So now there’s the specter of this corporate toady coming back in when clearly she is not what the public want. And despite her denial, she couldn’t help but entertain her ego in public, and thus the public rumor mill. Same shit different day. Simply not attractive anymore.
Having her about is just sowing doubt.
Clinton led Democrats… There’s nothing attractive in it except ‘not Trump’. Is that a platform?
I bet a lot of Trumps votes were votes for not-Hillary.
It’s akin to rolling Bridges out to comment on his possibly running during our next election (I scry the fools demise). He’ll only remind us why we don’t want Nats. Out of sight out of mind is the obvious smart choice for future Nats re Bridges, and today’s Democrats re Clinton.
I don’t think she is as bad as painted, and she did win the popular vote, but I don’t think she’ll seriously run again.
I think she might keep it open as long as possible to be Faux’s boogey-woman so that they have to invent hate from scratch when the actual candidates come to the podium.
As long as she’s a might-run, they’re looking at her. The far right (and sanctimonius left) have a real bugbear about the Clintons.
So heres where she says NO – twice
“Mrs. Clinton initially said “no” when asked whether she wanted to run for president again. She then paused and repeated “no.”
because she paused and said ( hypothetically) ‘Id like to be President’ the haters have gone crazy.
Merkel is like Helen Clark. A smart, good leader, but who got blinded on some issues and did not look forward to the future as well as she should have…aka now Germany divided more. NZ divided more by neoliberalism by Clark who signed the FTA with China. Nice idea, bad details left in, that is now going to make NZ a much less equal, less democratic society run to other countries agendas.
Leadership is very hard, but it is worse when maybe the leaders like the idea of something with out looking at how it can negatively impact the positives… and really looking at the fine print. Better to not sign a flawed deal than sign one and then think you will somehow get out easily. Brexit comes to mind if the UK leaders had managed the EU expansion better with policy, Brexit would not have come to pass.
Quote via Stuff: But aviation expert Neil Hansford said it was highly unlikely a technical fault within the plane’s structure had led it to plough into the ocean and the model was among the safest in the world.
While the aircraft is yet to take to Australian skies, Virgin Australia has 30 Boeing 737 MAX 8 planes on order, with the first of the fleet due to arrive in late 2019. It is not known if the aircraft is heading to New Zealand airlines.
Have a look at flight stats in this article, either they had a serious cockpit management issue, an onboard disturbance or major technical/ systems failure. Either way it doesn’t look good especially when they were climbing out and suddenly lose altitude before nose diving into sea at high speed.
Note: this is the first serious crash of the 737 Max 8 aircraft. There is going to be a lot riding on this IRT the out come of this investigation especially Boeing, which could add fuel to the fire over Boeing’s alleged lax safety and quality control standards in which these rumours have been around for a wee while now.
When the Nacts lost the last election ….. they were bloated with millions in donations ,,,, and could easily afford to run another election campaign immediately … given the chance.
Not so for Labour and their coalition partners …… who were financially exhausted winners.
Starting From election night where they misrepresented the result … Our slanted media has been giving us bad reporting …. and bad Hosking maths …. where being the largest minority is considered more legitimate to rule …. than getting over 50% support.
There is a concerted effort to de-legitimize the new Govt … Just read bitter old Alwyns posts for the ‘attack lines’ …. making him good for something.
Reading a ‘stuff’ story on anonymous donations …. spurred by Jamies Lee Ross $100,000 dirty donations back stabbings … I was amazed by the Dirty Politics flavor as Stuff twisted the truth
And in a Wayne Mapp like way they claimed NZ first was the worst offender / biggest problem …
However the math in NZs secret political donations was roughly something like this …
National ———– 5 Million secret backhanders
Labour ———– 2 Million or so
NZ first ———— 1.2 Million or something
Now if Im looking for the worst offenders / biggest problems ….. 5 Million by the Nats stands out like dog balls ….. unlike the election results they do have the majority…. over half …. they rule when it comes to dirty donations.
I’d like Labour to do better … but i do not vote for them …. and I suppose they feel its the only way they can stay in the buying media space electioneering game.
But my point is ….. the reporting stunk …. and mislead readers ,,,,
Dirty Politics stands aligned with the dirty money….. we are buying ourselves corruption
Too true …. and double hard to find out about or prove …. when to many in our media run cover for the criminals.
Reading either a herald or stuff report …. on the single largest forfeiture that has occurred in New Zealand to date …. $43 million seized under our proceeds of crime laws.
I was struck by the language which described an ‘agreement’ between William Yan – also known as Bill Liu, Yang Liu and Yong Ming Yan … and our courts.
Other media has described it as ‘ struck a deal ‘.
Usually criminal matters uses court language like ‘ judgements ‘ or ‘ forfeiture ‘ , ‘seized’ etc.
but the criminally rich …. reach agreements.
New Zealand ………… moderately racist …… and the last 9 years growing economic apartheid
Thats Suzie Dawson, fearless self promoter and bully , Her modus operandi is to declare herself “spokesperson” and then divert resources and publicity towards supporting herself in the manner she feels she deserves IMHO. avoid , do not engage without witnesses !.
Who the fuck cares about Dawson, what about the issues, If people were less worried about individual people and more about how policy like TPPA is going to effect themselves, their families and the next generation, it might be harder to power interests to get everything through… forget about semantics and individuals and identity politics and concentrate on the results and effects of policy.
0.5% of the population cares about the TPPA in the way you do.
Its the well off people like yourself problem. And even then its a bogey that ‘might happen’.
Do you really lie awake at night thinking ‘the government is going to be sued’
Thanks for that Link, esoteric pineapples. As the commentator says you get punched with the left fist as well as the right fist.
The Green Party were the only ones who did not sell out the people. If they were in the media for that, instead of cunts, benefit frauds or woke left discourses we would have a lot more Green MP’s representing us.
Saying that the Green Party is still the best party in NZ to preserve democracy and hopefully whatever hic up going on with the Greens and how they represent their policies, they will overcome it.
Those who spoke the best against the TPP like Norman, Cunliffe, Metiria and Harawira were harassed out of parliament and big victims of dirty politics.
Now the issue is silent. Like Rogernomics though, not forgotten.
As the US commentator says we now have sham democracies…
Of course the Greens were in the media re TPPA as they were and still are staunchly opposed. You know this. Everybody who has opposed TPPA knows this. The reality is that this is not as bigger issue with most people as it is for you. We have lost this battle, but that is no reason to abandon all the social justice issues that the Greens have always stood for. Get over yourself.
Doesn’t even make the home page of the Greens website.
Seem to remember “trains for the shore” being a big headline on the Greens website during the election and ‘Te Reo’ for all…
I know crazy, how those working multiple jobs, with kids or in poverty, bad internet does not make the effort to search Green Party policy and find those 65 articles when the Greens don’t even put it on their home page website with all their other policy directives..
It’s the people’s fault, is that what the Greens tell themselves???
missing the point again Solka, with volunteers like you for Greens it explains a lot about how they languish in the polls.
BTW looked at Labour’s 355 day achievements, NO mention of TPPA, Labour knew nobody wanted it, fuckers. If it was that great for NZ, why no mention from Labour?
Saying that, strategically worse, is the Greens that were against it, but failed to have it on their home page even though there are 13 other policy directives such airport rail, Te reo and refugees.
What happened, run out of space???
Nothing about spying either… I guess after the Gutsy Greens were forced out, they wanted to ‘tone it’ down into what power interest feel more comfortable with.
Labour gave assurances on a number of points re TPPA and then reneged on the most important one, the investor category of ISDS. This was beyond the control of the Green Party. Even taking the government down would not have stopped CPTPP.
And they should be shouting they were the only honest ones on TPPA from the rooftops not hiding it from the public. NZ First publicly disagree with Labour all the time and they seem to get away with it.
As the US commentator says we now have sham democracies…
Representative Democracy was designed to keep the power in the hands of the rich.
That said, I can certainly see Representative Democracy being the only viable option prior to the present productivity, mass education and communications capabilities. Present capabilities allow us to drop from a 40 hour week down to a ~20 hour week while still maintaining a reasonable living standard and thus allow people time to engage in politics and voting directly for the policies that they want.
In other words, it’s time that we transitioned to Direct Democracy. Of course, that does mean shifting to online voting as paper voting simply isn’t responsive enough or give enough options.
It’s great that NZ councils are seriously thinking about climate change, emissions, pollution and more trucks on the road… (sarcasm) … In this case sounds like council is considering trucking rubbish 300KM’s away to save a few short term $$$$…
So much easier to do that than actually try to stop the pollution of rubbish at source by discouraging business from overproducing packaging rubbish, not enough compostable rubbish, or encouraging composting, less consumer goods and the the recycle of non recyclables back to the retailers or manufacturers…
@ Bearded Git- exactly surely not that hard… of course with TPPA our government probably can’t even tax manufacturers for packaging or they will sue, that’s the ‘new’ democracy… polluting corporations taking more and more taxpayer money to clean up after themselves and instead of money going to schools and hospitals it’s going to truck companies and rubbish dumps and lawyers.
They cant sue for local issues like that . They would have to use the locla courts not international arbitration
“We have narrowed their ambit. The last version of the agreement – for example – if you had disputes between the government and an overseas contractor building the Waterview Tunnel – they could have sued the government if they were in dispute through an international tribunal – now they can’t.”
An overseas contractor would now have to pursue the government through the New Zealand courts.
The government also had a bilaterial agreement with Australia and other countries that they would never use the ISDS clauses.” https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/348923/david-parker-defends-new-tpp-agreement
Not long term viable as Norway/Sweden(?) is now learning as they simply don’t create so much rubbish any more. Far better to simply not create so much in the first place and not need the furnaces.
“Far better to simply not create so much in the first place and not need the furnaces.”
Love your optimism !!
I believe they get paid to take other countries rubbish in Sweden . But building small should solve waste volume problems . On in every city as opposed to huge centralized ones.
We could save ourselves millions per year just banning the spam that arrives in the mail box. The fact that such rubbish wasn’t banned with the electronic form was because of tradition. Businesses had been doing it for decades (against everyone;s wishes which is why it’s called ‘junkmail’) and so the government decided that they couldn’t ban it despite it costing us so damn much more than electronic spam.
Speaking of junk mail.. from time to time when doIng the recycling in Feilding, I see the local junk mail distribution rooster emptying banana box after banana box (more than a dozen last count)into the paper bin.
Another example of a rate payer subsidy to business.
New Zealand Labour openly abandons all pretext of being a political party for the working classes in favour of defending the “deserving” middle classes…as if we didn’t already know…
Yes that centrist MF Phil Twyford made it quite clear in his RNZ interview this morning that the middle classes are the only kiwi’s who ‘deserve’ to own their own government built ‘affordable homes’ and that low wage earners can just get fucked.. that in the eyes of Labour that they are undeserving of the right to own their own government built ‘affordable home’.
Well one can only to come to this conclusion as Labour have and are doing absolutely nothing to change, modify, slowdown or in any way inhibit the hideous and obscene kiwi obsession with commodifying our homes into just another tradable commodity.
I read somewhere that only 40% of people can afford the ‘affordable’ houses. So what happens to the other 60%? No doubt some global corporate will come to the rescue with a taxpayer funded option.. after people live in cars and tents for a few years.
The only good news for renters, is that the locals and those that recently got residency here under the Natz are now leaving for better jobs and working conditions elsewhere and lower costs of living so I think there is a bit of boil off the rental market in Auckland. Had a look the other day and there seemed more rental properties on Trade me, maybe a sham, who knows.
Neoliberalism has screwed many industries now in NZ, hospitality, construction, I think they are after the teachers now with the big migration drive ramping up everyday in the MSM.
Not sure how a foreign teacher, new to NZ and without knowledge of our curriculum, is going to fair better than a local one with the amount of special needs kids, poverty, housing shortages and cost of living. But hey, lure them in, lure them in… don’t address the underlying problems on current teachers!!!
Only not hand in hand, because people are moving into houses that they will privately own on former state house land, but hey, the state house tenants are still in emergency hotels, housing, tents, cars and couch surfing. Not hand in hand at all, it is trickle down…
I know this is already linked to on TS, but this brilliant expose/analysis of the JLR affair (to date!) by Frank Macskasy needs to be read by everybody.
The extra strange part of this , and shows the medias working hand in glove with national.
When Mayor Browns extra marital affair was revealed , maybe 5 years ago, the other womans name wasnt mentioned by Slater at that time.
Very soon though NZ Herald put Bevan Chuang’s name all over its wrong page and multi page inside spread.
Currently the Herald just does exclusives from the National partys version of events in the Ross saga. Its our Pravda – and thats not news to a lot of people.
If one were to “go back through history” for a thought experiment of the type that King suggested, one would merely get confused. That’s because the idea that there is a separate and unique “Western civilization,” which King said was “rooted in Western Europe, Eastern Europe and the United States of America and every place where the footprint of Christianity settled the world,” is actually only about a century old. Though the so-called Western canon is still studied and loved by many, the idea of Western civilization as something distinct from (or even superior to) the rest of the world is a product of a very specific early-20th-century moment.
Sighs … I never made it a cultural pissing contest. Still if the article wants posit that there is no such thing as “Western Civilisation”, then exactly on what basis can you argue for the existence of any other culture? Chinese? Polynesian? Amerindian? Mayan? Arabian? Persian? This is a very peculiar logic capable of erasing all these well-understood historic markers.
Nor would I be all that surprised if the specific notion of “Western Civilisation” arose quite late in the piece; for most of the post-Renaissance era everyone in Europe would have though of themselves as French, Italian, Spanish, Scottish, English, Hungarian, or one of many Germanic identities. The idea of a pan-European “Western” identity probably only arose almost in hindsight, and with the perspective lent by the distance across the Atlantic ocean.
And if you erase the idea of “Western Civilisation” and any possibility of it’s technical superiority, then you have zero explanation for the entire process of European colonisation which so transformed the planet. From it’s very early Portuguese origins, through to the extraordinary scope of the British Empire. You have no explanation for the first round of globalisation which began around the mid-1800’s and culminating in WW1. You have no explanation for the Scientific Revolution, for the multitude of intellectual discoveries by luminaries from Gallileo through to von Neuman. You have nothing on which to rest the Industrial Revolution, no explanation as to why it happened first in Europe and not say China, India or Mayan America. You don’t even have an explanation for the Treaty of Waitangi.
It was of course a highly materialistic revolution, and despite it’s transforming power, it has it’s own internal contradictions, it’s own terrible limitations we still grapple with. Nor does it mean there was not plenty of history happening everywhere else on the planet. But nonetheless the era of European colonisation was pivotal to the transformation of the world, from largely isolated groups of primarily tribal, insular peoples around say 1600, into the global world we live in today.
The whole of human history is highlighted by one group of people with better technology and social sophistication, overwhelming and subjugating their neighbours. The usual mistake people made was conflating their superior tools, with the idea of themselves being a superior people. If nothing else the post WW2 modern era should permanently put that mistake into the rubbish bin of history.
Because we are now on the cusp of being a single global people; there are no ‘others’ to invade, to conquer or imagine we are ‘superior’ to. That will soon be a notion as repugnant as we now consider the ancient practise of chattel slavery. We are stepping through a historic transition; our challenge now is to complete this globalised world we have all built, and breath a spiritual life into it. I rest my case by quoting the last sentence of your reference:
“Civilization is a worldwide phenomenon,” says Hunt, “and we have things in common with people everywhere.”
“‘Western civilization’ was invented during World War I as a way of explaining to American soldiers why they were going to fight in Europe, to stand up for the common values of our civilization, in this case against the Germans, who were seen as threatening the common values that the U.S. had with Britain and France,”
WW1 was a clash of civilization, and neo Darwinist ideals of the German Allmacht.
One of the most graphic pictures of the German attitude, the attitude which has rendered this war inevitable, is contained in Vernon Kellogg’s Headquarters Nights.’ It is a convincing, and an evidently truthful, exposition of the shocking, the unspeakably dreadful moral and intellectual perversion of character which makes Germany at present a menace to the whole civilized world.
The man who reads Kellogg’s sketch and yet fails to see why we are at war, and why we must accept no peace save that of over whelming victory, is neither a good American nor a true lover of mankind.
Interesting quote Poisson, and timely too. ” the unspeakably dreadful moral and intellectual perversion of character which makes ******* ( you choose the nation state ) at present a menace to the whole civilized world.”
History never repeats…?
As a Grey Power representative, I recently attended a meeting with board members and planning staff of the local District Health Board.
They were able to report that with a milder winter and a larger uptake of people taking influenza vaccinations, there has been far less hospital-based admissions. Another GP rep pointed out that the winter warmth payment will also have played its part in this positive outcome.
The CEO also reported that oral health plays a huge part in maintaining people’s general wellness. There have been good steps taken in this direction, too.
There would be some good results when the research is done and the figures published as to the positive effects that work and initiatives like this will have achieved.
Lets hope the era of ‘new build hospitals’ that have fewer beds than the ones they replace is over.
That was a political process where the future patient numbers were reduced to ‘make the business case work’ for the rebuild.
When you look at Goz and ChrisT’s comments and responses (above), it caused me to wonder what the best thing about the current gNatzi Party is.
All I can come up with with that none of them are ‘NEETS’ (Not in Empolyment, Education or Training).
They’re EMPLOYED – some as elected supposed representatives
They’re all in Ideological EDUCATION, some even reEDUCATION
And all are in TRAINING – whether it’s the martial and knife arts, or in media and spin, or re-imaging such as how to turn a Little Feat truck stop gal into a sophisticated leopard print gal who looks like she has some sort of authority bearing in mind her ‘colleagues’ are gaining experience day by day in the art of the knife.
xanthe, here’s one. I have a relative in Kiwirail who will be stoked by the retention of these electric trains, which is why I sought a link. Peters and the Greens also very happy.
Jami-Lee Ross
@jamileeross
I appreciate all the recent messages of support. I was well looked after by the fantastic people at Middlemore, and grateful for their care. On medical advice I remain on leave, but have given National my proxy vote to ensure Botany continues to be represented in Parliament.
1:45 PM – Oct 30, 2018
Jami-Lee Ross has broken his silence briefly today on Twitter to say that he was well treated at Middlemore Hospital and to thank people for their support.
He has also confirmed that he has given his proxy vote to National which allows him to continue to vote alongside his former party while he remains on leave from Parliament. This ensures the proportionality of Parliament is maintained thereby avoiding National being able to trigger the waka-jumping law.
In reality ,voting differently from national isnt a trigger for the waka jumping law.
Under the previous similar legislation Donna Awatere took her case to the Supreme court on the very issue of ‘voting with your former party’
the Court ruled , that voting didnt matter.
Once she was expelled left the party , as Ross is, and the Speaker recorded them as an ‘Independent’ that was the change in proportionality that the law talked about
All of the legal advice I have heard in the media (including a very clear opinion by Geddis) is that proportionality changes the moment JLR left the National Party, so in fact the WJL can be used.
I think National has to wait 21 days from the moment he resigned from the party before he can be chucked out.
The sentence on proportionality was clumsy, rushed wording on my part based on the Herald article, and also Ross’ letter. Mea cupla.
It does not reflect my personal view and IMO the whole issue of proportionality under the revised waka jumping additions to the Electoral Act is far from clear and constitutional lawyers are going to have a ball with this issue and its consequences.
Obviously no-one thought that the issue would arise quite so quickly (if at all) after the passing of the waka jumping amendments – ie IIRC the Royal Assent was only granted on 3 Oct and the changes then came into force from 4 Oct. (Checked – dates correct.)
It really is quite ironic that the Ross situation has arisen so soon – and that it pertains to the National Party in view of their absolute opposition to the changes. If it were not for the nature of the other issues involved (donations, sexual relationships, claims of harassment etc) one could almost wonder whether it was/is a conspriacy … LOL.
Newshub covered the whole situation last night in this article
The real question is whether National will seek to invoke the waka jumping provisions. Jane Patterson suggested this morning on RNZ Morning Report that indications are that they are very loathe to invoke the waka jumping law and that they had not yet decided whether they would even accept Ross’ proxy vote. (No audio yet up on RNZ website.)
Kia ora The Am Show I new that the media of the Papatuanuku were going to make a mountain out of a mole hill over the Earth Quake with the Prince and Duchess visiting
thats what the media does I did not feel the Quake.
That’s cool Duncan one must treat there guest with respect I wonder what they will name the new Kiwi chicks in Rotorua.
More mana for Te tangata whenua culture O Aotearoa culture with the Prince & Duchess speaking te reo ka pai.
Yes criminalizing abortion’s is a stupid .
Loyd looks quite happy with the new NZ chipped passport that skirts around the ques .
Amanda thats the way we cannot have people make it the noorm to be an ASS.
The US mid turm elections most mid term elections swing against the ruling party only 2 times in 80 od years has this phenomenon not happened but not to worry the Demacrats are more intelegint than the gop party they can forecast the future and care about there effects on it.
That’s a cool story of Mr Longman ABC reporter finding his grandparents photo in the New Zealand national library . Ka kite ano
Eco Maori say if they stopped sending actors and paying them thousands to do the impossible they send in 1 a fortnight and stopped escorting me were ever I go they will save a few million instead of pissing money into the wind the sandflys have at least 3 cars following me as they are scared.
Court staff at the Hastings and Napier district courts will walk off the job at 3pm today.
The PSA this afternoon advised the Ministry of Justice of strike action to take place today at the Napier and Hastings District Courts for two hours from 3pm. ana to kai Ka kite ano Link below.
Here is reality for African American farmers being bullied and ripped off by European American’s Eco Maori Tau tokos /supports all minority’s who are being treated like dirt
It’s not fair, not right’: how America treats its black farmers .
I hope big changes are going to happen in America in the next few days you all have to get up and out and vote for you childrens and grandchildren future our future Kia kaha / stand strong. Ka kite ano link below.
Kia ora Te Karea Eco Maori doesn’t agree on war so I tau toko the protesters .
The Prince and Duchess look good wearing te korowai It was good to here Chris words I watch him and his whano on Maori TV they make me proud of our culture Piripi.
Lets hope that our goverment has made the correct move on the trade agreement with the rest of the TPP Talasa.
I say all people should be aloud to vote even if you are in Prison.
I have all ready had my say on the Ngapuhi Treaty settlement im not sure about the take .
Ka kite ano Kia Kaha to the Maori All blacks
Kia ora Newshub Jo has been lucky to survive that avalanche all the best.
Its good that Galloway is reviewing his call on that immigrant in jail.
Rotorua had a bright beautiful day for the Royal couple visit and all the Maori culture people making us all proud of our culture and country.
Samantha Its atrocious what man is doing to our wild life we do need a Global Pact to STOP the sharp decline in our wild life I intend to write a post on that subject tomorrow.
That was a big show of mana in the protest against the defence arms display show in Palmerston North ka pai .
Halloween is for Te Tamariki my children went with it in my time we only seen it on TV.
Ka kite ano
The Crowd Goes Wild James & Mulls not to many cups of tea last nite with Grizz guys.
Maa going to play for the Blues and Marty back for Otago there is a lot of people with good skills in the Kiwi .
I ts cool that the coach of the Liverpool soccer teams coach Jurgen uses the mighty Haka some times ot motivate his player .
I say Bryce is a unreliable tomato guys lol he is shinning bright hows Rodger .
James thats cool that you acknowledge Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan visit to Rotorua .
All the best to the Breakers fingers crossed.
Ka kite ano P.S nice ties guy’s
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The recent floods in Southland have highlighted the issue of Rio Tinto's illegal toxic waste dump in Mataura. But according to Newsroom, there's an even worse mess in Ruakaka near Whangarei:A Northland property stockpiled one million litres of flammable and toxic chemicals. Almost two years since the situation came to ...
It’s amazing just how many attack ads $100,000 buys you these days. The National Party has really been going to town lately, with their latest Twitter campaign making a number of questionable and blatantly false assertions, one being that poverty has worsened under the Labour led Government.The National Party's claim ...
OMV's exploratory drilling in the Great South Basin has failed to find oil. Good. Firstly, because we can't afford to burn the oil and gas we've already found, so there's just no point looking for more. And secondly, because offshore, deep-water drilling poses a risk of an environmental catastrophe, which ...
The government has announced it will strengthen whistleblower protections. The major change is "allowing people to report serious wrongdoing direct to an external authority if they wish", which fixes one of the big flaws in the Act. At present, whistleblowers must generally make their disclosure direct to the body they ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Bruce Lieberman CARLSBAD, CA. – When it comes to paying the electric bill, most people don’t give it a second thought – it’s something that in effect is “baked in.” But across California and several other states, local governments increasingly are ...
Excerpts from Being and Being Bought, by Kajsa Ekis Ekman, Spinifex Press, 2013. Part 4 Ekman, a Swedish journalist and critic, brings together a Marxist and feminist analysis of prostitution and surrogacy in this groundbreaking book. This is the fourth part of a synopsis and brief commentary of the book by Daphna ...
The Democracy Virus: China’s authoritarian political system enables a level of social surveillance and control that liberal democratic societies cannot match. The Chinese Government makes full use of the latest digital technology to both punish – and reward – its citizens. The plans it formulates cannot be challenged, or hindered. Where ...
Another day, another IPCA report on criminal conduct by policy. This time they kicked a child in the head when he was handcuffed:Police chased him and yelled out for him to stop. When he turned to face the police, he threatened them with a hammer. That's when the officers tasered ...
The investigation of two of the five parties in Parliament for fraud around their election donations has pushed the issue of party funding back into the spotlight. And while there are obvious things we can do to tighten up the donations regime - a much lower declaration threshold, realtime disclosure ...
While the south of New Zealand has been struggling with too much rain in recent days, here in the north we are so very short of it (though Saturday’s forecast looks promising). Basically, we have had almost none since Christmas.As someone who relies on rain to wash the car, ...
Former National Party MP Jami-Lee RossIt comes as no surprise that Jami-Lee Ross has been named as one of the defendants in the X2 $100,000 National Party donations case currently before the courts. Click bait journalists who were chaffing at the bit to discredit the former senior whip had already ...
Stand Clear! Winston Peters is encouraging voters to think of RNZ as belonging to “The Media Party”. He wants them to see it as a politically partisan institution with its own, vicious attack-dogs in the electoral fight. If he succeeds, it will be, and probably should be, the end of ...
"You're going to need a longer runway" Gratton et al explore the ongoing effects of upward-creeping temperatures on aviation in Greece in the period since 1955 at a range of airports in that country. For longer runways impacts are measurable but with little impact on operations. For airports with shorter runways, ...
In mid-December the Israeli secret police, the Shin Beit, revealed it had arrested dozens of Palestinian left-wing activists, including members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), in the previous few months. Among those arrested was one of the central leaders of the PFLP, Khalida Jarrar. As ...
Former National Party chief whip Jami-Lee Ross is one of the four people charged over National's multiple fraudulent donations. How unsurprising. Meanwhile, just days ago National leader Simon Bridges was trying to pretend the charges were nothing to do with his party. Yeah, right. When your chief whip effectively publicly ...
If you've been watching FYI for a while, you'll have noticed that the police have a bad habit of demanding ID from requesters. They have apparently been repeatedly told to stop doing this by the Ombudsman, but we all know what law enforcement thinks of the law, so thye keep ...
Collateral Damage: For the Green Phoenix to be reborn, the funeral pyre so patiently assembled by its identity politicians over the course of many fractious years – but with growing intensity over the past three – first has to be ignited. The terrible probability, of course, is that, in setting ...
If you follow politics in New Zealand you've likely noticed that the right wing have been going on and on about the Coalition Government failing to reduce poverty. In fact they’ve been incessantly claiming, in the absence of any conclusive data, that poverty has been getting worse.Yesterday, NewstalkZB reported:Mike Hosking: ...
The Herald reported over the weekend that an Auckland business owner is being targeted with asset forfeiture laws over a workplace death:A workplace fatality has seen police use a law usually associated with drugs and organised crime to seize millions of dollars in assets from a business owner because of ...
Just days after talking about how people feel "squeezed" and promising tax and service cuts as a "solution", National is talking about cancelling a rise in the minimum wage if elected: National is considering scrapping the Government's planned minimum wage increase if it wins this year's election, the party's finance ...
Nobody thinks about the next century anymore. That at least is Sci-Fi writer William Gibson’s observation (in this BBC 4 short interview, starting at 1:43:50 ). He calls it “Futures Fatigue”, but isn’t judgemental about it. Gibson notes that in the 20th century speculation about the 21st (and beyond) was common. Now ...
A Labour government desperate for the numbers crawls into bed with Winston Peters. Winston ignores the law and secretly takes money under the table from someone. When it is exposed just months out from an election, he is investigated by the Serious Fraud Office. That's what happened back in 2008. ...
So the Serious Fraud Office has another secret $100,050 National Party donation before the Courts in a major scandal that looks set to quash any chances Simon Bridges had of winning the 2020 election.Yesterday, Newsroom reported:The Serious Fraud Office prosecution of four people over donations to the National Party involves ...
Story of the Week... Toon of the Week... Coming Soon on SkS... Climate Feedback Claim Review... Poster of the Week... SkS Week in Review... Story of the Week... Iceberg twice the size of Washington, D.C., breaks off Pine Island glacier in Antarctica Story Highlights: The Pine Island ...
Prof Philippa Howden-ChapmanHousing policy is building up to be the key election issue again. In this blog I reflect on the importance of the role of the New Zealand Government in improving access to affordable housing. I look at what the Government has been doing to increase quality public housing ...
Writing on The Spinoff, Danyl Mclauchlan argues that we have a vacuum in our political system, in that there is no longer an anti-establishment party anymore:I think there’s a vacuum in our political system. There are obvious problems with the status quo but no real critics offering reform. It’s a ...
Stuff today has a piece about the government discovering it has been oversubsidising polluters for a decade under the Emissions Trading scheme:The Government is pledging to urgently fix an issue within the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), after it emerged some polluters are likely being over-compensated with taxpayer-funded carbon credits. [...] ...
The Marlborough District Council, tired of public scrutiny, wants to increase the amount it charges for LGOIMA requests:The cost of requesting official information from Marlborough's government agency could almost double after a jump in "fishing expeditions". Charges could be raised from $60 to $100 an hour for information supplied by ...
When Winston Peters was caught money laundering donations and stalking journalists, the Greens were conspicuous by their silence. It was another example of how getting along with their government partners was eroding their values and their own reputation. It was obviously unsustainable, and so now James Shaw has finally spoken ...
I am among the most pro-free speech people I know. I don’t doubt there are others more strident than me, but I’m certainly up there. And my support for freedom of expression isn’t limited to opposition to government-imposed restrictions. It extends to a belief that employers should have limited powers ...
With over 69,000 confirmed cases and 1,600 deaths, here’s your round-up of the latest coronavirus news. New disease and virus have now officially been named On the 11th February, the WHO Director General announced a new name for the disease: COVID-19 which is short for coronavirus disease 2019. The naming ...
A chronological listing of news articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week, i.e., Sun, Feb 9, 2020 through Sat, Feb 15, 2020 Editor's Pick ANALYSIS-Climate change opens up 'frontier' farmland, but at what cost to the planet?Climate change could expand farmland globally by ...
After cross-examination Jones knew he would lose the defamation case he took against film maker Renae Maihi. That’s why he threw in the towel. The weight of evidence was clearly against the old tycoon with the defense presenting fifty articles to confirm Jones’ racist views.Being unable to harass somebody into ...
Sprung! Former NZ First president, Lester Gray, chats with RNZ's Guyon Espiner in the carpark of a Tauranga shopping centre.(Photo supplied anonymously to NZ First and The BFD.)IT’S CLEAR THAT an important aspect of Jacinda Ardern’s political success is her willingness to seek – and take – advice. This ...
Ruth Cunningham, Charlotte Paul, Andrew MoorePublic health responses to infectious diseases such as COVID-19 require us to draw on our common humanity and be explicit about our values. Recognising this will help us make good decisions in difficult situations so that, for example, the need to impose restrictive measures ...
The Helen Clark Foundation has released its report on the housing crisis, and found that house-hoarders are to blame for it:Property investors are to blame for New Zealand's high house prices, a new research paper published by the Helen Clark Foundation says. [...] McArthur said previous attempts to address housing ...
The Abortion Legislation Committee has reported back on the Abortion Legislation Bill and recommended that it be passed with some amendments. Unfortunately, the latter include even more hoops to jump through for those seeking abortions after 20 weeks, including a time-wasting requirement to consult a second doctor. No-one casually seeks ...
Brexit is likely to be a disaster for the UK (how sad, never mind). But now that they're out of the EU, the latter has finaly taken the opportunity to blacklist one of their key tax havens:The Cayman Islands, a British overseas territory, is to be put on an EU ...
I’m not quite sure of what to make of the new figures for COVID-19 (as we must now call the novel coronavirus – though I’m not sure the capitalisation is correct) from Hubei province:Image from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-51495484The spike yesterday is a consequence of a using a different way of ...
Bob Jones has dropped his defamation case against Renae Maihi. Good. But at the same time, it perfectly exposes what the case was all about: not protecting Jones' reputation, but punishing someone who had dared to criticise him, and deterring others from doing the same. This rich pompous asshat dragged ...
As I've done for the past few years, I'm curating and presenting The Listening Lounge, the talk programme at Splore. On the morning of Saturday the 22nd at the Living Lounge stage, the korero goes like this.Yes, we're talking about drugs again, not just because I'm professionally interested in drug ...
What Were They Thinking? RNZ's CEO Paul Thompson (left) and Jim Mather, Chairman of the RNZ Board of Governors, attempt to justify the debacle arising out of their attempt to downgrade RNZ Concert to the Economic Development, Science and Innovation Select Committee at Parliament on Thursday, 13 February 2020.WHAT IS ...
Dame Tariana Turia with former PM John KeyWhat is it about Tariana Turia’s grudge against the Labour Party? Not content with attacking the Government over Whānau Ora funding, which was increased by $80 million in 2019, she has now made it personal by saying that Jacinda Ardern is out of her ...
Back in 2017, right after being elected, Jacinda Ardern promised that there would be no new mines on conservation land. Since then, her government has done nothing to make that happen, and now the policy has been officially "parked" for the election:West Coast-Tasman MP Damien O'Connor says the "no new ...
So the guy who advocated for public burning and beheading feels offended because someone called him a racist!Perhaps Bob Jones hasn't heard of the very old saying; Live by the sword, die by the sword?I mean for someone who often writes opinionated nonsense about Maori; this is a ridiculous case ...
The government today announced a major support package aimed at reducing homelessness. A thousand new transitional housing places, more support for people to find homes (or not lose them in the first place), all good stuff. The one problem with it is that they're going to start charging people in ...
Courtroom Drama: There is no off-switch in a courtroom. Neither is it possible to turn the page in disgust. Ill-formed and ill-defended opinions will be exposed ruthlessly and unapologetically. As Shakespeare put it: “Reputation is an idle and most false imposition; oft got without merit, and lost without deserving.” Sometimes the ...
As of today, the novel coronavirus spreading in China is called COVID-19. Why does it matter? Around the office, we’ve had several conversations over the past few weeks about how 2019-nCoV needed its own name. First, it was getting annoying calling it by the above designation, and ‘novel coronavirus’ doesn’t ...
by Philip Ferguson Last month B’Tselem, the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, reported: “In 2019, Israeli security forces killed 133 Palestinians, including 28 minors. Of the casualties, 104 were killed in the Gaza Strip, 26 in the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and three within ...
A ballot for a single Member's Bill was held today, and the following bill was drawn: Arms (Firearms Prohibition Orders) Amendment Bill (No 2) (Brett Hudson)Its basicly more "tough on crime" nonsense (its already illegal for unlicensed people to own guns) designed to wedge NZ First against its arsehole base. ...
Kids learn better with a full stomach. That's why we launched our Lunches in Schools programme, which is already providing free and healthy school lunches to thousands of children so they can focus on what's important - learning. ...
Mark Patterson MP, New Zealand First List MP based in Clutha-Southland This afternoon to a crowd of over 100 people in Mataura -- Mark Patterson, New Zealand First List MP based in Clutha-Southland launched a parliamentary petition regarding the aluminium dross issue in Mataura, Southland. The petition asks that the ...
Fletcher Tabuteau MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development New Zealand First Deputy Leader and Spokesperson for Finance, Fletcher Tabuteau has welcomed Statistics New Zealand’s latest report as a timely reminder of the value that this Coalition Government brings to every day New Zealanders: “This Coalition Government has meant a ...
Today New Zealand First made a pledge to campaign at the election to fund St John Ambulance the 90 per cent it has asked for. Government funding would allow St. John’s to achieve fully funded status. Leader of New Zealand First, Rt Hon Winston Peters publicly declared his determination to deliver ...
Darroch Ball MP, Spokesperson for Law and Order Newly released Police data shows once again the number of fleeing drivers have continued to skyrocket with a record 512 incidents occurring in December – almost tripling the number of incidents occurring just ten years ago, says New Zealand First Law and ...
While the Provincial Growth Fund has provided $2 million to set up temporary water supplies in Kaikohe and Kaitaia, Regional Economic Minister Shane Jones said he is greatly concerned that there are “issues” in implementing the projects. The Minister said the immediate solution was to pipe water from a bore ...
Mark Patterson MP, New Zealand First List MP for Clutha-Southland NZ First is calling on Rio Tinto to accept its responsibilities to the Southland community and enable the immediate removal of the toxic Aluminium Dross from the Mataura Paper Mill site. New Zealand First List MP for Clutha-Southland, Mark Patterson ...
The Coalition Government has announced that a further $500,000 will be given to help residents in Southland and Otago to speed up recovery efforts from the floods. It follows prior government assistance of $200,000 earlier this month where the Southland Mayoral Relief Fund received $100,000 to support communities impacted by ...
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones was on RNZ’s Morning Report talking about the recent droughts in the Northland region and what the Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is doing to alleviate its impact. The PGF recently announced a funding of $2 million for temporary water supplies to Kaikohe and Kaitaia, ...
Speaking to The Country’s Jamie Mackay, New Zealand First MP and Cabinet Minister Shane Jones talks water storage, plant-based meat imitation, and superstar Hollywood director James Cameron. While water storage may have its critics, Minister Jones defended the scheme by saying: “unless we invest and continue to invest” in this ...
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones is accusing northern iwi leaders of selling out Māori by voting for ideologically-driven court cases rather than practical steps to increase water supply. “I just think that iwi leaders who think that water issues are going to be solved by perpetually fighting in the ...
A dairy owner in St Kilda, Dunedin was delighted to hear that an attempted robbery of his establishment was foiled by a government-funded security system. Sean Lee was delighted at how well the anti-theft smoke system worked. When a knife-wielding man entered the store, the shop assistant immediately pressed a ...
Customs says it stopped more than three tonnes of illegal drugs coming into New Zealand last year. This includes 1,180kg of methamphetamine, 329kg of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine precursors, which could have been converted into 246kg of methamphetamine, 739kg and 6469 pills of MDMA or Ecstasy and 60kg of cocaine. Offshore, ...
Hon. Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development Up to $2 million will be allocated from the Provincial Growth Fund to set up temporary water supplies in Kaikohe and Kaitaia where drought is biting hard, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones has announced. Drought conditions in Northland have led to ...
Darroch Ball, Spokesperson for Law and Order New Zealand First welcomes the deployment of an Eagle Police helicopter in Christchurch in what is a step towards fulfilling its long-standing goal to increase the use of police helicopters for the front line, particularly in addressing the scourge of fleeing drivers. Christchurch leads ...
It may have been the first sitting week of 2020, but our Government is already in full-swing - managing a strong economy, investing in infrastructure, and working to break the cycle of homelessness. Read below for all that, and more... ...
In a heated debate in Parliament, National's Deputy Leader Paula Bennett claimed that “nearly 1600 patched gang members have been added” since the Coalition Government took power. To illustrate her point, she altered a chart used by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to show her government’s progress in housing to instead ...
Speech by the Rt Hon Winston Peters at Parliament’s Opening 2020 "We all need insurance" This year New Zealanders are going to have a clear choice to make That choice is between: Optimism versus pessimism; More progress versus back to the future; Investment versus divestment; Unity versus division. New Zealand ...
Infrastructure Minister Shane Jones has slammed the Board of Auckland Airport following the airport's runway closing twice within two weeks due to maintenance. Around 2,000 passengers were affected by last week’s runway closures, according to 1NEWS. Another maintenance closure on January 24 saw two international flights and three domestic flights ...
Jenny Marcroft, Spokesperson for Broadcasting New Zealand First supports the commissioning of a business case to assess the viability of a new public media entity. “A strong media environment is critical for a healthy democracy. New Zealand First is a strong supporter of a diverse, independent media,” New Zealand First broadcasting spokesperson ...
Pounamou and technology industries in the West Coast region are set to receive more than $2 million in Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) funding. This was announced by the Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau during Waitangi Day commemorations in Hokitika. He said $800,000 would be given to Development West ...
A new partnership programme between the New Zealand Police and Fiji Police will focus on combatting transnational organised crime and enhancing investigative skills, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced on the first day of her visit to Fiji. The programme will see: · New Zealand Institute of Environmental Science and Research ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Prime Minister Josaia Voreqe Bainimarama met today in Suva, and renewed their commitment to continue to strengthen Fiji-New Zealand relations on a foundation of shared values and equal partnership. The Prime Ministers acknowledged the kinship between Fijians and New Zealanders, one that has endured over ...
A $19.9 million investment from the Provincial Growth Fund will help develop essential infrastructure for an industrial hub in the Bay of Plenty town of Kawerau, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones says. “The funding will go to three projects to further develop the Putauaki Trust Industrial Hub, an industrial ...
The Provincial Growth Fund is investing $8.3 million on a roading package for Mahia that will lead to greater and wider economic benefits for the region and beyond, Under Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau announced at an event in Mahia today. The $8.3 million announced consists of: $7 ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has welcomed new reporting showing the Coalition Government is on track to meet its child poverty targets, with 18,400 children lifted out of poverty as a result of the Families Package. Stats NZ has released the first set of comprehensive child poverty statistics since the Government ...
Associate Minister of Transport Julie Anne Genter today announced that Bikes in Schools facilities have been rolled out to 20,000 more kiwi kids under this Government. She made the announcement at the opening of a new bike track at Henderson North School in Auckland. “Bikes in Schools facilities give kids ...
Benefit settings rise in line with wages as of 1 April Main benefits will increase by over 3 percent, instead of 1.66 percent, on 1 April with the Government’s decision to annually adjust benefit rates to increases in the average wage. The Minister for Social Development, Carmel Sepuloni, said ...
Strengthening New Zealand’s political and business ties with India will be the focus of Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters’ and Trade and Export Growth Minister David Parker’s visit to India this week. The Ministers are co-leading a high level business delegation to India to support increased people and economic engagement ...
The Minister for Pacific Peoples, Aupito William Sio continues to champion for greater Pacific participation in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) careers with the announcement of the Toloa Awards, with 8 recipients of the Toloa Community Fund and 13 Toloa Tertiary Scholarships. “The Toloa Programme encourages more Pacific peoples ...
Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage has extended the date for people to have their say on proposed changes to improve management of whitebait across New Zealand. Submissions were due to close on 2 March 2020 but will now remain open until 9am on Monday 16 March 2020. “I have ...
The endangered toroa/Antipodean albatross has new international protection for its 100,000km annual migration, thanks to collaborative efforts led by New Zealand, Australia and Chile. Today, 130 countries agreed to strictly protect Antipodean albatross at the Conference of Parties on the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild ...
No sales to under-18-year-olds No advertising and sponsorship of vaping products and e-cigarettes No vaping or smokeless tobacco in smokefree areas Regulates vaping product safety comprehensively, - including devices, flavours and ingredients Ensure vaping products are available for those who want to quit smoking Vaping regulation that balances ...
Justice Minister Andrew Little will travel to Berlin tomorrow to represent New Zealand at a high-level summit on nuclear disarmament. This year, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) celebrates 50 years since it entered into force. “New Zealand’s proud record and leadership on nuclear disarmament is unwavering, so it’s important we are present ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will visit two of New Zealand’s most important Pacific partners, Fiji and Australia, next week. The visit to Fiji will be the first by a New Zealand Prime Minister in four years and comes during the 50th anniversary of Fijian independence and diplomatic relations between our ...
Justice Minister Andrew Little and New Zealand First MP Darroch Ball, have today announced the appointment of the Chief Commissioner of the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), the location, and the membership of the Establishment Advisory Group. Colin Carruthers QC has been appointed Chief Commissioner of the CCRC for an ...
Māori Development Minister Hon Nanaia Mahuta and Agriculture Minister Hon Damien O’Connor co-announced the first horticultural finalists for the Ahuwhenua Trophy celebrating excellence in the Māori agricultural sector. The three finalists are Ngai Tukairangi Trust from Mt Maunganui, Otama Marere Trust from Tauranga, and Hineora Orchard Te Kaha 15B Ahuwhenua ...
A new kete of resources to strengthen support for students with dyslexia will provide extra tools for the new Learning Support Coordinators (LSCs) as they start in schools, Associate Education Minister Tracey Martin announced today. The Minister launched the kete in Wellington this morning, at the first of three induction ...
The Government continues to make progress on a fairer and more secure rental market for renters and landlords with the First Reading of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill and its referral to the Social Services and Community Select Committee. “Now is the opportunity for landlords, tenants and others who want ...
Papua New Guinea’s Prime Minister Hon James Marape will visit New Zealand from 21-25 February, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced today. “New Zealand and Papua New Guinea have a warm and friendly relationship. I look forward to welcoming Prime Minister Marape here and strengthening the relationship between our two countries,” ...
Thousands of children have begun receiving a free lunch on every day of the school week, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said. The Government’s free and healthy school lunch programme is under way for 7,000 students at 31 schools in Hawke’s Bay / Tairāwhiti and Bay of Plenty / Waiariki, extending ...
The Minister for Social Development Carmel Sepuloni today announced a new approach that continues to broaden the Government’s social sector focus from a narrow, investment approach to one centred on people and wellbeing. Minister Sepuloni said redefining the previous approach to social investment by combining science, data and lived experience ...
The Government is strengthening the Protected Disclosures Act to provide better protection for whistle blowers, Minister of State Services Chris Hipkins said today. “The Protected Disclosures Act is meant to encourage people to speak up about serious wrongdoing in the workplace and protect them from losing their jobs or being ...
Nǐn hǎo (Hello in Mandarin). Xīn Nián Kuài Lè (Happy New Year in Mandarin) Néi Hóu (Hello in Cantonese). Sun Nin Fai Lok (Happy New Year in Cantonese) Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa. Thank you for your invitation to attend this celebration today. I would like to acknowledge ...
Kia ora. Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou katoa. Nau mai haere mai ki te Whare Pāremata. E ngā mana whenua ki tēnei rohe Taranaki Whānui, Te Upoko o Te Ika, Ngāti Toa Rangatira, Ngāti Raukawa – kei te mihi, kei te mihi, kei te mihi. E ngā mana, e ...
Kia ora. Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou katoa. Nau mai haere mai ki te Whare Pāremata. E ngā mana whenua ki tēnei rohe Taranaki Whānui, Te Upoko o Te Ika, Ngāti Toa Rangatira, Ngāti Raukawa – kei te mihi, kei te mihi, kei te mihi. E ngā mana, e ngā ...
Tougher penalties for gun crime are a step closer with the passage of firearms reform legislation through another stage in Parliament. The Arms Legislation Bill has tonight passed its Second Reading. “The changes have one objective - to prevent firearms falling into the wrong hands,” said Police Minister Stuart Nash. ...
Introduction Mr Speaker We all know why we are here today. It has been a long journey. The journey did not actually begin on 15 March 2019. It began on 30 June 1997. Almost 23 years ago, Justice Sir Thomas Thorp told us what was wrong with our firearms legislation. ...
The Government’s work to put trades and vocational education back on the agenda took another major step forward today with the passing of the Education (Vocational Education and Training Reform) Amendment Bill, Education Minister Chris Hipkins said. “This is a watershed day for trades and vocational education. These law changes formalise ...
Speeding up the return of Christchurch regeneration activities to local leadership is behind the Greater Christchurch Regeneration Amendment Bill introduced to Parliament today by Minister Megan Woods. “As we approach nine years since the February 2011 earthquake in Canterbury, and with the transition to local leadership well underway, the time ...
Hundreds of New Zealanders and international visitors will be able to get back out into nature with the Milford Track partially reopening next week, after extensive assessments and repairs, the Minister of Conservation Eugenie Sage announced today. The popular Great Walk has been closed since 3 February after an extreme ...
Up to 110 new EV chargers nationwide in cities and regions 50 electric vehicles for ride-sharing The Government is helping deliver more infrastructure and options for low emissions transport through new projects, Energy and Resources Minister Dr Megan Woods says. Tauranga, Nelson, Levin, New Plymouth and Oamaru are just some ...
New Zealanders are increasingly better off under this Government as wages rise and families have more disposable income, Finance Minister Grant Robertson says. Stats NZ reported today that average household disposable incomes after housing costs rose 4.9% in 2019. This was the highest rise in four years and came as ...
All New Zealanders need to have their voices heard at work to ensure we have an inclusive and productive economy. Today we introduce a Bill to do this for workers in the New Zealand screen industry, Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Iain Lees-Galloway says. “The Screen Industry Workers Bill will ...
The Government has announced further help for the Southland and Otago regions to speed up recovery efforts from the floods. “I’ve approved Enhanced Taskforce Green (ETFG), making $500,000 available to help with the clean-up in Fiordland, Southland, and the Clutha district in Otago,” Minister for Social Development Carmel Sepuloni said. ...
Following the announcement that more than 340 schools will be funded to run events promoting vocational education, the Government has announced it will fund a further 257 events to be run by employers and industry. “These industry-run events will allow more than 30,000 students to connect with more than 2,000 ...
Today the Government is making progress on a fairer and more secure rental market for renters and landlords with the introduction of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill in Parliament. “This Bill includes a series of reforms to improve the wellbeing of the 609,700 households that live in rented homes, and ...
A Government programme to wipe out pea weevil has achieved a world first, with Biosecurity Minister Damien O’Connor today announcing the successful eradication of the noxious pest from Wairarapa. This means the nearly four-year ban on pea plants and pea straw was lifted today. Commercial and home gardeners can again grow ...
Southland residents hit by flooding caused by heavy rainfall can now access help finding temporary accommodation with the Government activating the Temporary Accommodation Service, Minister of Civil Defence Peeni Henare announced today. “The Temporary Accommodation Service (TAS) has been activated by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment to help ...
“Is that it?” That’s Finance Minister Grant Robertson’s response to Simon Bridges’ much-hyped economic speech today. “Simon Bridges just gave the most over-hyped and under-delivered speech that I can remember during my time in politics,” Grant Robertson said. “It’s not surprising. Simon Bridges literally said on the radio this morning ...
A trial deployment of the Police Eagle helicopter in Christchurch will test whether the aircraft would make a significant difference to crime prevention and community safety. “The Bell 429 helicopter will be based in Christchurch for five weeks, from 17 February to 20 March,” said Police Minister Stuart Nash. “The ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Chris Clarkson, Professor in Archaeology, The University of Queensland About 74,000 years ago a volcanic eruption at what is now Lake Toba in Sumatra, Indonesia, created one of the most dramatic natural disasters of the past 2 million years. The plume of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Omer Yezdani, Director, Office of Planning and Strategic Management, Australian Catholic University Philanthropy is a growing source of revenue for Australian universities. It’s essential to advancing quality research, equity and learning. On average, Australia’s top five fundraising universities receive nearly 20 times ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Dawson, Honorary Fellow, School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Melbourne The assumption that retired people have minimal housing costs underpins the settings of our retirement incomes system. But the real state of housing for older Australians today makes it ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Keating, Visiting Fellow, College of Business & Economics, Australian National University We are continually being told that more of us are employed than ever before. Reserve Bank Governor Philip Lowe points out (correctly) that a higher proportion of us are in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ben McCann, Associate Professor of French Studies, University of Adelaide Berlin. February 26 1920. A new silent film, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, is released to unsuspecting German audiences and quickly becomes a worldwide sensation. “When will I die?” asks one character ...
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: New child poverty statistics show little change yet, Greenpeace call for fishing policy review over donations, and a focus on Covid-19 effects on forestry.New figures were released yesterday on one of the most important issues facing the country – how many ...
He may be marooned in Texas, but Joseph Parker is closer to a return to boxing's big time than you'd think. Joseph Parker’s road back to boxing relevance won’t ever lead to the now fully resurgent Tyson Fury. But that doesn’t mean the Gypsy King won’t be a key figure ...
A cruel string of injuries could have prematurely ended Shiray Kaka's sevens career. But with determination and meditation, she's back in the Black Ferns, focused on finally playing at the Olympics. This time last year, Shiray Kaka was living in Japan, studying to be a dog trainer and setting up ...
ReadingRoom is devoting all week to the best-selling book in New Zealand right now, In The Clearing, the brilliant new thriller by Ngāpuhi author JP Pomare, inspired by creepy Australian cult The Family. Today: the author backgrounds his interest in the story. A few years ago I become obsessed ...
A jury didn't accept abused woman Karen Ruddelle killed her partner in self-defence. What does that say about our attitudes towards women in violent relationships? Karen Anne Ruddelle was charged with murdering her partner. Last week, at the High Court in Auckland, she was acquitted of murder but convicted of ...
Former regional parks chair Sandra Coney says a purchase of the disputed land at Ihumātao by Auckland Council would be entirely in keeping with historical precedent and the actions of local government in preserving open spaces for future generations. With various claims being made about the Government stepping in to ...
If RNZ hopes to court the youth audience with its new brand it should take some cues from the ones who’ve had that audience all along: student radio. RNZ has had a month from hell. News the state-run broadcaster was considering scaling back its long-running RNZ Concert network to make room ...
The Grace Millane murder case wasn't a who-dunnit - in fact it was easily solved. But it sparked intense public interest and international media coverage. What were the ingredients that caught the world's attention? A media frenzy descended on the High Court in Auckland last week as a sentence was handed down ...
OPINION:By Murray Horton in Christchurch For as long as the Campaign Against Foreign Control of Aotearoa (Cafca) has existed – more than 45 years now – we have called for the closure of the aluminium smelter, owned by giant transnational corporation, Rio Tinto. There are numerous grounds for ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The inquiry into allegations of misconduct by Australian special forces in Afghanistan is examining 55 separate incidents or issues, according to the Inspector-General of the Australian Defence Force report, tabled Tuesday. These involve “predominantly” allegations ...
Tourism bosses have been invited to join a new advisory group, allowing them to stay in "constant communication" with the government in their response to the coronavirus. ...
Alex Casey delivers her eighth power rankings for The Bachelorette NZ, where a humble avocado changed everything forever. Click here for previous instalments. Glass me with the talking bottle, slice my hand off with a fax machine and send me straight to the Centre De Emergencies, because this was the most ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Coalition government has supported Labor’s motion in the Senate to call for men’s rights activist Bettina Arndt to be stripped of her Order of Australia award over her comments on last week’s horrendous murder-suicide ...
he Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa welcomes the withdrawal of the hugely controversial resolution on anti-semitism from the agenda for tomorrow’s meeting. It is a victory for free speech and human rights. PSNA looks forward to working with other organisations ...
Fijian Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama is calling on New Zealand to back his country in pushing Australia to commit more to climate change action. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bianca Fileborn, Lecturer in Criminology, University of Melbourne The downfall of disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein has come to a head following his conviction for rape in the third degree and a criminal sex act in the first degree. He was acquitted ...
After days of rumours, Mediaworks have removed Hannah Tamaki as a cast member for the 2020 season of Dancing with the Stars. Sam Brooks reflects on the controversy.On Sunday, the NZ Herald gossip column Spy broke the news that Hannah Tamaki – wife of Destiny Church founder Brian and head of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rick Sarre, Professor of Law and Criminal Justice, University of South Australia Queensland Coroner James McDougall has handed down his findings into the tragic deaths of four people on Dreamworld’s Thunder River Rapids ride in 2016. He reported a litany of failings ...
Sri Krishnamurthi reflects in this special report on what life is really like trying to live and cope with the effects of a stroke for three years. Those were the most horrifying days of my life. It’s only now that I find the courage to write about my trials ...
Dear Rt Hon Jacinda Ardern (Prime Minister), Hon David Clark (Minister of Health) and Hon Chris Hipkins (Minister of Education) We are students, educators, staff and leaders across the tertiary sector in Aotearoa New Zealand. We have an urgent message ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alan N Williams, Associate Director/National Technical Leader-Aboriginal Heritage, EMM Consulting Pty Ltd, UNSW The latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) states that without a substantial decrease in our use of fossil fuels, we are on track for a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Onno van der Groen, Research Fellow in the school of medical and health sciences, Edith Cowan University You may have heard of binaural beats, an auditory illusion that has been touted as having stress-busing properties, and is the subject of countless hours ...
Over the weekend, a Twitter spat blew up into a full blown controversy when New Zealander Jason Lei Howden blew up his own movie with a bizarre series of tweets.The trailer for Guns Akimbo makes it look like a fun romp, the sort of film your flatmate who keeps all ...
By underfunding investment in the young we've been able to create budget surpluses to be siphoned into the NZ Super Fund at the current rate of nearly $2.5b a year. This has some serious impacts for a lot of families. ...
‘Over the last six months I’ve realised there are always more tears.’ In August, Emily Writes wrote about the tough months following her son’s hospitalisation and diagnosis. This is what’s happened since.Part 1:Ward One: Emily Writes on love and fear and hope at her son’s hospital bedSix months ago I ...
Mercury's first half profit has dropped as weak wholesale conditions and intense competition drove down revenue. The power generator and retailer's net profit dropped 20.2 percent in the six months to December to $83 million, reflecting below average generation and divestment of its smart metering business. Revenue was down 14 ...
He’s been the country’s leading supporter of the strangest films in the world, and now he’s made his first feature film. Sam Brooks talks to Auckland film champ Ant Timpson about his directorial debut, Come to Daddy.My first encounter with industry legend Ant Timpson was from afar, at a 2010 ...
Summerset's annual profit is down with higher wages expected to continue to be a drag on earnings over the coming year. The retirement village operator's net profit fell 18.3 percent to $175.3 million in the year to December, as expenses rose, while the construction of fewer living units contributed to ...
NZME media group has slumped to a large loss after writing down the value of its business as it pursues a merger with its rival Stuff. The company's loss for the year ended December was $165 million, which included a write down of $175m in the value of the business, ...
Whoopee! A pay rise. No – to be precise, a rise in the national super which is paid to some of the team at Point of Order. Super was included in the boost to benefits announced yesterday by Social Development Minister Carmel Sepuloni. Fair to say, this boost did not ...
Movie Mogul Harvey Weinstein has been convicted of rape. But the problem is much bigger and more insidious than a few bad men, writes Victoria University's Jan Jordan. In May 2017, New York Times journalist Jodi Kantor had a conversation with Hollywood actress Rose McGowan that began the downfall of movie ...
Jamela Alindogan reports on journalists in the Philippines protesting and demanding better protection of press freedoms. Video: Al JazeeraBy Neil Joshua N. Servallos in Manila The University of Santo Tomas in the Philippines, which has the biggest and oldest journalism school, has released a statement supporting television broadcaster ...
Homeownership has long been touted as the great Kiwi dream, but not everyone’s looking for a permanent fix. Jihee Junn explores the rising phenomenon of renters by choice.Even if I had a hundred grand sitting in the bank for me to spend right now, I’m not sure buying a house ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jamie Parr, Lecturer, Australian Catholic University German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) is sometimes dismissed as a malevolent figure, obsessed with the problem of nihilism and the “death of God”. Understandably, these ideas are unsettling: few of us have the courage to confront ...
US politics ain’t for the faint-of-heart. Signs of desperation are emerging in the Democratic Party as Senator Bernie Sanders surges to the lead after three key polls – and party grandees worry whether mainstream United States is ready to elect a “socialist”. Then, Republicans fear the US intelligence agencies, labelled ...
The Opportunities Party (TOP) today proudly announced the first tranche of candidates that will contest the upcoming 2020 New Zealand General Election. After two successive “smile and wave” governments Kiwis can see through the charade. Politics has ...
Media company NZME sees a further modest fall in revenues and earnings - and declares itself the "right owner" for rival Stuff Ltd as it gives more details of its push for political and regulator support. ...
Media company NZME declares itself the "right owner" of Stuff and gives more details of its push for political and regulator support. NZME expects further details of its proposed bid to buy rival Stuff to be made public in "coming weeks" - and any Kiwishare offered to the Government to be ...
The Council of Trade Unions is pleased that the Government is continuing to shine light on the issue of poverty in New Zealand and specifically child poverty with new statistics out today. CTU policy director and economist Andrea Black was at the ...
Forest & Bird is concerned at misinformation circulating regarding a policy statement aimed at protecting New Zealand’s unique biodiversity. The National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity is being consulted on by the ...
QUOTE from; Article: NZ Energy and Environment Business Week https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL2002/S00150/govt-vehicle-fleet-emissions-heading-in-wrong-direction.htm First published in Energy and Environment on February 13, 2020. “The latest data shows the Government’s attempts to electrify its vehicle fleet and cut its emissions ...
The defendants in the National Party donations case have pleaded not guilty to charges brought by the Serious Fraud Office. The four men entered their pleas today during their first appearance in the Auckland District Court. Yikun Zhang (48), Shijia (Colin) ...
A teenager who was stabbed more than 16 times by her ex-partner has spoken out about her ordeal, and thanked those who ran to her aid. Crystal Tupou was left fighting for her life after her ex-partner stabbed her multiple times in broad daylight on ...
The New Zealand stock exchange has fallen more than 2 percent on the opening, following drops in global stock markets amid coronavirus fears. Overnight the three main indexes in the US have fallen by about 3 percent, while the UK's FTSE 100 share index closed 3.3 percent lower. Yesterday, the ...
Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.Today’s contentForeign affairs and trade Barbara Dreaver (1News): Ardern’s visit to Fiji, Australia a test of New Zealand’s climate change ...
Four men facing Serious Fraud Office charges over donations made to the National Party - including MP Jami-Lee Ross - have pleaded not guilty at their first court appearance. ...
It competes directly for talent with the lavishly subsidised film industry, yet Simon Dasan, creative director of Wellington powerhouse A44, says New Zealand’s game creators are still thriving. There’s an uncanny parallel between New Zealand’s gaming industry and Ashen – the action role-playing game which is one of its most accomplished ...
Low observations of Hector’s dolphin calves, and dolphins much further out to sea than usual in early summer, have raised fears for this endangered species only found in New Zealand waters. The concerning summer comes after another delay in the ...
Bay of Plenty Police have acknowledged the findings of an Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) report into an incident at Tauranga Hospital in March 2018. The IPCA investigated an allegation of excessive use of force by officers transporting ...
By Will Steffen of the Australian National University Opposition leader Anthony Albanese’s announcement on Friday that a Labor government in Australia would adopt a target of net-zero emissions by 2050 was a big step in the right direction. But a bit of simple maths reveals the policy is too ...
The Tasman District mayor is vowing to press on with a large irrigation project, despite a 25 percent jump in its cost. When finished in 2022, the Waimea Dam will be 53 metres high and hold 13 billion litres of water - that's more than the contents of 5000 Olympic ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Denise Buiten, Senior Lecturer in Social Justice and Sociology, University of Notre Dame Australia As the country mourns the horrific murders of Hannah Clarke and her three children, Aaliyah, Laianah and Trey at the hands of their father, many people are trying ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jane Varney, Senior Research Dietitian in the Department of Gastroenterology, Monash University The FODMAP diet is used to help manage irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), but it’s becoming more popular. Now bloggers and so-called health gurus have jumped on board, claiming it can ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tanya Notley, Senior Lecturer in Digital Media, Western Sydney University Like adults, children use the news to learn about what’s happening in the world. But the circulation of misinformation, such as the recent spread of fake news about COVID-19 (the disease caused ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Holly Kirk, Postdoctoral Fellow, Interdisciplinary Conservation Science Research Group (ICON Science), RMIT University People living in cities far from the unprecedented bushfires this summer may feel they can do little more to help beyond donating to organisations that support affected wildlife. But ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katarina Miljkovic, ARC DECRA fellow, Curtin University We’ve all heard of earthquakes, but what about marsquakes? NASA’s InSight mission has, for the first time, recorded seismic activity coming from Mars’ interior. The observations, recorded in 2019 and published today, will help understand ...
Open Mike 30/10/2018 
The Cranky Uncle vs. Climate Change book is now available! The book uses cartoons, humor, and critical thinking to expose how and why some people reject climate science. It's now available for sale on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other book outlets. If you're near the DC area, you're very welcome to ...3 hours ago
by the Council of Disobedient Women When Moana Maniapoto recently lamented that Rachel Stewart was no longer writing for the Herald, political commentator Morgan Godfery was quick to brag on Twitter, like a schoolyard bully, how proud he was of “driving Rachel Stewart from the Herald”. What a contrast Morgan ...14 hours ago
You’re probably aware that the Achievement Standards used to assess senior school students’ learning are being reviewed. Science is one of the ‘pilot’ subjects in this process, where a ‘Subject Expert Group’ has developed 4 draft Science standards¹ (a significant step away from the current 30+, and a response to ...15 hours ago
It seems we can’t even get through a week these days without the National Party's leader, Simon Bridges, making some sort of silly announcement about a policy that doesn’t actually exist.Usually concerning Bridges’ gut instinct and the undoing of whatever the Government has recently announced, National’s reactionary opinions and uncosted ...17 hours ago
Oh look! NZ First's secret slush fund was laundering donations from Talley's:One of the country's biggest fishing companies, Talley's, and its managing director donated nearly $27,000 to the New Zealand First Foundation, which has been bankrolling the New Zealand First Party. The foundation received $26,950 from seafood giant Talley's and ...18 hours ago
High Risk Call: Insensitive though it may seem to even pose the question: how will the electorate respond to what the Prime Minister’s opponents will undoubtedly characterise as an attack on New Zealanders’ freedom of speech? At more than twelve month’s remove from the terrible events of 15 March 2019, ...2 days ago
I am about to mail my overseas ballot to Florida so that it can be counted in the Democratic primary on March 17. In Florida you have closed as opposed to open primaries, which means that one must declare a party preference in order to vote in a party primary. ...4 days ago
In mid-December the Israeli secret police, the Shin Beit, revealed it had arrested dozens of Palestinian left-wing activists, including members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), in the previous few months. Among those arrested was one of the central leaders of the PFLP, Khalida Jarrar. As ...7 days ago
I am among the most pro-free speech people I know. I don’t doubt there are others more strident than me, but I’m certainly up there. And my support for freedom of expression isn’t limited to opposition to government-imposed restrictions. It extends to a belief that employers should have limited powers ...1 week ago
Kids learn better with a full stomach. That's why we launched our Lunches in Schools programme, which is already providing free and healthy school lunches to thousands of children so they can focus on what's important - learning. ...20 hours ago
Mark Patterson MP, New Zealand First List MP based in Clutha-Southland This afternoon to a crowd of over 100 people in Mataura -- Mark Patterson, New Zealand First List MP based in Clutha-Southland launched a parliamentary petition regarding the aluminium dross issue in Mataura, Southland. The petition asks that the ...23 hours ago
A new partnership programme between the New Zealand Police and Fiji Police will focus on combatting transnational organised crime and enhancing investigative skills, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced on the first day of her visit to Fiji. The programme will see: · New Zealand Institute of Environmental Science and Research ...15 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Chris Clarkson, Professor in Archaeology, The University of Queensland About 74,000 years ago a volcanic eruption at what is now Lake Toba in Sumatra, Indonesia, created one of the most dramatic natural disasters of the past 2 million years. The plume of ...22 mins ago
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: New child poverty statistics show little change yet, Greenpeace call for fishing policy review over donations, and a focus on Covid-19 effects on forestry.New figures were released yesterday on one of the most important issues facing the country – how many ...1 hour ago
He may be marooned in Texas, but Joseph Parker is closer to a return to boxing's big time than you'd think. Joseph Parker’s road back to boxing relevance won’t ever lead to the now fully resurgent Tyson Fury. But that doesn’t mean the Gypsy King won’t be a key figure ...3 hours ago
A cruel string of injuries could have prematurely ended Shiray Kaka's sevens career. But with determination and meditation, she's back in the Black Ferns, focused on finally playing at the Olympics. This time last year, Shiray Kaka was living in Japan, studying to be a dog trainer and setting up ...3 hours ago
ReadingRoom is devoting all week to the best-selling book in New Zealand right now, In The Clearing, the brilliant new thriller by Ngāpuhi author JP Pomare, inspired by creepy Australian cult The Family. Today: the author backgrounds his interest in the story. A few years ago I become obsessed ...3 hours ago
A jury didn't accept abused woman Karen Ruddelle killed her partner in self-defence. What does that say about our attitudes towards women in violent relationships? Karen Anne Ruddelle was charged with murdering her partner. Last week, at the High Court in Auckland, she was acquitted of murder but convicted of ...3 hours ago
Former regional parks chair Sandra Coney says a purchase of the disputed land at Ihumātao by Auckland Council would be entirely in keeping with historical precedent and the actions of local government in preserving open spaces for future generations. With various claims being made about the Government stepping in to ...3 hours ago
The Grace Millane murder case wasn't a who-dunnit - in fact it was easily solved. But it sparked intense public interest and international media coverage. What were the ingredients that caught the world's attention? A media frenzy descended on the High Court in Auckland last week as a sentence was handed down ...3 hours ago
Tourism bosses have been invited to join a new advisory group, allowing them to stay in "constant communication" with the government in their response to the coronavirus. ...12 hours ago
Water meters might work, but they sure don't get you elected. ...12 hours ago
he Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa welcomes the withdrawal of the hugely controversial resolution on anti-semitism from the agenda for tomorrow’s meeting. It is a victory for free speech and human rights. PSNA looks forward to working with other organisations ...13 hours ago
By underfunding investment in the young we've been able to create budget surpluses to be siphoned into the NZ Super Fund at the current rate of nearly $2.5b a year. This has some serious impacts for a lot of families. ...17 hours ago
The Government hits another pothole in its efforts to reduce transport emissions, ...17 hours ago
Mercury's first half profit has dropped as weak wholesale conditions and intense competition drove down revenue. The power generator and retailer's net profit dropped 20.2 percent in the six months to December to $83 million, reflecting below average generation and divestment of its smart metering business. Revenue was down 14 ...18 hours ago
Summerset's annual profit is down with higher wages expected to continue to be a drag on earnings over the coming year. The retirement village operator's net profit fell 18.3 percent to $175.3 million in the year to December, as expenses rose, while the construction of fewer living units contributed to ...18 hours ago
NZME media group has slumped to a large loss after writing down the value of its business as it pursues a merger with its rival Stuff. The company's loss for the year ended December was $165 million, which included a write down of $175m in the value of the business, ...18 hours ago
Whoopee! A pay rise. No – to be precise, a rise in the national super which is paid to some of the team at Point of Order. Super was included in the boost to benefits announced yesterday by Social Development Minister Carmel Sepuloni. Fair to say, this boost did not ...19 hours ago
Movie Mogul Harvey Weinstein has been convicted of rape. But the problem is much bigger and more insidious than a few bad men, writes Victoria University's Jan Jordan. In May 2017, New York Times journalist Jodi Kantor had a conversation with Hollywood actress Rose McGowan that began the downfall of movie ...19 hours ago
The New Zealand stock exchange has fallen more than 2 percent on the opening, following drops in global stock markets amid coronavirus fears. ...19 hours ago
Media company NZME sees a further modest fall in revenues and earnings - and declares itself the "right owner" for rival Stuff Ltd as it gives more details of its push for political and regulator support. ...20 hours ago
The New Zealand stock exchange has fallen more than 2 percent on the opening, following drops in global stock markets amid coronavirus fears. Overnight the three main indexes in the US have fallen by about 3 percent, while the UK's FTSE 100 share index closed 3.3 percent lower. Yesterday, the ...22 hours ago
The Tasman District mayor is vowing to press on with a large irrigation project, despite a 25 percent jump in its cost. When finished in 2022, the Waimea Dam will be 53 metres high and hold 13 billion litres of water - that's more than the contents of 5000 Olympic ...22 hours ago
The Prime Minister has arrived in Suva to red carpet and locals lining the streets to try to catch a glimpse of Jacinda Ardern. ...24 hours ago
More than 300,000 families on the benefit will get more after the linking of state support to the net average wage. ...24 hours ago
Covid-19: Travel restrictions for those coming from China extended; and Jacinda Ardern defends not letting kids use vaping to quit smoking. ...24 hours ago
“Well I’d like to be President” – Hillary Clinton
So now there’s the specter of this corporate toady coming back in when clearly she is not what the public want. And despite her denial, she couldn’t help but entertain her ego in public, and thus the public rumor mill. Same shit different day. Simply not attractive anymore.
Having her about is just sowing doubt.
Clinton led Democrats… There’s nothing attractive in it except ‘not Trump’. Is that a platform?
I bet a lot of Trumps votes were votes for not-Hillary.
It’s akin to rolling Bridges out to comment on his possibly running during our next election (I scry the fools demise). He’ll only remind us why we don’t want Nats. Out of sight out of mind is the obvious smart choice for future Nats re Bridges, and today’s Democrats re Clinton.
Not really putting her country first, is she.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2018/10/29/hillary-clintons-curious-comments-about/?utm_term=.a62f18218179
Hillary is finding it hard to leave politics behind. She had to swallow a dead rat in Trump being elected the president.
Hillary cannot change the past. Surely there are other ways Hillary can enjoy herself, other than politics.
@Treetops “Surely there are other ways Hillary can enjoy herself, other than politics.”
the political leaders become addicted to power. Clinton should go. There was the opportunity to work with Sanders and win, the Democrats chose not to.
Labour and Greens in NZ combined and inspite of all the issues, they did managed to win.
They owe their backers…
Clinton leaves politics when she is allowed to…not when she want to…
I can’t stand Hilary and desperately hope she doesn’t run again but she is no more or less a corporate toady than Trump.
I don’t think she is as bad as painted, and she did win the popular vote, but I don’t think she’ll seriously run again.
I think she might keep it open as long as possible to be Faux’s boogey-woman so that they have to invent hate from scratch when the actual candidates come to the podium.
As long as she’s a might-run, they’re looking at her. The far right (and sanctimonius left) have a real bugbear about the Clintons.
Yep. I worry about the hate that family get generated towards them. It’s bubbling away in the “fuck the optics. I’m going in.” crew.
I don’t want them to go the Kennedy way.
Are you worried about cause, or just the effect?
Something else perhaps…
I dont understand your question.
No its not her wanting to run.
read what it says
“offered comments that some interpreted as leaning in to a 2020 run. Clinton’s words aren’t nearly so clear, ”
Interpret all you like – but shes isnt running again.
this is what she does want
“I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure we have a Democrat in the White House come January of 2021.”
So heres where she says NO – twice
“Mrs. Clinton initially said “no” when asked whether she wanted to run for president again. She then paused and repeated “no.”
because she paused and said ( hypothetically) ‘Id like to be President’ the haters have gone crazy.
People who know Hillary is an unpopular corporate suck-up = Haters.
Is it cheaper to run a life in black and white?
Reports Merkel to quit as party leader.
Will try to stay as Chancellor til 2021.
May be a big change for Europe?
Merkel is realistic and crafty when it comes to not being able to hold power due to instability.
Merkel has chosen to go on her own terms. Maybe were Merkel gone as leader, Britain may benefit with better terms for Brexit.
Merkel is like Helen Clark. A smart, good leader, but who got blinded on some issues and did not look forward to the future as well as she should have…aka now Germany divided more. NZ divided more by neoliberalism by Clark who signed the FTA with China. Nice idea, bad details left in, that is now going to make NZ a much less equal, less democratic society run to other countries agendas.
Leadership is very hard, but it is worse when maybe the leaders like the idea of something with out looking at how it can negatively impact the positives… and really looking at the fine print. Better to not sign a flawed deal than sign one and then think you will somehow get out easily. Brexit comes to mind if the UK leaders had managed the EU expansion better with policy, Brexit would not have come to pass.
You arent reading the story properly- Comprehension 101
“Maybe were Merkel gone as leader, Britain may benefit with better terms for Brexit.”
Merkel is letting go of being CDU party leader.( who doesnt run the country)
Shes staying on as Chancellor till 2021 or so.
I need to look up the difference in power between a chancellor and a party leader.
to be honest she should have found a successor and helped that person up rather then stay on for so long.
.
Well they do have a system where the various state leaders can have an opportunity to run for national leader.
After the documentary on the Boeing plant and the lax attitude to safety I don’t think making this claim is wise.
Doco discussion: https://www.forbes.com/sites/johngoglia/2014/09/10/documentary-questions-quality-and-safety-of-boeing-787/
Quote via Stuff:
But aviation expert Neil Hansford said it was highly unlikely a technical fault within the plane’s structure had led it to plough into the ocean and the model was among the safest in the world.
While the aircraft is yet to take to Australian skies, Virgin Australia has 30 Boeing 737 MAX 8 planes on order, with the first of the fleet due to arrive in late 2019. It is not known if the aircraft is heading to New Zealand airlines.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/travel/travel-troubles/108203426/aircraft-model-at-centre-of-indonesia-plane-tragedy-bound-for-australian-airline
Have a look at flight stats in this article, either they had a serious cockpit management issue, an onboard disturbance or major technical/ systems failure. Either way it doesn’t look good especially when they were climbing out and suddenly lose altitude before nose diving into sea at high speed.
Note: this is the first serious crash of the 737 Max 8 aircraft. There is going to be a lot riding on this IRT the out come of this investigation especially Boeing, which could add fuel to the fire over Boeing’s alleged lax safety and quality control standards in which these rumours have been around for a wee while now.
https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/the-13-minutes-before-tragedy-struck-how-the-lion-air-disaster-unfolded/news-story/28de53a23285acd177d9f5386b6731fb
Dirty Politics donations and money ….
When the Nacts lost the last election ….. they were bloated with millions in donations ,,,, and could easily afford to run another election campaign immediately … given the chance.
Not so for Labour and their coalition partners …… who were financially exhausted winners.
Starting From election night where they misrepresented the result … Our slanted media has been giving us bad reporting …. and bad Hosking maths …. where being the largest minority is considered more legitimate to rule …. than getting over 50% support.
There is a concerted effort to de-legitimize the new Govt … Just read bitter old Alwyns posts for the ‘attack lines’ …. making him good for something.
Reading a ‘stuff’ story on anonymous donations …. spurred by Jamies Lee Ross $100,000 dirty donations back stabbings … I was amazed by the Dirty Politics flavor as Stuff twisted the truth
And in a Wayne Mapp like way they claimed NZ first was the worst offender / biggest problem …
However the math in NZs secret political donations was roughly something like this …
National ———– 5 Million secret backhanders
Labour ———– 2 Million or so
NZ first ———— 1.2 Million or something
Now if Im looking for the worst offenders / biggest problems ….. 5 Million by the Nats stands out like dog balls ….. unlike the election results they do have the majority…. over half …. they rule when it comes to dirty donations.
I’d like Labour to do better … but i do not vote for them …. and I suppose they feel its the only way they can stay in the buying media space electioneering game.
But my point is ….. the reporting stunk …. and mislead readers ,,,,
Dirty Politics stands aligned with the dirty money….. we are buying ourselves corruption
Woodhouse needed to sign for approx 100 people to avoid being deported. He did not have to disclose his reason for doing so.
Were donations made to the National party to influence the immigration minister?
Probably, but proving it is another matter.
NZ is no different than any other country, when it comes to the smell of money to sway politicians.
Too true …. and double hard to find out about or prove …. when to many in our media run cover for the criminals.
Reading either a herald or stuff report …. on the single largest forfeiture that has occurred in New Zealand to date …. $43 million seized under our proceeds of crime laws.
I was struck by the language which described an ‘agreement’ between William Yan – also known as Bill Liu, Yang Liu and Yong Ming Yan … and our courts.
Other media has described it as ‘ struck a deal ‘.
Usually criminal matters uses court language like ‘ judgements ‘ or ‘ forfeiture ‘ , ‘seized’ etc.
but the criminally rich …. reach agreements.
New Zealand ………… moderately racist …… and the last 9 years growing economic apartheid
New Zealand makes it on to the Jimmy Dore Show
Thats Suzie Dawson, fearless self promoter and bully , Her modus operandi is to declare herself “spokesperson” and then divert resources and publicity towards supporting herself in the manner she feels she deserves IMHO. avoid , do not engage without witnesses !.
And xanthe, is that your only take home from that link,
attack the person?
not actually any comment on the TPPA itself and how it came to be ratified when so many of the public were against it…
Dawson’s a self aggrandising POS who, despite being asked not to, inserted herself into a family’s grief to fulfill her own delusion of importance.
Who the fuck cares about Dawson, what about the issues, If people were less worried about individual people and more about how policy like TPPA is going to effect themselves, their families and the next generation, it might be harder to power interests to get everything through… forget about semantics and individuals and identity politics and concentrate on the results and effects of policy.
0.5% of the population cares about the TPPA in the way you do.
Its the well off people like yourself problem. And even then its a bogey that ‘might happen’.
Do you really lie awake at night thinking ‘the government is going to be sued’
Thanks for that Link, esoteric pineapples. As the commentator says you get punched with the left fist as well as the right fist.
The Green Party were the only ones who did not sell out the people. If they were in the media for that, instead of cunts, benefit frauds or woke left discourses we would have a lot more Green MP’s representing us.
Saying that the Green Party is still the best party in NZ to preserve democracy and hopefully whatever hic up going on with the Greens and how they represent their policies, they will overcome it.
Those who spoke the best against the TPP like Norman, Cunliffe, Metiria and Harawira were harassed out of parliament and big victims of dirty politics.
Now the issue is silent. Like Rogernomics though, not forgotten.
As the US commentator says we now have sham democracies…
Of course the Greens were in the media re TPPA as they were and still are staunchly opposed. You know this. Everybody who has opposed TPPA knows this. The reality is that this is not as bigger issue with most people as it is for you. We have lost this battle, but that is no reason to abandon all the social justice issues that the Greens have always stood for. Get over yourself.
Searching the Greens website for “TPPA” provides 65 articles and press releases: https://www.greens.org.nz/search/content/TPPA
Searching for “CPTPP” provides a further 6: https://www.greens.org.nz/search/content/CPTPP
Doesn’t even make the home page of the Greens website.
Seem to remember “trains for the shore” being a big headline on the Greens website during the election and ‘Te Reo’ for all…
I know crazy, how those working multiple jobs, with kids or in poverty, bad internet does not make the effort to search Green Party policy and find those 65 articles when the Greens don’t even put it on their home page website with all their other policy directives..
It’s the people’s fault, is that what the Greens tell themselves???
All press releases go on the front page as they come out and stay there in chronological order. The last on CPTPP was a week ago:
https://www.greens.org.nz/news/press-release/green-party-continues-oppose-cptpp-puts-amendments
missing the point again Solka, with volunteers like you for Greens it explains a lot about how they languish in the polls.
BTW looked at Labour’s 355 day achievements, NO mention of TPPA, Labour knew nobody wanted it, fuckers. If it was that great for NZ, why no mention from Labour?
Saying that, strategically worse, is the Greens that were against it, but failed to have it on their home page even though there are 13 other policy directives such airport rail, Te reo and refugees.
What happened, run out of space???
Nothing about spying either… I guess after the Gutsy Greens were forced out, they wanted to ‘tone it’ down into what power interest feel more comfortable with.
Labour gave assurances on a number of points re TPPA and then reneged on the most important one, the investor category of ISDS. This was beyond the control of the Green Party. Even taking the government down would not have stopped CPTPP.
And they should be shouting they were the only honest ones on TPPA from the rooftops not hiding it from the public. NZ First publicly disagree with Labour all the time and they seem to get away with it.
Representative Democracy was designed to keep the power in the hands of the rich.
That said, I can certainly see Representative Democracy being the only viable option prior to the present productivity, mass education and communications capabilities. Present capabilities allow us to drop from a 40 hour week down to a ~20 hour week while still maintaining a reasonable living standard and thus allow people time to engage in politics and voting directly for the policies that they want.
In other words, it’s time that we transitioned to Direct Democracy. Of course, that does mean shifting to online voting as paper voting simply isn’t responsive enough or give enough options.
It’s great that NZ councils are seriously thinking about climate change, emissions, pollution and more trucks on the road… (sarcasm) … In this case sounds like council is considering trucking rubbish 300KM’s away to save a few short term $$$$…
So much easier to do that than actually try to stop the pollution of rubbish at source by discouraging business from overproducing packaging rubbish, not enough compostable rubbish, or encouraging composting, less consumer goods and the the recycle of non recyclables back to the retailers or manufacturers…
https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/369743/rubbish-offer-forces-councils-to-reconsider-42m-landfill-plan
The QLDC trucks all of Wanaka’s rubbish over to the Wakatipu Basin, about 80km.
There has to be a better way. Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.
@ Bearded Git- exactly surely not that hard… of course with TPPA our government probably can’t even tax manufacturers for packaging or they will sue, that’s the ‘new’ democracy… polluting corporations taking more and more taxpayer money to clean up after themselves and instead of money going to schools and hospitals it’s going to truck companies and rubbish dumps and lawyers.
TPPA?
They cant sue for local issues like that . They would have to use the locla courts not international arbitration
“We have narrowed their ambit. The last version of the agreement – for example – if you had disputes between the government and an overseas contractor building the Waterview Tunnel – they could have sued the government if they were in dispute through an international tribunal – now they can’t.”
An overseas contractor would now have to pursue the government through the New Zealand courts.
The government also had a bilaterial agreement with Australia and other countries that they would never use the ISDS clauses.”
https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/348923/david-parker-defends-new-tpp-agreement
Burn in a furnace to make power .
Not long term viable as Norway/Sweden(?) is now learning as they simply don’t create so much rubbish any more. Far better to simply not create so much in the first place and not need the furnaces.
In Qtown it just might work. Tourists aren’t going to stop with the rubbish any time soon.
“Far better to simply not create so much in the first place and not need the furnaces.”
Love your optimism !!
I believe they get paid to take other countries rubbish in Sweden . But building small should solve waste volume problems . On in every city as opposed to huge centralized ones.
I believe so as well.
Problem: Other countries are also reducing the trash that they produce.
As I say – not feasible long term.
Works for Seoul. Doesn’t meet all their energy needs of course – but still worth doing.
Really, all the facility needs to do is cover its costs minus whatever trucking and tip fees would have been.
Why waste the energy and resources to create the waste in the first place?
“Burn in a furnace to make power”
What century do you live in???
Sounds like you are still back in the 1900’s…
We could save ourselves millions per year just banning the spam that arrives in the mail box. The fact that such rubbish wasn’t banned with the electronic form was because of tradition. Businesses had been doing it for decades (against everyone;s wishes which is why it’s called ‘junkmail’) and so the government decided that they couldn’t ban it despite it costing us so damn much more than electronic spam.
Speaking of junk mail.. from time to time when doIng the recycling in Feilding, I see the local junk mail distribution rooster emptying banana box after banana box (more than a dozen last count)into the paper bin.
Another example of a rate payer subsidy to business.
So much waste.
Yeah, that too.
New Zealand Labour openly abandons all pretext of being a political party for the working classes in favour of defending the “deserving” middle classes…as if we didn’t already know…
https://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2018668919/collins-kiwibuild-criticism-mean-spirited-twyford
Yes that centrist MF Phil Twyford made it quite clear in his RNZ interview this morning that the middle classes are the only kiwi’s who ‘deserve’ to own their own government built ‘affordable homes’ and that low wage earners can just get fucked.. that in the eyes of Labour that they are undeserving of the right to own their own government built ‘affordable home’.
Well one can only to come to this conclusion as Labour have and are doing absolutely nothing to change, modify, slowdown or in any way inhibit the hideous and obscene kiwi obsession with commodifying our homes into just another tradable commodity.
Turn Labour Left!
well the ‘deserving middle class’ may well have just been gifted negative equity…..something many who missed out may be quite happy not to receive
I read somewhere that only 40% of people can afford the ‘affordable’ houses. So what happens to the other 60%? No doubt some global corporate will come to the rescue with a taxpayer funded option.. after people live in cars and tents for a few years.
The only good news for renters, is that the locals and those that recently got residency here under the Natz are now leaving for better jobs and working conditions elsewhere and lower costs of living so I think there is a bit of boil off the rental market in Auckland. Had a look the other day and there seemed more rental properties on Trade me, maybe a sham, who knows.
Neoliberalism has screwed many industries now in NZ, hospitality, construction, I think they are after the teachers now with the big migration drive ramping up everyday in the MSM.
Not sure how a foreign teacher, new to NZ and without knowledge of our curriculum, is going to fair better than a local one with the amount of special needs kids, poverty, housing shortages and cost of living. But hey, lure them in, lure them in… don’t address the underlying problems on current teachers!!!
Thats because you havent been doing any reading.
Twyford has made clear , Kiwibuild and more State house build go hand in hand in the future plans
Yeah, shut and wait poor people, you we’re told!!!
Actually, if you look at the HNZ stock between March and June 2018, it increased by almost 500 homes in those three months.
Kiwibuild homes completed in that time? Somewhere around zero?
It seems Labour made the middle class wait…
Kiwbuild owners middle class?
They included a warehouse worker, concrete worker , nurses etc..
Find another grievance to have a whinge about….. to spare us all , maybe not.
lol true, I should have guessed the nats would be pulling the most extreme case they can bullshit from, as well.
But it’s also nice to see the HNZ stock increasing again. HNZ stock dropped 9.5% from 2011 to 2017.
Your link is crap – what am i supposed to look at – the ministry massaging figures? *sigh* you labour party hacks are almost as bad as the Tory scum.
Nice example of wilful blindness there. Reality doesn’t suit your fixation, therefore the figures must be wrong even if you can’t explain how.
never mind Flock, hes just a local jumped up left wing Trump type. let him wallow in his ignorance
Oh look dukeofurl, brefet of actual ideas to discuss a point so does their usual – abuse the commentator.
As for the trump rib, you might want to examine your behaviour – your the one who acts like trump not me.
If the NZH stock increase why is the waiting list for state housing increasing. More poverty perhaps or just dodgy figures???
There’s a certain drug lord who needs a place when he comes out of prison whose recently been granted residency.
Only not hand in hand, because people are moving into houses that they will privately own on former state house land, but hey, the state house tenants are still in emergency hotels, housing, tents, cars and couch surfing. Not hand in hand at all, it is trickle down…
I know this is already linked to on TS, but this brilliant expose/analysis of the JLR affair (to date!) by Frank Macskasy needs to be read by everybody.
https://fmacskasy.wordpress.com/2018/10/30/some-troubling-questions-about-the-ross-affair/
The extra strange part of this , and shows the medias working hand in glove with national.
When Mayor Browns extra marital affair was revealed , maybe 5 years ago, the other womans name wasnt mentioned by Slater at that time.
Very soon though NZ Herald put Bevan Chuang’s name all over its wrong page and multi page inside spread.
Currently the Herald just does exclusives from the National partys version of events in the Ross saga. Its our Pravda – and thats not news to a lot of people.
You reckon if a gnats backbencher wanted to get her version of events out there, the hibbled would just sit on it dukky? Ok..
Myth busting. This is one for you red.
https://www.google.com/amp/amp.timeinc.net/time/4413537/steve-king-subgroup-western-civilization
Sighs … I never made it a cultural pissing contest. Still if the article wants posit that there is no such thing as “Western Civilisation”, then exactly on what basis can you argue for the existence of any other culture? Chinese? Polynesian? Amerindian? Mayan? Arabian? Persian? This is a very peculiar logic capable of erasing all these well-understood historic markers.
Nor would I be all that surprised if the specific notion of “Western Civilisation” arose quite late in the piece; for most of the post-Renaissance era everyone in Europe would have though of themselves as French, Italian, Spanish, Scottish, English, Hungarian, or one of many Germanic identities. The idea of a pan-European “Western” identity probably only arose almost in hindsight, and with the perspective lent by the distance across the Atlantic ocean.
And if you erase the idea of “Western Civilisation” and any possibility of it’s technical superiority, then you have zero explanation for the entire process of European colonisation which so transformed the planet. From it’s very early Portuguese origins, through to the extraordinary scope of the British Empire. You have no explanation for the first round of globalisation which began around the mid-1800’s and culminating in WW1. You have no explanation for the Scientific Revolution, for the multitude of intellectual discoveries by luminaries from Gallileo through to von Neuman. You have nothing on which to rest the Industrial Revolution, no explanation as to why it happened first in Europe and not say China, India or Mayan America. You don’t even have an explanation for the Treaty of Waitangi.
It was of course a highly materialistic revolution, and despite it’s transforming power, it has it’s own internal contradictions, it’s own terrible limitations we still grapple with. Nor does it mean there was not plenty of history happening everywhere else on the planet. But nonetheless the era of European colonisation was pivotal to the transformation of the world, from largely isolated groups of primarily tribal, insular peoples around say 1600, into the global world we live in today.
The whole of human history is highlighted by one group of people with better technology and social sophistication, overwhelming and subjugating their neighbours. The usual mistake people made was conflating their superior tools, with the idea of themselves being a superior people. If nothing else the post WW2 modern era should permanently put that mistake into the rubbish bin of history.
Because we are now on the cusp of being a single global people; there are no ‘others’ to invade, to conquer or imagine we are ‘superior’ to. That will soon be a notion as repugnant as we now consider the ancient practise of chattel slavery. We are stepping through a historic transition; our challenge now is to complete this globalised world we have all built, and breath a spiritual life into it. I rest my case by quoting the last sentence of your reference:
“Civilization is a worldwide phenomenon,” says Hunt, “and we have things in common with people everywhere.”
“‘Western civilization’ was invented during World War I as a way of explaining to American soldiers why they were going to fight in Europe, to stand up for the common values of our civilization, in this case against the Germans, who were seen as threatening the common values that the U.S. had with Britain and France,”
WW1 was a clash of civilization, and neo Darwinist ideals of the German Allmacht.
One of the most graphic pictures of the German attitude, the attitude which has rendered this war inevitable, is contained in Vernon Kellogg’s Headquarters Nights.’ It is a convincing, and an evidently truthful, exposition of the shocking, the unspeakably dreadful moral and intellectual perversion of character which makes Germany at present a menace to the whole civilized world.
The man who reads Kellogg’s sketch and yet fails to see why we are at war, and why we must accept no peace save that of over whelming victory, is neither a good American nor a true lover of mankind.
Theodore Roosevelt .
https://archive.org/details/headquarters00kell/page/30
Interesting quote Poisson, and timely too. ” the unspeakably dreadful moral and intellectual perversion of character which makes ******* ( you choose the nation state ) at present a menace to the whole civilized world.”
History never repeats…?
Such a good song.
Positive news.
As a Grey Power representative, I recently attended a meeting with board members and planning staff of the local District Health Board.
They were able to report that with a milder winter and a larger uptake of people taking influenza vaccinations, there has been far less hospital-based admissions. Another GP rep pointed out that the winter warmth payment will also have played its part in this positive outcome.
The CEO also reported that oral health plays a huge part in maintaining people’s general wellness. There have been good steps taken in this direction, too.
There would be some good results when the research is done and the figures published as to the positive effects that work and initiatives like this will have achieved.
Thats good to hear.
Lets hope the era of ‘new build hospitals’ that have fewer beds than the ones they replace is over.
That was a political process where the future patient numbers were reduced to ‘make the business case work’ for the rebuild.
Excellent news.
🙂
When you look at Goz and ChrisT’s comments and responses (above), it caused me to wonder what the best thing about the current gNatzi Party is.
All I can come up with with that none of them are ‘NEETS’ (Not in Empolyment, Education or Training).
They’re EMPLOYED – some as elected supposed representatives
They’re all in Ideological EDUCATION, some even reEDUCATION
And all are in TRAINING – whether it’s the martial and knife arts, or in media and spin, or re-imaging such as how to turn a Little Feat truck stop gal into a sophisticated leopard print gal who looks like she has some sort of authority bearing in mind her ‘colleagues’ are gaining experience day by day in the art of the knife.
Can anybody else see anything to redeem them?
Great to see Peters and Twyford overrule Kiwirail to keep the electric trains on North Island main trunk line.
Good refurb work for the Hutt workshops as well as good sustainability outcomes.
Thats wonderful news ..stoked!! gota link?
xanthe, here’s one. I have a relative in Kiwirail who will be stoked by the retention of these electric trains, which is why I sought a link. Peters and the Greens also very happy.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1810/S00286/government-saves-electric-trains.htm
Yay! so we do now actually have a functioning government , who woulda thunk it.
yippie 🙂
Here’s another link to the reasoning of Dr Roger Blakeley who supported this move in September this year.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/opinion/106777341/will-electric-locomotives-on-main-trunk-line-be-scrapped
I guess the Chinese train builder that national had lined up wont be too happy
Perhaps national will return their donation
Thanks Ad for that good, news indeed.
Perhaps it is time for a change or three iin Kiwirail’s board.
Twitter
Jami-Lee Ross
@jamileeross
I appreciate all the recent messages of support. I was well looked after by the fantastic people at Middlemore, and grateful for their care. On medical advice I remain on leave, but have given National my proxy vote to ensure Botany continues to be represented in Parliament.
1:45 PM – Oct 30, 2018
Jami-Lee Ross has broken his silence briefly today on Twitter to say that he was well treated at Middlemore Hospital and to thank people for their support.
He has also confirmed that he has given his proxy vote to National which allows him to continue to vote alongside his former party while he remains on leave from Parliament. This ensures the proportionality of Parliament is maintained thereby avoiding National being able to trigger the waka-jumping law.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/108219413/disgraced-mp-jamilee-ross-still-voting-alongside-national
In his absence, Ross’s office has been moved from the National Party quarters in the Beehive to Bowen House.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12151346
In reality ,voting differently from national isnt a trigger for the waka jumping law.
Under the previous similar legislation Donna Awatere took her case to the Supreme court on the very issue of ‘voting with your former party’
the Court ruled , that voting didnt matter.
Once she was
expelledleft the party , as Ross is, and the Speaker recorded them as an ‘Independent’ that was the change in proportionality that the law talked abouthttp://www.courtsofnz.govt.nz/cases/richard-prebble-and-ken-shirley-v-donna-awatere-huata-1/@@images/fileDecision
But of course a Supreme court could rule differently if the new law is worded differently, or even if the current judges think differently
Keeping all his options open!
All of the legal advice I have heard in the media (including a very clear opinion by Geddis) is that proportionality changes the moment JLR left the National Party, so in fact the WJL can be used.
I think National has to wait 21 days from the moment he resigned from the party before he can be chucked out.
The sentence on proportionality was clumsy, rushed wording on my part based on the Herald article, and also Ross’ letter. Mea cupla.
It does not reflect my personal view and IMO the whole issue of proportionality under the revised waka jumping additions to the Electoral Act is far from clear and constitutional lawyers are going to have a ball with this issue and its consequences.
Obviously no-one thought that the issue would arise quite so quickly (if at all) after the passing of the waka jumping amendments – ie IIRC the Royal Assent was only granted on 3 Oct and the changes then came into force from 4 Oct. (Checked – dates correct.)
It really is quite ironic that the Ross situation has arisen so soon – and that it pertains to the National Party in view of their absolute opposition to the changes. If it were not for the nature of the other issues involved (donations, sexual relationships, claims of harassment etc) one could almost wonder whether it was/is a conspriacy … LOL.
Newshub covered the whole situation last night in this article
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2018/10/jami-lee-ross-gears-up-for-return-to-parliament.amp.html
Some of the related issues were also covered previously in these two articles prior to the waka jumping bill going through.
https://www.lawsociety.org.nz/news-and-communications/news/waka-jumping-bill-raises-constitutional-concerns
https://www.noted.co.nz/currently/politics/waka-jumping-bill-brouhaha-not-clear-cut/
The real question is whether National will seek to invoke the waka jumping provisions. Jane Patterson suggested this morning on RNZ Morning Report that indications are that they are very loathe to invoke the waka jumping law and that they had not yet decided whether they would even accept Ross’ proxy vote. (No audio yet up on RNZ website.)
On behalf of the Tax Payers
It is amazing how Hateful the females of National are. They use every opportunity to display their viciousness.
One of the most vile is Judith Collins who has been in Parliament for nearly forever. Earned a hell of a lot of easy money from the Tax Payers.
But achieved absolutely nothing. ! Nothing.
Just a grumpy old frumpy waste of time. The usual national aggressive female.
Kia ora The Am Show I new that the media of the Papatuanuku were going to make a mountain out of a mole hill over the Earth Quake with the Prince and Duchess visiting
thats what the media does I did not feel the Quake.
That’s cool Duncan one must treat there guest with respect I wonder what they will name the new Kiwi chicks in Rotorua.
More mana for Te tangata whenua culture O Aotearoa culture with the Prince & Duchess speaking te reo ka pai.
Yes criminalizing abortion’s is a stupid .
Loyd looks quite happy with the new NZ chipped passport that skirts around the ques .
Amanda thats the way we cannot have people make it the noorm to be an ASS.
The US mid turm elections most mid term elections swing against the ruling party only 2 times in 80 od years has this phenomenon not happened but not to worry the Demacrats are more intelegint than the gop party they can forecast the future and care about there effects on it.
That’s a cool story of Mr Longman ABC reporter finding his grandparents photo in the New Zealand national library . Ka kite ano
Some Eco Maori Music for the minute
It’s cool having a vip escort were ever I go some ECO MAORI music for the minute https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=usN-pKfw6Q8
Eco Maori say if they stopped sending actors and paying them thousands to do the impossible they send in 1 a fortnight and stopped escorting me were ever I go they will save a few million instead of pissing money into the wind the sandflys have at least 3 cars following me as they are scared.
Court staff at the Hastings and Napier district courts will walk off the job at 3pm today.
The PSA this afternoon advised the Ministry of Justice of strike action to take place today at the Napier and Hastings District Courts for two hours from 3pm. ana to kai Ka kite ano Link below.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12151493
Here is reality for African American farmers being bullied and ripped off by European American’s Eco Maori Tau tokos /supports all minority’s who are being treated like dirt
It’s not fair, not right’: how America treats its black farmers .
I hope big changes are going to happen in America in the next few days you all have to get up and out and vote for you childrens and grandchildren future our future Kia kaha / stand strong. Ka kite ano link below.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/oct/30/america-black-farmers-louisiana-sugarcane
Kia ora Te Karea Eco Maori doesn’t agree on war so I tau toko the protesters .
The Prince and Duchess look good wearing te korowai It was good to here Chris words I watch him and his whano on Maori TV they make me proud of our culture Piripi.
Lets hope that our goverment has made the correct move on the trade agreement with the rest of the TPP Talasa.
I say all people should be aloud to vote even if you are in Prison.
I have all ready had my say on the Ngapuhi Treaty settlement im not sure about the take .
Ka kite ano Kia Kaha to the Maori All blacks
Kia ora Newshub Jo has been lucky to survive that avalanche all the best.
Its good that Galloway is reviewing his call on that immigrant in jail.
Rotorua had a bright beautiful day for the Royal couple visit and all the Maori culture people making us all proud of our culture and country.
Samantha Its atrocious what man is doing to our wild life we do need a Global Pact to STOP the sharp decline in our wild life I intend to write a post on that subject tomorrow.
That was a big show of mana in the protest against the defence arms display show in Palmerston North ka pai .
Halloween is for Te Tamariki my children went with it in my time we only seen it on TV.
Ka kite ano
The Crowd Goes Wild James & Mulls not to many cups of tea last nite with Grizz guys.
Maa going to play for the Blues and Marty back for Otago there is a lot of people with good skills in the Kiwi .
I ts cool that the coach of the Liverpool soccer teams coach Jurgen uses the mighty Haka some times ot motivate his player .
I say Bryce is a unreliable tomato guys lol he is shinning bright hows Rodger .
James thats cool that you acknowledge Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan visit to Rotorua .
All the best to the Breakers fingers crossed.
Ka kite ano P.S nice ties guy’s