The Zionists are not the only ones who kill Palestinians and get away with it with seeming impunity.
From the very beginning of the Arab Spring in Syria, Syrian Palestinian refugees in Syria because they stood with the Syrian against Assad, have been a particular target of the regime.
The tactic of aerial bombardment directed against the Syrian people in Homs, in Aleppo, in Douma, and first suffered by the Palestinian refugees in Latakia in march 2011, (where I stayed in 2010 and knew intimately) is now being directed against the Palestinian refugees in Yarmouk.
The ICRC is calling on all involved in fighting to allow the immediate and unimpeded passage of urgent humanitarian aid and to permit civilians who wish to leave the camp for safer areas to do so at any time.
“With the recent upsurge in fighting in and around Yarmouk the situation for civilians has deteriorated once again,” said Marianne Gasser, the head of the ICRC in Syria. “People were already worn down by months of conflict and constant shortages of food, water and medicine and they need urgent help.”
Some families have managed to escape Yarmouk for the nearby district of Yelda. Since 3 April, the ICRC and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) have delivered 9,500 food parcels to families in Yelda, some of which had fled the camp…….
…….The ICRC has not been able to enter Yarmouk Camp since October 2014, when it delivered medical and water purification supplies in collaboration with the SARC and the Palestine Red Crescent Society.
UNRWA expressed in a statement it issued yesterday, its deep concern about the escalation of fighting and the fate of thousands of Palestinian refugees in Yarmouk camp and the surrounding areas.
UNRWA Commissioner-General, Pierre Krähenbühl, said in his statement, a copy of which was received by the Action Group, that “Yarmouk and its people are in indescribable pain and living in suffering which has lasted over the years of conflict. We are extremely concerned with the fate of the civilians, including the Palestinian refugees, after over a week of dramatically escalating violence.”
UNRWA also warned of the catastrophic consequences of the serious escalation in the fighting, which is affecting Yarmouk camp for Palestinian refugees in Damascus and its surrounding areas.
Syria is a country of approximatly 23 million people … Before thje start of the government overthrow attempts by western / and Israeli backed violent Sunni extremists.
There were approximatly`500,000 palestinian refugees in Syria …. and 1.2 million Iraq refugees
If New Zealand were to take comparable numbers in a ratio sense ,,,, we would need to take in 342 857 refugees,.. aproximatly
342 857 would put quite a strain on New Zealand …. But Syria has the extra burden of usa / nato Sanctions …. described as sanctions of mass destruction … as similar ones killed half a million children in IRAQ … more than all the ‘weapons of mass destruction’ ever used … like nuclear bombs etc
Starvation in Syria …. just like the 400 000 or more dead Syrians killed in our western backed Islamic uprising … lies firmly at the feet of NATO …and their ‘coalition of the killing’
Britain and the USa are making money out of their participation in the starvation and genocide they are waging on Yemen … they make Assad look like a schoolboy.
That poor innocent Assad really did nothing. His shooting of thousands of demonstrators at the beginning of the Arab spring is just a figment of the imagination.
Wayne …..A person who under the Geneva convention definition of war crimes passed after the Nazis were defeated …. Is a war criminal in my eyes.
And thats before his participation in the killing of three year old girls and other children.
And his ‘not knowing’ …. about the torture NZ participated in …
Watch this video and make your own minds up about Wayne …. is he a war criminal / committed crimes against peace
16 minutes 30 seconds https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XiFgrXnSH4g
I give him the trifecta …
A racist ..,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,.. “speak English or die”) with Wayne Mapp criticisng Statistics New Zealand’s decision to offer a joint English / Maori census form in some areas as politically correct bilingualism. According to Mapp,
Warmongering … ” In the case of Iraq the case is clear. Iraq has been in continual defiance of UN resolutions. They possess weapons of mass destruction.” … mapp
Criminal ..,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, “After the war, he claimed that our refusal to participate would ruin relations with Australia and the US, and that our refusal to participate in an illegal war of aggression would cost us a free trade agreement with the USA (guess they were wrong on that too). He even went so far as to demand that the government make a crawling apology to Australia and the US for being right about the war. ”
Waynes remarks about Assad…. should take into account his record of calling dead children ‘ Taliban fighters’,… and his bullshit “Iraq has weapons of mass destruction”,
The man loves war …. and couldn;t give a stuff about the arab or middle eastern victims ….
You have seriously defamed New Zealand soldiers (and myself) by accusing them of being war criminals.
As you know there is an Inquiry into this whole situation, which Inquiry I have encouraged.
I suggest that you leave this matter to the Inquiry rather than making highly defamatory remarks in a situation where many people involved cannot effectively reply.
I’ll try to simplify this down even more for you, Wayne…(I’m speaking only my own views)…
* You have a public profile consisting of words and actions which are documented as a matter of record…
* Your comments on this site are a continuation of your documented public record…
* Your ideological bent which is referenced through your documented public record is also played out through your handle on an incompatible left leaning blog site…
* You ignore the legitimate comments reason has made about your documented public record…
* You’re attempting to play the victim…
What compels you to perform this charade is debateable…that you are seemingly oblivious to the damage your documented public service has done and continues to do lacks later stage life contrition or evidence of reticence…
You frequent this site looking for something….trying unsuccessfully to relieve yourself of [something]…or possibly to find [something]…
What you’re looking for can be found in any mirror…in private…
I put up a post with information about the 1.7 million refugees which were in Syria … Just before their country became the target of western backed Islamic extremists….
If we took that same ratio of refugees into New Zealand … to proportionally match the 1.7 million Syria took in ….. we would have to let in 342,857 people …. aprox
I also mentioned sanctions …. and how these quiet killers have been labeled as “sanctions of mass destruction” …. with up to 500 000 thousand Iraqi children made to suffer, starve and die through them … with Syrian people now suffering from this usa favored weapon of siege
Wayne Mapp ignores the content of my post ….this long trail of mass suffering and killing of children … Seemingly oblivious to the concentration camp scale of victims …
Not caring to comment on the over half a million needless deaths / murders of children …He instead parks a dump of steaming Assad is Hitler dribble.,,,
Regardless … The main thing Waynes post showed me …… is how he ignored all the real suffering and death of children to dish up his stale old war propaganda.
Waynes just demonstrated very clearly the level of his regret … regarding Fatima, his mystery dead three year old Afghanistan girl … the mystery being how she was misrepresented as a Taliban fighter
I’m not sure what he thought he wrote …but what he showed was a complete lack of consideration or care … for all the other children or civilians killed, maimed or bereaved …. and His non existent concern for future victims…. From all the Waynes and Johns and donalds of this world.
In my opinion …Wayne does not give a shit about foreign people, poor people .. or brown kids … he cares more for his reputation.
*********
I’m specifically calling you a war criminal … or wannabe war criminal Wayne … ” War of Aggression” is mentioned in the Geneva convention as the ultimate crime …. trade deals, consummated or not, … do not get you an exemption. Wayne
I have a relative who is SAS … years and years ago at a funeral I asked him about Afghanistan … Summarizing his answer … ‘ it was a load of shit with poorly defined non achievable objectives ‘ … People like you are the threat to our military ,,, in both reputation and conduct, Wayne.
Has any other poster or Author here at The Standard …. ever played a part in the killing or cover-up of a three year old child?.
What reputation do those who have been involved in something as absolutely wrong as that deserve?
Over this subject ..Wayne is like the stupid teenager driving at 140 kms around suburban streets ,,,, and running over a kid .
Saying or feeling sorry does not help the parents much …. what the hell did the teenager / wayne think was going to be the end result of selfish stupid reckless behavior
There are other aspects of Waynes dishonesty which I will raise later ….
I wish you’d stop promoting a disgusting rape denier around here. George Galloway is not someone whose arguments I care to listen too given his mansplaining downgrading of rape because it happened after consensual sex.
I don’t. Still sick of you spamming his links all over here. It tells me you excuse, or perhaps even support given how often you spam his links, his belief that non consensual sex is not necessarily rape.
Wayne, Assad is just a pawn. The issue is the gas pipeline that runs through Syria. The Arabs need to have this halted if the oil price is to clime – it is their only income and any additional fuel supply via Russia would be highly detrimental to the power they yield. Coupled with their religious fundamentalist nature, all bets are off. And the west supports this as it is in their interest to have the energy cake split by as fewer players as possible.
In the end, nothing really has and ever will change – its about power and money. It does not matter in that “game” who gets killed, maimed and left behind starving an dying. Humans are just primitive creatures who have been handed the means of destroying the planet many times over. The yard bullies are in charge right now and reason has left the building.
From the very beginning of the Arab Spring in Syria, Syrian Palestinian refugees in Syria because they stood with the Syrian against Assad, have been a particular target of the regime.
So, as guests in the country they tried to overthrow the government and are now complaining that there’s consequences to that?
The Yarmouk Palestinian refugee camp in South Damascus which has been under a long term starvation siege by the Assad government.
You do understand that there’s a war on right? And that in wars there happens to be shortages?
And that this war was seemingly encouraged by the US?
Assad is no saint but I think you’ll find that the Syrians and refugees would be a hell of a lot better off if the US hadn’t started a civil war there.
Draco puts up a new theory for the war in Syria; It was the Palestinian refugees, that dun it
From the very beginning of the Arab Spring in Syria, Syrian Palestinian refugees in Syria, because they stood with the Syrian [people] against Assad, have been a particular target of the regime.
Jenny
So, as guests in the country they tried to overthrow the government and are now complaining that there’s consequences to that?
Draco T Bastard
In his desperate efforts to justify mass murder, torture and genocide; Any straw to grasp at will do.
Libya Until recently was a modern evolving society …with the highest standard of living on its continent … and it attained this after spending most of last centuary being one of the poorest countries in the world
Gaddafi in a bloodless coup,,, ousted a corrupt monarchy and BP oil ….taking over a country Beset by poverty, slums, cholera, malnutrition and other third world ills and hardships for his people .
Using Libyian resources for the benefit of Libyans in a form of socialism … The largest improvements in quality of life ,,,, were achieved in the shortest period of time … than any other example / country in the world that I can find.
Achievements such as …. went from one of the poorest nations in its continent into the richest nation….it also gained the highest Human Development Index, the lowest infant mortality and the highest life expectancy.
“Health care is [was] available to all citizens free of charge by the public sector.
infant mortality rates had decreased from 105 per 1000 live births in 1970 to an Infant mortality rate 14.0
Confirmed by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), undernourishment was less than 5 %,
Took literacy from 25% up to 87% under with 25% earning university degrees.
University education was free.
Gross primary school enrollment ratio was 97% for boys and 97% for girls (2009) .
(see UNESCO tables
The pupil teacher ratio in primary schools was of the order of 17 (1983 UNESCO data)
Went from a country beset with cholera and unsafe water problems …. to a very low percentage of people without access to safe water (3 percent), health services (0 percent) and sanitation (2 percent) … and was investing in the largest
irrigation project in the world
With regard to Women’s Rights,………… World Bank data point to significant achievements, “In a relative short period of time … passed in 1970 was an equal pay for equal work law…
In secondary and tertiary education, girls outnumbered boys by 10%.” (World Bank Country ….. child marriages were banned and the minimum legal age to marry placed at 18. ……Since 1973, Libyan women have had equal rights in obtaining a divorce. There were also gender-friendly women’s laws passed on marriage and divorce.
Such freedoms for women were hated by ‘rebels’ …. aka british sponsored Islamist extremists such as the Manchester based Libyan Islamic Fighting Group….
“TWENTY-TWO innocent lives were lost on May 22, 2017, when a suicide bomber detonated his device at the Manchester Arena after an Ariana Grande concert.
“The Manchester Bombing: Blowback from British state collusion with jihadists abroad Three quarters of all foreign fighters in Libya came from Manchester. Now that one of their number has returned to bomb the same city, apparently under the influence of ISIL, remarkably few are questioning the British foreign policy decisions David Cameron took while in power.”
What happened to Libya was the destruction of it as a modern state .,… It is now a blood soaked lawless failed state … a Islamic extremist bolt hole …. with women living in fear…. and Libyans of black African decent being ethnically cleansed … or sold into slavery.
Refugees are further abused …”Nearly half the women and children interviewed had experienced sexual abuse during migration,” the report says.” “Often multiple times and in multiple locations.” …..”Libya, as the funnel through which so many journeys pass, has earned itself a shocking reputation as the epicentre of abuse” …
“None of this would be possible if not for … the involvement of a NATO coalition that included the United States.” As in Iraq and Afghanistan, the lesson of Libya is that regime change through military intervention can have catastrophic consequences. That lesson should be taken far more seriously.
“The evidence suggests that British actions in three different theatres — Libya, Iraq and Syria — cannot be viewed in isolation:
In Libya, US and UK led intervention destroyed the functioning state and created a vacuum allowing hardline Islamist fighters to consolidate their foothold in the country. This paved the way for the empowerment of ISIS. The direct line between Libyan and Syrian Islamist rebels fuelled jihadism in both countries.
In Iraq, US and UK led intervention also destroyed the existing state infrastructure and fuelled an Islamist insurgency which incubated al-Qaeda in Iraq and culminated in the emergence of ISIS.
In Syria, US and UK covert action, again in partnership with Gulf states such as Qatar, and Turkey, has had the effect of augmenting the role of al-Qaeda in the rebel movement.
This combination of Anglo-American policies across the region has contributed to further instability and the rise of violent jihadism. In fact, an even stronger conclusion may be warranted based on the evidence of the extent of UK covert and overt action in the region in alliance with states consistently supplying arms to terrorist groups: that agencies of the British government itself have, in some senses, become part of the broader ‘terrorist network’ with which the British public is now confronted.”
What happened in Libya and Iraq was despicable butchery accomplished with murderous dishonesty ..
Libya 23 minutes///
the same tactics, the same Islamist extremism … Almost achieved the same result in Syria …. Until Russia reversed the Sunni extremists expansion … protecting normal Syrians from ethnic cleansing in NATOs latest disaster / NATOs newest Islamic State. https://www.bitchute.com/video/hUaWa8L9YPXL/
You have to appreciate that madmen like Saddam and Gaddaffi had to be removed,because they were jealous of the freedom and democracy of the west.
Now they are free and democratic.
Zorb6: You’re having a laugh, right? “had to be removed,because they were jealous of the freedom and democracy”
If it wasn’t sarcasm… ?
The great USof A where voters are routinely kicked off the electoral roll.
The lesser Great Britain where legitimate Windrush imigrants are being bullrushed from YarlsWood on chartered planes and even their own diplomats have trouble bringing in their own child born overseas.
The majority of people asking for food parcels have never had to ask for help before, the Salvation Army says.
Community Ministries spokesperson Lindsay Andrews said the high cost of everyday living was creating a “working poor”.
“We’re seeing across the country 336 new families presenting each week so that equates to 60 percent of the families requesting help and given that a number of these are not on benefits, that’s quite concerning.”
I don’t think it’s right that neoliberalism is same as feudalism.
The people expected to be heard when they went to the leaders in feudalism. While Europe etc. worked out how to run their societies and who was going to be in control there were big wars. Here is an interesting quote about it. I don’t know if you think that this is akin to neoliberalism:
The 17th century saw very little peace in Europe – major wars were fought in 95 years (every year except 1610, 1669 to 1671, and 1680 to 1682.)[10] The wars were unusually ugly. Europe in the late 17th century, 1648 to 1700, was an age of great intellectual, scientific, artistic and cultural achievement. Historian Frederick Nussbaum says it was:
prolific in genius, in common sense, and in organizing ability. It could properly have been expected that intelligence, comprehension and high purpose would be applied to the control of human relations in general and to the relations between states and peoples in particular. The fact was almost completely opposite.
It was a period of marked unintelligence, immorality and frivolity in the conduct of international relations, marked by wars undertaken for dimly conceived purposes, waged with the utmost brutality and conducted by reckless betrayals of allies.[11]
The worst came during the Thirty Years’ War, 1618-1648, which had an extremely negative impact on the civilian population of Germany and surrounding areas, with massive loss of life and disruption of the economy and society.
Gosh there is so much to learn about the past while we watch with dismay, society’s wheels drop off today.
Here is some more interesting perhaps pertinent stuff:
It’s not just housing, it’s neoliberalism. The private sector has failed and so have the PPP and COO schemes. You should not try to profit from the basics, housing, electricity, food, water, transport.
It takes $34 on cash fare for a family of 4 to go 2 states return in Auckland. Or you pay an extra $40 for 4 HOP cards to get it down.
People have no electricity for days because of underinvestment and the reliance of making a ‘pay as you go’ infrastructure around Auckland which can mean anyone building a house pays around $25k for all the transformers, cables, meters, private pillars and then somehow doesn’t own it, but ‘rents’ if off Vector. Likewise with Vector and the trees somehow it’s more efficient to have 1 million people without cherry pickers and electricity qualifications to be liable to maintain the trees around electricity lines… also easier to make tradies do years of expensive study and then find out that they have no experience and it’s cheaper to get in someone from overseas for cash and then if it all goes wrong, the councils can pick up the tab for remedial work.
People are at the Salvation Army because even if you work full time, wages are so out of whack with the cost of living that it becomes difficult to survive and you need to constantly go around looking for subsidies whether it be WFF, accomodation, community services card, not paying donations at schools, food parcels, emergency grants and so forth. All that takes up a lot of time and pretty hit and miss. I’d like to see that someone employed is able to support a family on one income… like in the old days… now some people can’t support a family on 2 incomes.
Wages need a serious rethink…. with the new minimum wage increases you get $660 less taxes… that is no longer enough to live on with everybody from private companies to COO’s to councils to government wanting more money.
The high paid jobs are not there, and our best and brightest have to leave NZ or work at a fraction of what they should be on, to stay in NZ. Meanwhile the system does everything possible to bring down most people’s wages in real terms.
Universities closing libraries, hospitals outsourcing hospital meals, the list goes on… we are losing jobs or making people get less in the same job, while somehow the prices for all the services keep going up to pay for all the middle men often with top heavy corporations like Serco, keeping this rout going.
And with the houses, resources are concentrated on luxury hotels, private retirement villages, luxury apartments, renovating houses into luxury houses. Those focusing on the bottom end like in Tauranga, well they were condemned before even being lived in… and time to start again.
With the amount of low waged or asset rich but cash poor coming into NZ who are also qualifying for subsidies and competing with the existing poor, it’s hard to make it all work.
Reports are coming out of Gaza that the people have lost their fear, the situation is that bad, they have nothing left, they’ve had enough.
A reporter who has been covering the situation in Gaza for years says she has never seen the people so desperate.
“Their situation is so miserable in Gaza. I’ve been reporting from the Gaza Strip for years and it’s never been this bad.”
Five Fridays of protests… and the death toll is at least 45 Palestinian demonstrators, with more than 6,000 wounded, including medical professionals and journalists since the mass movement began on March 30. There have been no Israeli casualties.
Israeli officials have accused Gaza’s rulers Hamas of instigating the protests, but not a single rocket has been fired from the Gaza Strip since the demonstrations began.
UN are condemning Israel for their actions, but from what I can see no one is taking any action, how long will this go on for?
It’s always talk, talk, then nothing, nada. I see it as systematic genocide.
Does what happened in Libya and Iraq, justify the genocide committed by Assad regime against the Syrian people, and the Palestinian refugees in Latakia and Yarmouk?
These are actually attempts to change the conversation to an unrelated topic; we can call it “whataboutery”. “What about Syria?” the Zionists ask. What about China? What about women? And so on.
These crude distractions have become even harder to sell over the past year, with Israel’s open embrace of US President Donald Trump and his cohort of white supremacists, hard-right Zionists and even Nazi-aligned figures like former advisor Sebastian Gorka.
What happened in Libya and Iraq was despicable butchery accomplished with murderous dishonesty ..
Libya 23 minutes///
the same tactics, the same Islamist extremism … Almost achieved the same result in Syria …. Until Russia reversed the Sunni extremists expansion … protecting normal Syrians from ethnic cleansing in NATOs latest disaster / NATOs newest Islamic State. https://www.bitchute.com/video/hUaWa8L9YPXL/
When the uprisings in Syria unravelled in 2011, most Palestinians wanted to remain neutral, haunted by the memory of what happened to Palestinians in Jordan in the 1970s, Lebanon in the 1980s, Kuwait in 1991, and Iraq in the early 2000s. Joining any opposition to the Syrian regime came with high risks, even within the framework of the popular movement, with which many young Palestinians identified. This identification is unsurprising: The integration of Palestinians into Syrian society meant that they, too, were subject to the social control enforced by the Assad regime throughout the country. Arresting and torturing dissidents was a common practice long before the spirit of the Arab uprisings reached the Syrian streets in 2011. Therefore, while Bashar al-Assad’s anti-Western and anti-Zionist rhetoric made him seem a trustworthy ally to Palestinians, in practice the lives of Syrian Palestinians were no better nor worse than his other subjects.
Does what happened in Libya and Iraq get ignored so US/UK/ISRAEL/FRANCE/SAUDI can destroy and occupy another sovereign nation..
Jenny, your comments are filled with ill thought hypocrisy and a lack of love and empathy for those who are dying…those on the ‘other side’ of the discussion…those who you repeatedly ignore while you push your one wheeled cart around this site..
Taking a side is endorse death, injury and misery…that is what you are doing..
Perhaps unwittingly…perhaps not…
I also can’t but help notice that supporters of the regime like yourself, and others, also maintain a strict silence, amounting to complicity, at any mention of Saydnaya
Actually, most of Assad’s victims are not “headchopping jihadis” – but you are so biased you lump the innocents in with them. This is why we will find no common ground.
And no time whatsoever for the millions of refugees created by Assad’s regime. But lots of time for the saccharine propagandists of RT and their dubious mouthpieces.
There is some very dim bulbs who comment here, Stuart…
I’ve told you multiple times that a primary difference between myself and the likes of you and Jenny….is that I do not take sides…the two of you are openly and unashamedly bias…
The two of you can’t wrap your narrow bandwidth around such a concept….so you continue with the line that is the opposite of what I state in comments…
See if you can widen your narrow bandwidth just enough to let that get into your head…
I’ll help you out…again…
Posting a link does NOT alter the fact that I do not, and will not take a side…
I do have disdain for those such as yourself and jenny who seek to offer validation of illegal foreign invation, occupation and destruction of sovereign nation…after nation…after nation…
Pause to see if you can understand why distain for the position shared by yourself and Jenny, exists…
And if that is beyond your narrow bandwidth…it is likely that you have problems over and above the ignorance born out of prejudice…
I’m always impressed about how you are just as quick to criticise people’s hubris when they say what bad things the US etc are up to as when others criticise Assad and Russia. You jump on both sides equallol, can’t finish that line. You’re just as partisan as everyone else, doofus.
Jenny, you have passion and what does appear to be an honest desire to highlight the plight of peoples who are suffering around the world…
Your comments regarding Syria, are one sided, overly simplistic and indicate that you have barriers preventing you from acknowledging what are mainstream documented happenings inside Syria…
That you repeatedly and undoubtedly, willingly ignore mainstream acknowledgement of ‘western backed rebels’ being funded, armed, trained and supported by international law breaking, UN charter violating sponsors, is unfortunate to observe…
So while you’re ignoring those same sponsors of ‘moderate rebels’ long and document history of regime change/creating failed states…I’ve not raised the subject because I do not pretend to know what is really going on…
But if I were to engage with you at your level using simplistic, lopsided evaluation techniques…regime change/failed state would be the position I would take….because that’s what a simplistic view of history, including recent history indicates is being attempted since 2011 in Syria…
But I’m not saying that’s what is going on…because Syria, is a complex situation….and I will not endorse either or sides…
To your question…not only are you wrong…you are showing yourself to be a ‘well meaning idiot’….
Jennys position appears to be in direct conflict with her efforts to highlight injustice and atrocities…there are not many reasons why she would take that position…
There will be atrocities carried out by every faction involved in the conflict…openly ignoring that truism is dangerous energy to play with…
It’s natural to wish to know whats actually going on…but that’s not possible except through the mediums created by the efforts of others….what we the people are left with is speculation based on constants such as ‘previous form’ and motive…
The honest thing to do is at least pay respect to injustice and atrocities on all sides…
Hi Maui, I enjoy your perspectives…and I appreciate your comments…
Truth is such a mystery…the truth I adide is that humans are not it…babies are close to pure truth…after that…less so by the day without constant self reflection and the awareness to make necessary changes…and not be scared to do so…continually…
You simply can’t grasp the concept that taking sides is the wrong thing to do…it is the opposite of what you need to be doing…what we all need to be doing…
There is no morality to be found in war and atrocity in the M.E…there are only varying degress of atrocity and human suffering…
Rise above the primitive lizard brain and understand that by taking a side, is to be part of the problem…and a barrier to any solution…
When you can understand that simple concept…life as you believe it to be will have a very different perspective for you…
Good luck on the journey….
Edit: don’t equate not taking sides with no longer caring…that’s not what it’s about…it is about having more measured thinking so that you are no longer in reaction mode…step back…evaluate….respond…not react…
Nice informative piece on France and Libya over at The Intercept.
Sarkozy’s dodgy dealings with Gaddafi aside, the fact that the French foreign minister had offered Tunisia’s Zine El Abidine Ben Ali the use of France’s security forces to help quash protests is kinda illuminating.
Sarkozy had found his administration out of step when the Arab Spring broke out in Tunisia. He had a strong relationship with Tunisian dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, and when security forces fired on massive street protests in January, instead of condemning the violence, Sarkozy’s foreign minister offered to share the “savoir-faire” of France’s security forces “in order to settle security situations of this type.”
The National Government inflicted the notorious Waikato University crackpot Jacqueline Rowarth on us to antagonize the conservation movement. The Trump regime pulled the same trick with Scott Pruitt…
EPA ex Chief Scientist Jacqueline Rowarth on glyphosate. … after the EPA ruled that the ingredient used in Roundup was unlikely to be carcinogenic. “This is very good news and of course it’s based on the fact that there is no link to human health issues when used as regulated,” she said.
All so simple, and without a shadow of doubt clouding her perfectly pure scientific mind.
This despite the Ministry of Health, and a group of esteemed Professors from Auckland and Massey universities, and others. Oh, and of course, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) who in 2015 listed glyphosate as a probable carcinogen for humans.
and..
Carcinogenicity of glyphosate: why is New Zealand’s EPA lost in the weeds?
EPA ex Chief Scientist Jacqueline Rowarth on glyphosate. … after the EPA ruled that the ingredient used in Roundup was unlikely to be carcinogenic. “This is very good news and of course it’s based on the fact that there is no link to human health issues when used as regulated,” she said.
All so simple, and without a shadow of doubt clouding her perfectly pure scientific mind.
This despite the Ministry of Health, and a group of esteemed Professors from Auckland and Massey universities, and others. Oh, and of course, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) who in 2015 listed glyphosate as a probable carcinogen for humans.
and..
Carcinogenicity of glyphosate: why is New Zealand’s EPA lost in the weeds?
“National was trying to turn voters against the Labour government by suggesting that the latter’s recently introduced compulsory superannuation scheme might lead to Soviet-style Communism (conveniently ignoring the fact that the Cossack peoples had traditionally been opponents of the Bolsheviks).”
The voiceover said that the superannuation fund would dominate the economy, which would be laughable in today’s open, global, economy. But in Muldoon’s “fortress New Zealand”…. well, history shows what happened. And from the success of our current superannuation funds we can only wonder where New Zealand would be now if Labour had won that election.
” In the first campaign held after the introduction of colour TV, National’s advertising agency, Colenso, engaged the famous American cartoon studio Hanna-Barbera to produce a colourful, animated advert.”
Probably more like Colenso shopped around for the best outfit and naturally got the best offer from the purveyors of the American Dream. The script would have been right up their alley.
That is amazing! What beautiful flowers and yet they signal that the plant will now die.
Thanks so much for sharing it. Seeing it today of all days was rather symbolic, on a very sad day as my dog died last night – a little white troublemaker – probably my last dog ever sadly. He was a little 6kg Maltese who thought he was the size of his former best friend who he had to protect – my Rottweiler/Mastiff cross who at his biggest weighted in at 67kg, who would run away if you said boo and who died two years ago.
Now I will remember him (and the big boy) and this amazing plant all together.
Oh so sad to hear about your little dog VV – they are such good companions. Was he a little white troublemaker with a capital T? We had decided no more animals after our little Honeybear – but a nephew who was moving house and needed a new home for his puss cat (the new home did not permit animals) donated Princess Lollabout to us. 🙂
And thanks Joe for the pic – I enjoy all your posts but this is a special treasure.
Condolences for the sad loss of your little dog veutoviper (11.1) Our loving and loyal pets, particularly dogs, certainly leave a massive void in our lives and our hearts when they are gone. The best friends we will ever have.
Hang on to those wonderful memories. The companionship and devotion of a dog is something very precious and wonderful. But you already know that vv.
Hello V V. So sorry to hear of your companion’s passing.
Your story about your wee dog reminded us of a dear wee Australian terrier we cared for for friends. We loved Molly as she was fearless.
We arrived at the dog park and Molly tried to see off a huge Great Dane who gave her “the regal stare” totally unruffled by 5/6 kgs of bravado.
They leave a huge painful hole, and then you remember the happy times.
A friend, like you, said no more. Then went to the local SPCA described a small gentle house trained dog. They rang her two months later and she took Loxie home. Loxie was a tiny ” bitsa” who settled on her lap and is a loved 5 year old in her second chance home. Hugs xx Trish.
Berner cultists get their racist out, because black people who weren’t Sanders fans aren’t quite progressive enough for them.
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For almost a year now, a very vocal segment of Bernie Sanders supporters have harassed and stalked black activists, journalists and contributors on Twitter and other social media sites. Behind this campaign was the fact that a lot of black voters didn’t vote for Bernie, which was met with incredible anger by a part of the Bernie left.
Instead of analyzing why POC were critical of Bernie, or why Bernie refused to campaign among POC, they started to harass and intimidate black Twitter users.
The list of victims to this aggressive crowd of Bernie supporters is long by now: Joy Ann Reid, Donna Brazile, Jehmu Greene, Neera Tanden, Kamala Harris, Maxine Waters, Yamiche Alcindor, Zerlina Maxwell, and less known Twitter users: Angry Black Lady (Imani Gandy), T_FisherKing, Mr Dane/ Mr Weeks, Sir James, Ange_Amene, Bravenak and many, many more.
What these people have in common is that
A: they’re POC,
B: they’re at times very critical of Bernie Sanders.
This in itself is enough for ongoing extreme harassment, stalking, threats, intimidation and worse.
On top of this, a number of LGTB activists/ writers have met the same fate: be critical at Bernie Sanders at your own peril.
[…]
The user @Jamie_Maz who in November went through Joy’s old blog posts through the so called WayBack machine never mentioned other blog posts, never mentioned there was more ‘homophobic’ content.
Now let me be absolutely clear: I do not have any evidence whether or not Joy Ann Reid’s recently surfaced blog posts were altered, added or whether or not they are genuine. That is also not the subject of this article: the subject is the excessive campaign to get Joy Ann Reid fired by the Bernie left.
I saw the same user @Jamie_Maz post the recently ‘found’ blog posts and at first this just led to great enthusiasm among the Bernie crowd on Twitter. The idea that they found something damaging on Joy Ann Reid was absolutely fantastic to this crowd of Bernie supporters: #FireJoyReid!
Let’s be absolutely clear: this campaign isn’t coming from trump supporters, or breitbart or right wing racists, this is coming from the racist Bernie left.
Although I have no evidence one way or the other it would NOT surprise me at all when in the end we find out this Bernie crowd altered the screenshots, because let’s face it: a crowd who contacts people’s employers with anonymous letters (as in the case of Humorless Kev), who starts internet campaigns to get people fired and posts racist pictures would be very willing to do this
If you want an intelligent and thoroughly researched piece on Joy Reid, then Glen Greenwald’s piece is where I’d suggest you want to be going. (Unless he’s to be avoided because “racist Bernie left”?)
Looks to me like the author’s calling out the cult kiddies enmity for progressives who dare opt for pragmatic incrementalism, rather than their own burn the fucking house down shtick.
btw, thread calling Greenwald on his disingenuous claptrap.
Now that my friend @JoyAnnReid has apologized, my friend @ggreenwald is now pretending denial of authorship and hacking claims by Joy is now and was always "the *only* issue" and asserts her "anti-LGBT bigotry" was "never the issue."And, unfortunately, Glenn is lying.Thread. pic.twitter.com/KSSsnuD0wS— Leah McElrath (@leahmcelrath) April 28, 2018
It basically revolved around the issue of denial and hacking claims. And Greenwald, in relation to her previous phobic writings, has the following as the second para
Most people, at least in the media, seemed quick to accept Reid’s apology — and they were right to do so. People have the right to change their beliefs as they and the society around them grow, learn, and evolve. That process should be encouraged, not stigmatized. Politics, at its core, should be about persuading people to repudiate misguided and destructive beliefs and adopt ones that are more reasoned, humane, and just. And when that happens, it should be celebrated, not scorned.
And later…
If, in response to these new even-uglier posts, Reid had done what she did in December — acknowledged they were hers, owned her mistakes, apologized for the hurt she caused, and explained that she no longer holds these views — the reaction would have almost certainly been the same. Though many would likely be a bit bothered by just how deeply bigoted these writings were, few would hold them against her now. I know I would have reacted the same: If someone repudiates past beliefs and changes their views, they should be judged by their current viewpoints, not ones they held a decade ago.
So sure. He was writing disingenuous claptrap and the “radical centre/dead centre” isn’t consumed by hate these day for just about anyone who doesn’t “toe the line” or is otherwise seen as representing a threat to their (and their world view’s) fading prominence.
McElrath notes how @ggreenwald pushed out the idea @JoyAnnReid is homophobic and transphobic as recently as December of 2017, but revised his position to denial of authorship and hacking claims by Joy is now and was always “the *only* issue” and asserts her “anti-LGBT bigotry” was “never the issue.”.
I raised this point yesterday, my observation it is a left phenomena where intersectional politics trumps individualism and god help you if you identify with a particular supposed left wing group be it black, lgbt, the arts and culture and you step out of the left play book with your own individual opinion Recent examples include Kanya West and Shsnia Twain, your examples been non Bernie black voters is also testament to this To me it’s actually quite racist to expect because you are of a certain colour, sexual orientation you must think and vote s particular way or face vitriol and social media hate Not saying all left is like this as not all left on social media
Bomber lets rip with righteous indignation at Sepuloni’s stalling tactics….and doesn’t hold back with criticism of those ace patch-protectors at the PSA.
We know food parcels are soaring because MSD toxic culture means people will beg from Churches rather than go to WINZ.
We know MSD are still spitefully cutting off welfare for Tinder dates.
We know that the sadists at MSD chase beneficiaries through the courts for obscene debt they should never be forced to pay.
We know that when one judge questioned MSD why they were chasing a beneficiary for $120 000 debt (most of which was penalties and interest) was because she might win Lotto…
…it is unacceptable that the new Government apparently have no idea what to do next.
There are two reasons why the new Government are not doing anything and it comes down to cowardice.
The new government are too cowardly to take on the PSA over their toxic sadism culture and they are too cowardly to go up against right wing media and the bash a beneficiary culture we have in NZ.
It is deeply disappointing to see such a lack of real political courage.”
Methinks this government needs to stop seeing the task in terms of getting a container ship to alter course (the reference I think was on Carmel’s mind) and start acting.
I am pretty sure Susan St. John and Sue Bradford have a few ideas….
MSD needs to strike a balance between preventing fraud and treating those who are entitled with dignity No easy job but probably have not got the balance right, all for recalibration but coming down like ton of bricks on fraudsters
Correct balance:
“Helping people” 100%
“Fraud detection (because it’s not really prevention, is it)” the most basic automated tracking of payments possible, using IRD resources to identify suspicious patterns..
“I had dinner with one of the MSD Auckland senior managers last night.”
I do hope your digestion was not adversely affected Ad. Sitting at the same table, breaking bread with a sociopath.
I could be being harsh…perhaps your dining pal is new to MSD? Parachuted into a senior management role very recently…. on a mission to begin the ‘culture change’?
“Minister Sepuloni simply isn’t on their radar yet.”
Assuming that means they don’t see her as a threat to the status quo, that its full steam ahead in the bene bashing business, I believe after her prevarication today they can rest easy.
If we get long lasting peace in Korea and demilitarisation does Donald trump deserve a Nobel peace prize You would argue so if Obama is the standard. Obama left us with Syria, a weak Iran deal and emboldened Russia with his softly softly let’s not upset any one You could argue the Donald no matter how unagreeable you find him his muscular diplomacy has been far more effective in driving peace
Got to say the madman routine actually seems to have been a significant factor.
If I were the committee I’d want to wait until his term is up, though, just in case he nukes somewhere for the hell of it.
And then there’s the concept of giving a peace prize to someone who contributed to peace by threatening nuclear war, but that’s just semantics, really.
It’s ok. I don’t expect a tory to understand the concept that a genuine coalition of different political parties requires compromise, especially after Joyce’s fiscal trapdoor was discovered.
Lol and if they’d updated the website before Clark’s announcement you’d say they were whitewashing history.
Overall, as far as I can see this is about the first policy point they’ve clearly failed to achieve, and announced that failure well in advance. Not bad for a coalition partner.
It’s clear James and his National Party don’t understand how a real MMP coalition govt works. That’s why National is in opposition. Failiure to negotiate a coalition and still no mates.
Yes James, before you niggle, I know National were in a coalition, but Act, United Future and the Maori Party were no more than National’s well trained lap dogs. Labour, NZ First and the Greens are working together to form policy, that’s how MMP is supposed to work.
National and thier supporters need to realise that they can’t govern alone, otherwise National and Soimun will remain in opposition for a very long time.
I’ve got news for you, James: National has failed to deliver on all its election promises so far. Arguably, they have been delayed, just like Labour’s election promise of cheaper doctors’ visits for all. Only problem is that National’s delay will be at least 3 years, possibly longer 😉
how Tony Blair was able to call a public inquiry into the “suspected suicide” of David Kelly only minutes after being told of Kelly’s apparent death whilst on a long-haul flight, long before Dr Kelly had officially been declared a suicide victim, or the body confirmed as his.
Good news for protesters intent on disrupting the work of oil and gas exploration vessels.
It seems that the heavy handed Andarko Amendment, that was supposed to protect the oil companies from protesters, has turned out to be a bit of a paper tiger.
After some high level behind the scene negotiations. The Crown and Greenpeace have come to an agreement.
Russel Norman and Sara Howel will agree to plead guilty, if the Crown agree to drop the case against Greenpeace.
The understanding being, that both Russel and Sara will not face any penalties at all. and despite their guilty pleas, convictions will not appear on their records. ie Diversion.
Tomorrow at 10am at the Napier District Court, to avoid putting them out, or inconveniencing them in anyway, both Sara and Russel will phone in their court appearance, and make their guilty plea by skype from Auckland. Another First.
Rapist’s descendants annoyed everyone keeps on bringing up all the rapes.
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MANILA – A new memorial dedicated to the Philippines “comfort women” forced into Japan’s military brothels before and during World War II was removed Friday night, days after suspicions surfaced that it was being targeted for demolition.
[…]
The issue of the comfort women, Japan’s euphemism for the girls and women, is a sensitive one for Japan, and the embassy had expressed concerns over the statue, one of many sprouting up in South Korea, the United States and elsewhere to memorialize an episode of history Japan would rather forget
“Can civilisation prolong its life until the end of this century? “It depends on what we are prepared to do.” He fears it will be a long time before we take proportionate action to stop climatic calamity. “Standing in the way is capitalism. Can you imagine the global airline industry being dismantled when hundreds of new runways are being built right now all over the world? It’s almost as if we’re deliberately attempting to defy nature. We’re doing the reverse of what we should be doing, with everybody’s silent acquiescence, and nobody’s batting an eyelid.”
It’s almost as if we’re deliberately attempting to defy nature.
It’s not ‘almost’. We are attempting to defy nature and reality to maintain a few people in wealth and luxury.
think it realistic to note that this theme from an increasing number of informed individuals will become prevalent.
It probably will but, with the help of the RWNJs in National and Labour (and similar parties around the world), probably after we’ve pushed the ecosphere to the point where we will no longer be able to live in it.
The Am Show The closing of that Auckland park to save OUR great Kauri trees the atua of our forest is a big win for us greenies. If business go broke so be it they have had years to come up with plan B or C. We have had a big win in Europe with the banning of those insecticides and other chemicals that kill BEEs now we need to look into it .
When my children were young 2nd 1 was less than 6 months old we stayed across the road from a vineyard our baby had rashes he had breathing problems off in a ambulance twice. As soon as we moved from this location his symptoms disappeared that tells one some thing about man made chemicals .
This inquire on the treatment of children in state care should include church organization after all there is alot of evidence that there has been abuse of the mokopunas in the churches care all around the world and in NZ .
As for Trump I will ease off maybe he should be given the credit for the deescalation of the tension in Korea and then he will not throw a spanner in the works and the peace and diplomacy will work .
OUR Banks need to be investigated if the banks in Aussie are cheating than Our banks will be doing the same . They stereotype people and I say they will turn down people for loans just because they are brown. I am having a tussel with 2 of OURs Banks at the minute.
Charter School are for the 1% the poor mokopunas that end up at these schools will have been targeted for sports and less than 5% of the roll .I want more REO taught in schools
these charter schools will have better grades because they are getting the cream of the crop of mokopunas so one cannot fairly use those stats to justify the existence of these institutions. Ka kite ano
Newshub Ka pai Paddy Gloriavale is not a nice sect especially if they can keep a mans family away from him did you know that most of the sandflies hierarchy are religious fanatics
There you go I was talking about all the sacred sites around Aotearoa that need to be carefully examined buy trained archaeologist like that site that they found the half built Waka that site should be sifted to find other precious Maori relics.
Many thanks to the Australians for taking steps to protect there precious Great Barrier Reef Man is nothing with out mother nature.
The weekends sports was GREAT . Ka kite ano P.S thats another pukana to the sandflies they did not like what I wrote this morning
The Crowd goes Wild the sandflys have stuff with my computer I have a good post on it but it won’t load I told you the are upset Ka kite ano P.S. I will post my post with my pH it will be late but you will have a laugh
The former Green Party co-leader and Sara Howell swam in front of the Amazon Warrior as it searched for oil off the Wairarapa coast in April last year.
They were charged under a 2013 amendment to the Crown Minerals Act, dubbed the “Anadarko Amendment”, by New Zealand Petroleum and Minerals, a division of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.
The amendment was designed to stop protests at sea around oil exploration and the case was the first time the amendment was enforced….
…..Convictions were not entered against Norman and Howell as they seek a discharge without conviction and will be sentenced later this year.
Overall a win, win for Greenpeace and a lose, lose, for the Anadarko Amendment on its first ever outing.
With the fangs pulled from the Anadarko Amendment, a new campaign on the water can commence.
The clock has started ticking on achieving a total ban on oil and gas exploration. The campaign that has begun achieving a halt in all new block offers, will finish with a campaign to shut down all deep sea oil and gas exploration
Greenpeace head Russel Norman pleads guilty to obstructing oil survey ship”
New Zealand Herald, 30 Apr, 2018
The former Green Party co-leader and Sara Howell swam in front of the Amazon Warrior as it searched for oil off the Wairarapa coast in April last year.
They were charged under a 2013 amendment to the Crown Minerals Act, dubbed the “Anadarko Amendment”, by New Zealand Petroleum and Minerals, a division of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.
The amendment was designed to stop protests at sea around oil exploration and the case was the first time the amendment was enforced….
…..Convictions were not entered against Norman and Howell as they seek a discharge without conviction and will be sentenced later this year.
Overall a win, win for Greenpeace and a lose, lose, for the Anadarko Amendment on its first ever outing.
With the fangs pulled from the Anadarko Amendment, a new campaign on the water can commence.
The clock has started ticking on achieving a total ban on oil and gas exploration. The campaign that has begun achieving a halt in all new block offers, will finish with a campaign to shut down all deep sea oil and gas exploration
Thanks to a report from the Acting Inspector General of Intelligence and Security following a complaint by Nicky Hager, we have come to find out that the SIS illegally spied on Mr. Hager on behalf of the NZDF after publication of Hager’s 2011 book, Other People’s Wars. The NZDF justified ...
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For the past week, Extinction Rebellion has been peacefully protesting in London to demand action on climate change. The British government's response? Ban their protests:Police have banned Extinction Rebellion protests from continuing anywhere in London, as they moved in almost without warning to clear protesters who remained at the movement’s ...
When they were running for election, Labour promised to overhaul the Employment Relations Act and introduce fair pay agreements to set basic pay and conditions on an industry level, preventing bad employers from undercutting good ones. They followed this up by establishing a working group, which reported back in January ...
A list of indicators of bad science – many of these are found in articles promoted by anti-fluoride activists. Anti-fluoride activists have been pouring money into a scaremongering campaign warning pregnant women not to drink fluoridated water. They claim fluoride will lower the IQ of their future child. Fluoride ...
Nothing Left To Say: Labour's pollster, Stephen Mills, remains swaddled-up in the comforting myths of the 1980s. As if the experience of Roger Douglas’s genuinely radical post-Muldoon policy agenda was literally a once-in-a-lifetime thing – as much as the party could possibly absorb for at least the next 50 years.MEMO ...
The Royal Commission on abuse in care is very significant for the disability community. For many decades last century, thousands of disabled children, and adults who managed to survive, were locked away from families and communities. This was not for anything they had done, but for the perceived threat their ...
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A Statement on Abortion Law Reform by the Council of Disobedient Women On the eve of bringing an end to antiquated, anti-women abortion laws Green MP Jan Logie intends to write women out of the Bill. With a stroke of the pen, the woke are aiming for total erasure ...
Musings continue apace about “the experienced businessman!” soon to be taking up a National Party MP position. Or to be more accurate, being parachuted into a seat to shut down their former MP Jamie-Lee Ross, who despite his own shortcomings shed at least some more light on the inner workings ...
The Ugandan government wants to murder gay people:Uganda has announced plans to impose the death penalty on homosexuals. The bill, colloquially known as “Kill the Gays” in Uganda, was nullified five years ago on a technicality, but the government said on Thursday it plans to resurrect it within weeks. The ...
Freedom Of Speech? The Säuberung (cleansing by fire) was the work of the German Student Union which, on 10 May 1933, under the watchful eye of the Nazi Reichminister for Propaganda, Joseph Goebbels, consigned 25,000 books to the flames in a ritual exorcism of “un-German thought”. According to the logic of the ...
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New Zealand’s media is doing its part in Japan, reassuring those in the path of the storm that they won’t miss any rugby while away from their flooded homes. New Zealand sports reporters stationed in Japan for the Rugby World Cup have had the rare and heartwarming opportunity to inform ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones is the only Cabinet member in favour of putting it all on green. As Finance Minister Grant Robertson finds himself with an enormous $7.5 billion surplus, the Government has begun intense, at times contentious conversations about whether to put the money on red or black at ...
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Back in 2011, journalist Nicky Hager published Other People's Wars, an expose on NZDF's activities over the previous decade of the "war on terror". NZDF didn't like this, and especially didn't like the fact that it was base don leaks from their own. So, they had the SIS investigate him ...
The Zero Carbon Bill is due back from select committee in two weeks, and will likely pass its final stages in November. So naturally, farmers are planning a hate-march against it. But they're not just demanding lower methane targets so they can keep on destroying the planet; they're also demanding ...
Last year, California burned. This year, to stop it happening again (or rather, to stop themselves from being found liable if it happens again), Pacific Gas and Electric is cutting power to half the state for a week:Schools are closed. Traffic lights down. Tunnels dark. Businesses unopened. Hospitals running on ...
The Best Way: Missing from the on-line voting debate is any reference to the voting system that produces turn-out figures ranging from 77 to 93 percent of registered voters. The voting system used to collect and count the votes cast in our parliamentary elections. The system that involves citizens making ...
Among the great new bunch of political friends we have been making recently is the excellent Australian-based Marxist gender-critical site, Freer Lives. So we asked the comrade who set up that blog to write something for Redline on the blog, himself, his analysis of the rise of gender politics and ...
by Don Franks The Auckland City Mission is struggling with a 40 percent increase in demand for food parcels this year. A total of 23,020 were needed by June. Last month Missioner Chris Farrelly told the Herald the “cupboards are bare” and without an emergency food drive, he can’t see ...
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First, almost a score of Labour MPs seem to have sent a letter to the EU basically begging them to accept a deal - any deal - just so Britain can get the Heck on with Brexiting instead of being trapped in limbo:
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The Workshop is a charitable trust for public good. The Workshop undertake research to find ways of communicating that will build support for the solutions that work to solve complex social and environmental problems. See their Report on Talking about Poverty and Welfare Reform below. ...
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by The Spark On September 14, a total of 22 drones and cruise missiles struck two oil installations in Saudi Arabia, the Abqaiq processing facility and the Khurais oil field. Abqaiq is the largest oil production facility in the world. For a few days afterwards, Saudi Aramco, the Saudi national ...
How much will NeoLiberal irregulation of the building sector and subsequent leaky homes crisis cost us? $47 billion, according to a new book:The total cost to fix all of New Zealand's leaky homes would be $47 billion, probably. The estimate comes from a new book, Rottenomics written by journalist Peter ...
Below is the start of another excellent article on the Freer Lives blog. Click onto the link at the end of this extract to read the full article. The punch-a-terf, kill-a-terf message pervades social media, always righteously delivered, chin held high. By contrast, the dehumanised “terfs” themselves, that is gender-critical ...
The Reserve Bank is currently planning tighter banking regulation, requiring banks to hold enough local capital to survive a 1-in-200 year financial crisis in order to protect consumers. The big Aussies banks, those foreign leeches who suck $5 billion in profit out of our economy every year, don't like that, ...
Its the usual story: a police officer beats a handcuffed suspect so hard they break one of their own fingers. The IPCA investigates and concludes that the use of force was unlawful. And the police refuse to do anything about it:A man punched repeatedly in the face by a police ...
From time to time we add links to our blogroll. The latest blog we have added is Freer Lives. This is a Marxist gender-critical blog, based in Melbourne, Australia. On it you will find a bunch of excellent articles which use the tools of Marxist analysis to critique the rise ...
Last Friday say the largest protest in a generation, as 170,000 people joined the school strike and marched to demand real action on climate change. The demands of the school strike were simple and clear: declare a climate emergency, set a climate target of net-zero by 2040, impose a total ...
Labour is a rather middle of the road capitalist party and earlier this year we discussed how far from being ‘transformative’, Ardern’s government is. An article published this week in the Guardian, by Bryce Edwards (political scientist and commentator at Victoria University), looks at Ardern’s business as usual performance. Where ...
In the hours since my last interminable wittering about the possibility of a Government of National Unity (GNU) in Britain, there has been a slight maybe development:A Corbyn-led caretaker government could then sit for several months while it enacted and delivered a referendum with the support of smaller parties and ...
Jeremy Clarkson says much like Greta Thunberg, Anne Frank “didn’t like what was going on”, but “she didn’t have a tantrum about it.” Former Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson has offered praise to historical figure Anne Frank, comparing her favourably to 16-year-old climate activist Greta Thunberg, who he attacked in ...
Press release by Speak Up For Women Lesbians from women’s rights group Speak Up For Women are furious at reports that Rainbow Tick are threatening Massey University with the removal of their ‘tick’ if they let the group’s event go ahead. The group has been under attack from trans ...
By Duncan Garner Before you jump down my throat, nobody cares about the environment more than me. I have a garden, and since my wife and I broke up, I’ve let it grow wildly out of control, so please don’t tell me I’m not doing enough for plants. They’re ten ...
Local government elections are upon us again. It is a fair bet that, when they are over, we will have all the usual complaints that, despite their undoubted importance, the turnout was depressingly low. So, why do local elections attract so little attention and involvement from the general public? I ...
We want every New Zealander to be happy, safe, and healthy. To do this, we need to support strong, safe communities, and a robust and efficient health system. ...
Defence Minister Ron Mark has used his powers to overrule a noise complaint ruling against Whenuapai airbase on the grounds of "national security". The Environment Court last month released a ruling in favour of a private developer, declaring the Auckland airbase had to comply with noise restrictions when it performs ...
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has opened fire against "unreconstructed morons" after NZ First MP Shane Jones was photographed on holiday holding an AR-15 rifle. Mr Peters is defending Mr Jones, telling Magic Talk host Peter Williams that his MP was just having fun "like most people do". "The ...
New Zealand First Deputy Leader and Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau was in attendance during the morning blessing of the Rotorua Lakefront development project. Around 60 people gathered on the shores of Lake Rotorua, including city mayor Steve Chadwick and deputy Dave Donaldson. The Lakefront development is a ...
Forestry Minister Shane Jones is considering reining in on conversions of farmland to forestry, and also issued a warning to foreign-owned forestry companies that make up nearly 75 per cent of the industry. He said too many foreign companies had not provided enough access for domestic processors to get timber. ...
Speaking to Radio NZ, New Zealand First leader Winston Peters said the tightening of the parental category visa is a direct result of the Party’s coalition negotiations with the Labour Party. He said the new changes switch the financial onus from the parent moving to New Zealand to the child ...
The Coalition Government is set to cut red tape in the building and construction sector in an effort to allow more houses to be built, including prefabricated houses. The changes will enable the mass factory production of "high quality" buildings, slash the likely number of building inspections for factory produced ...
Since coming into Government, we’ve worked hard to tackle homelessness and make sure everyone has a warm, dry home. And today, on World Homeless Day, we want to report back and update you on our progress so far. ...
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has hit back at National Party leader Simon Bridges who criticized the Coalition Government’s approach to crime, and said that the latter isn't credible in his attack on the Government over gang recruitment. "We've got as massive drug problem in this country. It is ...
New Zealand Mānuka honey exporters have welcomed an initiative by the Coalition Government to help secure the term “mānuka honey” to be used exclusively by Kiwi exporters, ensuring that our multimillion-dollar industry is protected. Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones had recently announced that a Provincial Growth Funding of $5.7 ...
Political commentator Mike Hosking has labelled New Zealand First leader Winston Peters as “the voice of reason in a government soft on drugs”, for the Party’s stance on drug testing at music festivals. “If common sense is worth a vote, Winston Peters is quids in,” Mr Hosking said. The Labour ...
Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau has announced Provincial Growth Funding to ensure work opportunities in Turangi and Whanganui, through its skills and employment programme, Te Ara Mahi. A fund of $500,000 will go to Rafting NZ in Turangi for a 16-week river guide training course to train ...
Treasury has shown that the Coalition Government has a $7.5 billion surplus, which is $4 billion higher than what was expected in the 2019 Budget unveiled last May. It is also $2 billion higher than the actual surplus unveiled this time last year, and at a size that has not ...
Official Information Act figures released to NZME show there were 350 assaults on officers in the year to the end of June, 79 more than the year before. The increase in attacks have sparked calls for more legal protection for first responders to be enacted. The assaults included officers being ...
“Nobody wants to see babies uplifted”, this was the pronouncement of Minister for Children Hon. Tracey Martin as her department, Oranga Tamariki, faces multiple inquiries into the number of babies being taken from their families. “But a baby can die with a single punch, “the Minister continued. “So sometimes, Oranga ...
We're making progress on tackling the long-term challenges: from homelessness, to strengthening border security, to bringing banking back New Zealand's small towns. ...
Associate Transport Minister Shane Jones has backed the ambitious plan to move Auckland’s port to Northport, at Whangarei harbour, which he says will be the “King Kong of infrastructure”. The plan is part of the recommendations of a six-person independent working group, which has recommended the Ports of Auckland be ...
A six-member independent working group selected the option of moving Auckland’s port to Northport, in Whangarei, ahead of other options. In what could be New Zealand’s most ambitious infrastructure project yet, a major expansion of the Marsden Point port could happen within 15 years. The project, officially called the “Upper ...
The final Electricity Price Review recommended prohibiting prompt payment discounts but allowing “reasonable” late fees. The findings of this review was welcomed by the Coalition Government, but they hope companies will follow through with its recommendations without regulations needed to be passed. Meridian Energy had already stopped prompt payment discounts, ...
Fletcher Tabuteau, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF)through its skills and employment programme, Te Ara Mahi,will invest nearly $600,000 to ensure work opportunities for locals in Turangia and Whanganui, Parliamentary Under Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau announced today. “I’m pleased to announce the PGF ...
An export-led economy is one of New Zealand First’s key principles, and our commitment to achieving this is shown by the continuing skyrocketing demand for our beef and sheep meat exports. Beef + Lamb New Zealand's New Season Outlook 2019-20 report forecasts beef, lamb and mutton prices to lift from ...
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today in Gisborne an investment of $17.27m into bringing “world-leading” food-growing technology and the creation of more than 100 new jobs in the East Coast city. The funding comes from the Provincial Growth Fund, and included a $15 million loan to LeaderBrand, a ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development More than 100 people in Tairāwhiti’s Tolaga Bay will benefit from two employment initiatives supported by the Provincial Growth Fund, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones and Employment Minister Willie Jackson announced today. “Tolaga Bay is an incredibly tight-knit community, but one in ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is supporting Gisborne business Leaderbrand to produce salad vegetables year round and create more jobs in the Tairāwhiti region, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. “Our support for Leaderbrand will help them build large greenhouses ...
“Nobody wants to see babies uplifted”, this was the pronouncement of Minister for Children Hon. Tracey Martin as her department, Oranga Tamariki, faces multiple inquiries into the number of babies being taken from their families. “But a baby can die with a single punch, “the Minister continued. “So sometimes, Oranga ...
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones has praised the promise by New Zealand’s biggest banks not to close any provincial branches while the Coalition Government trials regional banking hubs across the country. The Minister said the announce was the “first sign of hope for regional communities”, many of which have ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, New Zealand First Leader New Zealand First is proud to have delivered an upgrade of the SuperGold Card website and a new smartphone app, which will help unlock the full benefits of the SuperGold Card for 750,000 New Zealand seniors.Party Leader Rt Hon Winston Peters, ...
Delivering a key election campaign promise, New Zealand First is proud to have accomplished a long overdue upgrade of the SuperGold Card today. At an event in Auckland, New Zealand First leader Winston Peters joined Minister for Seniors Hon. Tracey Martin in unveiling the new website and smartphone app which ...
Another busy week, from speaking with world leaders on the world stage about climate change, to equipping our school leavers with everything they need to get ahead in life. ...
New Zealand First MP Shane Jones says Air New Zealand has "an obligation to look after Kiwis", and urged the national carrier not to hike up their prices after Jetstar airline announced their withdrawal from regional flights this week. The Provincial Champion also expressed his disappointment at Jetstar’s decision on ...
Fletcher Tabuteau, Under Secretary for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) will help fund a new dredge for the Port of Greymouth to ensure the regional fishing fleet have a reliable and productive harbour, Parliamentary Undersecretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau announced today “Last year the movements of ...
Ladies and gentlemen, NZCTU President Richard Wagstaff, members of respective unions – thank you for the invitation to speak to you today. This might be preaching to the choir, but the importance of trade unions in New Zealand’s historical arch is difficult to understate. And it is my belief that ...
"Let’s start by acknowledging that it has been a huge year. " Police Association Annual Conference James Cook Grand Chancellor Hotel Wellington Nau mai, haere mai. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, ka nui te mihi, ki a koutou katoa. President of the Police Association, Chris Cahill; Members of the Association and ...
Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters and Minister of Defence Ron Mark have announced the New Zealand Government’s decision to again deploy a Royal New Zealand Air Force P-3K2 (P-3) maritime patrol aircraft to support the implementation of United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions imposing sanctions against North Korea. New ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters says New Zealand continues to have serious concerns for peace and stability in north-east Syria. “Recent reports that hundreds of ISIS-affiliated families have fled from a camp are deeply concerning from a humanitarian and security perspective”, Mr Peters says. “While we acknowledge Turkey’s domestic security ...
Biosecurity Minister Damien O’Connor is warning travelling Kiwis to be vigilant as the high-season for the crop-eating brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB) is under way. “We’re on high alert to stop BMSB arriving in NZ. The high season runs until April 30 and we’ve strengthened our measures to stop stink ...
The Government is moving swiftly to change the law to improve the welfare and pastoral care of students living in university halls of residence and other tertiary hostels. Cabinet has agreed to several changes, including creating a new mandatory Code of Practice that sets out the duty of pastoral care ...
The Minister for Conservation Eugenie Sage has launched a new comprehensive trapping guide for community trappers to help them protect our native birds, plants and other wildlife, at Zealandia in Wellington today. ‘A practical guide to trapping’, has been developed by the Department of Conservation (DOC), and was launched during ...
Associate Health Minister Julie Anne Genter welcomes PHARMAC’s move to improve access to long-acting reversible contraception (LARCs). PHARMAC has today announced it will fund the full cost of Mirena and Jaydess for anyone seeking long term contraception, lifting previous restrictions on access to Mirena. “I welcome women having greater choices ...
The Government has approved the next stage of a major redevelopment of Taranaki Base Hospital, which will deliver new and improved facilities for patients. Health Minister Dr David Clark has announced details of a $300 million dollar project to build a new East Wing at the New Plymouth hospital. It ...
Extra funding will allow Rural Support Trusts to help farming families, says Minister for Rural Communities and Agriculture Damien O’Connor. “I know that rural families are worried about some of the challenges facing them, including the ongoing uncertainty created by the Mycoplasma bovis outbreak. “Those concerns sit alongside ongoing worries ...
Thank you for the opportunity to be here to present certificates to the 16 graduates who have completed a beekeeping course delivered by the Howard League. Let us start by acknowledging Auckland Prison’s Deputy Prison Director Tom Sherlock, and Acting Assistant Regional Commissioner of Corrections Northern Region Scott Walker - ...
Finance Minister Grant Robertson leaves this weekend to attend the APEC Finance Ministers meeting in Santiago, Chile. Discussions between APEC Finance Ministers at the meeting will include the effects of the current global economic uncertainty, risks for APEC economies and sustainable development of the region. While at APEC Grant Robertson ...
The Minister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio says for Pacific people, language can be a source of strength. It can help ground us and give us confidence. When we speak them, our languages provide us with an immediate and intimate access to our identity and our story - and ...
The Coalition Government has announced an action plan to improve the wellbeing of disabled New Zealanders by addressing inequalities in play, active recreation and sport. The initiative includes training to develop a workforce that understands the needs of children and young people with a range of impairments, advocacy for fit ...
The construction sector is being freed up to allow more homes to be built more quickly as the Government cuts through some of the red tape of the Building Act. “Every New Zealander deserves a warm, dry, safe home and old inefficiencies in the Building Act make building slow and ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has welcomed further details on the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall’s visit to New Zealand next month. Their Royal Highnesses will visit New Zealand from 17-23 November – their third joint visit to New Zealand and first in four years. They arrive in Auckland ...
Minister of State for Trade and Export Growth and Minister of Agriculture, Damien O’Connor, heads to Thailand today to attend the final Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Ministerial meeting, as negotiations enter their final stages. “The RCEP Agreement would anchor New Zealand in a regional agreement that covers 16 countries, ...
Pacific young people living in the Hawke’s Bay, Southland and Otago regions will have access to support services that have proved successful in helping young people find new earning and learning opportunities. “Tupu Aotearoa is about changing Pacific young peoples’ lives. Our young people are talented, they are smart, they ...
Introduction As the Minister for ACC I thank you all for the work that you do supporting New Zealanders in their literally most vulnerable moments. From those who hold people’s lives in their hands, to the people who research technique, technology and trends, your work is highly valued. A special ...
Notes prepared for speeches in Christchurch – Wednesday 9 October 2019 Today’s topic, “trends and opportunities for the New Zealand economy,” is certainly one getting a great deal of commentary at the moment. Looking across the media landscape lately you’ll notice we aren’t the only ones having this discussion. There ...
Minister of Health Dr David Clark and Associate Minister of Health Peeni Henare say this year’s World Mental Health Day theme is a reminder of why the Government’s work on mental health is so important. “This year the World Federation for Mental Health has made suicide prevention the main theme ...
Associate Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister Carmel Sepuloni will represent the government at Australia’s Meeting of Cultural Ministers in Adelaide this week. “This year’s meeting is special because New Zealand is expected to become an International Member of the Meeting of Cultural Ministers at this Australian forum,” Carmel Sepuloni said. “The meeting is an opportunity to ...
The Greater Christchurch Claims Resolution Service has resolved 608 insurance and EQC claims in its first year in operation, Minister Megan Woods has announced. The government service, which celebrates its first birthday today, provides a one stop shop to help Cantabrians still battling to get their homes repaired or rebuilt ...
Today’s topic, “trends and opportunities for the New Zealand economy,” is certainly one getting a great deal of commentary at the moment. Looking across the media landscape lately you’ll notice we aren’t the only ones having this discussion. There has been an increasing amount of attention paid to the outlook ...
The Government is acting swiftly to strengthen NZTA’s regulatory role following a review into the Transport Agency, and Ministry of Transport’s performance as its monitor, Transport Minister Phil Twyford said today. An independent review by Martin Jenkins has found NZTA failed to properly regulate the transport sector under the previous ...
The Netherlands and New Zealand have a long-standing and close relationship based on many shared interests and values. We value the rule of law, our democracies, and multilateralism. And we value our environment – at home and globally. Right now there are major global challenges in all of these areas – ...
The Government is putting right a decade’s worth of underpayment to nurses, doctors and other health workers, says Health Minister Dr David Clark. Initial sampling of District Health Boards payroll records has found that around $550-$650 million is owed to DHB staff to comply with the Holidays Act. It’s expected ...
A strong surplus and low debt show the economy is performing well, and means the Government is in a good position to meet the challenges of global economic uncertainty. “The surplus and low levels of debt show the economy is in good shape. This allows the Government to spend more ...
New applications from mining company OceanaGold to purchase land in Waihi for new tailings ponds associated with its gold mines have been approved. Minister of Finance Grant Robertson and Associate Minister of Finance David Parker considered the applications under the Overseas Investment Act. Earlier this year, applications from OceanaGold to ...
New Zealanders in Tūranganui-a-Kiwa / Poverty Bay will witness Māori, Pākehā and Pacific voyaging traditions come together today as the Tuia 250 Voyage flotilla assembles for the first time, Māori Crown Relations: Te Arawhiti Minister Kelvin Davis says. “Tuia 250 is a national commemoration and an opportunity for honest conversations ...
Minister for Trade and Export Growth David Parker leaves tomorrow for Dubai, London and Berlin for a series of meetings to advance New Zealand’s trade interests. In Dubai he will visit New Zealand’s Pavilion at Expo 2020 where construction is underway. There he will meet Minister of State for International Cooperation, Her ...
Confirmation that PHARMAC will fund two new cancer drugs is further evidence of the good progress the Government is making to improve the treatment of New Zealand’s leading cause of death, Health Minister David Clark says. From 1 December PHARMAC will fund alectinib (Alecensa) for ALK positive advanced non-small cell ...
An additional $2.7 million has been announced for the Government Strategy for Women and Girls in Sport and Active Recreation on the first anniversary of the strategy’s launch. Sport and Recreation Minister Grant Robertson gave the opening address to the first Sport NZ Women + Girls Summit in Wellington today, ...
As part of its work to ensure businesses can get the skilled workers they need, the Coalition Government is re-opening and re-setting the Parent Category visa programme, Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway says. The move will: support skilled migrants who help fill New Zealand’s skills gaps by providing a pathway for ...
Minister of Defence Ron Mark has today announced Major General Evan Williams of the New Zealand Defence Force has been selected as the commander of a significant, longstanding peacekeeping mission in the Middle East. In December, Major General Williams takes over as Force Commander for the Multinational Force and Observers ...
A record number of nurses are now working to deliver health services to New Zealanders as the Government’s increased funding and new initiatives rebuild key workforces start to show results, Health Minister Dr David Clark says. • 1458 more DHB nurses since the Government took office • 106 more midwives ...
Farmer and former Nuffield scholar Mel Poulton has been appointed New Zealand’s Special Agricultural Trade Envoy, Minister for Trade and Export Growth, David Parker, and Minister of Agriculture, Damien O’Connor, announced today. The position supports key Government objectives, including raising the value of New Zealand agricultural goods and services. Mel is ...
New Zealand’s Pacific and Māori voyaging heritage is acknowledged and celebrated today as waka of the Tuia 250 voyage flotilla arrive in Tūranga / Gisborne. “Today we celebrate Tangata Whenua, the first people of Aotearoa, and the triumphs of the voyaging tradition that brought our ancestors here from Polynesia 1000 ...
“Fijian Language Week starts on Sunday and the theme reminds us how important it is that we each have something to anchor ourselves to, something that can help us pause and feel in control in a rapidly changing world,” says Minister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio. “Family, culture, faith, ...
The Government is establishing an Airspace Integration Trials Programme to support the safe testing and development of advanced unmanned aircraft and accelerate their integration into the aviation system, Research, Science and Innovation Minister Megan Woods announced today. The Government will work with leading, innovative aviation industry partners to test and ...
It’s the end of an era at Three as MAFS NZ and Guy Williams’ new show canceled and 7 Days cut to bone, writes Duncan Greive.A trio of shows which have been amongst Three’s most important local productions are either being canceled or severely cut back, as the channel’s agonising ...
'Joker' expects viewers not only to understand its cruelty, but to understand the justified violence of a white man when the protests of black men and women in the US are regularly met with condemnation, vilification and exclusion. ...
She runs the women's Aussie Rules and netball programmes at one of Australia's oldest sports clubs, so why is Jane Woodlands-Thompson sitting on the Silver Ferns bench? ...
As someone with a severe chronic illness, Hannah McGowan has a vested interest in getting to the bottom of what cannabis can and can’t do for her health. The reality, she discovers, is complicated.Woo [colloq.]: Mystical, supernatural or pseudo-scientific beliefs not backed up by evidence. I crave a well informed, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The last PM shock jock Alan Jones slapped down was Jacinda Ardern. His language was particularly offensive, advertisers deserted his program and he apologised to New Zealand’s leader. But at least Ardern didn’t have to ...
By Michael Andrew and Sri Krishnamurthi The true story of one of the Pacific’s great waka builders and sailor has been captured in a stirring and visually gripping documentary. Loimata: The Sweetest Tears follows the final years of Ema Siope, a Samoan born kiwi who endured a tumultuous past ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Benjamin Cowie, Director, WHO Collaborating Centre for Viral Hepatitis, The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity Around one-third of Australians living with hepatitis C have been cured in the last four years. Hepatitis means inflammation of the liver. Hepatitis C is ...
New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern. Image AsiaPacificReport.nz/RNZ.Commentators across the political spectrum seem to agree – the Labour-led Government’s popularity is being damaged by its failure to deliver in Jacinda Ardern’s self-proclaimed “Year of Delivery”. Instead, the delivery of bad news to Labour and the Government has come in ...
Internet Service Providers have cautiously greeted the news that the Government is exploring an internet filter for violent extremist and terrorist content. ...
Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.Today’s content by Dr Bryce Edwards.Polls Richard Harman (Politik): Ardern now dependent on Peters Sam Sachdeva (Newsroom): Ardern still standing, but ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Greg Austin, Professor UNSW Canberra Cyber, UNSW This is part of a new series looking at the national security challenges facing Australia, how our leaders are responding to them and how these measures are impacting society. Read other stories in the series ...
Researchers from Lincoln University are investigating how to use nanotechnology in agriculture to increase productivity and reduce environmental impact. ...
The increased presence of anti-trans and white supremacist stickers around the University of Auckland campus is proof that inaction is enabling hate groups, write Anisha Sankar and Max Whitehurst.Anisha Sankar is a Chennai-born, Te Awakairangi-raised, South Indian Tamil studying at the University of Auckland. Max Whitehurst is a transgender Pākehā ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Gillespie, Professor of Law, University of Waikato Following the Christchurch mosque shootings, the New Zealand government’s first response was to ban the firearms the alleged gunman had used to murder 51 people. Seven months later, the second tranche of this process ...
The nine members for the next three year term of the Independent Māori Statutory Board (IMSB) for Auckland have been appointed by the statutory Selection Body. Their appointments begin on 1 November 2019 and continue to 31 October 2022. Mana Whenua ...
“If we are truly to solve the challenge of poverty within the Te Ao Maori world we must lift our people from the low wage and low skills growth side of the economy. At the same time we must continue to ensure our people, no matter where they are, ...
Alex Casey asks Rose Stewart from Family Planning every single question she can think of about New Zealand’s new free IUDs. Listen up, womb-owners who love free shit and long-term contraceptive options: Pharmac announced that they will be fully funding two new long-lasting, reversible contraceptives in New Zealand from November 1, ...
Patients are increasingly being turned away for treatment and there can be no more excuses from the Government over properly funding district health boards to boost specialist numbers in public hospitals, says Ian Powell, Executive Director of the ...
Today’s Council of Trade Unions’ report, Fair Pay Agreements: A Framework for Fairness , provides a much-needed pathway to fair wages and conditions across several major industries, and the Government must deliver on its promise to introduce FPAs ...
The Speaker has limited the number of questions Simon Bridges can ask in the House as a punishment for the National Party defying Trevor Mallard by not pulling down their attack ads. ...
Sunshine capital? Check. Rich artisan tradition? Check. Incredible sausages? That’s a big check. We’ve put together a list of all you need to know before you explore the truly gorgeous Nelson region this summer. If you’ve got friends or relatives visiting Aotearoa, top of their list should be sorting out their ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Frank Jotzo, Director, Centre for Climate and Energy Policy, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University In the four years since the Paris climate agreement was adopted, countries have debated the fine print of how emissions reduction should be tracked and ...
The flight drink company 1Above, partly-owned by the high profile, venture capital fund Movac and businessman Gareth Morgan, is in liquidation owing almost $10 million. ...
In recent weeks Responsible Campers Association Incorporated (RCAi) has become involved in some high level discussions about our right to camp. This began out of discussion about the disabled who which to participate in Sport and Recreation activities. ...
In their quest for a cashless society the Japanese have beaten New Zealand to its own next-gen shopping experience.New Zealanders are missing out to the Japanese on a Kiwi technology that is set to eliminate supermarket queues.The first store to implement the SmartCart cashierless shopping system will be in Osaka, ...
If you don’t like Shortland Street, or you’re unconvinced that Michael Galvin actually is a doctor, does that mean all New Zealand television is rubbish? Some say yes. Tara Ward says an emphatic no. The world is our TV oyster, but lately it seems not everyone in Godzone is feeling the ...
The National Party is accusing the Immigration Minister of a "Sroubek 2.0" after revelations he granted residence to a man with multiple drink-driving convictions. ...
Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu urges the Crown to ensure that the Establishment Board of the newly formed Institute of Skills and Technology meets its Treaty obligations and addresses the statutory role of iwi as Treaty partners in redesigning the education ...
The top-selling food magazine in New Zealand is closing its print operation. Niki Bezzant, Healthy Food Guide‘s former editor, reflects on the challenges the title faced.The news that after 14 years and 176 issues Healthy Food Guide magazine is closing its print operation came as a shock to some. It ...
A unique deal saw Sky buy the rugby rights and sell some of itself to NZ Rugby. Trevor McKewen breaks down what it all means.The news came thick and fast over a remarkable five-day corporate slugfest, starting last Thursday. First, Spark Sport struck, gobbling up New Zealand Cricket’s domestic broadcasting ...
In what’s thought to be the last piece of writing Peter Wells completed before he died, he wonders about his great-grandfather, and the locket he wore all his life. ‘The Story of a Locket’ is published in part here, and features in the extraordinary collection of essays Queer Objects, released this ...
Relationship expert Holly Dixon explains why the entire Married at First Sight franchise is based on bunk science.As the third MAFS NZ season has come to an end, I thought it relevant to answer the question upon which the entire MAFS enterprise is built: Is it possible to predict attraction and ...
SkyCity Casino workers will be on strike and picketing today as Rob Campbell, the Chair of SkyCity Casino talks to other employers about making pay fair at a “Wellbeing at Work” conference today. ...
He was the prototypical high school nerd, hanging on Don Brash’s every word. Then the financial world turned upside down. This is the story of how Kiwibank’s Jarrod Kerr became a most unconventional economist.In 2008, Jarrod Kerr was working at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia when the global financial crisis ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gabriela D’Souza, Affiliate, Monash department of business statistics and econometrics, Monash University For most people the second week in October probably doesn’t hold much promise. Longer days for some, perhaps. But for those is us in the economics profession, come the second ...
One of the important parameters of the agreement’s aims was to ensure there was no threat to food production from the ability to adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change. ...
A monument to Winston Peters and Think Big projects would both boost the economy, but Argentina learned the hard way they can also impoverish a nation, writes Tony Burton.Everyone who loves New Zealand should visit Argentina. There are more similarities than you might think – large areas of wild natural ...
The Salvation Army foodbank in Waitakere ran out of food last week; an indication of the strain many New Zealand whanau are under as they struggle to afford the cost of living. Wednesday, October 16 is World Food Day, and as demand for services offered ...
Phil Goff was re-elected by a huge margin on Saturday. How will he put that mandate to use this term? Hayden Donnell asks the questions.Phil Goff is once again Auckland’s mayor. Preliminary local election results show him with a lead of nearly 100,000 votes over his nearest challenger, John Tamihere. ...
Catherine Bindon from Ban the Boom has created these colourful and positive posters for you to use to show you don't support the use of fireworks in your neighbourhood over the next few weeks distressing our animals and birds. ...
On Tuesday morning the Operation Burnham inquiry hearing resumed after it was suspended three weeks ago. The hearing is being held at Royal Society of New Zealand, 11 Turnbull St, Thorndon, Wellington on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Ellerton, Lecturer in Critical Thinking; Curriculum Director, UQ Critical Thinking Project, The University of Queensland It’s not uncommon for science and religion to be framed as two opposing forces. The Catholic church has famously struggled to accommodate scientific research in its ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Cat Pausé, Senior Lecturer in Human Development, Massey University The British Psychological Society is calling for changes for how we talk about fatness, suggesting we should no longer use the phrase “obese people”, but instead, “people with obesity” or “people living with ...
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Open Mike 29/04/2018 
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The Zionists are not the only ones who kill Palestinians and get away with it with seeming impunity.
From the very beginning of the Arab Spring in Syria, Syrian Palestinian refugees in Syria because they stood with the Syrian against Assad, have been a particular target of the regime.
The tactic of aerial bombardment directed against the Syrian people in Homs, in Aleppo, in Douma, and first suffered by the Palestinian refugees in Latakia in march 2011, (where I stayed in 2010 and knew intimately) is now being directed against the Palestinian refugees in Yarmouk.
The Yarmouk Palestinian refugee camp in South Damascus which has been under a long term starvation siege by the Assad government.
Is now under regime and Russian bombardment.
Syria: Civilians in Yarmouk Camp need immediate help
09 APRIL 2015
UNRWA: “Yarmouk camp and its residents suffered from indescribable pain”
Published : 27 April 2018
Syria is a country of approximatly 23 million people … Before thje start of the government overthrow attempts by western / and Israeli backed violent Sunni extremists.
There were approximatly`500,000 palestinian refugees in Syria …. and 1.2 million Iraq refugees
If New Zealand were to take comparable numbers in a ratio sense ,,,, we would need to take in 342 857 refugees,.. aproximatly
342 857 would put quite a strain on New Zealand …. But Syria has the extra burden of usa / nato Sanctions …. described as sanctions of mass destruction … as similar ones killed half a million children in IRAQ … more than all the ‘weapons of mass destruction’ ever used … like nuclear bombs etc
Starvation in Syria …. just like the 400 000 or more dead Syrians killed in our western backed Islamic uprising … lies firmly at the feet of NATO …and their ‘coalition of the killing’
Sanctions are also good for the most cynical of propaganda ,,,,,, blame the victim 11 mins https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfXddo5JH_s
Britain and the USa are making money out of their participation in the starvation and genocide they are waging on Yemen … they make Assad look like a schoolboy.
That poor innocent Assad really did nothing. His shooting of thousands of demonstrators at the beginning of the Arab spring is just a figment of the imagination.
Wayne …..A person who under the Geneva convention definition of war crimes passed after the Nazis were defeated …. Is a war criminal in my eyes.
And thats before his participation in the killing of three year old girls and other children.
And his ‘not knowing’ …. about the torture NZ participated in …
Watch this video and make your own minds up about Wayne …. is he a war criminal / committed crimes against peace
16 minutes 30 seconds https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XiFgrXnSH4g
I give him the trifecta …
A racist ..,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,.. “speak English or die”) with Wayne Mapp criticisng Statistics New Zealand’s decision to offer a joint English / Maori census form in some areas as politically correct bilingualism. According to Mapp,
Warmongering … ” In the case of Iraq the case is clear. Iraq has been in continual defiance of UN resolutions. They possess weapons of mass destruction.” … mapp
Criminal ..,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, “After the war, he claimed that our refusal to participate would ruin relations with Australia and the US, and that our refusal to participate in an illegal war of aggression would cost us a free trade agreement with the USA (guess they were wrong on that too). He even went so far as to demand that the government make a crawling apology to Australia and the US for being right about the war. ”
Waynes remarks about Assad…. should take into account his record of calling dead children ‘ Taliban fighters’,… and his bullshit “Iraq has weapons of mass destruction”,
The man loves war …. and couldn;t give a stuff about the arab or middle eastern victims ….
as his history shows
What drives Wayne to continue such a lame charade in the face of a well documented history of his own quotes and actions…
Not even the humility or self awareness to slink off into obscurity…
Couldn’t just address the point he made huh?
You have seriously defamed New Zealand soldiers (and myself) by accusing them of being war criminals.
As you know there is an Inquiry into this whole situation, which Inquiry I have encouraged.
I suggest that you leave this matter to the Inquiry rather than making highly defamatory remarks in a situation where many people involved cannot effectively reply.
My last comment (1.1.1.1.3) is specifically directed to reason, and to a lesser extent One Two.
I’ll try to simplify this down even more for you, Wayne…(I’m speaking only my own views)…
* You have a public profile consisting of words and actions which are documented as a matter of record…
* Your comments on this site are a continuation of your documented public record…
* Your ideological bent which is referenced through your documented public record is also played out through your handle on an incompatible left leaning blog site…
* You ignore the legitimate comments reason has made about your documented public record…
* You’re attempting to play the victim…
What compels you to perform this charade is debateable…that you are seemingly oblivious to the damage your documented public service has done and continues to do lacks later stage life contrition or evidence of reticence…
You frequent this site looking for something….trying unsuccessfully to relieve yourself of [something]…or possibly to find [something]…
What you’re looking for can be found in any mirror…in private…
I put up a post with information about the 1.7 million refugees which were in Syria … Just before their country became the target of western backed Islamic extremists….
If we took that same ratio of refugees into New Zealand … to proportionally match the 1.7 million Syria took in ….. we would have to let in 342,857 people …. aprox
To put the scale of that number of refugees another way …. At our present annual quota and intake of refugees … Its over 450 years worth https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/on-the-inside/322576/nz%27s-refugee-numbers-an-awkward-topic-in-europe
I also mentioned sanctions …. and how these quiet killers have been labeled as “sanctions of mass destruction” …. with up to 500 000 thousand Iraqi children made to suffer, starve and die through them … with Syrian people now suffering from this usa favored weapon of siege
Wayne Mapp ignores the content of my post ….this long trail of mass suffering and killing of children … Seemingly oblivious to the concentration camp scale of victims …
Not caring to comment on the over half a million needless deaths / murders of children …He instead parks a dump of steaming Assad is Hitler dribble.,,,
Far more credible people and sources than him provide information,,, that leave Waynes outburst as honest looking …as his claiming 3 year old girls are “Taliban fighters”. James can read it too. https://gowans.wordpress.com/2016/10/22/the-revolutionary-distemper-in-syria-that-wasnt/
Regardless … The main thing Waynes post showed me …… is how he ignored all the real suffering and death of children to dish up his stale old war propaganda.
Waynes just demonstrated very clearly the level of his regret … regarding Fatima, his mystery dead three year old Afghanistan girl … the mystery being how she was misrepresented as a Taliban fighter
I’m not sure what he thought he wrote …but what he showed was a complete lack of consideration or care … for all the other children or civilians killed, maimed or bereaved …. and His non existent concern for future victims…. From all the Waynes and Johns and donalds of this world.
In my opinion …Wayne does not give a shit about foreign people, poor people .. or brown kids … he cares more for his reputation.
*********
I’m specifically calling you a war criminal … or wannabe war criminal Wayne … ” War of Aggression” is mentioned in the Geneva convention as the ultimate crime …. trade deals, consummated or not, … do not get you an exemption. Wayne
I have a relative who is SAS … years and years ago at a funeral I asked him about Afghanistan … Summarizing his answer … ‘ it was a load of shit with poorly defined non achievable objectives ‘ … People like you are the threat to our military ,,, in both reputation and conduct, Wayne.
Has any other poster or Author here at The Standard …. ever played a part in the killing or cover-up of a three year old child?.
What reputation do those who have been involved in something as absolutely wrong as that deserve?
Over this subject ..Wayne is like the stupid teenager driving at 140 kms around suburban streets ,,,, and running over a kid .
Saying or feeling sorry does not help the parents much …. what the hell did the teenager / wayne think was going to be the end result of selfish stupid reckless behavior
There are other aspects of Waynes dishonesty which I will raise later ….
You obviously did not read David Fisher’s article in the Herald last week.
Are you pretending to support human rights, Wayne? You seem to have changed since your time in government.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/90748732/former-defence-minister-wayne-mapp-says-civilian-deaths-in-afghanistan-were-an-accident
https://www.globalresearch.ca/anti-syrian-propaganda-based-on-false-images-of-torture-danish-state-tv/5637801
Why the need for misdirection (lies) in 2011….
Wayne, your comments are pathetic…there is no other word for it…
You’re an apologist at best, and accomplice at worst…to rogue states who commit war crimes…
That’s what YOUR comments here suggest…
Was Dhouma staged?
Peter Hitchens and George Galloway discuss.
I wish you’d stop promoting a disgusting rape denier around here. George Galloway is not someone whose arguments I care to listen too given his mansplaining downgrading of rape because it happened after consensual sex.
Then don’t listen
I don’t. Still sick of you spamming his links all over here. It tells me you excuse, or perhaps even support given how often you spam his links, his belief that non consensual sex is not necessarily rape.
Yawn
I’m reminded of the words of W.S.Gilbert:
But many a king on a first class throne
If he wants to call his crown his own
must manage somehow
to get through
more dirty work than e’re I do
from “I am a pirate king”
in The Pirates of Penzance
Wayne, Assad is just a pawn. The issue is the gas pipeline that runs through Syria. The Arabs need to have this halted if the oil price is to clime – it is their only income and any additional fuel supply via Russia would be highly detrimental to the power they yield. Coupled with their religious fundamentalist nature, all bets are off. And the west supports this as it is in their interest to have the energy cake split by as fewer players as possible.
In the end, nothing really has and ever will change – its about power and money. It does not matter in that “game” who gets killed, maimed and left behind starving an dying. Humans are just primitive creatures who have been handed the means of destroying the planet many times over. The yard bullies are in charge right now and reason has left the building.
Frank Macskasy presents a superb timeline to expose the ” mendacities of the mainstream media” in Syria.
In his usual manner he thoroughly destroys the lies of the corporate press.
Any yet you Wayne and Jenny believe these lies.
https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2018/04/29/syria-the-mendacities-of-the-mainstream-media-part-rua/
So, as guests in the country they tried to overthrow the government and are now complaining that there’s consequences to that?
You do understand that there’s a war on right? And that in wars there happens to be shortages?
And that this war was seemingly encouraged by the US?
Assad is no saint but I think you’ll find that the Syrians and refugees would be a hell of a lot better off if the US hadn’t started a civil war there.
Spot on Draco
+1
Not on the spot Draco. In fact nowhere near the Spot. Just wandering all around it.
Make up your mind.
Is it a US backed invasion, or a civil war?
Assad destroys invading city.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2016/feb/04/drone-footage-homs-syria-utter-devastation-video
Draco puts up a new theory for the war in Syria; It was the Palestinian refugees, that dun it
In his desperate efforts to justify mass murder, torture and genocide; Any straw to grasp at will do.
Libya Until recently was a modern evolving society …with the highest standard of living on its continent … and it attained this after spending most of last centuary being one of the poorest countries in the world
Gaddafi in a bloodless coup,,, ousted a corrupt monarchy and BP oil ….taking over a country Beset by poverty, slums, cholera, malnutrition and other third world ills and hardships for his people .
Using Libyian resources for the benefit of Libyans in a form of socialism … The largest improvements in quality of life ,,,, were achieved in the shortest period of time … than any other example / country in the world that I can find.
Achievements such as …. went from one of the poorest nations in its continent into the richest nation….it also gained the highest Human Development Index, the lowest infant mortality and the highest life expectancy.
“Health care is [was] available to all citizens free of charge by the public sector.
infant mortality rates had decreased from 105 per 1000 live births in 1970 to an Infant mortality rate 14.0
Confirmed by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), undernourishment was less than 5 %,
Took literacy from 25% up to 87% under with 25% earning university degrees.
University education was free.
Gross primary school enrollment ratio was 97% for boys and 97% for girls (2009) .
(see UNESCO tables
The pupil teacher ratio in primary schools was of the order of 17 (1983 UNESCO data)
Went from a country beset with cholera and unsafe water problems …. to a very low percentage of people without access to safe water (3 percent), health services (0 percent) and sanitation (2 percent) … and was investing in the largest
irrigation project in the world
With regard to Women’s Rights,………… World Bank data point to significant achievements, “In a relative short period of time … passed in 1970 was an equal pay for equal work law…
In secondary and tertiary education, girls outnumbered boys by 10%.” (World Bank Country ….. child marriages were banned and the minimum legal age to marry placed at 18. ……Since 1973, Libyan women have had equal rights in obtaining a divorce. There were also gender-friendly women’s laws passed on marriage and divorce.
Such freedoms for women were hated by ‘rebels’ …. aka british sponsored Islamist extremists such as the Manchester based Libyan Islamic Fighting Group….
“TWENTY-TWO innocent lives were lost on May 22, 2017, when a suicide bomber detonated his device at the Manchester Arena after an Ariana Grande concert.
Family and friends of victims as young as eight paid heartbreaking tributes to their loved ones in the wake of the attack which left the nation shocked and in mourning. ” https://medium.com/insurge-intelligence/the-manchester-bombing-as-blowback-the-latest-evidence-83ec2127801d
“The Manchester Bombing: Blowback from British state collusion with jihadists abroad Three quarters of all foreign fighters in Libya came from Manchester. Now that one of their number has returned to bomb the same city, apparently under the influence of ISIL, remarkably few are questioning the British foreign policy decisions David Cameron took while in power.”
What happened to Libya was the destruction of it as a modern state .,… It is now a blood soaked lawless failed state … a Islamic extremist bolt hole …. with women living in fear…. and Libyans of black African decent being ethnically cleansed … or sold into slavery.
Refugees are further abused …”Nearly half the women and children interviewed had experienced sexual abuse during migration,” the report says.” “Often multiple times and in multiple locations.” …..”Libya, as the funnel through which so many journeys pass, has earned itself a shocking reputation as the epicentre of abuse” …
“None of this would be possible if not for … the involvement of a NATO coalition that included the United States.” As in Iraq and Afghanistan, the lesson of Libya is that regime change through military intervention can have catastrophic consequences. That lesson should be taken far more seriously.
“The evidence suggests that British actions in three different theatres — Libya, Iraq and Syria — cannot be viewed in isolation:
In Libya, US and UK led intervention destroyed the functioning state and created a vacuum allowing hardline Islamist fighters to consolidate their foothold in the country. This paved the way for the empowerment of ISIS. The direct line between Libyan and Syrian Islamist rebels fuelled jihadism in both countries.
In Iraq, US and UK led intervention also destroyed the existing state infrastructure and fuelled an Islamist insurgency which incubated al-Qaeda in Iraq and culminated in the emergence of ISIS.
In Syria, US and UK covert action, again in partnership with Gulf states such as Qatar, and Turkey, has had the effect of augmenting the role of al-Qaeda in the rebel movement.
This combination of Anglo-American policies across the region has contributed to further instability and the rise of violent jihadism. In fact, an even stronger conclusion may be warranted based on the evidence of the extent of UK covert and overt action in the region in alliance with states consistently supplying arms to terrorist groups: that agencies of the British government itself have, in some senses, become part of the broader ‘terrorist network’ with which the British public is now confronted.”
What happened in Libya and Iraq was despicable butchery accomplished with murderous dishonesty ..
Libya 23 minutes///
the same tactics, the same Islamist extremism … Almost achieved the same result in Syria …. Until Russia reversed the Sunni extremists expansion … protecting normal Syrians from ethnic cleansing in NATOs latest disaster / NATOs newest Islamic State.
https://www.bitchute.com/video/hUaWa8L9YPXL/
That seems to have been the goal.
It’s easier to steal a countries wealth when there’s not a strong state government to stop it.
+1
Would be interesting to see the statistics on Libya and Iraq pre USA Invasion and post USA Invasion ?
You have to appreciate that madmen like Saddam and Gaddaffi had to be removed,because they were jealous of the freedom and democracy of the west.
Now they are free and democratic.
Libya is neither free nor democratic today.
It is also no longer a state.
It is a group of fiefdoms run by jihadi headchopping warlords.
But I sense you knew that.
Does the leader of Saudi Arabia ‘need to be removed ‘?
And Trump. And Erdogan. And Netanyahu.
Perhaps zorb6 was indulging in hyperbole , at least thats how i took it.
“were jealous of the freedom and democracy of the west.”
That’s not hyperbole.
It’s US propaganda
It is possible to construct hyperbole from snippets of US propaganda.
In the context of the whole comment it was obviously hyperbole/sarcasm.
He certainly needs to grow up.
I imagine the people of Yemen have somewhat different opinions of him.
No doubt – but Yemen is not uniquely of his making – it’s been going on for a while.
Zorb6: You’re having a laugh, right? “had to be removed,because they were jealous of the freedom and democracy”
If it wasn’t sarcasm… ?
The great USof A where voters are routinely kicked off the electoral roll.
The lesser Great Britain where legitimate Windrush imigrants are being bullrushed from YarlsWood on chartered planes and even their own diplomats have trouble bringing in their own child born overseas.
Democracy? Nothing but a stamp on the loo paper.
Like Draco above, I think it was obvious sarcasm. I sniggered!
But there you are.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/356187/the-working-poor-driving-up-demand-for-food-parcels-sallies
The majority of people asking for food parcels have never had to ask for help before, the Salvation Army says.
Community Ministries spokesperson Lindsay Andrews said the high cost of everyday living was creating a “working poor”.
“We’re seeing across the country 336 new families presenting each week so that equates to 60 percent of the families requesting help and given that a number of these are not on benefits, that’s quite concerning.”
One word: housing
Another word – Neoliberalism
Neoliberalism is another word for feudalism ask Roger Douglas or Ruth Richardson, they were key proponents of this ideology ?
Refer to the Monte Perelin Society and the Bilderberg Group ?
*Mont Pelerin
I don’t think it’s right that neoliberalism is same as feudalism.
The people expected to be heard when they went to the leaders in feudalism. While Europe etc. worked out how to run their societies and who was going to be in control there were big wars. Here is an interesting quote about it. I don’t know if you think that this is akin to neoliberalism:
The 17th century saw very little peace in Europe – major wars were fought in 95 years (every year except 1610, 1669 to 1671, and 1680 to 1682.)[10] The wars were unusually ugly. Europe in the late 17th century, 1648 to 1700, was an age of great intellectual, scientific, artistic and cultural achievement. Historian Frederick Nussbaum says it was:
The worst came during the Thirty Years’ War, 1618-1648, which had an extremely negative impact on the civilian population of Germany and surrounding areas, with massive loss of life and disruption of the economy and society.
Gosh there is so much to learn about the past while we watch with dismay, society’s wheels drop off today.
Here is some more interesting perhaps pertinent stuff:
Brief listing of major trade periods
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_history_of_the_world#Middle_Ages
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_international_trade#Middle_Ages
It’s not just housing, it’s neoliberalism. The private sector has failed and so have the PPP and COO schemes. You should not try to profit from the basics, housing, electricity, food, water, transport.
It takes $34 on cash fare for a family of 4 to go 2 states return in Auckland. Or you pay an extra $40 for 4 HOP cards to get it down.
People have no electricity for days because of underinvestment and the reliance of making a ‘pay as you go’ infrastructure around Auckland which can mean anyone building a house pays around $25k for all the transformers, cables, meters, private pillars and then somehow doesn’t own it, but ‘rents’ if off Vector. Likewise with Vector and the trees somehow it’s more efficient to have 1 million people without cherry pickers and electricity qualifications to be liable to maintain the trees around electricity lines… also easier to make tradies do years of expensive study and then find out that they have no experience and it’s cheaper to get in someone from overseas for cash and then if it all goes wrong, the councils can pick up the tab for remedial work.
People are at the Salvation Army because even if you work full time, wages are so out of whack with the cost of living that it becomes difficult to survive and you need to constantly go around looking for subsidies whether it be WFF, accomodation, community services card, not paying donations at schools, food parcels, emergency grants and so forth. All that takes up a lot of time and pretty hit and miss. I’d like to see that someone employed is able to support a family on one income… like in the old days… now some people can’t support a family on 2 incomes.
Wages need a serious rethink…. with the new minimum wage increases you get $660 less taxes… that is no longer enough to live on with everybody from private companies to COO’s to councils to government wanting more money.
The high paid jobs are not there, and our best and brightest have to leave NZ or work at a fraction of what they should be on, to stay in NZ. Meanwhile the system does everything possible to bring down most people’s wages in real terms.
Universities closing libraries, hospitals outsourcing hospital meals, the list goes on… we are losing jobs or making people get less in the same job, while somehow the prices for all the services keep going up to pay for all the middle men often with top heavy corporations like Serco, keeping this rout going.
And with the houses, resources are concentrated on luxury hotels, private retirement villages, luxury apartments, renovating houses into luxury houses. Those focusing on the bottom end like in Tauranga, well they were condemned before even being lived in… and time to start again.
With the amount of low waged or asset rich but cash poor coming into NZ who are also qualifying for subsidies and competing with the existing poor, it’s hard to make it all work.
Something is wrong.
Reports are coming out of Gaza that the people have lost their fear, the situation is that bad, they have nothing left, they’ve had enough.
A reporter who has been covering the situation in Gaza for years says she has never seen the people so desperate.
“Their situation is so miserable in Gaza. I’ve been reporting from the Gaza Strip for years and it’s never been this bad.”
Five Fridays of protests… and the death toll is at least 45 Palestinian demonstrators, with more than 6,000 wounded, including medical professionals and journalists since the mass movement began on March 30. There have been no Israeli casualties.
Israeli officials have accused Gaza’s rulers Hamas of instigating the protests, but not a single rocket has been fired from the Gaza Strip since the demonstrations began.
UN are condemning Israel for their actions, but from what I can see no one is taking any action, how long will this go on for?
It’s always talk, talk, then nothing, nada. I see it as systematic genocide.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/04/israeli-forces-kill-palestinians-wound-955-gaza-protest-180427170725104.html
Roger Waters is excellent in this interview on the situation.
Thanks for the link Ed, I thoroughly enjoyed that interview, insightful and honest.
It’s already been going on for seven decades – with help from the West. I don’t see that changing any time soon.
Ikr, but now it really seems to be at breaking point.
Somethings going to give very soon.
It wouldn’t surprise me. People that are invaded and oppressed as Palestine has been usually bite back eventually.
Trouble is that the only “give” at this stage will be a forced relocation into Egypt of roughly two million people.
I strongly suspect that this is BB’s objective.
What about Libya?
What about Iraq?
Does what happened in Libya and Iraq, justify the genocide committed by Assad regime against the Syrian people, and the Palestinian refugees in Latakia and Yarmouk?
Isn’t this the same Whataboutery argument that is used by the Zionists to justify their butchery of the Palestinians in Gaza?
related comments:
The act of liberation can only be an act of the people themselves.
My thoughts on the Syrian revolution and civil war.
I was in Syria in late 2010
Basha Assad is no Che Guevara, or Ho Chi Minh, or Patrice Lumumba, fighting imperialism
CV, from the link you provided is this paragraph.
“The agency he co-founded has had a roster of clients including repressive regimes and Asma al-Assad, the wife of the Syrian president.”
I think Bill and CV you need to take this into account when you repost propaganda of a mass murderer as some sort of truth.
The legitimacy of a movement is determined locally, not by Faux News or RT
Does what happened in Libya and Iraq get ignored so US/UK/ISRAEL/FRANCE/SAUDI can destroy and occupy another sovereign nation..
Jenny, your comments are filled with ill thought hypocrisy and a lack of love and empathy for those who are dying…those on the ‘other side’ of the discussion…those who you repeatedly ignore while you push your one wheeled cart around this site..
Taking a side is endorse death, injury and misery…that is what you are doing..
Perhaps unwittingly…perhaps not…
SHAME!
One Two, or maybe some of you other supporters and apologists for Syrian fascism and genocide, might like to explain away Saydnaya.
Just outside of Damascus.
Everyone knows where it is.
Why have none of your embedded regime stooges and self promoting little Lord Haw haws, asked for a guided tour?
One Two, Just like Bill’s complicit silence in the horrific genocidal destruction of Homs.
I also can’t but help notice that supporters of the regime like yourself, and others, also maintain a strict silence, amounting to complicity, at any mention of Saydnaya
“Human Slaughterhouse – Mass Hangings and Extermination at Saydnaya Prison, Syria”.
I notice you constantly take the side of Assad. I tend to have more sympathy for those he bombs, gases, or drives out.
I notice you constantly take the side of the head chopping Jihadis. I tend to have more sympathy for those they bomb, gases, or drives out.
Many critics of the bombing of Syria by the US, the UK and France are not taking sides.
They just don’t want World War 3.
Actually, most of Assad’s victims are not “headchopping jihadis” – but you are so biased you lump the innocents in with them. This is why we will find no common ground.
No I have little time for cheerleaders for ISIS, al Nusra and the rest of ‘the alphabet soup’ of Jihadi headchoppers.
And no time whatsoever for the millions of refugees created by Assad’s regime. But lots of time for the saccharine propagandists of RT and their dubious mouthpieces.
If the Guardian and the BBC tells you something enough times, do you believe it?
“War is peace.
Freedom is slavery.
Ignorance is strength.”
We live in 1984.
There is some very dim bulbs who comment here, Stuart…
I’ve told you multiple times that a primary difference between myself and the likes of you and Jenny….is that I do not take sides…the two of you are openly and unashamedly bias…
The two of you can’t wrap your narrow bandwidth around such a concept….so you continue with the line that is the opposite of what I state in comments…
See if you can widen your narrow bandwidth just enough to let that get into your head…
I’ll help you out…again…
Posting a link does NOT alter the fact that I do not, and will not take a side…
I do have disdain for those such as yourself and jenny who seek to offer validation of illegal foreign invation, occupation and destruction of sovereign nation…after nation…after nation…
Pause to see if you can understand why distain for the position shared by yourself and Jenny, exists…
And if that is beyond your narrow bandwidth…it is likely that you have problems over and above the ignorance born out of prejudice…
I’m always impressed about how you are just as quick to criticise people’s hubris when they say what bad things the US etc are up to as when others criticise Assad and Russia. You jump on both sides equallol, can’t finish that line. You’re just as partisan as everyone else, doofus.
Yes yes – you do not take sides but somehow always support Assad – you’re not fooling anyone except yourself – and maybe Ed.
Nah, Stu…you’re repeatedly making a fool of yourself while I walk through your childish commentary…
I’ve explained it to you so many times, you obviously have a deficiency…
Your interpretation of what constitutes support is your own twisted view…
I support a sovereign nations absolute right to defend itself against illegal, serial foreign invaders….against any invaders actually…
That’s not supporting Assad….see if you can figure out why…
Well actually…..
Going with the ‘regime change’ conspiracy theory, sort of shows you support the Assad regime’s narrative.
Which in my opinion, identifies you as a hard out Assad supporter. (But without the guts to admit it).
Am I wrong?
Jenny, you have passion and what does appear to be an honest desire to highlight the plight of peoples who are suffering around the world…
Your comments regarding Syria, are one sided, overly simplistic and indicate that you have barriers preventing you from acknowledging what are mainstream documented happenings inside Syria…
That you repeatedly and undoubtedly, willingly ignore mainstream acknowledgement of ‘western backed rebels’ being funded, armed, trained and supported by international law breaking, UN charter violating sponsors, is unfortunate to observe…
So while you’re ignoring those same sponsors of ‘moderate rebels’ long and document history of regime change/creating failed states…I’ve not raised the subject because I do not pretend to know what is really going on…
But if I were to engage with you at your level using simplistic, lopsided evaluation techniques…regime change/failed state would be the position I would take….because that’s what a simplistic view of history, including recent history indicates is being attempted since 2011 in Syria…
But I’m not saying that’s what is going on…because Syria, is a complex situation….and I will not endorse either or sides…
To your question…not only are you wrong…you are showing yourself to be a ‘well meaning idiot’….
Jenny is blind to the faults of the opposition.
I admire your viewpoint.
Jennys position appears to be in direct conflict with her efforts to highlight injustice and atrocities…there are not many reasons why she would take that position…
There will be atrocities carried out by every faction involved in the conflict…openly ignoring that truism is dangerous energy to play with…
It’s natural to wish to know whats actually going on…but that’s not possible except through the mediums created by the efforts of others….what we the people are left with is speculation based on constants such as ‘previous form’ and motive…
The honest thing to do is at least pay respect to injustice and atrocities on all sides…
Not so – at least I have the honesty to take a position – that for all their many faults the west is on the whole more reliable than Putin’s spin.
Your constant pretentions of superiority would fare better were they supported by evidence other than your wishful thinking.
On what basis is the West reliable?
Because the BBC and the Guardian told you so?
Did you miss the lies about WMD, the lies about Kuwait, the lies about Ukraine, the lies about Libya, the lies about Vietnam……
You’re a sucker propaganda from the military industrial complex.
Posted by lettuce yesterday night.
‘I do not take sides’. Well said One Two, I greatly respect your viewpoints. You only take the side of truth imo 🙂
Hi Maui, I enjoy your perspectives…and I appreciate your comments…
Truth is such a mystery…the truth I adide is that humans are not it…babies are close to pure truth…after that…less so by the day without constant self reflection and the awareness to make necessary changes…and not be scared to do so…continually…
That’s about the best any adult human can do IMO…
Be well…
I take the side of the people under the bombs and under the gas clouds. That makes Assad an enemy.
You implicitly support the bombers.
It’s not morally tenable.
Atrocities are litmus tests – when you no longer react you’ve lost your moral compass.
It makes both warring groups the enemy as both sides are killing civilians.
Evidence required.
And that means rebels – not ISIS.
Stuart, you are so terribly confused…
You simply can’t grasp the concept that taking sides is the wrong thing to do…it is the opposite of what you need to be doing…what we all need to be doing…
There is no morality to be found in war and atrocity in the M.E…there are only varying degress of atrocity and human suffering…
Rise above the primitive lizard brain and understand that by taking a side, is to be part of the problem…and a barrier to any solution…
When you can understand that simple concept…life as you believe it to be will have a very different perspective for you…
Good luck on the journey….
Edit: don’t equate not taking sides with no longer caring…that’s not what it’s about…it is about having more measured thinking so that you are no longer in reaction mode…step back…evaluate….respond…not react…
Reflection.
So important.
Nice informative piece on France and Libya over at The Intercept.
Sarkozy’s dodgy dealings with Gaddafi aside, the fact that the French foreign minister had offered Tunisia’s Zine El Abidine Ben Ali the use of France’s security forces to help quash protests is kinda illuminating.
Yes, Bill
It’s such a sordid history which some on the site either do not read about, or willfully ignore…
I suspect the Sykes Picot Agreement is unheard of in certain quarters on these boards…
Have you read Frank Macskasy on the daily Blog?
Quite a thorough denunciation of the lies propagated.
That’s a fairly extensive couple of pieces by Frank. Not so easy to read through mind, but still.
Listening to a very good interview of Professor Piers Robinson on Newstalk NB that Brigid linked to.
Worth a listen.
Thank you
Fora Pruitt.
The National Government inflicted the notorious Waikato University crackpot Jacqueline Rowarth on us to antagonize the conservation movement. The Trump regime pulled the same trick with Scott Pruitt…
https://www.democracynow.org/2018/4/27/you_really_should_resign_lawmakers_slam
The Nats also inflicted us with a board of Cronies, (all but one lacking an Environmental bone in either of their body’s’)
https://www.epa.govt.nz/about-us/our-people/management-team/
… And a CE, Dr Allan Freeth, who, rather than deny Climate Change attempts to muzzzle scientists and influence academics careers!
https://thespinoff.co.nz/science/14-03-2018/why-is-nzs-environmental-regulator-trying-to-muzzle-scientist-mike-joy/
About time for further resignations and a dose of Sunshine shone on the EPA
https://fyi.org.nz/request/5656-chief-executive-itemised-listed-of-expenses-for-millbrook-resort-queenstown
…back in the old days in the agricultural industry we were told Round Up was less toxic than table salt ?
EPA ex Chief Scientist Jacqueline Rowarth on glyphosate. … after the EPA ruled that the ingredient used in Roundup was unlikely to be carcinogenic. “This is very good news and of course it’s based on the fact that there is no link to human health issues when used as regulated,” she said.
All so simple, and without a shadow of doubt clouding her perfectly pure scientific mind.
https://thespinoff.co.nz/business/13-12-2017/what-gives-with-the-chief-scientist-of-the-environmental-protection-agency/
This despite the Ministry of Health, and a group of esteemed Professors from Auckland and Massey universities, and others. Oh, and of course, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) who in 2015 listed glyphosate as a probable carcinogen for humans.
and..
Carcinogenicity of glyphosate: why is New Zealand’s EPA lost in the weeds?
https://www.nzma.org.nz/journal/read-the-journal/all-issues/2010-2019/2018/vol-131-no-1472-23-march-2018/7531
EPA ex Chief Scientist Jacqueline Rowarth on glyphosate. … after the EPA ruled that the ingredient used in Roundup was unlikely to be carcinogenic. “This is very good news and of course it’s based on the fact that there is no link to human health issues when used as regulated,” she said.
All so simple, and without a shadow of doubt clouding her perfectly pure scientific mind.
https://thespinoff.co.nz/business/13-12-2017/what-gives-with-the-chief-scientist-of-the-environmental-protection-agency/
This despite the Ministry of Health, and a group of esteemed Professors from Auckland and Massey universities, and others. Oh, and of course, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) who in 2015 listed glyphosate as a probable carcinogen for humans.
and..
Carcinogenicity of glyphosate: why is New Zealand’s EPA lost in the weeds?
https://www.nzma.org.nz/journal/read-the-journal/all-issues/2010-2019/2018/vol-131-no-1472-23-march-2018/7531
David Seymour has finally made the Big Time and given true substance to their policies and philosophies. Dancing with the Stars.
If I were clever I’d get the reds under the bed dancing Cossacks and superimpose Seymour “Dancing with the Csars.”
A gem of a comment Pete (9) Love it. A good laugh for the day 🙂 I remember Muldoon’s dancing Cossacks well.
https://nzhistory.govt.nz/media/video/dancing-cossacks
“National was trying to turn voters against the Labour government by suggesting that the latter’s recently introduced compulsory superannuation scheme might lead to Soviet-style Communism (conveniently ignoring the fact that the Cossack peoples had traditionally been opponents of the Bolsheviks).”
The voiceover said that the superannuation fund would dominate the economy, which would be laughable in today’s open, global, economy. But in Muldoon’s “fortress New Zealand”…. well, history shows what happened. And from the success of our current superannuation funds we can only wonder where New Zealand would be now if Labour had won that election.
That cartoon was supplied by the American Hanna Barbera ..USA influencing the election? You betcha!!
From the link I posted –
” In the first campaign held after the introduction of colour TV, National’s advertising agency, Colenso, engaged the famous American cartoon studio Hanna-Barbera to produce a colourful, animated advert.”
Probably more like Colenso shopped around for the best outfit and naturally got the best offer from the purveyors of the American Dream. The script would have been right up their alley.
Great piece over at Public Address about Stormy Daniels’ lawyer Michael Avenatti and his prediction that Trump will not serve out his term
https://publicaddress.net/hardnews/the-remarkable-rise-of-michael-avenatti/
FYI – after eighty years in the family, my friend’s Queen of the Andes [Puya raimondii] has bloomed.
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/11/photogalleries/101117-exotic-rare-plant-blooms-flower-pictures/#/28913.jpg
That is amazing! What beautiful flowers and yet they signal that the plant will now die.
Thanks so much for sharing it. Seeing it today of all days was rather symbolic, on a very sad day as my dog died last night – a little white troublemaker – probably my last dog ever sadly. He was a little 6kg Maltese who thought he was the size of his former best friend who he had to protect – my Rottweiler/Mastiff cross who at his biggest weighted in at 67kg, who would run away if you said boo and who died two years ago.
Now I will remember him (and the big boy) and this amazing plant all together.
Oh so sad to hear about your little dog VV – they are such good companions. Was he a little white troublemaker with a capital T? We had decided no more animals after our little Honeybear – but a nephew who was moving house and needed a new home for his puss cat (the new home did not permit animals) donated Princess Lollabout to us. 🙂
And thanks Joe for the pic – I enjoy all your posts but this is a special treasure.
Big tough night there Veuto.
Very sorry to hear it.
Sorry to hear about your loss VV.
The dog is a gentleman; I hope to go to his heaven, not man’s.
~ Mark Twain
Hugs VV.
Condolences for the sad loss of your little dog veutoviper (11.1) Our loving and loyal pets, particularly dogs, certainly leave a massive void in our lives and our hearts when they are gone. The best friends we will ever have.
Hang on to those wonderful memories. The companionship and devotion of a dog is something very precious and wonderful. But you already know that vv.
Take good care.
My condolences VV.
I am reminded of a Rudyard Kipling poem, The power of the dog.
https://m.poets.org/poetsorg/poem/power-dog
always hurts, that.
Hello V V. So sorry to hear of your companion’s passing.
Your story about your wee dog reminded us of a dear wee Australian terrier we cared for for friends. We loved Molly as she was fearless.
We arrived at the dog park and Molly tried to see off a huge Great Dane who gave her “the regal stare” totally unruffled by 5/6 kgs of bravado.
They leave a huge painful hole, and then you remember the happy times.
A friend, like you, said no more. Then went to the local SPCA described a small gentle house trained dog. They rang her two months later and she took Loxie home. Loxie was a tiny ” bitsa” who settled on her lap and is a loved 5 year old in her second chance home. Hugs xx Trish.
Very sorry to hear about your dog Veuto
It is devastating to lose a beloved pet
Great to see the EU ban all nicotinoids for good.
Brilliant news for the bees.
Berner cultists get their racist out, because black people who weren’t Sanders fans aren’t quite progressive enough for them.
.
For almost a year now, a very vocal segment of Bernie Sanders supporters have harassed and stalked black activists, journalists and contributors on Twitter and other social media sites. Behind this campaign was the fact that a lot of black voters didn’t vote for Bernie, which was met with incredible anger by a part of the Bernie left.
Instead of analyzing why POC were critical of Bernie, or why Bernie refused to campaign among POC, they started to harass and intimidate black Twitter users.
The list of victims to this aggressive crowd of Bernie supporters is long by now: Joy Ann Reid, Donna Brazile, Jehmu Greene, Neera Tanden, Kamala Harris, Maxine Waters, Yamiche Alcindor, Zerlina Maxwell, and less known Twitter users: Angry Black Lady (Imani Gandy), T_FisherKing, Mr Dane/ Mr Weeks, Sir James, Ange_Amene, Bravenak and many, many more.
What these people have in common is that
A: they’re POC,
B: they’re at times very critical of Bernie Sanders.
This in itself is enough for ongoing extreme harassment, stalking, threats, intimidation and worse.
On top of this, a number of LGTB activists/ writers have met the same fate: be critical at Bernie Sanders at your own peril.
[…]
The user @Jamie_Maz who in November went through Joy’s old blog posts through the so called WayBack machine never mentioned other blog posts, never mentioned there was more ‘homophobic’ content.
Now let me be absolutely clear: I do not have any evidence whether or not Joy Ann Reid’s recently surfaced blog posts were altered, added or whether or not they are genuine. That is also not the subject of this article: the subject is the excessive campaign to get Joy Ann Reid fired by the Bernie left.
I saw the same user @Jamie_Maz post the recently ‘found’ blog posts and at first this just led to great enthusiasm among the Bernie crowd on Twitter. The idea that they found something damaging on Joy Ann Reid was absolutely fantastic to this crowd of Bernie supporters: #FireJoyReid!
Let’s be absolutely clear: this campaign isn’t coming from trump supporters, or breitbart or right wing racists, this is coming from the racist Bernie left.
Although I have no evidence one way or the other it would NOT surprise me at all when in the end we find out this Bernie crowd altered the screenshots, because let’s face it: a crowd who contacts people’s employers with anonymous letters (as in the case of Humorless Kev), who starts internet campaigns to get people fired and posts racist pictures would be very willing to do this
View at Medium.com
If you want an intelligent and thoroughly researched piece on Joy Reid, then Glen Greenwald’s piece is where I’d suggest you want to be going. (Unless he’s to be avoided because “racist Bernie left”?)
Yeah, Cernovich and Prosobiec are going after Reid, too.
But I’m sure that’s just a coincidence.
/
All I’m seeing in the piece you provided is the “dead centre” lashing out. Again.
Shades of the anti-Momentum, anti- Corbyn bullshit to it all.
Anyway. I saw the name and was reminded of the Greenwald piece and thought it worth linking.
Looks to me like the author’s calling out the cult kiddies enmity for progressives who dare opt for pragmatic incrementalism, rather than their own burn the fucking house down shtick.
btw, thread calling Greenwald on his disingenuous claptrap.
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/990311780038660096.html
You read the piece Joe, yes?
It basically revolved around the issue of denial and hacking claims. And Greenwald, in relation to her previous phobic writings, has the following as the second para
And later…
So sure. He was writing disingenuous claptrap and the “radical centre/dead centre” isn’t consumed by hate these day for just about anyone who doesn’t “toe the line” or is otherwise seen as representing a threat to their (and their world view’s) fading prominence.
McElrath notes how @ggreenwald pushed out the idea @JoyAnnReid is homophobic and transphobic as recently as December of 2017, but revised his position to denial of authorship and hacking claims by Joy is now and was always “the *only* issue” and asserts her “anti-LGBT bigotry” was “never the issue.”.
And of course, McElrath has a link to that, and the date is from a time after she apologised, right? Yeah, thought not.
I raised this point yesterday, my observation it is a left phenomena where intersectional politics trumps individualism and god help you if you identify with a particular supposed left wing group be it black, lgbt, the arts and culture and you step out of the left play book with your own individual opinion Recent examples include Kanya West and Shsnia Twain, your examples been non Bernie black voters is also testament to this To me it’s actually quite racist to expect because you are of a certain colour, sexual orientation you must think and vote s particular way or face vitriol and social media hate Not saying all left is like this as not all left on social media
Bomber lets rip with righteous indignation at Sepuloni’s stalling tactics….and doesn’t hold back with criticism of those ace patch-protectors at the PSA.
https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2018/04/29/new-government-response-to-msd-sadism-is-just-not-good-enough/
“We know MSD treat beneficiaries with sadism.
We.
Know.
This.
We know food parcels are soaring because MSD toxic culture means people will beg from Churches rather than go to WINZ.
We know MSD are still spitefully cutting off welfare for Tinder dates.
We know that the sadists at MSD chase beneficiaries through the courts for obscene debt they should never be forced to pay.
We know that when one judge questioned MSD why they were chasing a beneficiary for $120 000 debt (most of which was penalties and interest) was because she might win Lotto…
…it is unacceptable that the new Government apparently have no idea what to do next.
There are two reasons why the new Government are not doing anything and it comes down to cowardice.
The new government are too cowardly to take on the PSA over their toxic sadism culture and they are too cowardly to go up against right wing media and the bash a beneficiary culture we have in NZ.
It is deeply disappointing to see such a lack of real political courage.”
Methinks this government needs to stop seeing the task in terms of getting a container ship to alter course (the reference I think was on Carmel’s mind) and start acting.
I am pretty sure Susan St. John and Sue Bradford have a few ideas….
MSD needs to strike a balance between preventing fraud and treating those who are entitled with dignity No easy job but probably have not got the balance right, all for recalibration but coming down like ton of bricks on fraudsters
Correct balance:
“Helping people” 100%
“Fraud detection (because it’s not really prevention, is it)” the most basic automated tracking of payments possible, using IRD resources to identify suspicious patterns..
Here you go Bewildered….a wee primer on how we as a nation deal with benefit fraud as opposed to tax evasion and white collar fraud.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/88924330/Benefit-fraud-v-tax-avoidance-why-is-one-dealt-with-more-harshly-by-courts
Brought to you by our friends at Stuff…so not overly complicated by too many polysyllables.
And there’s charts and graphics and photos!
Comment dedicated to Wendy Shoebridge.
I had dinner with one of the MSD Auckland senior managers last night.
Minister Sepuloni simply isn’t on their radar yet.
“I had dinner with one of the MSD Auckland senior managers last night.”
I do hope your digestion was not adversely affected Ad. Sitting at the same table, breaking bread with a sociopath.
I could be being harsh…perhaps your dining pal is new to MSD? Parachuted into a senior management role very recently…. on a mission to begin the ‘culture change’?
“Minister Sepuloni simply isn’t on their radar yet.”
Assuming that means they don’t see her as a threat to the status quo, that its full steam ahead in the bene bashing business, I believe after her prevarication today they can rest easy.
Plenty of time to kick a few more of the fallen…
Dinner was awesome cheers.
It’s Minister Sepuloni who is going to determine if there will be substantial reform or not. That is where accountability lies.
If we get long lasting peace in Korea and demilitarisation does Donald trump deserve a Nobel peace prize You would argue so if Obama is the standard. Obama left us with Syria, a weak Iran deal and emboldened Russia with his softly softly let’s not upset any one You could argue the Donald no matter how unagreeable you find him his muscular diplomacy has been far more effective in driving peace
Got to say the madman routine actually seems to have been a significant factor.
If I were the committee I’d want to wait until his term is up, though, just in case he nukes somewhere for the hell of it.
And then there’s the concept of giving a peace prize to someone who contributed to peace by threatening nuclear war, but that’s just semantics, really.
Labour breaking promises.
Well there is a shock. Over promising and not delivering.
https://www.labour.org.nz/gp_fees
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12041822
It’s ok. I don’t expect a tory to understand the concept that a genuine coalition of different political parties requires compromise, especially after Joyce’s fiscal trapdoor was discovered.
It’s ok I don’t expect a leftie to understand commitments or promises.
It’s so mush easier to say slogans and go for feelz- it’s the adren government way.
What, like Bridges’ non-bridges?
Most people understand that election pledges are contingent on having the electoral power to follow through on them.
“Adren”, eh? Good name. sounds cool and hip and much more active than your lot ever could be.
“Most people understand that election pledges are contingent on having the electoral power to follow through on them.“
Labour stated (and still have on their website) that they WILL do this starting June this year.
Simply put – they are making promises they cannot deliver and are showing themselves up to be exactly what a lot of us expected.
Lol and if they’d updated the website before Clark’s announcement you’d say they were whitewashing history.
Overall, as far as I can see this is about the first policy point they’ve clearly failed to achieve, and announced that failure well in advance. Not bad for a coalition partner.
Do you feel the Adrenaline rush?
Yeah, I wonder what connection the sleazers were going for when they came up with that one.
As James was saying, they’re going for “feelz” 😂
It’s clear James and his National Party don’t understand how a real MMP coalition govt works. That’s why National is in opposition. Failiure to negotiate a coalition and still no mates.
Yes James, before you niggle, I know National were in a coalition, but Act, United Future and the Maori Party were no more than National’s well trained lap dogs. Labour, NZ First and the Greens are working together to form policy, that’s how MMP is supposed to work.
National and thier supporters need to realise that they can’t govern alone, otherwise National and Soimun will remain in opposition for a very long time.
I’ve got news for you, James: National has failed to deliver on all its election promises so far. Arguably, they have been delayed, just like Labour’s election promise of cheaper doctors’ visits for all. Only problem is that National’s delay will be at least 3 years, possibly longer 😉
how Tony Blair was able to call a public inquiry into the “suspected suicide” of David Kelly only minutes after being told of Kelly’s apparent death whilst on a long-haul flight, long before Dr Kelly had officially been declared a suicide victim, or the body confirmed as his.
https://www.opendemocracy.net/uk/peter-oborne/inconvenient-book-miles-goslett-david-kelly-aaronovitch
Brutal AF.
#Michelle Wolf
Good news for protesters intent on disrupting the work of oil and gas exploration vessels.
It seems that the heavy handed Andarko Amendment, that was supposed to protect the oil companies from protesters, has turned out to be a bit of a paper tiger.
After some high level behind the scene negotiations. The Crown and Greenpeace have come to an agreement.
Russel Norman and Sara Howel will agree to plead guilty, if the Crown agree to drop the case against Greenpeace.
The understanding being, that both Russel and Sara will not face any penalties at all. and despite their guilty pleas, convictions will not appear on their records. ie Diversion.
Tomorrow at 10am at the Napier District Court, to avoid putting them out, or inconveniencing them in anyway, both Sara and Russel will phone in their court appearance, and make their guilty plea by skype from Auckland. Another First.
Related comments and posts:
“Govt drops charges against Greenpeace”
Greenpeace Friday, 27 April 2018, 9:16 am
“Greenpeace Vs Simon Bridges”
Thanks Guys!
That is really great. Thanks for the update Jenny.
Sunday read.
The History of the Shariʿa
How Islam’s divine law emerged, evolved, and spread—then reached a crisis point.
https://www.laphamsquarterly.org/roundtable/history-sharia
Rapist’s descendants annoyed everyone keeps on bringing up all the rapes.
.
MANILA – A new memorial dedicated to the Philippines “comfort women” forced into Japan’s military brothels before and during World War II was removed Friday night, days after suspicions surfaced that it was being targeted for demolition.
[…]
The issue of the comfort women, Japan’s euphemism for the girls and women, is a sensitive one for Japan, and the embassy had expressed concerns over the statue, one of many sprouting up in South Korea, the United States and elsewhere to memorialize an episode of history Japan would rather forget
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2018/04/28/national/politics-diplomacy/new-comfort-women-memorial-removed-thoroughfare-manila-pressure-japanese-embassy/
“Can civilisation prolong its life until the end of this century? “It depends on what we are prepared to do.” He fears it will be a long time before we take proportionate action to stop climatic calamity. “Standing in the way is capitalism. Can you imagine the global airline industry being dismantled when hundreds of new runways are being built right now all over the world? It’s almost as if we’re deliberately attempting to defy nature. We’re doing the reverse of what we should be doing, with everybody’s silent acquiescence, and nobody’s batting an eyelid.”
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/apr/26/were-doomed-mayer-hillman-on-the-climate-reality-no-one-else-will-dare-mention
think it realistic to note that this theme from an increasing number of informed individuals will become prevalent.
It’s not ‘almost’. We are attempting to defy nature and reality to maintain a few people in wealth and luxury.
It probably will but, with the help of the RWNJs in National and Labour (and similar parties around the world), probably after we’ve pushed the ecosphere to the point where we will no longer be able to live in it.
The Am Show The closing of that Auckland park to save OUR great Kauri trees the atua of our forest is a big win for us greenies. If business go broke so be it they have had years to come up with plan B or C. We have had a big win in Europe with the banning of those insecticides and other chemicals that kill BEEs now we need to look into it .
When my children were young 2nd 1 was less than 6 months old we stayed across the road from a vineyard our baby had rashes he had breathing problems off in a ambulance twice. As soon as we moved from this location his symptoms disappeared that tells one some thing about man made chemicals .
This inquire on the treatment of children in state care should include church organization after all there is alot of evidence that there has been abuse of the mokopunas in the churches care all around the world and in NZ .
As for Trump I will ease off maybe he should be given the credit for the deescalation of the tension in Korea and then he will not throw a spanner in the works and the peace and diplomacy will work .
OUR Banks need to be investigated if the banks in Aussie are cheating than Our banks will be doing the same . They stereotype people and I say they will turn down people for loans just because they are brown. I am having a tussel with 2 of OURs Banks at the minute.
Charter School are for the 1% the poor mokopunas that end up at these schools will have been targeted for sports and less than 5% of the roll .I want more REO taught in schools
these charter schools will have better grades because they are getting the cream of the crop of mokopunas so one cannot fairly use those stats to justify the existence of these institutions. Ka kite ano
Here’s a man who is learning Te reo
Ka pai Jole
https://i.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/comment/columnists/103432641/joel-maxwell-learning-te-reo-has-made-me-whole-for-the-first-time-in-my-life could be whano with that Sir name Ka kite ano P.S I’m envious of him but I will learn te reo and I will have speach to Te whano
Newshub Ka pai Paddy Gloriavale is not a nice sect especially if they can keep a mans family away from him did you know that most of the sandflies hierarchy are religious fanatics
There you go I was talking about all the sacred sites around Aotearoa that need to be carefully examined buy trained archaeologist like that site that they found the half built Waka that site should be sifted to find other precious Maori relics.
Many thanks to the Australians for taking steps to protect there precious Great Barrier Reef Man is nothing with out mother nature.
The weekends sports was GREAT . Ka kite ano P.S thats another pukana to the sandflies they did not like what I wrote this morning
The Crowd goes Wild the sandflys have stuff with my computer I have a good post on it but it won’t load I told you the are upset Ka kite ano P.S. I will post my post with my pH it will be late but you will have a laugh
No probs Pat.
Here’s a good write up of the case by Sam Hurley, NZ Herald court reporter.
Greenpeace head Russel Norman pleads guilty to obstructing oil survey ship”
New Zealand Herald, 30 Apr, 2018
Overall a win, win for Greenpeace and a lose, lose, for the Anadarko Amendment on its first ever outing.
With the fangs pulled from the Anadarko Amendment, a new campaign on the water can commence.
The clock has started ticking on achieving a total ban on oil and gas exploration. The campaign that has begun achieving a halt in all new block offers, will finish with a campaign to shut down all deep sea oil and gas exploration
Thank you Patricia.
Here’s a good write up of the case by Sam Hurley, NZ Herald court reporter.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12042049
Overall a win, win for Greenpeace and a lose, lose, for the Anadarko Amendment on its first ever outing.
With the fangs pulled from the Anadarko Amendment, a new campaign on the water can commence.
The clock has started ticking on achieving a total ban on oil and gas exploration. The campaign that has begun achieving a halt in all new block offers, will finish with a campaign to shut down all deep sea oil and gas exploration