Around a decade ago, Bill Watson told me the Jap whaling industry was controlled by the Yakuza. He was Sea Shepherd coordinator for Aotearoa at the time. Pete Bethune had just been imprisoned by the Japs. Bill was worried the Yakuza would kill him there.
I found myself realising, a day or two later, that he was probably right so I needed to be proactive. Not my business, but sometimes the conscience says do it anyway! So I wrote the necessary letter to the new PM, John Key, asking him to get Bethune out & back home. Was pleased when the PM did what I’d asked! Bethune bitched about it, JK told the media he was ungrateful & I agreed, eye-rolling, & commented to Bill that nobody was ever going to award Bethune a medal for diplomacy.
Sea Shepherd declared victory the other day, after Japan announced they were jumping the IWC ship, would resume whaling next year, but not in Antarctic waters. The crims need the money, they still control the politicians, the media are still clueless – but they’re trying to figure it out: “There is a view that the country’s whaling obsession is less about food, as whale meat is surprisingly unpopular in Japan, especially among younger people, than it is about politics and culture. Defying the world’s rules and resuming commercial whaling is a bold expression of national identity.”
“Japan is not alone in doing so. Norway and Iceland also claim histories of whaling and have defied the 1986 ban on commercial killing. But it seems that, as in Japan, consumer taste is at odds with national identity. A 2018 report found that while Norway had about 350 whaling ships in 1950, there were only 11 operating in 2017. In that year, Norwegian whalers took less than half their annual quota of 999 whales.”
“Icelandic whalers have killed more than 500 fin whales since 2006, with the meat exported to the declining whale market in Japan, due to the absence of local demand, according to the charity Whale and Dolphin Conservation.” So the trend is for barbarians to become more of an endangered species than whales. Barbaric practices still have the support of three pseudo-civilised govts though!
Do you think perhaps it may be perceived that way as a left-over from WW11? After all, we talk about Brits and Aussies without any concerns of this nature
Probably only if the Japs ever declare that they actually are a race rather than Japanese citizens. Obviously the technical nature of reality is usually too hard for pc-drones to grasp, of course.
How’d you like that James? Being called PC? Personally I don’t care for the term “Japs” or “PC” but meh, people can say what they like (& as per usual says more about them than they’d really like to share anyway).
You are not Japanese. You are an exposed serial liar and agitator on a left leaning blog site…your intent is to agitate…and possibly to get your jollies in the process….
Jap, is short for Japanese and is not racist at face value, so only Dennis Frank can advise you what his intent is behind use of the abbreviation….
Concentrate on improving yourself so you can set a good example to those grand children , eh ….
Either way, you can sit back down, put the fake virtue signalling back in the box …
And you may have missed the general warning yesterday by one of the mods te reo putake:
“So, a general warning that reference to any commenters background, known or not, should be clearly relevant to the discussion at hand.”
A quick check on the replies tab shows your last three replies to me are about or mention my grandkids. I don’t know what your obsession with young children but you seem to have an inappropriate fixation on them. That – and it has nothing to do with the discussion in hand.
A couple of points. Firstly, Jap is considered offensive by Japanese people, so let’s not use it.
Secondly, I re-iterate the point I made yesterday, which was that irrelevant references to a commenter’s personal details or family situations is poor form. If its clearly relevant to the immediate discussion, fine. By that I mean that if a commenter chooses to share some details in a thread and that engenders responses, that’s cool. What’s not cool is bringing up those details later as some form of point scoring exercise.
The Wiki link also has links to some other good reference tools. Have bookmarked them.
To te reo putake
Thanks for the good moderation and guidance on these issues over the last day or so. Perhaps the latter could be added to the About and Policy if other moderators etc agree.
Yes, James, it is about the intent….that is exactly what it is about…
The links you’ve posted to, nor your incorrect and faux outrage do nothing to change that… So, ask DF what his intent was….go ahead….even if DF says it was intended as derogatory, would not change the fact JAP is an abbreviation which can be used in a non derogatory manner…
Moving along to your fake playing ‘victim’….
Per my reply to TRP yesterday, you are not posting on this site in good faith, James. You are an agitator, a deliberate agitator which is to be one of the lowest forms of public tro*l behavior.
Part of your agitators ‘shtick’ includes manufacturing stories referencing your age, ethnicity, residential location, family members/dynamic including their age bracket, education, work and off-spring, as well as your dwellings , dining, sporting and nutritional preferences…
You have willingly used these details as part of the agitation process, and therefore not in good faith…not a single shred….
In recent times you appear to be utilizing a particularly ugly tactic, and having had your comments repeatedly exposed over a number of years as racist and misogynistic etc in the literal sense, not the fake version such as you are blatantly doing once again here with DF….you are now seeking to play the victim, pushing for bans and retribution against other commentators here, who from what I can tell are mostly posting in good faith….
Even handles such as naki man appear to be more honest that you…aggressive, angry and ignorant….but seemingly in an honest way, as much as his level will allow him…
You are beneath even that level!
================================
TRP – Per your repeated comment/position from yesterday. You have played directly into the desired response James was looking for. Per my response yesterday, you are also enabling and empowering this sites most odious agitator, and not in good faith commentator… my opinion….
In contrast to VV’s comment regarding your moderation. I do not agree that you have moderated this instance well at all, not at face value…
I would say that since you returned, your moderation style is more effective than it had previously been…
Thanks, vv. Adding it to the policy is a good idea. Mind you, it’s really obvious from looking at other blogs that TS commenters are way more thoughtful and considered in their postings, which is nice. it means that issues like this can be discussed rationally and without malice.
Yeah. Traditional language usage is only a problem for a few isolated individuals. It has been a common abbreviation used in this country my entire life. Never heard anyone use it in a derogatory sense that some pc-drone could spin as racist.
The princess who has attained a position of civil rights advocacy that James linked to may have impressed the HuffPost editorial team, but so what? Just because some folks think they can get away with language conformity doesn’t mean others will stop viewing them as sociopaths, right?
As you have noted previously, you and I are of a similar age, Dennis.
While I agree it is an abbreviation which has been used in this country, I personally have not heard it used for many years.
My recollection of it mainly goes back to my childhood when it seemed to be much more common and in fact used in many cases in a derogatory manner – particularly by a couple of uncles and their friends who had spent time in Japanese POW camps. (Another one of that era was the Yellow Peril.)
So in fact it actually jumped out at me when I saw you use it, but I felt that you personally were not necessarily using it in a derogatory manner. Nevertheless as te reo putake says, it is considered offensive by Japanese people, so let’s not use it.
However, as a woman, what I do find offensive is your:
“The princess who has attained a position of civil rights advocacy that James linked to may have impressed the HuffPost editorial team, but so what? Just because some folks think they can get away with language conformity doesn’t mean others will stop viewing them as sociopaths, right?
So you disagree with her opinion; but do you really need to be so derogatory in doing so?
Language more common to Kiwiblog – and very reminiscent of similar put down comments there and elsewhere about Jacinda Ardern, our PM …
No need to even read the links. They are simply the efforts of an agitator seeking to identify endorsement, for a position taken which is incorrect and disingenuous…
I have no idea what your intention was when using the abbreviation…that is only for you to know…
TRP states use of the abbreviation is ‘considered offensive’ to Japanese, which is potentially true in some instances…such is the generic wholesale statement he made…
What I can state, as I know this directly first hand, that there are Japanese who use the abbreviation to each other, and towards other Japanese, and in no way is it meant to be, nor is it taken as ‘offensive’…
Which makes attempts of language conformity little more than the subjective preference of someone(s ) who are highly unlikely to be ethnic Japanese, of any percentage…one who is openly acting in bad faith…
So, there is James and TRP , both non Japanese, seeking to advise/enforce which language that another non Japanese person (yourself Dennis , assumption) should/should not use when writing and commentating…
Understandable that those who fought them would feel that way, especially those who ended up in their prison camps with the torture & brutality endemic.
Just because TRP says Japanese have that view doesn’t mean he’s right. If he can produce evidence, I’ll consider it. I’ve seen none as yet. A statement of foreign policy by the Japanese govt would be authoritative. Even an official statement by one of their leaders, perhaps. Otherwise it’s all just a few people trying to get away with imposing their personal morality on others. Offensive behaviour!
And when a narcissist use a position of ngo advocacy to do it, why ought we to be impressed? She didn’t cite any agreed policy position by that group, did she? Her sense of entitlement apparently drove her to misrepresent them. Such disrespect for others is not appropriate political behaviour. Dunno why leftists think justifying such behaviour from leftists while condemning it from rightists is okay. Hypocrites, I reckon.
The comments he/she (James) stir are about as long and repetitious as the pome. Next year – can we have a resolution to allow one person to have a go back at him and leave it at that? That would be enough for him to know we really love him.
A little trick in such situations is to select a portion of the quote – eg
“Japan is not alone in doing so. Norway and Iceland also claim histories of whaling and have defied the 1986 ban on commercial killing. But it seems that, as in Japan, consumer taste is at odds with national identity.”
The left click (or if you have your mouse set up for left-handed – right click) and click “Search Google for ” Japan is not alone …”.
Dennis Frank’s post at 8:34 am is a fascinating one, full of detail, insider knowledge and revelation on a subject that is topical. He made considerable effort to present his ideas well and even praised John Key in the process! Despite all that value, James found a single word with which he could derail the topic and was unable to resist the temptation to be petty.
Losers get cemeteries, not monuments, and while the pricks continue to memorialise criminals and their crimes at Yasukuni, I doubt my attitude (a poor one) will improve.
The whole damn business is about budgets and pork barreling , rather than food or culture.
Still, there is some merit to the government’s argument.
A number of coastal communities in Japan have indeed hunted whales for centuries, and continue to do so. Taiji in Wakayama prefecture is well known, many would say infamous, for its annual dolphin hunts. There are other places, in Chiba Prefecture and in Ishinomaki in northern Japan, that also do coastal whaling.
[…]
Nothing about these Antarctic whaling expeditions is historic. Japan’s first whaling voyage to the Antarctic took place in the mid-1930s but the really huge hunts didn’t get going until after World War Two.
Japan lay in ruins, its population starving. With the encouragement of General Douglas MacArthur, Japan converted two huge US Navy tankers into factory ships and set sail for the Southern Ocean.
From the late 1940s to the mid-1960s whale meat was the single biggest source of meat in Japan. At its peak in 1964 Japan killed more than 24,000 whales in one year, most of them enormous fin whales and sperm whales.
[…]
But Junko Sakuma thinks the answer lies in the fact that Japan’s whaling is government-run, a large bureaucracy with research budgets, annual plans, promotions and pensions.
“If the number of staff in a bureaucrat’s office decreases while they are in charge, they feel tremendous shame,” she says.
“Which means most of the bureaucrats will fight to keep the whaling section in their ministry at all costs. And that is true with the politicians as well. If the issue is closely related to their constituency, they will promise to bring back commercial whaling. It is a way of keeping their seats.”
It may seem incredibly banal. But Japan’s determination to continue whaling may come down to a handful of MPs from whaling constituencies and a few hundred bureaucrats who don’t want to see their budgets cut.
“Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Saturday, Giles York, the Chief Constable of Sussex Police said he could not rule out the possibility that some sightings of drones reported during the incident were of drones that Sussex Police had flown over the airport for surveillance purposes.
“We will have launched our own Sussex police drones at the time, with a view to investigate, engage and survey the area. So there could be some level of confusion there as well,” York said after being questioned about a previous report that there may have been no drone at all.”
Pity they couldn’t use them to kill possums mustilids and rats – imagine teams running drones going for records hunting in the bush with cameras – from anywhere. Battle Royale for pest control.
Drones have rather limited range and endurance, so are really just an addition to people on foot for direct control. We’re doing some experiments with mustering deer in rough blocks with a drone, very early days yet but some success but some huge limitations. They don’t have the presence of a helicopter which combined with most deer’s fear of helicopters from meathunting days generally means deer will go away and down easily from a helicopter. The cunning ones will try and hide in thick scrub. With the drone most deer will hide in the scrub (and wait for the battery to go flat) if they can and have to be flushed out on foot. But the drone is awesome for observation and moving them in the clear.
Graeme
I will put a copy of that for the Sunday How to get there post. It’s the sort of clever thing that may be another adaptation that helps the system to the future in a better way.
Satellites could do it, Marty; there’re enough of them flitting about overhead; some heat-detecting software, a lethal laser of some sort, what could go wrong?…hang on!!!
Hey, Marty – could you please describe “human nature” pithily (or exhaustively, I don’t mind 🙂 so that we can know what you mean?
(Genuine request, cheers)
Robert
Apparently refusing the giving away of large swathes of public land to leaseholders, for fractions of it’s real value, is “unfair” to those who haven’t managed to get their share, of the giveaway, yet!
No regard to fairness to the rest of us. Of course.
Where is the tax dodgers union when you need them?
Tenure review is now under a moratorium….David Parker is not impressed with the process at allso I can`t see this government signing off on any more shonky deals….thr Nats gave billions…yes billions…to their farmer mates under this awful process often supported by DOC and weak enviromentalists
The edit function is a wordpress plugin. It appears to have dropped of during the upgrade but no doubt LPrent will restore it when he gets a chance.
In the meantime, just re-read your comments before posting and self edit where needed. If there’s something really, really needs editing after you’ve posted a comment, leave a new comment asking for the moderators to tidy up the original.
Let’s call “pretty legal” for what it is – the baked in Tory sense of entitlement redolent with dishonesty.
National is in “pretty legal” territory after Otaki MP Nathan Guy used Facebook’s “thumb” icon in a Labour attack-ad billboard.
Despite Facebook not giving permission for the logo’s use – an icon it strictly enforces copyright of – Guy said the social media outfit “haven’t raised any issues with us”.
Not too sure when I will be posting again (more out of whether I can be bothered than anything else) so where are my 2019 predictions:
1) Labour and National to stay more or less neck and neck in the polls with either party from month to month leading by less than 3 points.
2) Simon Bridges remains as National leader, though he makes Judith Collins his spokesperson for finance. Paula Bennett announces she plans to step down at the 2020 election.
3) The government quietly sets up an SOE to deliver the Kiwibuild houses, as well as to build and maintain state and social houses. It also goes in partnership with the NZ Superfund to build more houses.
4) RNZ+ is dropped, but TVNZ brings back TVNZ 7 as a 24 hour news and current affairs channel jointly run with RNZ and Maori TV.
5) The Tomorrow’s Schools reforms are implemented, but the larger schools are given the freedom to opt out of being run by the Hubs.
6) Helen Clark is given a top state sector post by the current administration, but it will be something we least expect.
7) Phil Goff, Justin Lester and Lianne Dalzeil all win a second term as mayor in their respective cities.
8) Brexit is postponed a year.
9) Trump supporters start lynching people, with the current administration refusing to condemn them.
10) none of these things ever actually happen, and I may as well just say anything.
Oh no anything is possible, but working out the probable – I think you have supplied a good cover of our present and future dilemmas Millsy. Be a good scout, don’t drop out.
Where was the crude and racist stuff in his comment?
Jesus Christ, you’re ignorant.
He was responding to a crude and racist comments, if that’s your point.
He was lying and distorting her words, as you’d know if you bothered to do any further investigation of the matter.
Natz still in pain about losing the election it seems.
Now Nathan Guy is sticking up billboards on the roadside, creating visual pollution and unsafe distraction. And in typical Natz mode, breaching copyright (Facebook?), breaking the law, while pointing the dirty blue finger at Labour, using it’s ID logo!
Natz really needs to get over itself. Now!
edit: Oops, I see this has already been commented on. My bad.
No they are doing what oppositions do, how that’s been upset, suggest you spend some time understanding meaning of parliamentary opposition I suggest as Nats in government and in opposition are doing a far better job than Labour, Labour yesrs in opposition where hilarious but not good for our democracy, sadly we now have such incompetency in government
You don’t have to keep reminding people why you call yourself Bewildered. We already concede that the name is accurate, okay? Try explaining why the Nats continue to be so keen to breach copyright law. The penny may then drop, and you’ll end up less bewildered. Keep on with that positive stance, you’ll end up bewildered no longer. Maybe even end up then calling yourself Savvy…
Bewildered ((10.1) … and National was always competent in government was it?
What Nathan Guy is doing is demonstrating that National has become a pathetic sorry mess since losing the last election. It really does need to pull its finger out and act as a responsible Opposition, working for all NZers, offering up some constructive, workable policies, instead of petulant sniping all the time. Guy’s actions here are not making NZ a better, safer place by any means.
BTW why is a National MP bringing this issue up now in the way he has done, when it had nine years as government to focus on and address transport infrastructure?
Hmmm that’s what opposition do Mary, they are not thier to support the government constructively Labor 9 years in opposition was hardly constructive, point been there where not even a competent opposition tearing each other apart, no policy formulation barring voter signalling bs, hence the 100s of work committes we now have Unfortunatly we now have this incompetence in government Oy 3 more years though and labour are simply Ardern resignation away from destroying themselves from the inside National I turn a lot more stable as some of the miss steps and mps fling rogue has indicated, party support and unity holds up and party does not go full feral and our left mates do
Hmmm that’s what opposition do Mary, they are not there to support the government constructively Labor 9 years in opposition was hardly a constructive opposition point been there where not even a competent opposition tearing each other apart, no policy formulation barring virtue signalling bs, hence the 100s of work committes we now have Unfortunatly we now have this incompetence in government Only 2 more years though and similarly labour are simply Ardern resignation away from destroying themselves from the inside again National in turn is a lot more stable as some of the miss steps and mps going rogue has indicated, party support and unity still holds up and party does not go full retard as labour has a propensity to do
National stable? You jest of course Bewildered (10.1.2.2)!
At present I consider National is far from stable, given the doubt about its present leadership. Then there are the continuing leaks, the likelihood of Jami Lee Ross returning to Parliament next year as an Independent MP, ready to pass on some more damaging information relating to Simon Bridges and National, bringing about even more uncertainty within the Opposition.
Finally, I know I might not be the brightest star in the sky, but I’m sorry you have lost me re the rest of your post, so I can’t comment, because I haven’t a clue on what I’d be commenting on!
Nathan Guy was responsible for fauling to implement the stock identification system (because it cost his farmer mates a bit of money) that has resulted in the micro bovis $850m disaster.
The stock identification system is a scam. Like a tax that you get nothing in return for. It proved incompetent in tracking cattle in any reasonable time frame. The real reason this was introduced was to create animal registration, and in turn taxation of stock. Plus, nod, nod, wink, wink, some tidy fees to disappear into some fat salaries.
The old system of keeping the transport dockets is just as effective. Plus when you get a disease like Foot & Mouth you really have no choice but to put a compass on the map, draw a circle, then kill everything. Then look at the transport Dockets. The new system fails because the cows may be registered but the system doesn’t know where the animals actually are, or where they have been.
Nobody gamed the system. The disease had nothing to do with the system. It spread because nobody knew they had the disease, and once discovered the didn’t know what animals had gone where, or what animals may have got the infected sperm.
The system allowed Foreign sperm, just as all the disease outbreaks have occurred with something coming across the boarder. It is unusual practice to get high value sperm from overseas for normal farmers, but not the specialist breaders or those buying enough to undercut LICs prices.
The truck driver creates a docket, end of story.
Now you create the docket with the truck driver, plus the old owner must log in what’s happening, as well as the new owner. As shown the system didn’t know what was happening. The old system just had owner ID tags. Nothing’s really changed or improved. But it costs thousands more for each farmer.
It spread because nobody knew they had the disease, and once discovered the didn’t know what animals had gone where, or what animals may have got the infected sperm.
All of which would have been known if they had used the system as designed. Not using as designed is gaming the system.
The fault here falls fully upon the farmers.
The truck driver creates a docket, end of story.
/facepalm
Chances are the old system wasn’t used whenever some farmers felt it wasn’t in their interest to let the government know what they were doing.
It’s interesting. We drove through Levin heading south on Sunday 23 December and half the shops were closed! You would imagine retailers would be gagging for local business but no.
We continued south and hit some traffic at Otaki of course which is the core of the problem because there’s a roundabout where SH1 traffic gives way to local traffic. Now, google maps shows us what the new Peka Peka Otaki expressway will look like and this delivers 4 lanes from Wellington CBD to Otaki once transmission fully and the rest of the Kapiti expressways are complete. That’s 72.7km and Nathan Guy want a further 20km to a one street town of 21,000, with several sets if traffic lights, which is closed on one of the busiest shopping days of the year. No doubt Mr Guy will then want a Levin bypass.
Google maps also shows us the still to be completed Waikato expressway will deliver 4 lanes from Auckland to Hamilton a distance of 124.9km. Auckland is an international city of 1.7 million people and Hamilton about 170,000. These two still don’t have a four lane connection and don’t even have a rail commuter service.
To me the end of the expressway at Otaki is right because that’s where the problems occur. I can’t help thinking Nathan Guy and the National party have got their priorities all wrong. But I’m not surprised, they do tend to concentrate on the small stuff while the rest of us see the bigger picture.
The Wiakato Expressway has nothing to do with connecting Auckland to Hamilton. It actually bipasses it, compared to the past nightmare of having to drive through it, and the Huntly traffic jam will be gone as well.
The project is about modernising SH1 from Auckland to Wellington. Some parts of the Wiakato expressway were desperately in need of upgrading with one area being our deadliest road. The same need applies to the Auckland Southern Moterway upgrade to 6 lanes.
Your argument saying it services just 21000 people is wrong as most people using SH1 won’t just be from Levin but everybody from the rest of the North Island, and everybody traveling North from Wellington, or on the return trip. Maybe it should carry on until Foxton.
The Wiakato Expressway has nothing to do with connecting Auckland to Hamilton. It actually bipasses it, compared to the past nightmare of having to drive through it, and the Huntly traffic jam will be gone as well.
And you missed the bit that actually causes all the problems – drive.
Really, if you want to go from Auckland to Wellington – take the bloody train or a plane or even a boat.
The roads couldn’t cope with the people using it.
That’s people using there freedom to travel. Plus buisinesses trying to pay wages, and break even.
I drove to Wellinton for a visit a few years ago. I drove and slept in my car 2 nights. Couldn’t do that if I took the train, plus it was an unplanned visit. Bit hard if you wish to use your car during the stay. Must use far less fuel than a plane. Trains are painfully slow in NZ.
What a good look for our Tourists traveling in Buses. Stuck in traffic on the nations main highway for hours.
People shouldn’t be using the roads. In fact, there’s probably a fairly good case for removing roads between cities.
That’s people using there freedom to travel.
Nobody’s suggesting taking their freedom to travel away.
I drove to Wellinton for a visit a few years ago. I drove and slept in my car 2 nights. Couldn’t do that if I took the train, plus it was an unplanned visit. Bit hard if you wish to use your car during the stay. Must use far less fuel than a plane. Trains are painfully slow in NZ.
Plan better.
If you’re really concerned about businesses paying wages then you should be using them.
But if members of the eco–jet set were to fly commercial—and join a few hundred other people sardined into coach—it might be a different story. It may seem counterintuitive, but a provocative study released earlier this year argues that in the U.S., flying from place to place actually consumes significantly less energy – and hence produces significantly fewer emissions—than driving does.
Public transport really is more efficient than cars.
And, yes, the trains need to be upgraded. Have you noticed that this didn’t happen due to the private owners followed by National running the trains down and building highly expensive, inefficient roads?
What a good look for our Tourists traveling in Buses. Stuck in traffic on the nations main highway for hours.
The only reason why buses are stuck in traffic is because of the morons driving cars.
It would also be interesting to know which side of the road this sign is on. If it’s heading south at Manakau then the soon to be completed Wellington to Otaki expressway will render this concern obsolete. A bit like Nathan Guy and the National Party really. 😆
How do you see the soon to be completed Wellington to Otaki expressway rendering the concern obsolete? Otaki to Levin is a completely different stretch of highway.
Having a 4 lane expressway going into a 2 lane highway will exacerbate congestion on that stretch of road.
If the sign is southbound then it’s two lanes going to four just north of Otaki. Not an issue.
And four lanes to two is not an issue either. It’s the conramination of SH1 traffic with local traffic which is the problem. How do you think four lanes stopping at a Levin traffic light is going to work?
Currently, there is a two lane highway and there are problems. While 4 lanes from Otaki to Wellington will help alleviate some of the build up from that point, it doesn’t address all the concerns back from that point.
4 lanes going into 2 is always an issue. Moreover, the new Otaki to Levin highway does bypass Levin’s CBD due to the congestion it currently causes, which will now be replaced with congestion from the 4 going into 2.
A decent freeway covering the whole of the country is long overdue.
This section of highway was to be a part (albeit small) of achieving that long held aspiration.
The stretch of road has a number of black spots and has been dubbed a “killing field” (marked like a battlefield with white crosses) by a former coroner.
Hence, as with a number of other areas around the country, a decent expressway has been long awaited.
While we are committed to only doing sections of highway at a time, new expressways will result in bottlenecks as traffic merges from 4 to 2. To help mitigate the resulting congestion, merging points should be placed in areas of low traffic volumes. With adjoining SH57 (which leads to Palmerston North) Levin to Otaki is a high volume traffic area.
Levin’s population is growing faster than expected and with housing costs rising in Palmerston North coupled with the high cost of housing in Wellington, more are expected to move there seeking a cheaper home. Add to that our aging population as it is a bit of a retirement location for Wellingtonians.
Nevertheless, it’s a part of state highway one, thus services far more than just Levin and adjoining SH57.
With our growing population and growing number of tourists, delaying vastly improving our roading will be costly.
Improving the public rail service in the area seems to have been also overlooked.
For instance, an extension to Auckland’s North West motorway is crucial. Earth is being turned up there big time and the population is expected to increase from Kumeu to Waimauku by several times the entire population of Levin.
Alcohol, obesity, flame retardants and pesticides are known to affect sperm and now cannabis.
“We know that there are effects of cannabis use on the regulatory mechanisms in sperm DNA, but we don’t know whether they can be transmitted to the next generation,” Murphy said.
“In the absence of a larger, definitive study, the best advice would be to assume these changes are going to be there,” Murphy said. “We don’t know whether they are going to be permanent. I would say, as a precaution, stop using cannabis for at least six months before trying to conceive.”
That’s an awful lot of don’t know’s to write an article about.
Funded by the John Templeton Foundation. Champion of free markets. Previous hit’s include Intelligent design and constantly trying to define the ‘science/religion boundary’.
Very deep pockets. Dodgy AF. Big business boys so big pharma called for this particular study for sure.
@ James, and a few others
Did I ever tell you how utterly (near), perfect I am.
Admittedly I’m not quite the specimen you are (yet) but I live in hope and I do all the right things.
Thanks to you, I’ve seen the light
Bryce Edwards writes – “Follow the money” is the classic directive to journalists trying to understand where power and influence lie in society. In terms of uncovering who influences various New Zealand political parties and governments, it therefore pays to look at who is funding them. The ...
Alwyn Poole writes – After being elected to Parliament in 2008 the maiden speech of Hipkins was substantially around education policy. He was Labour’s spokesperson for education 2011 – 2017. He was Minister for Education from 2017 until February 2023. This is approximately 88% of the time Labour ...
Eric Crampton writes – A fashion industry group is lobbying for protections. They make the usual arguments and a newer one. None of it makes sense. An industry group says it pumped $7.8 billion into the economy last year – that’s 1.9 percent of New Zealand’s GDP. ...
In December 2006, Fiji's military leader Voreqe Bainimarama overthrew the elected government in a coup. He ruled Fiji for the next 16 years, first as dictator, then as "elected" Prime Minister. But now, he's finally been sent to jail where he belongs. Sadly, this isn't for his real crime of ...
Don't like National's corrupt Muldoonist "fast-track" law? Aotearoa's environmental NGO's - Greenpeace, Forest & Bird, WWF, Coromandel Watchdog, Coal Action Network Aotearoa, Kiwis Against Seabed Mining, and others - have announced a joint march against it in Auckland in June: When: 13:00, 8 June, 2024 Where: Aotea Square, Auckland You ...
Seymour describes sushi as too woke for school meals. There are no fish sushi meals recommended by the School Lunches programme. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / Getty ImagesTL;DR: The Government will swap out hot meals for packaged sandwiches to save $107 million on school lunches for poor kids. MSD has pulled ...
I don't mind stealin' bread from the mouths of decadenceBut I can't feed on the powerless when my cup's already overfilled, yeahBut it's on the table, the fire's cookin'And they're farmin' babies, while slaves are workin'The blood is on the table and the mouths are chokin'But I'm goin' hungry, yeahSome ...
The Ardern Government’s chickens came home to roost yesterday with the news that the country is short of natural gas. In 2018, Labour banned offshore petroleum exploration, and industry executives say that the attendant loss of confidence by the industry impacted overall investment in onshore gas fields. Energy Resources Minister ...
Hi,If you’ve been digging through the newly launched Webworm store (orders are being dispatched worldwide as I type!) you’ll have noticed the best model we had was Calvin.This is Calvin.Calvin.Calvin is 7, and is the son of my producer over on Flightless Bird, Rob — aka “Wobby Wob”. Rob also ...
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Climate change is everywhere. And when something's everywhere it can feel like it's nowhere. So how do we get our heads ...
Its a law like gravity: whenever a right-wing government is elected, they start attacking democracy. And now, after talking to their Republican and Tory and Fidesz chums at the International Democracy Union forum in Wellington, National is doing it here, announcing plans to remove election-day enrolment. Or, to put it ...
Yesterday Winston Peters focussed his attention on the important matter at hand. Tweeting. Like the former, and quite possibly next, orange POTUS, from whom he takes much of his political strategy, Winston is an avid X’er.His message didn’t resemble an historic address this time. In fact it was more reminiscent ...
Buzz from the Beehive A significant decline in natural gas production has given Resources Minister Shane Jones an opportunity to reiterate his enthusiasm for the mining and burning of coal. For good measure, he has praised an announcement from Genesis Energy that it will resume importing coal. He and Energy ...
“Follow the money” is the classic directive to journalists trying to understand where power and influence lie in society. In terms of uncovering who influences various New Zealand political parties and governments, it therefore pays to look at who is funding them. The political parties are legally obliged to make ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Here is my subjective ranking on a “most-left” to “most-right” scale of most of our major NZ Universities, with some anecdotal (and at times amusing) evidence to back up the claim.Extreme Left Auckland University of TechnologyEvidenceThe ...
Eric Crampton writes – I hadn’t thought about this one until a helpful email showed up in my inbox.It’s pretty obvious that income tax thresholds should automatically index with inflation – whether to anchor the thresholds in percentiles of the income distribution, or to anchor against a real ...
Jacqui Van Der Kaay writes – Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National ...
Gary Judd writes – The Dean of the law school at the Auckland University of Technology is someone called Khylee Quince. I have been sent her social media posting in which she has, over the LawNews headline “Senior King’s Counsel files complaint about compulsory tikanga Maori studies for ...
Cleo Paskal writes – WASHINGTON, D.C.: ‘Many of us have received phone calls from [the opposing camp] telling them if they join the camp they will be given projects for their wards and $300,000 [around US$35,000] each’, says former Malaita Premier Daniel Suidani. The elections in Solomon Islands aren’t ...
With hindsight, it was inevitable that (a) Hamas would agree to the ceasefire deal brokered by Egypt and Qatar and that ( b) Israel would then immediately launch attacks on Rafah, regardless. We might have hoped the concessions made by Hamas would cause Israel to desist from slaughtering thousands more ...
Placards and mourners outside the Kilbirnie Mosque following the Christchurch terror attack: MSD has terminated the Kaiwhakaoranga service, which has been used by 415 families since the attacks. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The Government’s pledge to only cut ‘back office’ staff rather than ‘frontline’ services is on increasingly shaky ground, with ...
There’s been a few smaller public transport announcements over the last week or so that I thought I’d cover in a single post. Fareshare I’ve long called for Auckland Transport to offer a way to enable employer-subsidised public transport options. The need for this took on even more importance ...
Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National Minister Matt Doocey, reflects poorly on Genter and ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
Who likes being sneered at? Nobody. Worse yet, when the sneerer has their facts all wrong, and might well be an idiot.The sneer in question is The adults are in charge now, and it is a sneer offered in retort to criticism of this new Government, no matter how well ...
When in government, Labour pushed to extend the Parliamentary term to four years, to reduce accountability and our ability to vote out a bad government. And now, they're trying to do it through the member's ballot, with a Four-Year Parliamentary Term Legislation Bill. The bill at least requires a referendum ...
A ballot for a single Member's Bill was held today, and the following bill was drawn: Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill (Hūhana Lyndon) The bill would prevent the government from stealing Māori land in breach of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. It ...
Simeon Brown, alongside Wayne Brown, is favouring a political figleaf now in exchange for loading up tens of millions in extra interest costs on Auckland ratepayers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s is pushing back hard at suggestions from Local Government Minister Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown ...
Buzz from the Beehive One headline-grabber from the Beehive yesterday was the OECD’s advice that the government must bring the Budget deficit under control or face higher interest rates. Another was the announcement of a $1.9 billion “investment” in Corrections over the next four years. In the best interests of ...
Chris Trotter writes – Had Zheng He’s fleet sailed east, not west, in the early Fifteenth Century, how different our world would be. There is little reason to suppose that the sea-going junks of the Ming Dynasty, among the largest and most sophisticated sailing vessels ever constructed, would have failed ...
David Farrar writes – Two articles give a useful contrast in balance. Both seek to be neutral explainer articles. This one in the Herald on Social Investment covers the pros and cons nicely. It links to critical pieces and talks about aspects that failed and aspects that are more ...
The tikanga regulations will compel law students to be taught that a system which does not conform with the rule of law is nevertheless law which should be observed and applied…Gary Judd KC writes – I have made a complaint to Parliament’s Regulation ...
The future of Te Huia, the train between Hamilton and Auckland, has been getting a lot of attention recently as current funding for it is only in place till the end of June. The government initially agreed to a five year trial, through to April 2026, but that was subject ...
TL;DR: Hamas has just agreed to Israel’s ceasefire plan. Nelson hospital’s rebuild has been cut back to save money. The OECD suggests New Zealand break up network monopolies, including in electricity. PM Christopher Luxon’s news conference on a prison expansion announcement last night was his messiest yet.Here’s my top six ...
A homicide in Ponsonby, a manhunt with a killer on the run. The nation’s leader stands before a press conference reassuring a frightened nation that he’ll sort it out, he’ll keep them safe, he’ll build some new prison spaces.Sorry what? There’s a scary dude on the run with a gun ...
Hi,I know it’s been awhile since there’s been any Webworm merch — and today that all changes!Over the last four months, I’ve been working with New Zealand artist Jess Johnson to create a series of t-shirts, caps and stickers that are infused with Webworm DNA — and as of right ...
The OECD’s chief economist yesterday laid it on the line for the new Government: bring the deficit under control or face higher Reserve Bank interest rates for longer. And to bring the deficit under control, she meant not borrowing for tax cuts. But there was more. Without policy changes—introducing a ...
After a hiatus of over four months Selwyn Manning and I finally got it together to re-start the “A View from Afar” podcast series. We shall see how we go but aim to do 2 episodes per month if possible. … Continue reading → ...
In 2008, the UK Parliament passed the Climate Change Act 2008. The law established a system of targets, budgets, and plans, with inbuilt accountability mechanisms; the aim was to break the cycle of empty promises and replace it with actual progress towards emissions reduction. The law was passed with near-universal ...
Buzz from the Beehive Local Water Done Well – let’s be blunt – is a silly name, but the first big initiative to put it into practice has gone done well. This success is reflected in the headline on an RNZ report:District mayors welcome Auckland’s new water deal with ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate ConnectionsA farmworker cleans the solar panels of a solar water pump in the village of Jagadhri, Haryana Country, India. (Photo credit: Prashanth Vishwanathan/ IWMI) Decisions made in India over the next few years will play a key role in global ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – The Children’s Minister, Karen Chhour, intends to repeal Section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 because it creates conflict between claimed Crown Treaty obligations and the child’s best interests. In her words, “Oranga Tamariki’s governing principles and its act should be colour ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. ...
Brian Easton writes – This is about the time that the Treasury will be locking up its economic forecasts to be published in the 2024 Budget Economic and Fiscal Update (BEFU) on budget day, 30 May. I am not privy to what they will be (I will report on them ...
TL;DR:Winston Peters is reported to have won a budget increase for MFAT. David Seymour wanted his Ministry of Regulation to be three times bigger than the Productivity Commission. Simeon Brown is appointing a Crown Monitor to Watercare to protect the Claytons Crown Guarantee he had to give ratings agencies ...
The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. Carr had made highly ...
I could be a florist'Round the corner from Rye LaneI'll be giving daisies to craziesBut, baby, I'll wrap you up real safe Oh, I can give you flowers At the end of every dayFor the center of your table, a rainbowIn case you have people 'round to stay Depending on ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to May 12 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Finance Minister Nicola Willis will give a pre-budget speech on Thursday.Parliament sits from Question Time at 2pm on ...
The price of the foreign affairs “reset” is now becoming apparent, with Defence set to get a funding boost in the Budget. Finance Minister Nicola Willis has confirmed that it will be one of the few votes, apart from Health and Education and possibly Police, which will get an increase ...
A listing of 26 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 28, 2024 thru Sat, May 4, 2024. Story of the week "It’s straight out of Big Tobacco’s playbook. In fact, research by John Cook and his colleagues ...
Yesterday I received come lovely feedback following my Star Wars themed newsletter. A few people mentioned they’d enjoyed reading the personal part at the beginning.I often begin newsletters with some memories, or general thoughts, before commencing the main topic. This hopefully sets the mood and provides some context in which ...
April 30 was going to be the day we’d be calling Mum from London to wish her a happy birthday. Then it became the day we would be going to St. Paul's at Evensong to remember her. The aim of the cathedral builders was to find a way to make their ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – Can’t remember the last book by a Kiwi author you read? Think the NZ government should spend less on the arts in favor of helping the homeless? If so, as far as Newsroom is concerned, you probably deserve to be called a cultural ignoramus ...
Eric Crampton writes – Grudges are bad. Better to move on. But it can be fun to keep a couple of really trivial ones, so you’re not tempted to have other ones. For example, because of the rootkit fiasco of 2005, no Sony products in our household. ...
A new report warns an estimated third of the adult population have unmet need for health care.Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāHere’s the six key things I learned about Aotaroa’s political economy this week around housing, climate and poverty:Politics - Three opinion polls confirmed support for PM Christopher Luxon ...
Today is May the fourth. Which was just a regular day when my mother took me to see the newly released Star Wars at the Odeon in Rotorua. The queue was right around the corner. Some years later this day became known as Star Wars Day, the date being a ...
Buzz from the Beehive Much more media attention is being paid to something Winston Peters said about former Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr than to a speech he delivered to the New Zealand China Council. One word is missing from the speech: AUKUS. But AUKUS loomed large in his considerations ...
Is the economy in another long stagnation? If so, why?This is about the time that the Treasury will be locking up its economic forecasts to be published in the 2024 Budget Economic and Fiscal Update (BEFU) on budget day, 30 May. I am not privy to what they will be ...
The annual list of who's been bribing our politicians is out, and journalists will no doubt be poring over it to find the juiciest and dirtiest bribes. The government's fast-track invite list is likely to be a particular focus, and we already know of one company on the list which ...
In the weeks after the October 7 Hamas attacks on Southern Israel I wrote about the possible 2nd, 3rd and even 4th order effects of the conflict. These included new fronts being opened in the West Bank (with Hamas), Golan … Continue reading → ...
Peter Dunne writes – It is one of the oldest truisms that there is never a good time for MPs to get a pay rise. This week’s announcement of pay raises of around 2.8% backdated to last October could hardly have come at a worse time, with the ...
David Farrar writes – Newshub reports: Newshub can reveal a fresh allegation of intimidation against Green MP Julie-Anne Genter. Genter is subject to a disciplinary process for aggressively waving a book in the face of National Minister Matt Doocey in the House – but it’s not the first time ...
The Treasury has published a paper today on the global productivity slowdown and how it is playing out in New Zealand: The productivity slowdown: implications for the Treasury’s forecasts and projections. The Treasury Paper examines recent trends in productivity and the potential drivers of the slowdown. Productivity for the whole economy ...
Winston Peters’ comments about former Australian foreign minister look set to be an ongoing headache for both him and Luxon. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for subscribers features co-hosts and , along with regular guests on Gaza and ...
These puppet strings don't pull themselvesYou're thinking thoughts from someone elseHow much time do you think you have?Are you prepared for what comes next?The debating chamber can be a trying place for an opposition MP. What with the person in charge, the speaker, typically being an MP from the governing ...
The land around Lyme Regis, where Meryl Streep once stood, in a hood, on the Cobb, is falling into the sea.MerylThe land around Lyme Regis, around the Cobb that made it rich, has always been falling slowly but surely into the sea. Read more ...
The Green Party is welcoming the announcement by the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform Chris Bishop to approve most of the Wellington City Council’s District Plan recommendations. ...
David Seymour has failed to get the sweeping cuts he wanted to the free and healthy school lunch programme, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Hon Willie Jackson has been invited by the Oxford Union to debate the motion “This House Believes British Museums are not Very British’ on May 23rd. ...
Green Party MP Hūhana Lyndon says her Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill is an opportunity to right some past wrongs around the alienation of Māori land. ...
A senior, highly respected King’s Counsel with decades of experience in our law courts, Gary Judd KC, has filed a complaint about compulsory tikanga Māori studies for law students - highlighting the utter depths of absurdity this woke cultural madness has taken our society. The tikanga regulations will compel law ...
The Government needs to be clear with the people of the Nelson Marlborough region about the changes it is considering for the Nelson Hospital rebuild, Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...
Ministers must front up about which projects it will push through under its Fast Track Approvals legislation, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
Jobseeker beneficiaries who have work obligations must now meet with MSD within two weeks of their benefit starting to determine their next step towards finding a job, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “A key part of the coalition Government’s plan to have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker ...
A new standalone Social Investment Agency will power-up the social investment approach, driving positive change for our most vulnerable New Zealanders, Social Investment Minister Nicola Willis says. “Despite the Government currently investing more than $70 billion every year into social services, we are not seeing the outcomes we want for ...
Check against delivery Good morning. It is a pleasure to be with you to outline the Coalition Government’s approach to our first Budget. Thank you Mark Skelly, President of the Hutt Valley Chamber of Commerce, together with your Board and team, for hosting me. I’d like to acknowledge His Worship ...
Your Excellency Ambassador Meredith, Members of the Diplomatic Corps and Ambassadors from European Union Member States, Ministerial colleagues, Members of Parliament, and other distinguished guests, Thank you everyone for joining us. Ladies and gentlemen - In diplomacy, we often speak of ‘close’ and ‘long-standing’ relations. ...
The Therapeutic Products Act (TPA) will be repealed this year so that a better regime can be put in place to provide New Zealanders safe and timely access to medicines, medical devices and health products, Associate Health Minister Casey Costello announced today. “The medicines and products we are talking about ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, today released his decision on twenty recommendations referred to him by the Wellington City Council relating to its Intensification Planning Instrument, after the Council rejected those recommendations of the Independent Hearings Panel and made alternative recommendations. “Wellington notified its District Plan on ...
Rape Awareness Week (6-10 May) is an important opportunity to acknowledge the continued effort required by government and communities to ensure that all New Zealanders can live free from violence, say Ministers Karen Chhour and Louise Upston. “With 1 in 3 women and 1 in 8 men experiencing sexual violence ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government will be delivering a more efficient Healthy School Lunches Programme, saving taxpayers approximately $107 million a year compared to how Labour funded it, by embracing innovation and commercial expertise. “We are delivering on our commitment to treat taxpayers’ money ...
New research on the impacts of extreme weather on coastal marine habitats in Tairāwhiti and Hawke’s Bay will help fishery managers plan for and respond to any future events, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. A report released today on research by Niwa on behalf of Fisheries New Zealand ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters will lead a broad political delegation on a five-stop Pacific tour next week to strengthen New Zealand’s engagement with the region. The delegation will visit Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Tuvalu. “New Zealand has deep and ...
There has been a material decline in gas production according to figures released today by the Gas Industry Co. Figures released by the Gas Industry Company show that there was a 12.5 per cent reduction in gas production during 2023, and a 27.8 per cent reduction in gas production in the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins tonight announced the recipients of the Minister of Defence Awards of Excellence for Industry, saying they all contribute to New Zealanders’ security and wellbeing. “Congratulations to this year’s recipients, whose innovative products and services play a critical role in the delivery of New Zealand’s defence capabilities, ...
Welcome to you all - it is a pleasure to be here this evening.I would like to start by thanking Greg Lowe, Chair of the New Zealand Defence Industry Advisory Council, for co-hosting this reception with me. This evening is about recognising businesses from across New Zealand and overseas who in ...
It is a pleasure to be speaking to you as the Minister for Digitising Government. I would like to thank Akolade for the invitation to address this Summit, and to acknowledge the great effort you are making to grow New Zealand’s digital future. Today, we stand at the cusp of ...
New Zealand is urging both Israel and Hamas to agree to an immediate ceasefire to avoid the further humanitarian catastrophe that military action in Rafah would unleash, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The immense suffering in Gaza cannot be allowed to worsen further. Both sides have a responsibility to ...
A new online data dashboard released today as part of the Government’s school attendance action plan makes more timely daily attendance data available to the public and parents, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. The interactive dashboard will be updated once a week to show a national average of how ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced Rosemary Banks will be New Zealand’s next Ambassador to the United States of America. “Our relationship with the United States is crucial for New Zealand in strategic, security and economic terms,” Mr Peters says. “New Zealand and the United States have a ...
The Government is considering creating a new tier of minerals permitting that will make it easier for hobby miners to prospect for gold. “New Zealand was built on gold, it’s in our DNA. Our gold deposits, particularly in regions such as Otago and the West Coast have always attracted fortune-hunters. ...
Minister for Trade Todd McClay today announced that New Zealand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will commence negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA). Minister McClay met with his counterpart UAE Trade Minister Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi in Dubai, where they announced the launch of negotiations on a ...
New Zealand Sign Language Week is an excellent opportunity for all Kiwis to give the language a go, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. This week (May 6 to 12) is New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) Week. The theme is “an Aotearoa where anyone can sign anywhere” and aims to ...
Six tertiary students have been selected to work on NASA projects in the US through a New Zealand Space Scholarship, Space Minister Judith Collins announced today. “This is a fantastic opportunity for these talented students. They will undertake internships at NASA’s Ames Research Center or its Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), where ...
New Zealanders will be safer because of a $1.9 billion investment in more frontline Corrections officers, more support for offenders to turn away from crime, and more prison capacity, Corrections Minister Mark Mitchell says. “Our Government said we would crack down on crime. We promised to restore law and order, ...
The OECD’s latest report on New Zealand reinforces the importance of bringing Government spending under control, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The OECD conducts country surveys every two years to review its members’ economic policies. The 2024 New Zealand survey was presented in Wellington today by OECD Chief Economist Clare Lombardelli. ...
The Government has delivered on its election promise to provide a financially sustainable model for Auckland under its Local Water Done Well plan. The plan, which has been unanimously endorsed by Auckland Council’s Governing Body, will see Aucklanders avoid the previously projected 25.8 per cent water rates increases while retaining ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters discussed the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and enhanced cooperation in the Pacific with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during her first official visit to New Zealand today. "New Zealand and Germany enjoy shared interests and values, including the rule of law, democracy, respect for the international system ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop today released his decision on four recommendations referred to him by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, opening the door to housing growth in the area. The Council’s Plan Change 92 allows more homes to be built in existing and new ...
Thank you, John McKinnon and the New Zealand China Council for the invitation to speak to you today. Thank you too, all members of the China Council. Your effort has played an essential role in helping to build, shape, and grow a balanced and resilient relationship between our two ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
From today, passengers travelling internationally from Auckland Airport will be able to keep laptops and liquids in their carry-on bags for security screening thanks to new technology, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Creating a more efficient and seamless travel experience is important for holidaymakers and businesses, enabling faster movement through ...
People with an interest in the health of Northland’s marine ecosystems are invited to a public meeting to discuss how to deal with kina barrens, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones will lead the discussion, which will take place on Friday, 10 May, at Awanui Hotel in ...
Kiwi exporters are $100 million better off today with the NZ EU FTA entering into force says Trade Minister Todd McClay. “This is all part of our plan to grow the economy. New Zealand's prosperity depends on international trade, making up 60 per cent of the country’s total economic activity. ...
There are heartening signs that the extractive sector is once again becoming an attractive prospect for investors and a source of economic prosperity for New Zealand, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The beginnings of a resurgence in extractive industries are apparent in media reports of the sector in the past ...
The return of the historic Ō-Rākau battle site to the descendants of those who fought there moved one step closer today with the first reading of Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / The Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill. The Bill will entrust the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres west ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Somwrita Sarkar, Senior Lecturer in Design and Computation, University of Sydney The “latte line” is the infamous, invisible boundary that divides Sydney between the more affluent north-east and the south-west. Historically, people north of the line enjoy better access to jobs and ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Dowdy, Principal Research Scientist in Extreme Weather, The University of Melbourne Nomad_Soul/Shutterstock In media articles about unprecedented flooding, you’ll often come across the statement that for every 1°C of warming, the atmosphere can hold about 7% more moisture. This ...
RNZ Pacific Former Fiji Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama has been sentenced to one year in prison, Fiji media are reporting. Bainimarama, alongside suspended Fiji Police Commissioner Sitiveni Qiliho appeared in the High Court in Suva today for their sentencing hearing for a case involving their roles in blocking a police ...
Acting Chief Human Rights Commissioner Saunoamaali’i Dr Karanina Sumeo says, “Addressing violence and abuse remains New Zealand’s most significant human rights issue affecting women. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Symons, Macquarie School of Social Sciences, Macquarie University Michael Schiffer / Unsplash Life has transformed our world over billions of years, turning a dead rock into the lush, fertile planet we know today. But human activity is currently transforming Earth ...
One woman’s quest to watch Challengers without ruining her body clock. Every Saturday morning, I wake up with a screaming demon inside my head urging me to “Do. Something. This. Weekend.” I run through the possibilities in my head in a defensive mental crouch, reminiscent of that one time I ...
The PSA is alarmed that ACC is proposing to shed 309 jobs including 29 dedicated injury prevention jobs at a time when the number and cost of injuries is rising. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tom Baker, Associate Professor in Human Geography, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Getty Images As local and regional councils struggle with inadequate infrastructure and unsustainable costs, New Zealand will be hearing a lot more about the potential solution offered by ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gary Sacks, Professor of Public Health Policy, Deakin University Drazen Zigic/Shutterstock In recent years, there’s been increasinghype about the potential health risks associated with so-called “ultra-processed” foods. But new evidence published this week found not all “ultra-processed” foods are linked ...
Fears that New Zealand is relying too heavily on low-cost forests to absorb its carbon dioxide emissions have been reignited by a report from the OECD. ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis has confirmed the total dollar savings target from public sector cuts has been met, but the reductions have not been felt evenly across public agencies. Government departments were told to make savings set at 6.5 percent or 7.5 percent where headcount had grown by more than ...
She doesn’t have a single kind word for me and it’s getting under my skin.Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nzDear Hera,I have two amazing friends that I absolutely adore. Grace (all names have been changed) and I lived together across 2023 and Olivia moved in with us this ...
Can Western science and Māori science work together to support our well-being? The Te Ohu Mō Papatūānuku (TOMP) Trials Project was a landmark case for healing the land and people with the guidance of Māori science and leadership. This is what happened when Papatūānuku (Earth) was contaminated by toxic discharge, ...
The District Plan is a blueprint for a bigger, better Wellington, through tens of thousands of new apartments and townhouses and a new approach to urban growth. Joel MacManus lays out the vision. The process of putting together Wellington’s new District Plan has been long and excruciating. As a city, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Leah Williams Veazey, ARC DECRA Research Fellow, University of Sydney DavideAngelini/Shutterstock In the 2007 film The Bucket List Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman play two main characters who respond to their terminal cancer diagnoses by rejecting experimental treatment. Instead, they go ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mohan Singh, Professor of Agri-Food Biotechnology, School of Agriculture, Food and Ecosystem Sciences at the University of Melbourne., The University of Melbourne Tanja Esser/Shutterstock Australia’s vital agriculture sector will be hit hard by steadily rising global temperatures. Our climate is already ...
The Acumen Edelman Trust barometer reported that New Zealand’s political trust score now sits below the global average, a topic explored in a recent discussion paper by Maxim Institute. ...
Greenpeace Aotearoa executive director Russel Norman says, "The Fast-Track Bill is the most damaging piece of environmental legislation any Government has introduced in living memory. People are angry, and it’s time to march." ...
The school lunches programme has been retained – and will be extended to some preschoolers. So how is it going to cost $107 million less? To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. The minister with many hats David Seymour wears a number of hats, but this week ...
“Show us the bird,” I found myself muttering at times while reading Hard by the Cloud House by Peter Walker, a deeply thoughtful, often hilarious, at times rambling – but somehow delightfully so – search for the story of a big bird. But not just any bird: the bird. This ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jack Marley, Environment + Energy Editor, UK edition DPVUE .images/Shutterstock Your home was probably designed for a climate that no longer exists. As long as humanity continues to burn fossil fuel, padding the heat-trapping blanket of gases in Earth’s atmosphere, the ...
A senior lawyer has filed a complaint about tikanga becoming a required law school module. Law lecturer Carwyn Jones explains what he’s getting wrong. “…the first law of Aotearoa, a law that served the needs of tangata whenua for a thousand years before the arrival of tauiwi.”– Ani Mikaere ...
In 2019, an Auckland woman woke up from surgery to find that she had undergone a treatment she didn’t consent to. She tells Alex Casey about her experience. From her very first period at the age of 14, Laura experienced “debilitating” levels of pain that forced her to withdraw from ...
Comment: Concerns about the state of the economy are creeping up to the top of firms’ list of challenges. That’s evident in both surveys and the tone of our recent client discussions. Skimming the past few weeks of eco-news, it’s not hard to see why. – Retail card spending fell ...
Opinion: Could former co-leader James Shaw still make a difference to working with National? The post How the Greens could be contenders appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Opinion: What if we got rid of our existing drug laws and replaced them with a new law that legalised and carefully regulated all psychoactive substances, from cannabis to MDMA, methamphetamine and LSD to magic mushrooms? And which also included legal drugs such as alcohol and nicotine. “Wow,” you might ...
In the gloom following director-general Al Morrison’s job cuts in 2013, the Department of Conservation restructured its operations arm. Eleven conservancy districts were whittled into six new “conservation delivery” regions, under which the Rēkohu/Wharekauri/Chatham Islands area, comprising 40 scattered islands more than 800km east of Christchurch, was tethered to the ...
One of th e country’s top litigation lawyers says New Zealand is seeing a lift in court action between companies. Chapman Tripp partner Justin Graham, who oversees a team of around 80 litigation specialists, says the courts are now so log-jammed that it’s taking over two years to get cases ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A,DIV,A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Thursday 9 May appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Albanese government is talking up the crucial role of gas as a transition fuel “through to 2050 and beyond”. In a gas strategy to be released on Thursday, the government envisages the fuel’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Next week the government will again next try to get its legislation through to deal with non-citizens who won’t cooperate with efforts to deport them. The bill, which the opposition and crossbench refused to rush ...
A long-term project that will set out an alternative vision for Aotearoa that looks beyond the narrow confines of the policy straight jacket adopted by successive governments. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bree Hurst, Associate Professor, Faculty of Business and Law, QUT, Queensland University of Technology TK Kurikawa/Shutterstock A much-awaited report into Coles and Woolworths has found what many customers have long believed – Australia’s big supermarkets engage in price gouging. What started ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Daniel Ghezelbash, Associate Professor and Deputy Director, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law, UNSW Law & Justice, UNSW Sydney The Albanese government wanted to avoid an inquiry into its migration amendment bill. The report, handed down yesterday by a senate committee that ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Joo-Cheong Tham, Professor, Melbourne Law School, The University of Melbourne Lobbying is at the heart of government. Who has access to and influence over key government officials shapes the decisions governments make – and how they make them. The ability to influence ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Myfany Turpin, Associate Professor, Ethnomusicology, Linguistics and Ethnobiology, University of Sydney The act representing Australia at this year’s Eurovision contest has sadly not qualified for the grand final. Yet for Zaachariaha Fielding and Michael Ross, the duo that makes up Electric Fields, ...
In announcing changes to the school lunches programme, David Seymour said kids would no longer be served ‘woke’ foods. To clear up any confusion, The Spinoff has compiled a guide to the wokeness levels of some common food items. Apple = NOT WOKE Avocado = WOKE Avocado, smashed = EVEN ...
The Minister Responsible for GCSB and the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security have been notified of this review, and have been provided a finalised Terms of Reference. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Minglu Chen, Senior Lecturer, Government and International Relations, University of Sydney Robert Way/Shutterstock As the past few years have illustrated so clearly, the Australia-China relationship is complicated. As such, it is crucial for Australians to develop a more nuanced understanding of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mariana Campbell, Research Lecturer, Conservation, Charles Darwin University Marilyn Connell Australian freshwater turtles are facing an alarming trend. Almost half of these species are listed as vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered. The Mary River turtle (Elusor macrurus) is one of Australia’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Debbie Passey, Digital Health Research Fellow, The University of Melbourne Algorithms have become integral to our lives. From social media apps to Netflix, algorithms learn your preferences and prioritise the content you are shown. Google Maps and artificial intelligence are nothing without ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Josephine Barbaro, Associate Professor, Principal Research Fellow, Psychologist, La Trobe University Unsplash We’ve come a long way in terms of understanding that everyone thinks, interacts and experiences the world differently. In the past, autistic people, people with attention deficit hyperactive disorder ...
PNG Post-Courier Papua New Guinea’s deputy opposition leader James Nomane has accused the government of “reckless economic management” that has forced devaluation to manage loan repayments in foreign currency and placate the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Prime Minister James Marape “must stop lying to the people of Papua New Guinea”, ...
Welcome to The Spinoff Bookseller Confessional, in which we get to know Aotearoa’s booksellers. This week: Jane Arthur, author of Brown Bird, and former bookseller at Good Books.The book I wish I’d writtenI have been working on not comparing myself to others. On accepting that what I can ...
The final decision on the Wellington District Plan makes it official: High-density housing is legal across most of Wellington. Housing minister Chris Bishop has announced his decision on the Wellington District Plan, approving a series of amendments to radically upzone most of Wellington, allowing tens of thousands of new townhouses ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards – Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. “Follow the money” is the classic directive to journalists trying to understand where power and influence lie in society. In terms of uncovering who influences various New Zealand political parties and governments, it therefore pays to ...
Around a decade ago, Bill Watson told me the Jap whaling industry was controlled by the Yakuza. He was Sea Shepherd coordinator for Aotearoa at the time. Pete Bethune had just been imprisoned by the Japs. Bill was worried the Yakuza would kill him there.
I found myself realising, a day or two later, that he was probably right so I needed to be proactive. Not my business, but sometimes the conscience says do it anyway! So I wrote the necessary letter to the new PM, John Key, asking him to get Bethune out & back home. Was pleased when the PM did what I’d asked! Bethune bitched about it, JK told the media he was ungrateful & I agreed, eye-rolling, & commented to Bill that nobody was ever going to award Bethune a medal for diplomacy.
Sea Shepherd declared victory the other day, after Japan announced they were jumping the IWC ship, would resume whaling next year, but not in Antarctic waters. The crims need the money, they still control the politicians, the media are still clueless – but they’re trying to figure it out: “There is a view that the country’s whaling obsession is less about food, as whale meat is surprisingly unpopular in Japan, especially among younger people, than it is about politics and culture. Defying the world’s rules and resuming commercial whaling is a bold expression of national identity.”
“Japan is not alone in doing so. Norway and Iceland also claim histories of whaling and have defied the 1986 ban on commercial killing. But it seems that, as in Japan, consumer taste is at odds with national identity. A 2018 report found that while Norway had about 350 whaling ships in 1950, there were only 11 operating in 2017. In that year, Norwegian whalers took less than half their annual quota of 999 whales.”
“Icelandic whalers have killed more than 500 fin whales since 2006, with the meat exported to the declining whale market in Japan, due to the absence of local demand, according to the charity Whale and Dolphin Conservation.” So the trend is for barbarians to become more of an endangered species than whales. Barbaric practices still have the support of three pseudo-civilised govts though!
The casual racism using terms like “Jap” is really unnecessary
Do you think perhaps it may be perceived that way as a left-over from WW11? After all, we talk about Brits and Aussies without any concerns of this nature
It’s certainly generational jargon. You won’t hear young people using ‘Brit’ either.
Or aussie that’s an abbreviation too.
Forgot and can’t edit – question mark after aussie missed sorry.
Probably only if the Japs ever declare that they actually are a race rather than Japanese citizens. Obviously the technical nature of reality is usually too hard for pc-drones to grasp, of course.
How’d you like that James? Being called PC? Personally I don’t care for the term “Japs” or “PC” but meh, people can say what they like (& as per usual says more about them than they’d really like to share anyway).
If it’s for calling out people for using racist or derogatory terms – I’m ok with that.
Still a derogatory terms pointed to a certain group of people.
Still not cool.
James is PC? Nah James is just a stirrer who doesn’t seem to be having many mates around for barbies lol and thus is bored.
And Marty is a little slow and can’t tell the difference between a derogatory term and an abbreviation.
Come on, boys. G’Mum says behave like adults, or tomorrow night to bed early and no celebrating seeing in the new year… You’re welcome.
Lol is “a little slow” a derog a tory term too James?
More apt than anything.
Are you cool with calling Japanese people japs? Would you use that term to Japanese people you just met?
I just use their name or mate.
That wasn’t the question
Can’t bring yourself to agree with me huh?
You would rather have people use racist terms. Says a lot about you.
Defending racism makes you a racist.
Yes you are James.
It is about the intent, James…
You are not Japanese. You are an exposed serial liar and agitator on a left leaning blog site…your intent is to agitate…and possibly to get your jollies in the process….
Jap, is short for Japanese and is not racist at face value, so only Dennis Frank can advise you what his intent is behind use of the abbreviation….
Concentrate on improving yourself so you can set a good example to those grand children , eh ….
Either way, you can sit back down, put the fake virtue signalling back in the box …
No it’s not.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ethnic_slurs
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/priscilla-ouchida/peter-king-jap-hate-speech_b_9995156.html
And you may have missed the general warning yesterday by one of the mods te reo putake:
“So, a general warning that reference to any commenters background, known or not, should be clearly relevant to the discussion at hand.”
A quick check on the replies tab shows your last three replies to me are about or mention my grandkids. I don’t know what your obsession with young children but you seem to have an inappropriate fixation on them. That – and it has nothing to do with the discussion in hand.
A couple of points. Firstly, Jap is considered offensive by Japanese people, so let’s not use it.
Secondly, I re-iterate the point I made yesterday, which was that irrelevant references to a commenter’s personal details or family situations is poor form. If its clearly relevant to the immediate discussion, fine. By that I mean that if a commenter chooses to share some details in a thread and that engenders responses, that’s cool. What’s not cool is bringing up those details later as some form of point scoring exercise.
Great reference links, James. Thanks.
The Wiki link also has links to some other good reference tools. Have bookmarked them.
To te reo putake
Thanks for the good moderation and guidance on these issues over the last day or so. Perhaps the latter could be added to the About and Policy if other moderators etc agree.
Yes, James, it is about the intent….that is exactly what it is about…
The links you’ve posted to, nor your incorrect and faux outrage do nothing to change that… So, ask DF what his intent was….go ahead….even if DF says it was intended as derogatory, would not change the fact JAP is an abbreviation which can be used in a non derogatory manner…
Moving along to your fake playing ‘victim’….
Per my reply to TRP yesterday, you are not posting on this site in good faith, James. You are an agitator, a deliberate agitator which is to be one of the lowest forms of public tro*l behavior.
Part of your agitators ‘shtick’ includes manufacturing stories referencing your age, ethnicity, residential location, family members/dynamic including their age bracket, education, work and off-spring, as well as your dwellings , dining, sporting and nutritional preferences…
You have willingly used these details as part of the agitation process, and therefore not in good faith…not a single shred….
In recent times you appear to be utilizing a particularly ugly tactic, and having had your comments repeatedly exposed over a number of years as racist and misogynistic etc in the literal sense, not the fake version such as you are blatantly doing once again here with DF….you are now seeking to play the victim, pushing for bans and retribution against other commentators here, who from what I can tell are mostly posting in good faith….
Even handles such as naki man appear to be more honest that you…aggressive, angry and ignorant….but seemingly in an honest way, as much as his level will allow him…
You are beneath even that level!
================================
TRP – Per your repeated comment/position from yesterday. You have played directly into the desired response James was looking for. Per my response yesterday, you are also enabling and empowering this sites most odious agitator, and not in good faith commentator… my opinion….
In contrast to VV’s comment regarding your moderation. I do not agree that you have moderated this instance well at all, not at face value…
I would say that since you returned, your moderation style is more effective than it had previously been…
Have a good weekend, everyone…
Thanks, vv. Adding it to the policy is a good idea. Mind you, it’s really obvious from looking at other blogs that TS commenters are way more thoughtful and considered in their postings, which is nice. it means that issues like this can be discussed rationally and without malice.
And now, here’s a song:
Veutoviper. You could call it, ‘the James rule’. I’m sure he’d like that😂
Yeah. Traditional language usage is only a problem for a few isolated individuals. It has been a common abbreviation used in this country my entire life. Never heard anyone use it in a derogatory sense that some pc-drone could spin as racist.
The princess who has attained a position of civil rights advocacy that James linked to may have impressed the HuffPost editorial team, but so what? Just because some folks think they can get away with language conformity doesn’t mean others will stop viewing them as sociopaths, right?
As you have noted previously, you and I are of a similar age, Dennis.
While I agree it is an abbreviation which has been used in this country, I personally have not heard it used for many years.
My recollection of it mainly goes back to my childhood when it seemed to be much more common and in fact used in many cases in a derogatory manner – particularly by a couple of uncles and their friends who had spent time in Japanese POW camps. (Another one of that era was the Yellow Peril.)
So in fact it actually jumped out at me when I saw you use it, but I felt that you personally were not necessarily using it in a derogatory manner. Nevertheless as te reo putake says, it is considered offensive by Japanese people, so let’s not use it.
However, as a woman, what I do find offensive is your:
“The princess who has attained a position of civil rights advocacy that James linked to may have impressed the HuffPost editorial team, but so what? Just because some folks think they can get away with language conformity doesn’t mean others will stop viewing them as sociopaths, right?
So you disagree with her opinion; but do you really need to be so derogatory in doing so?
Language more common to Kiwiblog – and very reminiscent of similar put down comments there and elsewhere about Jacinda Ardern, our PM …
No need to even read the links. They are simply the efforts of an agitator seeking to identify endorsement, for a position taken which is incorrect and disingenuous…
I have no idea what your intention was when using the abbreviation…that is only for you to know…
TRP states use of the abbreviation is ‘considered offensive’ to Japanese, which is potentially true in some instances…such is the generic wholesale statement he made…
What I can state, as I know this directly first hand, that there are Japanese who use the abbreviation to each other, and towards other Japanese, and in no way is it meant to be, nor is it taken as ‘offensive’…
Which makes attempts of language conformity little more than the subjective preference of someone(s ) who are highly unlikely to be ethnic Japanese, of any percentage…one who is openly acting in bad faith…
So, there is James and TRP , both non Japanese, seeking to advise/enforce which language that another non Japanese person (yourself Dennis , assumption) should/should not use when writing and commentating…
Understandable that those who fought them would feel that way, especially those who ended up in their prison camps with the torture & brutality endemic.
Just because TRP says Japanese have that view doesn’t mean he’s right. If he can produce evidence, I’ll consider it. I’ve seen none as yet. A statement of foreign policy by the Japanese govt would be authoritative. Even an official statement by one of their leaders, perhaps. Otherwise it’s all just a few people trying to get away with imposing their personal morality on others. Offensive behaviour!
And when a narcissist use a position of ngo advocacy to do it, why ought we to be impressed? She didn’t cite any agreed policy position by that group, did she? Her sense of entitlement apparently drove her to misrepresent them. Such disrespect for others is not appropriate political behaviour. Dunno why leftists think justifying such behaviour from leftists while condemning it from rightists is okay. Hypocrites, I reckon.
There we go again James James Morrison Morrison Weatherby George Dupree.
A reading:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHCxmhLJ3DM
The comments he/she (James) stir are about as long and repetitious as the pome. Next year – can we have a resolution to allow one person to have a go back at him and leave it at that? That would be enough for him to know we really love him.
James is as much a product of this environment as trump was for the US imo. It is part of the dance.
He could be Lord of the Dance.
Dubliners version –
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRmRMbBM4Bc
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEAIJV6CmtA
He’s certainly got a few dancing like marionettes to his tune lol
Not like you (James) 😉
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejmE-F3EJyQ&w=547&h=410%5D
The Standard needs tougher moderation to shut dowm troll debates that detract from the matter at issue.
When it is all wayne says james says I just move on to another site.
Come on, boys. G’Mum says behave like adults, or tomorrow night to bed early and no celebrating seeing in the new year… You’re welcome.
Good stuff veutoviper
Please provide a link when you quote from somewhere.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/
Thanks, but that is a whole section of their site rather than the specific article.
Here you are Dennis, as I am feeling generous at the moment (it won’t last long!)
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/opinion/109638513/editorial-japans-whaling-is-no-longer-about-science
A little trick in such situations is to select a portion of the quote – eg
“Japan is not alone in doing so. Norway and Iceland also claim histories of whaling and have defied the 1986 ban on commercial killing. But it seems that, as in Japan, consumer taste is at odds with national identity.”
The left click (or if you have your mouse set up for left-handed – right click) and click “Search Google for ” Japan is not alone …”.
Then voila! – the link will hopefully come up.
“The left click” should read “Then left click”.
There are also lots of other interesting related articles which came up doing that Google search so might as well as give the Google search link:
https://www.google.com/search?q=Japan+is+not+alone+in+doing+so.+Norway+and+Iceland+also+claim+histories+of+whaling+and+have+defied+the+1986+ban+on+commercial+killing.&rlz=1C1LDJZ_enNZ499&oq=Japan+is+not+alone+in+doing+so.+Norway+and+Iceland+also+claim+histories+of+whaling+and+have+defied+the+1986+ban+on+commercial+killing.&aqs=chrome..69i57&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
Also if you are just looking for very recent articles, here is a time limited one by clicking Tools and selecting ‘Last month”.
https://www.google.com/search?q=Japan+is+not+alone+in+doing+so.+Norway+and+Iceland+also+claim+histories+of+whaling+and+have+defied+the+1986+ban+on+commercial+killing.&rlz=1C1LDJZ_enNZ499&source=lnt&tbs=qdr:m&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjhroHB-sXfAhUDiLwKHer-CWMQpwUIJg&biw=1024&bih=724
Dennis Frank’s post at 8:34 am is a fascinating one, full of detail, insider knowledge and revelation on a subject that is topical. He made considerable effort to present his ideas well and even praised John Key in the process! Despite all that value, James found a single word with which he could derail the topic and was unable to resist the temptation to be petty.
Unfortunately half of Dennis’ post is a quote from an author he has not properly linked to or named.
Doesn’t mean James isnt right on this rare occasion though does it . Maybe DF should have agreed quickly then the post could have moved on .
Indeed. People would rather double down using derogatory terms than agree that they may be out of line.
Others will support the casual racism as they would rather support that than agree with me.
Says a lot about people.
Actually says a lot about what people think of your opinion.
Hi James
The left are such masters at faux outrage that they can’t recognise genuine concern at word usage when they see it.
Have a good day.
So casual racism is ok if it’s in a post you like ?
And it’s not a single word _ it shows an attitude (a poor one) towards the Japanese people.
Losers get cemeteries, not monuments, and while the pricks continue to memorialise criminals and their crimes at Yasukuni, I doubt my attitude (a poor one) will improve.
So what’s your attitude to the “Brits” and the “Yanks”, who do all those things, and worse?
Yanks and poms.
Sorry. There’s just one four letter word for me, I guess: dick.
Oh Morrissey you are so funny. Especially when you go off on little self righteous rants.
Thanks Mr. Shark. I’ll take that and process it.
It was a positive comment, right?
Morrissey
You are trying, very trying sometimes, but then so many of us are. That is a positive comment about us all, right!
So at least you admit you are racist against the Japanese
Ambivalent, I don’t give rats about who calls them what.
Yes James it’s all about you!! If not, It Should Be.
The whole damn business is about budgets and pork barreling , rather than food or culture.
Still, there is some merit to the government’s argument.
A number of coastal communities in Japan have indeed hunted whales for centuries, and continue to do so. Taiji in Wakayama prefecture is well known, many would say infamous, for its annual dolphin hunts. There are other places, in Chiba Prefecture and in Ishinomaki in northern Japan, that also do coastal whaling.
[…]
Nothing about these Antarctic whaling expeditions is historic. Japan’s first whaling voyage to the Antarctic took place in the mid-1930s but the really huge hunts didn’t get going until after World War Two.
Japan lay in ruins, its population starving. With the encouragement of General Douglas MacArthur, Japan converted two huge US Navy tankers into factory ships and set sail for the Southern Ocean.
From the late 1940s to the mid-1960s whale meat was the single biggest source of meat in Japan. At its peak in 1964 Japan killed more than 24,000 whales in one year, most of them enormous fin whales and sperm whales.
[…]
But Junko Sakuma thinks the answer lies in the fact that Japan’s whaling is government-run, a large bureaucracy with research budgets, annual plans, promotions and pensions.
“If the number of staff in a bureaucrat’s office decreases while they are in charge, they feel tremendous shame,” she says.
“Which means most of the bureaucrats will fight to keep the whaling section in their ministry at all costs. And that is true with the politicians as well. If the issue is closely related to their constituency, they will promise to bring back commercial whaling. It is a way of keeping their seats.”
It may seem incredibly banal. But Japan’s determination to continue whaling may come down to a handful of MPs from whaling constituencies and a few hundred bureaucrats who don’t want to see their budgets cut.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-35397749
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/picture/2018/dec/29/2019-a-grim-year-in-prospect-cartoon
Superb! A must view. Thanks for posting it.
And TS moderators – wonderful for use in related blog post introductions???
[Thanks will definitely use it – MS]
lol…thought the same thing when i saw it
Grim but true.
“Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Saturday, Giles York, the Chief Constable of Sussex Police said he could not rule out the possibility that some sightings of drones reported during the incident were of drones that Sussex Police had flown over the airport for surveillance purposes.
“We will have launched our own Sussex police drones at the time, with a view to investigate, engage and survey the area. So there could be some level of confusion there as well,” York said after being questioned about a previous report that there may have been no drone at all.”
https://i.stuff.co.nz/travel/travel-troubles/109661602/police-drones-may-have-added-to-gatwick-airport-shutdown-police-admit
Bugger, no edit function.
I wonder how many police forces use drones to ‘investigate, engage and survey’?
Cheaper than a chopper
Pity they couldn’t use them to kill possums mustilids and rats – imagine teams running drones going for records hunting in the bush with cameras – from anywhere. Battle Royale for pest control.
Drones have rather limited range and endurance, so are really just an addition to people on foot for direct control. We’re doing some experiments with mustering deer in rough blocks with a drone, very early days yet but some success but some huge limitations. They don’t have the presence of a helicopter which combined with most deer’s fear of helicopters from meathunting days generally means deer will go away and down easily from a helicopter. The cunning ones will try and hide in thick scrub. With the drone most deer will hide in the scrub (and wait for the battery to go flat) if they can and have to be flushed out on foot. But the drone is awesome for observation and moving them in the clear.
Thanks Graeme interesting stuff.
Graeme
I will put a copy of that for the Sunday How to get there post. It’s the sort of clever thing that may be another adaptation that helps the system to the future in a better way.
Be a good job for the thumb gifted couch dwellers
Satellites could do it, Marty; there’re enough of them flitting about overhead; some heat-detecting software, a lethal laser of some sort, what could go wrong?…hang on!!!
It’s going wrong now.
We need to align with human nature not fight it and then wonder why nothing changes.
Hey, Marty – could you please describe “human nature” pithily (or exhaustively, I don’t mind 🙂 so that we can know what you mean?
(Genuine request, cheers)
Robert
“imagine teams running drones going for records hunting in the bush with cameras – from anywhere. Battle Royale for pest control.”
From anywhere is all around the world.
Human nature by marty
collaborative, competitive, compassionate
Lprent
No edit function. (Just for noting for when you finish latest iteration?)
“Tenure review*” down South continues.
A broken promise by Labour.
Apparently refusing the giving away of large swathes of public land to leaseholders, for fractions of it’s real value, is “unfair” to those who haven’t managed to get their share, of the giveaway, yet!
No regard to fairness to the rest of us. Of course.
Where is the tax dodgers union when you need them?
*https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/91935035/ann-brower-for-the-sake-of-our-high-country-stop-tenure-review
If you remove the * the link will work.
Edit test
Edit function is not working at the moment so KJT cannot remove it.
Hope this works –
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/91935035/ann-brower-for-the-sake-of-our-high-country-stop-tenure-review
Edit working fine now (on iPad at least)
Not on my PC …
Murphy’s law means it will now work …
No. Not working on my PC.
iPad Pro?
what does that have to do with anything?
I know you like to let people know you have the best of everything. It’s your form of virtue signalling.
Actually a good brief history of tenure review in NZ ….
Tenure review is now under a moratorium….David Parker is not impressed with the process at allso I can`t see this government signing off on any more shonky deals….thr Nats gave billions…yes billions…to their farmer mates under this awful process often supported by DOC and weak enviromentalists
The edit function is a wordpress plugin. It appears to have dropped of during the upgrade but no doubt LPrent will restore it when he gets a chance.
In the meantime, just re-read your comments before posting and self edit where needed. If there’s something really, really needs editing after you’ve posted a comment, leave a new comment asking for the moderators to tidy up the original.
Let’s call “pretty legal” for what it is – the baked in Tory sense of entitlement redolent with dishonesty.
National is in “pretty legal” territory after Otaki MP Nathan Guy used Facebook’s “thumb” icon in a Labour attack-ad billboard.
Despite Facebook not giving permission for the logo’s use – an icon it strictly enforces copyright of – Guy said the social media outfit “haven’t raised any issues with us”.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/109618534/thumbs-down-experts-warn-national-for-use-of-facebooks-most-famous-blue-symbol
I roared with laughter when I read that in the earlier hours of the morning – then forgot to post it!
So thanks for bringing it to notice. Not a Facebook fan but the ‘b.t.h’ in me really hopes that they do respond …
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/hawkes-bay-today/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503462&objectid=12182956
These recyclers have been going since 1993 and still have to request people to wash out milk bottles, rinse and flatten cans (stand on them at least).
Not too sure when I will be posting again (more out of whether I can be bothered than anything else) so where are my 2019 predictions:
1) Labour and National to stay more or less neck and neck in the polls with either party from month to month leading by less than 3 points.
2) Simon Bridges remains as National leader, though he makes Judith Collins his spokesperson for finance. Paula Bennett announces she plans to step down at the 2020 election.
3) The government quietly sets up an SOE to deliver the Kiwibuild houses, as well as to build and maintain state and social houses. It also goes in partnership with the NZ Superfund to build more houses.
4) RNZ+ is dropped, but TVNZ brings back TVNZ 7 as a 24 hour news and current affairs channel jointly run with RNZ and Maori TV.
5) The Tomorrow’s Schools reforms are implemented, but the larger schools are given the freedom to opt out of being run by the Hubs.
6) Helen Clark is given a top state sector post by the current administration, but it will be something we least expect.
7) Phil Goff, Justin Lester and Lianne Dalzeil all win a second term as mayor in their respective cities.
8) Brexit is postponed a year.
9) Trump supporters start lynching people, with the current administration refusing to condemn them.
10) none of these things ever actually happen, and I may as well just say anything.
Oh no anything is possible, but working out the probable – I think you have supplied a good cover of our present and future dilemmas Millsy. Be a good scout, don’t drop out.
9) Trump supporters start lynching people, with the current administration refusing to condemn them.
That’s not a prediction. It’s already happened, many times. Horrifyingly, the lynch mobs are actually the police.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/trump-supporter-53-is-charged-after-making-threats-to-kill-democrat-senators-and-weak-republicans-if-they-vote-against-brett-kavanaugh/ar-BBNXYog
https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2018/07/31/631897758/a-look-back-at-trayvon-martins-death-and-the-movement-it-inspired
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6468991/White-cop-Eric-Garner-breathe-chokehold-death-face-NYPD-disciplinary-2019.html
Crude and racist politicking did not start with Trump
Clinton is a polished version of Trump.
I didn’t get your point. Where was the crude and racist stuff in his comment.
He was responding to a crude and racist comments, if that’s your point.
Clinton’s rhetoric was/is similar to Trump. Just he is a bit more softer in his wording.
I didn’t get your point.
?????
Where was the crude and racist stuff in his comment?
Jesus Christ, you’re ignorant.
He was responding to a crude and racist comments, if that’s your point.
He was lying and distorting her words, as you’d know if you bothered to do any further investigation of the matter.
Natz still in pain about losing the election it seems.
Now Nathan Guy is sticking up billboards on the roadside, creating visual pollution and unsafe distraction. And in typical Natz mode, breaching copyright (Facebook?), breaking the law, while pointing the dirty blue finger at Labour, using it’s ID logo!
Natz really needs to get over itself. Now!
edit: Oops, I see this has already been commented on. My bad.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/109618534/thumbs-down-experts-warn-national-for-use-of-facebooks-most-famous-blue-symbol
No they are doing what oppositions do, how that’s been upset, suggest you spend some time understanding meaning of parliamentary opposition I suggest as Nats in government and in opposition are doing a far better job than Labour, Labour yesrs in opposition where hilarious but not good for our democracy, sadly we now have such incompetency in government
You don’t have to keep reminding people why you call yourself Bewildered. We already concede that the name is accurate, okay? Try explaining why the Nats continue to be so keen to breach copyright law. The penny may then drop, and you’ll end up less bewildered. Keep on with that positive stance, you’ll end up bewildered no longer. Maybe even end up then calling yourself Savvy…
Bewildered ((10.1) … and National was always competent in government was it?
What Nathan Guy is doing is demonstrating that National has become a pathetic sorry mess since losing the last election. It really does need to pull its finger out and act as a responsible Opposition, working for all NZers, offering up some constructive, workable policies, instead of petulant sniping all the time. Guy’s actions here are not making NZ a better, safer place by any means.
BTW why is a National MP bringing this issue up now in the way he has done, when it had nine years as government to focus on and address transport infrastructure?
Hmmm that’s what opposition do Mary, they are not thier to support the government constructively Labor 9 years in opposition was hardly constructive, point been there where not even a competent opposition tearing each other apart, no policy formulation barring voter signalling bs, hence the 100s of work committes we now have Unfortunatly we now have this incompetence in government Oy 3 more years though and labour are simply Ardern resignation away from destroying themselves from the inside National I turn a lot more stable as some of the miss steps and mps fling rogue has indicated, party support and unity holds up and party does not go full feral and our left mates do
Hmmm that’s what opposition do Mary, they are not there to support the government constructively Labor 9 years in opposition was hardly a constructive opposition point been there where not even a competent opposition tearing each other apart, no policy formulation barring virtue signalling bs, hence the 100s of work committes we now have Unfortunatly we now have this incompetence in government Only 2 more years though and similarly labour are simply Ardern resignation away from destroying themselves from the inside again National in turn is a lot more stable as some of the miss steps and mps going rogue has indicated, party support and unity still holds up and party does not go full retard as labour has a propensity to do
National stable? You jest of course Bewildered (10.1.2.2)!
At present I consider National is far from stable, given the doubt about its present leadership. Then there are the continuing leaks, the likelihood of Jami Lee Ross returning to Parliament next year as an Independent MP, ready to pass on some more damaging information relating to Simon Bridges and National, bringing about even more uncertainty within the Opposition.
Finally, I know I might not be the brightest star in the sky, but I’m sorry you have lost me re the rest of your post, so I can’t comment, because I haven’t a clue on what I’d be commenting on!
Nathan Guy was responsible for fauling to implement the stock identification system (because it cost his farmer mates a bit of money) that has resulted in the micro bovis $850m disaster.
The stock identification system is a scam. Like a tax that you get nothing in return for. It proved incompetent in tracking cattle in any reasonable time frame. The real reason this was introduced was to create animal registration, and in turn taxation of stock. Plus, nod, nod, wink, wink, some tidy fees to disappear into some fat salaries.
The old system of keeping the transport dockets is just as effective. Plus when you get a disease like Foot & Mouth you really have no choice but to put a compass on the map, draw a circle, then kill everything. Then look at the transport Dockets. The new system fails because the cows may be registered but the system doesn’t know where the animals actually are, or where they have been.
It was never fit for purpose, but a good scam.
Highly doubtful, costs more to run and a digitised system is always faster.
The only problem with the new system is that the farmers gamed the system resulting in a major disease outbreak.
Nobody gamed the system. The disease had nothing to do with the system. It spread because nobody knew they had the disease, and once discovered the didn’t know what animals had gone where, or what animals may have got the infected sperm.
The system allowed Foreign sperm, just as all the disease outbreaks have occurred with something coming across the boarder. It is unusual practice to get high value sperm from overseas for normal farmers, but not the specialist breaders or those buying enough to undercut LICs prices.
The truck driver creates a docket, end of story.
Now you create the docket with the truck driver, plus the old owner must log in what’s happening, as well as the new owner. As shown the system didn’t know what was happening. The old system just had owner ID tags. Nothing’s really changed or improved. But it costs thousands more for each farmer.
All of which would have been known if they had used the system as designed. Not using as designed is gaming the system.
The fault here falls fully upon the farmers.
/facepalm
Chances are the old system wasn’t used whenever some farmers felt it wasn’t in their interest to let the government know what they were doing.
So, what you saying is that National fucked up the country on purpose?
It’s interesting. We drove through Levin heading south on Sunday 23 December and half the shops were closed! You would imagine retailers would be gagging for local business but no.
We continued south and hit some traffic at Otaki of course which is the core of the problem because there’s a roundabout where SH1 traffic gives way to local traffic. Now, google maps shows us what the new Peka Peka Otaki expressway will look like and this delivers 4 lanes from Wellington CBD to Otaki once transmission fully and the rest of the Kapiti expressways are complete. That’s 72.7km and Nathan Guy want a further 20km to a one street town of 21,000, with several sets if traffic lights, which is closed on one of the busiest shopping days of the year. No doubt Mr Guy will then want a Levin bypass.
Google maps also shows us the still to be completed Waikato expressway will deliver 4 lanes from Auckland to Hamilton a distance of 124.9km. Auckland is an international city of 1.7 million people and Hamilton about 170,000. These two still don’t have a four lane connection and don’t even have a rail commuter service.
To me the end of the expressway at Otaki is right because that’s where the problems occur. I can’t help thinking Nathan Guy and the National party have got their priorities all wrong. But I’m not surprised, they do tend to concentrate on the small stuff while the rest of us see the bigger picture.
The Wiakato Expressway has nothing to do with connecting Auckland to Hamilton. It actually bipasses it, compared to the past nightmare of having to drive through it, and the Huntly traffic jam will be gone as well.
The project is about modernising SH1 from Auckland to Wellington. Some parts of the Wiakato expressway were desperately in need of upgrading with one area being our deadliest road. The same need applies to the Auckland Southern Moterway upgrade to 6 lanes.
Your argument saying it services just 21000 people is wrong as most people using SH1 won’t just be from Levin but everybody from the rest of the North Island, and everybody traveling North from Wellington, or on the return trip. Maybe it should carry on until Foxton.
And you missed the bit that actually causes all the problems – drive.
Really, if you want to go from Auckland to Wellington – take the bloody train or a plane or even a boat.
The roads couldn’t cope with the people using it.
That’s people using there freedom to travel. Plus buisinesses trying to pay wages, and break even.
I drove to Wellinton for a visit a few years ago. I drove and slept in my car 2 nights. Couldn’t do that if I took the train, plus it was an unplanned visit. Bit hard if you wish to use your car during the stay. Must use far less fuel than a plane. Trains are painfully slow in NZ.
What a good look for our Tourists traveling in Buses. Stuck in traffic on the nations main highway for hours.
People shouldn’t be using the roads. In fact, there’s probably a fairly good case for removing roads between cities.
Nobody’s suggesting taking their freedom to travel away.
Plan better.
If you’re really concerned about businesses paying wages then you should be using them.
Public transport really is more efficient than cars.
And, yes, the trains need to be upgraded. Have you noticed that this didn’t happen due to the private owners followed by National running the trains down and building highly expensive, inefficient roads?
The only reason why buses are stuck in traffic is because of the morons driving cars.
Why does Mr Bovis’ sign say, “Our community deserves a 4 lane highway”, if it’s all about people north of Levin?
And this is possibly the stupidest thing I’ve read on this forum today.
Wikipedia provides the goods fast – [Nathan] Guy is a farmer from near Levin.
If farmers had a quota for seats, and lawyers also, I wonder who would get elected and give us the experience of a real diverse government.
I think he wants a dedicated tractor lane!
It would also be interesting to know which side of the road this sign is on. If it’s heading south at Manakau then the soon to be completed Wellington to Otaki expressway will render this concern obsolete. A bit like Nathan Guy and the National Party really. 😆
How do you see the soon to be completed Wellington to Otaki expressway rendering the concern obsolete? Otaki to Levin is a completely different stretch of highway.
Having a 4 lane expressway going into a 2 lane highway will exacerbate congestion on that stretch of road.
If the sign is southbound then it’s two lanes going to four just north of Otaki. Not an issue.
And four lanes to two is not an issue either. It’s the conramination of SH1 traffic with local traffic which is the problem. How do you think four lanes stopping at a Levin traffic light is going to work?
Currently, there is a two lane highway and there are problems. While 4 lanes from Otaki to Wellington will help alleviate some of the build up from that point, it doesn’t address all the concerns back from that point.
4 lanes going into 2 is always an issue. Moreover, the new Otaki to Levin highway does bypass Levin’s CBD due to the congestion it currently causes, which will now be replaced with congestion from the 4 going into 2.
It’s eventually going to go from 4 to 2 unless you want dual carriageways the length of the North island. Why is Otaki to Levin so special?
A decent freeway covering the whole of the country is long overdue.
This section of highway was to be a part (albeit small) of achieving that long held aspiration.
The stretch of road has a number of black spots and has been dubbed a “killing field” (marked like a battlefield with white crosses) by a former coroner.
Hence, as with a number of other areas around the country, a decent expressway has been long awaited.
While we are committed to only doing sections of highway at a time, new expressways will result in bottlenecks as traffic merges from 4 to 2. To help mitigate the resulting congestion, merging points should be placed in areas of low traffic volumes. With adjoining SH57 (which leads to Palmerston North) Levin to Otaki is a high volume traffic area.
Levin’s population is growing faster than expected and with housing costs rising in Palmerston North coupled with the high cost of housing in Wellington, more are expected to move there seeking a cheaper home. Add to that our aging population as it is a bit of a retirement location for Wellingtonians.
Nevertheless, it’s a part of state highway one, thus services far more than just Levin and adjoining SH57.
With our growing population and growing number of tourists, delaying vastly improving our roading will be costly.
Improving the public rail service in the area seems to have been also overlooked.
For instance, an extension to Auckland’s North West motorway is crucial. Earth is being turned up there big time and the population is expected to increase from Kumeu to Waimauku by several times the entire population of Levin.
Alcohol, obesity, flame retardants and pesticides are known to affect sperm and now cannabis.
“We know that there are effects of cannabis use on the regulatory mechanisms in sperm DNA, but we don’t know whether they can be transmitted to the next generation,” Murphy said.
“In the absence of a larger, definitive study, the best advice would be to assume these changes are going to be there,” Murphy said. “We don’t know whether they are going to be permanent. I would say, as a precaution, stop using cannabis for at least six months before trying to conceive.”
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/12/181219075846.htm
That’s an awful lot of don’t know’s to write an article about.
Funded by the John Templeton Foundation. Champion of free markets. Previous hit’s include Intelligent design and constantly trying to define the ‘science/religion boundary’.
Very deep pockets. Dodgy AF. Big business boys so big pharma called for this particular study for sure.
Al’s making a comeback.
https://ew.com/tv/2018/12/19/deadwood-movie-story-interview/
GG nails it yet again. Wonderful… and New Zealand even gets a mention.
The Russian propaganda outfit’s infowars level of trolling is truly disgusting.
https://www.itv.com/news/2018-12-28/state-funded-media-outlet-russia-today-sends-chocolate-models-of-salisbury-cathedral-as-festive-gift/
“TV Rain thanked RT for the gift and replied on Twitter: “Come for tea, we’re afraid to eat it alone.””
I bloody bet they were – probably had vlads bloody paw prints all over it on the inside.
No doubt the libs will see it as another sign of guilt to go along with the 7 troll factory trolls, pokemon go, and book of the face puppy videos.
No doubt clueless tankies like yourself will continue selling out marginalised people in your efforts to exchange liberalism for something far worse.
@ James, and a few others
Did I ever tell you how utterly (near), perfect I am.
Admittedly I’m not quite the specimen you are (yet) but I live in hope and I do all the right things.
Thanks to you, I’ve seen the light