Peter Zeihan has been running a entertaining series on world demographics, if such a thing can be entertaining!!. Each video is only 5-7 minutes long.
Anyway, he has just done a video that covers the demographic trends for both the US and NZ.
The takeaway is that the demographic future for both the US and NZ is very similar, despite the size difference. And, demographic trends for both the US and NZ are quite positive compared to a lot of other places in the world, e.g., China, Russia, and wider Europe, which are basically in terminal decline.
That's really interesting. Seems our urban migration sets the stage for more rural people by making 'elbow room'. The challenge then (if one wants a workforce) is to make the countryside attractive enough to retain some people, but not so attractive it too becomes populous.
The 'numbers making sense' (finance, opportunity) aspect of choosing to have children may be under strain lately. I have friends who seriously contemplate the expense of an extra pet, let alone child.
What he says about the financial pain coming as we hit the narrow band of X-ers (me) so there's not so many to fill jobs, not so much capital… Surely, the boomers capital has to go somewhere e.g. inheritance, investments still occurring? This bit puzzled me.
The wrap up leading to inflation, the future of some vs other countries, very insightful, thank you.
The boomer capital will be spend on nice, expensive money eating retirement homes and lifestyle for those that can afford it. The not so fortunate 'boomers' are as poor as the rest of us.
And why not. why would they not lay themselves like drift wood in the sun. They could be lonely in the cold cities. They could shrivel away in a retirement place. At that age, does it matter?
And for some, that might be the first time to ever do that to begin with, specially the poor working class boomers who exist in larger number then the financially well off.
No need to belittle them for cheap laughs.
What should be understood is that all of us will be asked to sell what we have in assets to get into a nice retirement home with people that will look after you, rather then some understaffed, underfunded, overcrowded affordable public retirement home because that is all that one can afford. You get the service that you can afford, and those with land to sell have money to afford a somewhat decent (hopefully) service. That is the system we have and so far i can not see any change come in the future.
Peter did his post-grad studies at the University of Auckland and retains a real fondness for his time in NZ. Scattered throughout his material are odd references to this country – often in jest.
He makes a living giving conference presentations, and has a team of researchers assisting. He has also published four books, all of which I have read with interest. I will acknowledge that along with Jared Diamond, Zeihan has been influential in my thinking. The core idea he brings is that geography, demography, transport and security are the elements that determine the long-term fate of peoples and nations far more than politics and personalities.
There is no requirement to agree with everything he says, but the hit rate on his predictions is disturbingly high.
His talk on solar is very sobering. He says that in many places, the carbon debt of having them is not repaid due to poor sunlight hours. Wind is much better.
His report on solar was kind of silly. A lot of it was rather obsolete, misguided, and probably just the usual US centric bigotry. Basically he looks like he is shit at basic research.
China produces solar panels because they have the largest installed capacity of solar power. More than 3x that of the US, nearly double the whole of the EU. Their excess production is sold worldwide because they have efficiences of scale because they trykng to green their power supply on new capacity.
Industrial grade silicon isn't produced in a "blast furnace". It is produced using electric furnaces. There are a number of paths to further refine into polysilicates used for solar panels – but as far as I am aware they are all powered by electricity and use various chemicals to get the right crystal structure.
So when he states that the panels are produced with coal power, well that may have been the case a decade ago, but increasingly the power for producing solar panels there is from non-coal sources. Just as you'd expect from a boot strap technology – which are always built on older technologies. Clearly he doesn't read or understand technological history.
Slave labour – no links, but it seems highly unlikely. The production path to produce solar cells doesn't survive sloppy work. Mostly it is automated. Basically that claim sound's like a ignorant clickbait.
He also ignores the role of batteries with solar power and the grid. Doesn't talk about the relative efficiences under different climates, in particular what happens when coal is removed as a energy source. Most of the problems with solar near large cities is directly related to pollution.
I could go on – but I have already written him off as a ignorant fool
Probably the issue that arises a lot these days where experts in one field suddenly feel qualified to comment on a lot of areas outside their expertise.
When he is talking about demographics and geopolitics then he is definitely worth listening to. When he goes outside that, then take it with a grain of salt, and confirm with your own research.
When he is talking about demographics and geopolitics then he is definitely worth listening to.
I see that there are some demographic links further up. I'll have a peek at those when I get some time. Don't be surprised if I find something to disagree with there. Hopefully more with opinion than facts.
When he goes outside that, then take it with a grain of salt, and confirm with your own research.
I pretty much always do. What got me in the solar post was that he made some truly heroic presumptions that sounded like they were propaganda at least a decade out of date. The coal power generation one in particular. Because there has been a major effort in China to reduce coal electricity generation and to replace it with renewables.
The arguments about solar vs wind are things that I have observed for decades.
But the relative cost/benefit values he was talking about were also old. They sounded like something that I could have possibly agreed with in 2010 before the solar cost drops as production scaled, the economic movement of wind power generation from land to sea, and the massive improvements in battery cost/benefits. Not to mention the reports of changes in solar efficiencies as particulate pollution over urban areas diminished.
At that point I checked the date of the video. It was put up 9 days old on his own channel – and went WTF!
I'd also point out that none of this is particularly in my areas of expertise either. Maybe it is for some of the crystallography (earth sciences), furnaces (refractories), and some work on solar and battery economics (dealing with BOMs for hardware on electronic devices).
Mostly it is just general knowledge from my reading – mostly from The Economist which tends to delve into these issues at a detailed but general knowledge level.
You say that "So when he states that the panels are produced with coal power, well that may have been the case a decade ago, …. " and say that they are produced by electricity.
That may be so but China still produces more than 60% of its electricity from coal fired powered stations and you can't really distinguish where any give piece of electricity was generated so it seems quite reasonable to claim that the solar panels comes from coal sources. After all it will all be coming of the National grids(s) that cover the country.
That may be so but China still produces more than 60% of its electricity from coal fired powered stations ..
Well down from the 80% when it peaked in 2007.
and you can't really distinguish where any give piece of electricity was generated so it seems quite reasonable to claim that the solar panels comes from coal sources. After all it will all be coming of the National grids(s) that cover the country.
Because you have to be stupid if you think that power is normally transported long distances between where it is generated and where it is consumed.
That doesn't happen here, it doesn't happen in the US, or Australia, and certainly not in China where they only started using HVDC (like our cook strait cables) interconnects in 2005 between parts of their nascent grid.
Sure it is technically possible to transport power from one side of a country to another. But you typically have to put in hugely expensive and difficult to maintain high voltage DC lines. Mostly power is transported on lower voltage AC, and typically only for less than 500km.
China actually doesn't have any more of a national grid than the US or Australia does. It is building two at present, one in the north and one in the south. But it is a patchwork of local grids that are generally groups of a few provinces with some transference of electricity between them. Pretty much like Aussie, and probably even more disconnected than the US grid.
That is because the loss rates on long transfers of electricity make it uneconomic to send power more than a 200-500 kilometres depending on technology and voltage. Most power grids are connections that shift excess locally generated power relatively short distances.
I sense that you seem to be thinking something more like the two major NZ grids each of which well less than a megametre in length and skinny. We put a small fraction of our generated power over the HVDC lines between the two grids.
Whereas China is something like 5 megametres EW and 5.5 megametres NS. It'd require some really large numbers of of HVDC lines to be able to transfer power long distances in a much large area than our skinny islands.
Also on the basis of your argument it'd be easy to argue that the US which has 35% coal powered electricity so it should not be producing solar panels because that coal power through their rather useless grid was injecting too much carbon into the atmosphere. Of course you'd have to ignore where the solar panels there are created and are generating as well.
Because most of the solar power generation is in the West of the China in the more higher and more arid parts of the country. That is a for good reason, they get the highest efficiencies of converting sunlight into electricity. This is a common feature of all new technologies. Seems like basic economics to me – your interpretation may vary.
Also part of basic economics for new technologies is the co-location of manufacturing and R&D is typically close to usage sites. This allows issues to be fixed close to usage site without transport costs, and being able to look at issues in situ.
So in China you'd expect to find most of the solar panel manufacturing is also located close to generating capacity. And that is is exactly the pattern you see when you dig into where the manufacturing plants for solar grade silicon and solar panels are located. Most of the substantive sites for producing solar polysilicon are also in the west of China.
But this isn't exactly rocket science or non-obvious effects of economics. It is the obvious geographical consequence of any new technology. Development and initial manufacturing usually happens where there is a either usage or a resource constraint that is hard to move. Silicon isn’t a hard resource to find. It isn’t a high labour or even a high skills area (outside of the R&D needs). So with solar panels, it tends to geographically cluster where it is used.
So you'll find (for instance) that Norway is a leading manufacturer of sea based wind power systems. Carbon is available everywhere. The skills are also R&D bound. They have some really large fields of wind turbines in the North Sea.
That NZ has quite a development and manufacturing history in open air agricultural technologies. etc. etc.
It is only after technologies mature that you find the locations of manufacture and R&D and the location of usage will start to separate. That typically happens as scale efficiencies happen and the distribution networks spread. Then the manufacturing centres will tend to proliferate
The obvious possible exception to trend involves software and net technologies which are less geographically bound. But that just results in those industries being geographically centred around comms links, capital and skills.
Which basically requires the reserve bank to kill the rest of the economy, whenever Auckland house prices, or wages, rise.
Originally enacted, as a circuit breaker, to cap excessive inflation in the 80's, politicians have kept it, long past its use by date, because in their limited view, what works once, briefly, will work perpetually.
It could be argued that it was somewhat successful in curbing very high inflation, on that limited occasion, though others would note that the end of very high inflation ended with the slowing of the rise in oil prices.
Now, every time the New Zealand productive economy struggles off its knees, the reserve bank delivers another knockout.
Mostly divided by age and gender based on some of the actual recent polling. I'd have to lookup the most interesting recent article out of my notes when I get back from the deep south.
You will notice that Josie just waffles her way through the peice giving only her opinion based on her experience, interpretation and biases only. She mentions a single international april poll about trust in media. And it is like she never read the link she used.
The poll text attributed most of the blame for the drop in media trust to the click-bait outrage of the media. In other words in my opinion they are describing exactly the type of evidence-free simplistic opinion only crap that Josie populates in both that article and in her usual media roles.
People like Josie are why I don't trust most media. Being a loud critic for the sole purpose of generating clicks is just a waste of my time. Especially when she neither manages to actually exactly what she is whinging about, nor manages to express any possible solutions.
I have been of the opinion that her, media like her, and their spawned PR collegues in pllitical parties and corporate are just useless at generating trust.
I tend to trust government somewhat more because because I read the documents backing shifts in government policies. Those invariably show the logic and background to decisions. This includes real data. Something that click bait media chasing indignation seldom does report or even seems to care about.
BTW: if you want to read good journalism, then the april article by Patrik Smellie at business desk that Josie referenced is a excellent example. May be paywalled (I subscribe to BD)
One of the world's great awards for journalism is named after Joseph Pulitzer. As a Hungarian refugee arriving in the US, he never forgot what it was like to sleep on a park bench because you had no money for rent. "Never lack sympathy for the poor," he said on his retirement.
Pulitzer's media was deeply democratic. He set out to provide a cheap daily newspaper for the poor that would be an alternative to the more expensive alternatives.
We are a culturally divided country. Trust in the media is dropping, particularly among people with more conservative views. You might not worry if your views are left, but it does matter in our democracy if a chunk of citizens don't feel represented.
She carelessly conflates conservative with poor and left with middle class liberal. Our largest media NZH is anti-left, and once provided an editorial (2005) demanding voters prevent a Labour-Green coalition government.
My local paper at the time, Hawke's Bay Today, ran a similar editorial explaining why a Labour Green government should not be elected. The blow back was about 50/50 according to then editor, Louis Pierard. Pierard was to the Right of politics, but allowed all views to be expressed in his paper. Unfortunately things turned sour after that editorial, some readership was lost, but the Left leaning editors that followed in quick succession ruined what was left of a once thriving regional paper. Of course, changing media habits didn't help.
''I’ve been hosting talkback this week. So far I’ve spoken to a tradie in his ute, a rocket scientist, a cook, retired folk and a dad with his 2-year-old waiting for a Covid test. ''
I take a lot of shit for being a avid talkback listener even though my critics can usually point to something they have found of interest on TB radio, in amongst the besmirching of my good character.
The above highlighted paragraph from Josie explains why I listen to TB. Sure, you won't hear higher echelons of Intellectual discourse, or discussions regarding reams of buro babble and clauses in a new piece of government regulation. But the effects of government policies, both known and little know, and cultural/ societal trends are usually first picked up by talkback back, months and sometimes years before MSM takes an interest. You sometimes get the inside story on issues that are just regurgitated official press releases beloved by MSM.
Talkbacks big secret – a tradie, rocket scientist, and a cook don't work for media outlets or vested interests. They are you and me.
Elmo thought this cretin was worthy of having his twitter account reinstated.
Andrew Tate says women belong in the home, can’t drive, and are a man’s property.
He also thinks rape victims must “bear responsibility” for their attacks and dates women aged 18–19 because he can “make an imprint” on them, according to videos posted online.
In other clips, the British-American kickboxer – who poses with fast cars, guns and portrays himself as a cigar-smoking playboy – talks about hitting and choking women, trashing their belongings and stopping them from going out.
Interesting and entertaining look at the political successes and failures over the last year – from a wide range of political commentators. Interesting to see the similarities (one expects to see the differences)
Apologies if this has already been linked (I had a quick look, but didn't see it) – I've been a bit offline over the holiday season.
''National: It should be better. Luxon is not believable nor is he particularly likeable.''
Ditto, the National Party as a whole.
He's right. Labour should have been evisceratedin the Hamilton by-election. Yet 4,500 people voted Labour. These voters either believe Labour is doing a great job ( generally unlikely), or they believe National would be worse in government.
''Or they don't think at all and reflexively vote Labour, as much as a third of the voting population reflexively votes for National.''
The worst type of political toadyism going. Similar to rugby diehards. At the base of these voters political thoughts are usually some simple childlike beliefs like the Left are commies, or the Right are only about rich pricks.
In my perfect world there'd be no parties, every shire would elect their chosen hobit and they would all meet and fund top solutions for our problems , but the realist says it'd never fly.
Imagine the caos if parties got wiped our completely at the whim of a population that swings wildly from side to side.
Bug chasing again. On the mobile version I'm getting some posts that don't display the post body. For instance the one below off an Samsung S10+. I'm guessing that it is to do with displaying twitter or youtube.
Yes it's quite frequent on my Samsung A8 Android V.9
Yesterday I had the same as your screenshot above, but today it opens the desktop version and when trying to change to mobile version nothing happens, it stays on desktop.
It appears to be where we have a classic block embedded into a block editor where the classic block is the whole of the content. The attributes on the div are set to display:none.
I'll feed the cat, assimilate some more coffee, and try to do a work around in CSS. If that doesn't work (which it may not because it is hard to override a element attribute), then I'll see if I can identify the code that puts that display:none into the html.
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A factory reset restores your Gateway laptop to its original factory settings, erasing all data, apps, and personalizations. This can be necessary to resolve software issues, remove viruses, or prepare your laptop for sale or transfer. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to factory reset your Gateway laptop: Method 1: ...
“You talking about me?”The neoliberal denigration of the past was nowhere more unrelenting than in its depiction of the public service. The Post Office and the Railways were held up as being both irremediably inefficient and scandalously over-manned. Playwright Roger Hall’s “Glide Time” caricatures were presented as accurate depictions of ...
Roger Partridge writes – When the Coalition Government took office last October, it inherited a country on a precipice. With persistent inflation, decades of insipid productivity growth and crises in healthcare, education, housing and law and order, it is no exaggeration to suggest New Zealand’s first-world status was ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – In 2022, the Curriculum Centre at the Ministry of Education employed 308 staff, according to an Official Information Request. Earlier this week it was announced 202 of those staff were being cut. When you look up “The New Zealand Curriculum” on the Ministry of ...
Chris Bishop’s bill has stirred up a hornets nest of opposition. Photo: Lynn Grieveson for The KākāTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate from the last day included:A crescendo of opposition to the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill is ...
Monday left me brokenTuesday, I was through with hopingWednesday, my empty arms were openThursday, waiting for love, waiting for loveThe end of another week that left many of us asking WTF? What on earth has NZ gotten itself into and how on earth could people have voluntarily signed up for ...
Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.State of humanity, 20242024, it feels, keeps presenting us with ever more challenges, ever more dismay.Do you give up yet? It seems to ask.No? How about this? Or this?How about this?Full story Share ...
Determining the hardest sport in the world is a subjective matter, as the difficulty level can vary depending on individual abilities, physical attributes, and experience. However, based on various factors including physical demands, technical skills, mental fortitude, and overall accomplishment, here is an exploration of some of the most challenging ...
The allure of sport transcends age, culture, and geographical boundaries. It captivates hearts, ignites passions, and provides unparalleled entertainment. Behind the spectacle, however, lies a fascinating world of financial investment and expenditure. Among the vast array of competitive pursuits, one question looms large: which sport carries the hefty title of ...
Introduction Pickleball, a rapidly growing paddle sport, has captured the hearts and imaginations of millions around the world. Its blend of tennis, badminton, and table tennis elements has made it a favorite among players of all ages and skill levels. As the sport’s popularity continues to surge, the question on ...
Abstract: Soccer, the global phenomenon captivating millions worldwide, has a rich history that spans centuries. Its origins trace back to ancient civilizations, but the modern version we know and love emerged through a complex interplay of cultural influences and innovations. This article delves into the fascinating journey of soccer’s evolution, ...
Tinting car windows offers numerous benefits, including enhanced privacy, reduced glare, UV protection, and a more stylish look for your vehicle. However, the cost of window tinting can vary significantly depending on several factors. This article provides a comprehensive guide to help you understand how much you can expect to ...
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. ...
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. ...
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. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
The Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...
The Government must commit to the Maitai School building project for students with high and complex needs, to ensure disabled students from the top of the South Island have somewhere to learn. ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey and his Government colleagues have made a meal of their mental health commitments, showing how flimsy their efforts to champion the issue truly are, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
While Anzac Day has experienced a resurgence in recent years, our other day of remembrance has slowly faded from view.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand. Original illustrations by Hope McConnell.First published in 2022.The high school’s head girl and ...
Australian and New Zealand volunteers fought together in the Waikato War, yet still its place in the Anzac tradition is unacknowledged by our defence forces or Returned Services Association.First published in 2018.When I was a boy cub I attended Anzac Day services in the South Auckland suburb of ...
A poem by Wellington writer Tayi Tibble.Hoki Mai She kisses him goodbye with her eyes still wet and alight from their last swim in the Awatere river. At the train station celebration, she leads the Kapa Haka but her voice keeps breaking under and over itself like waves. ...
A poem from Bill Manhire’s 2017 book of verse Some Things to Place in a Coffin.My World War I Poem Inside each trench, the sound of prayer. Inside each prayer, the sound of digging. Image courtesy of Auckland War Memorial Museum. ...
There are three books I have wolfed down in one sitting over the last two years. Colleen Maria Lenihan’s gorgeous and sad debut Kōhine, Noelle McCarthy’s memoir Grand about becoming her mother and then unbecoming her, and now Hine Toa, a staunch yet gentle self-portrait by living legend Ngāhuia te ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[quiz],DIV[quiz],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 25 April appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Asia Pacific Report Students and activist staff at Australia’s University of Sydney (USyd) have set up a Gaza solidarity encampment in support of Palestinians and similar student-led protests in the United States. The camp was pitched as mass graves, crippled hospitals, thousands of civilian deaths and the near-total destruction of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James B. Dorey, Lecturer in Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong Australian teddy bear bees are cute and fluffy, but get a look at that massive (unbarbed) stinger! James Dorey Photography Most of us have been stung by a bee and we ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jen Roberts, Senior Lecturer, School of Humanities and Social Inquiry, University of Wollongong Aussie~mobs/FlickrVictor Farr, a private in the 1st Infantry Battalion, was among the first to land at Anzac Cove just before dawn on April 25 1915. Victor Farr ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Moore, Senior Research Associate, School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, The University of Melbourne Gregory Moore I had the good fortune to care for the sugar gum at The University of Melbourne’s Burnley Gardens in Victoria where I worked for ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Senior Lecturer, Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, University of Canberra BagzhanSadvakassov/Upsplash, CC BY-SA Australia’s inflation rate has fallen for the fifth successive quarter, and it’s now less than half of what it was back in late 2022. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rachel Ong ViforJ, ARC Future Fellow & Professor of Economics, Curtin University Just when we think the price of rentals could not get any worse, this week’s Rental Affordability Snapshot by Anglicare has revealed low-income Australians are facing a housing crisis like ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Meighen McCrae, Associate Professor of Strategic & Defence Studies, Australian National University American and Australian stretcher bearers working together near the front line during the Battle of Hamel in 1918.Australian War Memorial While the AUKUS alliance is new, the Australian-American partnership ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tracey Holmes, Professorial Fellow in Sport, University of Canberra When the news broke last weekend that 23 Chinese swimmers had tested positive to a banned drug in early 2021 and were allowed to compete at the Tokyo Olympic Games six months later ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Cally Jetta, Senior Lecturer and Academic Lead; College for First Nations, University of Southern Queensland Australian War MemorialAboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains names and images of deceased people, as well as sensitive historical information ...
RNZ News Melissa Lee has been ousted from New Zealand’s coalition cabinet and stripped of the Media portfolio, and Penny Simmonds has lost the Disability Issues portfolio in a reshuffle. Climate Change and Revenue Minister Simon Watts will take Lee’s spot in cabinet. Simmonds was a minister outside of cabinet. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Lindenmayer, Professor, Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University laurello/Shutterstock Some reports and popular books, such as Bill Gammage’s Biggest Estate on Earth, have argued that extensive areas of Australia’s forests were kept open through frequent burning by ...
Analysis - Christopher Luxon framing the demotion of two ministers as the portfolios getting "too complex" is a charitable way of saying they weren't up to the job. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra With Jim Chalmers’s third budget on May 14, Australians will be looking for some more cost-of-living relief – beyond the tax cuts – although they have been warned extra measures will be modest. As ...
Analysis: Melissa Lee has lost the media portfolio and her spot in Cabinet after multiple failed attempts to find solutions for a media industry in crisis. On Wednesday, the Prime Minister announced Lee would be losing her spot in Cabinet along with her media and communications ministerial portfolio. The job ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Simon Wilmot, Senior Lecturer, Film, Deakin University Among the many Australian who served during the second world war, there is a small group of people whose stories remain largely untold. These are the Muslim men and women who, while small in number, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kelly Saunders, PhD Candidate, University of Canberra There has been much analysis and praise of Justice Michael Lee’s recent judgement in Bruce Lehrmann’s defamation case against Channel Ten. Many people were openly relieved to read Lee’s “forensic” and “nuanced” application of law ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kathy Gibbs, Program Director for the Bachelor of Education, Griffith University zEdward_Indy/Shutterstock Around one in 20 people has attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). It’s one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders in childhood and often continues into adulthood. ADHD is diagnosed ...
The Fairer Future coalition of anti-poverty groups say Whaikaha must be properly funded going forward, and that to argue that poor financial management of the new Ministry is a red herring by the Prime Minister. ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is today congratulating Hon. Paul Goldsmith on his appointment as Minister for Media and Communications and urges him to rule out state intervention in the private media sector. ...
Asia Pacific Report The West Papuan resistance OPM leader has condemned Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and US President Joe Biden, accusing their countries of “six decades of treachery” over Papuan independence. The open letter was released today by OPM chairman Jeffrey P Bomanak on the eve of ANZAC Day ...
Welcome to The Spinoff Books Confessional, in which we get to know the reading habits and quirks of New Zealanders at large. This week: writer and one of Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people of 2024, Lauren Groff.The book I wish I’d writtenIf I wish I’d written a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Fechner, Research Fellow, Social Marketing, Griffith University mavo/Shutterstock Imagine having dinner at a restaurant. The menu offers plant-based meat alternatives made mostly from vegetables, mushrooms, legumes and wheat that mimic meat in taste, texture and smell. Despite being given that ...
“Three Strikes is a dead-end policy proposed by a dead-end government. The Three Strikes law ignores the causes of crime, instead just brutalising people already crushed by the cost of living.” ...
By Don Wiseman, RNZ Pacific senior journalist An Australian-born judge in Kiribati could well face deportation later this week after a tribunal ruling that he should be removed from his post. The tribunal’s report has just been tabled in the Kiribati Parliament and is due to be debated by MPs ...
With its clear mandate for police use, political nuances, and nuanced public trust, Denmark's insights provide valuable considerations for Australia and New Zealand. ...
Books editor Claire Mabey reviews poet Louise Wallace’s debut novel. A famous poet once said to me that he’s always suspicious when a poet publishes a novel. I never really understood why but maybe it’s something to do with cheating on your first form. Louise Wallace is a poet. She’s ...
For a few months at the turn of the millennium, TrueBliss burned bright as the biggest pop stars in the country. Alex Casey chats to two superfans who still hold the flame. During a humble backyard wedding in Nelson, 1999, one of the cordially invited guests had to excuse themselves ...
How will the recent wave of job cuts impact ethnic diversity in the media? In November last year, I was working a very busy day in the newsroom of a large online news site, interviewing whānau about their concerns over the imminent closure of one of the few puna reo ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ruth Knight, Researcher, Queensland University of Technology Have you ever felt sick at work? Perhaps you had food poisoning or the flu. Your belly hurt, or you felt tired, making it hard to concentrate and be productive. How likely would you be ...
Despite heavy criticism and an ongoing select committee process, the Police Minister says the Government will forge ahead with a ban on gang patches. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sam Whiting, Lecturer – Creative Industries, University of South Australia Shutterstock Everyone has a favourite band, or a favourite composer, or a favourite song. There is some music which speaks to you, deeply; and other music which might be the current ...
A new survey says ‘outlook not great’ for those charged with building infrastructure, while RMA changes delight farmers and depress environmentalists, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. First RMA changes announced ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Olli Hellmann, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Waikato Getty Images When New Zealanders commemorate Anzac Day on April 25, it’s not only to honour the soldiers who lost their lives in World War I and subsequent conflicts, but also ...
A leaked document shows the Canterbury/Waitaha arm of health agency Te Whatu Ora is scurrying to save $13.3 million by July. The “financial sustainability target”, which was “allocated” to Waitaha, is consistent with what’s happening in other districts, says Sarah Dalton, executive director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists. ...
A look at the state of the previous government’s affordable housing scheme, and what could come next.Remind me: What’s KiwiBuild again?First announced in 2012, KiwiBuild was a flagship policy of the Labour Party heading into both its 2014 and 2017 election campaigns. With Jacinda Ardern as prime minister, ...
Labour in opposition will be shocked to learn which party had six years in power but squandered any chance to make real change. Grant Robertson’s valedictory speech was a predictably entertaining trip down memory lane. The acid-tongued incoming Otago University chancellor administered a sick burn to the coalition government. He ...
Taiwan’s semiconductor industry is seen some as its ‘silicon shield’ against invasion – but how will overseas expansion affect that protection? The post The state of Taiwan’s silicon shield appeared first on Newsroom. ...
There’s relief for building owners bending under the weight of earthquake strengthening rules – and costs – that came into force seven years ago. Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk has announced a scheduled 2027 review of the earthquake-prone building regulations will now start this year. Owners will also get ...
Opinion: It has been announced that nine percent of roles at Oranga Tamariki will be disestablished, presumably to help fund the tax cuts promised by the coalition Government. I am reminded of the graphics used to illustrate pandemic events, where five thousand people are standing in a field and then ...
After more than two sleepless days, running through savage terrain, Greig Hamilton didn’t know if he was going to finish one of the most gruelling psychological assaults in sport. He was metres away from the finish line, a yellow gate made famous in a Netflix documentary; a race he’d dreamed ...
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Peter Zeihan has been running a entertaining series on world demographics, if such a thing can be entertaining!!. Each video is only 5-7 minutes long.
Anyway, he has just done a video that covers the demographic trends for both the US and NZ.
The takeaway is that the demographic future for both the US and NZ is very similar, despite the size difference. And, demographic trends for both the US and NZ are quite positive compared to a lot of other places in the world, e.g., China, Russia, and wider Europe, which are basically in terminal decline.
That's really interesting. Seems our urban migration sets the stage for more rural people by making 'elbow room'. The challenge then (if one wants a workforce) is to make the countryside attractive enough to retain some people, but not so attractive it too becomes populous.
The 'numbers making sense' (finance, opportunity) aspect of choosing to have children may be under strain lately. I have friends who seriously contemplate the expense of an extra pet, let alone child.
What he says about the financial pain coming as we hit the narrow band of X-ers (me) so there's not so many to fill jobs, not so much capital… Surely, the boomers capital has to go somewhere e.g. inheritance, investments still occurring? This bit puzzled me.
The wrap up leading to inflation, the future of some vs other countries, very insightful, thank you.
The boomer capital will be spend on nice, expensive money eating retirement homes and lifestyle for those that can afford it. The not so fortunate 'boomers' are as poor as the rest of us.
You're so right about that Sabine
We Boomers(myself, not you) don't die respectably early these days, so the kids watch as their inheritance gets hoovered up
Yeah that makes sense. Cruise ships till death!
Andre King, comedian, works cruise ships. He jokes about the age of the clientele: He went out on deck and thought they'd laid out lots of driftwood.
Driftwood!
Genius.
And why not. why would they not lay themselves like drift wood in the sun. They could be lonely in the cold cities. They could shrivel away in a retirement place. At that age, does it matter?
And for some, that might be the first time to ever do that to begin with, specially the poor working class boomers who exist in larger number then the financially well off.
No need to belittle them for cheap laughs.
What should be understood is that all of us will be asked to sell what we have in assets to get into a nice retirement home with people that will look after you, rather then some understaffed, underfunded, overcrowded affordable public retirement home because that is all that one can afford. You get the service that you can afford, and those with land to sell have money to afford a somewhat decent (hopefully) service. That is the system we have and so far i can not see any change come in the future.
"No need to belittle them for cheap laughs."
I remember why I stopped replying to you. My bad, but get a grip.
This is effing interesting! I wish our economists could explain things as eloquently and effectively as him. Great find!
Peter did his post-grad studies at the University of Auckland and retains a real fondness for his time in NZ. Scattered throughout his material are odd references to this country – often in jest.
He makes a living giving conference presentations, and has a team of researchers assisting. He has also published four books, all of which I have read with interest. I will acknowledge that along with Jared Diamond, Zeihan has been influential in my thinking. The core idea he brings is that geography, demography, transport and security are the elements that determine the long-term fate of peoples and nations far more than politics and personalities.
There is no requirement to agree with everything he says, but the hit rate on his predictions is disturbingly high.
His talk on solar is very sobering. He says that in many places, the carbon debt of having them is not repaid due to poor sunlight hours. Wind is much better.
His report on solar was kind of silly. A lot of it was rather obsolete, misguided, and probably just the usual US centric bigotry. Basically he looks like he is shit at basic research.
China produces solar panels because they have the largest installed capacity of solar power. More than 3x that of the US, nearly double the whole of the EU. Their excess production is sold worldwide because they have efficiences of scale because they trykng to green their power supply on new capacity.
https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/solar-power-by-country
Industrial grade silicon isn't produced in a "blast furnace". It is produced using electric furnaces. There are a number of paths to further refine into polysilicates used for solar panels – but as far as I am aware they are all powered by electricity and use various chemicals to get the right crystal structure.
So when he states that the panels are produced with coal power, well that may have been the case a decade ago, but increasingly the power for producing solar panels there is from non-coal sources. Just as you'd expect from a boot strap technology – which are always built on older technologies. Clearly he doesn't read or understand technological history.
Slave labour – no links, but it seems highly unlikely. The production path to produce solar cells doesn't survive sloppy work. Mostly it is automated. Basically that claim sound's like a ignorant clickbait.
He also ignores the role of batteries with solar power and the grid. Doesn't talk about the relative efficiences under different climates, in particular what happens when coal is removed as a energy source. Most of the problems with solar near large cities is directly related to pollution.
I could go on – but I have already written him off as a ignorant fool
Probably the issue that arises a lot these days where experts in one field suddenly feel qualified to comment on a lot of areas outside their expertise.
When he is talking about demographics and geopolitics then he is definitely worth listening to. When he goes outside that, then take it with a grain of salt, and confirm with your own research.
People underestimate China's commitment to renewable energy. It's huge.
https://twitter.com/KyleTrainEmoji/status/1604510937557635072
careful now T Smithfield
I see that there are some demographic links further up. I'll have a peek at those when I get some time. Don't be surprised if I find something to disagree with there. Hopefully more with opinion than facts.
I pretty much always do. What got me in the solar post was that he made some truly heroic presumptions that sounded like they were propaganda at least a decade out of date. The coal power generation one in particular. Because there has been a major effort in China to reduce coal electricity generation and to replace it with renewables.
So I looked up this world bank graph from 2015.
https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/EG.ELC.COAL.ZS?locations=CN
then wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electricity_sector_in_China#Coal_power
then solar in China
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_power_in_China#Solar_PV_by_province
The arguments about solar vs wind are things that I have observed for decades.
But the relative cost/benefit values he was talking about were also old. They sounded like something that I could have possibly agreed with in 2010 before the solar cost drops as production scaled, the economic movement of wind power generation from land to sea, and the massive improvements in battery cost/benefits. Not to mention the reports of changes in solar efficiencies as particulate pollution over urban areas diminished.
At that point I checked the date of the video. It was put up 9 days old on his own channel – and went WTF!
I'd also point out that none of this is particularly in my areas of expertise either. Maybe it is for some of the crystallography (earth sciences), furnaces (refractories), and some work on solar and battery economics (dealing with BOMs for hardware on electronic devices).
Mostly it is just general knowledge from my reading – mostly from The Economist which tends to delve into these issues at a detailed but general knowledge level.
And I have written you off as an arrogant pompous know it all fool. But unlike you I will not go on.
Bye.
Hope you're not buggering off RL, you're worth reading
He does this every so often, might be an Australian weather related meltdown, or he WOKE in a bad mood!
Anyhow, it's a shit way to speak to an old friend. Lprent is no fool though so he's clearly stressed about something.
I agree, Francesca. RedLogix is a well needed counter balance. I always read what he has to say. Worldly experience seems to have rounded him out.
Again?
You say that "So when he states that the panels are produced with coal power, well that may have been the case a decade ago, …. " and say that they are produced by electricity.
That may be so but China still produces more than 60% of its electricity from coal fired powered stations and you can't really distinguish where any give piece of electricity was generated so it seems quite reasonable to claim that the solar panels comes from coal sources. After all it will all be coming of the National grids(s) that cover the country.
How do you come to your conclusion that it isn't?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electricity_sector_in_China
Well down from the 80% when it peaked in 2007.
Because you have to be stupid if you think that power is normally transported long distances between where it is generated and where it is consumed.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_power_transmission#Losses
That doesn't happen here, it doesn't happen in the US, or Australia, and certainly not in China where they only started using HVDC (like our cook strait cables) interconnects in 2005 between parts of their nascent grid.
Sure it is technically possible to transport power from one side of a country to another. But you typically have to put in hugely expensive and difficult to maintain high voltage DC lines. Mostly power is transported on lower voltage AC, and typically only for less than 500km.
China actually doesn't have any more of a national grid than the US or Australia does. It is building two at present, one in the north and one in the south. But it is a patchwork of local grids that are generally groups of a few provinces with some transference of electricity between them. Pretty much like Aussie, and probably even more disconnected than the US grid.
That is because the loss rates on long transfers of electricity make it uneconomic to send power more than a 200-500 kilometres depending on technology and voltage. Most power grids are connections that shift excess locally generated power relatively short distances.
I sense that you seem to be thinking something more like the two major NZ grids each of which well less than a megametre in length and skinny. We put a small fraction of our generated power over the HVDC lines between the two grids.
Whereas China is something like 5 megametres EW and 5.5 megametres NS. It'd require some really large numbers of of HVDC lines to be able to transfer power long distances in a much large area than our skinny islands.
Also on the basis of your argument it'd be easy to argue that the US which has 35% coal powered electricity so it should not be producing solar panels because that coal power through their rather useless grid was injecting too much carbon into the atmosphere. Of course you'd have to ignore where the solar panels there are created and are generating as well.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_power_in_China
Because most of the solar power generation is in the West of the China in the more higher and more arid parts of the country. That is a for good reason, they get the highest efficiencies of converting sunlight into electricity. This is a common feature of all new technologies. Seems like basic economics to me – your interpretation may vary.
Also part of basic economics for new technologies is the co-location of manufacturing and R&D is typically close to usage sites. This allows issues to be fixed close to usage site without transport costs, and being able to look at issues in situ.
So in China you'd expect to find most of the solar panel manufacturing is also located close to generating capacity. And that is is exactly the pattern you see when you dig into where the manufacturing plants for solar grade silicon and solar panels are located. Most of the substantive sites for producing solar polysilicon are also in the west of China.
But this isn't exactly rocket science or non-obvious effects of economics. It is the obvious geographical consequence of any new technology. Development and initial manufacturing usually happens where there is a either usage or a resource constraint that is hard to move. Silicon isn’t a hard resource to find. It isn’t a high labour or even a high skills area (outside of the R&D needs). So with solar panels, it tends to geographically cluster where it is used.
So you'll find (for instance) that Norway is a leading manufacturer of sea based wind power systems. Carbon is available everywhere. The skills are also R&D bound. They have some really large fields of wind turbines in the North Sea.
That NZ has quite a development and manufacturing history in open air agricultural technologies. etc. etc.
It is only after technologies mature that you find the locations of manufacture and R&D and the location of usage will start to separate. That typically happens as scale efficiencies happen and the distribution networks spread. Then the manufacturing centres will tend to proliferate
The obvious possible exception to trend involves software and net technologies which are less geographically bound. But that just results in those industries being geographically centred around comms links, capital and skills.
Good discussion on the question, does using monetary policy and unemployment to target inflation work?
http://bilbo.economicoutlook.net/blog/?p=51089
As relevant now as back then.
KJT. Random musings on all sorts of things.: The Reserve Bank, Debt and the Property Market (kjt-kt.blogspot.com)
Third try, this looks a little more likely to be correct.
Could people check if they are getting their correct replies.
working fine, thanks
Same here.
all good for me too.
Looks like we have a winner. Told it to ignore caching the group "recent_replies"
https://www.stuff.co.nz/opinion/130870952/josie-pagani-were-more-divided-than-ever–culturally-not-just-economically
Interesting opinion piece by Josie Pagani about how New Zealanders are more culturally divided
Mostly divided by age and gender based on some of the actual recent polling. I'd have to lookup the most interesting recent article out of my notes when I get back from the deep south.
You will notice that Josie just waffles her way through the peice giving only her opinion based on her experience, interpretation and biases only. She mentions a single international april poll about trust in media. And it is like she never read the link she used.
The poll text attributed most of the blame for the drop in media trust to the click-bait outrage of the media. In other words in my opinion they are describing exactly the type of evidence-free simplistic opinion only crap that Josie populates in both that article and in her usual media roles.
People like Josie are why I don't trust most media. Being a loud critic for the sole purpose of generating clicks is just a waste of my time. Especially when she neither manages to actually exactly what she is whinging about, nor manages to express any possible solutions.
I have been of the opinion that her, media like her, and their spawned PR collegues in pllitical parties and corporate are just useless at generating trust.
I tend to trust government somewhat more because because I read the documents backing shifts in government policies. Those invariably show the logic and background to decisions. This includes real data. Something that click bait media chasing indignation seldom does report or even seems to care about.
BTW: if you want to read good journalism, then the april article by Patrik Smellie at business desk that Josie referenced is a excellent example. May be paywalled (I subscribe to BD)
https://businessdesk.co.nz/article/media/distrust-in-media-undermining-democracy-two-new-reports
It only lacked a decent link to the poll itself.
She carelessly conflates conservative with poor and left with middle class liberal. Our largest media NZH is anti-left, and once provided an editorial (2005) demanding voters prevent a Labour-Green coalition government.
My local paper at the time, Hawke's Bay Today, ran a similar editorial explaining why a Labour Green government should not be elected. The blow back was about 50/50 according to then editor, Louis Pierard. Pierard was to the Right of politics, but allowed all views to be expressed in his paper. Unfortunately things turned sour after that editorial, some readership was lost, but the Left leaning editors that followed in quick succession ruined what was left of a once thriving regional paper. Of course, changing media habits didn't help.
''I’ve been hosting talkback this week. So far I’ve spoken to a tradie in his ute, a rocket scientist, a cook, retired folk and a dad with his 2-year-old waiting for a Covid test. ''
I take a lot of shit for being a avid talkback listener even though my critics can usually point to something they have found of interest on TB radio, in amongst the besmirching of my good character.
The above highlighted paragraph from Josie explains why I listen to TB. Sure, you won't hear higher echelons of Intellectual discourse, or discussions regarding reams of buro babble and clauses in a new piece of government regulation. But the effects of government policies, both known and little know, and cultural/ societal trends are usually first picked up by talkback back, months and sometimes years before MSM takes an interest. You sometimes get the inside story on issues that are just regurgitated official press releases beloved by MSM.
Talkbacks big secret – a tradie, rocket scientist, and a cook don't work for media outlets or vested interests. They are you and me.
Here's to happy endings.
https://twitter.com/OwenJones84/status/1608590154838466563
Darn! I’ll miss his dazzled dick tweets.
Jerry's! Jerry's! Jerry's!
Elmo thought this cretin was worthy of having his twitter account reinstated.
Andrew Tate says women belong in the home, can’t drive, and are a man’s property.
He also thinks rape victims must “bear responsibility” for their attacks and dates women aged 18–19 because he can “make an imprint” on them, according to videos posted online.
In other clips, the British-American kickboxer – who poses with fast cars, guns and portrays himself as a cigar-smoking playboy – talks about hitting and choking women, trashing their belongings and stopping them from going out.
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/aug/06/andrew-tate-violent-misogynistic-world-of-tiktok-new-star
https://twitter.com/GretaThunberg/status/1608735970131849217?cxt=HHwWgsDR0ey1sNMsAAAA
🔥 #2
If guilty I hope Andrew Tait goes to prison, like forever. Lock away the key. Human sex trafficing is the lowest.
And by saying "if he is guilty" I am not implying in anyway he isn't.
Interesting and entertaining look at the political successes and failures over the last year – from a wide range of political commentators. Interesting to see the similarities (one expects to see the differences)
Apologies if this has already been linked (I had a quick look, but didn't see it) – I've been a bit offline over the holiday season.
https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/19-12-2022/the-champs-and-flops-of-nz-politics-in-2022
From Shane Te Pou's recapitulation:
''National: It should be better. Luxon is not believable nor is he particularly likeable.''
Ditto, the National Party as a whole.
He's right. Labour should have been eviscerated in the Hamilton by-election. Yet 4,500 people voted Labour. These voters either believe Labour is doing a great job ( generally unlikely), or they believe National would be worse in government.
Or they don't think at all and reflexively vote Labour, as much as a third of the voting population reflexively votes for National.
The really sad thing is that this by -election should never have happened. A pointless exercise in pretending that there are two distinct parties.
The only interesting result of this by – election was Act.
''Or they don't think at all and reflexively vote Labour, as much as a third of the voting population reflexively votes for National.''
The worst type of political toadyism going. Similar to rugby diehards. At the base of these voters political thoughts are usually some simple childlike beliefs like the Left are commies, or the Right are only about rich pricks.
While I look sideways at anyone who blindly votes for the same party endlessly.
Those 20to 30% on both sides provide a good solid base for democracy to function from.
Never looked at it that way. All hope for a better future for our country has just faded for me.
In my perfect world there'd be no parties, every shire would elect their chosen hobit and they would all meet and fund top solutions for our problems , but the realist says it'd never fly.
Imagine the caos if parties got wiped our completely at the whim of a population that swings wildly from side to side.
TBH parties are useful, as it provides an indication of what sort of policy outcomes that candidates are after.
Bug chasing again. On the mobile version I'm getting some posts that don't display the post body. For instance the one below off an Samsung S10+. I'm guessing that it is to do with displaying twitter or youtube.
Is anyone else getting this?
Been happening on and off for awhile, I think I pointed it out 2 micky a few months back
looks exactly the same on my iphone12 iOS 16.2
Yes it's quite frequent on my Samsung A8 Android V.9
Yesterday I had the same as your screenshot above, but today it opens the desktop version and when trying to change to mobile version nothing happens, it stays on desktop.
That sounds like a caching issue on the same page rather than the current bug.
I'll have a look at the caching for mobile after I get this bug killed.
this one too https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-31-12-2022/#comment-1928782
Ok – got a signature on it after a second look.
It appears to be where we have a classic block embedded into a block editor where the classic block is the whole of the content. The attributes on the div are set to display:none.
I'll feed the cat, assimilate some more coffee, and try to do a work around in CSS. If that doesn't work (which it may not because it is hard to override a element attribute), then I'll see if I can identify the code that puts that display:none into the html.