Received an email from Better Public Media with results of a new poll conducted in early December showing support for the RNZ/TVNZ merger is far higher 60% to 40% than the Taxpayer Curia poll of October showed. Don't knows were about 30%.
NO. There have been enough of them over recent years to demonstrate they are slanted in the direction of the Right. It is easy to do by way of the wording of the questions and choosing the demographic more favourable to right-wing political parties.
I also get the Better Public Media emails and it is frustrating that the truth about the merger is out there, but is being twisted and distorted by those who oppose the merger which is the majority of the right-wing 'tabloid' media (who among other things are answerable to the commercial advertisers) and NACT who are donkey deep with the advertisers.
Having said that, I have to say the government has thus far done a poor job of explaining the merger and the rationale behind it.
As much as we can trust any polling, yes. These organisations often ask a question designed to solicit a particular response. If you look at the actual question asked by the Better Public Media poll, you will get an idea of how it was framed to get exactly the outcome they wanted.
On 29.12.2022, the prosecutors of the Directorate for the Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism – Central Structure together with police officers from the Bucharest Organized Crime Brigade implemented 5 home search warrants in a case in which investigations under the aspect of committing the crimes of constituting an organized criminal group, human trafficking and rape.
In the case, it was noted that, at the beginning of 2021, 4 suspects (two British citizens and two Romanian citizens) constituted a criminal group organized in order to commit on the territory of Romania, but also of other countries, such as the United States of America and Great Britain, of the crime of human trafficking. Victims were recruited by British citizens by misrepresenting their intention to enter into a marriage/cohabitation relationship and the existence of genuine feelings of love (the loverboy method). They were later transported and housed in buildings in Ilfov county where, by exercising acts of physical violence and mental coercion (through intimidation, constant surveillance, control and invoking alleged debts), they were sexually exploited by group members by forcing them to perform demonstrations pornographic for the purpose of producing and disseminating through social media platforms material having such a character and by submitting to the execution of a forced labor,
So far, 6 injured persons have been identified who were sexually exploited by the organized criminal group.
With regard to the crime of rape, it was noted that, in March 2022, an injured person was forced, on two different occasions, by a suspect through the exercise of physical violence and psychological pressure to have sexual relations.
At the headquarters of the Directorate for the Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism – Central Structure, 4 people who are reasonably suspected of being involved in criminal activity were taken for questioning. Following the hearings, the prosecutors of the Directorate for the Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism – Central Structure ordered the 4 persons to be detained for a period of 24 hours.
The activities were also attended by police officers from the Ilfov Organized Crime Service and the Service for Combating Human Trafficking, as well as gendarmes from the Special Intervention Brigade of the Gendarmerie.
We make it clear that during the entire criminal process, the investigated persons benefit from the procedural rights and guarantees provided by the Code of Criminal Procedure, as well as the presumption of innocence.
the industry had ten fucking years to think it through. The current situaion isn't about an ideological policy, it's about factory farming not giving a shit and doing the mahi of transitioning.
Calling farmers silly and lazy is silly and lazy. I haven’t seen that, but I can imagine it’s part of the rhetoric on sm. This is why I talked about the industry, not individual farmers. I don’t think farmers are lazy. I think the block is more that many farmers and those in the industry have a major philosophical/values difference from people wanting an end to animal cruelty. Thus the industry doesn't have enough skills, knowledge, or people to enable transition. Like with dairying and other industrial ag, the advice farmers are given is bad in terms of sustainability.
The article evidences this: a big chunk of the industry chose colony cages instead of barns or free range. If one doesn’t care about animal welfare and/or one thinks economics are more important, then of course the industry will chose the easiest and most obviously economic option. I don’t know why colony cages were included as an option but I’ll hazard a guess it’s for the same reason industrial farming is being enabled to drag the chain on climate.
The author clearly doesn’t value animal welfare and prioritises economics. Hence his argument that Europe going with colony cages means NZ should too.
Despite the argument in the piece about colony cages, the left parties and the supermarkets, it’s been obvious for a long time that NZ society was becoming more progressive on animal welfare. Again, if one doesn’t value animal welfare then one is unlikely to pay attention to these changes. It’s a values conflict.
Good on the farmers that went to barns and free range. Steps in the right direction. Some farmers got it. Many farmers want to do the right things, and government and industry isn’t very good at enabling those ones. To me it looks like not a problem with the policy, but that there is a chunk of farmers and industry people that just weren’t on board with the point: animal welfare. But policy makers are also often mainstream, so I see it more being on voters 😉
Hickman points to interest on loans for land. Can’t have it both ways. If you support neoliberal capitalism you will have problems with costs.
Likewise the price of grains. None of what the industry was doing is sustainable. It’s like they haven’t heard of food security and future proofing. None of what is happening with our current crises is news to many of us that have been working on sustainability.
The author clearly doesn’t value animal welfare and prioritises economics. Hence his argument that Europe going with colony cages means NZ should too.
You seem to be reading intent well beyond his actual words from the article:
Barn systems weren’t well known in New Zealand at the time and moving to free-range would require massive amounts of land, so despite the cost colonies were seen as the logical next step.
Animal welfare groups did not like this development, as far as they were concerned a cage is a cage and one form of factory farming was just being swapped for a slightly better form, this despite colonies being a major method of harvesting eggs in Europe after battery cages were banned a decade ago.
There's also a demand side to this as well. Demand spiked with Christmas and everyone wanting to make a pav for the big day. So some supermarkets bid higher for the finite number of eggs available and got priority. Those that didn't up their bids missed out, these would have been the ones that had low margins on eggs to get customers in the door, hence some supermarkets with empty shelves and the one down the road full but at higher price (maybe)
What the article doesn't cover is any role supermarket buying behaviour has had on the 20% reduction in egg production. There's certainly plenty of examples of producers in other fields giving it away because of the behaviour of the two supermarket chains.
yeah it was that last paragraph. Maybe there is another way to read that, but I took it as him saying colony cages where an acceptable form of farming. I also took him to be saying that because Europe was using them, this mean they were better. Or something. Didn't see anything about concern for the hens.
btw, from a sustainability design pov, there's a big opportunity here. People have been organising to buy the chickens from the factories. What we could be doing is putting the resources in place to enable households and communities to start keeping laying hens and producing eggs.
Two things will happen immediately from that: one is that more people will understand how much it costs to produce food. Two is that it builds resiliency, which is exactly what we need for climate and the cost of living crises.
From that comes sustainability and regenerative practice (how to do small scale egg production affordable).
And no, I didn't just say everyone should grow their own eggs.
We had 24 hens twice a year. Two dozen day old chicks would arrive. Half of them were grown for the pot, along with pullet and hen eggs. My job was to mix the mash. Mum had a mincer, and used to mince up left over veg which went into the mash as well. Cabbage leaves and outside lettuce leaves were always attacked with gusto by the hens. They needed grit wheat and corn, and would scratch and chortle when content.
I have happy childhood memories of "Cluck" who lives for 5 years raising brood after brood.
They are work, and rat dog cat weasel and stoats thunder and lightning could frighten them to death. Putting an extra fence round the coop kept pests at bay, long enough for the chickens to roost high.
Their greatest joy was scratching and bug catching in the garden. Their flight feathers have to trimmed to allow short flights but not escape. They need dust baths and a water trough. They are dirty so straw is needed, but that makes great replenishment for the garden.
We had black and white hens, renowned for egg laying . B&W Orpingtons? from memory. A simpler time.
My parents kept rabbits for the pot. When a rabbit disappeared I was told they had gone to live with someone else. It wasn't until I was well into my teens before I learnt I had tucked into them the night before. 😮
Everyone buying bags of wheat (and the pellets of God-knows what hort and ag byproducts) from the supermarket to turn into eggs. Sustainable?
Not even healthy. On the label – Do not feed to ruminants! Animals get the stuff sausage makers reject.
Who really has sufficient kitchen scraps to maintain chickens laying. So, do you starve your animals to be ideologically pure, or go out hunting for food so your egg provision suddenly became a job. I collected flax, acorns, wild grass seed, windfalls, rubbish… Dumpster diving for your chooks. It's all the rage.
What about water, medications, dust baths, shelter, shade, what about noise pollution and irate neighbours. What about faeces, feathers? What about worms, mites, scale, vets bills.
Chooks in orchard and food forest systems reduce pest problems out by taking windfalls (the first windfalls are typically host of insect pests) at very few birds per acre. That works well, but they won't lay like egg producers want. They do OK… In an urban setting, a section, with a coop on it someplace, ideology can take a flying leap I guess – you'll need grains/pellets.
Now geese eat grass…
If we were to shift the market toward being sustainable (empty shelves simply are not), we should have thought about what we're actually doing. Explore many options. By slowly introduced alternate eggs, and chefs on TV and the web to pimp them out.
Ecological literacy is sorely required whenever pushing environmental ideology.
Labour made mistakes, National made mistakes, industry made mistakes, supermarkets made mistakes…
most people will rely on grains and won't understand the problems with that. Most people don't have ecological literacy, or the systems thinking that would tie the egg crisis into neighbourhood regenerative transition and food security.
Most MPs don't have ecological literacy either. Not policy makers. It's really the biggest problem with face right now.
I expect some of the new at home egg production to harm hens. But I also think this is less harmful than caged hens, and it can be lessened if 'we' do the mahi around that.
I do think some neat systems will come of all this, meanwhile industry and consumers aren't finding much neat about the balls-up.
Patricia has some good stuff to say about chooks for sure.
I'm not sure of the volume of our hort industries wastes potentially for feeding chooks I reckon it'd be substantial. Also other organic matter as you can run good layer flocks on composting systems and make highly desirable compost in the process. Then you've got birds, eggs and compost as products.
These systems can be as simple as a chicken tractor dealing with a farms waste:
I have two pear trees so by rights should have had two…but no.
I have a new plum though and the books say to reduce the crop, does this really mean the remaining plum has to be sacrificed. I have eaten one already.
Really I am asking for a friend.
There is learning going on though about moving the plum to shelter before bud and flower time as wind caught it. I would have really had a problem had all the little plums come to something!
ETA I thought the days from Christmas started before 25/12 so that at 25/12 you got the whole lot……I thought I was going to have trouble with the geese but the possible egg shortage has meant I was able to sell those on TM at enormous profit.
It turns out that at least as far back as Catherine the Great, Russians see Crimea as being their ancient Greece, and that they have an ancient lineage back to Greek culture, essentially making them more European than the Europeans, crazy as it seems.
All based on an elaborate and highly tenuous line of logic the Russians have constructed over the years.
The upshot is that Crimea is a core component of Russian identity, and so losing Crimea may not be great for Putin for his longevity, or could end up being a motivation for Russia going to total war, resulting in full mobilisation of Russia.
Vexler is a great source on the Russian philosophy side of things, himself being a Russian living in Great Britain now. Lots of much deeper insights than those of us on the outside would have.
Reading Janet Wilson's column in the Waikato Times this morning (also on the Stuff website) and managing not to choke on my cup of tea, I did wonder if she was deliberately being disingenuous or does suffer from (selective) amnesia. Ye Gods, it was her beloved National Party – John Key in particular who overturned the Clark Government's ditching of the old Honours sytem in favour of our own home grown version so he could become a Knight of the Realm when he retired!!! https://www.stuff.co.nz/opinion/130878733/janet-wilson-make-honours-system-standalone-and-free-of-political-influence
PS – congratulations Sir Ashley Bloomfield, an honour well deserved, along with Dame Farah Palmer and Dame Miranda Harcourt.
This Danish journalist kicked out of both Russia and Ukraine stood up for journalistic integrity.Makes one wonder how other journalists survive in this war zone .
Dunno what I've done wrong, but I can't get any of mickey savages posts for the past week or so, only the comments. Also today open Mike says there are 26 comments, but when I call it up it then says and displays only 4 comments.
If you have a cure please explain in old fart terms.
Strange New Year's eve on the outskirts of Queenstown. We're beside SH6 about 20km east of Queenstown and the road is exceptionally quiet, like quieter than a normal weekday, and the bulk of traffic seems to be heading out of town. Normally NYE is a constant stream of cars in fully party mode from early evening.
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Tuesday, March 19:Kāinga Ora’s dry rot The Spinoff DailyBill McKibben on ‘Climate Superfunds’ making Big Oil pay for climate damage The Crucial YearsPreston Mui on returning to 1980s-style productivity growth NoahpinionAndy Boenau on NIMBYs needing unusual bedfellows Urbanism SpeakeasyNed Resnikoff's case ...
Negative yesterday, negative today. Negative all year, according to one departing reader telling me I’ve grown strident and predictable. Fair enough. If it’s any help, every time I go to write about a certain topic that begins with C and ends with arrrrs, I do brace myself and ask: Again? Are ...
Bryce Edwards writes – It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support ...
Inspirational: The Family of Man is a glorious hymn to human equality, but, more than that, it is a clarion call to human freedom. Because equality, unleavened by liberty, is a broken piano, an unstrung harp; upon which the songs of fraternity will never be played.“Somebody must have been telling lies about ...
Tax Lawyer Barbara Edmonds vs Emperor Justinian I- Nolo Contendere: False historical explanations of pivotal events are very far from being inconsequential.WHEN BARBARA EDMONDS made reference to the Roman Empire, my ears pricked up. It is, lamentably, very rare to hear a politician admit to any kind of familiarity ...
It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support for the various parties in ...
Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news – packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions – worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writers’ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The Reserve Bank is advertising for a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advisor. The Bank has one mandate – to keep inflation between one and three percent. It has failed in that and is only slowly getting inflation back down to the upper limit. Will it ...
Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka KotahiThe fact that a ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st CenturyThe SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims StuffSteve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
David Farrar writes – We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how labour went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promiseThe result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
“I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
.“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
“It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet – is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
Bob Edlin writes – And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ HeraldThomas CoughlanSimeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
TL;DR:Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it: We want our country to be a ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading → ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
What was that judge thinking?Peter Williams writes – That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop:Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
Buzz from the BeehiveThe text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary. It can be quickly analysed ...
For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
Questions need to be asked on both sides of the worldPeter Williams writes – The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop:The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
TL;DR:Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
Bob Edlin writes – The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
The New Zealand public voted for a change in direction at the 2023 general election and that is exactly what this coalition government has been delivering in its first 100 days. There was an immediate focus on the economy, easing the cost of living, cracking down on law and order ...
The Government has left the health system as an afterthought, announcing half-baked targets at the last minute of their 100-day plan, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
Kiwis are still waiting for their promised cost of living support after 100 days of a National Government that is taking us backwards, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
100 days of National taking NZ backwardsThe National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
The Government must commit to funding free and healthy school lunches, as thousands of people sign the petition to keep them, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti says. ...
If the Government was serious about moving families into public housing, they would build more houses so there is actually somewhere for people to go. ...
The free and healthy school lunches programme feeds our kids, helps them to learn, and saves families money – but it is at risk under this Government, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
The Government’s proposed changes to Firearms Prohibition Orders (FPO) add almost nothing new and are merely an attempt to distract from its plans to loosen gun laws, police spokesperson Ginny Andersen and justice spokesperson Dr Duncan Webb said. ...
The great Victorian era English politician Lord Macauley stood in the British House of Parliament and said, "The gallery in which the reporters sit has become a fourth estate of the realm".He understood and outlined even way back then, the significant role and influence media have in a democracy. ...
The government’s attack on Māori health this week is committing tangata-whenua to a premature death, says Te Pāti Māori. “The government have begun their onslaught on Māori health with the abolishment of the Māori Health Authority and smokefree laws in the same day” said health spokesperson and co-leader, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. ...
"The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April. ...
Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand. Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships. “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland Acknowledgements and opening Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says. “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024 Acknowledgements and opening Morena, Nga Mihi Nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country. “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week. “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee. “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today. “The Amendment Paper represents ...
Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level. “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024. “Lower fruit and vege ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction. Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness. It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology. It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. “Help is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Government’s restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,” says ...
Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. “New Zealanders believe ...
Chumbawamba have reportedly issued the deputy PM a cease-and-desist notice after he used their song 'Tubthumping' before his state of the nation speech. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Deborah Lupton, SHARP Professor, Vitalities Lab, Centre for Social Research in Health and Social Policy Centre, and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society, UNSW Sydney kitzcorner/Shutterstock The assertion from Queensland’s chief health officer John Gerrard that ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Shutterstock Why are musicians so keen to get played on the radio? It can’t be because of the money. In Australia they are paid at rates so low they ...
"Farmers make a point not to tell our urban cousins how to live, yet Chlöe from central Auckland is hell-bent on having her say about farmers," says ACT Rural Communities spokesman Mark Cameron. “On her first day in the House as Green ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards – Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Curran, Associate Professor of Ecology, Lincoln University, New Zealand Getty Images/Gerald Corsi In the latest move to reform environmental laws in New Zealand, the coalition government has introduced a bill to fast-track consenting processes for projects deemed to ...
Uber has argued it does not have as much control over drivers as the unions suggest, and wants a judgment ruling that drivers are employees and not contractors set aside and sent back to the Employment Court. The 2022 ruling followed a three-week hearing in which four drivers sought to ...
What can and can’t be purchased by disabled people or their carers has been slashed in an effort by the Ministry of Disabled People Whaikaha to save money. The purchasing guidelines, a set of rules that sets out what can be purchased using the various streams of Government disability funding, ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Tod Wright and Hien Nguyen, Fiscal incidence in New Zealand: The effects of taxes and benefits on household incomes in tax year 2018/19 . Analyses of the distributional impact of taxation and government ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Cory Davis, Boston Hart and Benjamin Stubbing, Household cost-of-living impacts from the Emissions Trading Scheme and using transfers to mitigate regressive outcomes . This Analytical Note ...
A coalition of public transport and climate organisations, united as ‘Transport for All’, is actively opposing the government’s transport proposals. The draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) includes plans for higher fares for public transport, ...
Greater Wellington is inviting feedback on proposed changes to its Revenue and Financing Policy. The Revenue and Financing Policy covers the Council’s various sources of funding, and how the cost of services is shared across the region. This includes ...
Labour has conceded it could have done more to deal with disruptive state housing tenants while in government but says the current coalition is going too far. ...
The band has asked their record label to issue a cease and desist to stop the NZ First leader using their 1997 hit to support his ‘misguided political views’. “I get knocked down, but I get up again,” blared through the speakers on Sunday as Winston Peters took the stage ...
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist Food rationing is underway in remote areas in Papua New Guinea’s Highlands following torrential rain and flash flooding. More than 20 people have been reported dead in Chimbu Province. In nearby Enga Province, the centre of last month’s massacre, a 15-year-old boy has been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Hughes, Lecturer, Research School of Management, Australian National University After months of debate and intrigue, the AFL’s 19th and newest team, the Tasmania Devils, finally launched its jumper, logo and colours in Devonport this week. The Devils will wear green, ...
Brannavan Gnanalingam reviews the debut novel by Saraid de Silva.One of the most baffling things for children who move to a new country is what their parents’ (or grandparents’) lives were like prior to moving – for kids in particular, they’re too busy trying to fit in in their ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Gaunson, Associate Professor in Cinema Studies, RMIT University Narelle Portanier/Binge “If you don’t know who your mob are, you don’t know who you are,” Detective Andrea “Andie” Whitford (played by Leah Purcell) is told early into the new crime ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elise Klein, Associate professor, Australian National University It’s commonly accepted that women do the vast majority of caregiving in Australian society. But less appreciated is that Indigenous women do larger amounts of unpaid care than any other group. Working with the Aboriginal ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne Joe Biden and Donald Trump have both secured their parties’ nominations for the November 5 United States general election by winning a ...
Comment: There has been a striking contrast in trans-Tasman interest about Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi’s visit to New Zealand and Australia. While the Australian press has been full of articles about the visit – including his curious decision to meet with former prime minister and China booster Paul Keating ...
After years of pressuring banks and other institutions to stop investing in fossil fuels, climate campaigners are making some progress. So how does divestment work?For years, climate activists have been pushing banks and other big institutions to divest from fossil fuels. New research from climate advocacy group 350 Aotearoa ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. The three young Polynesians are part of a K-pop fan community in Tāmaki Makaurau. It’s one of many that have sprung up worldwide as K-pop has gone ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. This one-off documentary presents three intimate portraits of young Polynesians who are pulled into a Korean cultural phenomenon. K-POLYS is directed by Litia Tuiburelevu, Produced by Hex ...
There’s ample evidence demonstrating free school lunch programmes provide wide benefits across schools, households and communities according to public health researchers. ACT Minister David Seymour wants to reduce the spending on Aotearoa New Zealand’s ...
By Wata Shaw in Suva Fiji is facing an exodus of Fijians as many are leaving for overseas seeking employment and education and others are migrating, says Opposition MP Viliame Naupoto. Speaking in Parliament, he said: “His Excellency’s speech (Ratu Wiliame Katonivere) comes after a little over one year of ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming comments from Christopher Luxon this morning recommitting to ‘no new taxes’ as part of Budget 2024. “Mr Luxon’s refusal at the Post-Cabinet press conference yesterday to repeat the ‘no new taxes’ promise ...
SAFE is urgently calling on the Environment Committee to reject the Government’s Fast-Track Approvals Bill, and is urging New Zealanders to rally behind the call. The proposed Bill, currently under consideration with the Environment select committee, ...
Teammates who spend all their time picking fights with spectators are only helpful for the other team, writes Madeleine Chapman. Anyone who has ever played a team sport competitively, particularly as a child and particularly, for some reason, basketball, will know that there’s a lot of politics involved. While there ...
The long-running Wellington music festival is too focused on the Jim Beam-ness and not enough on the Homegrown-ness.There is something about Homegrown that’s difficult to place. A barely perceptible-ness. Like feeling a ghost is watching you from the corner of the room but when you look, there’s nothing there. ...
The latest Ipsos New Zealand Issues Monitor reveals that fewer New Zealanders believe crime / law and order is one of the top issues facing our country. In 2018, Ipsos New Zealand started tracking the key issues facing New Zealand. In this wave ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Griffiths, Deputy Program Director, Budgets and Government, Grattan Institute Australia’s political donations rules are woefully inadequate, but donations reform is finally on the agenda. The federal government has signalled its interest in reform and will soon begin briefing MPs on its ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Patrick Taylor, Chief Environmental Scientist, EPA Victoria; Honorary Professor, School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University Naiyana Somchitkaeo/Shutterstock A recent study published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine has linked microplastics with risk to human health. The study ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Albert Van Dijk, Professor, Water and Landscape Dynamics, Fenner School of Environment & Society, Australian National University Global climate records were shattered in 2023, from air and sea temperatures to sea-level rise and sea-ice extent. Scores of countries recorded their hottest year ...
As part of our series exploring how New Zealanders live and our relationship with money, a teacher explains why he and his partner are in frugal mode – and how they’re making it work. Gender: Male Age: 35Ethnicity: Pākehā Role: I am an intermediate school teacher and my partner is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Bendall, Senior Lecturer, Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences, Australian Catholic University Binge Mary & George, the new British television drama series, depicts the real-life story of Mary Villiers and her son George, and their social climbing at the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jason Nassios, Associate Professor, Centre of Policy Studies, Victoria University This article is part of The Conversation’s series examining the housing crisis. Read the other articles in the series here. Australian state and federal governments spend money in many ways to ...
The finance minister is denying that there’s a $5.6b shortfall in paying for the government’s campaign promises, including tax cuts. At his post-cabinet press conference yesterday, the PM refused to rule out new taxes to pay for the cuts, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s ...
Kāinga Ora tenants abused by their neighbours are doubting the government's crackdown on disruptive tenants will make a difference on their behaviour. ...
Kāinga Ora is New Zealand’s biggest residential landlord, housing more than 180,000 vulnerable people in more than 67,000 properties. Yesterday the government announced a crackdown on its tenants who fall behind on rent. One longtime Kāinga Ora tenant shares her experience.For 18 years I lived in a 1960s standalone ...
Why does this myth persist, and what’s the real reason our skin is suffering?It’s one of the biggest international grievances New Zealanders hold, up there with the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior and 1981’s underarm incident. We’re quick to tell international travellers that the world’s pollution led to the ...
Bob’s relationship with certain members of Lincoln’s academic staff continued to deteriorate in the 1990s. Others supported him publicly, though articles such as Roland Clark’s 1993 piece in Growing Today cannot have pleased the university management. Clark wrote that Bob was selling onions from the Biological Husbandry Unit to a ...
SailGP’s races feature in-your-face action, with agile, hydro-foiling catamarans tacking and jibing for the title over several days. However, public comments ahead of the global series’ return to New Zealand have left this past year’s controversy in the shadows, as a key appointment attracts criticism from dolphin advocates. A year ...
Opinion: We are fast approaching a fundamental change in prisons. As the number of people on custodial remand looks set to overtake the number of sentenced prisoners, the main function of prisons in New Zealand may become incarcerating un-sentenced people who may not be guilty of offending. We have already ...
A huge seven months lies in store for the White Ferns, beginning this week with the visit of England and culminating with the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh in September and October. Starting on Tuesday in Dunedin, the world ranked No. 2 visitors will play five T20s and three ODIs, ...
Opinion: In a move that has shocked road safety advocates across the country, the new Minister of Transport, Simeon Brown, is poised to abandon the previous government’s speed limit reduction policy, particularly around schools. Even more alarmingly, he wants school speed limits to be variable rather than full-time, arguing ...
Auckland Council is opposing a fast-track development backed by Sir John Kirwan and Spark NZ, because it doesn’t meet stringent new climate adaptation requirements The post Surf-data centre faces new 3.8C climate warming rules appeared first on Newsroom. ...
When the Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act was introduced in 2009 it was firmly targeted at gangs and drugs. The legislation means police no longer need a conviction to seize assets that criminals can’t prove were paid for legitimately, as long as their alleged offences are punishable by more than a ...
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The letters, which were published last week, were addressed to Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) Chairperson Megawati Sukarnoputri, National Democrat Party (NasDem) Chairperson Surya Paloh, National Awakening Party (PKB) Chairperson Muhaimin Iskandar, Justice and Prosperity Party (PKS) President Ahmad Syaikhu and United Development Party (PPP) Chairperson Muhammad Mardiono. In ...
Evicting more people from state housing is ignorant to the consequences of poverty, the Greens say, but the Housing Minister says it's a privilege that can be taken away if abused. ...
Evicting more people from state housing is ignorant to the consequences of poverty, the Greens say, but the Housing Minister says it's a privilege that can be taken away if abused. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emerald L King, Lecturer in Humanities, University of Tasmania IMDB Between Netflix’s 2023 live-action version of One Piece, and its latest take on Avatar: The Last Airbender, fans are once again asking: why are live-action anime adaptations so tricky to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emerald L King, Lecturer in Humanities, University of Tasmania IMDB Between Netflix’s 2023 live-action version of One Piece, and its latest take on Avatar: The Last Airbender, fans are once again asking: why are live-action anime adaptations so tricky to ...
The government says it still intends to deliver tax cuts by July, but will not lock them in until they have got them past their coalition partners. ...
Kiingi Tuheitia Pootatau Te Wherowhero VII has hosted members of the Green Party Caucus at Tuurangawaewae Marae in Ngaaruawahia. The audience follows the King’s Hui-aa-Motu on 20 January, where more than 10,000 people gathered to discuss national ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dr Rachael Potter, Research Associate and Lecturer in Work and Organisational Psychology, University of South Australia Ground Picture/Shutterstock Pregnant women and workers with children are often unfairly treated by their bosses and colleagues, despite laws to protect against workplace discrimination ...
Reacting to Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s refusal to rule out introducing new taxes at the budget, Taxpayers’ Union Campaigns Manager, Connor Molloy, said: “Today’s refusal to rule out new taxes suggests the Government is nothing more ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Duckett, Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne Aila Images/Shutterstock Aged-care workers will receive a significant pay increase after the Fair Work Commission ruled they ...
Received an email from Better Public Media with results of a new poll conducted in early December showing support for the RNZ/TVNZ merger is far higher 60% to 40% than the Taxpayer Curia poll of October showed. Don't knows were about 30%.
.https://www.betterpublicmedia.org.nz/news1/poll-shows-support-rnztvnz-merger
This calls into question in my mind the validity of the Taxpayer poll with a result showing low support for Three Waters. https://www.taxpayers.org.nz/three_waters_poll
The Taxpayer Union poll for the media merger was similar. https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/130662484/majority-of-people-dont-want-rnz-and-tvnz-to-merge-survey-says
Can we trust Taxpayer/Curia polls?
Can we trust Taxpayer/Curia polls?"
NO. There have been enough of them over recent years to demonstrate they are slanted in the direction of the Right. It is easy to do by way of the wording of the questions and choosing the demographic more favourable to right-wing political parties.
I also get the Better Public Media emails and it is frustrating that the truth about the merger is out there, but is being twisted and distorted by those who oppose the merger which is the majority of the right-wing 'tabloid' media (who among other things are answerable to the commercial advertisers) and NACT who are donkey deep with the advertisers.
Having said that, I have to say the government has thus far done a poor job of explaining the merger and the rationale behind it.
No. End of story.
They are pure cheerleaders for Nat/Act Parties and purport to be fair lol
As much as we can trust any polling, yes. These organisations often ask a question designed to solicit a particular response. If you look at the actual question asked by the Better Public Media poll, you will get an idea of how it was framed to get exactly the outcome they wanted.
Hopefully the toxic prick is properly fucked.
https://twitter.com/DrJessTaylor/status/1608847716909740037
https://twitter.com/julianrouth/status/1608677270943850496
On 29.12.2022, the prosecutors of the Directorate for the Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism – Central Structure together with police officers from the Bucharest Organized Crime Brigade implemented 5 home search warrants in a case in which investigations under the aspect of committing the crimes of constituting an organized criminal group, human trafficking and rape.
In the case, it was noted that, at the beginning of 2021, 4 suspects (two British citizens and two Romanian citizens) constituted a criminal group organized in order to commit on the territory of Romania, but also of other countries, such as the United States of America and Great Britain, of the crime of human trafficking.
Victims were recruited by British citizens by misrepresenting their intention to enter into a marriage/cohabitation relationship and the existence of genuine feelings of love (the loverboy method). They were later transported and housed in buildings in Ilfov county where, by exercising acts of physical violence and mental coercion (through intimidation, constant surveillance, control and invoking alleged debts), they were sexually exploited by group members by forcing them to perform demonstrations pornographic for the purpose of producing and disseminating through social media platforms material having such a character and by submitting to the execution of a forced labor,
So far, 6 injured persons have been identified who were sexually exploited by the organized criminal group.
With regard to the crime of rape, it was noted that, in March 2022, an injured person was forced, on two different occasions, by a suspect through the exercise of physical violence and psychological pressure to have sexual relations.
At the headquarters of the Directorate for the Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism – Central Structure, 4 people who are reasonably suspected of being involved in criminal activity were taken for questioning. Following the hearings, the prosecutors of the Directorate for the Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism – Central Structure ordered the 4 persons to be detained for a period of 24 hours.
The activities were also attended by police officers from the Ilfov Organized Crime Service and the Service for Combating Human Trafficking, as well as gendarmes from the Special Intervention Brigade of the Gendarmerie.
We make it clear that during the entire criminal process, the investigated persons benefit from the procedural rights and guarantees provided by the Code of Criminal Procedure, as well as the presumption of innocence.
https://www-diicot-ro.translate.goog/mass-media/3829-comunicat-de-presa-29-12-2022?_x_tr_sl=ro&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp
edit:
press release about Tate’s arrest in April
https://diicot-ro.translate.goog/mass-media/3506-comunicat-de-presa-12-04-2022?_x_tr_sl=ro&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp
Yes – in about 48 hours his carbon footprint has been reduced to nearly zero. Good work Greta!
Greta Thunberg brought down
a manthe epitome of toxic masculinity with a single tweet.A legend is born.
She totally burned him Greta Thunberg ends year with one of the greatest tweets in history
$10 for the cheapest dozen eggs in the supermarket. !!
This ball started rolling in 2012, this should highlight how carefully any ideological policy to improve farming needs to thought trough.
(This doesn't mean I condone squalid battery hen farming btw)
the industry had ten fucking years to think it through. The current situaion isn't about an ideological policy, it's about factory farming not giving a shit and doing the mahi of transitioning.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/business/opinion-analysis/130887548/egg-shortage-isnt-because-nzs-farmers-are-silly-and-lazy
Or you could put ypur big person pants on ,and realise it's far more complicated.
And my point isn't that the people who the policy directly affected didn't respond un the way that was hoped.
It's that the policy makers didn't see the problem in the making and factor that in, it's supposedly why we elect them .
Calling farmers silly and lazy is silly and lazy. I haven’t seen that, but I can imagine it’s part of the rhetoric on sm. This is why I talked about the industry, not individual farmers. I don’t think farmers are lazy. I think the block is more that many farmers and those in the industry have a major philosophical/values difference from people wanting an end to animal cruelty. Thus the industry doesn't have enough skills, knowledge, or people to enable transition. Like with dairying and other industrial ag, the advice farmers are given is bad in terms of sustainability.
The article evidences this: a big chunk of the industry chose colony cages instead of barns or free range. If one doesn’t care about animal welfare and/or one thinks economics are more important, then of course the industry will chose the easiest and most obviously economic option. I don’t know why colony cages were included as an option but I’ll hazard a guess it’s for the same reason industrial farming is being enabled to drag the chain on climate.
The author clearly doesn’t value animal welfare and prioritises economics. Hence his argument that Europe going with colony cages means NZ should too.
Despite the argument in the piece about colony cages, the left parties and the supermarkets, it’s been obvious for a long time that NZ society was becoming more progressive on animal welfare. Again, if one doesn’t value animal welfare then one is unlikely to pay attention to these changes. It’s a values conflict.
Good on the farmers that went to barns and free range. Steps in the right direction. Some farmers got it. Many farmers want to do the right things, and government and industry isn’t very good at enabling those ones. To me it looks like not a problem with the policy, but that there is a chunk of farmers and industry people that just weren’t on board with the point: animal welfare. But policy makers are also often mainstream, so I see it more being on voters 😉
Hickman points to interest on loans for land. Can’t have it both ways. If you support neoliberal capitalism you will have problems with costs.
Likewise the price of grains. None of what the industry was doing is sustainable. It’s like they haven’t heard of food security and future proofing. None of what is happening with our current crises is news to many of us that have been working on sustainability.
You seem to be reading intent well beyond his actual words from the article:
There's also a demand side to this as well. Demand spiked with Christmas and everyone wanting to make a pav for the big day. So some supermarkets bid higher for the finite number of eggs available and got priority. Those that didn't up their bids missed out, these would have been the ones that had low margins on eggs to get customers in the door, hence some supermarkets with empty shelves and the one down the road full but at higher price (maybe)
What the article doesn't cover is any role supermarket buying behaviour has had on the 20% reduction in egg production. There's certainly plenty of examples of producers in other fields giving it away because of the behaviour of the two supermarket chains.
yeah it was that last paragraph. Maybe there is another way to read that, but I took it as him saying colony cages where an acceptable form of farming. I also took him to be saying that because Europe was using them, this mean they were better. Or something. Didn't see anything about concern for the hens.
btw, from a sustainability design pov, there's a big opportunity here. People have been organising to buy the chickens from the factories. What we could be doing is putting the resources in place to enable households and communities to start keeping laying hens and producing eggs.
Two things will happen immediately from that: one is that more people will understand how much it costs to produce food. Two is that it builds resiliency, which is exactly what we need for climate and the cost of living crises.
From that comes sustainability and regenerative practice (how to do small scale egg production affordable).
And no, I didn't just say everyone should grow their own eggs.
The much asked for (by the offspring) chicken coop will be getting built as soon as economically viable I tell you.
😎
I'm tempted but probably not in my reach atm.
We had 24 hens twice a year. Two dozen day old chicks would arrive. Half of them were grown for the pot, along with pullet and hen eggs. My job was to mix the mash. Mum had a mincer, and used to mince up left over veg which went into the mash as well. Cabbage leaves and outside lettuce leaves were always attacked with gusto by the hens. They needed grit wheat and corn, and would scratch and chortle when content.
I have happy childhood memories of "Cluck" who lives for 5 years raising brood after brood.
They are work, and rat dog cat weasel and stoats thunder and lightning could frighten them to death. Putting an extra fence round the coop kept pests at bay, long enough for the chickens to roost high.
Their greatest joy was scratching and bug catching in the garden. Their flight feathers have to trimmed to allow short flights but not escape. They need dust baths and a water trough. They are dirty so straw is needed, but that makes great replenishment for the garden.
We had black and white hens, renowned for egg laying . B&W Orpingtons? from memory. A simpler time.
My parents kept rabbits for the pot. When a rabbit disappeared I was told they had gone to live with someone else. It wasn't until I was well into my teens before I learnt I had tucked into them the night before. 😮
I was the same with "Granny's lamb". Happy 2023 Anne.
Best wishes for you and 'him indoors' for 2023. When you get to our age it takes on a new meaning.
Chickens eat grain and meat.
Everyone buying bags of wheat (and the pellets of God-knows what hort and ag byproducts) from the supermarket to turn into eggs. Sustainable?
Not even healthy. On the label – Do not feed to ruminants! Animals get the stuff sausage makers reject.
Who really has sufficient kitchen scraps to maintain chickens laying. So, do you starve your animals to be ideologically pure, or go out hunting for food so your egg provision suddenly became a job. I collected flax, acorns, wild grass seed, windfalls, rubbish… Dumpster diving for your chooks. It's all the rage.
What about water, medications, dust baths, shelter, shade, what about noise pollution and irate neighbours. What about faeces, feathers? What about worms, mites, scale, vets bills.
Chooks in orchard and food forest systems reduce pest problems out by taking windfalls (the first windfalls are typically host of insect pests) at very few birds per acre. That works well, but they won't lay like egg producers want. They do OK… In an urban setting, a section, with a coop on it someplace, ideology can take a flying leap I guess – you'll need grains/pellets.
Now geese eat grass…
If we were to shift the market toward being sustainable (empty shelves simply are not), we should have thought about what we're actually doing. Explore many options. By slowly introduced alternate eggs, and chefs on TV and the web to pimp them out.
Ecological literacy is sorely required whenever pushing environmental ideology.
Labour made mistakes, National made mistakes, industry made mistakes, supermarkets made mistakes…
We mere mortals pay.
most people will rely on grains and won't understand the problems with that. Most people don't have ecological literacy, or the systems thinking that would tie the egg crisis into neighbourhood regenerative transition and food security.
Most MPs don't have ecological literacy either. Not policy makers. It's really the biggest problem with face right now.
I expect some of the new at home egg production to harm hens. But I also think this is less harmful than caged hens, and it can be lessened if 'we' do the mahi around that.
I do think some neat systems will come of all this, meanwhile industry and consumers aren't finding much neat about the balls-up.
Patricia has some good stuff to say about chooks for sure.
I'm not sure of the volume of our hort industries wastes potentially for feeding chooks I reckon it'd be substantial. Also other organic matter as you can run good layer flocks on composting systems and make highly desirable compost in the process. Then you've got birds, eggs and compost as products.
These systems can be as simple as a chicken tractor dealing with a farms waste:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbE4HEnSkC0
To a dedicated compost facility with flock/s.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWChH9MHkHg
Thank you DB Happy New Year from "Him indoors and me!
I'm a fan of the Lawtons.
A lot of potential with various chicken-integrated into whole systems. These people seem to be doing good things within the mainstream ag field.
https://www.greenhenz.co.nz/
6th day of Christmas today. Did you get 6 geese a laying?
We have a pear tree out the back but it seems the partridge got away. 🙁
I have two pear trees so by rights should have had two…but no.
I have a new plum though and the books say to reduce the crop, does this really mean the remaining plum has to be sacrificed. I have eaten one already.
Really I am asking for a friend.
There is learning going on though about moving the plum to shelter before bud and flower time as wind caught it. I would have really had a problem had all the little plums come to something!
ETA I thought the days from Christmas started before 25/12 so that at 25/12 you got the whole lot……I thought I was going to have trouble with the geese but the possible egg shortage has meant I was able to sell those on TM at enormous profit.
what would be our equivalent of a partridge? Pukeko? 😈
I think eating pukeko (they're a bit scrawny) would be like my Aunt and her idea of cooking ducks. old story.
Pluck etc
Put in large saucepan with several packets of Raro made up with water (that takes you back) and an old leather boot.
Boil gently for hours
Drain, throw the duck away
Serve and eat the leather boot.
the pūkeko soup recipe is similar except it features a pukeko and a stone. You eat the stone.
Duck however is very tasty and excellent.
I'm not into Pukeko very much
see my comment 28 December 2022 at 10:41 am
Sir Ashley Bloomfield:
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/new-year-honours-dr-ashley-bloomfield-who-led-covid-19-response-in-pandemic-knighted-to-become-sir/5DHS2FSB6NAALO5MP5T4MQPCOY/
Couldn't be more deserved.
Fully agree Anne. He is a New Zealander we can all be immensely proud of.
Currently in NSW. All the issues making headlines in NZ in recent times are also replicated here. Cost of living, housing, pot holes ……
Agree.
Last day of 2023.
Doesnt time go fast.
Congratulations to Sir Ashley.
"Last day of 2023".
Really?
Ok, last day of 2022.
Gee Millsy, you are wishing the years away lol Last day of 2022, and may we have a better 2023. All the best to Standard folk.
All the very best of health and happiness in 2023 to you Patricia. See what the new year brings for us to chew on.
Take very good care and stay safe.
Cheers
Mary
Thanks mary-a, all the best to you and yours.
For those who want to delve into some batshit crazy Russian thinking…
In this video, philosopher and historian Vlad Vexler delves into why Crimea is so important to the Russians.
It turns out that at least as far back as Catherine the Great, Russians see Crimea as being their ancient Greece, and that they have an ancient lineage back to Greek culture, essentially making them more European than the Europeans, crazy as it seems.
All based on an elaborate and highly tenuous line of logic the Russians have constructed over the years.
The upshot is that Crimea is a core component of Russian identity, and so losing Crimea may not be great for Putin for his longevity, or could end up being a motivation for Russia going to total war, resulting in full mobilisation of Russia.
Vexler is a great source on the Russian philosophy side of things, himself being a Russian living in Great Britain now. Lots of much deeper insights than those of us on the outside would have.
So nothing to do with its military strategic value ?
Just those silly old Russians with their outlandish fairy tale notions.
https://www.csis.org/blogs/post-soviet-post/crimeas-strategic-value-russia
Reading Janet Wilson's column in the Waikato Times this morning (also on the Stuff website) and managing not to choke on my cup of tea, I did wonder if she was deliberately being disingenuous or does suffer from (selective) amnesia. Ye Gods, it was her beloved National Party – John Key in particular who overturned the Clark Government's ditching of the old Honours sytem in favour of our own home grown version so he could become a Knight of the Realm when he retired!!! https://www.stuff.co.nz/opinion/130878733/janet-wilson-make-honours-system-standalone-and-free-of-political-influence
PS – congratulations Sir Ashley Bloomfield, an honour well deserved, along with Dame Farah Palmer and Dame Miranda Harcourt.
This Danish journalist kicked out of both Russia and Ukraine stood up for journalistic integrity.Makes one wonder how other journalists survive in this war zone .
https://theintercept.com/2022/12/29/matilde-kimer-ukraine/
Dunno what I've done wrong, but I can't get any of mickey savages posts for the past week or so, only the comments. Also today open Mike says there are 26 comments, but when I call it up it then says and displays only 4 comments.
If you have a cure please explain in old fart terms.
Have a good year people, and travel well.
it's a bug that the sysop is working on.
Are you on a phone or ipad/tablet? Any info you can share about your device would be helpful.
Hey, thanks for your response. I live on my boat and am currently in the mahurangi harbour, due to jobs needing done on my son's boat.
My communication with the outside world is; cell phone, VHF and SSB. Cell phone is a bit marginal up here ( 2 bars is a good day).
I really value The Standards repartee and thoughtful posts. But who is this sysops guy, perhaps he needs controlling (sarc).
I'm amazed and thankful that people are so giving of their time to operate a site like this.
Travel well.
Sounds like something that I'm looking at (and making no headway on).
Congratulations to Dr Sir Ashley Bloomfield. A well deserved honour.
Agree 100%. Mary. But get ready for the moaners and whingers.
Anyone still paying attention?
https://twitter.com/checklarry/status/1608879300060798977
Yup.
https://twitter.com/fitterhappierAJ/status/1608954781481193472
thanks. I'll save that one for a few days time so I can enjoy the transition to 2023.
A new year and NZ in a cleft stick….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zo8NPwWQiSg
Aligned with the west and reliant on China…decisions decisions.
I'm sorry, but no level of research is going to make anyone who saw Jaws feel any less anxiety about Great White Sharks.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/bay-of-plenty-times/news/research-project-will-help-public-feel-less-anxiety-about-great-white-sharks/5L44RQZWMNJHNWQC5MUNNXZB54/
It may be fiction, but it's embedded in our psyche….
Bloody terrifying movie! I went on the Universal Studio tour in LA a few years back – which includes a 'live' experience – screams galore.
Strange New Year's eve on the outskirts of Queenstown. We're beside SH6 about 20km east of Queenstown and the road is exceptionally quiet, like quieter than a normal weekday, and the bulk of traffic seems to be heading out of town. Normally NYE is a constant stream of cars in fully party mode from early evening.
people prioritising time with family? avoiding covid?
Dunno, it's eerily quiet, almost like lockdown. Not one Goron, unless they all got EarPods and Teslas for Christmas.
Might be some sorry hospo types in the media n Monday morning
https://twitter.com/StefSimanowitz/status/1605490447547351040
I hope I don't have to scroll past so much twitter in 2023…
I hope for less formatted text..
Happy New Year folks. I am in the Bay of Islands. Gotta get away from teh intarwebz
Ki te aha Whano we wish you all a Prosperous new year.
https://youtu.be/aMfE_gkU3Rs
Kia Kaha
Ka kite Ano.