Some men just want to see the World burn

Written By: - Date published: 8:24 am, November 12th, 2020 - 58 comments
Categories: Donald Trump, politicans, uncategorized, us politics - Tags: ,

Normally when you lose an election you say nice things about the winner and make way for them.

But is Trump doing this in the US of A? No sirree.

The last thing that was seen of him publicly was his playing golf as the election result was finally called by media.  How appropriate.

But yesterday was rather disturbing.  The election result is pretty clear.  For Biden to lose there would have to be significant upheavals in a number of States’s results.   The convention is that the existing regime makes sure that Biden and Harris have sufficient resources to start putting their team together and getting ready to lead.

But something happened.  Like everything imaginable.

The funding for Biden to start to prepare has not been released and Biden has had to seek private donations to support organising the transition.  I cannot imagine anything more petty, obstructive or destructive of America’s interests.  Why am I not surprised.  From Gene Maddaus at Variety:

Major donors to President-elect Joe Biden’s campaign are being asked this week to contribute to his transition effort, as the Trump administration has refused to turn over millions in federal funding.

The Biden-Harris transition is holding a Zoom event for donors on Thursday with Evan Ryan, a Biden adviser and former assistant secretary of state. Donors are being asked to contribute $5,000, the legal maximum.

Chris Korge, national finance chair for the Democratic National Committee, and Heather Murren, finance chair of the Biden campaign, sent an email on Monday to donors thanking them for their help in getting Biden elected.

“Unfortunately what we have seen from President Trump since he clearly and undisputably lost his bid for reelection as President of the United States is nothing less than total obstruction,” they wrote. “He has refused to accept defeat like Hillary Clinton, Mitt Romney, John McCain, John Kerry, Al Gore and every other person who has lost the race for president in our lifetime. To make matters worse the Trump administration has also refused to date to give the Biden Harris Transition Team the federal dollars that are supposed to be given for the transition. Quite frankly this is just flat out WRONG and the American people will be the big losers if we don’t immediately step up and do something about it!”

As if this was not enough the Trump White House has instructed senior Government leaders not to cooperate.  From the Washington Post:

The Trump White House on Monday instructed senior government leaders to block cooperation with President-elect Joe Biden’s transition team, escalating a standoff that threatens to impede the transfer of power and prompting the Biden team to consider legal action.

Officials at agencies across the government who had prepared briefing books and carved out office space for the incoming Biden team to use as soon as this week were told instead that the transition would not be recognized until the Democrat’s election was confirmed by the General Services Administration, the low-profile agency that officially starts the transition.

While media outlets on Saturday projected Biden as the winner, President Trump has not conceded the election.

“We have been told: Ignore the media, wait for it to be official from the government,” said a senior administration official, who like others spoke on the condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to speak publicly.

Of even more concern is the firing of the Defense Secretary Mark Esper as well as a number of senior Defense officials. From CNN:

The Trump administration has carried out sweeping changes atop the Defense Department’s civilian leadership structure, removing several of its most senior officials and replacing them with perceived loyalists to the President.

The flurry of changes, announced by the Department of Defense in a statement roughly 24 hours after President Donald Trump fired Defense Secretary Mark Esper, have put officials inside the Pentagon on edge and fueled a growing sense of alarm among military and civilian officials, who are concerned about what could come next.

Four senior civilian officials have been fired or have resigned since Monday, including Esper, his chief of staff and the top officials overseeing policy and intelligence. They were replaced by perceived Trump loyalists, including a controversial figure who promoted fringe conspiracy theories and called former President Barack Obama a terrorist.

A senior defense official told CNN late Tuesday that “it appears we are done with the beheadings for now,” referring to the wave of ousted civilian leaders, including Esper.

Esper’s crime?  Resisting the deployment of troops on US streets to oppose Black Lives Matter protesters.  The reasons offered for these changes could be anything from spiting Biden to ensuring that Trump can return all soldiers from Afghanistan before he leaves to getting the Military ready to handle protests should Trump stay.  These are dark times …

Meanwhile in Court Trump’s voter fraud theatrics are not working.  As various cases are heard they are being shown up as lacking that one particular feature which is pretty important, hard evidence.

It is not as if Trump is a stranger to legal matters.  USA Today estimated in 2016 that Trump or Trump entities had been involved in 3,500 law suits, everything from conventional real estate litigation to settling fraud claims relating to Trump University or paying off a porn star.  From the USA Today article:

As he campaigns, Trump often touts his skills as a negotiator. The analysis shows that lawsuits are one of his primary negotiating tools. He turns to litigation to distance himself from failing projects that relied on the Trump brand to secure investments. As USA TODAY previously reported, he also uses the legal system to haggle over his property tax bills. His companies have been involved in more than 100 tax disputes, and the New York State Department of Finance has obtained liens on Trump properties for unpaid tax bills at least three dozen times.

The latest batch of litigation has not gone well with Trump 0-6 so far.  From the Murdoch owned Washington Post:

Since Election Day, President Trump has repeatedly claimed that a broad conspiracy of misdeeds — apparently committed in both Republican and Democratic states — had cost him the election.

“WATCH FOR MASSIVE BALLOT COUNTING ABUSE,” Trump tweeted Tuesday, the latest in a series of missives in which he has made misleading claims about the vote. Trump’s campaign has encouraged donors to contribute to a legal-defense fund so he can fight the cases in court.

But in the lawsuits themselves, even Trump’s campaign and allies do not allege widespread fraud or an election-changing conspiracy.

Instead, GOP groups for the most part have focused on smaller-bore complaints in an effort to delay the counting of ballots or claims that would affect a small fraction of votes, at best.

And, even then, they have largely lost in court.

The reason: Judges have said the Republicans did not provide evidence to back up their assertions — just speculation, rumors or hearsay. Or in one case, hearsay written on a sticky note.

The cases have been bizarre, like the claim that Republican observers had been barred from witnessing the vote count in Philadelphia which suffered from the fatal flaw that this was not actually true.  Again from the Washington Post:

Republican observers were there, after all. Trump had “a nonzero number of people in the room,” one of his attorneys conceded in federal court Thursday evening.

“I’m sorry, then what’s your problem?” asked U.S. District Judge Paul S. Diamond, who denied the request to halt the count.

And to top off the sense of foreboding Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said publicly that there will be a smooth transition to a second Trump administration.  He may have been joking.  Time will tell.

The only rational conclusion I can draw from all that is happening is this:

58 comments on “Some men just want to see the World burn ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. Tricledrown 1
    12 November 2020 at 8:37 am

    Trump is a spoilt entitled brat money = power and power corrupts absolute power = more corruption.

    Trump knows this so he is sending a message to all the prosecutors lining up when he leaves office that he is going to make as difficult as possible.

    People as powerful as Trump don't face the consequences of their actions as every day people ,That's why he gets away with predatory sexual behaviour,Tax fraud,treason,associating with the mafias.

  2. Ad 2
    12 November 2020 at 8:40 am

    There's plenty who still call for revolution from the hard left.

    But the revolution is already here from the right. Trump is but one name for it.

    The result is chaos and anomie – no matter who does it.

    The golfers who finished their round while a forest burned - BBC Culture

    Small countries, weaker groups in society, the poorer, the small business owner, the renter: these are the things that need rules that the rest of society abide by. They are rules that only states banding together can sustain.

    The super-rich don't need order; they game crisis. Nor do the top handful of countries. They make the rules. Witness China crushing Hong Kong's Parliament yesterday through arrests.

    As Robert Putnam argued recently, small and non-aligned states need to work harder together if a rules-based order to the world is to survive.

    And Prime Minister Ardern has a place to play in that if she can start conceiving of New Zealand as less a minor state and more a small power with Pacific influence.

    This chaos about to hit the United States over two months needs voices of conscience from good states to stand up and be heard loud.

    • Anne 2.1
      12 November 2020 at 9:57 am

      And Prime Minister Ardern has a place to play in that if she can start conceiving of New Zealand as less a minor state and more a small power with Pacific influence.

      Actually its my perception that is exactly what she is doing. For example, only yesterday she made it clear that any decisions on a Covid vaccine would take into account the needs of our Pacific neighbours.

      Yes, it is time for the good states to stand up and be heard aloud. Too much bowing and scraping towards the current regime and a scaredy-cat attitude has allowed the US situation to deteriorate to an alarming level.

      It's also time for other western governments to do likewise because the antics of Trump and his lackeys affects all of us and will continue to do so if they are not reined in.

      • Ad 2.1.1
        12 November 2020 at 11:37 am

        She's required to take into account New Zealand Realm countries.

        Remember in the previous term she stood in the UN and made some actual global noise?

        Now's the time to start again.

    • SPC 2.2
      12 November 2020 at 10:30 am

      The US of A is not a democracy – but an order of rule over the people. A constitutional republic.

      The GOP takes this to heart, it regards popular democracy as a form of socialism, something to be suppresssed. They probably view the increased voter turnout with alarm, so we can expect to see them leverage Trump's charges to obstruct future voting.

  3. Dennis Frank 3
    12 November 2020 at 8:42 am

    Remember that Trump got elected on an anti-establishment platform four years ago. No surprise that he keeps recycling that stance. Time to moderate was mid-term but he surprised me by not being that sensible. He's likely to tough it out now.

    So the question is the extent to which the establishment permits his stone-walling. If the Republicans stay onside & litigate to the max with him, that will test the resilience of the establishment. Believers of the principles of democracy will be sidelined by those who think democracy is won by whoever games the system best.

    So you, as a lawyer, wonder why he's using his lawyers now. You feel he ought to defer to convention and admit defeat already. That's not in his nature. He self-identified as a winner by being unconventional long ago & too late to stop now. He's providing us with excellent case analysis of why political psychology is a key frame to use.

    • Tricledrown 3.1
      12 November 2020 at 8:57 am

      The republicans can't afford to be negative like Trump as there are 2 Senate seats up for grabs in run offs in Georgia.

      Bob Dylan the rich man who does a crime he does no time.

  4. Andre 4
    12 November 2020 at 8:44 am

    Err, WaPo is owned by Bezos, not Murdoch. Which is the probable basis for The $750 Man's vendetta against Amazon.

    [Right you are Andre. Now corrected – MS]

    • SPC 4.1
      12 November 2020 at 10:17 am

      And the goon hired by Trump to run down the US mail service, his original job was to reduce the speed of delivery for Amazon.

  5. Stephen D 5
    12 November 2020 at 9:34 am

    https://mailchi.mp/85e0495769d8/bulletin-world-weekly-a-weather-report-for-the-world-2458370?e=4d18001d77

    This week in dystopia – or the United States of America

    Coup or conniption? That’s the question over Donald Trump replacing the civilian leadership of the Pentagon as he pushes the idea a “rigged” election robbed him of a second term.

    A historian of totalitarianism at Yale, Timothy Snyder, went there this week, tweeting: ‘What Donald Trump is attempting to do has a name: coup d'état. Poorly organized though it might seem, it is not bound to fail. It must be made to fail.’

  6. greywarshark 6
    12 November 2020 at 10:24 am

    A Radionz report.

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/checkpoint/audio/2018772375/what-powers-does-trump-still-have-us-law-expert-explains

    What powers does Trump still have? US law expert explains
    University of Wisconsin-Madison law school professor Robert Yablon told Checkpoint that Trump has the same power he always has had as president and can do what he wants, “within the standard bounds of the US Constitution and the law”.

    "… but in terms of running the government, issuing executive orders, issuing pardons, any of that kind of thing. He can do the day after the election what he could do the day before the election.

    "Executive orders can be fairly significant. The president has quite a bit of leeway to act unilaterally. When we're creating law in the United States, Congress needs to be involved. But the president, in the interstices of the law, can do a lot to direct how the government functions….

    "By law in the United States, there is a presidential transition process. Now, the current president has to facilitate that process and so far President Trump has refused to do so.

    "But normally as soon as the election is over the incoming president will form a transition team. That transition team will have access to the existing government and this is meant to facilitate a smooth transfer of power, so we do have that legal device.

  7. woodart 7
    12 November 2020 at 11:11 am

    maybe some on this site forget piggy muldoon doing the same sort of thing.

  8. Andre 8
    12 November 2020 at 12:48 pm

    If you're looking for rational explanations for the refusal to concede, well, conceding would cut off one of the grifts he's currently got going. As always, follow the money.

    He's duping his cultists to donate to a PAC called Save America, which is being sold as fighting against fraud in this election. But the fine print says most of the money is going elsewhere, basically to a CovidCamacho slush fund.

    Save America, however, gets an early cut of the funds raised. The fine print shows that 60% of the funds go first to Save America — up to the $5,000 legal donation limit — and then to the Trump campaign's recount account. Forty percent will go to the Republican National Committee's operating account.

    Campaign finance experts say Trump is engaging in a bait-and-switch tactic with his supporters.

    "He's saying that he needs donors' money for election-challenge litigation, but he's putting the money into an account to be used for his political future," said Paul Ryan, the vice president for policy and litigation at Common Cause.

    […]

    The rules on spending by leadership PACs also are far more relaxed than those for campaign committees and do not restrict politicians from using donors' funds for personal expenses — a use forbidden in a presidential campaign account.

    "Leadership PACs are notoriously abused by politicians as slush funds without violating any laws," Ryan said.

    https://edition.cnn.com/2020/11/10/politics/donald-trump-leadership-pac-republicans/index.html

    https://time.com/5910426/donald-trump-fights-election-results/

    • Dennis Frank 8.1
      12 November 2020 at 3:26 pm

      Yes, I saw news of that con too. Implementation of the Barnum theory (one born every minute). Rational self-interest perhaps, however clinging to power if no viable evidence of electoral fraud is available to fuel court cases isn't rational.

      Incidentally I reported the Georgia recount decision on OM whereas I probably ought to have put it here. It's due to Republican infighting.

    • mickysavage 8.2
      12 November 2020 at 7:42 pm

      Fark that is such a brutal comment but with the background so accurate …

  9. velcro 9
    12 November 2020 at 1:17 pm

    Its very clear there was industrial scale electoral fraud – sufficient to swing the result in Trump's favour. He is perfectly entitled to legally challenge the vote in the key swing states. After all, Al Gore did against Bush. Having said that, the legal hurdles are very high, and personally I don't think Trump will be successful. Just have patience and stop wild suppositions – it will work out in Biden's favour in due course

    • Andre 9.1
      12 November 2020 at 1:35 pm

      It's not that the hurdles are high, particularly for cases in front of a Repug judge. It's that even the most partisan judges still need a teeny-tiny bit of evidence to hang a prejudgement onto, and precisely zero evidence for dodgy votes, or dodgy vote processing and counting, has been forthcoming. Except for a couple of Repug munters, one of whom tried to submit a ballot for his dead mother IIRC.

      Because even though judges get lifetime appointments, they're still subject to impeachment. And handing down an electorally significant judgement with absolutely no evidence to back it up would certainly be grounds for impeachment.

  10. ianmac 10
    12 November 2020 at 2:38 pm

    The Inquiry into the 9/11 attack found that a major problem was that the long delay in settling the 2000 Election meant that the Transition being halted, caused big gaps in US security. There wasn't a proper connection between those who knew stuff and the ones who were supposed to be finding out and dealing to threats.

    Now the Federal funds have been with-held and the lack of exchange of info again poses the threat of another 9/11.

  11. Gyrogearloose 11
    12 November 2020 at 5:22 pm

    Since the democrats and MSM are so adamant there was no fraud in the election process they should move fully to support Trumps efforts to find any….

    Going hard out trying to play down any irregularities plays into trumps hands…

    Like Twitter and MSM trying to censor the Hunter Biden hard drive revelations, it just made them look guilty and enraged Trump supporters.

    • Andre 11.1
      12 November 2020 at 5:51 pm

      Nobody is trying to play down any irregularities or impede idiot Repug efforts to take their allegations to court.

      Quite the contrary. The sooner the allegations get to court, the sooner a Repug lawyer has to admit in front of a judge there is zero evidence for the allegation, and admit they are just blowing smoke and wasting everybody's time.

      Nobody censored the allegations around Hunter Biden's hard drive. The allegations were looked into, and were concluded to be a laughably inept attempt at a smear by bumbling idiot Palputin stooges (ie Ghouliani and Bannon) after Ghouliani refused to provide copies for anyone else to examine.

      Even funnier, even if the worst allegations (which have zero credibility, remember) were taken completely at face value, they didn't show anything dodgy on Joe Biden's part. They merely allegedly showed what everybody already knew – that Hunter sometimes traded on his surname for easy money and didn't actually deliver anything in return.

      https://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2020/10/the-media-has-not-ignored-the-hunter-biden-story/

      • mickysavage 11.1.1
        12 November 2020 at 7:46 pm

        "Quite the contrary. The sooner the allegations get to court, the sooner a Repug lawyer has to admit in front of a judge there is zero evidence for the allegation, and admit they are just blowing smoke and wasting everybody's time."

        I dream of these sorts of cases in court. If it was a local Court with local Judges they would hand you your arse on a plate and tell you to stop wasting their time.

        • Dennis Frank 11.1.1.1
          12 November 2020 at 7:59 pm

          You might like the legal manoeuvres explored here: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/nov/11/can-donald-trump-stay-in-office-second-term-president-coup

          “There will be a smooth transition to a second Trump administration,” Mike Pompeo, the secretary of state, said on Tuesday.

          Just joking? So the

          certification timeline is important because federal law says that as long as election results are finalized by 8 December this year, the result is “conclusive”. That provides a safeguard against Congress, which is responsible for counting the electoral college votes, from second-guessing election results. By dragging out the process, the Trump campaign may be seeking to blow past that deadline and create more wiggle room to second-guess the results.

          Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Nevada all have Democratic governors who would refuse to approve a set of Trump electors with the popular vote clearly showing Biden winning their state. Instead, they would submit the electors Biden is entitled to as the winner of the popular vote.

          It would then fall to Congress, which is charged with counting the votes from the electoral college, to decide what to do. The law that outlines the process for how Congress should handle a dispute in electors from a state is extremely confusing, but experts believe the slate backed by a state’s governor is the legally sound one. There is a rival theory that the president of the Senate, Mike Pence, could have control over the process. A dispute over electors between the US House and Senate is a worst-case scenario and the US supreme court would probably be asked to step in.

      • Gyrogearloose 11.1.2
        13 November 2020 at 11:32 pm

        "Nobody censored the allegations around Hunter Biden's hard drive. The allegations were looked into, and were concluded to be a laughably inept attempt at a smear by bumbling idiot Palputin stooges"

        Guess you must live in one of those echo chambers…

        "Its the russians"…….. what more to say….

        NZ msm media shows similar biases as USA msm

        From your link " should be confirmed before they’re splashed on the front page. "

        I guess The Washington post never got the memo…. and wrote an arricle with headline

        "Postal worker recanted allegations of ballot tampering"

        In reply to that headline this was published

        "Veritas posted a video of Hopkins explicitly saying "I do not recant."

        Hmmmmm……

        Read from both the MSM and the alternative media, and somewhere between is more likely where the true story lies.

        [Fixed typo in user name]

        • Macro 11.1.2.1
          14 November 2020 at 7:56 am

          Guess you must live in one of those echo chambers…

          And you're not??

          • Gyrogearloose 11.1.2.1.1
            14 November 2020 at 12:59 pm

            What echo chamber am I supposedly in?

            Does my questioning of the 'its Russia' narrative make you belive I live in an echo chamber.

            If so, how ironic as I see blaming Russia as proof you live in an ech chamber.

            If not how am i in an echo chamber.

            Please let me know as I am philosophically against echo chambers, and if I could not see I was in one I would like to know.

            • Incognito 11.1.2.1.1.1
              14 November 2020 at 1:32 pm

              How would we know? How could we tell?

              Interestingly, the only two times you linked here were to the same site that is not known for being un-biased, balanced, non-partisan, or politically neutral and objective. What is that telling us?

              • Gyrogearloose …
                14 November 2020 at 9:54 pm

                Yes I read zerohedge.

                Yes it has clear biases in the opposite direction, and some of the articles come across as pure conspiracy theory.

                And sometimes articles in the msm are pure bulshit.

                Is the motherjones.com website linked by Andre is given as example objectivity?

                As i specifically mentioned, I read both msm and alternative…..

            • Macro 11.1.2.1.1.2
              14 November 2020 at 2:17 pm

              Well, some one on this thread keeps repeating the phrase "it's Russia". And it's not me, and it's not Andre, and it's not incognito. So someone who claims to be "philosophically opposed to echo chambers" continues to echo an accusation that no one else on here has made.

              BTW, Hunter Biden was in Ukraine not Russia.

              • Gyrogearloose …
                14 November 2020 at 9:36 pm

                Quote Andre "laughably inept attempt at a smear by bumbling idiot Palputin stooges"

                I read that as 'its tussian interfretence"

                If it is something else please explain what it was supposed to mean.

                • Andre …
                  15 November 2020 at 7:09 am

                  "Palputin" refers to the rotting halloween pumpkin currently rage-tweeting with stubby thumbs from the White Supremacist House.

                  Of the hundreds of nicknames I could have used, choosing that one was bait to draw out your background views on some of the various disinformation efforts flying around. The way you took the bait successfully clarified that for me, thank you.

    • Andre 11.2
      12 November 2020 at 6:40 pm

      BTW, if anyone's interested in a brief summary of the various lawsuits, Associated Press has put together a good one:

      https://apnews.com/article/ap-explains-fail-prove-election-fraud-d0f13ae6ca370c8716706d3f7d85659e

    • joe90 11.3
      12 November 2020 at 6:57 pm

      When you've lost Bush's brain…

      https://twitter.com/CNN/status/1326726533491412993

      edit: and you’re too toxic to handle..

      The largest law firm representing the Trump campaign or its allies in post-election litigation challenging votes in key states has withdrawn from an election lawsuit in Maricopa County, Arizona.

      Associate Presiding Civil Judge Daniel Kiley on Tuesday granted Snell & Wilmer’s request to withdraw as counsel of record for the Republican National Committee. The RNC had teamed-up with the Trump campaign and the Arizona Republican Party in the case, which alleges that Maricopa County incorrectly rejected some votes cast on Election Day.
      https://www.reuters.com/article/snell-maricopa-idUSL1N2HY005

    • Dick Michaels 11.4
      12 November 2020 at 8:01 pm

      Ironic that it's now the right exposing election irregularities and fighting for democracy, while the left couldn't care less and just wants to install their new dictator.

      • Stuart Munro 11.4.1
        12 November 2020 at 11:43 pm

        Nothing ironic about systematic fraud.

        And the Right never have and never will fight for democracy.

      • Wensleydale 11.4.2
        13 November 2020 at 1:38 am

        You kind of have to 'prove' the alleged irregularities though. That's the crux of the matter. They've yet to produce any evidence that hasn't been laughed out of a courtroom. It's all crap someone's cousin's neighbour's dog-walker's best friend read on Facebook. Meanwhile, the Orange Toddler continues skulking about the White House, randomly firing people he feels aren't sufficiently loyal. He's finally discovered what it's like to be told "No!", and his malignant narcissism impedes his ability to accept it.

  12. Maurice 12
    13 November 2020 at 4:11 am

    "Light touchpaper"

    "Stand well clear"

    70 million rednecks with Pickup Trucks may attend the inauguration …. but will they have their guns with them?

    • Velcro 12.1
      14 November 2020 at 8:27 am

      Virtually all the rioting and mayhem so far has been from the left – Antifa, BLM and the like. So far your 'rednecks' have been pretty restrained. And if Biden had won fair and square they would continue to be so

      • NZJester 12.1.1
        14 November 2020 at 2:40 pm

        So running over people with vehicles and shooting people is "pretty restrained"?

        Did you know that Antifa is just a shortened form of the words "Anti Fascist". If you are not Anti Fascist then you are one. The only formal Antifa organization was the Allies during WW2 who fought against them.

        Antifa = Anti Nazi / Anti Neo Nazi.

        Most of the so called rioting and mayhem was declared that by the police while peaceful demonstrations where taking place and only became violent after the police started shooting tear-gas and rubber bullets. And most of that violence was by the police themselves.

  13. Velcro 13
    21 November 2020 at 8:10 am

    In their violent tactics against anyone who remotely disagrees with their extremist views Antifa resembles nothing so much as the Nazi Brownshirts. No big surprise there, national socialism and communism are just two sides of the same totalitarian coin – controlling the populace through intimidation, lies and brainwashing. Socialism used to be the Kinder version of communism. Today, as the cancel culture demonstrates – not so much.

    the two tragic incidents you refer to have back details which you should familiarise yourself with, which put a different perspective on them than that which you are trying to impose. They were sad individual events, and in no way counterbalance the indiscriminate mob violence of Antifa and BLM

    • joe90 13.1
      21 November 2020 at 8:31 am

      Antifa resembles nothing so much as the Nazi Brownshirts

      And self titled patriots resemble nothing so much as the barbaric Daesh.

      New filings claim there was a Plan B the militiamen had drawn up, that involved a takeover of the Michigan capitol building by 200 combatants who would stage a week-long series of televised executions of public officials.

      And, according to government documents now on file in lower Michigan court, there was also a Plan C — burning down the state house, leaving no survivors.

      […]

      Despite the violent nature of the charges, including an alleged plan to hold a mock treason trial for the governor of Michigan once she was kidnapped, several of the defendants have had bond reductions and are now free.

      https://abc7chicago.com/michigan-governor-gretchen-whitmer-kidnapping-plot-militia/8079861/

  14. Velcro 14
    21 November 2020 at 8:44 am

    The plot never occurred – it was foiled by the FBI. The anti government anarchists concerned were most akin to parts of the BLM movement

    • joe90 14.1
      21 November 2020 at 9:02 am

      Foiled or not, their motives were clear. At least four of the 13 suspects had turned up at the state capitol armed with AR-15s in an attempt to intimidate the state legislature and the Governor. When that failed, they escalated by plotting to emulate the murderous thugs they admired. And your attempt to minimise their actions leads one to think that you agree with them.

      btw, use the fucking reply function.

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    Buzz from the Beehive A few days ago, Point of Order suggested the media must be musing “on why Melissa is mute”. Our article reported that people working in the beleaguered media industry have cause to yearn for a minister as busy as Melissa Lee’s ministerial colleagues and we drew ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    7 hours ago

  • New Zealand has never been closed for business
    1. What was The Curse of Jim Bolger?a. Winston Peters b. Soon after shaking his hand, world leaders would mysteriously lose office or shuffle off this mortal coilc. Could never shake off the Mother of All Budgetsd. Dandruff2. True or false? The Chairman of a Kiwi export business has asked the ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    8 hours ago

  • Stop the panic – we’ve been here before
    Jack Vowles writes – New Zealand is said to be suffering from ‘serious populist discontent’. An IPSOS MORI survey has reported that we have an increasing preference for strong leaders, think that the economy is rigged toward the rich and powerful, and political elites are ignoring ‘hard-working people’.  ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    10 hours ago

  • Melissa Lee and the media: ending the quest
    Chris Trotter writes –  MELISSA LEE should be deprived of her ministerial warrant. Her handling – or non-handling – of the crisis engulfing the New Zealand news media has been woeful. The fate of New Zealand’s two linear television networks, a question which the Minister of Broadcasting, Communications ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    12 hours ago

  • The Hoon around the week to April 19
    TL;DR: The podcast above features co-hosts and , along with regular guests Robert Patman on Gaza and AUKUS II, and on climate change.The six things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    12 hours ago

  • The ‘Humpty Dumpty’ end result of dismantling our environmental protections
    Policymakers rarely wish to make plain or visible their desire to dismantle environmental policy, least of all to the young. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s the top five news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above between Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    12 hours ago

  • Nicola's Salad Days.
    I like to keep an eye on what’s happening in places like the UK, the US, and over the ditch with our good mates the Aussies. Let’s call them AUKUS, for want of a better collective term. More on that in a bit.It used to be, not long ago, that ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    13 hours ago

  • Study sees climate change baking in 19% lower global income by 2050
    TL;DR: The global economy will be one fifth smaller than it would have otherwise been in 2050 as a result of climate damage, according to a new study by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and published in the journal Nature. (See more detail and analysis below, and ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    14 hours ago

  • Weekly Roundup 19-April-2024
    It’s Friday again. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week on Greater Auckland On Tuesday Matt covered at the government looking into a long tunnel for Wellington. On Wednesday we ran a post from Oscar Simms on some lessons from Texas. AT’s ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    15 hours ago

  • Jack Vowles: Stop the panic – we’ve been here before
    New Zealand is said to be suffering from ‘serious populist discontent’. An IPSOS MORI survey has reported that we have an increasing preference for strong leaders, think that the economy is rigged toward the rich and powerful, and political elites are ignoring ‘hard-working people’.  The data is from February this ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    16 hours ago

  • Clearing up confusion (or trying to)
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters is understood to be planning a major speech within the next fortnight to clear up the confusion over whether or not New Zealand might join the AUKUS submarine project. So far, there have been conflicting signals from the Government. RNZ reported the Prime Minister yesterday in ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    18 hours ago

  • How to Retrieve Deleted Call Log iPhone Without Computer
    How to Retrieve Deleted Call Log on iPhone Without a Computer: A Step–by–Step Guide Losing your iPhone call history can be frustrating, especially when you need to find a specific number or recall an important conversation. But before you panic, know that there are ways to retrieve deleted call logs on your iPhone, even without a computer. This guide will explore various methods, ranging from simple checks to utilizing iCloud backups and third–party applications. So, let‘s dive in and recover those lost calls! 1. Check Recently Deleted Folder: Apple understands that accidental deletions happen. That‘s why they introduced the “Recently Deleted“ folder for various apps, including the Phone app. This folder acts as a safety net, storing deleted call logs for up to 30 days before permanently erasing them. Here‘s how to check it: Open the Phone app on your iPhone. Tap on the “Recents“ tab at the bottom. Scroll to the top and tap on “Edit“. Select “Show Recently Deleted“. Browse the list to find the call logs you want to recover. Tap on the desired call log and choose “Recover“ to restore it to your call history. 2. Restore from iCloud Backup: If you regularly back up your iPhone to iCloud, you might be able to retrieve your deleted call log from a previous backup. However, keep in mind that this process will restore your entire phone to the state it was in at the time of the backup, potentially erasing any data added since then. Here‘s how to restore from an iCloud backup: Go to Settings > General > Reset. Choose “Erase All Content and Settings“. Follow the on–screen instructions. Your iPhone will restart and show the initial setup screen. Choose “Restore from iCloud Backup“ during the setup process. Select the relevant backup that contains your deleted call log. Wait for the restoration process to complete. 3. Explore Third–Party Apps (with Caution): ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    19 hours ago

  • How to Factory Reset iPhone without Computer: A Comprehensive Guide to Restoring your Device
    Life throws curveballs, and sometimes, those curveballs necessitate wiping your iPhone clean and starting anew. Whether you’re facing persistent software glitches, preparing to sell your device, or simply wanting a fresh start, knowing how to factory reset iPhone without a computer is a valuable skill. While using a computer with ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    1 day ago

  • How to Call Someone on a Computer: A Guide to Voice and Video Communication in the Digital Age
    Gone are the days when communication was limited to landline phones and physical proximity. Today, computers have become powerful tools for connecting with people across the globe through voice and video calls. But with a plethora of applications and methods available, how to call someone on a computer might seem ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    1 day ago

  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #16 2024
    Open access notables Glacial isostatic adjustment reduces past and future Arctic subsea permafrost, Creel et al., Nature Communications: Sea-level rise submerges terrestrial permafrost in the Arctic, turning it into subsea permafrost. Subsea permafrost underlies ~ 1.8 million km2 of Arctic continental shelf, with thicknesses in places exceeding 700 m. Sea-level variations over glacial-interglacial cycles control ...
    Skeptical Science
    1 day ago

  • Where on a Computer is the Operating System Generally Stored? Delving into the Digital Home of your ...
    The operating system (OS) is the heart and soul of a computer, orchestrating every action and interaction between hardware and software. But have you ever wondered where on a computer is the operating system generally stored? The answer lies in the intricate dance between hardware and software components, particularly within ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    1 day ago

  • How Many Watts Does a Laptop Use? Understanding Power Consumption and Efficiency
    Laptops have become essential tools for work, entertainment, and communication, offering portability and functionality. However, with rising energy costs and growing environmental concerns, understanding a laptop’s power consumption is more important than ever. So, how many watts does a laptop use? The answer, unfortunately, isn’t straightforward. It depends on several ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    1 day ago

  • How to Screen Record on a Dell Laptop A Guide to Capturing Your Screen with Ease
    Screen recording has become an essential tool for various purposes, such as creating tutorials, capturing gameplay footage, recording online meetings, or sharing information with others. Fortunately, Dell laptops offer several built-in and external options for screen recording, catering to different needs and preferences. This guide will explore various methods on ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    1 day ago

  • How Much Does it Cost to Fix a Laptop Screen? Navigating Repair Options and Costs
    A cracked or damaged laptop screen can be a frustrating experience, impacting productivity and enjoyment. Fortunately, laptop screen repair is a common service offered by various repair shops and technicians. However, the cost of fixing a laptop screen can vary significantly depending on several factors. This article delves into the ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    1 day ago

  • How Long Do Gaming Laptops Last? Demystifying Lifespan and Maximizing Longevity
    Gaming laptops represent a significant investment for passionate gamers, offering portability and powerful performance for immersive gaming experiences. However, a common concern among potential buyers is their lifespan. Unlike desktop PCs, which allow for easier component upgrades, gaming laptops have inherent limitations due to their compact and integrated design. This ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    1 day ago

  • Climate Change: Turning the tide
    The annual inventory report of New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions has been released, showing that gross emissions have dropped for the third year in a row, to 78.4 million tons: All-told gross emissions have decreased by over 6 million tons since the Zero Carbon Act was passed in 2019. ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 day ago

  • How to Unlock Your Computer A Comprehensive Guide to Regaining Access
    Experiencing a locked computer can be frustrating, especially when you need access to your files and applications urgently. The methods to unlock your computer will vary depending on the specific situation and the type of lock you encounter. This guide will explore various scenarios and provide step-by-step instructions on how ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    1 day ago

  • Faxing from Your Computer A Modern Guide to Sending Documents Digitally
    While the world has largely transitioned to digital communication, faxing still holds relevance in certain industries and situations. Fortunately, gone are the days of bulky fax machines and dedicated phone lines. Today, you can easily send and receive faxes directly from your computer, offering a convenient and efficient way to ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    1 day ago

  • Protecting Your Home Computer A Guide to Cyber Awareness
    In our increasingly digital world, home computers have become essential tools for work, communication, entertainment, and more. However, this increased reliance on technology also exposes us to various cyber threats. Understanding these threats and taking proactive steps to protect your home computer is crucial for safeguarding your personal information, finances, ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    1 day ago

  • Server-Based Computing Powering the Modern Digital Landscape
    In the ever-evolving world of technology, server-based computing has emerged as a cornerstone of modern digital infrastructure. This article delves into the concept of server-based computing, exploring its various forms, benefits, challenges, and its impact on the way we work and interact with technology. Understanding Server-Based Computing: At its core, ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    1 day ago

  • Vroom vroom go the big red trucks
    The absolute brass neck of this guy.We want more medical doctors, not more spin doctors, Luxon was saying a couple of weeks ago, and now we’re told the guy has seven salaried adults on TikTok duty. Sorry, doing social media. The absolute brass neck of it. The irony that the ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 day ago

  • Jones finds $410,000 to help the government muscle in on a spat project
    Buzz from the Beehive Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones relishes spatting and eagerly takes issue with environmentalists who criticise his enthusiasm for resource development. He relishes helping the fishing industry too. And so today, while the media are making much of the latest culling in the public service to ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago

  • Again, hate crimes are not necessarily terrorism.
    Having written, taught and worked for the US government on issues involving unconventional warfare and terrorism for 30-odd years, two things irritate me the most when the subject is discussed in public. The first is the Johnny-come-lately academics-turned-media commentators who … Continue reading → ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    1 day ago

  • Despair – construction consenting edition
    Eric Crampton writes – Kainga Ora is the government’s house building agency. It’s been building a lot of social housing. Kainga Ora has its own (but independent) consenting authority, Consentium. It’s a neat idea. Rather than have to deal with building consents across each different territorial authority, Kainga Ora ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago

  • Coalition promises – will the Govt keep the commitment to keep Kiwis equal before the law?
    Muriel Newman writes – The Coalition Government says it is moving with speed to deliver campaign promises and reverse the damage done by Labour. One of their key commitments is to “defend the principle that New Zealanders are equal before the law.” To achieve this, they have pledged they “will not advance ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago

  • An impermanent public service is a guarantee of very little else but failure
    Chris Trotter writes –  The absence of anything resembling a fightback from the public servants currently losing their jobs is interesting. State-sector workers’ collective fatalism in the face of Coalition cutbacks indicates a surprisingly broad acceptance of impermanence in the workplace. Fifty years ago, lay-offs in the thousands ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago

  • What happens after the war – Mariupol
    Mariupol, on the Azov Sea coast, was one of the first cities to suffer almost complete destruction after the start of the Ukraine War started in late February 2022. We remember the scenes of absolute destruction of the houses and city structures. The deaths of innocent civilians – many of ...
    Open ParachuteBy Ken
    1 day ago

  • Babies and benefits – no good news
    Lindsay Mitchell writes – Ten years ago, I wrote the following in a Listener column: Every year around one in five new-born babies will be reliant on their caregivers benefit by Christmas. This pattern has persisted from at least 1993. For Maori the number jumps to over one in three.  ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • Should the RBNZ be looking through climate inflation?
    Climate change is expected to generate more and more extreme events, delivering a sort of structural shock to inflation that central banks will have to react to as if they were short-term cyclical issues. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago

  • Bernard's pick 'n' mix of the news links
    The top six news links I’ve seen elsewhere in the last 24 hours, as of 9:16 am on Thursday, April 18 are:Housing: Tauranga residents living in boats, vans RNZ Checkpoint Louise TernouthHousing: Waikato councillor says wastewater plant issues could hold up Sleepyhead building a massive company town Waikato Times Stephen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on the public sector carnage, and misogyny as terrorism
    It’s a simple deal. We pay taxes in order to finance the social services we want and need. The carnage now occurring across the public sector though, is breaking that contract. Over 3,000 jobs have been lost so far. Many are in crucial areas like Education where the impact of ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    2 days ago

  • Meeting the Master Baiters
    Hi,A friend had their 40th over the weekend and decided to theme it after Curb Your Enthusiasm fashion icon Susie Greene. Captured in my tiny kitchen before I left the house, I ending up evoking a mix of old lesbian and Hillary Clinton — both unintentional.Me vs Hillary ClintonIf you’re ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    2 days ago

  • How extreme was the Earth's temperature in 2023
    This is a re-post from Andrew Dessler at the Climate Brink blog In 2023, the Earth reached temperature levels unprecedented in modern times. Given that, it’s reasonable to ask: What’s going on? There’s been lots of discussions by scientists about whether this is just the normal progression of global warming or if something ...
    Skeptical Science
    2 days ago

  • Backbone, revisited
    The schools are on holiday and the sun is shining in the seaside village and all day long I have been seeing bunches of bikes; Mums, Dads, teens and toddlers chattering, laughing, happy, having a bloody great time together. Cheers, AT, for the bits of lane you’ve added lately around the ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago

  • Ministers are not above the law
    Today in our National-led authoritarian nightmare: Shane Jones thinks Ministers should be above the law: New Zealand First MP Shane Jones is accusing the Waitangi Tribunal of over-stepping its mandate by subpoenaing a minister for its urgent hearing on the Oranga Tamariki claim. The tribunal is looking into the ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    2 days ago

  • What’s the outfit you can hear going down the gurgler? Probably it’s David Parker’s Oceans Sec...
    Buzz from the Beehive Point  of Order first heard of the Oceans Secretariat in June 2021, when David Parker (remember him?) announced a multi-agency approach to protecting New Zealand’s marine ecosystems and fisheries. Parker (holding the Environment, and Oceans and Fisheries portfolios) broke the news at the annual Forest & ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    2 days ago

  • Will politicians let democracy die in the darkness?
    Bryce Edwards writes  – Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • Matt Doocey doubles down on trans “healthcare”
    Citizen Science writes –  Last week saw two significant developments in the debate over the treatment of trans-identifying children and young people – the release in Britain of the final report of Dr Hilary Cass’s review into gender healthcare, and here in New Zealand, the news that the ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • A TikTok Prime Minister.
    One night while sleeping in my bed I had a beautiful dreamThat all the people of the world got together on the same wavelengthAnd began helping one anotherNow in this dream, universal love was the theme of the dayPeace and understanding and it happened this wayAfter such an eventful day ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago

  • Texas Lessons
    This is a guest post by Oscar Simms who is a housing activist, volunteer for the Coalition for More Homes, and was the Labour Party candidate for Auckland Central at the last election. ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    3 days ago

  • Bernard's pick 'n' mix of the news links at 6:06 am
    The top six news links I’ve seen elsewhere in the last 24 hours as of 6:06 am on Wednesday, April 17 are:Must read: Secrecy shrouds which projects might be fast-tracked RNZ Farah HancockScoop: Revealed: Luxon has seven staffers working on social media content - partly paid for by taxpayer Newshub ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago

  • Fighting poverty on the holiday highway
    Turning what Labour called the “holiday highway” into a four-lane expressway from Auckland to Whangarei could bring at least an economic benefit of nearly two billion a year for Northland each year. And it could help bring an end to poverty in one of New Zealand’s most deprived regions. The ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    3 days ago

  • Bernard's six-stack of substacks at 6:26 pm
    Tonight’s six-stack includes: launching his substack with a bunch of his previous documentaries, including this 1992 interview with Dame Whina Cooper. and here crew give climate activists plenty to do, including this call to submit against the Fast Track Approvals bill. writes brilliantly here on his substack ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago

  • At a glance – Is the science settled?
    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 ...
    Skeptical Science
    3 days ago

  • Apposite Quotations.
    How Long Is Long Enough? Gaza under Israeli bombardment, July 2014. This posting is exclusive to Bowalley Road. ...
    Bowalley Road
    3 days ago

  • What’s a life worth now?
    You're in the mall when you hear it: some kind of popping sound in the distance, kids with fireworks, maybe. But then a moment of eerie stillness is followed by more of the fireworks sound and there’s also screaming and shrieking and now here come people running for their lives.Does ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago

  • Howling at the Moon
    Karl du Fresne writes –  There’s a crisis in the news media and the media are blaming it on everyone except themselves. Culpability is being deflected elsewhere – mainly to the hapless Minister of Communications, Melissa Lee, and the big social media platforms that are accused of hoovering ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • Newshub is Dead.
    I don’t normally send out two newsletters in a day but I figured I’d say something about… the news. If two newsletters is a bit much then maybe just skip one, I don’t want to overload people. Alternatively if you’d be interested in sometimes receiving multiple, smaller updates from me, ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago

  • Seymour is chuffed about cutting early-learning red tape – but we hear, too, that Jones has loose...
    Buzz from the Beehive David Seymour and Winston Peters today signalled that at least two ministers of the Crown might be in Wellington today. Seymour (as Associate Minister of Education) announced the removal of more red tape, this time to make it easier for new early learning services to be ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago

  • Bryce Edwards: Will politicians let democracy die in the darkness?
    Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. Our political system is suffering from the ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    3 days ago

  • Was Hawkesby entirely wrong?
    David Farrar  writes –  The Broadcasting Standards Authority ruled: Comments by radio host Kate Hawkesby suggesting Māori and Pacific patients were being prioritised for surgery due to their ethnicity were misleading and discriminatory, the Broadcasting Standards Authority has found. It is a fact such patients are prioritised. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • PRC shadow looms as the Solomons head for election
    PRC and its proxies in Solomons have been preparing for these elections for a long time. A lot of money, effort and intelligence have gone into ensuring an outcome that won’t compromise Beijing’s plans. Cleo Paskall writes – On April 17th the Solomon Islands, a country of ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • Climate Change: Criminal ecocide
    We are in the middle of a climate crisis. Last year was (again) the hottest year on record. NOAA has just announced another global coral bleaching event. Floods are threatening UK food security. So naturally, Shane Jones wants to make it easier to mine coal: Resources Minister Shane Jones ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago

  • Is saving one minute of a politician's time worth nearly $1 billion?
    Is speeding up the trip to and from Wellington airport by 12 minutes worth spending up more than $10 billion? Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me in the last day to 8:26 am today are:The Lead: Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • Long Tunnel or Long Con?
    Yesterday it was revealed that Transport Minister had asked Waka Kotahi to look at the options for a long tunnel through Wellington. State Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    4 days ago

  • Smoke And Mirrors.
    You're a fraud, and you know itBut it's too good to throw it all awayAnyone would do the sameYou've got 'em goingAnd you're careful not to show itSometimes you even fool yourself a bitIt's like magicBut it's always been a smoke and mirrors gameAnyone would do the sameForty six billion ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago

  • What is Mexico doing about climate change?
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections The June general election in Mexico could mark a turning point in ensuring that the country’s climate policies better reflect the desire of its citizens to address the climate crisis, with both leading presidential candidates expressing support for renewable energy. Mexico is the ...
    Skeptical Science
    4 days ago

  • State of humanity, 2024
    2024, it feels, keeps presenting us with ever more challenges, ever more dismay.Do you give up yet? It seems to ask.No? How about this? Or this?How about this?When I say 2024 I really mean the state of humanity in 2024.Saturday night, we watched Civil War because that is one terrifying cliff we've ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago

  • Govt’s Wellington tunnel vision aims to ease the way to the airport (but zealous promoters of cycl...
    Buzz from the Beehive A pet project and governmental tunnel vision jump out from the latest batch of ministerial announcements. The government is keen to assure us of its concern for the wellbeing of our pets. It will be introducing pet bonds in a change to the Residential Tenancies Act ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago

  • The case for cultural connectedness
    A recent report generated from a Growing Up in New Zealand (GUiNZ) survey of 1,224 rangatahi Māori aged 11-12 found: Cultural connectedness was associated with fewer depression symptoms, anxiety symptoms and better quality of life. That sounds cut and dry. But further into the report the following appears: Cultural connectedness is ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • Useful context on public sector job cuts
    David Farrar writes –    The Herald reports: From the gory details of job-cuts news, you’d think the public service was being eviscerated.   While the media’s view of the cuts is incomplete, it’s also true that departments have been leaking the particulars faster than a Wellington ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell On When Racism Comes Disguised As Anti-racism
    Remember the good old days, back when New Zealand had a PM who could think and speak calmly and intelligently in whole sentences without blustering? Even while Iran’s drones and missiles were still being launched, Helen Clark was live on TVNZ expertly summing up the latest crisis in the Middle ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    5 days ago

  • Govt ignored economic analysis of smokefree reversal
    Costello did not pass on analysis of the benefits of the smokefree reforms to Cabinet, emphasising instead the extra tax revenues of repealing them. Photo: Hagen Hopkins, Getty Images TL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me at 7:26 am today are:The Lead: Casey Costello never passed on ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago

  • True Blue.
    True loveYou're the one I'm dreaming ofYour heart fits me like a gloveAnd I'm gonna be true blueBaby, I love youI’ve written about the job cuts in our news media last week. The impact on individuals, and the loss to Aotearoa of voices covering our news from different angles.That by ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago

  • Who is running New Zealand’s foreign policy?
    While commentators, including former Prime Minister Helen Clark, are noting a subtle shift in New Zealand’s foreign policy, which now places more emphasis on the United States, many have missed a key element of the shift. What National said before the election is not what the government is doing now. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago

  • $41m to support clean energy in South East Asia
    New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 hours ago

  • Minister releases Fast-track stakeholder list
    The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    8 hours ago

  • Judicial appointments announced
    Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    9 hours ago

  • Education Minister heads to major teaching summit in Singapore
    Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa.  The summit is co-hosted ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    10 hours ago

  • Value of stopbank project proven during cyclone
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  • Anzac commemorations, Türkiye relationship focus of visit
    Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul.    “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
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  • Minister to Europe for OECD meeting, Anzac Day
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  • Comprehensive Partnership the goal for NZ and the Philippines
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr.  The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
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  • Government commits $20m to Westport flood protection
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  • Taupō takes pole position
    The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
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  • Cost of living support for low-income homeowners
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  • Government backing mussel spat project
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  • Government focused on getting people into work
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  • Clean energy key driver to reducing emissions
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  • Earthquake-prone buildings review brought forward
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  • Thailand and NZ to agree to Strategic Partnership
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
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  • Government consults on extending coastal permits for ports
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  • Inflation coming down, but more work to do
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  • School attendance restored as a priority in health advice
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  • Unnecessary bureaucracy cut in oceans sector
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  • Removing red tape to help early learners thrive
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  • RMA changes to cut coal mining consent red tape
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  • McClay reaffirms strong NZ-China trade relationship
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  • Prime Minister Luxon acknowledges legacy of Singapore Prime Minister Lee
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today paid tribute to Singapore’s outgoing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.   Meeting in Singapore today immediately before Prime Minister Lee announced he was stepping down, Prime Minister Luxon warmly acknowledged his counterpart’s almost twenty years as leader, and the enduring legacy he has left for Singapore and South East ...
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  • PMs Luxon and Lee deepen Singapore-NZ ties
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. While in Singapore as part of his visit to South East Asia this week, Prime Minister Luxon also met with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and will meet with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.  During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon ...
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  • Antarctica New Zealand Board appointments
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  • Finance Minister travels to Washington DC
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    4 days ago

  • Pet bonds a win/win for renters and landlords
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    4 days ago

  • Long Tunnel for SH1 Wellington being considered
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    5 days ago

  • New Zealand condemns Iranian strikes
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Foreign Minister Winston Peters have condemned Iran’s shocking and illegal strikes against Israel.    “These attacks are a major challenge to peace and stability in a region already under enormous pressure," Mr Luxon says.    "We are deeply concerned that miscalculation on any side could ...
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  • Huge interest in Government’s infrastructure plans
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  • Health Minister thanks outgoing Health New Zealand Chair
    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti has today thanked outgoing Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora Chair Dame Karen Poutasi for her service on the Board.   “Dame Karen tendered her resignation as Chair and as a member of the Board today,” says Dr Reti.  “I have asked her to ...
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  • Roads of National Significance planning underway
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  • Navigating an unstable global environment
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  • NZ welcomes Australian Governor-General
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced the Australian Governor-General, His Excellency General The Honourable David Hurley and his wife Her Excellency Mrs Linda Hurley, will make a State visit to New Zealand from Tuesday 16 April to Thursday 18 April. The visit reciprocates the State visit of former Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy ...
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    1 week ago

  • Pseudoephedrine back on shelves for Winter
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  • NZ and the US: an ever closer partnership
    New Zealand and the United States have recommitted to their strategic partnership in Washington DC today, pledging to work ever more closely together in support of shared values and interests, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says.    “The strategic environment that New Zealand and the United States face is considerably more ...
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    1 week ago

  • Joint US and NZ declaration
    April 11, 2024 Joint Declaration by United States Secretary of State the Honorable Antony J. Blinken and New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs the Right Honourable Winston Peters We met today in Washington, D.C. to recommit to the historic partnership between our two countries and the principles that underpin it—rule ...
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  • NZ and US to undertake further practical Pacific cooperation
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