Thanks Draco for making this brilliant speech available to us. What other current politician could match such well constructed and inspiring words? Shearer will try, but come nowhere close. Imagine someone like Key attempting to deliver a speech of this quality! Laughable! Here is a way ahead, full of promise and policy. How is it that a man of such exceedingly high intelligence is not leading the Labour opposition?
I guess the media will not notice this event of today!
“Neo-Liberalism is based on the idea that itâs a dog-eat-dog world. Neo-Liberalism is based on the idea that greed is good, that weâre all locked in an economic life-and-death-struggle with each other. Neo-Liberalism says that compassion is for suckers. Neo-Liberalism says that if the world is going to the dogs, it might as well be the top dogs. Indeed, to borrow from Oliver Stoneâs Wall Street, not only is greed good, âitâs legal.âÂ
Nah mate I think your judgement is too harsh. NZ politics hasn’t seen this kind of identification and analysis of neoliberal failures for a long time.
Does it suggest the brand new paradigms that we need? Nope it does fall short there. Mimicking a strategy that scandanavian countries successfully used during a massive resource, financial and energy boom is not necessarily going to work for us, in this time.
And that’s where the likes of us come in to push and educate so that the citizens force the pollies to take heed. And to realise also that the pollies are never going to accomplish that much of the change required.
I look forward to the posts on Kiwiblog and Whaleoil condemning Aussie talkback host Alan Jones’s latest vicious attack on Julia Gillard. Won’t be long now …
After months of being massacred from the sky, rebel forces are encroaching on the borders of at least one government controlled airfield.
This has created a conundrum for the rebel fighters. Being close to the airfield allows them to shoot at these aircraft when they are the most vulnerable to light weapons, either on the ground, or at taking off and landing.
The rebels say they will overun the base eventually. But what should they do with the aircraft?
Destroy them?
Or use them against the regime?
And what would the Western Powers do if the revolutionary forces get hold of jet aircraft?
Already Western Powers have threatened to intervene if Assad’s gas weapons threaten to fall into rebel hands.
Western leaders have also expressed fears that if effective anti-aircraft weapons, particularly any potent shoulder fired anti aircraft heat seeking missiles, got into the hands of the rebel fighters that this could change the balance of power in the Middle East.
Because of these fears the West have been content to let Assad bomb and strafe defenceless Syrian suburbs and towns without mercy.
The huge civilian casualties doesn’t stir them but the thought of powerful anti aircraft weapons in the hands of the “Arab Street” sends a chill down their spine. The threat being that such a change in the balance of power could spiral beyond their control ending the long standing Western Imperium in the Middle East, toppleing all the well armed despotic puppet states that are the bolster to that power.
Jenny you were doing so well there for a while too, focussing on the local issues like PoAL.
Perhaps keep focus on what you understand clearly, and on which will have greater impact here in NZ.
I’m sure all the innocent Syrians executed by the FSA Death Squads (Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi, US/UK/French sponsored), would not miss your inability to comprehend what is nearer to the actual situtation in Syria, which pretty much means you condone their deaths!
I find it fascinating that Jenny is trying to position the Western military powers as being at least tacit backers of Assad. When all the arms and funding going to the foreign fighters who have infiltrated the “Free Syria Army” is coming through countries who have close military and financial ties with the US and UK.
As you state muzza, including Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and also Turkey.
Yep. Iran and Syria have very close ties. If the US and Israel is to increase their military and financial leverage over Iran, taking Syria down will be very helpful.
Suicide bombing against Syrian military HQ caught on camera
Notice how the van carrying the explosives is still being driven as it is detonated. Suicide bombings like this mark an ugly turning point in this conflict, and demonstrate the influence that foreign jihadi and islamist fighters are having on the tactics of the Free Syrian Army.
Poor bastards, Thanks Netenyahu, ya set another one off.
It’s his bloody words they would’ve been “programmed” by society too watch for.
In a moment of loss they spoke to the Taliban, and what would they be saying?
Suicide bombings like this mark an ugly turning point in this conflict, and demonstrate the influence that foreign jihadi and islamist fighters are having on the tactics of the Free Syrian Army.
Colonial Viper
More racist and Islamaphobic bullshit from you CV.
CV, where is your evidence of all the weapons and support you lyingly claim that the rebels are getting from the West? If the Syrian rebels were getting all the support and weapons you claim, they wouldn’t need suicide bombers.
In an asymmetric conflict between two heavily unequal forces, on one hand a powerful conventional modern army and on the other a poorly armed insurgent force – in desperation, the much weaker military force finding themselves at a serious military disadvantage in munitions and equipment, have resorted to suicide attacks. Examples of this can be cited in almost every major military conflict. In the invasion of Lebanon by Israel in 2006 suicide attacks have been cited as the main factor in the Israeli conventional army’s defeat at the hands of the paramilitary forces of Hezbollah. Hezbollah found through bitter experience that, in that heavily asymmetric conflict, if they sent ten fighters against a similar number of IDF, that they would lose 9 out of 10 Lebanese volunteers for 1 Israeli soldier, (if that). With the use of suicide bomber volunteers, that statistic could be reversed. These attacks were so effective, it was said that a column of modern Merkava tanks could be halted at the sound of an approaching dirt-bike.
Most of Israel’s casualties in that war were Merkava tank crews.
As a result in Lebanon these desperate suicide attacks against the Israeli invaders became known as “the poor man’s nuclear bomb“.
The reason this asymetric tactic was called the poor man’s nuclear weapon, is because while a professional army can afford to pay soldiers to kill for them. Professional armies can’t afford to pay soldiers enough to die for them.
Despite the racist depiction of this phenomenon as the result of fanatic religious fundamentalism unique to Islamists. In extremis it has also been practiced by largely secular forces as well. The mainly secular insurgents of Tamil Eelam of Sri Lanka relied heavily on this tactic.
In Syrian history, Jules Jammal a Christian Syrian naval officer who grew up near Homs was a defender in the invasion of the Sinai Peninsula by the combined Western forces of Israel, Britain and France. In 1956 Jules Jammal volunteered to become a suicide bomber, to sink a french war ship.
Jammal is considered a hero in both Syria and Egypt, receiving official military honours from both governments on his sacrifice.
For his actions Jamal was also awarded the medal of St Peter and St Paul from the Patriarch of the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch.
Streets in Syria and Egypt are still named after this Arab Christian hero.
Unfortunately due to the sheer inhuman military brutality of the Assad regime and it’s reliance on it’s fully modernly equipped army and airforce to suppress the rebellion, pitted against the woeful lack of powerful weapons by the insurgents, this desperate tactic may become more common in Syria.
Sadly true, which is why society has to speek Life Positive messages.
War and Destruction will only amplify the situation.
They’d be better off building a “Homeless” muslim compund and trying to help these people.
But who’d trust them?
Not me at this point that’d be 4 sure.
The Christian ethic of Universal Understanding and acceptance has a lot of merit for the middle east in general.
I’d love to see some links to what you’re saying re suicide attacks against tanks by Hezbollah. especially the motorcycle thing. I’m not saying it’s not true, but it does seem unlikely. usually you’d use shaped charges or ambush with rpgs against tanks, neither of which things Hezbollah are short of.
Hezbollah are a serious outfit of course. The fear is that they will be getting involved in Syria soon, deeply uncomfortable with the rise of wahhibist organisation like AQ in the insurgency.
CV, where is your evidence of all the weapons and support you lyingly claim that the rebels are getting from the West? If the Syrian rebels were getting all the support and weapons you claim, they wouldnât need suicide bombers.
Keep pushing for and glamourising your war.
But what is happening in Syria is a proxy war and a foreign invasion, not a popular uprising. Unless its a popular uprising which isn’t that popular because the bloody thing has been going on for well over a full year now.
As for evidence of where the FSA is getting support from, I have posted multiple links previously, which you have patiently ignored. The conflict in Syria is essentially a power struggle and proxy war driven on by foreign powers and foreign fighters. That’s what you’re supporting Jenny.
Let’s try this now:
Syriaâs Secular and Islamist Rebels: Who Are the Saudis and the Qataris Arming?
What is remarkable is that this substantial strip of âfreeâ Syria has been patched together in the past 18 months by military defectors, students, tradesmen, farmers and pharmacists who have not only withstood the Syrian armyâs withering fire but in some instances repelled it using a hodgepodge of limited, light weaponry. The feat is even more amazing when one considers the disarray among the outside powers supplying arms to the loosely allied band of rebels.
Thanks for this CV.
Finally, you are starting to supply links to more than outright propaganda and lies, or half baked Washington beltway gossip and ignorant and bigoted smears. Maybe you are beginning to get an inkling into the real nature of this people’s revolt. Here’s hoping anyway.
Private Saudi and Qatari backers with some assistance from within the Turkish state, are trying to buy influence among the revolutionaries. Playing favourites, giving support to some and not others. Trying to influence the out come of the revolution.
There is no surprise here.
They realise that the rebels are on the right side of history, but they want to influence the rebels eventual victory, to retrieve the most gain for themselves. However their jockeying for position could be doing more harm than good to the resistance, and rather than end the war, prolong it.
…..as TIME reported in June, a secretive group operates something like a command center in Istanbul, directing the distribution of vital military supplies believed to be provided by Saudi Arabia and Qatar and transported with the help of Turkish intelligence to the Syrian border and then to the rebels. Further reporting has revealed more details of the operation, the politics and favoritism that undermine the task of creating a unified rebel force out of the wide array of groups trying to topple the Assad regime.
My emphasis
Apart from the disorganising effect of the “control room”, in supplying weapons to some and not others. Even the support they have given to their favourites is parsimonious at best.
âWe felt that the sides giving us support werenât on the same page,â says the control-room member from eastern Syria. âThey started having side meetings with some groups.â Still, he says, âwhat is most important is that the guys receive weapons. Whether that is via an operations room or directly, we donât care. Nobody knows the truth from the talk,â he says. âWe have been lied to [by the international community], and we have lied to the guys inside, saying weapons would arrive in a week, in 10 days, and months have passed and some areas havenât received supplies. So unless I see it, and see it distributed, even I donât believe it.â
In the town of Bdeeta in Idlib province â which happens to be the hometown of Riad al-Asâaad â rebel fighters complain bitterly about the lack of assistance. âWe are licking our plates. We beg for salt,â says Abu Marâiye, who heads the Martyrs of Ibditha group in the tiny town, home to some 2,000 people. âItâs not enough. Even the weapons that arrive, itâs like a drop, just enough so the fighting continues, so we can kill each other but not win.â
(The FSA is nominally headed by Riad al-Asâaad, who is based in Turkey. Neither Asâaad nor his chief FSA rival General Mustafa Sheikh are party to the Istanbul control room that supplies and arms rebels who operate under the FSA banner. The two men each have their own sources of funding and are independently distributing money and weapons to selected FSA units.)
WIMP -WALLOPING: Two Jackals tear apart David Shearer
Beleaguered Labour Party leader David Shearer made another dreadful, stuttering, bumbling, wandery appearance on TV3’s The Nation yesterday. In the face of a couple of aggressive young right wing journalists, Shearer was unconvincing and hesitant throughout. He often seemed confused and, fatally, seemed to be woolly-minded about economic policy and currency questions. This weakness only fed the aggression of his interrogators.
At one point, Shearer said, quite rightly, that the National Standards for primary and intermediate schools were not credible data.
“It’s just the UNIONS that say that!” scoffed the Fairfax journalist John Hartevelt.
Now, this was a perfect opening for a strong and confident politician to tear Hartevelt a new one; he could have pointed out that the group that Hartevelt sniffingly dismissed as “the unions” is actually comprised of virtually all of the nation’s teachers and educational theorists. In other words, “the unions” are people who, unlike John Hartevelt, are serious, informed and credible when it comes to talking about education.
But Shearer’s response was a lame, “That’s not true,” not followed up by any argument at all.
On Radio New Zealand National’s Mediawatch programme this morning, Hartevelt is currently getting a grilling by Colin Peacock over his shoddy release of the ropey National Standards figures. When he is contradicted and challenged, Hartevelt is anything but authoritative. What a pity the Labour Party lacks a leader prepared or able to do the same thing.
He didn’t even need to defend the unions, he just needed to say “Look, John, you yourself have stated that the data doesn’t reflect quality, isn’t moderated, and can’t be used to draw meaningful conclusions between different schools. So obviously that’s incorrect.”
But that would involve being quick off the mark and bolshy enough to defend your viewpoints.
And he should have defended the unions at the same time: “let’s not forget that our teacher unions were amongst the first experts to correctly point out the glaring flaws in National Standards, well before many other commentators caught up with the facts.”
Looking forward to hearing Shearer defending himself when his speechwriter gets on to it in that fantastic newsletter called “Shearer Stays”, oops, “Shearer Says”.
I’m calling “this week we held the government to account on National Standards data, and continued to champion the rights of parents and teachers and communities to do what’s best for their children and their children’s children.”
I wonder if he’s figured out why the sickness bene on the roof story was a gift to right wing nut jobs yet.
OK, so he stood around and looked the other way while Hartevelt put the boot into working people, but at least he managed not to spit in anyone’s face this time.
Yes I too watched in numb horror, Has no-one in the Labour party worked it out yet??? Or maybe they have. BUT when we have a pull apart after the 2014 debacle that will be the election where the NZ Labour Party comes a woeful 3rd with fuck all seats behind a confident Green Party and A thieving NACT party in for the final round of theft and incompetence.
We will be able to point the finger at OLD and PAST IT politicians clinging on with their fingertips. Pushing their own private agendas, just so they can suck at the public teat for another 3 years where they will have to do fuck all to get the money they are supposed to EARN!
Now we all know who these old and past it ones are, so a little nudging in to the retirement rather than defeat.camp would be good.
And will someone please please point out to shearer and his backers (Robertson) included is that he is not, and never will be, Prime Minister material, and neither are they, simply by the damage they have let happen to NZ, and it’s economy. By their self interest.
Again, refer to today’s speech by the enlightened Cunliffe – compare and contrast with Shearer and you will wonder what the hell has gone wrong with the Labour Party!
I think the “Delegation” style of leadership has definite merit
While David Shearer hasn’t hit his straps yet, the example they set for NZ is a formidable one.
Anyone of 5 different people should be able to step into his shoes without any qualms by the end of this year.
Which five do you have in mind? I can think of two with enough profile, skill and experience for the job but not five. I can’t even get as far as three.
Shearer has to carry the discussion regarding the exchange rate. I throw my hands up there has been an identified issue yet all the solutions are to give the responsibility to the RB for the solutions. If they have some ides how to correct the issue them come out and inform us. I think either that they have no idea of a solution or the consequences are as bad as the what they are trying to solve.
So by expecting the RB to fix the problem who directs them, especially as DS does not want “politicians to run the exchange rate.” !!! “Good grief” as Charlie Brown would say. After the GCSB being unrestricted in their actions now DS wants another govt. dept. in the RB to also be unrestricted.
US military documents categorise Assange and Wikileaks as “enemies of the United States”
THE US military has designated Julian Assange and WikiLeaks as enemies of the United States – the same legal category as the al-Qaeda terrorist network and the Taliban insurgency.
Declassified US Air Force counter-intelligence documents, released under US freedom-of-information laws, reveal that military personnel who contact WikiLeaks or WikiLeaks supporters may be at risk of being charged with “communicating with the enemy”, a military crime that carries a maximum sentence of death.
CV 7
On radionz this morning a report on food sharing and political discussion in the USA has presented an interesting picture of USA repressive attitudes. The group has a slogan food not bombs and this is making authorities extremely sensitive, saying that they can approve food distribution but there must be no banners with political messages. In fact one political commentator said they were a subversive influence that was undermining the USAs ability to get citizens to respond to possible attacks on the country from its enemies.
They started off giving out food, vegetarian and vegan only, in the park where the Occupy groups began their protest. Free speech and free food are at the least embarrassing, particularly to very liberal politicians who are quite negative because it draws attention to their inadequacies, and at the most regarded as highly dangerous by the fear and war exponents in the USA who want to occupy the hearts and minds of their people.
It’s a serious problem. 21st century NZ is going to have to walk a fine line between the interests and politics of two great Pacific powers. China and the USA. I’ve got little faith that our current crew can get it right for our magnificent, but very small, country.
Maybe. The unexpected is usually what happens though, and in retrospect it is seen as inevitable. Like the rise of Prussia – or England or Japan for that matter. Somewhere out there !
THE US military has designated Julian Assange and WikiLeaks as enemies of the United States â the same legal category as the al-Qaeda terrorist network and the Taliban insurgency.
Oh my giddy aunt. Nutmegs! Seriously, Assange has reason to be worried…
His short answer is that he believes that the four boxes needed can be ticked and that there will be a case to answer.
Will take a long time but interesting.
have a listen to Cat (Yusaf Islam) Stevens’ ‘The Very Best Of ‘…i can’t keep it in…no …i can’t keep it in…gotta let it out…oh..i gotta let it out…(sans grass, regretably, yet THIS TOO MUST PASS)
Murray McCully stands up in the UN and criticises lack of action to aid the Syrian people and refers to the veto which has been utilised by China and Russia. Wonder if we will ever hear a criticism of USA policies from him? Not now we are the dingy dinghy again.
Janice 9.1
McCully probably was better than Jokey as he might start a world war with some inappropriate remark. McCully I am sure, knows more about the issues than Jokey Hen who also doesn’t want to mess up his fine financial fund mind with annoying matters better left to other people. The responsibility on a NZ PM is sooo wide, heavy and stressful. You just wouldn’t have a clue!
I see that Murry McCully spoke on the importance of Israel and Palestine leaders talking again. They actually live very close to each other. Sounds a bit Sarah Palinish. Does that mean that I was wrong that he was a waste of time really because of biasing his speech on USA concerns. No, here is some background to the USA relationship and aid to Israel. Mostly google headings that offer the information I was looking for. The links don’t come up live.
First a Wikipedia summary of a book, The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy on whether the USA lobby for Israel is mainly wealthy Jewish people. (There are likely to be some biased blogs on this subject so I think that a researched book would give a reliable view.) The book is by John Mearsheimer, Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago, and Stephen Walt, Professor of International Relations at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
**http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Israel_Lobby_and_U.S._Foreign_Policy
On military aid USA Israel –
**IsraelâUnited States relations – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IsraelâUnited_States_relations
Almost all U.S. aid to Israel is now in the form of military assistance, while in the past it … Strong congressional support for Israel has resulted in Israel’s receiving …
**US Aid to Israel and the Palestinians
ifamericansknew.org/stats/usaid.html
The U.S. is providing Israel with at least $8.2 million each day* in military aid and … Washington has provided Israel with a level of support dwarfing the amounts …
**Tempering Iron Dome: US may spend $680 million on Israeli missile …
rt.com/news/us-israel-military-aid-iron-dome-637/
21 Apr 2012 â The US could fork out $680 million on strengthening the Israeli Iron Dome rocket shield. …
(Obama and Israel)
**U.S., Israel Build Military Cooperation – WSJ.com
online.wsj.com/…/SB1000142405274870332100457542727255005…
14 Aug 2010 â U.S. military aid to Israel has increased markedly this year. … Obama felt the increased military support is necessary to assure Israel’s security …
(Jewish extensive reference to it) –
**http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/US-Israel/foreign_aid.html
Here’s an interesting item on how the USA paranoia about attacks has caused it to look for guidance from the paranoic Israelis.
**http://articles.latimes.com/2011/oct/31/opinion/la-oe-blackwill-israel-20111031
This one has moving pics on the topics and an academic opinion that the UN structure assists USA to act in Israel’s interests
**http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2012/09/29/264033/dozens-of-insurgents-killed-in-aleppo/
This one has interesting points
**http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2012/08/15/the_politically_incorrect_guide_to_us_interests_in_the_middle_east
I was reasonably pleased with McCully’s response on Syria and Israel/Palestine. I don’t think the latter was Sarah Palinish at all – perhaps a little flat-footed in a plain-spoken way, but not actually idiotic a la Palin.
Thanks Dv – good blog from Local Bodies. This quote from Dv link at 11.1
In the days when the Education Ministry was a Department, and had less political interference, it was managed by some astute and forward thinking individuals. Clarence Beeby and Bill Renwick were hugely instrumental in shaping the philosophies and pedagogical approach that led us to being one of the top education systems in the world.
That has all changed. We now have imports that haven’t the excuse of being cheap – Lesley Longstone recently in the news because of the shakeup of our school system is said to be receiving $600,000 p.a. You can’t help thinking that we have a cringe factor alive and well in NZ that we can’t find suitable candidates for such positions. And those working their way up in a Department with consequent institutional knowledge are likely to be elbowed out during some internecine change and so we lose our experienced people who care about NZ and get these moving generic managers who make us bow and scrape to their supposedly superior knowledge. (Must be, they’re from overseas you know.)
Here is some info on Ms Longstone. If you want source get it yourself, I’m tired.
“Lesley Longstone has 25 years’ experience in the education and employment sectors in the United Kingdom, Europe and Australia, and she understands the economic importance of education and its contribution to the broader skills agenda.
Ms Longstone has a Bachelor of Science from the University of Sheffield.
Ed Milliband, UK Labour Leader: Either the banking sector makes sweeping changes or we will force bank break ups
Frakkin’A. This is what we are talking about people. However, the City of London financial centre holds such vast political power and influence in the UK, I hope Milliband can stay the course.
By the way, it is no co-incidence that the Lehman collapse, Bernie Madoff’s multi-billion dollar ponzi scheme, the massive theft from MF Global account holders, near infinite leverage/shadow rehypothecation collateral rorts and many more frauds originated in City of London financial operating centres.
Ed Miliband will make his boldest, most controversial policy commitment since becoming Labour leader on Sunday when he pledges to force the break-up of Britain’s biggest banks unless they agree to revolutionise their operations and put ordinary customers first.
In an interview with the Observer, the Labour leader says he will confront the City of London with what is seen as the nuclear option for reform if the banks fail to separate their “casino” investment operations from services to account-holders, savers and businesses.
It’s not daylight savings this weekend is it? The clock on my computer has gone forward an hour but it uses an international clock and I’m not sure they’ve been right since the govt changed the date of DST and didn’t tell the rest of the world.Â
I suppose it’s a chance to reset all the clocks to the same time. I use five digital clocks and they all end up out of sync within 2 or 3 weeks. The computer is the only true one because it resets when I go online. Did time used to be this odd when we had analog clocks?
I’m perturbed that you’re finding that with your digital clocks. There is absolutely no reason for even a cheap digital clock to gain or lose more than 1 minute a month, and that is being generous.
I’d blame sloppy cheap electronics design or componentry. A good quality quartz mechanical watch will often perform to +/- 2 minutes per year.
Grant Wormald didn’t just give evidence that was inconsistent; he clearly perjured himself in a court of law. He said to his knowledge there was no other agencies involved in the surveillance of Mr Dotcom, knowing full well that the GCSB was involved. In fact he attended a meeting on December 14 with GCSB operatives. For him to say he wasn’t aware of their involvement is an obvious lie, made under oath, and the Detective Inspector should be held to account…
So now its the weekend and still no earthshaking distractions for Shonky to hide behind, He has got to working with Bennet on something, as Parata is now a liability.
About the best thing they could start with would be a “Closed Door” meeting with the captain of those men, and yeah I mean you bud.
If they know the ground you were walking they can direct their efforts properly.
Otherwise they can’t target the people in question.
(Understandably reticent I’d imagine ur response too be, but think about it, it may help
From the sound of things the two Geoffs from Labour and Cunliffe would be the men to talk too)
The problem is obviously at the top, and the only way to find the top is to start at the bottom.
(No Offense Brother)
Nothing has changed in 35 years when it comes to cops committing perjury in court as the police have not been made accountable even after Chief Justice Elias from the Supreme Court has become involved. An effing joke.
The Nuremberg defence has substantive problems both for Wormald and his boss.
If he invokes the ND he (Knowing it was incorrect) he still could have made a moral judgement, hence it only limits the remedies.The other part is it transfers accountability up the food chain (it increases the value of remedies to his superiors)
Fastest code in the West babe đ
Machine code ‘C’ if ya lookin for name.
Use a var to trigger the Daemon break…
if( brkVar ) break;
}
Remember 0 it true
All you Aucklanders enjoying the almost exclusively chemical skies today…go on, step outside, take a look up, and ponder the marvel that is the “clouds” up there today…Notice the textures and the shapes, really not quite right are they…
Oh, and yes I took the footage of the plane dumping over AKL again today at midday, heading south, right over the middle of the city…
Thats three times I have seen it, and twice I have filmed it. Someone on this island knows WTF is going on!
Yes I saw a narrow elongated ‘cloud’ over the North Shore – must have been around 2.30 -3.00pm. Took it to be the ragged remains of a contrail probably at around 20,000 ft.
I know an Air NZ flight captain (the partner of a family member) and was tempted to contact him for a bit of a razz… you’ve been dumping fuel have you?
Hey Marty, the only “theory” I subscribe to about it, is that somethings going on, we are not being told “in public” at least. I prefer to take the most obvious about a situation, which is, there is something being sprayed in our skies, only complete idiots would contest that now. The what and why, become the obvious next questions, and there is lots of stuff which can assist with that. Ive not done any lab tests etc so wont speculate on those….
I have filmed the planes 2 times now, and that is not any commercial arline route on a sunday. Just checked the official commercial routes again and times of arrivals and departures at Wellington and Christchurch today that might mean a flight heading southerly direction at such height could return on, and nothing would match, again this time either!
If you could see the sky up here today, even the hardest skeptic , would be doing well to explain the state of AKL’s skies!
I struggle with this one mainly because of explanations that are based on someone/group doing it to us for their sinister ends – but those ends, that I have heard, don’t make sense. Maybe I’m just not mad enough to comprehend their madness đ
Marty it need not be sinister in nature, but whatever they are doing, the results/expectations, may or may not be understood. They are spraying shit into the sky, and if you could see Auckland today you would know exactly what I am talking about, and if you saw what I saw, its likely the only way people can understand. I was not skeptical, but before I saw the planes, wondered if there was a simpple explantion, now having seen them so many times, and filmed it, there is not a shred of doubt they are spraying.
I hope you never see them down your way dude!
See my comment about the 320pm return srpay leg, and I have taken film and pics all afternoon from my area of AKL. The sky is an absolute mess of chemical shit today, grrrrr.
EDIT @ Weka – I’m not going to upload them, as have no facility that I would want to use. The May 6 footage I took, I gave to someone to pass on, who posted it online.
All good muzza, many have noted the same thing down here which is why I’ve heard a bit about it, and I’ve seen a few videos and seen them here and in Auckland. I’m not saying they aren’t true and I hope you crack it wide open – I just can’t work out any type of ‘why’ that makes sense to me. I spose I put it to one side really and concentrate on stuff like the proposed open cast mine on the Denniston Plateau, it feels like I might be able to work with others and stop that atrocity – not sure I can say the same about the spraying. Kia kaha.
Hey Marty, good on you with the mines and things, locally we all definitely can get “hands on” so to speak, and hands on, is whats required, not just at the keyboard either đ
Sorry muzza, but it’s not good enough. Fair enough that you have concerns, but without accessible evidence it’s all just another conspiracy theory. I have no interest in watching 2 minutes of the Auckland sky without any context or explanation. Someone needs to put together some credible information and present it in ways that people can read and understand. Not saying that has to be you, but I don’t really see the point in speculating about phenomena without any useful analysis that is backed up by evidence. Or at least not scarey phenomena. It just makes people worry but gives them nowhere to go.
No need to apologise for yourself Weka., I can understand your position, as I too would also like to know why planes are spraying, because the question has gone past, perhaps thats whats going on.
Why do you & others keep saying that someone should put together, and there is no evidence, there is plenty out there from all around the world Weka, what would you consider evidence or a well put togther case, over an above what is already being done…
Certainly I would agree that without seeing the planes for oneself, seeing what is coming from the planes are obvioulsy NOT vapour (con) trails, then seeing the clear blue day that was AKL yesterday, and on May 6, turning into a mesh of god knows what, followed by the predictable shit weather.
Perhaps there is nothing in it Weka, I can’t say either way, all I am saying is that I know what I saw, and have seen, and what it did to our days on May 6 and yesterday.
If what I post panics you, then don’t read it, and if you are not up to doing some reading etc about geo-enginerring, then youre not in any position to say there is no evidence or that someone should put some together!
The problem muzza is that most information presented about chemtrails is done so by either whackjobs or people who have almost zero critical thinking skills. I have an appreciation for whackjobs in society but they’re not people I go to for facts. People with very poor critical thinking skills bother me more, because they use the internet to push their ill formed ideas in ways that don’t help much and probably do some damage.Â
I don’t consider you to be either of those two things, and have been interested in your story of what you see in the skies (have read previous threads), but until you present some evidence it’s just an interesting story.
I’m not panicked by the chemtrail stuff, just pissed off at how it gets debated. We have enough stressful shit to deal with on the planet at the moment without adding to the load with information that is designed to alarm but has no back up.Â
“if you are not up to doing some reading etc about geo-enginerring, then youre not in any position to say there is no evidence or that someone should put some together!”
I disagree. Part of critical thinking is learning who to trust and why. I don’t have to understand every phenomena on the planet to such detail because I have the skills to read people who do have that detail and I can sift out the wheat from the chaff. That’s on both sides of an argument (I can point you to poor thinking on both sides of the Ken Ring debate for instance).Â
I also tend to not trust people who only reference youtube. Video is a good way of getting a message across, but it’s generally a crap way of providing verifiable evidence (not least because it can’t reference easily).
And I definitely have low opinion of websites that use obvious propoganda tecniques. This site, which pops up number one in google for ‘chemtrail’ is classic
It’s designed to appeal to people who think of themselves as woken up (the big banner), and to hook in other people by using emotive fearmongering. I’m much less likely to take something seriously that feels the need to SHOUT AT ME how stupid I am if I don’t believe what it says.
It’s also hard to take anything seriously that purports that human-made CC has been ‘exposed as a hoax’. Whatever one thinks about CC, ‘exposed as a hoax’ ain’t what’s been happening, and that phrase suggests that the website people don’t have a very good understanding of science or the politics of science.
That website also considers that a high number of google hits = proof of theory. That’s just stupid.
If the chemtrail crowd want to be taken seriously, how hard would it be to put up a website that explains the issues in a clear, rational way that lay people can understand?
Â
I also tend to not trust people who only reference youtube.
Weka, which way to you want it? – Asking me if I am going to post the video online but don’t trust people who post on YT. I would be happy to send you the raw footage if you like, but again its still my video with no context for you, because you were not here, and not see what was happening with your own eyes.
I do tend to agree with you, that seeing video gives little context, which is why I DONT post what I have, because its very easy for people to blow it off, as you have been doing. My contention is not to state what is going on, I can’t do that, because I don’t know for sure what they are spraying, only that I have seen, and filmed the spraying multiple times now, that I fly planes, and have spent most of my life looking at the sky, and that our skies have changed in a way that I can’t believe people in AKL do not notice!
You’re not in AKL either obviously, as otherwise you would have some more specific comments on my posts, and I notice that there was no response from anyone in AKL, (not that it means anything in hard terms, it would be good to hear other locals thoughts – If they saw it).
Out of interst, how do you develop your sense of who/what you can trust? – Here is a tip, if you think you can develop it as a skill, you don’t have it naturally, which has its limitations. Sure you will be able to sort the wheat from the chaff, the critical thinking and general intelligence will assist there, but instinctively there will always be a gap.
Muzza, I said I tend not to trust people who only reference youtube. And gave valid reasons why. This doesn’t mean video isn’t useful, just that it’s not usually in and of itself proof in situations like this.
I’m not in Auckland, hence my original question about posting your footage online. I really don’t know what you are talking about and the visuals would be interesting if you can post a comparison with what you think are not chemtrails.
 My contention is not to state what is going on, I canât do that, because I donât know for sure what they are spraying, only that I have seen, and filmed the spraying multiple times now, that I fly planes, and have spent most of my life looking at the sky, and that our skies have changed in a way that I canât believe people in AKL do not notice!
Yes, I’m aware that you are trying to just describe what you see, rather than post theory about what is going on and why. It’s one of the reasons I read what you write on this.
But if you keep doing that repeatedly without any further support people will get bored or annoyed and switch off. How will that help?
“(not that it means anything in hard terms, it would be good to hear other locals thoughts â If they saw it).”
You could for instance get methodical. Open a wordpress blog, without all the conspiracy dramatics, and post your observations and photos/stills. Ask Aucklanders to join you, and post what they are seeing. Give them times and directions of where to look. Moderate heavily to keep out the conspiracy theory stuff. Write short, easily accessible pieces about why you think x plane is doing y activity, and what is unusual about it. Likewise, post about the differences you are seeing the sky compared to 5 years ago, 10, 20 etc.
Â
I have never (and that means never EVER) seen any quantified evidence that would demonstrate that any CONTRAIL that appears in the sky is anything more than a normally over-expanded jet exhaust operating in an atmospheric area where the water density is already high (almost saturated), and the passing of the jet engine through that atmospheric condition has caused the high water density to be condensed into visible exhaust plumes.
That would be atmosphere that resembles Auckland’s most of the friggen time.
A “broad church”: we’ll make room for both Right Wing voters and Left Wing voters inside Labour
Great that’s been finally cleared up.
Mr Shearer said the party was doing well. âBut will we have some changes later on? Quite possiblyâ he said. He wouldnât say whether that would be before the end of the year. He said he disagreed with the claim earlier this year by Economic Development spokesman, David Cunliffe that voters who deserted Labour did so because they partyâs policies as not very different to Nationalâs.
However he said there was room for Mr Cunliffe inside Labour because it was âa broad churchâ.
âThere are many people who vote Labour from what you might call left and to the right as well.
âIt’s a broad church and what we’re looking for is to be a party for all New Zealanders, not just one of the other.â
Since the present lowering of crime rates can be connected to better social services and education provided to today’s teenagers over the period of the last Labour government, I am unfortunately confident in predicting rising crime levels in about five years or so as the rejected primary school children of today hit their teenage years under the punitive benefit and education policies of our wonderful present government. One can only hope the crime will hurt those presently benefiting from the low tax rates for the rich introduced by the same government, but crime always hurts the poor before it hurts those with big walls and money to hire security guards.
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 27 were:1. The Minister for Ford Rangers strikes againTransport Minister Simeon Brown was again the busiest of the Cabinet ministers this week, announcing an ...
You got a fast carAnd I want a ticket to anywhereMaybe we make a dealMaybe together we can get somewhereAny place is betterYesterday’s newsletter, Trust In Me, on the report of abuse in state care, and by religious organisations, between 1950 and 2019, coupled with the hypocrisy of Christopher Luxon ...
New Zealand is again having to reconcile conflicting pressures from its military and its trade interests. Should we join Pillar Two of AUKUS and risk compromising our markets in China? For a century after New Zealand was founded in 1840, its external security arrangements and external economics arrangements were aligned. ...
The ‘50 Shades of Green’ farmers’ protest in 2019 was heavy on climate change denial, but five years on, scepticism and criticism about the idea that pine forests can save us is growing across the board. File photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s the top six news items of note in climate ...
This morning the sky was bright.The birds, in their usual joyous bliss. Nature doesn’t seem to feel the heat of what might angst humans.Their calls are clear and beautiful.Just some random thoughts:MāoriPaul Goldsmith has announced his government will roll back the judiciary’s rulings on Māori Customary Marine Title, which recognises ...
In 2003, the Court of Appeal delivered its decision in Ngati Apa v Attorney-General, ruling that MÄori customary title over the foreshore and seabed had not been universally extinguished, and that the MÄori Land Court could determine claims and confirm title if the facts supported it. This kicked off the ...
Earlier this week at Parliament, Labour leader Chris Hipkins was applauded for saying that the response to the final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care had to be âbigger than politics.â True, but the fine words, apologies and âwe hear youâ messages will soon ring ...
TL;DR: In news breaking this morning:The Ministry of Education is cutting $2 billion from its school building programme so the National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government has enough money to deliver tax cuts; The Government has quietly lowered its child poverty reduction targets to make them easier to achieve;Te Whatu Ora-Health NZ’s ...
Kia ora. These are some stories that caught our eye this week â as always, feel free to share yours in the comments. Our header image this week (via Eke Panuku) shows the planned upgrade for the Karanga Plaza Tidal Swimming Steps. The week in Greater Auckland On ...
1. What's not to love about the way the Harris campaign is turning things around?a. Nothingb. Love all of itc. God what a reliefd. Not that it will be by any means easye. All of the above 2. Documents released by the Ministry of Health show Associate Health Minister Casey ...
Trust in me in all you doHave the faith I have in youLove will see us through, if only you trust in meWhy don't you, you trust me?In a week that saw the release of the 3,000 page Abuse in Care report Christopher Luxon was being asked about Boot Camps. ...
TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking about the Royal Commission Inquiry into Abuse in Carereport released this week, and with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on a UN push to not recognise carbon offset markets and ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 26, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Transport: Simeon Brown announced$802.9 million in funding for 18 new trains on the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines, which ...
The northern expressway extension from Warkworth to Whangarei is likely to require radical changes to legislation if it is going to be built within the foreseeable future. The Governmentâs powers to purchase land, the planning process and current restrictions on road tolling are all going to need to be changed ...
Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedFirst they came for the doctors But I was confused by the numbers and costs So I didn't speak up Then they came for our police and nurses And I didn't think we could afford those costs anyway So I ...
Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on UnsplashWe’re back again after our mid-winter break. We’re still with the ‘new’ day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when we have our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream ...
Notes: This is a free article. Abuse in Care themes are mentioned. Video is at the bottom.BackgroundYesterday’s report into Abuse in Care revealed that at least 1 in 3 of all who went through state and faith based care were abused - often horrifically. At least, because not all survivors ...
Luxon speaks in Parliament yesterday about the Abuse in Care report. Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:PM Christopher Luxon said yesterday in tabling the Abuse in Carereport in Parliament he wanted to ‘do the ...
About a decade ago I worked with a bloke called Steve. He was the grizzled veteran coder, a few years older than me, who knew where the bodies were buried - code wise. Despite his best efforts to be approachable and friendly he could be kind of gruff, through to ...
Some of the recent announcements from the government have reminded us of posts we’ve written in the past. Here’s one from early 2020. There were plenty of reactions to the government’s infrastructure announcement a few weeks ago which saw them fund a bunch of big roading projects. One of ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Thursday, July 25 are:News: Why Electric Kiwi is closing to new customers - and why it matters RNZ’s Susan EdmundsScoop: Government drops ...
Hi,I felt a small wet tongue snaking through one of the holes in my Crocs. It explored my big toe, darting down one side, then the other. “He’s looking for some toe cheese,” said the woman next to me, words that still haunt me to this day.Growing up in New ...
Yesterday I happily quoted the Prime Minister without fact-checking him and sure enough, it turns out his numbers were all to hell. It’s not four kg of Royal Commission report, it’s fourteen.My friend and one-time colleague-in-comms Hazel Phillips gently alerted me to my error almost as soon as I’d hit ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Thursday, July 25, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day were:The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquirypublished its final report yesterday.PM Christopher Luxon and The Minister responsible for ...
The Official Information Act has always been a battle between requesters seeking information, and governments seeking to control it. Information is power, so Ministers and government agencies want to manage what is released and when, for their own convenience, and legality and democracy be damned. Their most recent tactic for ...
TL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:Transport and Energy Minister Simeon Brown is accelerating plans to spend at least $10 billion through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) to extend State Highway One as a four-lane ‘Expressway’ from Warkworth to Whangarei ...
I live my life (woo-ooh-ooh)With no control in my destinyYea-yeah, yea-yeah (woo-ooh-ooh)I can bleed when I want to bleedSo come on, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)You can bleed when you want to bleedYea-yeah, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)Everybody bleed when they want to bleedCome on and bleedGovernments face tough challenges. Selling unpopular decisions to ...
Please note:To skip directly to the- parliamentary footage in the video, scroll to 1:21 To skip to audio please click on the headphone iconon the left hand side of the screenThis video / audio section is under development. ...
Given the crackdown on wasteful government spending, it behooves me to point to a high profile example of spending by the Luxon government that looks like a big, fat waste of time and money. Iâm talking about the deployment of NZDF personnel to support the US-led coalition in the Red ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:40 am on Wednesday, July 24 are:Deep Dive: Chipping away at the housing crisis, including my comments RNZ/Newsroom’s The DetailNews: Government softens on asset sales, ...
As I reported about the city centre, Auckland’s rail network is also going through a difficult and disruptive period which is rapidly approaching a culmination, this will result in a significant upgrade to the whole network. Hallelujah. Also like the city centre this is an upgrade predicated on the City ...
Today, a 4 kilogram report will be delivered to Parliament. We know this is what the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care weighs, because our Prime Minister told us so.Some reporter had blindsided him by asking a question about something done by ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Wednesday, July 24, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Beehive:Transport Minister Simeon Brownannounced plans to use PPPs to fund, build and run a four-lane expressway between Auckland ...
NewstalkZB host Mike Hosking, who can usually be relied on to give Prime Minister Christopher Luxon an easy run, did not do so yesterday when he interviewed him about the HealthNZ deficit. Luxon is trying to use a deficit reported last year by HealthNZ as yet another example of the ...
Back in January a StatsNZ employee gave a speech at RÄtana on behalf of tangata whenua in which he insulted and criticised the government. The speech clearly violated the principle of a neutral public service, and StatsNZ started an investigation. Part of that was getting an external consultant to examine ...
Renting for life: Shared ownership initiatives are unlikely to slow the slide in home ownership by much. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:A Deloittereport for Westpac has projected Aotearoa’s home-ownership rate will ...
You're broken down and tiredOf living life on a merry go roundAnd you can't find the fighterBut I see it in you so we gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsWe gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsAnd I'll rise upI'll rise like the dayI'll rise upI'll rise unafraidI'll rise upAnd I'll ...
Thereâs been a change in Myers Park. Down the steps from St. Kevin’s Arcade, past the grassy slopes, the childrenâs playground, the benches and that goat statue, there has been a transformation. The underpass for Mayoral Drive has gone from a barren, grey, concrete tunnel, to a place that thrums ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Global society may have finally slammed on the brakes for climate-warming pollution released by human fossil fuel combustion. According to the Carbon Monitor Project, the total global climate pollution released between February and May 2024 declined slightly from the amount released during the same ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Tuesday, July 23 are:Deep Dive: Penlink: where tolling rhetoric meets reality BusinessDesk-$$$’sOliver LewisScoop:Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Tuesday, July 23, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Health: Shane Reti announcedthe Board of Te Whatu Ora-Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the âbotched mergerâ of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...
Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...
As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic partyâs primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...
TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...
The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...
Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...
This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...
A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...
A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Orderimage, ...
Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
The Minister of Housingâs ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Ministerâs metaphor of âflooding the marketâ I do not see how the ...
As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
Waiting In The Wings:For truly, if Trump is Americaâs un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is Americaâs Octavian, the Republicâs youthful undertaker â and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMPâS SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the âilliberalâ prime ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSAannounced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
Te Rangi e tu nei (The sky above us) Te Papa e takoto nei (The land beneath us) Tatou katoa te hunga ora (To us all the living) Tena koutou katoa (Greetings) ...
A late change to charter school legislation will cheat educators out of fair pay and negotiating power proving charter schools are just a vehicle to make profit out of our education system. ...
In 2004 te iwi MÄori rallied against the Crownâs attempt to confiscate our coastlines and moana with the Foreshore and Seabed Act. This led to the largest hÄŤkoi of a generation and the birth of Te PÄti MÄori. 20 years later, history is repeating itself. Today the government has announced ...
It has been five and a half years since the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care was established to investigate the abuse of children, young people, and vulnerable adults within state and faith-based institutions. Yesterday, the final report - Whanaketia through pain and trauma, from darkness to light ...
The Governmentâs move to dilute child poverty targets is a reminder that it is actively choosing to preserve hardship for thousands of households. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to take action off the back of the International Court of Justice ruling on Israelâs illegal occupation of Palestine. ...
On Friday the International Court of Justice reaffirmed what Palestinianâs have been telling us for decades: that the occupation and colonisation of Palestinian lands by Israel is illegal and must end immediately. They also called for reparations for Palestinianâs who have lived under Israeli occupation since it began in 1967. ...
Labour calls on the Government to act after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israelâs occupation of Palestinian Territories is illegal. ...
The 53.7 percent rise in benefit sanctions over the last year is more proof of this Governmentâs disdain for our communities most in need of support. ...
Aotearoa could be a country where every child grows up feeling safe, loved and with a sense of belonging in their whÄnau and community. But for some of our children, this is far from reality. Instead, they are trapped in a maze of intergenerational harm that they canât escape on ...
Te PÄti MÄori are calling for David Seymour to resign as Associate Health Minister in response to his call for Pharmac to ignore the Treaty of Waitangi. âThis announcement is just another example of the governmentâs anti-Tiriti, anti-MÄori agenda.â Said Co-leader and spokesperson for health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. âSeymour thinks it ...
The soaring price of renting is driving the rise of inflation in this country - with latest figures from Stats NZ showing rents are up 4.8 per cent on average while annual inflation is at 3.3 per cent. ...
Nationalâs Emissions Reduction Plan will take New Zealand further from the economy we need to ensure the next generation has a stable climate and secure livelihoods. ...
Following consultation with named parties and thorough consideration of privacy interests, the Green Party is in a position to release the Executive Summary of the final report from the independent investigation into Darleen Tana. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon should be asking serious questions of his Minister for Resources Shane Jones now itâs been revealed he misled the public about a dinner with mining companies that he didnât declare and said wasnât pre-arranged. ...
Te PÄti MÄori have submitted to the Justice Select Committee against the Sentencing (Reinstating Three Strikes) Amendment Bill. The bill will further entrench racism in our justice system and fails to focus on rehabilitation. âReinstating Three Strikes will empower a systematically racist system and exacerbate the overrepresentation of MÄori in ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee is set to make a determination on the Residential Tenancies Amendment (RTA) Bill in the coming weeks. âThis legislation will give landlords the power to kick our whÄnau out onto the street for no reasonâ said Housing spokesperson, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. âTheir solution to the housing ...
âNationalâs campaign was about tackling crime and the best they can do is a two-year long Ministerial Advisory Group,â Labour justice spokesperson Duncan Webb said. ...
âThere are more examples of charter schools failing their students than there are success stories. The coalition Government is driving to dismantle our public school system and instead promote a privatised, competitive structure that puts profits before kids,â Jan Tinetti said. ...
âThis government is choosing to deliberately mislead and withhold information, keeping our people in the dark about this governmentâs agenda and the future of our mokopuna,â said co-leader and spokesperson for Health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. The call comes after the demand from the Chief Ombudsman that Associate Minister of Health, Casey ...
âTodayâs climate announcement by Simon Watts makes clear the National Government is simply paying lip service to meeting its climate change targets,â Megan Woods said. ...
National is choosing to make life harder for workers by taking away the rights our communities have fought hard for. Here's how theyâre taking workers backwards. ...
Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue. We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. âThe Abuse in Care Inquiryâs report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faithâbased institutions were ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Governmentâs online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views. âIt is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
TÄnÄ tÄtou katoa, NgÄ mihi te rangi, ngÄ mihi te whenua, ngÄ mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
New Zealandâs payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts. âThe Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre â Te PokapĹŤ WÄina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. âThe research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. âRegions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
Indonesiaâs Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. âIndonesia is important to New Zealandâs security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,â says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kĹrero, he kĹrero, he kĹrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of NgÄti Maniapoto, Minister for MÄori Development Tama Potaka says. âMy thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust â NgÄti Maniapoto for bringing their important kĹrero to a ministerial ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.âI have received Ms Fredricâs resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,â Mr Brown says.âOn behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...
The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliamentâs test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. âSection 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are âdangerous changesâ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet. âIssues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...
After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks. âThe level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations Iâve been ...
The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and ManawatĹŤ rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawkeâs Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...
Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. Itâs the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. At the heart of this report are the ...
For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care âWhanaketia â through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,â was tabled in Parliament ...
The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry âWhanaketia â through ...
With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis. âTax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...
Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. âIt includes a change ...
Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...
New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. âCompetitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. âUnder current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...
The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and WhangÄrei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. âFor too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...
Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. âIt is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,â Mr ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024. âI am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane. âASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,â Mr Peters says. âThis will be our third visit to ...
Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. âThis $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,â Mr Doocey says. ...
New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. âThis support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealandâs commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. âCabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...
In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today. âThe previous governmentâs botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...
Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum. While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation. âNew Zealand has a thriving space ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will travel to China on Saturday to attend the Ministerial on Climate Action meeting held in Wuhan. âAttending the Ministerial on Climate Action is an opportunity to advocate for New Zealand climate priorities and engage with our key partners on climate action,â Mr Watts says. ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is travelling to the Solomon Islands tomorrow for meetings with his counterparts from around the Pacific supporting collective management of the regionâs fisheries. The 23rd Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Committee and the 5th Regional Fisheries Ministersâ Meeting in Honiara from 23 to 26 July ...
The Government today launched the Military Style Academy Pilot at Te Au rere a te Tonga Youth Justice residence in Palmerston North, an important part of the Governmentâs plan to crackdown on youth crime and getting youth offenders back on track, Minister for Children, Karen Chhour said today. âOn the ...
The Government has welcomed news the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has begun work to replace nine priority bridges across the country to ensure our state highway network remains resilient, reliable, and efficient for road users, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.âIncreasing productivity and economic growth is a key priority for the ...
Acting Prime Minister David Seymour has been in contact throughout the evening with senior officials who have coordinated a whole of government response to the global IT outage and can provide an update. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has designated the National Emergency Management Agency as the ...
New Zealand and Japan will continue to step up their shared engagement with the Pacific, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. âNew Zealand and Japan have a strong, shared interest in a free, open and stable Pacific Islands region,â Mr Peters says. âWe are pleased to be finding more ways ...
New developments in the heart of North Island forestry country will reinvigorate their communities and boost economic development, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones visited Kaingaroa and Kawerau in Bay of Plenty today to open a landmark community centre in the former and a new connecting road in ...
President Adeang, fellow Ministers, honourable Diet Member Horii, Ambassadors, distinguished guests. Minasama, konnichiwa, and good afternoon, everyone. Distinguished guests, itâs a pleasure to be here with you today to talk about New Zealandâs foreign policy reset, the reasons for it, the values that underpin it, and how it ...
Christopher Luxon: hurdles The little man from National jumps hurdles in his sleep. He’s quite good at it in his dreams and even though the reality doesn’t quite match up you have to give him credit for getting up every morning and crashing into the very first hurdle of the ...
Comment: It was a good two hours into the conversation when Tyrone Marks raised the most basic of questions when I first spoke to him in 2017. âThey didnât explain the things they did to me. They never told me why. And they still havenât. Thereâs no explanation for it. ...
Last summer when Matairangi burned, Ginny and Tom stood at the window of their lounge, watching kÄkÄ shoot skyward from the burning trees. From the distance, they looked to Ginny like pages torn from books and thrown into a bonfire. It was Tom, voice tight, who told her it was ...
Opinion: The Canadian short story writer Alice Munro â winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013 â died in May at the age of 92. Her work was about “the damage people inflict on one another in the name of love”, Deborah Treisman wrote in the New Yorker. ...
This month marks two years since the most powerful telescope ever built sent its first pictures back to earth. From its lofty vantage point, beyond the moon in orbit around the sun, the James Webb Space Telescope was tuned to observe the first stars and galaxies being born soon after ...
Comment: After Climate Change Minister Simon Wattsâ preview several weeks ago, I had some optimism about the Governmentâs emissions reduction plan. Now Iâve read the discussion document, that hope has been dashed. How can the Government propose a plan that wants to take New Zealand taxpayersâ hard-earned money, and spend ...
Madeleine Chapman rounds out Death Week on The Spinoff with a final recommendation. You can read all of our Death Week coverage here. Nothing forces you to reflect on your life and relationships quite like proximity to death. For those whose nearest and dearest have died, there are reasonably obvious ...
Whitney Greene takes us through her life in television, including the TV character sheâd like to plan a funeral for and her cow lung catastrophe on The Traitors NZ. âIf the phone rings, I have to answer it,â Whitney Greene from The Traitors NZ warns as we begin our My ...
Maddie Ballard reviews the debut essay collection of PĹneke writer Flora Feltham.In âThe Raw Materialâ, the longest essay in Flora Felthamâs dazzling debut collection, the author heads out for a run after hours of weaving and sees the world turn to textile. âPounding along the Parade, I saw the ...
Andy Christiansen, one half of the experimental rock-pop duo TRiPS, shares the tunes inspiring the bandâs perfect weekend and new release. âGood speakers, good food, good music, no distractionsâ: thatâs all you need to enjoy the psychedelic stylings of TRiPS, a new band formed by Fly My Prettiesâ Barnaby Weir ...
Celebrating our quadrennial opportunity to become experts in a bunch of sports we never normally watch.The games of the XXXIII Olympiad are upon us. Paris will host this yearâs showcase of sporting and athletic prowess, which means some late-night and early-morning viewing for us in Aotearoa.But what sports ...
The photograph is striking and beautiful, but also disturbing â a reminder that my love for John was often entangled in shame.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.In the spring of 1980, in Dunedin, shortly before his death, someone took a photograph ...
Get to know Babushka, our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our Whatâs Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Babuâs humans, Jo and Isabel, for their support. Dog name: Babushka (Babu for short) Age: 2Breed: Border Collie X poodleIf rescued, ...
Pacific Media Watch A Lebanese photojournalist who was severely wounded during an Israeli air strike in south Lebanon carried the Olympic torch in Paris this week in honour of her peers who have been wounded and killed in the field â especially in Gaza and Lebanon. Christina Assi of Agence ...
The first report in a five-part web series focused on the 15th Triennial Conference of Pacific Women taking place in the Marshall Islands this week.SPECIAL REPORT:By Netani Rika in Majuro Women continue to fight for justice 70 years after the first nuclear tests by the United States caused ...
Christopher Luxon has joined with Australia and Canada's leaders in voicing support for US President Joe Biden's ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The 2022 election brought the âteal waveâ into parliament. The next election will test whether teals, who occupy what were Liberal seats, and other independents can maintain their momentum. Joining us on the Podcast ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Musgrave, Senior lecturer in Pharmacology, University of Adelaide Pixavri/Shutterstock A major Federal Court class action has been dismissed this week after Justice Michael Lee ruled there was not enough evidence to prove the weedkiller Roundup causes cancer. Plaintiff Kelvin ...
In The Week in Politics: politicians have to decide what to do about child abuse, Health NZ is booked in for major surgery and Darleen Tana returns. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Corbould, Associate Professor, Contemporary Histories Research Group, Deakin University Mainstream media are surprisingly muted at the prospect of the worldâs most powerful nation being led for the first time by a woman â specifically a woman of colour, Vice President Kamala ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rebecca Bennett, PhD Student, Associate Research Fellow, Deakin University Last week, a drone delivery company called Wing (owned by Googleâs parent company, Alphabet) started operating in Melbourne. Some 250,000 residents in parts of the cityâs eastern suburbs can now order food from ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Foo, Lecturer, Physiotherapy, Monash University pikselstock/Shutterstock In the next 40 years in Australia, itâs predicted the number of Australians aged 65 and over will more than double, while the number of people aged 85 and over will more than triple. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katrina Grant, Research Associate, Power Institute for Arts and Visual Culture, University of Sydney Jonas Ă kerstrĂśm’s 1790 work, Session of the Accademia dell’Arcadia on August 17 1788.Nationalmuseum/Cecilia Heisser Ever wondered whether youâd have a better chance at winning an Olympic gold ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexandra Jones, Program Lead, Food Governance, George Institute for Global Health wavebreakmedia/Shutterstock On Thursday, Australian and New Zealand food ministers at state, federal and national levels met to thrash out whatâs next for health star ratings on packaged foods. Now, after ...
The Abuse in Care report found many Pacific survivors lost their connections to their culture and language, resulting in trauma that has been carried from generation to generation. ...
In the regulatory review, ECC intends to suggest that ERO focus on curriculum delivery reviews rather than the Ministry, because itâs not efficient or effective to have two agencies with radically different approaches climbing over each other. ...
Te RĹŤnanga Nui o NgÄ Kura Kaupapa MÄori invites the current government to work in partnership with them to develop a pathway forward, including the development of a parallel pathway and meaningful policy and strategy for Kura Kaupapa MÄori ...
If you havenât started watching yet, Tara Ward begs you to reconsider. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. In the world of New Zealand reality television, we have many gems in our crown. Thereâs the delicious second season of the Celebrity Treasure ...
A new poem by Fiona Kidman. The clothes of the dead I did not keep my motherâs furry red beret for long nor the stringy scarves that adorned the necks of my aunts, although I have kept tag ends of gold, the rings and trinkets they wore, the brooches no ...
The governmentâs announcement that it will re-open the foreshore and seabed controversy by changing the rules on recognising centuries-old MÄori customary title for a third time goes against the rule of law and New Zealand values,â Mr Tipa says. ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Booksâ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Lioness by Emily Perkins (Bloomsbury, $25) Roarrrr! Perkinsâ brilliant, award-winning, Marian-Keyes anointed, darkly funny, long ...
The 2004 Act vested ownership of the foreshore and seabed in the Crown, extinguishing any MÄori claims to ownership and causing widespread outrage and protests among MÄori communities. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Antje Deckert, Associate Professor (Criminology), Auckland University of Technology Getty Images Despite the connection between institutional harm and gang membership made clear in this weekâs mammoth royal commission abuse-in care report, the government seems unlikely to soften its âget tough on ...
From Lewis Clareburt in the swimming to the start of the rowing â the first seven days of Paris 2024 promise to be big for New Zealand. There are few events that bring the country together quite like an Olympic Games. Nothing quite matches the excitement of getting up in ...
Groundbreaking local science just showed up in the most surprising of places: the season finale of The Kardashians. In the season five finale of The Kardashians last night, several members of the family gathered together in one of their signature empty, cream-coloured rooms to hear test results that had been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Saikal, Emeritus professor of Middle Eastern and Central Asian Studies, Australian National University The Middle East is on the brink of a possibly devastating regional war, with hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah reaching an extremely dangerous level. Washington has engaged in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Elizabeth Eades, Rheumatologist, Monash University Lupus is an inflammatory autoimmune illness, where the bodyâs immune system mistakenly attacks itself. Lupus can affect virtually any part of the body, although it most commonly affects the skin, joints and kidneys. The symptoms ...
A law firm that specialises in working with survivors of abuse in State care is disappointed that the Government fails to recognise that its boot camps can be directly compared to previous boot camps from the 1990s and 2000s. ...
Dying is a natural part of life, like updating your Wof or seeing your hairdresser, but without the word-of-mouth recs that help guarantee a good service. What if we changed that? Dying Reviews received by The Spinoff have had the names of organisations redacted while Hospice NZ collects further data. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonti Horner, Professor (Astrophysics), University of Southern Queensland Mike Lewinski/Flickr, CC BY On any clear night, if you gaze skywards long enough, chances are youâll see a meteor streaking through the sky. Some nights, however, are better than others. At ...
Despite having no bars or other designated spaces for lesbians, Auckland boasts a small but mighty lesbian museum. So how did it get here? The past 18 months has brought increasing hostility towards the queer community across Aotearoa. Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshullâs anti-trans rally in Tamaki Makaurau last March led to a ...
Poneke Antifascist Coalition has invited Wellingtonians to stand in solidarity with the Kanak people at 12pm today outside the French Embassy in Wellington. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Layton, Visiting Fellow, Strategic Studies, Griffith University Drones are the signature technology of the Ukraine war. A few miniature aircraft designs were used in the warâs early days, but an incredible array of drones have now evolved. There are different types, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Slee, Associate Professor, Clinical Academic Neurologist, Flinders University Francisco Gonzelez/Unsplash Migraine is many things, but one thing itâs not is âjust a headacheâ. âMigraineâ comes from the Greek word âhemicraniaâ, referring to the common experience of migraine being predominantly ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lee White, Senior Lecturer and Horizon Fellow, School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Sydney Australia was slow to introduce minimum building standards for energy efficiency. The Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS) only came into force in 2003. Older homes ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Steven Sherwood, Professor of Atmospheric Sciences, Climate Change Research Centre, UNSW Sydney The past century of human-induced warming has increased rainfall variability over 75% of the Earthâs land area â particularly over Australia, Europe and eastern North America, new research shows. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Heynen, Program Coordinator, Sustainable Energy, The University of Queensland A temporary stadium in the Champ-de-Mars, ParisEkaterina Pokrovsky/Shutterstock As Paris prepares to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the sustainability of the event is coming under scrutiny. The organisers have promoted ...
A night of karaoke and community in a pub that feels like a memory. Youâd barely even notice it, unless you knew to look. Tucked away behind a liquor store on busy Constable Street is the capitalâs last great pub. Newtown Sports Bar is an emblem of the pub culture ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Wright, Professor in Marine Geology, University of Canterbury Louise Corcoran/Getty Images The decline in the number of doctoral candidates at New Zealand universities is a worrying sign for the countryâs effort to build a knowledge-based economy. Aotearoa New Zealandâs ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laurie Berg, Associate Professor, University of Technology Sydney defotoberg/Shutterstock Migrant worker exploitation is entrenched in workplaces across Australia. Tragically, a deep fear of immigration consequences means most unlawful employer conduct goes unreported. On Wednesday, however, the government officially launched a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Vaughan Cruickshank, Senior Lecturer in Health and Physical Education, University of Tasmania Paris is about to host its third summer Olympics. While we donât yet know what the legacy of this yearâs games will be, letâs take the opportunity to reflect on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Hugh Breakey, Deputy Director, Institute for Ethics, Governance & Law, Griffith University In the wake of the assassination attempt on former US President Donald Trump, there were calls from bothsides of US politics, as well as internationally, to reduce the brutal, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Keith Rathbone, Senior Lecturer, Modern European History and Sports History, Macquarie University Two high-profile assaults on Australians in Paris have raised concerns about security ahead of the Olympic Games. On Saturday evening, a young woman was allegedly sexually assaulted by a ...
Dying is inevitable and, so it seems, is it costing a lot, writes Stewart Sowman-Lund in todayâs extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here.The cost of dying ...
The government took Joyce Harris's first baby and sent her off to a girls' home. Half a century on - and out of oceans of hurt - it asked her to be a mother figure. ...
Itâs the deadliest fictional town in the country, but which death has been the most bonkers? Alex Casey looks back at 10 seasons of The Brokenwood Mysteries to find out. Warning: The following ranking story contains famous New Zealand actors appearing to be dead (not alive). The Spinoff has been ...
Water cremation is the biggest thing to happen to the death industry in the last 100 years. Alex Casey meets the people trying to bring it to Aotearoa. Through a set of mirrored doors down the industrial end of Christchurchâs St Asaph Street, death is getting a new lease on ...
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David Cunliffe is putting out a new speech today.
Hopefully something that starts to show what Labour-Green economic management might look like.
Cool. Where?
Laingholm Community Hall 2:30 pm.
Thanks, Micky. Pity I’ll be working then.
If someone going along would be kind enough to give us the after-action report đ
It’s here.
Thanks Draco for making this brilliant speech available to us. What other current politician could match such well constructed and inspiring words? Shearer will try, but come nowhere close. Imagine someone like Key attempting to deliver a speech of this quality! Laughable! Here is a way ahead, full of promise and policy. How is it that a man of such exceedingly high intelligence is not leading the Labour opposition?
I guess the media will not notice this event of today!
I enjoyed David’s comments about neo-liberalism.
“Neo-Liberalism is based on the idea that itâs a dog-eat-dog world. Neo-Liberalism is based on the idea that greed is good, that weâre all locked in an economic life-and-death-struggle with each other. Neo-Liberalism says that compassion is for suckers. Neo-Liberalism says that if the world is going to the dogs, it might as well be the top dogs. Indeed, to borrow from Oliver Stoneâs Wall Street, not only is greed good, âitâs legal.âÂ
No it’s not. It’s just more BaU and we know, or we should anyway, that BaU doesn’t work as the increasing poverty in this country proves.
Nah mate I think your judgement is too harsh. NZ politics hasn’t seen this kind of identification and analysis of neoliberal failures for a long time.
Does it suggest the brand new paradigms that we need? Nope it does fall short there. Mimicking a strategy that scandanavian countries successfully used during a massive resource, financial and energy boom is not necessarily going to work for us, in this time.
And that’s where the likes of us come in to push and educate so that the citizens force the pollies to take heed. And to realise also that the pollies are never going to accomplish that much of the change required.
Go David Cunliffe !
It’s probably the first truly definitive attack on neo-liberalism world wide.
The problem with labels in general is they detract from the core thinking that derived them.
Add a couple of years and it becomes the label that drives them, when that happens it’s time to whatch out for the “Evil Ones”.
interest politics? minority politics? particular politics? singular politics? classification politics?
equation politics
-Excalibur (like the palm of our hands)
oops, forgot the categorical imperative in hurry-Kant
(work in progress)
now, Soren Kierkegaard; there is a thoughtful man.
I look forward to the posts on Kiwiblog and Whaleoil condemning Aussie talkback host Alan Jones’s latest vicious attack on Julia Gillard. Won’t be long now …
You hate Alan Jones too? Then you might like to watch him getting publicly humiliated on television by Chopper Read….
NOT!
Syria
http://kiaoragaza.wordpress.com/2012/09/28/rebels-make-gains-in-blunting-syrian-air-attacks/
After months of being massacred from the sky, rebel forces are encroaching on the borders of at least one government controlled airfield.
This has created a conundrum for the rebel fighters. Being close to the airfield allows them to shoot at these aircraft when they are the most vulnerable to light weapons, either on the ground, or at taking off and landing.
The rebels say they will overun the base eventually. But what should they do with the aircraft?
Destroy them?
Or use them against the regime?
And what would the Western Powers do if the revolutionary forces get hold of jet aircraft?
Already Western Powers have threatened to intervene if Assad’s gas weapons threaten to fall into rebel hands.
Western leaders have also expressed fears that if effective anti-aircraft weapons, particularly any potent shoulder fired anti aircraft heat seeking missiles, got into the hands of the rebel fighters that this could change the balance of power in the Middle East.
Because of these fears the West have been content to let Assad bomb and strafe defenceless Syrian suburbs and towns without mercy.
The huge civilian casualties doesn’t stir them but the thought of powerful anti aircraft weapons in the hands of the “Arab Street” sends a chill down their spine. The threat being that such a change in the balance of power could spiral beyond their control ending the long standing Western Imperium in the Middle East, toppleing all the well armed despotic puppet states that are the bolster to that power.
The consequences could be far reaching
Trouble is, Jenny, they do nothing about Israel’s continual bombing of Gaza; it’s a bit much to expect them to do anything about Syria.
Sad, but true, Morrissey.
Jenny you were doing so well there for a while too, focussing on the local issues like PoAL.
Perhaps keep focus on what you understand clearly, and on which will have greater impact here in NZ.
I’m sure all the innocent Syrians executed by the FSA Death Squads (Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi, US/UK/French sponsored), would not miss your inability to comprehend what is nearer to the actual situtation in Syria, which pretty much means you condone their deaths!
I find it fascinating that Jenny is trying to position the Western military powers as being at least tacit backers of Assad. When all the arms and funding going to the foreign fighters who have infiltrated the “Free Syria Army” is coming through countries who have close military and financial ties with the US and UK.
As you state muzza, including Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and also Turkey.
You forgot Iran.
Yep. Iran and Syria have very close ties. If the US and Israel is to increase their military and financial leverage over Iran, taking Syria down will be very helpful.
Suicide bombing against Syrian military HQ caught on camera
Notice how the van carrying the explosives is still being driven as it is detonated. Suicide bombings like this mark an ugly turning point in this conflict, and demonstrate the influence that foreign jihadi and islamist fighters are having on the tactics of the Free Syrian Army.
I’d say that was accidental. That was definitely not the place anyone would want to set off a bomb.
Poor bastards, Thanks Netenyahu, ya set another one off.
It’s his bloody words they would’ve been “programmed” by society too watch for.
In a moment of loss they spoke to the Taliban, and what would they be saying?
More racist and Islamaphobic bullshit from you CV.
CV, where is your evidence of all the weapons and support you lyingly claim that the rebels are getting from the West? If the Syrian rebels were getting all the support and weapons you claim, they wouldn’t need suicide bombers.
In an asymmetric conflict between two heavily unequal forces, on one hand a powerful conventional modern army and on the other a poorly armed insurgent force – in desperation, the much weaker military force finding themselves at a serious military disadvantage in munitions and equipment, have resorted to suicide attacks. Examples of this can be cited in almost every major military conflict. In the invasion of Lebanon by Israel in 2006 suicide attacks have been cited as the main factor in the Israeli conventional army’s defeat at the hands of the paramilitary forces of Hezbollah. Hezbollah found through bitter experience that, in that heavily asymmetric conflict, if they sent ten fighters against a similar number of IDF, that they would lose 9 out of 10 Lebanese volunteers for 1 Israeli soldier, (if that). With the use of suicide bomber volunteers, that statistic could be reversed. These attacks were so effective, it was said that a column of modern Merkava tanks could be halted at the sound of an approaching dirt-bike.
Most of Israel’s casualties in that war were Merkava tank crews.
As a result in Lebanon these desperate suicide attacks against the Israeli invaders became known as “the poor man’s nuclear bomb“.
The reason this asymetric tactic was called the poor man’s nuclear weapon, is because while a professional army can afford to pay soldiers to kill for them. Professional armies can’t afford to pay soldiers enough to die for them.
Despite the racist depiction of this phenomenon as the result of fanatic religious fundamentalism unique to Islamists. In extremis it has also been practiced by largely secular forces as well. The mainly secular insurgents of Tamil Eelam of Sri Lanka relied heavily on this tactic.
In Syrian history, Jules Jammal a Christian Syrian naval officer who grew up near Homs was a defender in the invasion of the Sinai Peninsula by the combined Western forces of Israel, Britain and France. In 1956 Jules Jammal volunteered to become a suicide bomber, to sink a french war ship.
Jammal is considered a hero in both Syria and Egypt, receiving official military honours from both governments on his sacrifice.
For his actions Jamal was also awarded the medal of St Peter and St Paul from the Patriarch of the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch.
Streets in Syria and Egypt are still named after this Arab Christian hero.
Unfortunately due to the sheer inhuman military brutality of the Assad regime and it’s reliance on it’s fully modernly equipped army and airforce to suppress the rebellion, pitted against the woeful lack of powerful weapons by the insurgents, this desperate tactic may become more common in Syria.
Sadly true, which is why society has to speek Life Positive messages.
War and Destruction will only amplify the situation.
They’d be better off building a “Homeless” muslim compund and trying to help these people.
But who’d trust them?
Not me at this point that’d be 4 sure.
The Christian ethic of Universal Understanding and acceptance has a lot of merit for the middle east in general.
I’d love to see some links to what you’re saying re suicide attacks against tanks by Hezbollah. especially the motorcycle thing. I’m not saying it’s not true, but it does seem unlikely. usually you’d use shaped charges or ambush with rpgs against tanks, neither of which things Hezbollah are short of.
Hezbollah are a serious outfit of course. The fear is that they will be getting involved in Syria soon, deeply uncomfortable with the rise of wahhibist organisation like AQ in the insurgency.
They disable the track with hand grenades, and they are charging a tank, one way trip usually.
And then shoot the rpgs’s etc
đ the ‘tide is turning’
Jenny said:
Keep pushing for and glamourising your war.
But what is happening in Syria is a proxy war and a foreign invasion, not a popular uprising. Unless its a popular uprising which isn’t that popular because the bloody thing has been going on for well over a full year now.
As for evidence of where the FSA is getting support from, I have posted multiple links previously, which you have patiently ignored. The conflict in Syria is essentially a power struggle and proxy war driven on by foreign powers and foreign fighters. That’s what you’re supporting Jenny.
Let’s try this now:
Read more: http://world.time.com/2012/09/18/syrias-secular-and-islamist-rebels-who-are-the-saudis-and-the-qataris-arming/#ixzz27vx9txpb
Still no effective anti-aircraft weapons
Thanks for this CV.
Finally, you are starting to supply links to more than outright propaganda and lies, or half baked Washington beltway gossip and ignorant and bigoted smears. Maybe you are beginning to get an inkling into the real nature of this people’s revolt. Here’s hoping anyway.
Private Saudi and Qatari backers with some assistance from within the Turkish state, are trying to buy influence among the revolutionaries. Playing favourites, giving support to some and not others. Trying to influence the out come of the revolution.
There is no surprise here.
They realise that the rebels are on the right side of history, but they want to influence the rebels eventual victory, to retrieve the most gain for themselves. However their jockeying for position could be doing more harm than good to the resistance, and rather than end the war, prolong it.
Apart from the disorganising effect of the “control room”, in supplying weapons to some and not others. Even the support they have given to their favourites is parsimonious at best.
(The FSA is nominally headed by Riad al-Asâaad, who is based in Turkey. Neither Asâaad nor his chief FSA rival General Mustafa Sheikh are party to the Istanbul control room that supplies and arms rebels who operate under the FSA banner. The two men each have their own sources of funding and are independently distributing money and weapons to selected FSA units.)
WIMP -WALLOPING: Two Jackals tear apart David Shearer
Beleaguered Labour Party leader David Shearer made another dreadful, stuttering, bumbling, wandery appearance on TV3’s The Nation yesterday. In the face of a couple of aggressive young right wing journalists, Shearer was unconvincing and hesitant throughout. He often seemed confused and, fatally, seemed to be woolly-minded about economic policy and currency questions. This weakness only fed the aggression of his interrogators.
At one point, Shearer said, quite rightly, that the National Standards for primary and intermediate schools were not credible data.
“It’s just the UNIONS that say that!” scoffed the Fairfax journalist John Hartevelt.
Now, this was a perfect opening for a strong and confident politician to tear Hartevelt a new one; he could have pointed out that the group that Hartevelt sniffingly dismissed as “the unions” is actually comprised of virtually all of the nation’s teachers and educational theorists. In other words, “the unions” are people who, unlike John Hartevelt, are serious, informed and credible when it comes to talking about education.
But Shearer’s response was a lame, “That’s not true,” not followed up by any argument at all.
On Radio New Zealand National’s Mediawatch programme this morning, Hartevelt is currently getting a grilling by Colin Peacock over his shoddy release of the ropey National Standards figures. When he is contradicted and challenged, Hartevelt is anything but authoritative. What a pity the Labour Party lacks a leader prepared or able to do the same thing.
god, that’s depressing.
He didn’t even need to defend the unions, he just needed to say “Look, John, you yourself have stated that the data doesn’t reflect quality, isn’t moderated, and can’t be used to draw meaningful conclusions between different schools. So obviously that’s incorrect.”
But that would involve being quick off the mark and bolshy enough to defend your viewpoints.
And he should have defended the unions at the same time: “let’s not forget that our teacher unions were amongst the first experts to correctly point out the glaring flaws in National Standards, well before many other commentators caught up with the facts.”
Looking forward to hearing Shearer defending himself when his speechwriter gets on to it in that fantastic newsletter called “Shearer Stays”, oops, “Shearer Says”.
I’m calling “this week we held the government to account on National Standards data, and continued to champion the rights of parents and teachers and communities to do what’s best for their children and their children’s children.”
I wonder if he’s figured out why the sickness bene on the roof story was a gift to right wing nut jobs yet.
OK, so he stood around and looked the other way while Hartevelt put the boot into working people, but at least he managed not to spit in anyone’s face this time.
Yes I too watched in numb horror, Has no-one in the Labour party worked it out yet??? Or maybe they have. BUT when we have a pull apart after the 2014 debacle that will be the election where the NZ Labour Party comes a woeful 3rd with fuck all seats behind a confident Green Party and A thieving NACT party in for the final round of theft and incompetence.
We will be able to point the finger at OLD and PAST IT politicians clinging on with their fingertips. Pushing their own private agendas, just so they can suck at the public teat for another 3 years where they will have to do fuck all to get the money they are supposed to EARN!
Now we all know who these old and past it ones are, so a little nudging in to the retirement rather than defeat.camp would be good.
And will someone please please point out to shearer and his backers (Robertson) included is that he is not, and never will be, Prime Minister material, and neither are they, simply by the damage they have let happen to NZ, and it’s economy. By their self interest.
Again, refer to today’s speech by the enlightened Cunliffe – compare and contrast with Shearer and you will wonder what the hell has gone wrong with the Labour Party!
I think the “Delegation” style of leadership has definite merit
While David Shearer hasn’t hit his straps yet, the example they set for NZ is a formidable one.
Anyone of 5 different people should be able to step into his shoes without any qualms by the end of this year.
Which five do you have in mind? I can think of two with enough profile, skill and experience for the job but not five. I can’t even get as far as three.
Realistically I guess it’ll be all the major portfolios or shadow portfolios.
Shearer has to carry the discussion regarding the exchange rate. I throw my hands up there has been an identified issue yet all the solutions are to give the responsibility to the RB for the solutions. If they have some ides how to correct the issue them come out and inform us. I think either that they have no idea of a solution or the consequences are as bad as the what they are trying to solve.
So by expecting the RB to fix the problem who directs them, especially as DS does not want “politicians to run the exchange rate.” !!! “Good grief” as Charlie Brown would say. After the GCSB being unrestricted in their actions now DS wants another govt. dept. in the RB to also be unrestricted.
True, it comes back to that bleedin “Open Market” crap, needs to rethink that one pronto
US military documents categorise Assange and Wikileaks as “enemies of the United States”
http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/us-calls-assange-enemy-of-state-20120927-26m7s.html#ixzz27cjH9qSk
CV 7
On radionz this morning a report on food sharing and political discussion in the USA has presented an interesting picture of USA repressive attitudes. The group has a slogan food not bombs and this is making authorities extremely sensitive, saying that they can approve food distribution but there must be no banners with political messages. In fact one political commentator said they were a subversive influence that was undermining the USAs ability to get citizens to respond to possible attacks on the country from its enemies.
They started off giving out food, vegetarian and vegan only, in the park where the Occupy groups began their protest. Free speech and free food are at the least embarrassing, particularly to very liberal politicians who are quite negative because it draws attention to their inadequacies, and at the most regarded as highly dangerous by the fear and war exponents in the USA who want to occupy the hearts and minds of their people.
It’s a serious problem. 21st century NZ is going to have to walk a fine line between the interests and politics of two great Pacific powers. China and the USA. I’ve got little faith that our current crew can get it right for our magnificent, but very small, country.
Maybe. The unexpected is usually what happens though, and in retrospect it is seen as inevitable. Like the rise of Prussia – or England or Japan for that matter. Somewhere out there !
yes, and no. nothing new under the sun
Oh my giddy aunt. Nutmegs! Seriously, Assange has reason to be worried…
Graeme Edgler on Public Address has an intriguing dissection of the charge brought to the Police over the “spying” on Kim Dotcom compared to the investigation of teapot tapes.
http://publicaddress.net/legalbeagle/kim-dotcom-vs-the-teapot-tapes/
His short answer is that he believes that the four boxes needed can be ticked and that there will be a case to answer.
Will take a long time but interesting.
now, here is an empathetic point of entry..:)
SCHOPENHAUER ROCKS
just in case one is hard of hearing,
SCHOPENHAUER ROCKS
so do Led Zeppelin and Patti Smith.
have a listen to Cat (Yusaf Islam) Stevens’ ‘The Very Best Of ‘…i can’t keep it in…no …i can’t keep it in…gotta let it out…oh..i gotta let it out…(sans grass, regretably, yet THIS TOO MUST PASS)
Murray McCully stands up in the UN and criticises lack of action to aid the Syrian people and refers to the veto which has been utilised by China and Russia. Wonder if we will ever hear a criticism of USA policies from him? Not now we are the dingy dinghy again.
Other countries had their head of state speaking, but I guess as there wasn’t a suitable baseball game Key sent the poisonous dwarf.
Janice 9.1
McCully probably was better than Jokey as he might start a world war with some inappropriate remark. McCully I am sure, knows more about the issues than Jokey Hen who also doesn’t want to mess up his fine financial fund mind with annoying matters better left to other people. The responsibility on a NZ PM is sooo wide, heavy and stressful. You just wouldn’t have a clue!
I see that Murry McCully spoke on the importance of Israel and Palestine leaders talking again. They actually live very close to each other. Sounds a bit Sarah Palinish. Does that mean that I was wrong that he was a waste of time really because of biasing his speech on USA concerns. No, here is some background to the USA relationship and aid to Israel. Mostly google headings that offer the information I was looking for. The links don’t come up live.
First a Wikipedia summary of a book, The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy on whether the USA lobby for Israel is mainly wealthy Jewish people. (There are likely to be some biased blogs on this subject so I think that a researched book would give a reliable view.) The book is by John Mearsheimer, Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago, and Stephen Walt, Professor of International Relations at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
**http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Israel_Lobby_and_U.S._Foreign_Policy
On military aid USA Israel –
**IsraelâUnited States relations – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IsraelâUnited_States_relations
Almost all U.S. aid to Israel is now in the form of military assistance, while in the past it … Strong congressional support for Israel has resulted in Israel’s receiving …
**US Aid to Israel and the Palestinians
ifamericansknew.org/stats/usaid.html
The U.S. is providing Israel with at least $8.2 million each day* in military aid and … Washington has provided Israel with a level of support dwarfing the amounts …
**Tempering Iron Dome: US may spend $680 million on Israeli missile …
rt.com/news/us-israel-military-aid-iron-dome-637/
21 Apr 2012 â The US could fork out $680 million on strengthening the Israeli Iron Dome rocket shield. …
(Obama and Israel)
**U.S., Israel Build Military Cooperation – WSJ.com
online.wsj.com/…/SB1000142405274870332100457542727255005…
14 Aug 2010 â U.S. military aid to Israel has increased markedly this year. … Obama felt the increased military support is necessary to assure Israel’s security …
(Jewish extensive reference to it) –
**http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/US-Israel/foreign_aid.html
Here’s an interesting item on how the USA paranoia about attacks has caused it to look for guidance from the paranoic Israelis.
**http://articles.latimes.com/2011/oct/31/opinion/la-oe-blackwill-israel-20111031
This one has moving pics on the topics and an academic opinion that the UN structure assists USA to act in Israel’s interests
**http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2012/09/29/264033/dozens-of-insurgents-killed-in-aleppo/
This one has interesting points
**http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2012/08/15/the_politically_incorrect_guide_to_us_interests_in_the_middle_east
I was reasonably pleased with McCully’s response on Syria and Israel/Palestine. I don’t think the latter was Sarah Palinish at all – perhaps a little flat-footed in a plain-spoken way, but not actually idiotic a la Palin.
Perhaps they needed to get McCully out of the country so Trev could have an uninterupted couple of days with Murray’s ex girlfriend?
đ
Murray McCully is a non-entity
I DO NOT accept Keys apology about the govt behavior in the dot come fiasco.
Dy – the point is that Key DID NOT apologise for himself, he generously apologised for his own minions!
Her Tui Billboards are surrounded by neon lights!
http://localbodies-bsprout.blogspot.co.nz/2012/09/hekia-parata-is-listeningyeah-right.html
This is an earlier blog by Dave that is worth reading as well about the way the ministry treated Moera school in the north over ‘poor’ NCEA result.
http://localbodies-bsprout.blogspot.co.nz/2012/04/lesley-longstone-management-style.html
DV 11.1 (By the way its Moerewa spell it right.)
Thanks Dv – good blog from Local Bodies. This quote from Dv link at 11.1
That has all changed. We now have imports that haven’t the excuse of being cheap – Lesley Longstone recently in the news because of the shakeup of our school system is said to be receiving $600,000 p.a. You can’t help thinking that we have a cringe factor alive and well in NZ that we can’t find suitable candidates for such positions. And those working their way up in a Department with consequent institutional knowledge are likely to be elbowed out during some internecine change and so we lose our experienced people who care about NZ and get these moving generic managers who make us bow and scrape to their supposedly superior knowledge. (Must be, they’re from overseas you know.)
Here is some info on Ms Longstone. If you want source get it yourself, I’m tired.
“Lesley Longstone has 25 years’ experience in the education and employment sectors in the United Kingdom, Europe and Australia, and she understands the economic importance of education and its contribution to the broader skills agenda.
Ms Longstone has a Bachelor of Science from the University of Sheffield.
Good Work P.; freakin Philistines!
Ed Milliband, UK Labour Leader: Either the banking sector makes sweeping changes or we will force bank break ups
Frakkin’A. This is what we are talking about people. However, the City of London financial centre holds such vast political power and influence in the UK, I hope Milliband can stay the course.
By the way, it is no co-incidence that the Lehman collapse, Bernie Madoff’s multi-billion dollar ponzi scheme, the massive theft from MF Global account holders, near infinite leverage/shadow rehypothecation collateral rorts and many more frauds originated in City of London financial operating centres.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2012/sep/29/ed-miliband-british-banks
What they really need to so is to stop the banks creating money. Do that and they’ll collapse all by themselves.
Excellent Viper
It’s not daylight savings this weekend is it? The clock on my computer has gone forward an hour but it uses an international clock and I’m not sure they’ve been right since the govt changed the date of DST and didn’t tell the rest of the world.Â
Yep it is, clocks moved forward at 2am.
Thanks. Are they tying that to the last weekend in Sept?
I suppose it’s a chance to reset all the clocks to the same time. I use five digital clocks and they all end up out of sync within 2 or 3 weeks. The computer is the only true one because it resets when I go online. Did time used to be this odd when we had analog clocks?
I’m perturbed that you’re finding that with your digital clocks. There is absolutely no reason for even a cheap digital clock to gain or lose more than 1 minute a month, and that is being generous.
I’d blame sloppy cheap electronics design or componentry. A good quality quartz mechanical watch will often perform to +/- 2 minutes per year.
yeah I find it weird myself. One is a cheapo clock but there is a cell phone and car stereo both of a decent enough quality to keep time properly.
personally, i do not wear a watch. Time đ
and Being (emancipate ourselves)
No excuse for police perjury
Grant Wormald didn’t just give evidence that was inconsistent; he clearly perjured himself in a court of law. He said to his knowledge there was no other agencies involved in the surveillance of Mr Dotcom, knowing full well that the GCSB was involved. In fact he attended a meeting on December 14 with GCSB operatives. For him to say he wasn’t aware of their involvement is an obvious lie, made under oath, and the Detective Inspector should be held to account…
…and if he was ordered to lie, then that is a conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.
Ouch! Duck and fucking cover John Key.
Ouch indeed. Big blast zone on this one.
So now its the weekend and still no earthshaking distractions for Shonky to hide behind, He has got to working with Bennet on something, as Parata is now a liability.
At this point I’d be inclined to bring an Army General in to arbitrate it all.
There’s too much confusion about the command structure and what can and can’t be said.
If these men are indeed playing “Board Room” games, then as u say we have a very serious problem.
About the best thing they could start with would be a “Closed Door” meeting with the captain of those men, and yeah I mean you bud.
If they know the ground you were walking they can direct their efforts properly.
Otherwise they can’t target the people in question.
(Understandably reticent I’d imagine ur response too be, but think about it, it may help
From the sound of things the two Geoffs from Labour and Cunliffe would be the men to talk too)
The problem is obviously at the top, and the only way to find the top is to start at the bottom.
(No Offense Brother)
Nothing has changed in 35 years when it comes to cops committing perjury in court as the police have not been made accountable even after Chief Justice Elias from the Supreme Court has become involved. An effing joke.
The Nuremberg defence has substantive problems both for Wormald and his boss.
If he invokes the ND he (Knowing it was incorrect) he still could have made a moral judgement, hence it only limits the remedies.The other part is it transfers accountability up the food chain (it increases the value of remedies to his superiors)
Exaclty, the buck stops with Key if he uses that defence.
More code snipets I remembered for LPRent …
While( true ) {
for( *var=*inVar; *var!=’ ‘; var++){ … } /*simple word finder */
}
switch( true ) {
case( *var=='<' && (*var+1=='a' ||*var+1=='A') : /*A Tag*/
{ … }
default: /* Anything else */
{ … }
}
Fastest code in the West babe đ
Machine code ‘C’ if ya lookin for name.
Use a var to trigger the Daemon break…
if( brkVar ) break;
}
Remember 0 it true
Which means if( var==0 ) {} runs faster than if( var==1 ) {}
1 = voltage = heat = slower cylcles in cpu/memory
And if you don’t have “True” use 1 i.e while(1) {}
All you Aucklanders enjoying the almost exclusively chemical skies today…go on, step outside, take a look up, and ponder the marvel that is the “clouds” up there today…Notice the textures and the shapes, really not quite right are they…
Oh, and yes I took the footage of the plane dumping over AKL again today at midday, heading south, right over the middle of the city…
Thats three times I have seen it, and twice I have filmed it. Someone on this island knows WTF is going on!
And at 320pm, just seen and filmed the return leg of the spray plane, was out over the Waitemata Harbour heading north.
I can’t have been the only Aucklander on here to have seen this today, its that bloody obvious…
Yes I saw a narrow elongated ‘cloud’ over the North Shore – must have been around 2.30 -3.00pm. Took it to be the ragged remains of a contrail probably at around 20,000 ft.
I know an Air NZ flight captain (the partner of a family member) and was tempted to contact him for a bit of a razz… you’ve been dumping fuel have you?
Hey muzza which theory do you subscribe to
to dumb down
to reduce libido
other
Hey Marty, the only “theory” I subscribe to about it, is that somethings going on, we are not being told “in public” at least. I prefer to take the most obvious about a situation, which is, there is something being sprayed in our skies, only complete idiots would contest that now. The what and why, become the obvious next questions, and there is lots of stuff which can assist with that. Ive not done any lab tests etc so wont speculate on those….
I have filmed the planes 2 times now, and that is not any commercial arline route on a sunday. Just checked the official commercial routes again and times of arrivals and departures at Wellington and Christchurch today that might mean a flight heading southerly direction at such height could return on, and nothing would match, again this time either!
If you could see the sky up here today, even the hardest skeptic , would be doing well to explain the state of AKL’s skies!
I struggle with this one mainly because of explanations that are based on someone/group doing it to us for their sinister ends – but those ends, that I have heard, don’t make sense. Maybe I’m just not mad enough to comprehend their madness đ
Marty it need not be sinister in nature, but whatever they are doing, the results/expectations, may or may not be understood. They are spraying shit into the sky, and if you could see Auckland today you would know exactly what I am talking about, and if you saw what I saw, its likely the only way people can understand. I was not skeptical, but before I saw the planes, wondered if there was a simpple explantion, now having seen them so many times, and filmed it, there is not a shred of doubt they are spraying.
I hope you never see them down your way dude!
See my comment about the 320pm return srpay leg, and I have taken film and pics all afternoon from my area of AKL. The sky is an absolute mess of chemical shit today, grrrrr.
EDIT @ Weka – I’m not going to upload them, as have no facility that I would want to use. The May 6 footage I took, I gave to someone to pass on, who posted it online.
All good muzza, many have noted the same thing down here which is why I’ve heard a bit about it, and I’ve seen a few videos and seen them here and in Auckland. I’m not saying they aren’t true and I hope you crack it wide open – I just can’t work out any type of ‘why’ that makes sense to me. I spose I put it to one side really and concentrate on stuff like the proposed open cast mine on the Denniston Plateau, it feels like I might be able to work with others and stop that atrocity – not sure I can say the same about the spraying. Kia kaha.
Hey Marty, good on you with the mines and things, locally we all definitely can get “hands on” so to speak, and hands on, is whats required, not just at the keyboard either đ
Kia kaha to you too bro
muzza, I don’t understand your reason for not uploading these pictures.
Can you explain the problem? I’m sure someone here will help.
Hi Felix, I didn’t give a reason – Ill most likely forward todays stuff on again for posting, same as I did with the May 6 footage.
I wont have been the only person in AKL who saw it today, from your posts your not in AKL??
No not in AKL but have seen some interesting stuff in the sky here too. Is the May 6 footage still online somewhere we can see it?
Edit: Just google or youtube search Auckland chemtrails, you will find some stuff
ta
Sorry muzza, but it’s not good enough. Fair enough that you have concerns, but without accessible evidence it’s all just another conspiracy theory. I have no interest in watching 2 minutes of the Auckland sky without any context or explanation. Someone needs to put together some credible information and present it in ways that people can read and understand. Not saying that has to be you, but I don’t really see the point in speculating about phenomena without any useful analysis that is backed up by evidence. Or at least not scarey phenomena. It just makes people worry but gives them nowhere to go.
No need to apologise for yourself Weka., I can understand your position, as I too would also like to know why planes are spraying, because the question has gone past, perhaps thats whats going on.
Why do you & others keep saying that someone should put together, and there is no evidence, there is plenty out there from all around the world Weka, what would you consider evidence or a well put togther case, over an above what is already being done…
Certainly I would agree that without seeing the planes for oneself, seeing what is coming from the planes are obvioulsy NOT vapour (con) trails, then seeing the clear blue day that was AKL yesterday, and on May 6, turning into a mesh of god knows what, followed by the predictable shit weather.
Perhaps there is nothing in it Weka, I can’t say either way, all I am saying is that I know what I saw, and have seen, and what it did to our days on May 6 and yesterday.
If what I post panics you, then don’t read it, and if you are not up to doing some reading etc about geo-enginerring, then youre not in any position to say there is no evidence or that someone should put some together!
Kia kaha
The problem muzza is that most information presented about chemtrails is done so by either whackjobs or people who have almost zero critical thinking skills. I have an appreciation for whackjobs in society but they’re not people I go to for facts. People with very poor critical thinking skills bother me more, because they use the internet to push their ill formed ideas in ways that don’t help much and probably do some damage.Â
I don’t consider you to be either of those two things, and have been interested in your story of what you see in the skies (have read previous threads), but until you present some evidence it’s just an interesting story.
I’m not panicked by the chemtrail stuff, just pissed off at how it gets debated. We have enough stressful shit to deal with on the planet at the moment without adding to the load with information that is designed to alarm but has no back up.Â
“if you are not up to doing some reading etc about geo-enginerring, then youre not in any position to say there is no evidence or that someone should put some together!”
I disagree. Part of critical thinking is learning who to trust and why. I don’t have to understand every phenomena on the planet to such detail because I have the skills to read people who do have that detail and I can sift out the wheat from the chaff. That’s on both sides of an argument (I can point you to poor thinking on both sides of the Ken Ring debate for instance).Â
I also tend to not trust people who only reference youtube. Video is a good way of getting a message across, but it’s generally a crap way of providing verifiable evidence (not least because it can’t reference easily).
And I definitely have low opinion of websites that use obvious propoganda tecniques. This site, which pops up number one in google for ‘chemtrail’ is classic
http://chemtrailsnorthnz.wordpress.com/opinions-regarding-the-functions-of-chemtrailsstratospheric-aerosol-geoengineering/
It’s designed to appeal to people who think of themselves as woken up (the big banner), and to hook in other people by using emotive fearmongering. I’m much less likely to take something seriously that feels the need to SHOUT AT ME how stupid I am if I don’t believe what it says.
It’s also hard to take anything seriously that purports that human-made CC has been ‘exposed as a hoax’. Whatever one thinks about CC, ‘exposed as a hoax’ ain’t what’s been happening, and that phrase suggests that the website people don’t have a very good understanding of science or the politics of science.
That website also considers that a high number of google hits = proof of theory. That’s just stupid.
If the chemtrail crowd want to be taken seriously, how hard would it be to put up a website that explains the issues in a clear, rational way that lay people can understand?
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Are you going to put the video and details up online?
Weka, which way to you want it? – Asking me if I am going to post the video online but don’t trust people who post on YT. I would be happy to send you the raw footage if you like, but again its still my video with no context for you, because you were not here, and not see what was happening with your own eyes.
I do tend to agree with you, that seeing video gives little context, which is why I DONT post what I have, because its very easy for people to blow it off, as you have been doing. My contention is not to state what is going on, I can’t do that, because I don’t know for sure what they are spraying, only that I have seen, and filmed the spraying multiple times now, that I fly planes, and have spent most of my life looking at the sky, and that our skies have changed in a way that I can’t believe people in AKL do not notice!
You’re not in AKL either obviously, as otherwise you would have some more specific comments on my posts, and I notice that there was no response from anyone in AKL, (not that it means anything in hard terms, it would be good to hear other locals thoughts – If they saw it).
Out of interst, how do you develop your sense of who/what you can trust? – Here is a tip, if you think you can develop it as a skill, you don’t have it naturally, which has its limitations. Sure you will be able to sort the wheat from the chaff, the critical thinking and general intelligence will assist there, but instinctively there will always be a gap.
I’ll check the website out, i’ve not heard of it.
Muzza, I said I tend not to trust people who only reference youtube. And gave valid reasons why. This doesn’t mean video isn’t useful, just that it’s not usually in and of itself proof in situations like this.
I’m not in Auckland, hence my original question about posting your footage online. I really don’t know what you are talking about and the visuals would be interesting if you can post a comparison with what you think are not chemtrails.
 My contention is not to state what is going on, I canât do that, because I donât know for sure what they are spraying, only that I have seen, and filmed the spraying multiple times now, that I fly planes, and have spent most of my life looking at the sky, and that our skies have changed in a way that I canât believe people in AKL do not notice!
But if you keep doing that repeatedly without any further support people will get bored or annoyed and switch off. How will that help?
“(not that it means anything in hard terms, it would be good to hear other locals thoughts â If they saw it).”
You could for instance get methodical. Open a wordpress blog, without all the conspiracy dramatics, and post your observations and photos/stills. Ask Aucklanders to join you, and post what they are seeing. Give them times and directions of where to look. Moderate heavily to keep out the conspiracy theory stuff. Write short, easily accessible pieces about why you think x plane is doing y activity, and what is unusual about it. Likewise, post about the differences you are seeing the sky compared to 5 years ago, 10, 20 etc.
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Or you could just with basic physics:
That would be atmosphere that resembles Auckland’s most of the friggen time.
A “broad church”: we’ll make room for both Right Wing voters and Left Wing voters inside Labour
Great that’s been finally cleared up.
http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/shearer-hints-front-bench-shake-ck-129842
Very Sad.
” I’ll publish right or wrong: Fools are my theme, let satire be my song.”
-Byron
“What all the wise men have promised, has not happened, and what all the damn fools said would happen has come to pass”
-Lamb (ironically enough)
“Thus hath the candle singed the moth. Oh, these deliberate fools!”
-The Merchant of Venice
“And all our yesterdays have lighted fools”
-Measure for Measure
“oh this ship of fools”
-Bob Seger
Since the present lowering of crime rates can be connected to better social services and education provided to today’s teenagers over the period of the last Labour government, I am unfortunately confident in predicting rising crime levels in about five years or so as the rejected primary school children of today hit their teenage years under the punitive benefit and education policies of our wonderful present government. One can only hope the crime will hurt those presently benefiting from the low tax rates for the rich introduced by the same government, but crime always hurts the poor before it hurts those with big walls and money to hire security guards.