weight of earthquake strengthening rules – and costs – that came into force seven years ago. Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk has announced a scheduled 2027 review of the earthquake-prone building regulations will now start this year. Owners will also get ...
Opinion: It has been announced that nine percent of roles at Oranga Tamariki will be disestablished, presumably to help fund the tax cuts promised by the coalition Government. I am reminded of the graphics used to illustrate pandemic events, where five thousand people are standing in a field and then ...
After more than two sleepless days, running through savage terrain, Greig Hamilton didn’t know if he was going to finish one of the most gruelling psychological assaults in sport. He was metres away from the finish line, a yellow gate made famous in a Netflix documentary; a race he’d dreamed ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[quiz],DIV[quiz],A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Wednesday 24 April appeared first on Newsroom. ...
The following interview with former Green Party MP Sue Kedgley came about because she features in the new memoir Hine Toa by activist Ngāhuia te Awekōtuku; the two knew each other at the University of Auckland in the early 70s, when they were both took on leadership roles in the ...
COMMENTARY:By Murray Horton New Zealand needs to get tough with Israel. It’s not as if we haven’t done so before. When NZ authorities busted a Mossad operation in Auckland 20 years ago, the government didn’t say: “Oh well, Israel has the right to defend itself.” No, it arrested, prosecuted, ...
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Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Three weeks from now, some of us will be presented with a mountain of budget papers, and just about all of us will get to hear about them on radio, ...
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Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dan Jerker B. Svantesson, Professor specialising in Internet law, Bond University Do Australian courts have the right to decide what foreign citizens, located overseas, view online on a foreign-owned platform? Anyone inclined to answer “yes” to this question should perhaps also ask ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Giovanni E Ferreira, NHMRC Emerging Leader Research Fellow, Institute of Musculoskeletal Health, University of Sydney Last week in a post on X, owner of the platform Elon Musk recommended people look into disc replacement if they’re experiencing severe neck or back pain. ...
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Further evidence that New Zealand is highly vulnerable to the oncoming global economic collapse.
‘Fonterra cuts farmer milk payout
Fonterra has cut its farmgate milk price forecast for the 2015/6 season to $4.15 a kg of milksolids from a previous forecast of $4.60 a kg in response to weak international prices.
Combined with the earnings per share range of 45-55 cents, the total available for payout of $4.60-$4.70 per kg and would currently equate to a forecast cash payout of $4.50-$4.55 per kg for farmers, it said.
Chairman John Wilson said global economic conditions continue to be challenging and are impacting demand for a range of commodities, including dairy.
“Key factors driving dairy demand are declining international oil prices which have weakened the spending power of countries reliant on oil revenues, economic uncertainty in developing economies and a slow recovery of dairy imports into China,” he said in a statement.’
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11580883
I don’t know about anyone else’s experience but in my personal sphere of life I have yet to come across a man-made climate change denier who isn’t male, white and over 30. I am going to speculate that this is an indirect offshoot of the “white men are right” school of thought (sometimes known as “the white man’s burden) that permeated Anglo-Saxon colonised countries over the past 100-150 years. Today, remnants of this philosophy are expressed in the individual viewpoints of white males, who actually have no more power as individuals in society than women, other cultures etc, but still presume that they possess an innate wisdom thanks to their race and sex that is superior to science and the general facts of the matter.
Perhaps, the same psychological tendency (the cult of superior knowingness due to one’s sex and race) are expressed in other forms in other parts of the world.
I’ve come across one early 20s white female, educated in an engineering field, that appeared to be a climate change denier. Not a definite sighting of a very rare species, I didn’t get a chance to fully confirm it.
Interesting observation. I’d hazard a guess that some of it is the fact that AGW is going to fuck the patriarchy’s stranglehold on things and the older white men who have benefited the most from the patriarchy have the most to lose. Cognitive dissonance. Probably the sociopathic effect too (white men having more socialisation in that direction).
Interesting and plausible theory pineapple. Certainly I have observed this phenomenon in this category of people many many times.
For the record however, I do know of at least 3 women who are active climate change deniers, ages between 45- 55. They are all nat voters and think climate change is a con made up by the loony left to make us feel bad and “bad weather” happens. I kid you not.
To test for the trend amongst conservative white males, the researchers compared the demographic to “all other adults.” Results showed, for instance, that 29.6 percent of conservative white males believe the effects of global warming will never happen, versus 7.4 percent of other adults. In holding for “confident” conservative white males, the study showed 48.4 percent believe global warming won’t happen, versus 8.6 percent of other adults.
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-conservative-white-maes-are-more-likely-climate-skeptics/
It looks like it’s not a white dude thing so much as a conservative white dude thing.
I really hope they got this wrong:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/terrorism-in-the-uk/12117736/NUT-leaders-colluding-to-undermine-anti-terror-policies.html
Little has to drop Shearer from any spokesman role and sanction him if Shearer votes for TPP.
+100
Yes, with any luck Goff will be gone but there’s still the group of dissenters, saboteurs and general trouble makers for Labour: Shearer, Nash, Cosgrove , Mallard, King.
Any more ?
Can Labour risk, financially that is, one possibly two by-elections?
There is a small risk that Shearer would use any punishment by Little to resign from Labour and go to his true home, National. There is nothing Mrs & Mr Shearer will not do to become Min for Foreign Affairs or at least an Ambassador.
So who blinks first? Of course the most likely outcome is that nothing will actually happen…
AVAAZ have just sent out a request for support for their petition about bee protection to the USA. This is really important, and I need to do more about it so am going to add my name and I give the link here. And this below is what they say:
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/save_the_bees_global_2016sam/?bRtXRcb&v=71926&cl=9333005379
Neonicotinoids — the pesticides threatening bees — are a vicious neurotoxin used on 100 million acres of farmland, lawns, and gardens across the US. Bees can’t avoid them because they are everywhere. They spread through soil and water, and cannot be washed off of food. A government study even found them in 29% of baby food!
The US is considering action after releasing a study showing that one of the most common neonics is “very highly toxic to adult honey bees.” But without pressure the government may only limit the use of these toxins — even though studies show that low doses can disrupt bees’ learning, memory and motor functions. We’ve already begun by funding leading scientists and engaging stakeholders. Now is the time for millions of voices to demand the US environment agency and the White House stop the use of these dangerous chemicals altogether.
Seventy out of the world’s top 100 food crops are pollinated by bees! We would have food in a world without bees, but the vivid diversity of native plants, fruits and vegetables would be lost. …ps. Bees are just totally amazing. They form matriarchal societies that communicate with each other by dancing … their honeycombs are one of the most efficient structures in nature … and their brains can actually stop aging (possibly giving us signs on how to stop dementia)! Let’s help save these incredible creatures together: https://secure.avaaz.org/en/save_the_bees_global_2016sam/?bRtXRcb&v=71926&cl=9333005379
SOURCES
Neonicotinoids are the new DDT killing the natural world (The Guardian)
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/georgemonbiot/2013/aug/05/neonicotinoids-ddt-pesticides-nature
Bees threatened by a common pesticide, EPA finds (LA Times)
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-pesticide-bees-20160106-story.html
The public consultation has just opened. Join the call below to protect bees, and the foods and plants we love — and tell everyone.
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/save_the_bees_global_2016sam/?bRtXRcb&v=71926&cl=9333005379
The chemical companies would like us to believe that what happens to insects has no impact on people. But in our interconnected ecosystem the death of even tiny creatures like bees ripples through us too. As Rachel Carson, who led the charge against DDT, said: “In nature nothing exists alone.” We all depend on each other. We need the bees and the bees need us.
With hope,
Nell, Dalia, Ari, Ben, Emma, Alice, Emily and the entire Avaaz team
BACKGROUND
The EPA Finally Admitted That the World’s Most Popular Pesticide Kills Bees—20 Years Too Late (Mother Jones)
http://m.motherjones.com/tom-philpott/2016/01/epa-finds-major-pesticide-toxic-bees
EPA Study Finds Insecticide Imidacloprid Poses Threat to Bees (Bloomberg)
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-01-06/epa-study-finds-insecticide-imidacloprid-poses-threat-to-bees
What Is Killing America’s Bees and What Does It Mean for Us? (Rolling Stone)
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/what-is-killing-americas-bees-and-what-does-it-mean-for-us-20150818#ixzz3x4W3XznX
i have a nice garden with lots of fruit trees and i don’t use anything ever. Let nature sort it is my motto and so far it worked. However this year i have not seen a single bee, and many people that I know that garden for food are also not seeing them, but are hand pollinating, or contemplating getting someone in with a hive in the future or establishing their own hive. This is not an option for me as I rent in town, but i am contemplating a hive set up once i move permanently to the paddock of paradise.
we should worry.
Grow some lavender in your garden, it attracts bees like moths to a flame, the ones that are left that is!
Parata closes Whangaruru, we lose $4.2 million dollars, vulnerable students face further upheaval and discontinuity of education.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/76334545/hekia-parata-closes-whangaruru-charter-school-after-two-years
Any winners here? The guy who the board bought the farm off, I suppose. Well done him!
Parata closes Whangaruru, we lose $4.2 million dollars, vulnerable students face further upheaval and discontinuity of education.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/76334545/hekia-parata-closes-whangaruru-charter-school-after-two-years
Any winners here? The guy who the Whangaruru board bought the farm off, I suppose. Well done him!
Since it’s not clear that assets return to the government that paid for them, there may be trustees or trust beneficiaries that get a windfall.
Good little earthquake in Christchurch just now, 4.2. Haven’t felt one in about a year.
A little bit of a shake out near Rolleston
On this matter – I agree with Chris Trotter.
The 0.004% Mandate: Why opponents of the TPPA should boycott Real Choice’s “blockade” on 4 February
– See more at: http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2016/01/28/the-0-004-mandate-why-opponents-of-the-tppa-should-boycott-real-choices-blockade-on-4-february/#.dpuf
Please be reminded:
On Thursday 4 February 2016 – from 12 noon till 1pm a non-violent, family- friendly peaceful protest against the proposed signing of the TPPA is being organised in Auckland – from Aotea Square to Britomart.
Hopefully THOUSANDS of concerned New Zealanders will fill Queen Street over this one hour lunch break – to show our opposition to the proposed signing of the TPPA.
This peaceful protest, called by the ‘It’s Our Future’ group – is NOT going to Sky City – it is going up Queen Street, in hopefully a MASSIVE display of ‘people power’.
Come on folks!
We need Queen PACKED with New Zealanders who care about our country and OUR future!
Be there!
Stand up and be counted for yourself, your family, your children and grandchildren!
Together – in our THOUSANDS let’s show this John Key led Government and THE WORLD how many genuine, caring Kiwis are opposed to increasing global corporate control over our land, our resources and our sovereignty!
Because – on 4 February 2016 – the world WILL be watching …
Please help to pass the word!
Penny Bright
The UK Government taking our Governments fawning relationship with the Saudi Regime to the next level…
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jan/27/un-report-into-saudi-led-strikes-in-yemen-raises-questions-over-uk-role
Anyone got any idea why the herald on the eve of wisharts book has suddenly decided to print a flood of sounds murder stuff they have been sitting on?
As an experiment
Does anyone here agree with ignoring a referendum where 99.8% voted for the status quo? Are is it just Jeremy Corbyn who is anti-democratic?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/southamerica/argentina/12117755/Jeremy-Corbyn-wants-a-Northern-Ireland-style-power-sharing-deal-for-the-Falklands.html
Ignoring referenda is de rigueur for the John Key government.
You could have saved yourself the trouble of typing John Key.
“Ignoring referenda is de rigueur for the Government”
There have been, if my memory is correct, five referenda that got through to a vote. Everyone of them passed and was then ignored by Parliament.
One went to the Bolger Government, two to the Clark Government and two to the Key Government.
Ignoring the results of referenda is common to the lot of them, isn’t it?
So why are you surprised Corbyn might do the same?
I fear you may be confusing me with someone else.
Nothing Corbyn might do would surprise me.
I think he is a total idiot.
I also haven’t the slightest interest in the Falklands except to feel sorry for the people who live in that god-forsaken place.
What happens to them is up to Britain.
Apologies, you all sound the same to me.
A constant drone.
that is still 3 for National and 2 for Labour.
Your guys win. 🙂
True, your arithmetic is impeccable.
On the other hand it was 13 years National and only 9 for Labour. The scheme started in 1993.
It is quite amazing really how few got right through the process.
There were about 45 that were proposed.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Referendums_in_New_Zealand#Table_of_petitions_and_referendums
Hard to say without a full background on how the Falklands ended up in British hands.
So the people living on the island and have lived there for generations don’t have a say in the matter?
If the occupation was fine, then they probably should. But if they’ve been living on stolen land for a couple of hundred years, then it’s still stolen land.
If that is the case we are going to have to hand it back to France then, although I doubt that Hollande would be keen on the idea.
According to Wiki
“The islands were uninhabited when discovered by Europeans. France established a colony on the islands in 1764. In 1765, a British captain claimed the islands for Britain. In early 1770 a Spanish commander arrived from Argentina with five ships and 1400 soldiers forcing the British to leave Port Egmont. Britain and Spain almost went to war over the islands, but the British government decided that it should withdraw its presence from many overseas settlements in 1774. Spain, which had a garrison at Puerto Soledad on East Falklands, ruled the islands from Buenos Aires until 1811 when it was forced to withdraw. In 1833, the British returned to the Falkland Islands. Argentina invaded the islands on 2 April 1982. The British responded with an expeditionary force that forced the Argentines to surrender.”
You work it out. If I read it correctly then Spain abandoned the place in 1811 and Britain has been there continuously from when they came back in 1833.
That’s about as cut and dried as you’re likely to get in international relations I’d have thought
lol
what’s this “we”?
Anyhoo, not really my problem to work out. That’s what diplomatic processes and international conventions are for. Of course, if bilateral talks manage to resolve the issue to the satisfaction of both parties, for example maybe Britain negotiating compensation to Argentina to keep the territory, and agreeing some sort of sharing thing on mineral rights and fisheries, then none of those processes need to be worked through.
No reason not to talk about it – sticking to some sort of neoThatcherite jingoism might well cost a shedload more than acting like a reasonable human being.
It’s not like Corbyn demanded the islands be turned over to the Argentines as soon as possible, but curse him for daring to mention having a conversation to resolve a longstanding international dispute…
You actually sounded interested in the subject and were presenting an either/or scenario when you said
“If the occupation was fine, then they probably should. But if they’ve been living on stolen land for a couple of hundred years, then it’s still stolen land”
Being a good hearted chap I decided to try and get you something that might help resolve the confusion you were in.
I see you are one of those who do not wish to have that confusion caused by your ignorance alleviated. I shall try and abstain from taking part in your education in future. I reserve the right to point out any excessively silly comments you make though.
Technically of course it seems to me that they were never part of Argentina. They were ruled by Spain until they abandoned them in 1811. Argentina didn’t exist until 1816, I think.
The question was regarding how much weight should be given to the wishes of 1600 voting-eligible residents.
The answer is pretty simple: if the land is stolen, then very little.
The issue of ownership is a legal question that can be avoided via diplomatic negotiations.
Our opinions of the legality of the British occupation are irrelevant: I know you like thinking that you know better than multiple judicial systems, but the fact is that you probably don’t. Neither do I. And the legal opinions of commenters on a NZ blogsite will almost certainly not affect the policies of either Britain or Argentina.
Spain abandoned them to fight the Argentine war of independence. Territorial legitimacy went from Spain to the newly independent Argentina, according to their point of view. The British left them well before the Spanish did. Even the yanks had a tilt.
But that’s all irrelevant to what was asked: the easiest way to provide long term security for the residents is for Britain to negotiate with Argentina and come to some sort of settlement.
I do like the fact the Islanders were asked, though – that’s something the Chagos islanders never got from Britain.
Well there is one thing we agree on. Neither of us is a lawyer.
As far as “The British left them well before the Spanish did.” goes though it looks as if the British were forced out by the Spanish, if my Wiki extract is accurate.
That was being mean talking about the “Chagos islanders”. I had to google it. If you had said Diego Garcia I wouldn’t have needed to.
Lots of bad things have happened to people living in offshore places of course.
I don’t think the people of Goa had any say in their annexation by India.
The people of Hong Kong didn’t get a choice did they?
Neither did all the countries dominated by the USSR after WW2. At least not until the USSR collapsed.
Russia sold Alaska to the USA. Did anyone ask the residents.
Where do you want to stop. Can we send all the Scots back to Ireland?
I merely mentioned DG/Chagos because I found it humourous that a mere 40 years later the British government/media is pretending to care about what 1600 residents think.
Basically, yeah, it goes back as long as the effects go back. That’s why Canada’s working to redress wrongs against First Nations folk by creating a new province. That’s why Mt McKinly is back to being called Denali. The resolution isn’t “sending people back where they came from”, the resolution is accepting that parties feel wrongs happened and providing some manner of individual, national or systemic reparation to resolve the wrongs that occurred. It’s not being a pushover, it’s just having a conversation to see the other party’s point of view and see if the issue can be addressed, rather than letting it fester so three jerks with a license plate don’t cause a riot.
Ad the referendum results to alwns link below and I would go with leave it with the brits.
News flash Fox news becomes Trumps punching bag, how distracting, how boring, how predictable, how did this become headline TV news? Spin cycle USA has no place here
And speaking about TPPA protests, John Mitford from the Wellington Chamber of Commerce says…
‘It’s time to stand up and be counted on the TPPA’
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/76349813/john-milford-time-to-stand-up-and-be-counted-on-tppa
with a nice inspiring pic of anti TPP protesters….wtf???
Don’t panic! All is well, stuff’s attempt at humour….or…are the only pics they have on file associated with John Mitford protest oriented?
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/73778014/Wellington-City-Council-will-have-to-defend-its-living-wage-policy-in-court
John Milford is pants. I don’t know how or why he gets so much media space. He has been growing his right wing lobbying power for over a decade now, mainly at a local level here in Wellington but alarmingly he seems to be given column space for national political issue which he knows nothing of, eg, the TPPA.
I’m not sure why fairfax look to him as such an oracle of economic wisdom when he was CE of Kirkcaldies and Staines all this time and for so long yet managed to run a successful iconic business that had been standing for over 150 years, into the ground, only to bought out by the aussies.
What an oaf. He’s really got it in for the workers too. It’s just sheer mean spiritedness to take WCC to court over their extension of the payment of the living wage from council staff to their contractors too.
Respect for the WCC.
How many other councils have had the guts to try and install a Living Wage culture?
Mean, miserable and short -sighted Mr Mitford.
To be honest Rosemary, I’ve discovered how dysfunctional and ineffective our council is, during my constant dealings with them over the last year. I could write an essay about the hypocrisy, undeclared conflicts of interest and arrogance from council managers, council officials and councillors themselves. Quite shocking as I naively thought I’d been voting in the right people over the last two terms.
I think the only thing they have managed to get right in that time is the move to the living wage for council employee’s and the recent extension of that living wage to their contractors – only for Milford to come and stick his oar in……..
That version of what happened to Kirks is a bit distorted Rosie.
It went the way of every small department store. It was to small to have the buying power of the large companies like David Jones or Myer in Australia.
Lots of them died. I remember Daimaru and Georges in Melbourne went the same way. Georges was a wonderful shop but their customers, so the firm said, stopped buying goods from Italy and France from them because they could go to Europe themselves 2 or 3 times a year.
I think Kirks did amazingly well to last as long as they did. You cannot blame the CEO for something that was inevitable.
True, the CE was only part of it, but he could have done more. I met the guy some time ago and was surprised at how out of touch he was with the reality of day to day retailing, for someone in his position.
There were changes in the retail sector and Kirks were faced with a valid challenge but a smart cookie could have done more. He could have started by listening to the floor managers.
PS. As one of our frequent WCC bashers you may be interested to read my response to Rosemary, from the other side of the ideological fence 🙂
Para one I agree with you.
However Para two.
I don’t think very much of the “Living Wage”.
It is calculated on the basis of a hypothetical married couple with two kids if I remember rightly. Then it is supposed to be paid to everyone.
I am a believer that you pay, with a limited minimum, the wage to get people to do the job. Then the state makes up, by things like working for families, the income for those who have dependents and who can’t live on the pay they receive.
Why does a 20 year old single person living with his parents need the hypothetical “living wage”.
When a Council do it it is also being paid by a lot of pensioners whose only income is National Super and whose only asset is their house, to people who are getting a higher income than they are.
alwyn, perhaps you might like to invent an explanation as to why the failed K. & S. CEO has also managed to lose half the members of the Chamber of Commerce since taking over there. It is about time he was relegated to the persona non grata status that his incompetence deserves.
I have no intention of attempting any such thing.
I don’t know the man. I have no way of knowing whether what you say about the CoC is correct and I wasn’t really talking about him at all.
I was talking about what happened to Kirks. Exactly the same thing that happened to the DIC, Radfords and James Smiths in Wellington.
It died in exactly the same way as all singleton department stores died. It was simply too small to compete with the chains and couldn’t match the range of goods in the various specialist shops. It was a business model which had passed its use by date.
Milford happened to be the CEO at the time. However it wouldn’t have mattered who it was. It didn’t fold BECAUSE of him. RIP.
TPPA: chances of support from US politicians ‘extremely remote’
http://i.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/politics/76317668/TPPA-chances-of-support-from-US-politicians-extremely-remote
So folks – where’s the fire?’
What’s the rush for New Zealand to sign the TPPA when the USA may never pass the TPPA through Congress?
If YOU are opposed to NZ signing the TPPA – there will be a one hour, peaceful protest in Auckland on Thursday 4 February 2016.
Starting at Aotea Square and going up Queen Street to Britomart.
This ‘family-friendly’ peaceful protest will NOT be going to Sky City.
Looking forward to THOUSANDS of New Zealanders ‘standing up to be counted’ for that one hour in Queen St, against more corporate control of our country, our assets and resources, our democracy and national sovereignty.
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Who opposes New Zealand signing the TPPA.
This was interesting to see so far from Skycity and this far out from the 4th of February. Does anyone know of any other police intimidation tactics re the TPPA (other than announcing riot training)?
http://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/371216/cops-visit-activist-over-tpp-protest-plans
The talk is at 7pm tomorrow (friday 29th) at Burns Hall; 415 Lower Moray Place, Dunedin (Burlington St side of first church).
Thats a real worry Pasupial and very intimidating for someone that doesn’t even have anything to do with the anti TPP group. I wonder if Scout can find out if the police have been surveilling them – they must have been to turn up at their doorstep?
On top of that is the fact that police now carry tasers at protests:
http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2015/08/16/citizens-face-police-armed-with-tasers-at-wellington-tppa-protest-march/
but then withdraw the presence of their weapons at a later event:
https://fmacskasy.wordpress.com/2015/11/22/citizens-march-against-tppa-in-wellington-what-were-the-police-up-to/
Personally, I find this very intimidating and believe it demonstrates an unhealthy aggressive attitude from the police towards people peacefully exercising their democratic right to protest.
Something has changed. During the 2011 (2011? Lost track of time) Occupy movement, police were low key and generally fairly relaxed with people occupying civic square in Wellington. Now though, the level of police preparedness and sense of mild paranoia seems to have increased. Why?
Ha! It’s not like we’re fighting back, so whats changed?
Rosie
What’s changed? Well, in Dunedin this may provide some link:
http://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/371217/south-could-be-safest-place-world
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL1210/S00006/key-dotcom-and-hollywood.htm
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/northern-advocate/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503450&objectid=11084360
It does seem strange that when the ODT asked the Dunedin police for comment on their allegedly having harassed an activist, they; “could not immediately be reached with a request for comment”. Yet the very next story to this in the online ODT Dunedin section was a puff piece about how an establishment minion was all set to bring to peace to the region in some unspecified manner.
More on this at:
http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2016/01/28/police-noose-tightens-around-activists-before-tppa/
Which is largely based on this (if you don’t want to expose yourself to Bradbury’s words):
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11581217
Thanks Pasupial. Very interesting! I’m out of time now but want to return to this tomorrow. Saw the article on 3news about Scout, their dealings with police and Michael Bott’s response.
Who destabilised the Middle East and are they taking their share of the refugee crisis and chaos they have created?
‘US destabilized Europe’: Austrian record-holding athlete lashes out at ‘idiotic’ refugee policies
https://www.rt.com/news/330256-baumgartner-blasts-refugee-crisis-america/
“Austrian athlete and daredevil, Felix Baumgartner, known for his super-sonic leap from the stratosphere, has bashed EU politicians for their “idiotic” refugee policies in a lengthy post. He added that Washington is destabilizing Europe “on purpose.” “
It is sad to learn of the passing of the very colourful former Labour minister, Bob Tizard this afternoon. I knew Bob and his close friend the late Warren Freer very well in the 1970s and 80s, and they were two of the most likeable rogues that ever graced the treasury benches. Their various escapades over the years are legendary.
RIP Bob Tizard.
‘
RIP – Bob Tizard.
A good argument for keeping most of our names hidden for having an opposing view to the Govt http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11581217 Police knocking on doors of (so called) activists to give them a heads up they are keeping an eye on them with regard to TPPA protests.
Further evidence
A China bank contagion could blow up global markets
http://www.cnbc.com/2016/01/26/chinese-bank-outlook-in-2016.html
Paul give it a rest it’s becoming dull. Do you surf the Internet all day looking for doomsday articles, where do you find the time, do something a bit more cheerful some time it will be good for your spirit