Written By:
notices and features - Date published:
6:00 am, August 30th, 2022 - 52 comments
Categories: open mike -
Tags:
The current rise of populism challenges the way we think about people’s relationship to the economy.We seem to be entering an era of populism, in which leadership in a democracy is based on preferences of the population which do not seem entirely rational nor serving their longer interests. ...
The server will be getting hardware changes this evening starting at 10pm NZDT.
The site will be off line for some hours.
If you're low-lying, and can see the sea from your house, you need to read this.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/aug/29/major-sea-level-rise-caused-by-melting-of-greenland-ice-cap-is-now-inevitable-27cm-climate
"Major sea-level rise from the melting of the Greenland ice cap is now inevitable, scientists have found, even if the fossil fuel burning that is driving the climate crisis were to end overnight.
The research shows the global heating to date will cause an absolute minimum sea-level rise of 27cm (10.6in) from Greenland alone as 110tn tonnes of ice melt. With continued carbon emissions, the melting of other ice caps and thermal expansion of the ocean, a multi-metre sea-level rise appears likely."
Goodbye Bangladesh.
https://phys.org/news/2021-04-human-exodus-bangladesh-due-sea-level.html
Western Imperialism has a new name. 'Climate Change'.
New Zealand leads the charge in denying climate refugees sanctuary, setting a precedent for other Western countries the main culprits behind climate change. to pretty much carry out genocide, against the third world victims of our climate change inaction..
How many should we take?
150?
1500?
1 500,000?
1 500,000,000?
Fortress nz time
What to do about all this (How to get there 🙂
"They allow us ‘to draw inspiration and comfort from the fact that the path we have taken is not the only one available, that our destiny is therefore not indelibly written in a set of choices that demonstrably and scientifically have proven not to be wise’. By their very existence, he says, the diverse cultures of the world show we can change, as we know we must, the fundamental manner in which we inhabit this planet."
https://www.resilience.org/stories/2022-08-29/invisible-force-why-culture-will-determine-humanitys-future/?
New Zealand could begin by listening to the people we are intending to drown and act on their pleas.
New Zealand could start listening to their pleas, by being the first Western Country in the world to ‘Ratify the Majuro Declaration on Climate Change into law in parliament.
In my opinion it is way past time that New Zealand and Australia stopped 'largely ignoring our neighbours' calls. And started acting on them.
That we haven’t speaks to our racism and history of colonial disrespect and oppression of our Pacific Island neighbours.
Colonialism has a new name, Climate Change
What does billion-dollar Essity think it is playing at by threatening to sue factory workers that it has already locked out? We don't need these corporate bully-boy tactics in NZ – I think a consumer boycott is in order. There are plenty of other (and environmentally better) toilet paper, paper towels, tissues etc out on the market.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/129720192/purex-manufacturer-makes-500k-legal-threat-against-workers-union-says
Time for far more drastic action. NZ should enact legislation to tell outfits that abuse NZers to FUCK OFF- do not pass GO and do not collect $200.
Unfortunately our craven Government lacks the balls to look after NZers unless they are protecting the right of returns to wealthy 'investors'. Most of them are so low that they minimise their taxes by claiming an income that the poorest can't even dream about, let alone aspire to.
Pakistan's population at partition in 1947 was about 35,000,000. Today it is 235,000,000. Egypt had 10,000,000 people in 1900, 106,000,000 today. Iran's population in 1950 (first accurate census) was 16,000,000. Today it is 89,000,000.
Across the entire "cradle of civilisation" – from the Indus valley to the Nile – over-population is now a chronic problem and it is where the first mass climate induced starvations are going to occur.
Nicola Willis refused to rule out National working with Tamaki's party this morning on First Up.
Nathan Rarere (who is so good) asked her to answer "yes or no" and she wouldn't.
The whole interview is worth a listen.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/audio/player?audio_id=2018856612
At about 7.50 into the interview, to save people from having to listen to all the Natz crap that comes first.
The will they/won't they hysteria about National not ruling out working with Tamaki's 'party' is an irrelevant liberal left media beat up.
There is no Destiny Church /Tamaki Party as we speak. There is unlikely to be any such party. Sure Tamaki has made a couple of speeches about creating one; that's the easy bit, but Tamaki has offered no vision, no policies, or any statements of intent, for NZ. There is nothing from Tamaki but a few tired non sensical slogans. He is not motivated or committed to do the hard graft of building a party. Its too much like hard work. I predict it won't happen.
Given the above what is the point of any political party saying they will or won't work with Tamaki.
Of course it suits the narrative and the agenda of the liberal left to foster the idea of a Tamaki Party in same way as the "reds under the beds' campaign tried to do some years ago. If the liberal left can 'con' the National Party into this game, well that's some sort of minor, but ultimately irrelevant propaganda victory for the left I suppose.
You're missing the point there.
Of course you're correct that Tamaki's party won't get anywhere, for the reasons you describe. So when Luxon was asked all he had to say was:
"Brian Tamaki? Seriously? Of course we won't be doing any deals with him, we don't want anything to do with him, he's a charlatan, his views are appalling and his party is obviously a non-starter."
But he didn't.
The issue is not Tamaki (irrelevant). it is Luxon's utterly hopeless judgement. He goes on TV and rules out Ardern and then goes on radio and doesn't rule out Tamaki. He gains nothing by doing this.
He has no idea how to do basic politics. He cannot think on his feet. He probably had a line prepared for him about "not interested in Brian Tamaki" but then he mangled it and instead managed to sound evasive and confused. He ended up saying "Read between the lines". Why?
This is the source of all his stuff-ups, from important (abortion) to trivial (Hawaii). He goes onto auto-pilot and digs deeper and deeper and deeper ….
and you can hardly blame the "left" or the media for giving him enough rope if he's always tying himself up.
Excellent post, observer.
Excellent post Observer hitting the proverbial nail on the head.
What I noticed on First Up was that Willis used exactly the same words (give or take) as Luxon when the Tamaki Party was raised. Hers was no accidental response …this is the official National line. And long may it continue all the way to the election.
Try wikipedia if you can’t keep up with current politics. They link to everything so even the most lazy person can follow it..
The Density party was formed in 2003. Nominally it had nothing to do with the Density Church. And if you believe that then can I refer some bridge sellers to you. He does appear to have rather a lot to do with it.
Vision NZ got 4,236 votes across the whole country in the 2020 general election. It appears to still be registered. Its leader is still Brian Tamaki’s wife. Brian Tamaki, as he has done for the last 20 years seems to spend a lot of time speaking for parties that appear the Density Party in drag. He also seems to spend inordinate amounts of time and resources prancing around supporting them.
Basically you still seem to be the same credulous political idiot you were a decade ago. Confidently asserting ‘facts’ that are just misinformation. Believing spin and PR rather than just digging into available information. And I suspect your next trick will either be to whine like child how it is unfair to point your personal defects out to you, or resort to saying that Vision NZ isn’t just a drag queen impression of the Density party and church.
Unless both the Leader and Deputy-Leader of the National Party are hapless it seems it is deliberate strategy (aka speaking notes) to keep the door open for Brian Tamaki and his followers to join National (and ACT, presumably) in Government in 2023 (aka come hell or high water).
I see it differently. Luxon is indeed hapless, and Willis the loyal deputy couldn't go on the radio afterwards and say "Well, actually …".
The interview snippet is very short, but it doesn't suggest any strategy to me.
Agree to disagree
Either way the Nats are in a mess here.
Agree to agree
One of the good things on TDB is this podcast, Buchanan and Manning. B reckons Trump is going down, words like "treason" and "death penalty" are mentioned. Freaky.
Bit more of a summary:
Trump & co don't care for their followers, anyone stupid enough to believe he can do what he says he can, gets what they deserve.
Shredded National documents and threw them down the Mar-a-lago toilet, a federal (section 4? i.e. highest order) crime.
He had the payroll info of covert ops / undercover personnel in the field, which he could sell to Russia, Israel, Saudis, putting said personnel at great risk. So someone in the CIA has got that info out of Langley to him, which would imply a massive internal investigation.
Treason and espionage are still capital crimes in the USA, otherwise prison sentences of 50+ years.
Those around him will squeal, as they try to save their own skins; the only way to avoid prison (or the chair!) is to point the finger upwards.
The only way out for him now is to move further into crazy territory (stacking the benches with whackos, like he is doing).
Ron de Santis (among others) might abandon him to have a tilt at the presidency himself.
"One of the good things on TDB is this podcast, Buchanan and Manning"
It is indeed. Two of our most intelligent and talented professionals discussing local and world affairs they actually know something about.
Since I stopped looking at the TDB, I forget to watch. Could they be included in the sidebar or are they already there.
In February Asia Janay Lavarello was locked up for big-noting with documents she wasn't supposed to have. Reality Winner was sentenced to more than five years for mishandling documents she wasn't supposed to have. Aldrich Ames and Robert Hansen will die in prison, and Jonathan Pollard should too but Israel, for their activities.
tRump?
So, who wants to see that in skywriting over Washington DC?
It’s already been covered in other posts, but I think the most distressing thing may be this:
https://balloon-juice.com/2022/08/27/t-r-e-4-5-o-n/
"Gerrard said he feels he's failed as a father and it breaks his heart seeing the look of sadness on the faces of his children."
As a father I would say he's pretty successful having six children. Very silly though, to have two more children while living in a motel, when you cannot afford to look after the current four children. Why do these people keep producing children they cannot afford?
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2022/08/wh-nau-of-eight-say-they-re-being-forgotten-about-after-living-in-one-bedroom-transitional-housing-unit-for-nearly-four-years.html
"These people" – let the NAct Hunger Games begin again, eh Jiminy?
https://thespinoff.co.nz/society/16-08-2022/the-side-eyes-two-new-zealands-the-table
I can't afford to have 6 children. If he was earning $200k+ a year, then have a big family. But it sounds like they expect other people to pay for their children.
There was a time when families routinely has large numbers of children and had a good, plentiful lifestyle with a fair distribution of wealth that was not pegged to 'deserving' and 'undeserving'. Somewhere along the way (1980's?) we lost the plot and encouraged wealth to be funneled up, accumulated and hoarded by the 1%ers.
Hope you have been frugal all your life so you can survive retirement and old age Jimmy. Otherwise, you may have to rely on the wealth generated by your targets six children for your survival.
Yes throughout my life I have had a degree of personal responsibility (which seems to be missing from these people) ie. I have planned for future and retirement and not expected to receive handouts from government or elsewhere. Don't the Greens say the world is already over populated? So maybe the large families are a thing of the past.
No the Greens do not say that at all, that is an eco-fascist argument. What we have is an unequal distribution problem, not a population problem.
Ah yes. The old unequal distribution argument. I have worked hard, starting with virtually nothing, and saved a nice nest egg for my retirement, But because I have worked hard, taken risks and got ahead, I should now give a whole lot away to someone that has not worked at all.
Are you going to refuse Super?
No, like Winston didn't.
But I have budgeted to survive without it.
Then survive without it, otherwise you would be receiving handouts from government.
There it is, the tax-is-theft accusation, theft from your personal wallet. In addition, based on your stereotyping, you assume that a person has not worked at all without any evidence to support your belief. I can see how the National Party propaganda captures
deplorablegullible souls like you.You seem to have grabbed the wrong end of the stick. I do not believe "Tax is theft". I pay my legal amount of tax required and do not mind doing so.
What I am against, is using my after tax income and saving wisely, and now be told, because I have provided for myself, I should give some to people who have not provided for themselves (and often pissed it up against a wall, not that I think the family in this example have, they have simply kept producing children without thinking about who is going to pay to school them, cloth them, feed them, house them even).
Your comment makes very little sense, it is contradictory even, and a nice attempt at smearing the usual stereotypical suspects.
Just out of interest, what part of my comment is contradictory and doesn't make sense?
Saying that I want to keep the after tax income I have saved, and not have it re-distributed to others that have not saved seems very logical to me.
https://twitter.com/HamptonThink/status/1337258690261512192
Imho that’s lazy pejorative framing which would make Ruth proud.
Care to consider alternatives? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_takes_a_village
https://www.rnz.co.nz/programmes/it-takes-a-village
"Care to consider alternatives?" – what like, responsible parenting and birth control?
Apologies if it wasn't clear Jiminy; was asking if you had considered this specific alternative way of looking at 'the problem':
Or even (quelle horreur – queue the Dancing Cossacks!) "From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs", i.e. a different kind of control.
If 'we' had started to exercise some responsible control 50 years ago then we wouldn't be in such a mess now, but here we all are, 4 billion additional souls later. No use crying over spilt milt, and imho children shouldn't suffer – even a fan of 'the rod' knows (in their ‘heart’) that the kids aren't to blame.
If the Greens aren't saying that having six children is a problem, then they should be. Overpopulation is one of the main contributors towards climate change and reducing the birth rate is part of the solution. It is environmentally irresponsible for anybody to be having six kids in 2022 regardless of wealth/whether they are able to pay for them.
Apparently not according to Arkie above at 7.1.1.1.1.1
As evidenced by your comments, your parents didn't consider alternatives – like responsible parenting and birth control.
Haha, very funny. But actually they did by only having two children and not relying on the state to raise us.
Gosh, Jacinda spanked poor Luxy in the house today.
He reads from a set list of questions which tend to go over the same point again and again. Only Seymour asked a couple of relevant questions.
Bring on the GE debates hey ho!
Wow, have to say the headlines around the gst on Kiwisaver fees are pretty ugly… could set a narrative in place that really hurts electorally.
Who could have known?
Not to mention the extra $1,800 tax on worker insurance 🙁 squeezed middle
There is no new taxes.