“Universal” welfare programmes effectively make EVERYBODY a beneficiary…
One looks forward to the Herald editor steadfastly refusing to accept universal superannuation turning them into a beneficiary after they’re 65, and instead returning the money to the government…
The future is all unknowable claim these intellectual giants, so why bother preparing for it (other than by implementing libertarianism, naturally). #pffft
Someone could possibly remind us of the link to use so you don’t have to go to whaleoil or kiwiblog? I thought there was one but haven’t noted it.
Incidentally an email from Scoop Gordon Campbell now overall Editor and two new Trustees Jeremy Rose and Jan River of Public Good Aotearoa NZ. Great news in every sense.
Did you notice this in the Stuff piece?
“Economist Brian Easton has written that, with a universal income, either “the required tax rates are horrendous or the minimum income is so low” it won’t eliminate poverty”.
If you have Brian, who is fairly much of the left, saying your ideas are barmy you are really in trouble.
My prediction is that in a couple of months Labour will simply stop talking about it and quietly drop the whole scheme. Pity really.
Labour have thrown the dice on UBI…lets see if it gives them some traction, or becomes a liability come the serious debates in 2017.
Which ever way one looks at a UBI, it can’t be done without a major rehash of the tax system in NZ. Money does not grow on tree’s (although I imagine more than 1 commentator here would say it does!! all that’s required is a printing press).
Oh common bm if it was the greens you would be here telling us how it proves the greens are , insert meme of the week here.
Robinson points out that the tpu are not to be taken seriously and leaves unspoken the fact that they are tools for the right.
As a democracy we need an effective opposition to try and hinder the Government from doing dumb things,and Labour is the best bet we have.
We dont see the Greens fulfilling that role, Winston’s not really doing it either, so while we may not vote Labour, we do care about its role in our democracy.
The Nats recovered from the low 20s and I expect that Labour will recover from its time in the 20s also.
Growth: 2-3% per year over the next several years.
Jobs: Unemployment fallen to 5.3%
Infrastructure: Fibre Broadband, Roads of National Significance, Christchurch Rebuild.
Unfortunately Stuart your comment is without foundation.
I partially agree with you about the debt though – I am sure the government could have limited their spending over the last 7 years to minimize how much debt they incurred.
Your advise about labour is always wrong. Actually never seen when you have been right. You jump on the band wagon of us who criticise the labour party with child like glee. But never in a constructive manor, unless it is to support some right wing nut job inside the labour party. It’s a bore.
and your fake pathos about the labour party is sickening.
You and yours just don’t want people to do better, are you opposed to helping the poor? Are you opposed to a society that thinks all it’s members are worth something?
To make them sleep easier I’d suggest introduction of a TPPA or Tax on Property Profit Actualised AKA CGT; it must be the TPU’s equivalent of a ‘nocturnal emission’.
“Quoting Obama’s declaration that “it is time, now, for us to leave the past behind,” the man who shaped Cuba during the second half of the 20th century writes that “I imagine that any one of us ran the risk of having a heart attack on hearing these words from the President of the United States.”
Castro then returns to a review of a half-century of US aggression against Cuba. Those events include the decades-long US trade embargo against the island; the 1961 Bay of Pigs attack and the 1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner backed by exiles who took refuge in the US.
He ends with a dig at the Obama administration’s drive to increase business ties with Cuba.”
I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t be but it would be nice to have actual study on it. Oh, here’s one:
he findings from the 84 in-depth interviews provided information on residents’ perceptions and experiences of living in medium density housing. the findings afforded us the opportunity to assess how effectively the outcomes of smart growth policies have met the expectations,
aspirations, and needs of this group of intensive housing residents.
Seems that it’s probably the same in NZ as in Australia.
Just wondering what Matthew Hooton will do once he becomes part of the precariat. Does he have any skills other than speaking with a forked tongue? What could he retrain as?
Good to hear the left wing guy challenging his bullshit on Nine to Noon.
Good to hear the left wing guy challenging his bullshit on Nine to Noon.
I agree, weka. Stephen Mills actually seemed to have thought about what he was going to say today, and to have worked out that Hooton needs to be challenged constantly.
I was concerned, however, that Hooton still does the great majority of the talking, and still gets away with the most outrageous statements.
Still, a much better performance from Stephen Mills. He’s given Hooton a hard time in the past….
Key-Sucker Audrey Young still picking over the corpse of her darling’s flag fuck up. Presumably to impress that there’s something essentially rum in the result. No Audrey. Your darling Man-Child’s vanity fucked him up. You as well need to grow up. As a journalist you’re an irresponsible disgrace.
Reposting this excellent doco (50mins) on Glyphosate that TMM posted the other day. Glyphosate is the most common weed killer used in farming, and it’s also used globally and domestically for preparing fields for crop production. Basically we eat plant material that comes into contact with a poison:
It’s deactivated almost immediately when it hits soil colloids and that’s why it’s used for preparing land for planting crops. You can plant the next day or even the same day,
This seems to be at odds with the documentary, that glyphosate isn’t deactivated at all.
You would do well as a spokesperson for the manufacturer Monsanto, who can’t seem to put up a good case for it being safe other than it’s been in use for 40 years. Then let the state and any other not for profit organisation do all the fact finding for you on the actual risks.
The half-life of glyphosate ranges from several weeks to years, but averages two months. In water, glyphosate is rapidly dissipated through adsorption to suspended and bottom sediments, and has a half-life of 12 days to ten weeks. Glyphosate by itself is of relatively low toxicity to birds, mammals, and fish, and at least one formulation sold as Rodeo® is registered for aquatic use.
Some surfactants that are included in some formulations of lyphosate, however, are highly toxic to aquatic organisms, and these formulations are not registered for aquatic use.
Further to the above its not difficult to find many studies that confirm that Round Up as sold by Monsanto is more toxic than was once thought. Here is one reviewed in Scientific American
Until now, most health studies have focused on the safety of glyphosate, rather than the mixture of ingredients found in Roundup. But in the new study, scientists found that Roundup’s inert ingredients amplified the toxic effect on human cells—even at concentrations much more diluted than those used on farms and lawns.
One specific inert ingredient, polyethoxylated tallowamine, or POEA, was more deadly to human embryonic, placental and umbilical cord cells than the herbicide itself – a finding the researchers call “astonishing.”
It’s hardly astonishing, given that glyphosate works by suppressing an enzyme that’s found in plants but not animals. The list of things more deadly to human embryonic cells than glyphosate would be a very, very long one that included some really-not-very-toxic-at-all stuff on it.
If you were to read the studies further you would see:
““This clearly confirms that the [inert ingredients] in Roundup formulations are not inert,” wrote the study authors from France’s University of Caen. “Moreover, the proprietary mixtures available on the market could cause cell damage and even death [at the] residual levels” found on Roundup-treated crops, such as soybeans, alfalfa and corn, or lawns and gardens.
The research team suspects that Roundup might cause pregnancy problems by interfering with hormone production, possibly leading to abnormal fetal development, low birth weights or miscarriages.”
“The authorizations for using these Roundup herbicides must now clearly be revised since their toxic effects depend on, and are multiplied by, other compounds used in the mixtures,” Seralini’s team wrote.
The EPA’s classification of Roundup was initially done in 1993 and hasn’t been reviewed since. The study quoted above was done in 2009. I would not place a great deal of reliance on the EPA’s assessment at this stage. Particularly as most of the research was conducted by the chemical industry and in particular Monsanto itself:
But the EPA’s exoneration — which means that the agency will not require additional tests of the chemical’s effects on the hormonal system — is undercut by the fact that the decision was based almost entirely on pesticide industry studies. Only five independently funded studies were considered in the review of whether glyphosate interferes with the endocrine system. Twenty-seven out of 32 studies that looked at glyphosate’s effect on hormones and were cited in the June review — most of which are not publicly available and were obtained by The Intercept through a Freedom of Information Act request — were either conducted or funded by industry. Most of the studies were sponsored by Monsanto or an industry group called the Joint Glyphosate Task Force. One study was by Syngenta, which sells its own glyphosate-containing herbicide, Touchdown.
No.
1. Less toxic than many other things != non-toxic.
2. Just about everything’s lethal in a big enough dose.
Re the studies claiming glyphosate is dangerous, is that the same Seralini whose study claiming that GMOs caused tumours in rats had to be withdrawn because it was so bad? The EU says: “To date, more than 800 studies have been conducted along with evaluations carried out by regulatory authorities across the world, all of which have confirmed the safety of glyphosate.”
“To date, more than 800 studies have been conducted along with evaluations carried out by regulatory authorities across the world, all of which have confirmed the safety of glyphosate.”
That is not what the concern is about – talk about shifting goal posts!
The problem is with the mixture of glyphosate and POEA. Few of the so-called “independent” reviews consider this. Certainly not the regulatory authorities who take their “research” from the manufacturers and then those outside the states who take their research from the EPA. It’s all a big back scratching exercise. No wonder people are turning off, and doubting “scientific” regulatory authorities when their research is so compromised. It’s like asking the Koch Bros to give a dissertation on Global Warming!
Then to cite 800 studies – well they would not all have been done in the past year would they. And Roundup has been around for a few years now – but its only in the recent past that people have begun to wonder if some of the things they are experiencing now might not be connected with this product. I myself used Roundup extensively on the farm for a number of years and before that Paraquat – before it was taken off the market because of its toxicity. oh and the EU approved the use of it 2004!
So, yeah, shifting goalposts. Apparently, glyphosate isn’t anything to worry about, but polyoxyethyleneamine is. I wouldn’t know enough about it to comment, but if that is the situation maybe people could stop wittering on about glyphosate?
And when it comes to “compromised” research that can’t be trusted, you really couldn’t find a better example than anti-GMO activist Gilles-Eric Seralini. After the rat-tumours propaganda fiasco, any research with his name on it is worthless.
Almost all of the criticism against the Seralini research was from researchers primarily funded by the Industry, and that includes the regulatory bodies which (as I have previously pointed out) rely heavily on Industry funded research. If the critics of Serelini really wanted to prove their point then they would repeat the research with greater numbers of animals, rats less susceptible to cancer, and controls which they were happy with. They may not like the results however.
Roundup weed-killer – glyphosate – is “probably carcinogenic,” according the World Health Organization. The decision was laid out in an analysis in The Lancet Oncology.
And who am I to argue with that.
Glyphosate is also one of the most commonly used garden herbicides, as well as the most commonly used in agriculture. It is sold under different names but everyone knows it as Roundup.
With our she’ll be right attitude here in NZ we tend to use it with wild abandon at the sight of the tiniest of weeds, not knowing or understanding just how toxic it is. I mean, it’s sold on supermarket shelves so it must be safe right?
Our local council seems to love Monsanto too. It sprays council berms, gutters and parks liberally and excessively.
As well as being a health risk it’s also largely unnecessary. You can pull weeds out of the ground. For free! Or if you have tough weeds on a paved patio you can sprinkle the weeds with the cheapest table salt you can buy and pour boiling water over and your weeds die almost instantly. I’ve done this successfully in the past. Or for large scale weeding you can purchase a hand held weed burner, powered by a gas cannister.
Good tips Rosie, I have been thinking about this a bit lately. I don’t get why people would want to liberally go around and poison weed spray over everything around their house (I have seen it a couple of times recently). After all it is just going to come back in a few months, and you’ve created a possible health risk, changed soil conditions and had an effect on the insect life too.
I also see it with councils where they spray along fencelines and edges of tracks. Most of it is unnecessary, unless there is something like a blackberry infestation growing across a track its a good idea. But spraying fencelines again and again to create some scorched earth at the bottom of it is crazy, especially with a toxic chemical.
I have tried a salt and vinegar spray before on blackberry, with dishwashing liquid to make it stick to the leaves, but it didn’t really work, only a small amount of the leaves browned off. So I might look into that gas torch idea. Thanks.
Blackberry is particularly hard to get rid of and even Roundup won’t be effective. Good luck with the gas torch. Heavy duty herbicides such as Tordon and Scrub Cutter are used on blackberry. Even though 2,4,D is banned in NZ, a variant of this chemical is used in the manufacture of these two herbicides. You need full PPE to apply this stuff, but I wouldn’t go near it myself.
Tordon was used aerially on gorse on a farm near us a few years ago. There were two breaches of the regional council’s rules. One was a lack of notification to nearby residents and the other was a breach of the 300 metre buffer zone. The helicopter pilot dumped this crap, literally, over our neighbourhood, as people were walking up the street to the bus stop and cycling to work in the morning rush. Despite the evidence people gathered, it took a massive effort to get the regional council to act. The pilot ended up with a “please don’t do this again” note. We really do have such a lazze faire approach to agrichemical safety in this country.
Final point. I used to work in the organic food industry in the 90’s, 2000’s. I remember visiting a supplier’s apple orchard. As well as the air being alive with bee’s and butterflies due to the lack of pesticides there was a marked difference in the quality of the soil around his tree’s compared to the soil around the tree’s of his neighbours. His neighbour was a supplier of conventionally grown apples to the supermarkets. Despite it being a dry time of the year, the soil on the organic orchard retained it’s structure and a bit more moisture, where as the soil of the roundup sprayed tree bases were crumbly and in large chunks. It looked dead.
The health of the different soils were in stark contrast. And the neighbour had all that extra cost too.
Basically we eat plant material that comes into contact with a poison
It comes into contact with dirt and the excretions of a wide variety of different creatures, too. If you’re going to panic about stuff you can’t see that is entering the sacred temple of your body, the risk of microbiological contamination offers far better material than whatever traces of herbicide might still be on there.
“the risk of microbiological contamination offers far better material than whatever traces of herbicide might still be on there.”
Only if you are microbe-phobic.
The issue is what humans have evolved with. We’re actually pretty good at living alongside microbes and dirt, with some notable exceptions, because we have millions of years of co-evolution (those that best fit survived). The number of chemicals we are exposed to now is massively higher than pre-industrial revolution, and science is still not so good at studying culmulative effect, multiple variables, and individual response.
We know that some herbicides are dangerous (which is why we’ve banned them), so unless you are arguing that Glyphosate-based herbicides are a special class of chemicals with zero side effects (would love to see that), we’re talking a matter of degrees. A big part of the problem is that PR has been a major driver of information (Monsanto are the new tobacco companies), so you have conflicting ideas about what the problem might be, let alone what it actually is. Fortunately there does seem to be much more non-industry research being done now to present a more comprehensive picture of what the issue are.
The thing about evolution is that the microbes also evolve, and quicker than we do. You’re far more likely to get sick from microbial life forms in your food than from glyphosate, which is pretty much never found in quantities that have a chance of being harmful to humans (and that’s not because big government and Monsanto have prevented anyone testing the levels remaining in food, it’s because there’s been plenty of testing and the results show no threat).
We do know that some herbicides are dangerous and have banned them, which is one of the main reasons glyphosate is so ubiquitous – it works and is (relatively) safe. If it wasn’t, it would be among those banned herbicides. This is a subject like vaccination, in which anti-science irrationalists convince themselves that the lack of evidence something is harmful doesn’t trump their gut instinct that it just has to be.
And why is it in the documentary they show evidence that the chemical can change gene structures and destroy good gut bacteria. In studies with rats they found feeding them human tolerable amounts of glyphosate that the rats grew large tumors. And why were several farmers finding that their livestock were having lower reproductive rates and higher birth defects when their stock was being fed glyphosate based feed?
The industry response is that these trials/tests didn’t follow some proper scientific process, so they should be ignored. Industry don’t seem to want to conduct their own trials with matching conditions – funny that! You’re the one sounding like the science irrationalist I’m afraid.
The thing is, those studies really don’t follow proper scientific process. Actual scientists do study this stuff – and come up with results like “glyphosate, the main ingredient in the herbicide Roundup, does not accumulate in mother’s breast milk.” (Washington State University study).
The WSU study was a scientific one conducted by a biological scientist who is “an executive committee member for the International Society for Research in Human Milk and Lactation and a national spokesperson for the American Society for Nutrition.”
The German study claimed to have been carried out by the Green Party is mentioned on globalresearch.ca, an anti-globalisation activist site, and a detox nutter site, with the study itself not available. The American study that prompted it was carried out by “anti-GMO activist group Moms Across America with “Sustainable Pulse,” an online “news service” published by anti-GMO campaigner and organic food entrepreneur Henry Rowlands.” (academicsreview.org, in a piece aptly titled “Debunking pseudo science “lab testing” health risk claims about glyphosate (Roundup)”).
The thing is, those studies really don’t follow proper scientific process…The WSU study was a scientific one…
It is a non-peer reviewed study done in conjunction with Monsanto. The authors have since published a paper specifically on their quantification method ( http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4743594/ ) but not on the methodology of their overall study, which was presented as a report at a conference.
“The thing is, those studies really don’t follow proper scientific process…
The WSU study was a scientific one…”
The WSU study is a non-peer reviewed report presented at a conference and done in conjunction with Monsanto. The authors have now published a paper specifically on their quantification method but not on the methodology of the overall study.
I find it interesting that you’ve avoided that evidence that does look like proper science and that the World Health Organisation thinks it’s a carcinogen. This should be swept aside because we have nothing to worry about right?.. Wouldn’t best practice be, lets stop it’s use until we find out what it’s doing and what it’s effects are. Maybe that’s the approach that countries like Sri Lanka and some in Europe who have banned it already, will go down.
The list of things the WHO thinks “probably causes cancer” is a very long one and is of little value in the absence of the info “what level of risk” and “at what dose.” For example, they think red meat “probably causes cancer,” ie some studies have shown a slight increase in risk if you eat lots of it. This comes under the heading of “Big Whoop.”
A useful rule of thumb when considering how credible studies about glyphosate are, is to figure out whether the people carrying out the studies are anti-GMO activists or not. Activism and science are about as compatible as religion and science – ie, not very. Both the articles you’ve linked to are anti-GMO activism – one is featured on an anti-GMO activist web site and the other involves Gilles-Eric Seralini, whose reputation hasn’t survived his rat-tumours propaganda exercise.
A quote from Oscar Wilde who is still amusing and satirical. Sincerity
A little sincerity is a dangerous thing, and a great deal of it is absolutely fatal.
I’d quote but it was just a selection of inane BS comments from off of Facebook seemingly selected to show that there’s no support for becoming a republic.
Really, if they want to report on the public’s feeling of becoming a republic then the should be doing a poll. Like this:
The poll, by Curia Market Research, was commissioned by New Zealand Republic. It shows support for a New Zealand Head of State has risen to 44%. Support from people aged 18-30 is at now at 66%. Support for using the next British Monarch as our next head of state has fallen to 46%.
Yeah, we won’t be staying part of the British monarchy for much longer.
Looks like it’s a matter of time. When Liz goes I expect it will become an issue. I really hope we don’t do it soon though, can you imagine National running the process?
What makes you think using a UBI to stick it to the elderly isn’t Grants plan? I have certainly seen plenty of comments which argue a UBI is a good way to smuggle in and restructure the entire tax system which appears to be popular with the commentariat on here.
I think it’s better that Labour don’t start commenting on this. They don’t have a policy, and I’m guessing they haven’t done to much more work on a UBI other than the report they commissioned. They put the report out for discussion. That’s what is happening. I’d like to see a whole range of people grapple with this before Labour get too involved. Let people hash it out.
We all know they haven’t formulated a policy on this yet. However, they have been quick to totally rule things out. Like the 50% tax rate.
With talk of replacing benefits, coupled with a UBI rate centered around $200 a week and the possibility of a capital tax, a number of pensioners and home owning low income earners are becoming rather concerned.
Therefore, to put an end to their concern and keep the discussion on track, if they have ruled this out they should inform us.
It’s a total waste of time having the public hash things out when they have (if that is the case) been totally ruled out.
Labour wanted to have this debate, the least they can do is partake a little more. Keeping us all up to date with what has and hasn’t been ruled out as the discussion moves forward.
And by partaking, it also acknowledges the discussion is being heard. It only takes a brief comment, like good points made to achieve this.
An Emmerson cartoon that the Herald kept off the digital version until today.I have been chuckling since Saturday and was about to copy and post today when it appeared. Here you are Standardistas have a laugh.
…”Meanwhile, London Mayor Boris Johnson has chosen to speak out, despite the silence of his country’s prime minister.
Praising the “ruthless clarity” of Russian President Vladimir Putin in aiding the Syrian government’s removal of “maniac” Islamic State jihadists from Palmyra, Johnson said that Moscow has made the West look “ineffective.”
“If reports are to be believed, the Russians have not only been engaged in airstrikes against Assad’s opponents, but have been seen on the ground as well. If Putin’s troops have helped winkle the maniacs from Palmyra, then (it pains me to admit) that is very much to the credit of the Russians. They have made the West look ineffective; and so now is the time for us to make amends, and to play to our strengths,” Johnson wrote in his column for the Telegraph.
Johnson went on to note the archaeological and historical significance of the city, much of which has been destroyed by Islamic State.
“The victory of Assad is a victory for archaeology, a victory for all those who care about the ancient monuments of one of the most amazing cultural sites on Earth,” Johnson wrote….
Good on you Little for not shying away from Hooton’s vicious attacks. Hooton claims he doesn’t know what he (Little) is talking about and says – he ought to demand an apology but doesn’t think he’ll bother. You bet he won’t bother because anyone who listens to the RNZ political spot on a Monday morning or reads his media opinions knows how true it is.
And anyone who dares to stand up to Hooton is painted as an idiot/crazy/mad and deranged according the maddest/craziest and most deranged “commentator” in the country.
Please do a post someone so we can all verbally attack him with relish.
So Little says hooton is part of the problem and hooton responds by calling the leader of the second biggest political party an idiot, there by proving Little right. Your a fucking moron hooton.
And anyone who dares to stand up to Hooton is painted as an idiot/crazy/mad and deranged according the maddest/craziest and most deranged “commentator” in the country.
Hooton doesn’t need “standing up to”. He is a political commentator who says things some people don’t agree with. No more, no less. Disagreeing with him, easily done through any of the the myriad of social media available, isn’t “standing up” to him in the sense of implying courage and determination in the face of threats and pressure. Not need to over-egg it.
And calling him names doesn’t help either. Is he really the most “deranged” commentator in the country? If you think that, you need to get out more.
Tinshed. It was Hooton who recently called someone “deranged”. He has also used the words “idiot”, “mad” and “crazy” to describe various opposition politicians. I was using his own words against him with some accuracy – as anyone who has listened to him on radio and elsewhere could testify.
You need to learn to read text more carefully.
And for your edification, Hooton is a verbal bully who needs to be stood up to.
I note that nothing has been said today about the death threats received by Paula Bennett on Facebook. Andrew Little has indicated that while he does not condone, of course, such comments, given the difficult economic times combined with the harsh rhetoric of commentators like Matthew Hooton, such aggressive actions are, to some degree, a factor in such threats. Is that the view shared by most people? I would have thought threatening to kill a Cabinet Minister was pretty serious stuff and required not only Police action, but unequivocal rejection and condemnation by all. Violence, or threats of violence, have no place in political discourse.
Someone called Mike Hosking a moron on Twitter that got a lot of media attention. Someone told his psychiatrist he wanted to bomb John Key & was imprisoned. Helen Clark had an axe through her window. Dildos, meringues, buckets of mud. The hoi polloi are getting restless. Hooton thrives on hatred.
See my comment @ 19 Tinshed. Read the link because Andrew Little made it clear there was no justification for that type of aggressive behaviour. He then goes on to say he has observed an upsurge in such behaviour in recent years and he believed it was partly in response to the struggle so many NZers are experiencing because of harsh government actions.
And in case there is an attempt to “blame the behaviour on Labour”, he pointed out that the kind of vicious commentary some right wing PR commentators indulge in is also adding to the problem. (I paraphrase)
He is correct on both counts.
Edit: My last sentence @19 is tongue in cheek. I’m not encouraging “aggressive” action be taken against Hooton as some rwnj might try to claim.
My issue with the factors you raise – that Little condemned the behaviour and then went on to observe that harsh government actions makes such behaviour understandable, is that it reeks of victim-blaming. It is kinda of like having a bob each way – violence is unacceptable but I understand why people are violent. I suspect that many people hear is only the second part – times are hard, so violence is understandable. I am not sure that is the right response to threats to kill politicians.
So Tinshed you’re saying that a political leader is not allowed to reflect on what might be causing the behaviour? That is precisely what Andrew Little should be doing when it is appropriate. And it is appropriate to point out the treatment meted out to so many people by this government is what is behind the increase in the behaviour. It is also appropriate to point out the aggressive verbal attacks by right wing commentators also plays a role in the behaviour. Matthew Hooton in particular is a purveyor of hatred.
What I observe is that no-one here really condemns the implied violence directed at Paula Bennett, but instead finds reasons for the behaviour elsewhere. Matthew Hooton is just a political commentator who most here disagree with. He doesn’t publish death threats, yet those that do seem to get a free pass. I find it odd that some commentators here seem so eager to criticise Matthew Hooton as a purveyor of hate, yet are much less inclined to condemn the violence directed at National Party Cabinet ministers. I believe Andrew Little also falls into that category. You may see this as Little merely “reflecting” on what he sees, but I see it differently. Violence has no place in our political discourse and must be unreservedly denounced.
Violence has no place in our political discourse and must be unreservedly denounced.
Well, I call dubbing opposition politicians mad/stupid/ idiots/deranged as being a form of violent political discourse. Especially when they are patently untrue. So how about you reserve some of your ‘denouncing’ for Matthew Hooton.
And what about the violence directed and Labour and Green politicians eh? There’s plenty of it but they tend not to make too much of a fuss about it.
Well, I call dubbing opposition politicians mad/stupid/ idiots/deranged as being a form of violent political discourse.
With respect, from someone who also said,and I quote, I was using his own words against him with some accuracy – as anyone who has listened to him on radio and elsewhere could testify.. What you seem to be saying is that it is OK to call Hooton mad/stupid/idiots/deranged because a) he used these words to describe other people b) they are true when describing him, but should anyone else uses the very same adjectives to describe opposition politicians then they are engaging in political violence. Sorry, I don’y see that way and suggest you are demonstrating a double standard.
Hooton says the one thing he was ashamed about “when you read it in the cold light of day” was the bit where the blogger Cactus Kate (real name Cathy Odgers) asks for Hager’s home address, so she can pass it on to wealthy Chinese clients angered by a study Hager co-authored about tax havens: “Chop chop for Nicky, ” wrote Odgers. Hooton gave her Hager’s street name (but not number)
There’s other stuff that never makes it into political discourse. Like how many suicides, mental health issues, domestic violence and regular violent incidents happen each year that can be linked to the effect of WINZ policies and culture? But then again maybe it’s more important we talk about Bennett instead..
The streets of London have seen an increase in bike riders and a decrease in car commuters. According to an article published by the BBC, the number of cyclists during rush hour will outnumber cars within the new few years.
According to Transport for London, over the last decade and a half car drivers have decreased by almost 50% – from 137,000 in 2000 to 64,000 in 2014 – while the number of cyclists has tripled from 12,000 to 36,000. The authority touts the statistics as “a feat unprecedented in any major city.”
More bad news for supporters of the status quo and good news for the rest of us.
1 of a series on TPP Beware of TPP’s Investor–State Dispute Settlement Provision
By Joseph Stiglitz | 03.28.16
,blockquote>The alleged goal of ISDS is to increase security for investors in states without an adequate “rule of law.” But the fact that the U.S. is insisting on the same provisions in Europe, where legal safeguards are as strong as they are in the U.S., suggests another motive: the desire to make it harder to adopt new financial regulations, environmental laws, worker protections, and food and health safety standards. http://rooseveltinstitute.org/beware-tpps-investor-state-dispute-settlement-provision/
Also well worth a read from a study by Krzysztof J. Pelc
Using newly released data covering 696 investment disputes, I
assess some of the central claims about ISDS. I argue that the regime has indeed undergone a major shift: a majority of claims deal not with direct takings by low rule of law countries, but with regulation in democratic states. The result of this shift towards indirect expropriation affects firms’ incentives:claimants may gain even when they lose a challenge, if litigation can deter governments’ regulatory ambitions. The result, as I show, is an increase in the number of cases, accompanied by a precipitous decrease in their legal merit. Investors bringing indirect expropriation claims also appear far less likely to settle, and more likely to publicize the dispute,
consistently with theoretical expectations.
by Molten Moira from Motueka If you want to be a woman let me tell you what to do Get a piece of paper and a biro tooWrite down your new identification And boom! You’re now a woman of this nationSpelled W O M A Na real trans woman that isAs opposed ...
Buzz from the Beehive New Zealand Education Minister Jan Tinetti is hosting the inaugural Conference of Pacific Education Ministers for three days from today, welcoming Education Ministers and senior officials from 18 Pacific Island countries and territories, and from Australia. Here’s hoping they have brought translators with them – or ...
Let’s say you’ve come all the way from His Majesty’s United Kingdom to share with the folk of Australia and New Zealand your antipathy towards certain other human beings. And let’s say you call yourself a women’s rights activist.And let’s say 99 out of 100 people who listen to you ...
James Shaw gave the Green party's annual "state of the planet" address over the weekend, in which he expressed frustration with Labour for not doing enough on climate change. His solution is to elect more Green MPs, so they have more power within any government arrangement, and can hold Labour ...
RNZ this morning has the first story another investigative series by Guyon Espiner, this time into political lobbying. The first story focuses on lobbying by government agencies, specifically transpower, Pharmac, and assorted universities, and how they use lobbyists to manipulate public opinion and gather intelligence on the Ministers who oversee ...
Nick Matzke writes – Dear NZ Herald, I am a Senior Lecturer in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Auckland. I teach evolutionary biology, but I also have long experience in science education and (especially) political attempts to insert pseudoscience into science curricula in ...
James Shaw has again said the Greens would be better ‘in the tent’ with Labour than out, despite Labour’s policy bonfire last week torching much of what the Government was doing to reduce emissions. File Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The Green Party has never been more popular than in some ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sarah Wesseler Poor air quality is a long-standing problem in Los Angeles, where the first major outbreak of smog during World War II was so intense that some residents thought the city had been attacked by chemical weapons. Cars were eventually discovered ...
Yesterday I was reading an excellent newsletter from David Slack, and I started writing a comment “Sounds like some excellent genetic heritage…” and then I stopped.There was something about the phrase genetic heritage that stopped me in tracks. Is that a phrase I want to be saying? It’s kind of ...
Brian Easton writes – Two senior economists challenge some of the foundations of current economics. It is easy to criticise economic science by misrepresenting it, by selective quotations, and by ignoring that it progresses, like all sciences, by improving and abandoning old theories. The critics may go ...
This week marks the twentieth anniversary of the Iraq War. While it strongly opposed the US-led invasion, New Zealand’s then Labour-led government led by Prime Minister Helen Clark did deploy military engineers to try to help rebuild Iraq in mid-2003. With violence soaring, their 12-month deployment ended without being renewed ...
After seventy years, Auckland’s motorway network is finally finished. In July 1953 the first section of motorway in Auckland was opened between Ellerslie-Panmure Highway and Mt Wellington Highway. The final stage opens to traffic this week with the completion of the motorway part of the Northern Corridor Improvements project. Aucklanders ...
National’s appointment of Todd McClay as Agriculture spokesperson clearly signals that the party is in trouble with the farming vote. McClay was not an obvious choice, but he does have a record as a political scrapper. The party needs that because sources say it has been shedding farming votes ...
Rays of white light come flooding into my lounge, into my face from over the top of my neighbour’s hedge. I have to look away as the window of the conservatory is awash in light, as if you were driving towards the sun after a rain shower and suddenly blinded. ...
The columnists in Private Eye take pen names, so I have not the least idea who any of them are. But I greatly appreciate their expert insight, especially MD, who writes the medical column, offering informed and often damning critique of the UK health system and the politicians who keep ...
A chronological listing of news articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Mar 12, 2023 thru Sat, Mar 18, 2023. Story of the Week Guest post: What 13,500 citations reveal about the IPCC’s climate science report IPCC WG1 AR6 SPM Report Cover - Changing ...
Buzz from the Beehive The building of financial capability was brought into our considerations when Social Development and Employment Minister Carmel Sepuloni announced she had dipped into the government’s coffers for $3 million for “providers” to help people and families access community-based Building Financial Capability services. That wording suggests some ...
Do you ever come across something that makes you go Hmmmm?You mean like the song?No, I wasn’t thinking of the song, but I am now - thanks for that. I was thinking of things you read or hear that make you stop and go Hmmmm.Yeah, I know what you mean, ...
By the end of the week, the dramas over Stuart Nash overshadowed Hipkins’ policy bonfire. File photo: Lynn GrieveasonTLDR: This week’s news in geopolitics and the political economy covered on The Kākā included:PM Chris Hipkins’ announcement of the rest of a policy bonfire to save a combined $1.7 billion, but ...
When word went out that Prime Minister Chris Hipkins would be making an announcement about Stuart Nash on the tiles at parliament at 2:45pm yesterday, the assumption was that it was over. That we had reached tipping point for Nash’s time as minister. But by 3pm - when, coincidentally, the ...
Two senior economists challenge some of the foundations of current economics. It is easy to criticise economic science by misrepresenting it, by selective quotations, and by ignoring that it progresses, like all sciences, by improving and abandoning old theories. The critics may go on to attack physics by citing Newton.So ...
Photo by Walker Fenton on UnsplashIt’s that time of the week again when and I co-host our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kaka for an hour at 5 pm. Jump on this link on Riverside (we’ve moved from Zoom) for our chat about the week’s news with ...
In a nice bit of news, my 2550-word deindustrial science-fiction piece, The Dream of Florian Neame, has been accepted for publication at New Maps Magazine (https://www.new-maps.com/). I have published there before, of course, with Of Tin and Tintagel coming out last year. While I still await the ...
And so this is Friday, and what have we learned?It was a week with all the usual luggage: minister brags and then he quits, Hollywood red carpet is full of twits. And all the while, hanging over the trivial stuff: existential dread, and portents of doom.Depending on who you read ...
When I changed the name of this newsletter from The Daily Read to Nick’s Kōrero I was a bit worried whether people would know what Kōrero meant or not. I added a definition when I announced the change and kind of assumed people who weren’t familiar with it would get ...
There was a time when a political party’s publicity people would counsel against promoting a candidate as queer. No matter which of two dictionary meanings the voting public might choose to apply – the old meaning of odd, strange, weird, or aberrant, or the more recent meaning of gay, homosexual ...
Photo by Joakim Honkasalo on UnsplashIt’s that time of the week for an ‘Ask Me Anything’ session for paying subscribers about the week that was for the next hour, including:PM Chris Hipkins announcement of the rest of a policy bonfire to save a combined $1.7 billion, but which blew up ...
Even though concern over the climate change threat is becoming more mainstream, our governments continue to opt out of the difficult decisions at the expense of time, and cost for future generations. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: Now we have a climate liability number to measure the potential failure of the ...
Thomas Cranmer writesLike it or not, the culture wars have entered New Zealand politics and look set to broaden and intensify. The culture wars are often viewed as an exclusively American phenomenon, but the reality is that they are becoming increasingly prominent in countries around the world, ...
Here’s an analogy for the Stuart Nash saga. If people are to be forgiven for their sins,Catholic dogma requires two factors to be present. There has to be a sincere act of confession about what has been done, but also a sincere act of contrition, which signals a painful ...
Here’s an analogy for the Stuart Nash saga. If people are to be forgiven for their sins,Catholic dogma requires two factors to be present. There has to be a sincere act of confession about what has been done, but also a sincere act of contrition, which signals a painful ...
Human Destabilisers: Russia now has a new strategic weapon – migratory waves of unwelcome human-beings. Desperate people with different coloured skins and different religious beliefs arriving at, or actually breaching, the national borders of Russia’s enemies can wreak as much havoc, culturally and politically, as a hypersonic missile exploding in the ...
Hi,After Webworm contributor Hayden Donnell wrote his latest piece, ‘RIP to Millennials Killing Everything’, he delivered this exciting and important bonus content.It will make more sense if you’ve read his piece.David. Read more ...
Hi,Before we get to Hayden’s column — RIP to Millennials Killing Everything — a quick observation.There was a day last week where it had suddenly reached 10pm and I hadn’t eaten all day. Hunger had suddenly gripped me with a panicky all-consuming force, so I jumped onto Uber Eats and ...
We add some of the CMIP6 models to the updateable MSU comparisons. After my annual update, I was pointed to some MSU-related diagnostics for many of the CMIP6 models (24 of them at least) from Po-Chedley et al. (2022) courtesy of Ben Santer. These are slightly different to what ...
In a memorable Pulp Fiction scene, Vincent inadvertently shoots their backseat passenger in the head. This leads our heroes Jules and Vincent to express alarm about their predicament.We're on a city street in broad daylight here!says Vincent. We gotta get this car off the roads. You know cops tend to ...
Primary, secondary and kindergarten teachers are all on strike today, demanding higher pay and an end to systematic understaffing. While the former is important - wages should at least keep up with inflation - its the latter which is the real issue. As with the health system, teachers have been ...
So the teachers are on strike, marching across Aotearoa today to press their demands for better pay and working conditions.Children remained in bed this brisk morning, many no doubt quite pleased about a day off school. Parents perhaps taking the day off to look after the kids, or working from ...
After the Cold War the consensus among Western military strategists was that the era of Big Wars, defined as peer conflict between large states with full spectrum military technologies, was at an end, at least for the foreseeable future. The … Continue reading → ...
Dairy giant Fonterra has posted a 50% lift in net profit to $546m, doubled its interim dividend, and is proposing a return of capital of 50c a share, injecting a note of optimism into the nation’s dairy industry. Fonterra’s strong performance is against a backdrop of market volatility. It ...
Buzz from the Beehive The bothersome economic news today is that New Zealand’s GDP fell by 0.6% in the December quarter, weaker than market forecasts of a fall of around 0.2% and much weaker than the Reserve Bank’s assumption of a 0.7% rise. This followed the even-more-bothersome news yesterday that ...
Ouch: Hipkins’ policy bonfire has resulted in an expensive self-administered removal of a Budgetary foot with an explosive device. File Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTLDR: Bonfires can be dangerous things when they get out of control. They also create a lot of smoke and heat and burn the grass. ...
* Dr Bryce Edwards writes – I teach a first-year course at Victoria University of Wellington about government and the political process in New Zealand. In “Introduction to Government and Law”, students learn there are rules preventing senior public servants from getting involved in big political debates – as we ...
I teach a first year course at Victoria University of Wellington about government and the political process in New Zealand. In “Introduction to Government and Law”, students learn there are rules preventing senior public servants from getting involved in big political debates – as we have recently witnessed with Rob ...
An issue of integrity has claimed the first ministerial scalp in Prime Minister Chris Hipkins’ premiership. Police Minister Stuart Nash lasted mere weeks in the role after admitting in a radio interview this morning that he had called Police Commissioner Andrew Coster to ask him if police were going to ...
For some time now we’ve known that the cost and completion timeframe for the City Rail Link would increase. Yesterday we finally learned by just how much. Costs City Rail Link Ltd (CRL Ltd) today confirms it has submitted a formal funding request to its Sponsors – the Crown and ...
The Government’s decision to back peddle on lowering speed limits is hitting potholes. At this stage, although it is part of the Government’s reprioritisation efforts to free up money to alleviate cost of living increases, the speed limit change looks unlikely to do that. And it appears that it ...
The University of Otago – the oldest university in New Zealand – towers over my home city of Dunedin. When classes are on, something like a fifth of Dunedin’s population are university students. It is also the largest employer in the South Island. To say that this is a ...
Last weekend brought the latest instalment in Stuff’s bravura satirical series Of course you can afford a house! Just dig deeper!I love how much their appreciation of humour has evolved in just a few short years since the days when I would get to produce, for a few meagre dollars, ...
Australia’s move to strengthen its defence capability with five nuclear-powered attack submarines underlines how relatively defenceless New Zealand is in the Pacific. Kiwis may gasp that the Labor government in Australia recognises it must outlay $400bn on the nuclear subs, but this ensures that Australia is not exposed ...
Ironically, a repurposed Auckland Ratepayers Alliance placard (with a demand for climate action on the front) featured at the recent climate march. Voting ratepayers don’t want ‘bureaucrats in cushy council jobs’ borrowing or increasing rates, even when the need for investment is becoming increasingly obvious. So is council cost-cutting a ...
The quarterly ETS auction was held today. In the past, these have seen collusion by big players to game the price and force a dump of extra credits from the cost-containment reserve (essentially, trying to pick stuff up cheap now in the belief that it will be more valuable later). ...
Buzz from the Beehive Exempting bikes, electric bikes and scooters from fringe benefit tax looked like something of a sop for a Green Party that had good grounds to grumble after a bunch of climate change measures was tossed on to the PM’s policy bonfire. The combustibles included the clean car ...
Today is a Member's Day, the first of the year. Unfortunately it also looks to be a boring one. First, there's a two hour debate on the budget policy statement (somehow inexplicably "member's business", despite it being fundamentally a government thing). Then there's a couple of "private bills" - people ...
Most days, Chris Hipkins and James Shaw seem a bit like the Seals and Crofts of the centre-left: Earnest, inoffensive, and capable of quite nice harmonies at times. They blow gently through the jasmine in your mind, but you know they’re never going to rock your world. Back in 2020, ...
The reflection gazed back at him. Pale and a little paunchy, he wasn’t a well man.He had a toga made from a fitted sheet and it kept bunching up under his armpits.His Laurel wreath was made from some Christmas tree branches he’d found in the shed, not a real pine ...
Yesterday we covered the government’s latest policy/delivery changes with a focus on light rail. But there was another important transport part of the announcement: The government will also intends to scale back its road safety plans. The programmes that are being reprioritised include: Significantly narrowing the speed reduction programme to ...
Unbridled Consumption: This civilisation we have built (we being the whole human species) is the most astonishingly wonderful thing homo sapiens has ever seen. We love it. We cannot imagine how awful life would be without it. And, we most certainly are not going to co-operate with anyone who advises ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
Let’s start with the absolute truisms.Politics is the art of the possibleHalf of something is better than all of nothingLet us now consider these with reference to the Under New Management government.What is a supporter of progressive politics to make of the abandonment of various policies, as announced in recent post-cabinet ...
Chris Hipkins has surprised even some of his closest friends and backers with the bounce he has secured for Labour in public polls since he became Prime Minister. He has been put to the test since he took over from Jacinda Ardern in the top job, and has shown a ...
Buzz from the Beehive It was a big day for the stopping or slowing of a second tranche of government programmes, an exercise which Beehive publicists are pitching as measures to allow the Government to focus more time, energy and resources on “the bread and butter issues” facing New Zealanders. ...
Last night there was a One News political poll which was welcomed by the left and will cause some concern in the opposition camp. A poll that showed no path to victory for ACT and National and which would likely result in another Labour/Greens government, possibly with the inclusion, or ...
Our young renters can vote Labour or Green as often as they like, but will end up paying the price of more and bigger climate emergencies, while also paying most of their after-tax income on rent with little hope of owning their own homes. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR:PM ...
Dr Bryce Edwards writes – Labour’s shift in focus is working. Under Jacinda Ardern they were a party and government focused on the voters and ideologies of liberal Grey Lynn and Wellington Central. Now under Prime Minister Chris Hipkins Labour has a laser-like focus directed at ...
Labour’s shift in focus is working. Under Jacinda Ardern they were a party and government focused on the voters and ideologies of liberal Grey Lynn and Wellington Central. Now under Prime Minister Chris Hipkins Labour has a laser-like focus directed at the working class politics of places like West Auckland ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Chris Baraniuk It was an engineering problem that had bugged Zhibin Yu for years — but now he had the perfect chance to fix it. Stuck at home during the first UK lockdown of the Covid-19 pandemic, the thermal engineer suddenly had all ...
Hi,I just wanted to say hello as this week really gets going, and check in about a few things. They’re a series of fractured random thoughts, so bear with me! First up — I haven’t watched the Oscars in ages and I’m really glad I watched yesterday. It felt like ...
Yesterday the Prime Minister laid out the next tranche of plans to scale back the ambition of Labour’s policy/delivery programme – and this time the Auckland light rail project gets a mention. “I can also confirm today that we will roll out transport projects in Auckland in stages. “Reducing transport ...
The Hipkins Government revealed its true colours yesterday as it chopped a whole series of “nice to have” policies — many of them promoted by the Greens — and instead diverted the savings to relieve the impact of inflation. His approach is all about taking action; no more excuses, ...
Saving The People From ... The People: The strangest aspect of the mass Israeli protests, from a New Zealand perspective, is that the judicial reforms proposed by Benjamin Netanyahu’s government would only confer upon Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, powers which the New Zealand House of Representatives has not only exercised ...
Political parties that want to negotiate with the Green Party must come to the table with much faster, bolder climate action, co-leaders James Shaw and Marama Davidson emphasised in their State of the Planet speech today. ...
Political parties that want to negotiate with the Green Party after the election must come to the table with much faster, bolder climate action, co-leaders James Shaw and Marama Davidson emphasised today. ...
You will never truly understand, from the pictures you’ve seen in the newspapers or on the six o-clock news, the sheer scale of the devastation wrought by Cyclone Gabrielle. ...
We’re boosting incomes and helping ease cost of living pressures on Kiwis through a range of bread and butter support measures that will see pensioners, students, families, and those on main benefits better off from the start of next month. ...
The error Labour Ministers made by stopping work on a beverage container return scheme will be reversed by the Greens at the earliest opportunity as part of the next Government. ...
“Cabinet needs to do better - and today has shown exactly why we need Green Ministers in cabinet, so we can prioritise action to cut climate pollution and support people to make ends meet,” says Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson. ...
Biggest increase in food prices for over three decades shows the need for an excess profit tax on corporations to help people put food on the table. ...
The Green Party has today launched a submission guide to help Aucklanders give crucial input and prevent potentially disastrous Auckland Council budget proposals. ...
With calls growing for inquiries and action on bank profits, the Greens say the Government has all the information it needs to act now and put a levy on banks. ...
As large parts of Aotearoa recover from two of the worst climate disasters we have ever experienced, it would be a huge mistake for the Government to deprioritise climate action from future transport investments, the Green Party says. ...
The Green Party is celebrating the signing of a historic United Nations Ocean Treaty, and calls on the new Oceans and Fisheries Minister to urgently step up protection for Aotearoa’s oceans. ...
This year has seen a series of extreme weather events, unparalleled in New Zealand’s recent history. From Cape Reinga in the far north down to the Tararua Ranges, families and businesses across the country have suffered enormous loss and hardship. While the severe weather hasn’t directly affected every part of ...
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has today appointed Ginny Andersen as Minister of Police. “Ginny Andersen has a strong and relevant background in this important portfolio,” Chris Hipkins said. “Ginny Andersen worked for the Police as a non-sworn staff member for around 10 years and has more recently been chair of ...
Six further bailey bridge sites confirmed Four additional bridge sites under consideration 91 per cent of damaged state highways reopened Recovery Dashboards for impacted regions released The Government has responded quickly to restore lifeline routes after Cyclone Gabrielle and can today confirm that an additional six bailey bridges will ...
Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta departs for China tomorrow, where she will meet with her counterpart, State Councillor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang, in Beijing. This will be the first visit by a New Zealand Minister to China since 2019, and follows the easing of COVID-19 travel restrictions between New Zealand and China. ...
Education Ministers from across the Pacific will gather in Tāmaki Makaurau this week to share their collective knowledge and strategic vision, for the benefit of ākonga across the region. New Zealand Education Minister Jan Tinetti will host the inaugural Conference of Pacific Education Ministers (CPEM) for three days from today, ...
A vital transport link for communities and local businesses has been restored following Cyclone Gabrielle with the reopening of State Highway 5 (SH5) between Napier and Taupō, Associate Minister of Transport Kiri Allan says. SH5 reopened to all traffic between 7am and 7pm from today, with closure points at SH2 (Kaimata ...
Internal Affairs Minister Barbara Edmonds has thanked generous New Zealanders who took part in the special Lotto draw for communities affected by Cyclone Gabrielle. Held on Saturday night, the draw raised $11.7 million with half of all ticket sales going towards recovery efforts. “In a time of need, New Zealanders ...
The Government has announced funding of $3 million for providers to help people, and whānau access community-based Building Financial Capability services. “Demand for Financial Capability Services is growing as people face cost of living pressures. Those pressures are increasing further in areas affected by flooding and Cyclone Gabrielle,” Minister for ...
Minister of Education, Hon Jan Tinetti, has announced appointments to the Board of Education New Zealand | Manapou ki te Ao. Tracey Bridges is joining the Board as the new Chair and Dr Therese Arseneau will be a new member. Current members Dr Linda Sissons CNZM and Daniel Wilson have ...
Fifteen ākonga Māori from across Aotearoa have been awarded the prestigious Ngarimu VC and 28th (Māori) Battalion Memorial Scholarships and Awards for 2023, Associate Education Minister and Ngarimu Board Chair, Kelvin Davis announced today. The recipients include doctoral, masters’ and undergraduate students. Three vocational training students and five wharekura students, ...
High Court Judge Jillian Maree Mallon has been appointed a Judge of the Court of Appeal, and District Court Judge Andrew John Becroft QSO has been appointed a Judge of the High Court, Attorney‑General David Parker announced today. Justice Mallon graduated from Otago University in 1988 with an LLB (Hons), and with ...
The economy has continued to show its resilience despite today’s GDP figures showing a modest decline in the December quarter, leaving the Government well positioned to help New Zealanders face cost of living pressures in a challenging global environment. “The economy had grown strongly in the two quarters before this ...
Aucklanders now have more ways to get around as Transport Minister Michael Wood opened the direct State Highway 1 (SH1) to State Highway 18 (SH18) underpass today, marking the completion of the 48-kilometre Western Ring Route (WRR). “The Government is upgrading New Zealand’s transport system to make it safer, more ...
This section contains briefings received by incoming ministers following changes to Cabinet in January. Some information may have been withheld in accordance with the Official Information Act 1982. Where information has been withheld that is indicated within the document. ...
Aotearoa New Zealand Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta reaffirmed her commitment to working together with the new Government of Fiji on issues of shared importance, including on the prioritisation of climate change and sustainability, at a meeting today, in Nadi. Fiji and Aotearoa New Zealand’s close relationship is underpinned by the Duavata ...
The Government is delivering a coastal shipping lifeline for businesses, residents and the primary sector in the cyclone-stricken regions of Hawkes Bay and Tairāwhiti, Regional Development Minister Kiri Allan announced today. The Rangitata vessel has been chartered for an emergency coastal shipping route between Gisborne and Napier, with potential for ...
The Government will progress to the next stage of the NZ Battery Project, looking at the viability of pumped hydro as well as an alternative, multi-technology approach as part of the Government’s long term-plan to build a resilient, affordable, secure and decarbonised energy system in New Zealand, Energy and Resources ...
This morning I was made aware of a media interview in which Minister Stuart Nash criticised a decision of the Court and said he had contacted the Police Commissioner to suggest the Police appeal the decision. The phone call took place in 2021 when he was not the Police Minister. ...
The Government’s sharp focus on trade continues with Aotearoa New Zealand set to host Trade Ministers and delegations from 10 Asia Pacific economies at a meeting of Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) Commission members in July, Minister for Trade and Export Growth Damien O’Connor announced today. “New Zealand ...
$25 million boost to support more businesses with clean-up in cyclone affected regions, taking total business support to more than $50 million Demand for grants has been strong, with estimates showing applications will exceed the initial $25 million business support package Grants of up to a maximum of $40,000 per ...
80 per cent of 2021 Resident Visas applications have been processed – three months ahead of schedule Residence granted to 160,000 people 84,000 of 85,000 applications have been approved Over 160,000 people have become New Zealand residents now that 80 per cent of 2021 Resident Visa (2021RV) applications have been ...
The Lead Coordination Minister for the Government’s Response to the Royal Commission’s Report into the Terrorist Attack on the Christchurch Mosques travels to Melbourne, Australia today to represent New Zealand at the fourth Sub-Regional Meeting on Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Security. “The Government is committed to reducing the threat of terrorism ...
The health and safety practices at our nation’s ports will be improved as part of a new industry-wide action plan, Workplace Relations and Safety, and Transport Minister Michael Wood has announced. “Following the tragic death of two port workers in Auckland and Lyttelton last year, I asked the Port Health ...
Bikes, electric bikes and scooters will be added to the types of transport exempted from fringe benefit tax under changes proposed today. Revenue Minister David Parker said the change would allow bicycles, electric bicycles, scooters, electric scooters, and micro-mobility share services to be exempt from fringe benefit tax where they ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta will hold bilateral meetings with Fiji this week. The visit will be her first to the country since the election of the new coalition Government led by Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sitiveni Rabuka. The visit will be an opportunity to meet kanohi ki ...
The Government is introducing the Severe Weather Emergency Legislation Bill to ensure the recovery and rebuild from Cyclone Gabrielle is streamlined and efficient with unnecessary red tape removed. The legislation is similar to legislation passed following the Christchurch and Kaikōura earthquakes that modifies existing legislation in order to remove constraints ...
Approximately 1.4 million people will benefit from increases to rates and thresholds for social assistance to help with the cost of living Superannuation to increase by over $100 a pay for a couple Main benefits to increase by the rate of inflation, meaning a family on a benefit with children ...
$1 billion in savings which will be reallocated to support New Zealanders with the cost of living A range of transport programmes deferred so Waka Kotahi can focus on post Cyclone road recovery Speed limit reduction programme significantly narrowed to focus on the most dangerous one per cent of state ...
The remaining state of national emergency over the Tairāwhiti and Hawke’s Bay regions will end on Tuesday 14 March, Minister for Emergency Management Kieran McAnulty announced today. Minister McAnulty gave notice of a national transition period over these regions, which will come into effect immediately following the end of the ...
The Government is today delivering on one of its commitments as part of the New Zealand Government’s Dawn Raids apology, welcoming a cohort of emerging Pacific leaders to Aotearoa New Zealand participating in the He Manawa Tītī Scholarship Programme. This cohort will participate in a bespoke leadership training programme that ...
Industry Transformation Plan to transform advanced manufacturing through increased productivity and higher-skilled, higher-wage jobs into a globally-competitive low-emissions sector. Co-created and co-owned by business, unions and workers, government, Māori, Pacific peoples and wider stakeholders. A plan to accelerate the growth and transformation of New Zealand’s advanced manufacturing sector was launched ...
New Zealand will provide support for Pacific countries to prevent the spread of harmful animal diseases, Associate Minister of Agriculture Meka Whaitiri said. The Associate Minister is attending a meeting of Pacific Ministers during the Pacific Week of Agriculture and Forestry in Nadi, Fiji. “Highly contagious diseases such as African ...
The Public Transport Futures project will deliver approximately: 100 more buses providing a greater number of seats to a greater number of locations at a higher frequency Over 470 more bus shelters to support a more enjoyable travel experience Almost 200 real time display units providing accurate information on bus ...
All but six schools and kura have reopened for onsite learning All students in the six closed schools or kura are being educated in other schools, online, or in alternative locations Over 4,300 education hardpacks distributed to support students Almost 38,000 community meals provided by suppliers of the Ka Ora ...
A new health centre has opened with financial support from the Government and further investment has been committed to projects that will accelerate Māori economic opportunities, Regional Development Minister Kiri Allan says. Community health provider QE Health will continue its long history in Rotorua with the official opening of the ...
The new three year NZ UK Working Holiday Visas (WHV) will now be delivered earlier than expected, coming into force by July this year in time to support businesses through the global labour shortages Prime Minister Chris Hipkins says. The improved WHV, successfully negotiated alongside the NZ UK Free trade ...
It seems like only yesterday that we launched the discussion document Enabling Investment in Offshore Renewable Energy, which is the key theme for this Forum. Everyone in this room understands the enormous potential of offshore wind in Aotearoa New Zealand – and particularly this region. Establishing a regime to pave ...
Police has reached a major milestone filing over 28,000 charges related to Operation Cobalt. “I’m extremely proud of the fantastic work that our Police has been doing to crack down on gangs, and keep our communities safe. The numbers speak for themselves – with over 28,000 charges, Police are getting ...
The Government will provide $15 million in the short term to local councils to remove rubbish, as a longer-term approach is developed, the Minister for Emergency Management Kieran McAnulty announced today. “Several regions are facing significant costs associated with residential waste removal, which has the potential to become a public ...
$15 million of immediate reimbursement for marae, iwi, recognised rural and community groups $2 million for community food providers $0.5 million for additional translation services Increasing the caps of the Community and Provider funds The Government has announced $17.5 million to further support communities and community providers impacted by Cyclone ...
The Government’s approach of using frontline service providers to address inequities for Māori with mental health and addiction needs is making good progress in many communities, a new report says. An independent evaluation into the Māori Access and Choice programme, commissioned by Te Whatu Ora has highlighted the programme’s success ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Frank Jotzo, Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy and Head of Energy, Institute for Climate Energy and Disaster Solutions, Australian National University IISD/ENB The world is in deep trouble on climate change, but if we really put our shoulder to ...
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http://m.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11612925
The tax payers Unions opinion on the ubi.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/comment/editorials/78314101/editorial-labours-universal-basic-income-idea-deserves-consideration
A more considered version, the affect on at home carers would be huge , and in MHO that’s how you sell the idea.
Herald editorial concludes a UBI would be dangerous socialism: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=11612852
Emphasis mine, wording unchanged.
Panic stations! 😀
pearls clutched!
“Universal” welfare programmes effectively make EVERYBODY a beneficiary…
One looks forward to the Herald editor steadfastly refusing to accept universal superannuation turning them into a beneficiary after they’re 65, and instead returning the money to the government…
Nobody is forcing any millionnaires to claim Super ..
Righties add to the misinformation about Labour’s proposal (warning: contains Farrar and Hooten): http://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/2016/03/hooton_on_the_future_of_work.html
The future is all unknowable claim these intellectual giants, so why bother preparing for it (other than by implementing libertarianism, naturally). #pffft
Someone could possibly remind us of the link to use so you don’t have to go to whaleoil or kiwiblog? I thought there was one but haven’t noted it.
Incidentally an email from Scoop Gordon Campbell now overall Editor and two new Trustees Jeremy Rose and Jan River of Public Good Aotearoa NZ. Great news in every sense.
Donotlink is borked at the moment for some reason. Trustworthy alternative suggerstions welcome.
Using this at the mo
http://archive.li/
link to the sewer piece
http://archive.li/jDc3q
Thanks.
Did you notice this in the Stuff piece?
“Economist Brian Easton has written that, with a universal income, either “the required tax rates are horrendous or the minimum income is so low” it won’t eliminate poverty”.
If you have Brian, who is fairly much of the left, saying your ideas are barmy you are really in trouble.
My prediction is that in a couple of months Labour will simply stop talking about it and quietly drop the whole scheme. Pity really.
“Pity really”
Why?
You have to admit its got people talking about important things instead of the flag.
Labour have thrown the dice on UBI…lets see if it gives them some traction, or becomes a liability come the serious debates in 2017.
Which ever way one looks at a UBI, it can’t be done without a major rehash of the tax system in NZ. Money does not grow on tree’s (although I imagine more than 1 commentator here would say it does!! all that’s required is a printing press).
Labour are fools for mentioning the UBI, honestly, it’s as if they’ve forgotten how to be a political party.
This is not the path a major party should be going down, this is the sort of thing the Greens should be doing.
Seriously, where’s the damage control?
Oh common bm if it was the greens you would be here telling us how it proves the greens are , insert meme of the week here.
Robinson points out that the tpu are not to be taken seriously and leaves unspoken the fact that they are tools for the right.
Greens are a 10% party you’d expect them to promote more radical ideas.
Labour is supposed to be the foundation party of the left coalition, their role is to provide stability not wackiness.
Yes, dear, we really want your advice about the left should be doing 🙄
It’s very cute, you would almost think he cares about Labour.. almost.
Or cares about the left, lol.
or cares.
Some of us do nearly care about the NZLP.
As a democracy we need an effective opposition to try and hinder the Government from doing dumb things,and Labour is the best bet we have.
We dont see the Greens fulfilling that role, Winston’s not really doing it either, so while we may not vote Labour, we do care about its role in our democracy.
The Nats recovered from the low 20s and I expect that Labour will recover from its time in the 20s also.
From the moran who worships the party that created $120 billion worth of debt without creating growth, jobs, or infrastructure.
Hmmm
Growth: 2-3% per year over the next several years.
Jobs: Unemployment fallen to 5.3%
Infrastructure: Fibre Broadband, Roads of National Significance, Christchurch Rebuild.
Unfortunately Stuart your comment is without foundation.
I partially agree with you about the debt though – I am sure the government could have limited their spending over the last 7 years to minimize how much debt they incurred.
Oh do be quite BM.
Your advise about labour is always wrong. Actually never seen when you have been right. You jump on the band wagon of us who criticise the labour party with child like glee. But never in a constructive manor, unless it is to support some right wing nut job inside the labour party. It’s a bore.
and your fake pathos about the labour party is sickening.
You and yours just don’t want people to do better, are you opposed to helping the poor? Are you opposed to a society that thinks all it’s members are worth something?
And the RWNJ come in to tell the Left how they should act and why what we’re doing is all so bad.
Wonder what they’re afraid of.
The TPU study authored by Jim Rose, the guy who frequently bombards the Green facebook page with his writings to get his point across. Hmm credible…
To make them sleep easier I’d suggest introduction of a TPPA or Tax on Property Profit Actualised AKA CGT; it must be the TPU’s equivalent of a ‘nocturnal emission’.
Interesting.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/americas/78321021/fidel-castro-to-barack-obama-we-dont-need-your-presents
“Quoting Obama’s declaration that “it is time, now, for us to leave the past behind,” the man who shaped Cuba during the second half of the 20th century writes that “I imagine that any one of us ran the risk of having a heart attack on hearing these words from the President of the United States.”
Castro then returns to a review of a half-century of US aggression against Cuba. Those events include the decades-long US trade embargo against the island; the 1961 Bay of Pigs attack and the 1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner backed by exiles who took refuge in the US.
He ends with a dig at the Obama administration’s drive to increase business ties with Cuba.”
The problem with Gallipoli is that it promotes Edwardian concepts of war as a purifying force for the nation.
What happens if Erdogan starts selling the ocean views to ISIS veterans ?
Useful discussion of Indias very large scale Job Guarantee scheme in practice.
http://bilbo.economicoutlook.net/blog/?p=33238
What were you thinking, dear Sue? http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/78322250/labour-mp-sue-moroney-slammed-for-meanspirited-lockwood-flag-attack
Register of Pecuniary and Other Specified Interests of Members of Parliament
Clearly the Farrar/Slater/Lusk talking point du jour. Managed to generate 2 damning opinion pieces on Stuff politics already.
I look forward to National MPs receiving the same hysterical scrutiny of their twitter feeds.
Looks like she didnt bow and scrape to the rich like everyone is expected to in John Key’s (and to a lesser extent, Helen Clark’s) NZ.
You wont catch me paying fealty to the rich.
Something for the RWNJs, who keep telling us that people want more sprawl, to think about:
Isn’t it truly amazing how the RWNJs are almost always wrong in their beliefs.
You neglect to mention this is not a NZ study.
I bet it would be different here.
Isnt it truly amazing that LWI’s are almost always 1/2 quoting something trying to make it fit their own personal agenda.
/sarc
I thought it was pretty obvious.
I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t be but it would be nice to have actual study on it. Oh, here’s one:
Seems that it’s probably the same in NZ as in Australia.
How different do you think it would be?
Do you think NZers are lazier than the overseas sample?
hah, if they were lazier then they’d be demanding high density housing because it’s cheaper.
I really do love Samantha Bee
Just wondering what Matthew Hooton will do once he becomes part of the precariat. Does he have any skills other than speaking with a forked tongue? What could he retrain as?
Good to hear the left wing guy challenging his bullshit on Nine to Noon.
Good to hear the left wing guy challenging his bullshit on Nine to Noon.
I agree, weka. Stephen Mills actually seemed to have thought about what he was going to say today, and to have worked out that Hooton needs to be challenged constantly.
I was concerned, however, that Hooton still does the great majority of the talking, and still gets away with the most outrageous statements.
Still, a much better performance from Stephen Mills. He’s given Hooton a hard time in the past….
Certainly Mills performed to a much higher standard than he has on some recent programs….
Key-Sucker Audrey Young still picking over the corpse of her darling’s flag fuck up. Presumably to impress that there’s something essentially rum in the result. No Audrey. Your darling Man-Child’s vanity fucked him up. You as well need to grow up. As a journalist you’re an irresponsible disgrace.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11612563
Audrey
Oh dear! “What went wrong?!” Audrey asks, plaintively… well, she’ll have to find her navel before she can do any gazing. I don’t envy her that task.
Reposting this excellent doco (50mins) on Glyphosate that TMM posted the other day. Glyphosate is the most common weed killer used in farming, and it’s also used globally and domestically for preparing fields for crop production. Basically we eat plant material that comes into contact with a poison:
It’s also interesting the reassurance we get from the media from the likes of a New Zealand weed scientist “expert”:
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/295040/glyphosate-ban-would-change-farming
This seems to be at odds with the documentary, that glyphosate isn’t deactivated at all.
Yes but it’s reactivated by the formula in the chemtrails.
You would do well as a spokesperson for the manufacturer Monsanto, who can’t seem to put up a good case for it being safe other than it’s been in use for 40 years. Then let the state and any other not for profit organisation do all the fact finding for you on the actual risks.
From the Weeds Control Methods Handbook pdf
So the RNZ “expert” was basically talking bull shit.
Further to the above its not difficult to find many studies that confirm that Round Up as sold by Monsanto is more toxic than was once thought. Here is one reviewed in Scientific American
It’s hardly astonishing, given that glyphosate works by suppressing an enzyme that’s found in plants but not animals. The list of things more deadly to human embryonic cells than glyphosate would be a very, very long one that included some really-not-very-toxic-at-all stuff on it.
🙄
Ok so I’m sure you would be happy to drink it.
If you were to read the studies further you would see:
““This clearly confirms that the [inert ingredients] in Roundup formulations are not inert,” wrote the study authors from France’s University of Caen. “Moreover, the proprietary mixtures available on the market could cause cell damage and even death [at the] residual levels” found on Roundup-treated crops, such as soybeans, alfalfa and corn, or lawns and gardens.
The research team suspects that Roundup might cause pregnancy problems by interfering with hormone production, possibly leading to abnormal fetal development, low birth weights or miscarriages.”
“The authorizations for using these Roundup herbicides must now clearly be revised since their toxic effects depend on, and are multiplied by, other compounds used in the mixtures,” Seralini’s team wrote.
The EPA’s classification of Roundup was initially done in 1993 and hasn’t been reviewed since. The study quoted above was done in 2009. I would not place a great deal of reliance on the EPA’s assessment at this stage. Particularly as most of the research was conducted by the chemical industry and in particular Monsanto itself:
Ok so I’m sure you would be happy to drink it.
No.
1. Less toxic than many other things != non-toxic.
2. Just about everything’s lethal in a big enough dose.
Re the studies claiming glyphosate is dangerous, is that the same Seralini whose study claiming that GMOs caused tumours in rats had to be withdrawn because it was so bad? The EU says: “To date, more than 800 studies have been conducted along with evaluations carried out by regulatory authorities across the world, all of which have confirmed the safety of glyphosate.”
“To date, more than 800 studies have been conducted along with evaluations carried out by regulatory authorities across the world, all of which have confirmed the safety of glyphosate.”
That is not what the concern is about – talk about shifting goal posts!
The problem is with the mixture of glyphosate and POEA. Few of the so-called “independent” reviews consider this. Certainly not the regulatory authorities who take their “research” from the manufacturers and then those outside the states who take their research from the EPA. It’s all a big back scratching exercise. No wonder people are turning off, and doubting “scientific” regulatory authorities when their research is so compromised. It’s like asking the Koch Bros to give a dissertation on Global Warming!
Then to cite 800 studies – well they would not all have been done in the past year would they. And Roundup has been around for a few years now – but its only in the recent past that people have begun to wonder if some of the things they are experiencing now might not be connected with this product. I myself used Roundup extensively on the farm for a number of years and before that Paraquat – before it was taken off the market because of its toxicity. oh and the EU approved the use of it 2004!
So, yeah, shifting goalposts. Apparently, glyphosate isn’t anything to worry about, but polyoxyethyleneamine is. I wouldn’t know enough about it to comment, but if that is the situation maybe people could stop wittering on about glyphosate?
And when it comes to “compromised” research that can’t be trusted, you really couldn’t find a better example than anti-GMO activist Gilles-Eric Seralini. After the rat-tumours propaganda fiasco, any research with his name on it is worthless.
Almost all of the criticism against the Seralini research was from researchers primarily funded by the Industry, and that includes the regulatory bodies which (as I have previously pointed out) rely heavily on Industry funded research. If the critics of Serelini really wanted to prove their point then they would repeat the research with greater numbers of animals, rats less susceptible to cancer, and controls which they were happy with. They may not like the results however.
Roundup weed-killer – glyphosate – is “probably carcinogenic,” according the World Health Organization. The decision was laid out in an analysis in The Lancet Oncology.
And who am I to argue with that.
Glyphosate is also one of the most commonly used garden herbicides, as well as the most commonly used in agriculture. It is sold under different names but everyone knows it as Roundup.
With our she’ll be right attitude here in NZ we tend to use it with wild abandon at the sight of the tiniest of weeds, not knowing or understanding just how toxic it is. I mean, it’s sold on supermarket shelves so it must be safe right?
Our local council seems to love Monsanto too. It sprays council berms, gutters and parks liberally and excessively.
As well as being a health risk it’s also largely unnecessary. You can pull weeds out of the ground. For free! Or if you have tough weeds on a paved patio you can sprinkle the weeds with the cheapest table salt you can buy and pour boiling water over and your weeds die almost instantly. I’ve done this successfully in the past. Or for large scale weeding you can purchase a hand held weed burner, powered by a gas cannister.
Good tips Rosie, I have been thinking about this a bit lately. I don’t get why people would want to liberally go around and poison weed spray over everything around their house (I have seen it a couple of times recently). After all it is just going to come back in a few months, and you’ve created a possible health risk, changed soil conditions and had an effect on the insect life too.
I also see it with councils where they spray along fencelines and edges of tracks. Most of it is unnecessary, unless there is something like a blackberry infestation growing across a track its a good idea. But spraying fencelines again and again to create some scorched earth at the bottom of it is crazy, especially with a toxic chemical.
I have tried a salt and vinegar spray before on blackberry, with dishwashing liquid to make it stick to the leaves, but it didn’t really work, only a small amount of the leaves browned off. So I might look into that gas torch idea. Thanks.
Blackberry is particularly hard to get rid of and even Roundup won’t be effective. Good luck with the gas torch. Heavy duty herbicides such as Tordon and Scrub Cutter are used on blackberry. Even though 2,4,D is banned in NZ, a variant of this chemical is used in the manufacture of these two herbicides. You need full PPE to apply this stuff, but I wouldn’t go near it myself.
Tordon was used aerially on gorse on a farm near us a few years ago. There were two breaches of the regional council’s rules. One was a lack of notification to nearby residents and the other was a breach of the 300 metre buffer zone. The helicopter pilot dumped this crap, literally, over our neighbourhood, as people were walking up the street to the bus stop and cycling to work in the morning rush. Despite the evidence people gathered, it took a massive effort to get the regional council to act. The pilot ended up with a “please don’t do this again” note. We really do have such a lazze faire approach to agrichemical safety in this country.
Final point. I used to work in the organic food industry in the 90’s, 2000’s. I remember visiting a supplier’s apple orchard. As well as the air being alive with bee’s and butterflies due to the lack of pesticides there was a marked difference in the quality of the soil around his tree’s compared to the soil around the tree’s of his neighbours. His neighbour was a supplier of conventionally grown apples to the supermarkets. Despite it being a dry time of the year, the soil on the organic orchard retained it’s structure and a bit more moisture, where as the soil of the roundup sprayed tree bases were crumbly and in large chunks. It looked dead.
The health of the different soils were in stark contrast. And the neighbour had all that extra cost too.
Basically we eat plant material that comes into contact with a poison
It comes into contact with dirt and the excretions of a wide variety of different creatures, too. If you’re going to panic about stuff you can’t see that is entering the sacred temple of your body, the risk of microbiological contamination offers far better material than whatever traces of herbicide might still be on there.
“the risk of microbiological contamination offers far better material than whatever traces of herbicide might still be on there.”
Only if you are microbe-phobic.
The issue is what humans have evolved with. We’re actually pretty good at living alongside microbes and dirt, with some notable exceptions, because we have millions of years of co-evolution (those that best fit survived). The number of chemicals we are exposed to now is massively higher than pre-industrial revolution, and science is still not so good at studying culmulative effect, multiple variables, and individual response.
We know that some herbicides are dangerous (which is why we’ve banned them), so unless you are arguing that Glyphosate-based herbicides are a special class of chemicals with zero side effects (would love to see that), we’re talking a matter of degrees. A big part of the problem is that PR has been a major driver of information (Monsanto are the new tobacco companies), so you have conflicting ideas about what the problem might be, let alone what it actually is. Fortunately there does seem to be much more non-industry research being done now to present a more comprehensive picture of what the issue are.
The thing about evolution is that the microbes also evolve, and quicker than we do. You’re far more likely to get sick from microbial life forms in your food than from glyphosate, which is pretty much never found in quantities that have a chance of being harmful to humans (and that’s not because big government and Monsanto have prevented anyone testing the levels remaining in food, it’s because there’s been plenty of testing and the results show no threat).
We do know that some herbicides are dangerous and have banned them, which is one of the main reasons glyphosate is so ubiquitous – it works and is (relatively) safe. If it wasn’t, it would be among those banned herbicides. This is a subject like vaccination, in which anti-science irrationalists convince themselves that the lack of evidence something is harmful doesn’t trump their gut instinct that it just has to be.
Uh, then why is it being found in German mother’s breast milk in far greater levels than what is regulated for humans?
http://www.globalresearch.ca/intolerable-levels-of-monsantos-glyphosate-roundup-found-in-breast-milk/5459080
And why is it in the documentary they show evidence that the chemical can change gene structures and destroy good gut bacteria. In studies with rats they found feeding them human tolerable amounts of glyphosate that the rats grew large tumors. And why were several farmers finding that their livestock were having lower reproductive rates and higher birth defects when their stock was being fed glyphosate based feed?
The industry response is that these trials/tests didn’t follow some proper scientific process, so they should be ignored. Industry don’t seem to want to conduct their own trials with matching conditions – funny that! You’re the one sounding like the science irrationalist I’m afraid.
The thing is, those studies really don’t follow proper scientific process. Actual scientists do study this stuff – and come up with results like “glyphosate, the main ingredient in the herbicide Roundup, does not accumulate in mother’s breast milk.” (Washington State University study).
The WSU study was a scientific one conducted by a biological scientist who is “an executive committee member for the International Society for Research in Human Milk and Lactation and a national spokesperson for the American Society for Nutrition.”
The German study claimed to have been carried out by the Green Party is mentioned on globalresearch.ca, an anti-globalisation activist site, and a detox nutter site, with the study itself not available. The American study that prompted it was carried out by “anti-GMO activist group Moms Across America with “Sustainable Pulse,” an online “news service” published by anti-GMO campaigner and organic food entrepreneur Henry Rowlands.” (academicsreview.org, in a piece aptly titled “Debunking pseudo science “lab testing” health risk claims about glyphosate (Roundup)”).
hi pm,
i would like to point you in the direction of you-tube and dr don huber and what he has to say about glyphosate.
very reasonable man making some uncomfortable points.
The thing is, those studies really don’t follow proper scientific process…The WSU study was a scientific one…
It is a non-peer reviewed study done in conjunction with Monsanto. The authors have since published a paper specifically on their quantification method ( http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4743594/ ) but not on the methodology of their overall study, which was presented as a report at a conference.
“The thing is, those studies really don’t follow proper scientific process…
The WSU study was a scientific one…”
The WSU study is a non-peer reviewed report presented at a conference and done in conjunction with Monsanto. The authors have now published a paper specifically on their quantification method but not on the methodology of the overall study.
Ok, so the breast milk study is looking dubious. Here’s a couple of other studies that looks like “proper scientific process” to me, but what would I know.
http://ehjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12940-015-0056-1
http://www.gmoevidence.com/dr-jayasumana-glyphosate-leads-to-5-fold-increase-in-deadly-kidney-disease-risk/
I find it interesting that you’ve avoided that evidence that does look like proper science and that the World Health Organisation thinks it’s a carcinogen. This should be swept aside because we have nothing to worry about right?.. Wouldn’t best practice be, lets stop it’s use until we find out what it’s doing and what it’s effects are. Maybe that’s the approach that countries like Sri Lanka and some in Europe who have banned it already, will go down.
The list of things the WHO thinks “probably causes cancer” is a very long one and is of little value in the absence of the info “what level of risk” and “at what dose.” For example, they think red meat “probably causes cancer,” ie some studies have shown a slight increase in risk if you eat lots of it. This comes under the heading of “Big Whoop.”
A useful rule of thumb when considering how credible studies about glyphosate are, is to figure out whether the people carrying out the studies are anti-GMO activists or not. Activism and science are about as compatible as religion and science – ie, not very. Both the articles you’ve linked to are anti-GMO activism – one is featured on an anti-GMO activist web site and the other involves Gilles-Eric Seralini, whose reputation hasn’t survived his rat-tumours propaganda exercise.
Keep poisons out of our ecosystem thanks.
How do you propose to do that? Our ecosystem is full of stuff that’s poisonous to one thing or another.
And humans being the smartasses that they are, think that we can just pour into that mix with no effect.
A quote from Oscar Wilde who is still amusing and satirical.
Sincerity
A little sincerity is a dangerous thing, and a great deal of it is absolutely fatal.
Little cops a fair amount of flak for republic referendum suggestion
I’d quote but it was just a selection of inane BS comments from off of Facebook seemingly selected to show that there’s no support for becoming a republic.
Really, if they want to report on the public’s feeling of becoming a republic then the should be doing a poll. Like this:
Yeah, we won’t be staying part of the British monarchy for much longer.
Looks like it’s a matter of time. When Liz goes I expect it will become an issue. I really hope we don’t do it soon though, can you imagine National running the process?
You’re trying to give me nightmares aren’t you?
Actually, there was that constitution review that National launched a couple of years ago and seems to have sunk without a ripple.
Quite safe for at least the next 10 years. And probably 20.
Hang on, I don’t think she’ going to live to 110. 😯
10 maybe, won’t be 20.
I see Grant has totally ruled out Labour having a policy of a tax rate of 50 per cent.
I also see Labour are following the debate on a UBI with interest.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/78316664/taxpayers-union-rubbishes-universal-basic-income-idea
Lets hope they are following the debate on The Standard (Hickey on the UBI).
It would be good to see him put to rest the concern Labour want to stick it to the elderly (and some) through the introduction of a capital tax.
lol no-one is going to do anything to the elderly other than kiss their arses while they remain registered voters.
Labour were going to stick it to them last time.
They also wanted a CGT.
Leaving some concerned Labour may use the UBI as a backdoor to do it again.
Therefore, it would be good if Grant could put this concern to bed.
What makes you think using a UBI to stick it to the elderly isn’t Grants plan? I have certainly seen plenty of comments which argue a UBI is a good way to smuggle in and restructure the entire tax system which appears to be popular with the commentariat on here.
Seeing how quickly he came out to put the 50% tax rate to bed, yet no comment to date on this, you could well be right.
Moreover, we all know the party is still captured by the right within.
The ball is now in your court Grant. Your silence (Grant) only affirms the suspicion.
GR2020
I think it’s better that Labour don’t start commenting on this. They don’t have a policy, and I’m guessing they haven’t done to much more work on a UBI other than the report they commissioned. They put the report out for discussion. That’s what is happening. I’d like to see a whole range of people grapple with this before Labour get too involved. Let people hash it out.
We all know they haven’t formulated a policy on this yet. However, they have been quick to totally rule things out. Like the 50% tax rate.
With talk of replacing benefits, coupled with a UBI rate centered around $200 a week and the possibility of a capital tax, a number of pensioners and home owning low income earners are becoming rather concerned.
Therefore, to put an end to their concern and keep the discussion on track, if they have ruled this out they should inform us.
It’s a total waste of time having the public hash things out when they have (if that is the case) been totally ruled out.
Labour wanted to have this debate, the least they can do is partake a little more. Keeping us all up to date with what has and hasn’t been ruled out as the discussion moves forward.
And by partaking, it also acknowledges the discussion is being heard. It only takes a brief comment, like good points made to achieve this.
This is very descriptive
Reminds me of a mad man Howling at the moon
he’s not mad, he’s FURIOUS
What does? Looking in the mirror?
An Emmerson cartoon that the Herald kept off the digital version until today.I have been chuckling since Saturday and was about to copy and post today when it appeared. Here you are Standardistas have a laugh.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/news-cartoons/news/article.cfm?c_id=500814&objectid=11611763
The Shroud of Key
heh!
The bloke in 23B may not have been too happy but mate, ponyboy would be beside himself thinking he’d done died and gone to heaven!.
Dante Ramos Verified account
@danteramos
Congrats to the ponytailed young woman in seat 22B. You’ve invented a whole new way to be awful at 35,000 feet.
She’s bloody lucky they don’t allow siccors on planes, I’d chop half that thing off.
At least Boris Johnson is speaking out:
‘Russia questions UK silence on retaking Palmyra from ISIS’
https://www.rt.com/uk/337442-russia-slams-uk-palmyra/
…”Meanwhile, London Mayor Boris Johnson has chosen to speak out, despite the silence of his country’s prime minister.
Praising the “ruthless clarity” of Russian President Vladimir Putin in aiding the Syrian government’s removal of “maniac” Islamic State jihadists from Palmyra, Johnson said that Moscow has made the West look “ineffective.”
“If reports are to be believed, the Russians have not only been engaged in airstrikes against Assad’s opponents, but have been seen on the ground as well. If Putin’s troops have helped winkle the maniacs from Palmyra, then (it pains me to admit) that is very much to the credit of the Russians. They have made the West look ineffective; and so now is the time for us to make amends, and to play to our strengths,” Johnson wrote in his column for the Telegraph.
Johnson went on to note the archaeological and historical significance of the city, much of which has been destroyed by Islamic State.
“The victory of Assad is a victory for archaeology, a victory for all those who care about the ancient monuments of one of the most amazing cultural sites on Earth,” Johnson wrote….
Since there is no Daily Review I’ll put this here:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11613375
Good on you Little for not shying away from Hooton’s vicious attacks. Hooton claims he doesn’t know what he (Little) is talking about and says – he ought to demand an apology but doesn’t think he’ll bother. You bet he won’t bother because anyone who listens to the RNZ political spot on a Monday morning or reads his media opinions knows how true it is.
And anyone who dares to stand up to Hooton is painted as an idiot/crazy/mad and deranged according the maddest/craziest and most deranged “commentator” in the country.
Please do a post someone so we can all verbally attack him with relish.
So Little says hooton is part of the problem and hooton responds by calling the leader of the second biggest political party an idiot, there by proving Little right. Your a fucking moron hooton.
And anyone who dares to stand up to Hooton is painted as an idiot/crazy/mad and deranged according the maddest/craziest and most deranged “commentator” in the country.
Hooton doesn’t need “standing up to”. He is a political commentator who says things some people don’t agree with. No more, no less. Disagreeing with him, easily done through any of the the myriad of social media available, isn’t “standing up” to him in the sense of implying courage and determination in the face of threats and pressure. Not need to over-egg it.
And calling him names doesn’t help either. Is he really the most “deranged” commentator in the country? If you think that, you need to get out more.
Yes … ‘deranged’ was a poor word choice. I would have gone with ‘devious’.
Tinshed. It was Hooton who recently called someone “deranged”. He has also used the words “idiot”, “mad” and “crazy” to describe various opposition politicians. I was using his own words against him with some accuracy – as anyone who has listened to him on radio and elsewhere could testify.
You need to learn to read text more carefully.
And for your edification, Hooton is a verbal bully who needs to be stood up to.
Are you a FAYBEEYUN? ARE YOU?
“#degrowth means contraction of accumulatn, capitalism, exploitatn & predation; point is to chlnge concept of accumulation itself” Latouche
https://mobile.twitter.com/KTrebeck/status/714678397813841920
I note that nothing has been said today about the death threats received by Paula Bennett on Facebook. Andrew Little has indicated that while he does not condone, of course, such comments, given the difficult economic times combined with the harsh rhetoric of commentators like Matthew Hooton, such aggressive actions are, to some degree, a factor in such threats. Is that the view shared by most people? I would have thought threatening to kill a Cabinet Minister was pretty serious stuff and required not only Police action, but unequivocal rejection and condemnation by all. Violence, or threats of violence, have no place in political discourse.
[edited for minor clarification]
Someone called Mike Hosking a moron on Twitter that got a lot of media attention. Someone told his psychiatrist he wanted to bomb John Key & was imprisoned. Helen Clark had an axe through her window. Dildos, meringues, buckets of mud. The hoi polloi are getting restless. Hooton thrives on hatred.
See my comment @ 19 Tinshed. Read the link because Andrew Little made it clear there was no justification for that type of aggressive behaviour. He then goes on to say he has observed an upsurge in such behaviour in recent years and he believed it was partly in response to the struggle so many NZers are experiencing because of harsh government actions.
And in case there is an attempt to “blame the behaviour on Labour”, he pointed out that the kind of vicious commentary some right wing PR commentators indulge in is also adding to the problem. (I paraphrase)
He is correct on both counts.
Edit: My last sentence @19 is tongue in cheek. I’m not encouraging “aggressive” action be taken against Hooton as some rwnj might try to claim.
@Anne
My issue with the factors you raise – that Little condemned the behaviour and then went on to observe that harsh government actions makes such behaviour understandable, is that it reeks of victim-blaming. It is kinda of like having a bob each way – violence is unacceptable but I understand why people are violent. I suspect that many people hear is only the second part – times are hard, so violence is understandable. I am not sure that is the right response to threats to kill politicians.
So Tinshed you’re saying that a political leader is not allowed to reflect on what might be causing the behaviour? That is precisely what Andrew Little should be doing when it is appropriate. And it is appropriate to point out the treatment meted out to so many people by this government is what is behind the increase in the behaviour. It is also appropriate to point out the aggressive verbal attacks by right wing commentators also plays a role in the behaviour. Matthew Hooton in particular is a purveyor of hatred.
@Anne
What I observe is that no-one here really condemns the implied violence directed at Paula Bennett, but instead finds reasons for the behaviour elsewhere. Matthew Hooton is just a political commentator who most here disagree with. He doesn’t publish death threats, yet those that do seem to get a free pass. I find it odd that some commentators here seem so eager to criticise Matthew Hooton as a purveyor of hate, yet are much less inclined to condemn the violence directed at National Party Cabinet ministers. I believe Andrew Little also falls into that category. You may see this as Little merely “reflecting” on what he sees, but I see it differently. Violence has no place in our political discourse and must be unreservedly denounced.
Violence has no place in our political discourse and must be unreservedly denounced.
Well, I call dubbing opposition politicians mad/stupid/ idiots/deranged as being a form of violent political discourse. Especially when they are patently untrue. So how about you reserve some of your ‘denouncing’ for Matthew Hooton.
And what about the violence directed and Labour and Green politicians eh? There’s plenty of it but they tend not to make too much of a fuss about it.
@Anne
With respect, from someone who also said,and I quote, I was using his own words against him with some accuracy – as anyone who has listened to him on radio and elsewhere could testify.. What you seem to be saying is that it is OK to call Hooton mad/stupid/idiots/deranged because a) he used these words to describe other people b) they are true when describing him, but should anyone else uses the very same adjectives to describe opposition politicians then they are engaging in political violence. Sorry, I don’y see that way and suggest you are demonstrating a double standard.
Nope. You are being wilfully dumb. Not worth ‘discoursing’ with you.
Over and out.
He’s a fixer.
Hooton says the one thing he was ashamed about “when you read it in the cold light of day” was the bit where the blogger Cactus Kate (real name Cathy Odgers) asks for Hager’s home address, so she can pass it on to wealthy Chinese clients angered by a study Hager co-authored about tax havens: “Chop chop for Nicky, ” wrote Odgers. Hooton gave her Hager’s street name (but not number)
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/68984535/matthew-hooton-and-dirty-politics-anatomy-of-the-vast-rightwing-conspiracy
Hi Tinshed,
The words ‘acceptable’ and ‘understandable’ are quite different.
If you reject the understandability of violence then you are elevating violence to some kind of mystical phenomenon.
Do you really think that the possibility of understanding violence is that hopeless?
So, rather than the traditional bloodbath, polite political discourse is going to bring change in the 21st century?.
/
joe90
I am not sure that the means of political change are as stark as you suggest.
Thirty years ago we were told there is no alternative and ever since it’s been all down hill for an awful lot of people.
I doubt our children will pursue polite political discourse and wait another thirty years.
There’s other stuff that never makes it into political discourse. Like how many suicides, mental health issues, domestic violence and regular violent incidents happen each year that can be linked to the effect of WINZ policies and culture? But then again maybe it’s more important we talk about Bennett instead..
Bicycling Triples In London While Driving Halves
More bad news for supporters of the status quo and good news for the rest of us.
Well-written and engaging blog post featured by Russell Brown by “Six”, a trans-female living rough in the Auckland CBD: http://publicaddress.net/speaker/her-outdoors/
1 of a series on TPP
Beware of TPP’s Investor–State Dispute Settlement Provision
By Joseph Stiglitz | 03.28.16
,blockquote>The alleged goal of ISDS is to increase security for investors in states without an adequate “rule of law.” But the fact that the U.S. is insisting on the same provisions in Europe, where legal safeguards are as strong as they are in the U.S., suggests another motive: the desire to make it harder to adopt new financial regulations, environmental laws, worker protections, and food and health safety standards.
http://rooseveltinstitute.org/beware-tpps-investor-state-dispute-settlement-provision/
Also well worth a read from a study by Krzysztof J. Pelc
http://politics.as.nyu.edu/docs/IO/42486/frivolity.pdf
i see someone wants to shoot paula bennett i wonder why what could the evil bitch have done ?????shes quite a wide not exactly slim