This type of abuse of New Zealander’s rights will only get worse if the GCSB bill is passed ….
The New Zealand military received help from US spy agencies to monitor the phone calls of Kiwi journalist Jon Stephenson and his associates while he was in Afghanistan reporting on the war.
A leaked New Zealand Defence Force security manual reveals it sees three main “subversion” threats it needs to protect itself against: foreign intelligence services, organisations with extreme ideologies and “certain investigative journalists”.
In the minds of the defence chiefs, probing journalists apparently belong on the same list as the KGB and al Qaeda.
It is a very shocking and revealing article containg a lot of ‘meat’ – and obviously not one that was compiled overnight. AND well-timed.
I am still trying to get my head around all the revelations and implications etc, but it would appear that both the NZSIS and possibly the GCSB were involved in monitoring Jon Stephenson’s communications and metadata.
And NZSIS people stationed in Afganistan ….
And timing of this monitoring – in the last half of 2012 – when we have been ‘told’ that a stop had been put to monitoring of NZers in August 2012 (and currently continues pending the passing of the GCSB Bill).
And the contents of the NZDF manual …..
Alert, people. This is a MUST read – a pity it did not come out before yesterday’s marches. But well-timed for before Parliament this week.
And the fact that all your contacts are known, and probably visited by the SAS, won’t give future confidential informants any piece of mind. And it will KILL off investigative journalism, because who in their right mind would want to say anything, if the Govt and others, can read all your emails and come down hard on the informant.
1) Forbes Thought Of The Day which seems appropriate given the impending data flood which is about to become law:
“ No individual raindrop ever considers itself responsible for the flood. ”
— Anonymous
Watching the Australian news once again heard the reporter talking about reducing support for those at the bottom and that hard decisions had to be had.
It seems quite evident that in the last 30 years this type of cutting is not hard in the least.
It’s the norm.
The hard decision would be to lift benefit rates, the hard decision would be to increase general taxation, the hard decision would be to increase workers rights, to increase the minimum wage, put back death duties or increase capital gains or ……..
Picking on the lowest paid and those who are unwell or are unemployed is easy – it’s happening day after day after day.
After yesterday’s successful nationwide protests against the GCSB Bill, what to do next.
Well, for one thing, take more control of the narrative.
Challenge the mainstream media’s narrative, where FairFax’s Stuff website story says ‘hundreds’ attended the Auckland protest. Maybe their journalist should learn to count better. http://www.thepaepae.com/stop-the-gcsb-bill-rallies-and-marches-today/31708/
TV3 news attempted to smear the protests in Palmerston North and Wellington by referring to rocks being thrown and gates climbed. Well, according to witnesses this did not even happen. http://thestandard.org.nz/the-auckland-protest/#comment-669556
Maybe the Standard could take a lead and runs a post questioning the MSM’s handling of these protests.
I would also add Radio NZ News to that list. Here is their 5,37pm 27 July news item repeated throughout the night – but no longer on their main news page.
“I can report that the United States is prepared to provide to the Russian government the following assurances regarding the treatment Mr. Snowden would face upon return to the United States,” Holder wrote. “First, the United States would not seek the death penalty for Mr. Snowden should he return to the United States.” In addition, “Mr. Snowden will not be tortured.
Eric Holder, The US Attorney General in a letter sent to The Russian Minister of Justice, Alexander Vladimirovich Konovalov
The American authorities also promise to hold an immediate trial of Edward Snowden, on his hand over to US custody. This is in contrast to the years of solitary confinement without trial that they have subjected other whistle blower Bradley Manning to.
From South Korea John Key makes an extraordinary statement, completely wiping his hands of any legal responsibility for New Zealand legal resident Kim Dotcom. Who the US are seeking to rendition to US territory from New Zealand.
….he’s got a long term agenda here, and that is to try to convince people that he should be allowed to stay forever. But in the end he really needs to make that case to the United States of America.”
John Key The Prime Minister of New Zealandstuff.co.nz
Key’s statement is extraordinary in two ways.
First;
New Zealand legal resident, Kim Dotcom is fighting his extradition to the US,. Which currently is a matter before the New Zealand courts. By saying that Kim Dotcom needs to make that case to the United States of America.” It could be argued that our Premier John Key is seeking to interfere and/or influence a matter that is before the New Zealand courts. Which is an offence.
By saying that Dotcom “needs to make that case to United States of America” John Key is spitting in the eye of the whole New Zealand justice system, not to mention our whole system of residency and immigration. You have to ask If our Prime Minister thinks our courts or our system of granting legal residency has any validity at all. At least in this matter, For Key the answer is no.
Second;
Unlike the Russians, John Key does not demand of the US, that they give at the very least their written assurance that Dotcom if rendered to the US Authorities would be given access to the courts and not left to rot in jail for years, in solitary confinement, without charge as happened to Bradley Manning.
Without this assurance there is no way that New Zealand can render Dotcom to the US authorities without breaching his human rights, as set out under the United Nations charter of International Human rights, which guarantees the right to a fair trial, to which New Zealand is a signatory to.
This must rank as one of the most bizarre statements ever made by any politician in the history of politics.
….he’s got a long term agenda here, and that is to try to convince people that he should be allowed to stay forever. But in the end he really needs to make that case to the United States of America.”
John Key The Prime Minister of New Zealand stuff.co.nz
So let’s get this straight
The Prime MInister of New Zealand…
Who’s main residence is in Hawaii….
Speaking from South Korea…
Says that a German national, namely Kim Dotcom…
Who wants to stay in New Zealand…
Has to make his case to America…
Huh???!!!
When did New Zealand become a colony of the US?
I think that John Key has somehow got his wires badly crossed if he thinks that New Zealand’s sovereignty to make is own decisions is somehow limited by the USA. Even if this was true. It still does not square with the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 2, paragraph 2.
Article 2.
Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.
Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.
“You see, democracy here at home must be balanced against the requirements of security, and it is simply too dangerous to leave the question of this balance to the democratic public. Open deliberation over the appropriate balance would require saying something concrete about threats to public safety, and also about the means by which those threats might be checked. But revealing such information would only empower America’s enemies and endanger American lives. Therefore, this is a discussion Americans can’t afford to have. Therefore, the power to determine that this is a discussion the public cannot afford to have cannot reside in the democratic public. That power must reside elsewhere, with the best and brightest, with those who have surveyed the perils of the world and know what it takes to meet them. Those deep within the security apparatus, within the charmed circle, must therefore make the decision, on America’s behalf, about how much democracy—about how much discussion about the limits of democracy, even—it is safe for Americans to have.
This decision will not be effective, however, if it is openly questioned. The point is that is not up for debate. It is crucial, then, that any attempt by those on the inside to reveal the real, secret rules governing American life be met with overwhelming, intimidating retaliation. In order to maintain a legitimising democratic imprimatur, it is of course important that a handful of elected officials be brought into the anteroom of the inner council, but it’s important that they know barely more than that there is a significant risk that we will all perish if they, or the rest of us, know too much, and they must be made to feel that they dare not publicly speak what little they have been allowed know. Even senators. Even senators must fear to describe America’s laws to America’s citizens. This is, yes, democracy-suppression, but it is a vitally necessary arrangement. It keeps you and your adorable kids and even your cute pet dog alive.”
The US military is developing software that will let it secretly manipulate social media sites by using fake online personas to influence internet conversations and spread pro-American propaganda.
The Centcom contract stipulates that each fake online persona must have a convincing background, history and supporting details, and that up to 50 US-based controllers should be able to operate false identities from their workstations “without fear of being discovered by sophisticated adversaries
Once developed, the software could allow US service personnel, working around the clock in one location, to respond to emerging online conversations with any number of co-ordinated messages, blogposts, chatroom posts and other interventions. Details of the contract suggest this location would be MacDill air force base near Tampa, Florida, home of US Special Operations Command.
The article well over 2 years old, indicates the operation will have been live for many years before this ever came to light.
Military/spook types trooling the social media, who’d have thought!
My expectation would be that in NZ for example, they would pick on the popular blog sites, perhaps they are monitoring all of them, who knows, but certainly the popular blog will be well under control. Spend any time on certain subject matter, on the larger blog sites, and you can see it in action, the posters names, and the content, are generally a dead give a way!
So how would they be implementing this?. How would they attack, who would they support ?. As John Key and the Nact Government are their obvious anointed ones, any threat to them must be countered. That means that there must be no chance of a left-wing Government and you would do that by destabilising the Labour leadership, painting it as incompetent and bumbling in some cases and in others as dangerous commie lovers, whose father might have been oh..say, a Red Reverend.
So can we out any here on The Standard, can anyone think of anyone calling for the Labour leaders sacking or replacement?
Or maybe they believe that having shearer is the best chance for a continued reign of key so therefore supporting shearer helps them or maybe they know that we know that and therefore they DO add their voice against shearer, or maybe they know that we know they will do THAT so they actually attack those unhappy with shearer… Luckily they are not as sophisticated or talented as they believe they are and they give themselves away through the use of their language, or maybe they know that we know that and they deliberately sow seeds of confusion by pretending to be thick… the worse ones are the ones that you never find out about – the deep ones who only through luck get caught, and frankly, that could be anyone. One thing is sure though that the seeds of distrust and suspicion are tools for them and make their jobs easier.
Very clever Marty, but the military mind only attacks at the point of least resistance, and the Military Intellegence’s ( I know, an oxymoron, the word was coined I’m sure, to describe it ) job is to destabilise leadership so, attacks on Labour leadership is the first job. Attacks on the Greens however are not productive because the Labour/ Nat war is won among the central waiverers. How’s the weather at McGill AFB tonight?.
“I asked him if, with the recent birth of the British royal baby, there was just the slightest tinge of regret that they had got rid of the French monarchy?”
—-Chris Laidlaw, previewing his interview with the outgoing French ambassador Francis Etienne.
Radio New Zealand National, Sunday 28 July 2013, 9:45 a.m.
Humbug Corner gathers, and highlights, the most striking examples of faux solicitude, insincere apologies, and particularly stupid recycling of official canards. It is produced by the Insincerity Project®, a division of Daisycutter Sports Inc.
More humbugs, mostly half-witted….
No. 20 Nevil Gibson: “Well, everybody’s getting richer.”
No. 19 Byron Bentley: “He is a great guy, a good man … very caring…”
No. 18 Rachel Smalley: “…heartbreak all over NSW as Queensland wins the deciding State of Origin!”
No. 17 Jay Carney: ““He is not a human rights activist, he is not a dissident.”
No. 16 Barack Obama: “I wish Muslims across America & around the world a month blessed with the joys of family, peace & understanding.” http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-11072013/#comment-661330
No.15 John Key: “They know this is an issue of national security…”
No. 14 Charles Saatchi: “I abhor violence of any kind against women…”
No. 13 Toyota New Zealand: “The more Kiwis that lean, the more motivated our ETNZ crew will be to win.”
No. 12 Pem Bird: “We’re there to do the business of advancing our people.”
No.11 Whenua Patuwai: “They’re my brothers and to see one of them goes [sic]—it’s tough.”
No. 10 [REMOVED]
No. 9 [REMOVED]
No. 8 Barack Obama: “…people standing up for what’s right…yearning for justice and dignity…”
No. 7 Barack Obama: “Nelson Mandela is my personal hero…”
No. 6 John Key: “Yeah well the Greens’ answer to everything is rail, isn’t it.”
No.5 Dr. Rodney Syme: “If you want good, open, honest practice, you have to make it transparent.”
No. 4 Mike Bush: “Bruce Hutton’s… integrity beyond reproach…such great character…”
No. 3 Dean Lonergan: “Y’ know what? The only people who will mock them are people who are dwarfists.”
No. 2 Peter Dunne: “What a load of drivel and sanctimonious humbug…”
No. 1 Dominic Bowden: “It’s okay to be speechless.”
Ignoring the elephant in the Room
Radio NZ National, Sunday 28 July 2013
In a lightweight interview this morning, Chris Laidlaw chuckled that the 8-7 loss in the World Cup final to Craig Joubert’s All Blacks had “bizarrely improved the relationship” between France and New Zealand. Anyone who follows French rugby, and has charted the immense public anger and cynicism following that disgrace, knows that the reality is exactly the opposite. I emailed Chris Laidlaw on behalf of all sports fans….
Dear Chris,
In your interview with outgoing French ambassador Francis Etienne, you broached the subject of the farcical 2011 World Cup final. You neglected, perhaps deliberately, to even mention the controversy that still rages in France over the failure (if that is the correct word) of the referee to penalize the systematic, repeated, blatant fouling by the home team. Obviously, the ambassador, with his évasif diplomatique, was never going to bring up such a vexatious topic, but listeners who care about rugby football will have been disappointed that you did not.
Weird, Moz. Given that most of France doesn’t give a toss about egg chasing, I reckon you’ll be completely unable to back up your claim about a raging controversy. Not that you’re wrong about the AB’s violent cheating; McCaw’s knee in the back of a prone french forward late in the game was sickening.
It is tho after-all ‘thugby’, for every incidence of overt unnecessary violence inflicted on the French by McCaw and others, in slow motion the tape of the game will show a French player dishing out the same,
The game is overtly violent and every weekend up and down the country ‘players’ get away with behavior which if committed elsewhere would likely result in them being locked up,
The ‘black eyes’ walking off the field from last nights Chiefs/Crusaders during and after the match are testament to the games violent nature, i don’t think i watch the game to witness such violence but watch i do,(so perhaps i am complicit)…
‘the Ref’ tho has 30 players all moving in fast motion to watch, perhaps the ref genuinely missed the ‘piece of thugby’ you cite McCaw for, hell i miss a lot of it from the birds eye perspective of TV viewing and it’s only slow motion replay’s which show the ‘dirt’ going in and even then much of that is invisible in the ruck and maul situation,
while on the subject, a hat-tip to the Chiefs for their semi-final win over the Crusaders,(just)…
Weird, Moz. Given that most of France doesn’t give a toss about egg chasing,
You’ve said some stupid and dishonest things on this mostly excellent forum, but without a doubt that is the st000pidest. Rugby is immensely popular in France; you know that of course.
Merde! Rugby is barely in the top ten sports list in France, Moz. Sorry to let the facts get in the way of your delusions, but it’s only popular in the south, and even there, it’s way behind football, cycling and the rest. No need for an apology for calling me dishonest, I’m hardened to the dismal levels of accuracy associated with your claims.
Rugby is the most popular spectator sport in France. True, it’s playing strength and its most fanatical following is in the southwest, but it’s immensely popular all over. You don’t know anything about French sport, just as you don’t know anything about New Zealand, as indicated by your ignorant insistence on calling soccer “football”.
I am amused by your foolish (and continual) attempts to impugn my integrity; especially ironic given your formal warning from L Prent after you had, moronically, called another poster a “thief”.
“But rugby may have surged at soccer’s expense. Attendance figures for the recently-ended pro rugby regular season show an 11% boost over the previous year, contrasting soccer’s nearly 4% slump. Though the average 19,860 fans at Ligue 1 soccer games is still considerably higher than the 13,402 average for rugby’s Top 14, rugger is fast closing the gap — over the past six years, soccer stadiums have lost a total of 10% of fans, while rugby’s gate has more than doubled. The tables are slowly turning in TV Land too: though the 1.7 million viewers average of soccer matches on pay station Canal Plus far out-guns 700,000 for the Top 14, rugby’s offensive has gained ground there, too.”
btw, the most popular rugby club in France, Toulouse, still gets smaller crowds for its biggest games than the average gate for the regular Ligue 1 matches of Toulouse FC at the ground they share, the Stadium Municipal.
ps the game is called football in NZ, hence the national administration is named NZ Football. Do try and keep up.
ps the game is called football in NZ, hence the national administration is named NZ Football.</i.
Trouble is, "football" means rugby football in New Zealand. Soccer NZ changed its name in response to a directive from John "Possumhead" O'Neill, who had just been appointed to the position of CEO of Soccer Australia after being fired from his ARU job.
Actually, northshoreguynz, I have commented on this game many times on this excellent forum. here are half a dozen for you, from most recent right back to November 2011…
As more lives and communities are destroyed by the system that creates vast amounts of wealth for the few, the more heroic it sounds to “give back.” It’s what I would call “conscience laundering” — feeling better about accumulating more than any one person could possibly need to live on by sprinkling a little around as an act of charity.
But this just keeps the existing structure of inequality in place. The rich sleep better at night, while others get just enough to keep the pot from boiling over. Nearly every time someone feels better by doing good, on the other side of the world (or street), someone else is further locked into a system that will not allow the true flourishing of his or her nature or the opportunity to live a joyful and fulfilled life.
Couldn’t have said it better. It’s the entire system that needs changing.
I notice the John Keys wealth has been maintained at $50m since he entered politics.
Given the increase in property values and equity markets recently is there some conspiracy to ensure that Key s not seen to have profited over his time in politics, more so since he has been PM. I cannot see how the NBR can continue to record this $50m value.
His properties in Parnell and Omaha in themselves must have appreciated a few $m in their own. then there are is shares and options from his banking days http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10523316
It’s newsworthy………ShonKey Python being richer than he was at the outset……..(if that’s the case – I don’t know – neither do any of you ShonKey Python suckers)………because it would point up the cargo cult as a scam sold by the already very rich…….while the rich get richer and poor get poorer.
Taihoa………….that wasn’t the deal .
Easy to fix this confusion ShonKey Python. GCSB yourself…….then publish it, you honest, honest man.
According to the Auckland City rates database, the Parnell property with its huge house and tennis court and swimming pool has a current capital value of $2.45 million, not $6.82 million. Check it for yourself. The adjoining properties are apparently valued at nothing, hence the rates for them are also nothing.
It’s just lovely the way anyone can look up these things. Thank you GCSB!
Have noticed that if I searched a user name, their comments etc come up.
Appreciate the assistance.
BLiP – do you mind if I use your text as the basis of an email to some MPs? – Body of your comments and links only – no reference to your handle here or even the site will be made.
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Sunday was a lazy day. I started watching Jack Tame on Q&A, the interviews are usually good for something to write about. Saying the things that the politicians won’t, but are quite possibly thinking. Things that are true and need to be extracted from between the lines.As you might know ...
In our Weekly Roundup last week we covered news from Auckland Transport that the WX1 Western Express is going to get an upgrade next year with double decker electric buses. As part of the announcement, AT also said “Since we introduced the WX1 Western Express last November we have seen ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 29 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Stats NZ releases its statutory report on Census 2023 tomorrow.Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivers a pre-Budget speech at ...
A listing of 29 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 14, 2024 thru Sat, April 20, 2024. Story of the week Our story of the week hinges on these words from the abstract of a fresh academic ...
The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. The Government says this will ...
This is a column to say thank you. So many of have been in touch since Mum died to say so many kind and thoughtful things. You’re wonderful, all of you. You’ve asked how we’re doing, how Dad’s doing. A little more realisation each day, of the irretrievable finality of ...
Identifying the engine type in your car is crucial for various reasons, including maintenance, repairs, and performance upgrades. Knowing the specific engine model allows you to access detailed technical information, locate compatible parts, and make informed decisions about modifications. This comprehensive guide will provide you with a step-by-step approach to ...
Introduction: The allure of racing is undeniable. The thrill of speed, the roar of engines, and the exhilaration of competition all contribute to the allure of this adrenaline-driven sport. For those who yearn to experience the pinnacle of racing, becoming a race car driver is the ultimate dream. However, the ...
Introduction Automobiles have become ubiquitous in modern society, serving as a primary mode of transportation and a symbol of economic growth and personal mobility. With countless vehicles traversing roads and highways worldwide, it begs the question: how many cars are there in the world? Determining the precise number is a ...
Maintaining a safe and reliable vehicle requires regular inspections. Whether it’s a routine maintenance checkup or a safety inspection, knowing how long the process will take can help you plan your day accordingly. This article delves into the factors that influence the duration of a car inspection and provides an ...
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 ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
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. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
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. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
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. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
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. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
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. ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
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 ...
Scout is our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Scout’s human, Avril, for her support. Dog name: Scout (named after the little girl in To Kill a Mockingbird – she inherited the independent spirit ...
Megan Alatini takes us through her life in TV, including ‘terrible’ daytime TV, the class of Carol Hirschfeld and her most embarrassing TrueBliss moment. When she responded to a vague newspaper ad asking “do you have what it takes to be a popstar?” 25 years ago, Megan Alatini never guessed ...
A new exhibition in Wellington showcases the faces behind your local goods and services. Back in 1977, when I was a fine arts student at the University of Canterbury, I took a series of photographs of Christchurch shopkeepers. The photos were for a calendar – a project for my end ...
Toomaj and his resistance to tyranny through his songs have become an icon for the youth of Iran, so his sentence has hit the nation hard. Toomaj Salehi is not the first artist to pay the price for standing with the people. ...
My cousin Dylan and I spotted these big eels under the bridge that summer. We watched them lounging under the dark weed, facing into the flow of water, their mouths frozen open. Dylan and I couldn’t stop thinking about those eels. The night we went down to the creek, we ...
Newsroom, home of satire. My long-running weekly satirical series The Secret Diary has moved to Newsroom and will appear every Saturday, with Victor Billot’s wildly popular satirical Odes continuing to appear every Sunday. Diaries, Odes – while serious political columnists toil at meaningful opinions and stroke their chins to an ...
Tara Ward unravels the many nuanced layers of a cartoon about talking dogs.This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. It’s not often an episode of a children’s cartoon has adults sobbing into their sleeves, but that’s exactly what happened this week when ...
Working as a doctor in developing countries to help communities achieve better health outcomes is nothing short of a life goal for Jessica Tater. The University of Otago medical student has her sights firmly set on joining the international humanitarian organisation Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) when she qualifies ...
There’s an island in the far reaches of Auckland’s territory, sitting off the tip of the Coromandel Peninsula, 30 minutes by air from the city or four hours on the slow boat. Aotea Great Barrier is off-grid, it has a population of fewer than a thousand people … and most ...
Asia Pacific Report An Australian author and advocate, Jim Aubrey, today led a national symbolic one minute’s silence to mark the “blood debt” owed to Papuan allies during the Second World War indigenous resistance against the invading Japanese forces. “A promise to most people is a promise,” Aubrey said in ...
Asia Pacific Report The Freedom Flotilla is ready to sail to Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. All the required paperwork has been submitted to the port authority, and the cargo has been loaded and prepared for the humanitarian trip to the besieged enclave. However, organisers received word of an “administrative ...
Pacific Media Watch Palestine solidarity protesters today demonstrated at the Auckland headquarters of Television New Zealand, accusing the country’s major TV network of broadcasting “propaganda” backing Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. About 50 protesters targeted the main entrance to the TVNZ building near Sky Tower and also picketed a side ...
Opinion by Lynley Hood. Forty years on from my 1985 Fulbright Grant, my disquiet over the war in Gaza evoked some troubling questions. The answer to my first question – What is the primary purpose of the Fulbright Programme? – was on the Fulbright NZ website. It says: US Senator, ...
The ministers responsible for green-lighting major projects need to be open about potential conflicts of interest, says Transparency International. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Powell, Professor, Family and Sexual Violence, RMIT University It has been a particularly distressing start to the year. There is little that can ease the current grief of individuals, families and communities who have needlessly lost a loved one to men’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Moore, Senior Research Associate, School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, The University of Melbourne Lichen, the first described example of symbiosis.AdeJ Artventure/Shutterstock Once known only to those studying biology, the word symbiosis is now widely used. Symbiosis is the intimate ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kim Hemsley, Head, Childhood Dementia Research Group, Flinders Health and Medical Research Institute, College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University Olena Ivanova/Shutterstock “Childhood” and “dementia” are two words we wish we didn’t have to use together. But sadly, around 1,400 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Whiteford, Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The government’s Economic Inclusion Advisory Committee has just published its second report. It was set up by Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth in 2022 to provide: ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne The Queensland state election will be held in October. A YouGov poll for The Courier Mail, conducted April 9–17 from a sample ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Naeni, PhD candidate at Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation, Deakin University There’s been much talk in recent months about what a possible second Donald Trump presidency in the United States could mean for Europe, Russia’s war in Ukraine, the ...
A brief round-up of submissions on the controversial proposed law. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week, submissions on the controversial Fast-track Approvals Bill closed just hours after the government released a list of stakeholder organisations who were sent letters advising how they could ...
A poem from Robin Peace’s new collection Detritus of Empire: feather / grass / rock. Cereal giving I see a woman’s hands, see her curious hands break a stalk as she walks through the tall prairie, the savannah, the steppe, wherever it was. See her idly bite the grass that ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)A handsomely produced (debossed cover, lovely ...
The Commissioner's decision validates the longstanding efforts of the local community and ensures that Awataha Marae will be managed to serve the needs of the local community, particularly for hosting tangihanga. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tristan Salles, Associate professor, University of Sydney Examples of Australian landscapes.Unsplash Seventy thousand years ago, the sea level was much lower than today. Australia, along with New Guinea and Tasmania, formed a connected landmass known as Sahul. Around this time – ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Felicity Castagna, Lecturer, Creative Writing, Western Sydney University Day Day Market, ParramattaPhoto: Garry Trinh I live on the edge of Parramatta, Australia’s fastest-growing city, on the kind of old-fashioned suburban street that has 1950s fibros constructed in the post-war housing boom, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Ryan, Teaching Fellow in Economics, University of Waikato GettyImagesfatido/Getty Images There is an ongoing global debate over whether the high inflation seen in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic can be lowered without a recession. New Zealand is not ...
The ‘Wicked Game’ heartthrob is in his late 60s now. That didn’t stop him putting on a lively, goofy and very sparkly show. Apart from ‘Wicked Game’, which graces a sultry playlist of mine simply called 💋, my last sustained Chris Isaak listening session took place when I was about ...
Analysis - Two ministers were stripped of portfolios in a warning to Cabinet, drama broke out at the Waitangi Tribunal, and the gang patch ban bill ran into opposition. ...
Tara Ward makes an impassioned plea for some vital pop culture merch. In April 1999, I became obsessed with a new reality television show called Popstars. Every Tuesday night, five strangers transformed into music royalty before my very eyes as Joe, Keri, Carly, Erika and Megan were chosen to form ...
PNG Post-Courier In the early hours of ANZAC Day, aerial photographs captured an impressive gathering of Australians and Papua New Guineans at Isurava in the Northern (Oro) Province. The solemn dawn service yesterday was held at a site steeped in history, where some of the fiercest battles of World War ...
The PSA is shocked that Oranga Tamariki has used the cost cutting drive to downgrade its commitment to Te Ao Māori and remove many specialist Māori roles. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Kemish, Adjunct Professor, School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry, The University of Queensland There can be no more powerful symbol of the relationship between Australia and Papua New Guinea than the prime ministers of these neighbouring countries walking together on the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sharon Robinson, Distinguished Professor and Deputy Director of ARC Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future (SAEF), University of Wollongong, University of Wollongong Andrew Netherwood Over the last 25 years, the ozone hole which forming over Antarctica each spring has started to shrink. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Viktoria Kahui, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Economics, University of Otago Getty Images/Amy Toensing Biodiversity is declining at rates unprecedented in human history. This suggests the ways we currently use to manage our natural environment are failing. One emerging concept focuses on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Colin Bednall, Associate Professor in Management, Swinburne University of Technology marvent/Shutterstock Finding the best person to fill a position can be tough, from drafting a job ad to producing a shortlist of top interview candidates. Employers typically consider information from ...
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This type of abuse of New Zealander’s rights will only get worse if the GCSB bill is passed ….
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/8972743/US-spy-agencies-eavesdrop-on-Kiwi
Thanks for posting that SST article, Richard.
It is a very shocking and revealing article containg a lot of ‘meat’ – and obviously not one that was compiled overnight. AND well-timed.
I am still trying to get my head around all the revelations and implications etc, but it would appear that both the NZSIS and possibly the GCSB were involved in monitoring Jon Stephenson’s communications and metadata.
And NZSIS people stationed in Afganistan ….
And timing of this monitoring – in the last half of 2012 – when we have been ‘told’ that a stop had been put to monitoring of NZers in August 2012 (and currently continues pending the passing of the GCSB Bill).
And the contents of the NZDF manual …..
Alert, people. This is a MUST read – a pity it did not come out before yesterday’s marches. But well-timed for before Parliament this week.
And the fact that all your contacts are known, and probably visited by the SAS, won’t give future confidential informants any piece of mind. And it will KILL off investigative journalism, because who in their right mind would want to say anything, if the Govt and others, can read all your emails and come down hard on the informant.
There are ways of communicating with journalists that don’t involve email. They’ll slow investigative journalism down, but won’t kill it off.
1) Forbes Thought Of The Day which seems appropriate given the impending data flood which is about to become law:
“ No individual raindrop ever considers itself responsible for the flood. ”
— Anonymous
2) Think “THEY” can’t pick on you? Check out the following article which shows how a Ford Escape and Toyota Prius can be hacked. Sudden breaking, jerking of the steering wheel, tampering with the odometer and speedo…it’s just naaasty.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/andygreenberg/2013/07/24/hackers-reveal-nasty-new-car-attacks-with-me-behind-the-wheel-video/
That’s just great. Now you can only step out of line if you drive an old Holden Kingswood.
Watching the Australian news once again heard the reporter talking about reducing support for those at the bottom and that hard decisions had to be had.
It seems quite evident that in the last 30 years this type of cutting is not hard in the least.
It’s the norm.
The hard decision would be to lift benefit rates, the hard decision would be to increase general taxation, the hard decision would be to increase workers rights, to increase the minimum wage, put back death duties or increase capital gains or ……..
Picking on the lowest paid and those who are unwell or are unemployed is easy – it’s happening day after day after day.
After yesterday’s successful nationwide protests against the GCSB Bill, what to do next.
Well, for one thing, take more control of the narrative.
Challenge the mainstream media’s narrative, where FairFax’s Stuff website story says ‘hundreds’ attended the Auckland protest. Maybe their journalist should learn to count better.
http://www.thepaepae.com/stop-the-gcsb-bill-rallies-and-marches-today/31708/
TV3 news attempted to smear the protests in Palmerston North and Wellington by referring to rocks being thrown and gates climbed. Well, according to witnesses this did not even happen.
http://thestandard.org.nz/the-auckland-protest/#comment-669556
Maybe the Standard could take a lead and runs a post questioning the MSM’s handling of these protests.
I would also add Radio NZ News to that list. Here is their 5,37pm 27 July news item repeated throughout the night – but no longer on their main news page.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/215531/protests-in-auckland,-wellington-against-security-bill
“The internet businessman Kim Dotcom has joined hundreds of people rallying in Auckland against the Government’s Spy Agency bill.
The march in Auckland is one of several which took place in towns and cities around the country.
Up to 1500 people gathered near Auckland’s Aotea Square before the march to listen to speeches from politicians, academics and Kim Dotcom.
He told the crowd the bill made New Zealand a puppet of the US government and called the prime minister John Key, “the biggest puppet of them all.”
….There was a similar sized march in Wellington and a smaller one in Christchurch….”
Focus was entirely on KDC, no naming of others who spoke etc including Shearer.
Auckland numbers appear low.
No mention of numbers at other venues; and implies that marches were only in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch.
.
If you have to say it, you can’t but help condemn yourself.
In a letter to the Russians US authorities say they will not torture or murder Edward Snowden in exchange for his return.
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-07-26/us/40814394_1_edward-snowden-death-penalty-attorney-general
The American authorities also promise to hold an immediate trial of Edward Snowden, on his hand over to US custody. This is in contrast to the years of solitary confinement without trial that they have subjected other whistle blower Bradley Manning to.
In other news:
From South Korea John Key makes an extraordinary statement, completely wiping his hands of any legal responsibility for New Zealand legal resident Kim Dotcom. Who the US are seeking to rendition to US territory from New Zealand.
Key’s statement is extraordinary in two ways.
First;
New Zealand legal resident, Kim Dotcom is fighting his extradition to the US,. Which currently is a matter before the New Zealand courts. By saying that Kim Dotcom needs to make that case to the United States of America.” It could be argued that our Premier John Key is seeking to interfere and/or influence a matter that is before the New Zealand courts. Which is an offence.
By saying that Dotcom “needs to make that case to United States of America” John Key is spitting in the eye of the whole New Zealand justice system, not to mention our whole system of residency and immigration. You have to ask If our Prime Minister thinks our courts or our system of granting legal residency has any validity at all. At least in this matter, For Key the answer is no.
Second;
Unlike the Russians, John Key does not demand of the US, that they give at the very least their written assurance that Dotcom if rendered to the US Authorities would be given access to the courts and not left to rot in jail for years, in solitary confinement, without charge as happened to Bradley Manning.
Without this assurance there is no way that New Zealand can render Dotcom to the US authorities without breaching his human rights, as set out under the United Nations charter of International Human rights, which guarantees the right to a fair trial, to which New Zealand is a signatory to.
The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights
This must rank as one of the most bizarre statements ever made by any politician in the history of politics.
So let’s get this straight
The Prime MInister of New Zealand…
Who’s main residence is in Hawaii….
Speaking from South Korea…
Says that a German national, namely Kim Dotcom…
Who wants to stay in New Zealand…
Has to make his case to America…
Huh???!!!
When did New Zealand become a colony of the US?
I think that John Key has somehow got his wires badly crossed if he thinks that New Zealand’s sovereignty to make is own decisions is somehow limited by the USA. Even if this was true. It still does not square with the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 2, paragraph 2.
“When did New Zealand become a colony of the US?”
1951. The waterfront lockout was the government’s way of proving loyalty to their new master.
It’s not the US we are a colony of.
The US is controlled by the UK, but who is the UK controlled by?
NZ is a colony of whoever controls the UK.
NZ became a plantation, in the financial sense, back in the 19th century, as soon as money was borrowed from abroad.
Being put under IMF control in 1961, sealed the deal!
Conditionalities Policies!
I recommend this article:
http://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2013/07/secret-government
containing this observation:
“You see, democracy here at home must be balanced against the requirements of security, and it is simply too dangerous to leave the question of this balance to the democratic public. Open deliberation over the appropriate balance would require saying something concrete about threats to public safety, and also about the means by which those threats might be checked. But revealing such information would only empower America’s enemies and endanger American lives. Therefore, this is a discussion Americans can’t afford to have. Therefore, the power to determine that this is a discussion the public cannot afford to have cannot reside in the democratic public. That power must reside elsewhere, with the best and brightest, with those who have surveyed the perils of the world and know what it takes to meet them. Those deep within the security apparatus, within the charmed circle, must therefore make the decision, on America’s behalf, about how much democracy—about how much discussion about the limits of democracy, even—it is safe for Americans to have.
This decision will not be effective, however, if it is openly questioned. The point is that is not up for debate. It is crucial, then, that any attempt by those on the inside to reveal the real, secret rules governing American life be met with overwhelming, intimidating retaliation. In order to maintain a legitimising democratic imprimatur, it is of course important that a handful of elected officials be brought into the anteroom of the inner council, but it’s important that they know barely more than that there is a significant risk that we will all perish if they, or the rest of us, know too much, and they must be made to feel that they dare not publicly speak what little they have been allowed know. Even senators. Even senators must fear to describe America’s laws to America’s citizens. This is, yes, democracy-suppression, but it is a vitally necessary arrangement. It keeps you and your adorable kids and even your cute pet dog alive.”
Strike any chords?
Looks like Keys speech, with America changed to NZ.
http://m.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/mar/17/us-spy-operation-social-networks
The article well over 2 years old, indicates the operation will have been live for many years before this ever came to light.
Military/spook types trooling the social media, who’d have thought!
My expectation would be that in NZ for example, they would pick on the popular blog sites, perhaps they are monitoring all of them, who knows, but certainly the popular blog will be well under control. Spend any time on certain subject matter, on the larger blog sites, and you can see it in action, the posters names, and the content, are generally a dead give a way!
So how would they be implementing this?. How would they attack, who would they support ?. As John Key and the Nact Government are their obvious anointed ones, any threat to them must be countered. That means that there must be no chance of a left-wing Government and you would do that by destabilising the Labour leadership, painting it as incompetent and bumbling in some cases and in others as dangerous commie lovers, whose father might have been oh..say, a Red Reverend.
So can we out any here on The Standard, can anyone think of anyone calling for the Labour leaders sacking or replacement?
Or maybe they believe that having shearer is the best chance for a continued reign of key so therefore supporting shearer helps them or maybe they know that we know that and therefore they DO add their voice against shearer, or maybe they know that we know they will do THAT so they actually attack those unhappy with shearer… Luckily they are not as sophisticated or talented as they believe they are and they give themselves away through the use of their language, or maybe they know that we know that and they deliberately sow seeds of confusion by pretending to be thick… the worse ones are the ones that you never find out about – the deep ones who only through luck get caught, and frankly, that could be anyone. One thing is sure though that the seeds of distrust and suspicion are tools for them and make their jobs easier.
Very clever Marty, but the military mind only attacks at the point of least resistance, and the Military Intellegence’s ( I know, an oxymoron, the word was coined I’m sure, to describe it ) job is to destabilise leadership so, attacks on Labour leadership is the first job. Attacks on the Greens however are not productive because the Labour/ Nat war is won among the central waiverers. How’s the weather at McGill AFB tonight?.
No surprises. And yes, anything but a left-wing government in New Zealand is essential to the imperialists and their toadies.
Humbug Corner
No. 21: CHRIS LAIDLAW
“I asked him if, with the recent birth of the British royal baby, there was just the slightest tinge of regret that they had got rid of the French monarchy?”
—-Chris Laidlaw, previewing his interview with the outgoing French ambassador Francis Etienne.
Radio New Zealand National, Sunday 28 July 2013, 9:45 a.m.
Humbug Corner gathers, and highlights, the most striking examples of faux solicitude, insincere apologies, and particularly stupid recycling of official canards. It is produced by the Insincerity Project®, a division of Daisycutter Sports Inc.
More humbugs, mostly half-witted….
No. 20 Nevil Gibson: “Well, everybody’s getting richer.”
No. 19 Byron Bentley: “He is a great guy, a good man … very caring…”
No. 18 Rachel Smalley: “…heartbreak all over NSW as Queensland wins the deciding State of Origin!”
No. 17 Jay Carney: ““He is not a human rights activist, he is not a dissident.”
No. 16 Barack Obama: “I wish Muslims across America & around the world a month blessed with the joys of family, peace & understanding.”
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-11072013/#comment-661330
No.15 John Key: “They know this is an issue of national security…”
No. 14 Charles Saatchi: “I abhor violence of any kind against women…”
No. 13 Toyota New Zealand: “The more Kiwis that lean, the more motivated our ETNZ crew will be to win.”
No. 12 Pem Bird: “We’re there to do the business of advancing our people.”
No.11 Whenua Patuwai: “They’re my brothers and to see one of them goes [sic]—it’s tough.”
No. 10 [REMOVED]
No. 9 [REMOVED]
No. 8 Barack Obama: “…people standing up for what’s right…yearning for justice and dignity…”
No. 7 Barack Obama: “Nelson Mandela is my personal hero…”
No. 6 John Key: “Yeah well the Greens’ answer to everything is rail, isn’t it.”
No.5 Dr. Rodney Syme: “If you want good, open, honest practice, you have to make it transparent.”
No. 4 Mike Bush: “Bruce Hutton’s… integrity beyond reproach…such great character…”
No. 3 Dean Lonergan: “Y’ know what? The only people who will mock them are people who are dwarfists.”
No. 2 Peter Dunne: “What a load of drivel and sanctimonious humbug…”
No. 1 Dominic Bowden: “It’s okay to be speechless.”
Ignoring the elephant in the Room
Radio NZ National, Sunday 28 July 2013
In a lightweight interview this morning, Chris Laidlaw chuckled that the 8-7 loss in the World Cup final to Craig Joubert’s All Blacks had “bizarrely improved the relationship” between France and New Zealand. Anyone who follows French rugby, and has charted the immense public anger and cynicism following that disgrace, knows that the reality is exactly the opposite. I emailed Chris Laidlaw on behalf of all sports fans….
Dear Chris,
In your interview with outgoing French ambassador Francis Etienne, you broached the subject of the farcical 2011 World Cup final. You neglected, perhaps deliberately, to even mention the controversy that still rages in France over the failure (if that is the correct word) of the referee to penalize the systematic, repeated, blatant fouling by the home team. Obviously, the ambassador, with his évasif diplomatique, was never going to bring up such a vexatious topic, but listeners who care about rugby football will have been disappointed that you did not.
Yours sincerely,
Morrissey Breen
Northcote Point
Weird, Moz. Given that most of France doesn’t give a toss about egg chasing, I reckon you’ll be completely unable to back up your claim about a raging controversy. Not that you’re wrong about the AB’s violent cheating; McCaw’s knee in the back of a prone french forward late in the game was sickening.
It is tho after-all ‘thugby’, for every incidence of overt unnecessary violence inflicted on the French by McCaw and others, in slow motion the tape of the game will show a French player dishing out the same,
The game is overtly violent and every weekend up and down the country ‘players’ get away with behavior which if committed elsewhere would likely result in them being locked up,
The ‘black eyes’ walking off the field from last nights Chiefs/Crusaders during and after the match are testament to the games violent nature, i don’t think i watch the game to witness such violence but watch i do,(so perhaps i am complicit)…
in slow motion the tape of the game will show a French player dishing out the same,
Yes it will. French football is notorious for its brutality. The issue though, is the failure of the referee to do his job.
‘the Ref’ tho has 30 players all moving in fast motion to watch, perhaps the ref genuinely missed the ‘piece of thugby’ you cite McCaw for, hell i miss a lot of it from the birds eye perspective of TV viewing and it’s only slow motion replay’s which show the ‘dirt’ going in and even then much of that is invisible in the ruck and maul situation,
while on the subject, a hat-tip to the Chiefs for their semi-final win over the Crusaders,(just)…
Weird, Moz. Given that most of France doesn’t give a toss about egg chasing,
You’ve said some stupid and dishonest things on this mostly excellent forum, but without a doubt that is the st000pidest. Rugby is immensely popular in France; you know that of course.
And of course the issue wasn’t the violence of McCaw, it was (and is) the outrageously partial display of the non-referee.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7C6bTHyC0U
Merde! Rugby is barely in the top ten sports list in France, Moz. Sorry to let the facts get in the way of your delusions, but it’s only popular in the south, and even there, it’s way behind football, cycling and the rest. No need for an apology for calling me dishonest, I’m hardened to the dismal levels of accuracy associated with your claims.
Rugby is the most popular spectator sport in France. True, it’s playing strength and its most fanatical following is in the southwest, but it’s immensely popular all over. You don’t know anything about French sport, just as you don’t know anything about New Zealand, as indicated by your ignorant insistence on calling soccer “football”.
I am amused by your foolish (and continual) attempts to impugn my integrity; especially ironic given your formal warning from L Prent after you had, moronically, called another poster a “thief”.
Cite needed for the spectator sport claim. Sounds like utter bollocks, given how popular football is there. Anything to back it up?
When was this warning from Lprent? I don’t recall it.
edit: found the ‘warning’. Clockie gave the context in the next comment, so no probs. I used the term accurately.
I’ve done some research for ya Moz. As usual you’re wrong. Here’s an article optimistic about rugby in France, but far more realistic than you:
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1989453,00.html
“But rugby may have surged at soccer’s expense. Attendance figures for the recently-ended pro rugby regular season show an 11% boost over the previous year, contrasting soccer’s nearly 4% slump. Though the average 19,860 fans at Ligue 1 soccer games is still considerably higher than the 13,402 average for rugby’s Top 14, rugger is fast closing the gap — over the past six years, soccer stadiums have lost a total of 10% of fans, while rugby’s gate has more than doubled. The tables are slowly turning in TV Land too: though the 1.7 million viewers average of soccer matches on pay station Canal Plus far out-guns 700,000 for the Top 14, rugby’s offensive has gained ground there, too.”
btw, the most popular rugby club in France, Toulouse, still gets smaller crowds for its biggest games than the average gate for the regular Ligue 1 matches of Toulouse FC at the ground they share, the Stadium Municipal.
ps the game is called football in NZ, hence the national administration is named NZ Football. Do try and keep up.
ps the game is called football in NZ, hence the national administration is named NZ Football.</i.
Trouble is, "football" means rugby football in New Zealand. Soccer NZ changed its name in response to a directive from John "Possumhead" O'Neill, who had just been appointed to the position of CEO of Soccer Australia after being fired from his ARU job.
Ahem.
http://lmgtfy.com/?q=football+in+nz.
I wondered how long Mo’s obsession with that game would take to surface here. Actually longer than I thought.
Actually, northshoreguynz, I have commented on this game many times on this excellent forum. here are half a dozen for you, from most recent right back to November 2011…
1.) Dismaying hypocrisy: A not so smart Ted talks….
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-23052013/#comment-636639
2.) Comedy, chivalry and one mouth-breathing cretin: Twenty minutes of Radio Live (Highlights)…
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-06052013/#comment-628809
3.) “Now if only we could GUARANTEE the victory by installing Craig Joubert as (non-) umpire for the day…”
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-26032013/#comment-609704
4.) “Mental skills” coach Gilbert Enoka disappointing on radio this morning…
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-13042012/#comment-458931
5.) Will Kathryn Ryan risk upsetting Richie McCaw?…
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-15122011/#comment-417664
6.) Phil Goff almost broke the national conspiracy of silence tonight…
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-18112011/#comment-402914
Sigh…
Anyone interested in an American take human rights abuses might be interested in this site:
http://www.democracynow.org/
Need evidence that Obama is a scumbag:
http://www.democracynow.org/2013/7/25/yemeni_reporter_who_exposed_us_drone
The Charitable-Industrial Complex
Couldn’t have said it better. It’s the entire system that needs changing.
#askTommyRobinson didn’t go so well.
http://liberalconspiracy.org/2013/07/27/the-11-best-questions-by-twitter-for-edls-asktommyrobinson/
I notice the John Keys wealth has been maintained at $50m since he entered politics.
Given the increase in property values and equity markets recently is there some conspiracy to ensure that Key s not seen to have profited over his time in politics, more so since he has been PM. I cannot see how the NBR can continue to record this $50m value.
His properties in Parnell and Omaha in themselves must have appreciated a few $m in their own. then there are is shares and options from his banking days
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10523316
Why do you care?
Accuracy of reporting, otherwise why report on such matters or are you comfortable with the media not being thorough in what it reports??
I’m questioning why it is news worthy
You’re new around here eh?
The PM is pathological and lies on command, even seems to enjoy the moments.
His back story is a lie, why is that, NOT news worthy!
It’s newsworthy………ShonKey Python being richer than he was at the outset……..(if that’s the case – I don’t know – neither do any of you ShonKey Python suckers)………because it would point up the cargo cult as a scam sold by the already very rich…….while the rich get richer and poor get poorer.
Taihoa………….that wasn’t the deal .
Easy to fix this confusion ShonKey Python. GCSB yourself…….then publish it, you honest, honest man.
John Key needs to come clean with his secret stash – “nothing to fear, nothing to hide”.
The figure of $50m was chosen as part of the back story, and is utter nonsense, he was worth more then, and will be worth much more, now!
Agree though, the number 50 is a joke, as if its not changed in the past 5-6 years.
The numbers are always low, and meaningless anyway!
According to the Auckland City rates database, the Parnell property with its huge house and tennis court and swimming pool has a current capital value of $2.45 million, not $6.82 million. Check it for yourself. The adjoining properties are apparently valued at nothing, hence the rates for them are also nothing.
It’s just lovely the way anyone can look up these things. Thank you GCSB!
‘Chris Hedges: ‘Blue collar working class was decimated while liberal elites focussed on issues of gender and multiculturalism’
– Liberal elites act as a safety valve to address a few underclass and working class concerns, while ensuring that the status quo framework continues.
– Electoral politics is only a tiny part of what needs to be done; building mass movements is what is needed.
– Surveillance state of fear arrayed against any possible dissent and organisation.
NB Chris Hedges was New York Times Middle East bureau head, and was a correspondent covering communist Eastern Europe.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ff-G0DPkBv8
Thank you CV.
Chris Hedges. Brilliant. Disturbing !
-bullet points
Russians.
http://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/this-is-what-happens-when-you-write-about-homophobia-in-russ
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/07/26/russian-neo-nazi-occupy-group-tortures-lgbt-youths/
edit:Ecuadorians.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/07/27/abuse-at-ecuadorian-gay-conversion-facilities-shocks-authorities/
Lithuanians.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/27/lithuania-gay-pride-_n_3663849.html
OilTar sands.http://o.canada.com/2013/07/25/oil-spill-alberta-underground/
Anyone got a link to BliPs posts created with the links to the articles outlining all the lies told by John Key?
Cheers
http://thestandard.org.nz/an-honest-man/#comment-623847
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Updated yesterday @ http://thestandard.org.nz/key-demeans-korean-war-veterans/#comment-669553
Arfamo, BLiP – cheers.
Have noticed that if I searched a user name, their comments etc come up.
Appreciate the assistance.
BLiP – do you mind if I use your text as the basis of an email to some MPs? – Body of your comments and links only – no reference to your handle here or even the site will be made.
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No, of course not. The list belongs to everyone. While you’re at it, though, please “cc” Sean Plunket.
Cheers, and whats Seans email, Ill include him
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All good. I’ve dumped the list on Plunket’s Facebook page.