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Paris as an excuse for more useless surveillance

Written By: - Date published: 7:02 am, November 17th, 2015 - 67 comments
Categories: Abuse of power, Spying, us politics, war - Tags: , , , ,

I guess this was predictable:

NZ fear over secret communication following Paris attacks

The Government and security experts say they are concerned about the ease with which the Paris attackers were able to communicate without being detected.

Changes in technology, such as new encrypted message systems, is making it increasingly easy to speak without alerting authorities.

Encryption is the latest bugbear of the security state. Banning it is a bad idea, but that’s a post for another time. In any case, encryption wasn’t the issue with the Paris attacks:

Paris attacks: John Key says undetectable communication is increasing

Undetectable communication is closer to the truth.

The amount of “dark communications” which New Zealand spy agencies are unable to intercept is increasing, Prime Minister John Key says.

Mr Key made the comments in response to reports that French intelligence did not pick up any communications which foreshadowed the massive, co-ordinated terror attacks in Paris on Friday night.

More of that in the footnote below.

New Zealand’s Security Intelligence Service (SIS) and Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) are now under review. Mr Key was asked whether the review could lead to changes which addressed technological advances.

He said the issue was not the spy agencies’ capacity, because the legislation which governed the SIS and GCSB was already “reasonably broad”.

Isn’t that an interesting comment – Key effectively acknowledging that our spy agencies can already take anything they want.

“The issue is that this technology is very difficult to break into, essentially. So you are seeing people doing things that are a lot more sophisticated than in the past.”

Off on the wrong track again. The communications used in the case of the Paris attacks were as sophisticated as – a PS4:

Paris terrorists suspected of using PlayStation 4 to communicate

It’s being suggested that the communication tool of choice was the PlayStation 4. While that may seem like a surprising choice, from a terrorist’s point of view it’s one of the safer options. The authorities have been able to monitor standard communication channels (land lines, cell phones, email, Internet browsing) easily for years, but the IP-based voice communication offered on the PS4 is much more difficult to listen in on, as is any peer-to-peer systems used.

No encryption. No deep web / dark net buzzwords, a PS4. (Update: Disputed.)

The problem of monitoring communication on games consoles gets worse when you consider how many games have communication methods built-in. You can voice chat, message each other, or even write temporary messages on walls in a game like Call of Duty. How do you even begin to track such a wide variety of communications methods split across tens or even hundreds of different games?

That’s before you even get in to Steganography and associated methods. Trying to monitor all the possibilities would be like trying to perform significantly time consuming analysis of every frame of every video uploaded to YouTube.

So we’re going to have an ill informed debate about effective surveillance (which is impossible) and encryption (which is necessary). The tools that governments want won’t address the communication channels that smart terrorists are actually using. They can be used very effectively to spy on you and me though.


Footnote

Effective surveillance is mathematically impossible. The Paris attacks are a case in point:

Iraq Says It Warned France of ‘Imminent’ Attacks

The Associated Press is reporting that one day before the Paris attacks, Iraqi intelligence officials warned France and other anti-ISIS coalition allies that they should expect “imminent” assaults by the militant group. According to those intelligence officials, ISIS leader Abu Bakr al Baghdadi had ordered attacks “through bombings or assassinations or hostage taking in the coming days.”

In response, a French security official pointed out to the AP that they receive warnings like this “every day.”

67 comments on “Paris as an excuse for more useless surveillance ”

  1. sabine 1

    Waleed Aly from Australia, says this life on TV

    http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/tv/waleed-aly-hits-out-at-isis-over-paris-attacks-calls-them-weak/story-fn948wjf-1227611388541?utm_content=SocialFlow&utm_campaign=EditorialSF&utm_source=News.com.au&utm_medium=Facebook

    Quote: He said this “evil organisation” believes if they can make Muslims the enemy of the West, then Muslims in France and England and America and here in Australia will have nowhere to turn but to ISIL.
    “That was exactly their strategy in Iraq,” he said. “And now they want it to go global.
    “Saying that out loud, it is both dumbfounding in its stupidity and bloodcurdling in its barbarity. “We are all feeling a million raging emotions right now. I am angry at these terrorists. I am sickened by the violence and I am crushed for the families that have been left behind, but, you know what, I will not be manipulated.
    “We all need to come together. I know how that sounds. I know it is a cliche, but it is also true because it is exactly what ISIL doesn’t want.
    “So, if you are a member of Parliament or a has-been member of Parliament preaching hate at a time when what we actually need is more love — you are helping ISIL. They have told us that. If you are a Muslim leader telling your community they have no place here or basically them saying the same thing — you are helping ISIL.
    “They have told us that. If you are just someone with a Facebook or Twitter account firing off misguided messages of hate, you are helping ISIL — They have told us that.
    “I am pretty sure that right now none of us wants to help these b*stards.”

    • RedLogix 1.1

      Yes I read that an hour or so ago, and was thinking of re-posting it myself. Thanks for beating me to it.

      While it’s not a cool cerebral analysis, Waleed has made his case with rigor and balance.

      I understand anger. It is part of the natural and necessary response to Paris. But do not let yourself be manipulated into letting a healthy anger transform into a corrosive hatred.

      Required reading – and the best response to all the war-mongers posting here.

      Your hatred is helping ISIL.

      • BLiP 1.1.1

        Hatred, love, fear . . . all emotions, in fact, stirred up by the Paris outrage are currently being exploited by governments in order to further clamp down.

      • Olwyn 1.1.2

        I have for some time thought that there is an element in the west that is at war on all fronts – that their geopolitical ambitions and their economic ambitions work at odds. In general, people who are treated as outcasts or enemies welcome ideas and movements that promise liberation. It seems inane to nurture division, hatred and privation within your own society, and then suppose that they will all come together to support you as you try to inflict the roughly same formula on other societies. And that other societies, having seen the divisions and privations in yours, will somehow welcome this.

    • Bill 1.2

      The problem with that take is that it assumes Isil to be some multi-tentacled strategic octopus. It isn’t. There is an ideology and there are conditions that make that ideology ‘appealing’ to people who may (and probably) have no contact with Isil.

      eg – Did a believer in state communisim have to have any dealings with Moscow? Did propaganda try to have us believe that IRA terrorists were in contact with the Vatican? Did suffragettes have some communication line to women’s central?

  2. Paul 2

    Benjamin Franklin

    “Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.”

  3. BLiP 3

    Yeah, like terrorists didn’t work it out a wee while ago that communications had to go dark. Its not like ISIS is entirely uneducated about the use of computer technology.

    Trivia Question: when did the Director of the FBI say . . .

    . . . The looming spectre of the widespread use of robust, virtually uncrackable encryption is one of the most difficult problems confronting law enforcement . . . At stake are some of our most valuable and reliable investigative techniques, and the public safety of our citizens. We believe that unless a balanced approach to encryption is adopted that includes a viable key management infrastructure, the ability of law enforcement to investigate and sometimes prevent the most serious crimes and terrorism will be severely impaired . . .

    ^^^ 1997.

    The sniveling MSM parroting of the GCSB’s propaganda on this issue is brazen. Typically, the worst example was Mike Hosking who had the entirely unjustified temerity to suggest Edward Snowden was somehow a part of the problem and, by implication, had blood on his hands. Its as if Hosking has never even considered one of the prime messages Snowden delivered: total surveillance results in impending terrorist actions going unnoticed, total surveillance as we have now has actually put people at greater risk.

  4. Tracey 4

    They did not carry out the acts in Paris but it won’t stop Politicians and their neatly placed mouthpieces using them…

    Pushing the fear hot button

    “When a politician talks about almost everything in terms of terrorism, or communism, or crime, or threats to “national security” or “our way of life,” and so on, that politician is pushing the fear hot button. It’s very easy to push. Just use a few of the right trigger words, throw in a dash of plausibility, and the subconsciousness is automatically hoodwinked into a state of fear, or at least into wondering if there is something out there to fear. Whether or not an enemy actually is out there doesn’t matter—what matters is that we think there might be one. Fear clouds the judgment, making it all the harder to discern whether there really is an enemy out there. Because we cannot be sure, we play it safe and assume there is at least some risk. Since people are risk averse, the ploy works and we become believers. We have been influenced by statements of what might be lurking out there. Our fear hot button has been pushed and it worked.”

    Imagine what a powerful weapon fear becomes when people have just been killed in Paris…

    And then consider that some of these attackers were on a radar already, some were checked and let go after the event. Detain everyone on suspicion is the next step?

  5. Tracey 5

    I thought John Key gave up the post of Head of Spy Agencies?

    • Grindlebottom 5.1

      Yes he did. Chris Finlayson is Minister for Security Intelligence Services. But PMs frequently comment on other MInisters’ portfolio issues,

      • Tracey 5.1.1

        I know but its like Key knows more about our secret servces since he stopped being responsble for them.

      • Smilin 5.1.2

        He, Key just cant stay out of the limelight on any issue which makes you wonder what the rest of the caucus are doing -navel gazing possibly or just servants of the mighty one

  6. esoteric pineapples 6

    Isn’t one of the primary aims of a terrorist organisation who plants bombs etc to actually encourage states to repress their citizenry, so that the citizens actually rebel against the government?

    Also, if you were a government who wanted to spy on your own citizens, all you need is some sort of pretext such as a terrorist attack. When civil libertarians argue against the spying, they can be accused of supporting terrorists. Pretty much the same argument as the Prime Minister was using regarding Christmas Island in Parliament.

  7. Bill 8

    Sorry, but I’m not buying any of this. Why would the guys in Paris and Belgium have had to speak to anyone in Syria or Isis?

    From the post.

    …French intelligence did not pick up any communications which foreshadowed the massive, co-ordinated terror attacks in Paris…

    Occams Razor would suggest that was because there was no communication.

    It’s being suggested that the communication tool of choice was… assumes there was a need for communication – but why would there be?

    Let me put it by way of a shaky analogous example – shaky because it presents the propaganda of the time as real.

    Imagine terrorism in Ireland in the 80s. The news told us that it was all down to a religious divide and that the religion on the ‘other side’ was Catholicism. Catholicism was and is centred in the Vatican City. Now, lets imagine that some Irish person committed an act of terrorism on a genuinely religious basis. Are we to believe they could only have done so after receiving centralised instructions or having engaged in lengthy correspondence with either Buckingham Palace or the Vatican?

    Well no, of course not.

    And that’s given, that back in the 80s the need for wider and deeper communication with acknowledged authorities (to access bomb expertise, gun procurement, etc) would have been greater then given no internet loaded with info, sources and ideas.

    French and Belgium nationals, like our imaginary Irish example, hook their action to an ideology and then act in the name of that ideology. There is no need for central control or a huge volume of communication.

    • Anno1701 8.1

      “Are we to believe they could only have done so after receiving centralised instructions or having engaged in lengthy correspondence with either Buckingham Palace or the Vatican? ”

      There was actual proven collusion between UK security forces( “Buckingham palace” ) and Loyalist paramilitaries in Northen Ireland

      http://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/london-told-it-must-face-up-to-fact-of-collusion-in-north-1.2250653

      http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/britains-secret-terror-deals-truly-disturbing-bbc-panorama-allegations-of-collusion-must-be-fully-investigated-says-amnesty-international-31261593.html

    • Colonial Viper 8.2

      …French intelligence did not pick up any communications which foreshadowed the massive, co-ordinated terror attacks in Paris…

      Occams Razor would suggest that was because there was no communication.

      Basic Op Sec would suggest that if there was any connection with ISIL Syrian leadership that it was all organised months ago and compartmentalised so that the tactical units in France never needed to talk to anyone in Syria again.

      • Bill 8.2.1

        I’m picking there was no contact, or at most, very minimal contact. Isil in Syria decided to hit cafe goers, a rock concert and a football match?

        I. don’t. think. so.

        • Colonial Viper 8.2.1.1

          I don’t think our comments necessarily preclude each other.

          A football match between France and Germany that senior politicians and officials from both countries were at.

          A concert by an American rock band.

          Final target selection could have been totally under local control, with the broad strokes of the op previously defined in Syria many months ago.

    • joe90 8.3

      Why would the guys in Paris and Belgium have had to speak to anyone in Syria or Isis?

      Indeed.

      Hit soft targets. “Diversify and widen the vexation strikes against the crusader-Zionist enemy in every place in the Islamic world, and even outside of it if possible, so as to disperse the efforts of the alliance of the enemy and thus drain it to the greatest extent possible.”

      Strike when potential victims have their guard down. Sow fear in general populations, damage economies. “If a tourist resort that the crusaders patronise … is hit, all of the tourist resorts in all of the states of the world will have to be secured by the work of additional forces, which are double the ordinary amount, and a huge increase in spending.”

      Consider reports suggesting a 15-year-old was involved in Friday’s atrocity. “Capture the rebelliousness of youth, their energy and idealism, and their readiness for self-sacrifice, while fools preach ‘moderation’ (wasatiyyah), security and avoidance of risk.”

      http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/nov/15/terrorists-isis?

    • Mike the Savage One 8.4

      You raise some valid points, Bill, it is blinkered to think that these terrorists took their actions by reacting upon some “orders” from Raqqa in Syria, or that they had to communicate extensively via phone and/or internet to organise what they did. I fear there are enough “desperados” and fanatic extremists, and also some who genuinely believe they act in total righteousness, who are prepared to commit such attacks. Getting the guns and what else is needed takes a bit of an effort, but hey, how many stolen army, police and home based weapons are somewhere in circulation or storage in New Zealand?

      If seriously committed, any few or sole persons can get their hands at some automatic guns, on the black market or by burgling a place, and getting rental cars is hardly requiring much criminal energy, most certainly not dependent on some “instructions” from a faraway place in Syria. They can also easily find jihadist, black flags with some Arabic words by the Prophet on, or get them printed in any flat, house or garage with no problem.

      By that I do not rule out that there is some significant international communications via the “black web” and so, between like minded, who have plans to take certain actions.

      Even Bin Laden’s followers did all to avoid using the internet, after 9/11, and found ways to communicate, and much went on without detection.

      • Bill 8.4.1

        Manchester. 1980s. Want a gun. Who do I speak to? It’s backing up drug shit.

        Do I speak to a Columbian drug lord?

        Nope.

        Paris. 2015. I want a gun and some bomb material. Who do I speak to? It’s backing up some expreession of desperation/hopelessness.

        Do I speak to some Isil commander in Syria?

        Nope.

    • Draco T Bastard 8.5

      It’s being suggested that the communication tool of choice was… assumes there was a need for communication – but why would there be?

      A team always needs to communicate. The question is more how they communicated and if those communications could have been picked up which they probably couldn’t even with the mass surveillance that governments engage in now..

      You’re making the assumption that the authorities are assuming centralised control rather than a decentralised cell structure carrying out an operation. Unlikely that but the reporting is.

      • exkiwiforces 8.5.1

        It’s call safe hand/ dead letter drops, snail mail or need to know and enforcing strict comms silence. Just ask Pablo over Kiwipolitico or anybody who is ex-military

  8. alwyn 9

    The gist of this post appears to be the view that we shouldn’t carry out surveillance because it is completely useless.

    Try reading this article in the Dom/Post
    http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/paris-attacks/74097018/paris-attacks-belgian-man-abdelhamid-abaaoud-named-as-mastermind
    If the facts in this story are correct perhaps you would tell us how many other attacks would have gone ahead and how many people would have been killed if we had carried out no attempts to keep track of these people at all?
    We see such statements in the story as
    “Abaaoud was also believed to have been behind thwarted plans to attack a Paris-bound high-speed train and Paris area church, a French official said” Thwarted you will note.
    “Abaaoud was named as the head of a jihadi cell broken up by Belgian police in January, “hours or days” before a planned attack to kill police officers.” The attack appears to be have been prevented.

    I have seen other stories listing foiled attempts at terrorism. Should we do nothing because some attempts succeed?

    • r0b 9.1

      Targeted surveillance of known threats makes sense. Mass surveillance of everyone does not. Did you read the linked piece?

      The mathematics of surveillance

    • One Anonymous Bloke 9.2

      Clearly the only alternative to spying on everyone is to spy on no-one. No, wait, this just in: Alwyn’s false dichotomy is very very stupid.

    • Colonial Viper 9.3

      If the facts in this story are correct perhaps you would tell us how many other attacks would have gone ahead and how many people would have been killed if we had carried out no attempts to keep track of these people at all?

      In Congressional hearings in 2012 or 2013 the answer to your question was pretty clear: NSA mass surveillance had prevented zero terrorist attacks.

      This is not a surprise because NSA mass surveillance is designed as a tool of local population control (and building up security state fiefdoms), not as an anti-terrorist measure.

  9. theDude 10

    By Armstrong;
    “It Is Time to Knock off the Bullshit About Surveillance for Terrorism”

    http://www.armstrongeconomics.com/archives/39316

    http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-11-15/martin-armstrong-rages-its-time-knock-bs-about-surveillance-terrorism

    I guess we ill have to wait and see.

  10. infused 11

    First, PS4 was a load of shit, second, anyone can intercept encrypted data, but decrypting it is another story.

    You are confusing two different things here with your interpenetration of Key’s comments.

    • One Anonymous Bloke 11.1

      Interpenetration? Is that like defeating extremism by winning hearts and minds rather than relying on mass-murder and panty-sniffing?

      • infused 11.1.1

        You’d know.

        • One Anonymous Bloke 11.1.1.1

          I wouldn’t go that far: I just think that after a decade of deranged wingnut vengeance fantasies it’s past time to try something sane instead.

          Oh, and we have always been at war with North Korea 😆

          • infused 11.1.1.1.1

            I don’t think you quite grasp what I said originally. I was specifically talking about encryption.

            One interesting thing to note: If you do use strong encryption, expect to be monitored.

            • One Anonymous Bloke 11.1.1.1.1.1

              Oh I grasped it perfectly thanks.

              As for being monitored, chicken, meet egg. How do the curtain-twitching department know I’m using (say) email encryption over and above that provided by ISPs, unless they’re already watching?

              • infused

                No ISP has any type of encryption as far as I know. Unless you are talking about SSL for email? Mail stored on the DB is most likely unencrypted.

                And of course they are watching. GCSB has monitoring at most gateways and exchanges in NZ.

                • One Anonymous Bloke

                  Apart from SSL, Google said that about 65 per cent of the messages sent by its Gmail users are encrypted…

                  So, assuming you’re right, and the GCSB is illegally hoovering up everything in direct contradiction of the Prime Minister’s craven mendacity, that’s an awful lot of “monitoring”. I expect the courts are flat our processing all the warrants 🙄

                  • infused

                    Yeah, again, you are confusing things. Hence my original post.

                    1) They only encrypt the transport, not the storage.
                    2) The gateway monitoring is only active when triggered by an alert, or they are actively searching for something. IE, pass-through mode.

                    They don’t just mass store data, as it’s physically impossible for a small country like NZ.

                    Encrypting storage is a whole different ball game and very few companies are going to do that. The biggest issue is you generally can never restore any data unless you have the key pairs. So it makes data recovery etc impossible.

          • alwyn 11.1.1.1.2

            “Oh, and we have always been at war with North Korea”

            Actually we have never been at war with North Korea.
            Although it is called the Korean War, and we are still in an armistice, no war was ever actually declared. It was a UN Police Action to which we contributed troops, not an official war.
            I doubt if the people who served there could tell the difference.

  11. Colonial Viper 12

    There is a very odd thing about the Paris attacks – up to 7 suicide bombers exploded their suicide vests…but the explosions themselves resulted in very few casualties. Compare that to the pre-election political rally in Ankara where two suicide bombs killed just over 100 people.

    • infused 12.1

      Feel free to go watch the liveleak videos if you’d like to see limbs etc in-case you are one of those people who though this was a conspiracy (there are a few).

  12. Colonial Viper 13

    Also – the Labour Party voted for John Key’s anti-terrorism/spying legislation earlier this year.

    They’re all on the same side.

    • infused 13.1

      Once you actually see what these guys collect, you’d probably change your mind.

      • Colonial Viper 13.1.1

        yeah, underwear pics and details of peoples affairs, who their ex-spouses are sleeping with, your blood test results and latest CV, stored into perpetuity.

  13. Colonial Viper 14

    ISPs have to install whatever surveillance devices required by the intelligence services. If the US example is anything to go by, the ISPs don’t complain because they are well paid to do so.

    • infused 14.1

      Well they aren’t paid well at all actually… And they are not generally installed at the ISP level. All ISPs connect to exchanges, like WIX. That’s where they are placed, and the international gateways like Southern Cross.

  14. Mike the Savage One 15

    So after passing GCSB law amendments to give the agency more powers to gather information on ordinary New Zealanders, and to also justify that they cooperate even more with other agencies under the 5 Eyes network, such as the US NSA, which has gathered huge amounts of metadata on ordinary people’s phone and internet use, we are now told by the PM, all that does not do what they claimed it should do.

    So yet again, the Prime Minister has revealed that he is a total hypocrite if not a blatant liar, and the media just reports on it, and does not raise further questions.

    And the people are fed endless media reports on the terror attacks in Paris, and their consequences, now the bulk of news on TV every evening, so they think, we need more surveillance.

    I feel treated like an ass that has been kicked too many times, when do others, and when do the casual, ignorant, silent majority finally get it, wake up, and vote this “criminal” lot out? We should not even wait that long, in any society where people used their brains, bothered to care, and stood up for their rights, there should by now be mass protests out in the streets, but I see none here in NZ.

    http://m.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11546206

  15. Ad 16

    I think the post is arguing too much from a position of global safety and of having not been touched by the damage on New Zealand soil from non-state terrorism. Australia has had too many dead in Bali, Sydney and elsewhere for it to be simply a principle to argue over.

    We have rightly rounded on our grossly under-regulated security apparatus, and its ridiculous new legal powers. SIS and GCSB leaders and their performance should have full scrutiny to a fully open Select Committee, with the media right there.

    But the left need to deal with the necessity of a security apparatus for New Zealand.

    If the ISIS threat continues to escalate globally, as it seems to be, we are going to have to prepare for state-licensed mosques at a minimum. We have state-regulated schools here so it’s not a great leap.

    The price of freedom in a society is regulation.

  16. Draco T Bastard 17

    Off on the wrong track again. The communications used in the case of the Paris attacks were as sophisticated as – a PS4:

    LOL

    There was concern when Apple first launched it’s G4 computer back 1999 that could do 1 giga FLOPS because of it’s potential to do real time encryption and thus it’s potential to help rogue nations to build up their military potential. Apple’s marketing department had a great time but:

    A final note on how far we’ve come: while I couldn’t find listed MTOPS ratings for the iPhone 5s, a cursory calculation using comparable Geekbench scores coupled with this chart from Intel suggests that the current iPhone has a rating of around 40,000 MTOPS.

    The average run of the mill phone makes the G4 look like a friggen calculator and yet that was all that was needed to ensure communications that couldn’t be listened to.

    The PS4’s computing power is far beyond what a phone is capable of.

  17. John Schmidt 18

    Not mentioned because it’s inconvenient is the number of terrorist events that have been thwarted that has been mentioned briefly in the public domain, some of these events would have been bigger than Paris had they been succesful. Briefly because it appears no one wants to dwell on good news or if it does not fit with one’s ideology. Would not surprise me if there are other events that never made it to the public domain. If you look at what has happened the rush to encryption began with wiki leaks and accelerated with Snowden revelations. So yes those who wish society harm have learnt a lot from all the revelations so it could be argued wiki leaks and Snowden now have blood on their hands.
    The question for society now is how many deaths are acceptable because while many threats are thwarted some are succesful. It’s impossible to be 100% safe. To eliminate the threat entirely means losing an unacceptable level of personal privacy. So the question remains are we happy as a society to accept the current level of deaths or do we reduce this through loss of personal freedom or do we accept an increasing loss by reducing the ability of the state in keeping us safe.

  18. RichardK 19

    Couple things i’d like to say n this.

    As far as i am aware military hardware is about 20 years more advanced than civilian.

    Bearing that in mind if the military have already a well functioning quantum computer even at it’s basist, there will be no encryption it could not crack in almost realtime.

    Quantum computers = scary in the wrong hands and the likelihood of the military having this is high, or if not now, within the next few years.

    and as of today when our gov and media seem complacent in not even reporting the sneaky antics and laws being passed under ugency, making laws again to cover their errors, with more lack of media coverage to hide it from the public.

    The fear i have is when governments become this powerful and agenda driven guerilla wars break out, terrorism becomes a national problem not international.

    The whole system currently under national and everything they do is crazy as batshit we do as we please, fuck you, batshit crazy..

    They really need to go before their is civil disorder

  19. greywarshark 20

    Vladimir Putin has been doing some noteworthy surveillance.
    16 November 2015
    Putin: ISIS financed from 40 countries, including G20 members
    https://www.rt.com/news/322305-isis-financed-40-countries/

    “Putin also spoke of the urgent need to curb the illegal oil trade by IS”.
    “I’ve shown our colleagues photos taken from space and from aircraft which clearly demonstrate the scale of the illegal trade in oil and petroleum products,” he said.
    “The motorcade of refueling vehicles stretched for dozens of kilometers, so that from a height of 4,000 to 5,000 meters they stretch beyond the horizon,” Putin added, comparing the convoy to gas and oil pipeline systems…..

    President Vladimir Putin says he’s shared Russian intelligence data on Islamic State financing with his G20 colleagues: the terrorists appear to be financed from 40 countries, including some G20 member states.
    During the summit, “I provided examples based on our data on the financing of different Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) units by private individuals. This money, as we have established, comes from 40 countries and, there are some of the G20 members among them,” Putin told the journalists….

    Putin reiterated Russia’s readiness to support armed opposition in Syria in its efforts to fight Islamic State.
    “Some armed opposition groups consider it possible to begin active operations against IS with Russia’s support. And we are ready to provide such support from the air. If it happens it could become a good basis for the subsequent work on a political settlement,” he said.
    “We really need support from the US, European nations, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Iran,” the president added.”

  20. Gabby 21

    You’ve got to wonder how these convoys have escaped the attention of the yankers.

  21. Liberal Realist 22

    Read an article yesterday that suggests there was a massive cyber attack on Paris infrastructure 48 hours before the attacks which blinded police surveillance.

    “French Security Left Blind During Paris Attacks

    Paul Craig Roberts

    I have received a report from European security that there was a massive cyber attack on French systems 48 hours prior to and during the Paris attacks. Among other things, the attack took down the French mobile data network and blinded police surveillance The attack was not a straightforward DDOS attack but a sophisticated attack that targeted a weakness in infrastructure hardware.

    Such an attack is beyond the capability of most organizations and requires capability that is unlikely to be in ISIL’s arsenal. An attack on this scale is difficult to pull off without authorities getting wind of it. The coordination required suggests state involvement.”

    The article does state that it is unknown if this information is credible. I’m not familiar with this author however his resume (in the about section) looks to have credibility.

    If a cyber attack did happen as this article suggest there are some very big questions to ask. We’ll probably never know.

    From here:
    https://tinyurl.com/ngqehdc

  22. sabine 23

    considering that all the terrorists were from France or Belgium, one wonders when they are starting to rain down bombs on the poor ghettos outside of Paris and Brussels. Cause clearly the terrorism is home grown.
    The ideology is stolen from Daesh, but the executioners were not Syrian Refugees.

  23. Reminds me to reinstall my Encryption software again!

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  • All of Us, All of Us.
    Mutual Support: Democracy in New Zealand will not be saved by pitting Pakeha against Māori, but by joining together with every other citizen who still understands the meaning of working together to build something good that will last. Call that co-governance if you like, or call it something else – ...
    6 hours ago
  • Tracking the KPIs of eight-year-olds
    Imagine being a great big business success enjoying your lavish Waiheke island property with infinity pool and ballroom and riparian rights and heli-pad. Sweeeet. But imagine, also, having to take orders from some little bureaucratic oik about how often you can land a chopper on it.I can’t, really, but it ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    9 hours ago
  • Life Church Confirms its Leader Was Paid $10,000 For Investigating Sexual Misconduct at Hillsong Chu...
    Hi,New Zealand’s Life megachurch has confirmed to Webworm it was paid $10,000 by Hillsong for investigating Brian Houston’s sexual misconduct allegations.Following Webworm publishing this piece about the $10,000 payment, Life’s Corporate Communications Manager Phil Irons has confirmed what it was for:Paul [de Jong] was engaged by Hillsong to assist in ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    9 hours ago
  • 2023 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #12
    A chronological listing of news articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Mar 19, 2023 thru Sat, Mar 25, 2023. Story of the Week Q&A: IPCC wraps up its most in-depth assessment of climate change The final part of the world’s most comprehensive assessment of ...
    9 hours ago
  • What I wanted to say before the mob stopped women speaking
    by Daphna Whitmore I thought the #LetWomenSpeak meeting would be a good time to talk about free speech and why it is important for the left. Then the mob stampeded the open-air gathering and no one got to speak. Here’s what I was had prepared. Today I want to talk ...
    RedlineBy Admin
    20 hours ago
  • Women’s rights meeting silenced
    By Don Franks Today my friend Ani O’Briien went to a meeting in Auckland and wrote: “No sooner had Kellie-Jay Keen Minshull arrived at the Rotunda, a protestor (who had managed to get past the barrier) ran at her and threw a red substance all over her and a security ...
    RedlineBy Admin
    21 hours ago
  • A serving of soup curbs Posie Parker’s appetite for speaking – and shows that might is right in ...
    Jonathan Milne, managing editor for Newsroom Pro, has expressed his indignation about the outcome of a court decision yesterday in an article headed Posie Parker wins the beautiful freedom to make an ugly argument. Newsroom Pro laments: High Court Justice David Gendall has regretfully allowed an outspoken anti-trans activist to enter New ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    24 hours ago
  • It’s official: National have an education policy
    imagine my surprise this week when the National Party, in their infinite wisdom, decided to release an education policy. As you can imagine, this got us so riled up here in the office that we dusted off our Windows XP laptop, waiting 17 hours for all the updates to be ...
    My ThinksBy boonman
    1 day ago
  • Prosperity through Productivity.
    Come on Jess thought Mr Evans come on. He watched the large clock on the wall tick closer to 8:40am. Come on girl.In two minutes he had to submit the class attendance report and with Jess having already been late once that term it’d mean an automatic visit from the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago
  • The hoon for the week that was to March 25
    This week’s UN IPCC report warned climate emissions will need to be cut by almost half by 2030, if warming is to be limited to 1.5°C. Bronwyn Hayward points out in The Hoon podcast how far behind NZ’s government and councils are now on climate action compared to the rest ...
    The KakaBy Peter Bale
    1 day ago
  • The big question for Labour: Will Hipkins have any more success than Ardern did with the top priorit...
    Chris  Hipkins,  after  he became prime minister, committed  to defeating the  cost-of- living crisis. He  proceeded to make a  bonfire of policies  that were at  the  heart of Jacinda Ardern’s administration.  But, as   Richard Prebble pointed out this week, “the government has not just U-turned, it has repudiated the ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    2 days ago
  • Reality check.
    There are some wellness, crystal-gazing, holistic spiritual guidance types in my disaster-hit coastal community who insist that the power of positive thinking will overcome the physical and material damages incurred by the community. They object to restrictions on road travel … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    2 days ago
  • High Performance Instability in the Financial Sector
    Evaluating the recent crashes of Silicon Valley Bank in the US and Credit Suisse in Switzerland plus two other banks (perhaps more by the time you read this) needs to begin with a review of the inevitable instability in the financial sector. The financial sector is inherently unstable, like military ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    2 days ago
  • The week in review
    1. We see here new police minister Ginny Andersen. Which larger than life NZ political figure was her great-uncle?a. Rob Muldoonb. Bill Andersenc. Richard John Seddond. Norman Kirk2. We see here archival footage of Ginny Andersen coming out of her electorate office to ask ex-tobacco lobbyist Chris Bishop if he ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • Nash splashes out with a $900,000 investment in the blue economy (or is it more corporate welfare?)
    Buzz from the Beehive Stuart Nash, speaking as Minister of Oceans and Fisheries, one of his remaining portfolios after he was dropped down the Hipkins Government batting order, has drawn attention to the blue economy and its potential. Nash says the government is investing in the blue economy, or – ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    2 days ago
  • Ask Me Anything about the week to March 24
    Photo by Josh Mills on UnsplashIt’s that time of the week for an ‘Ask Me Anything’ session for paying subscribers about the week that was for the next hour, including:The runs on Silicon Valley Bank and First Republic Bank on the west coast of the United States that forced the ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 24-March-2023
    Roundup is back! We skipped last week’s Friday post due to a shortage of person-power – did you notice? Lots going on out there… Our header image this week shows a green street that just happens to be Queen St, by @chamfy from Twitter. This week (and last) in ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    2 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on the Keen-Minshull visit
    After threatening Prime Minister Chris Hipkins of consequences if he dared to bar her entry, Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull has been given her visa, regardless. This will enable her to hold rallies in Auckland and Wellington this weekend, and spread her messages of hostility against an already marginalised trans community. Neo-Nazis may, ...
    2 days ago
  • BRYCE EDWARDS’ Political Roundup:  NZ needs to distance itself from Australia’s anti-China nucl...
    * Bryce Edwards writes – The New Zealand Government has been silent about Australia’s decision to commit up to $400bn acquiring nuclear submarines, even though this is a significant threat to peace and stability in the Asia Pacific. The deal was struck by the Albanese Labor Government as ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago
  • Wayne Brown's #Auxit moment
    Boomers voted him in, but Brown’s Trumpish moments might spook Aucklanders worried about what a change to National nationally might mean. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTL;DR: Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown has become our version of Donald Trump and Boris Johnson, except without any of the insatiable appetite for media appearances. He ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Bryce Edwards: NZ needs to distance itself from Australia’s anti-China nuclear submarines
    The New Zealand Government has been silent about Australia’s decision to commit up to $400bn acquiring nuclear submarines, even though this is a significant threat to peace and stability in the Asia Pacific. The deal was struck by the Albanese Labor Government as part of its Aukus pact with the ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    2 days ago
  • Posie Parker vs Transgender Rights.
    Recently you might have heard of a person called Posie Parker and her visit to Aotearoa. Perhaps you’re not quite sure what it’s all about. So let’s start with who this person is, why their visit is controversial, and what on earth a TERF is.Posie Parker is the super villain ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago
  • Select Committee told slow down; you’re moving too fast
    The chair of Parliament’s Select Committee looking at the Government’s resource management legislation wants the bills sent back for more public consultation. The proposal would effectively kill any chance of the bills making it into law before the election. Green MP, Eugenie Sage, stressing that she was speaking as ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #12 2023
    Open access notables  The United States experienced some historical low temperature records during the just-concluded winter. It's a reminder that climate and weather are quite noisy; with regard to our warming climate,, as with a road ascending a mountain range we may steadily change our conditions but with lots of ...
    3 days ago
  • What becomes of the broken hearted? Nanny State will step in to comfort them
    Buzz from the Beehive The Nanny State has scored some wins (or claimed them) in the past day or two but it faltered when it came to protecting Kiwi citizens from being savaged by one woman armed with a sharp tongue. The wins are recorded by triumphant ministers on the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Acceptance, decency, road food.
    Sometimes you see your friends making the case so well on social media you think: just copy and share.On acceptance and decency, from Michèle A’CourtA notable thing about anti-trans people is they way they talk about transgender women and men as though they are strangers “over there” when in fact ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Climate Change: More Labour sabotage
    Not that long ago, things were looking pretty good for climate change policy in Aotearoa. We finally had an ETS, and while it was full of pork and subsidies, it was delivering high and ever-rising carbon prices, sending a clear message to polluters to clean up or shut down. And ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago
  • Is bundling restricting electricity competition?
    Comparing (and switching) electricity providers has become easier, but bundling power up with broadband and/or gas makes it more challenging. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The Kākā TL;DR: The new Consumer Advocacy Council set up as a result of the Labour Government’s Electricity Price Review in 2019 has called on either ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • Westland Milk puts heat on competitors as global dairy demand  remains softer for longer
    Hokitika-based Westland Milk Products  has  put the heat on dairy giant Fonterra with  a $120m profit turnaround in 2022, driven by record sales. Westland paid its suppliers a 10c premium above the forecast Fonterra price per kilo, contributing $535m to the West Coast and Canterbury economies. The dairy ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    3 days ago
  • BRYCE EDWARDS’ Political Roundup:  The Beehive’s revolving door and corporate mateship
    * Bryce Edwards writes – New Zealanders are uncomfortable with the high level of influence corporate lobbyists have in New Zealand politics, and demands are growing for greater regulation. A recent poll shows 62 per cent of the public support having a two-year cooling off period between ministers leaving public ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Bryce Edwards: The Beehive’s revolving door and corporate mateship
    New Zealanders are uncomfortable with the high level of influence corporate lobbyists have in New Zealand politics, and demands are growing for greater regulation. A recent poll shows 62 per cent of the public support having a two-year cooling off period between ministers leaving public office and becoming lobbyists and ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    3 days ago
  • A miracle pill for our transport ills
    This is a guest post by accessibility and sustainable transport advocate Tim Adriaansen It originally appeared here.   A friend calls you and asks for your help. They tell you that while out and about nearby, they slipped over and landed arms-first. Now their wrist is swollen, hurting like ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    3 days ago
  • The Surprising Power of Floating Wind Turbines
    Floating offshore wind turbines offer incredible opportunities to capture powerful winds far out at sea. By unlocking this wind energy potential, they could be a key weapon in our arsenal in the fight against climate change. But how developed are these climate fighting clean energy giants? And why do I ...
    3 days ago
  • The next Maori challenge
    Over the past two or three weeks, a procession of Maori iwi and hapu in a series of little-noticed appearances before two Select Committees have been asking for more say for Maori over resource management decisions along the co-governance lines of Three Waters. Their submissions and appearances run counter ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    3 days ago
  • Secret “war-crime” warrants by International Criminal Court is mischief-making
    The decision of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to issue war crimes arrest warrants for the Russian President and the Russia Children Ombudsman may have been welcomed by the ideologically committed but otherwise seems to have been greeted with widespread cynicism (see Situation in Ukraine: ICC judges issue arrest warrants ...
    4 days ago
  • How to answer Drunk Uncle Kevin's Climate Crisis reckons
    Let’s say you’re clasping your drink at a wedding, or a 40th, or a King’s Birthday Weekend family reunion and Drunk Uncle Kevin has just got going.He’s in an expansive frame of mind because we’re finally rid of that silly girl. But he wants to ask an honest question about ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago
  • National’s Luxon may be glum about his poll ratings but has he found a winner in promising to rai...
    National Party leader Christopher Luxon may  be feeling glum about his poll ratings, but  he could be tapping  into  a rich political vein in  describing the current state of education as “alarming”. Luxon said educational achievement has been declining,  with a recent NCEA pilot exposing just how far it has ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    4 days ago
  • Climate Change: More Labour foot-dragging
    Yesterday the IPCC released the final part of its Sixth Assessment Report, warning us that we have very little time left in which to act to prevent catastrophic climate change, but pointing out that it is a problem that we can solve, with existing technology, and that anything we do ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Te Pāti Māori Are Revolutionaries – Not Reformists.
    Way Beyond Reform: Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer have no more interest in remaining permanent members of “New Zealand’s” House of Representatives than did Lenin and Trotsky in remaining permanent members of Tsar Nicolas II’s “democratically-elected” Duma. Like the Bolsheviks, Te Pāti Māori is a party of revolutionaries – not reformists.THE CROWN ...
    4 days ago
  • When does history become “ancient”, on Tinetti’s watch as Minister of Education – and what o...
    Buzz from the Beehive Auckland was wiped off the map, when Education Minister Jan Tinetti delivered her speech of welcome as host of the inaugural Conference of Pacific Education Ministers “here in Tāmaki Makaurau”. But – fair to say – a reference was made later in the speech to a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • Climate Catastrophe, but first rugby.
    Morning mate, how you going?Well, I was watching the news last night and they announced this scientific report on Climate Change. But before they got to it they had a story about the new All Blacks coach.Sounds like important news. It’s a bit of a worry really.Yeah, they were talking ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • What the US and European bank rescues mean for us
    Always a bailout: US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the Government would fully guarantee all savers in all smaller US banks if needed. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: No wonder an entire generation of investors are used to ‘buying the dip’ and ‘holding on for dear life’. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Bryce Edwards: Who will drain Wellington’s lobbying swamp?
    Wealthy vested interests have an oversized influence on political decisions in New Zealand. Partly that’s due to their use of corporate lobbyists. Fortunately, the influence lobbyists can have on decisions made by politicians is currently under scrutiny in Guyon Espiner’s in-depth series published by RNZ. Two of Espiner’s research exposés ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    4 days ago
  • It’s Raining Congestion
    Yesterday afternoon it rained and traffic around the region ground to a halt, once again highlighting why it is so important that our city gets on with improving the alternatives to driving. For additional irony, this happened on the same day the IPCC synthesis report landed, putting the focus on ...
    4 days ago
  • Checking The Left: The Dreadful Logic Of Fascism.
    The Beginning: Anti-Co-Governance agitator, Julian Batchelor, addresses the Dargaville stop of his travelling roadshow across New Zealand . Fascism almost always starts small. Sadly, it doesn’t always stay that way. Especially when the Left helps it to grow.THERE IS A DREADFUL LOGIC to the growth of fascism. To begin with, it ...
    4 days ago
  • Good Friends and Terrible Food
    Hi,From an incredibly rainy day in Los Angeles, I just wanted to check in. I guess this is the day Trump may or may not end up in cuffs? I’m attempting a somewhat slower, less frenzied week. I’ve had Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s new record on non-stop, and it’s been a ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    4 days ago
  • At a glance – What evidence is there for the hockey stick?
    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 ...
    5 days ago
  • Carry right on up there, Corporal Espiner
    RNZ has been shining their torch into corners where lobbyists lurk and asking such questions as: Do we like the look of this?and Is this as democratic as it could be?These are most certainly questions worth asking, and every bit as valid as, say:Are we shortchanged democratically by the way ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago
  • This smells
    RNZ has continued its look at the role of lobbyists by taking a closer look at the Prime Minister's Chief of Staff Andrew Kirton. He used to work for liquor companies, opposing (among other things) a container refund scheme which would have required them to take responsibility for their own ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Major issues on the table in Mahuta’s  talks in Beijing with China’s new Foreign Minister
    Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta has left for Beijing for the first ministerial visit to China since 2019. Mahuta is  to  meet China’s new foreign minister Qin Gang  where she  might have to call on all the  diplomatic skills  at  her  command. Almost certainly she  will  face  questions  on what  role ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    5 days ago
  • Inside TOP's Teal Card and political strategy
    TL;DR: The Opportunities Party’s Leader Raf Manji is hopeful the party’s new Teal Card, a type of Gold card for under 30s, will be popular with students, and not just in his Ilam electorate where students make up more than a quarter of the voters and where Manji is confident ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Make Your Empties Go Another Round.
    When I was a kid New Zealand was actually pretty green. We didn’t really have plastic. The fruit and veges came in a cardboard box, the meat was wrapped in paper, milk came in a glass bottle, and even rubbish sacks were made of paper. Today if you sit down ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on how similar Vladimir Putin is to George W. Bush
    Looking back through the names of our Police Ministers down the years, the job has either been done by once or future party Bigfoots – Syd Holland, Richard Prebble, Juduth Collins, Chris Hipkins – or by far lesser lights like Keith Allen, Frank Gill, Ben Couch, Allen McCready, Clem Simich, ...
    5 days ago
  • CHRIS TROTTER:  Te Pāti Māori’s uncompromising threat to the status quo
    Chris Trotter writes – The Crown is a fickle friend. Any political movement deemed to be colourful but inconsequential is generally permitted to go about its business unmolested. The Crown’s media, RNZ and TVNZ, may even “celebrate” its existence (presumably as proof of Democracy’s broad-minded acceptance of diversity). ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Bryce Edwards: Shining a bright light on lobbyists in politics
    Four out of the five people who have held the top role of Prime Minister’s Chief of Staff since 2017 have been lobbyists. That’s a fact that should worry anyone who believes vested interests shouldn’t have a place at the centre of decision making. Chris Hipkins’ newly appointed Chief of ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    5 days ago
  • Auckland Council Draft Budget – an unnecessary backwards step
    Feedback on Auckland Council’s draft 2023/24 budget closes on March 28th. You can read the consultation document here, and provide feedback here. Auckland Council is currently consulting on what is one of its most important ever Annual Plans – the ‘budget’ of what it will spend money on between July ...
    5 days ago
  • Talking’ Posey Parker Blues
    by Molten Moira from Motueka If you want to be a woman let me tell you what to do Get a piece of paper and a biro tooWrite down your new identification And boom! You’re now a woman of this nationSpelled W O M A Na real trans woman that isAs opposed ...
    RedlineBy Admin
    6 days ago
  • More Māori words make it into the OED, and polytech boss (with rules on words like “students”) ...
    Buzz from the Beehive   New Zealand Education Minister Jan Tinetti is hosting the inaugural Conference of Pacific Education Ministers for three days from today, welcoming Education Ministers and senior officials from 18 Pacific Island countries and territories, and from Australia. Here’s hoping they have brought translators with them – or ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Social intercourse with haters and Nazis: an etiquette guide
    Let’s say you’ve come all the way from His Majesty’s United Kingdom to share with the folk of Australia and New Zealand your antipathy towards certain other human beings. And let’s say you call yourself a women’s rights activist.And let’s say 99 out of 100 people who listen to you ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago
  • The Greens, Labour, and coalition enforcement
    James Shaw gave the Green party's annual "state of the planet" address over the weekend, in which he expressed frustration with Labour for not doing enough on climate change. His solution is to elect more Green MPs, so they have more power within any government arrangement, and can hold Labour ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago
  • This sounds familiar…
    RNZ this morning has the first story another investigative series by Guyon Espiner, this time into political lobbying. The first story focuses on lobbying by government agencies, specifically transpower, Pharmac, and assorted universities, and how they use lobbyists to manipulate public opinion and gather intelligence on the Ministers who oversee ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago
  • Letter to the NZ Herald: NCEA pseudoscience – “Mauri is present in all matter”
    Nick Matzke writes –   Dear NZ Herald, I am a Senior Lecturer in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Auckland. I teach evolutionary biology, but I also have long experience in science education and (especially) political attempts to insert pseudoscience into science curricula in ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • So what would be the point of a Green vote again?
    James Shaw has again said the Greens would be better ‘in the tent’ with Labour than out, despite Labour’s policy bonfire last week torching much of what the Government was doing to reduce emissions. File Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The Green Party has never been more popular than in some ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • Gas stoves pose health risks. Are gas furnaces and other appliances safe to use?
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sarah Wesseler Poor air quality is a long-standing problem in Los Angeles, where the first major outbreak of smog during World War II was so intense that some residents thought the city had been attacked by chemical weapons. Cars were eventually discovered ...
    6 days ago
  • Genetic Heritage and Co Governance
    Yesterday I was reading an excellent newsletter from David Slack, and I started writing a comment “Sounds like some excellent genetic heritage…” and then I stopped.There was something about the phrase genetic heritage that stopped me in tracks. Is that a phrase I want to be saying? It’s kind of ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago
  • BRIAN EASTON: Radical Uncertainty
    Brian Easton writes – Two senior economists challenge some of the foundations of current economics. It is easy to criticise economic science by misrepresenting it, by selective quotations, and by ignoring that it progresses, like all sciences, by improving and abandoning old theories. The critics may go ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: New Zealand’s Middle East strategy, 20 years after the Iraq War
    This week marks the twentieth anniversary of the Iraq War. While it strongly opposed the US-led invasion, New Zealand’s then Labour-led government led by Prime Minister Helen Clark did deploy military engineers to try to help rebuild Iraq in mid-2003. With violence soaring, their 12-month deployment ended without being renewed ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    6 days ago
  • The motorways are finished
    After seventy years, Auckland’s motorway network is finally finished. In July 1953 the first section of motorway in Auckland was opened between Ellerslie-Panmure Highway and Mt Wellington Highway. The final stage opens to traffic this week with the completion of the motorway part of the Northern Corridor Improvements project. Aucklanders ...
    6 days ago
  • Kicking National’s tyres
    National’s appointment of Todd McClay as Agriculture spokesperson clearly signals that the party is in trouble with the farming vote. McClay was not an obvious choice, but he does have a record as a political scrapper. The party needs that because sources say it has been shedding farming votes ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    6 days ago
  • As long as there is cricket, the world is somehow okay.
    Rays of white light come flooding into my lounge, into my face from over the top of my neighbour’s hedge. I have to look away as the window of the conservatory is awash in light, as if you were driving towards the sun after a rain shower and suddenly blinded. ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • So much of what was there remains
    The columnists in Private Eye take pen names, so I have not the least idea who any of them are. But I greatly appreciate their expert insight, especially MD, who writes the medical column, offering informed and often damning critique of the UK health system and the politicians who keep ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago
  • 2023 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A chronological listing of news articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Mar 12, 2023 thru Sat, Mar 18, 2023. Story of the Week Guest post: What 13,500 citations reveal about the IPCC’s climate science report   IPCC WG1 AR6 SPM Report Cover - Changing ...
    1 week ago
  • Financial capability services are being bucked up, but Stuart Nash shouldn’t have to see if they c...
    Buzz from the Beehive  The building of financial capability was brought into our considerations when Social Development and Employment Minister Carmel Sepuloni announced she had dipped into the government’s coffers for $3 million for “providers” to help people and families access community-based Building Financial Capability services. That wording suggests some ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 week ago
  • Things that make you go Hmmmm.
    Do you ever come across something that makes you go Hmmmm?You mean like the song?No, I wasn’t thinking of the song, but I am now - thanks for that. I was thinking of things you read or hear that make you stop and go Hmmmm.Yeah, I know what you mean, ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • The hoon for the week that was to March 19
    By the end of the week, the dramas over Stuart Nash overshadowed Hipkins’ policy bonfire. File photo: Lynn GrieveasonTLDR: This week’s news in geopolitics and the political economy covered on The Kākā included:PM Chris Hipkins’ announcement of the rest of a policy bonfire to save a combined $1.7 billion, but ...
    The KakaBy Peter Bale
    1 week ago

  • Crown apology to Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairarapa Tāmaki nui-a-Rua
    Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations Minister Andrew Little has delivered the Crown apology to Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairarapa Tāmaki nui-a-Rua for its historic breaches of Te Tiriti of Waitangi today. The ceremony was held at Queen Elizabeth Park in Masterton, hosted by Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairarapa Tāmaki nui-a-Rua, with several hundred ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Minister of Foreign Affairs meets with Chinese counterpart
    Minister of Foreign Affairs Nanaia Mahuta has concluded her visit to China, the first by a New Zealand Foreign Minister since 2018. The Minister met her counterpart, newly appointed State Councilor and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Qin Gang, who also hosted a working dinner. This was the first engagement between the two ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Government delivering world-class satellite positioning services
    World-class satellite positioning services that will support much safer search and rescue, boost precision farming, and help safety on construction sites through greater accuracy are a significant step closer today, says Land Information Minister Damien O’Connor. Damien O’Connor marked the start of construction on New Zealand’s first uplink centre for ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • District Court Judges appointed
    Attorney-General David Parker has announced the appointment of Christopher John Dellabarca of Wellington, Dr Katie Jane Elkin of Wellington, Caroline Mary Hickman of Napier, Ngaroma Tahana of Rotorua, Tania Rose Williams Blyth of Hamilton and Nicola Jan Wills of Wellington as District Court Judges.  Chris Dellabarca Mr Dellabarca commenced his ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • New project set to supercharge ocean economy in Nelson Tasman
    A new Government-backed project will help ocean-related businesses in the Nelson Tasman region to accelerate their growth and boost jobs. “The Nelson Tasman region is home to more than 400 blue economy businesses, accounting for more than 30 percent of New Zealand’s economic activity in fishing, aquaculture, and seafood processing,” ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • National’s education policy: where’s the funding?
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