Stuff’s Fire and Fury major investigation into the occupation of Parliament grounds

Written By: - Date published: 10:34 am, August 14th, 2022 - 71 comments
Categories: activism, Parliament - Tags: ,

Stuff’s major investigation into the protests at parliament in February was published today. You can read their backgrounder on why they made it here.

The investigation is divided into five parts,

  1. A feature length documentary
  2. Democracy on the Edge: How the mainstreaming of extreme politics has democracy on edge
  3. How to Defeat Misinformation
  4. Susan joins Voices for Freedom
  5. Push Back Against the Monsters

Mod note: usual rules apply. Argue the politics, don’t attack commenters or use tone or language that has the effect of excluding others. There will be a higher than usual expectation of backing up claims of fact, so please to this pre-emptively. Read the Policy and ask if unclear.

Protest as of 18/02/22. Image Henry Cooke and Kate Newton, Stuff

71 comments on “Stuff’s Fire and Fury major investigation into the occupation of Parliament grounds ”

  1. weka 1

    watching the doco, two mins in,

    Messages from people who may appear to have no common interests, but who are strategically intertwined, united in their uprising against authority.

    Very good to get the foundation stated right at the start.

  2. fender 2

    These enemies of NZ need to be held accountable.

    They need to look at the imminent bankruptcy of Alex Jones and Infowars to see where they are heading. I would encourage Christchurch mosque attack survivors to use legal means to punish their misinformation, I'd gladly contribute financially.

  3. Anne 3

    Here is my reaction:

    Sad to see so many people have been sucked in to evil propaganda sourced in large part from groups of far-right American extremists.

    Angry these off-shore 'agents' of fascist dogma are interfering in the democratic processes within NZ.

    Disgusted with the NZers who are aiding and abetting the evil and encouraging others to take violent actions against the State.

    Appalled at the general level of hatred and stupidity as expressed by the followers interviewed in this doco.

    Afraid there is going to be another horrific tragedy occur somewhere in NZ .

    • Barfly 3.1

      "Sad to see so many people have been sucked in to evil propaganda sourced in large part from groups of far-right American extremists.

      Angry these off-shore 'agents' of fascist dogma are interfering in the democratic processes within NZ." (my underlined bold)

      I am sure SIS and GCIS have the ability to degrade their capabilities but that will never happen will it?

      Should we appeal to Anonymous to take on these American fascists? crying

    • AB 3.2

      Two supplementary points:

      Not surprised that the establishment right (Nat/ACT) while distancing themselves from these groups do so only by a cigarette paper or three and much of their messaging on Covid, Three Waters, etc. is ideologically adjacent to them.

      Have spent too many years hearing that these groups are attracted to far right ideas because both the establishment right and the liberal left have failed to meet their material needs and grievances, i.e. that since the 1980's we have been politically stuck in a TiNA world. Even if this is only partially true, it continues to frustrate that the way out of BAU might look less like social democracy and more like fascism.

  4. Robert Guyton 4

    Finished watching. Waiting now to hear from Rosemary, maui et al.

    It may be an issue that can only be met at the individual, person-to-person, family/whanau, peer group, social group level. Other structures of management are automatically rejected by those who have adopted the positions described in the film.

  5. Patricia Bremner 5

    My first reaction was, "good it is out there and from a reliable source", then I had a feeling of, "stirring the pot again to what effect?"

    Those affected folk will see it as paid government propaganda.

    We are in a no win situation, as reason went out the door and emotion has taken over.

    Evil takes hold when good people do nothing. So we have to counter this.

    • Sacha 5.1

      We do not have to tolerate fascism.

    • Brigid 5.2

      "stirring the pot again to what effect?". Must say I thought the same. There was nothing revealed in the documentary that we didn't all know. Negative media reporting is better than none for the conspirator.

      • weka 5.2.1

        Plenty there for the general public to get there head around though, and to have it pulled all into one place (a fair chunk of it anyway). Even just naming the names is important.

      • DB Brown 5.2.2

        "that we didn't all know"

        We don't all already have all the facts.

        I agree with Visubversa it would have been more valuable if it followed the money.

        The documentary alongside the associated articles and info at least get to the bottom (top) of the local 'freedom' food chain.

        I thought inciting violence was a crime? I don't understand how some of them can publicly carry on the way they do.

        • weka 5.2.2.1

          haven't looked at the legislation but I suspect the inciting has to be more specific.

          Useful to have Kitteredge speak, although I couldn't tell with the second bit whether she was being very careful with her words, or the connections between the protest and extremists is more tenuous than Stuff were suggesting.

          • Anne 5.2.2.1.1

            Careful with her words I think.

            I agree with you. Its good to have it all gathered together in one place.

    • Robert Guyton 5.3

      The purpose of the film is, I believe, to show several things: one, that analysis and investigation is continuing and the events haven't been forgotten, two, that the individuals most influential in spreading the mistruths are known and they look like this, and thirdly, that those most closely following the developments believe there is worse to come and feel it their duty to keep us alert to the possibility/probability of more trouble.

      I think those 3 aspects alone make the airing of the film, worthwhile.

      • Kat 5.3.1

        I doubt Rosemary will admit to having been conned or deluded, Maurice below at 7 has a finger on the pulse…..

        • weka 5.3.1.1

          maybe she wasn't conned or deluded and came about her views honestly.

          Can't see how this kind of comments helps tbh. If you think a 'we're right, you're wrong' position is going to work out well, just look at the US. We either find common ground with the majority of people concerned about the mandates, or we let the radicalisation continue. Biggest eyeopener for me in the past two years is understanding just how much of NZ is libertarian (especially on the left/liberal side).

          • Kat 5.3.1.1.1

            Many German people in the 1930's had views they came about "honestly" in support of the Third Reich, the outcome of that "honestly gained view" has proven not just to be wrong but a catastrophe for a particular race of people including millions around the world.

            When I go to my garden shed and need a spade I select a spade.

        • Robert Guyton 5.3.1.2

          An ex-friend of mine, during a discussion about the mandates etc. said to me, "No one likes to be made to feel stupid".

          This factor is a great impediment to dialogue. If you say to someone who has described their great fear of and belief in the trafficking of stolen children in New Zealand, "Are you serious??", they'll block further discussion with the sentiment I described.

      • weka 5.3.2

        very good summation.

      • Anne 5.3.3

        I think those 3 aspects alone make the airing of the film, worthwhile.

        Agree.

        It's all very well saying these people believe what they are saying is real. It is not real. They have allowed themselves to become fodder for a desperately evil group of people. Sad though that may be, it has to be countered or there will be serious consequences.

        I had the misfortune years ago to be associated with people who I can now appreciate were a group of fore-runners to what is happening today. This is nothing new. The difference is: today they have the technological ability to spread their ideology of hatred and violence to a world-wide audience.

        • Maurice 5.3.3.1

          The horror is that they believe EXACTLY the same … in reverse.

          It is questionable if it can be reversed without precipitating REAL violence.

          Many do not even realise how laughably PEACEFUL both J6 and the NZ protest was simply because the choice was made by the 'silent majority' that it was not the ditch to die in as yet. Many don’t understand that if it gets ugly, it gets ugly for everyone. Even if thought it might get ugly many cannot fathom that a large proportion of both the right and left in NZ simply don’t want that.

  6. Visubversa 6

    Unfortunately – there was no "follow the money". This bunch are well funded – where from?

  7. Maurice 7

    We must be careful to remember that those we denigrate/despise/dislike return that favour … and that the Far right have been taught to punch back TWICE as hard.

    Give these people no "democratic" alternative and they are forced, by us, in to far more destructive actions.

    Their grievances are as real to them as those of any other group. The danger is that they see past actions against them as the cancelling of the Social Contract and now believe that they have no obligations to a Society which has mandated and excluded them.

    • observer 7.1

      They have a democratic alternative, and it's much easier under MMP than most other systems.

      Every 3 years they try to get 5% of the vote, and they fail, by a long way. Then they claim that the people support them. They don't like democracy at all, because it tells them the truth about that.

      • Maurice 7.1.1

        Ah – but they see the present political system as not only failing them but being used to "clobber" them and install things utterly the antithesis to their values/outlooks and designed to impoverish them.

        We must start to realise exactly how dangerous this is becoming.

        • observer 7.1.1.1

          Your argument was:

          Give these people no "democratic" alternative and they are forced, by us, in to far more destructive actions.

          That suggests it is a reality, not their perception. It obviously isn't a reality.

          We aren't forcing people to have delusions.

          • Maurice 7.1.1.1.1

            It is irrelevant that it is seen as a "perception" or a "reality" ….

            They perceive it to be reality and thus to them it obviously is.

            They see us as not only as having delusions but also a great danger to their continued existence.

            We are dealing with people who were prepared to spend time and money to go all the way to the edge of insurrection – are we not?

      • weka 7.1.2

        that's a low form of democracy. We only have to look at local bodies to see how much power is vested every three years without a huge amount of accountability to community. What we could be doing instead of dividing down authoritarian/libertarian lines, is looking at participatory democracy. Useful for so many reasons, but also, looking at those two older women when a mirror was held up to their politics and behaviours, if that was happening in community and there were models of democracy they could relate to, I think they're be more inclined to be part of society than against it.

    • DB Brown 7.2

      "and they are forced, by us"

      (completely disrespectful rules of the post breaking string of invective)

      So the people who I've given work to, fed, accommodated, transported, loaned to… were really ignored and mandated and excluded and their grievances are all real not made up like the lady concerned with us ghouls drinking the blood of babies.

      • weka 7.2.1

        um, yes, some of the grievances are real.

        what should society do with people who disagree with how society is run?

        • DB Brown 7.2.1.1

          "Some grievances are real" Of course. That's how to get played by the main players in this game. Bring your grievances, all of them, perceived or real. But when you mishmash fair grievance with, for instance, Q – it's not a place for sensible or productive discourse.

          You go to the right avenues, and if that fails, the courts, or the MP's, or the media. And if that fails, you don't threaten to kill the MP's and the media ffs.

          Those who disagree with how society is run are valuable critics. There's a line from fair grievance or fair comment – to Q adjacent white supremacist instigated rioting and civil disobedience… it's rather wide.

          Those with fair grievance who don't get to properly air their grievance is probably all of us. Our level of tolerance for perceived slight might be orders of magnitude different, but we've mostly all been mucked about by unthinking (or unknowing) civil servants or simply civilians at some stage.

          • weka 7.2.1.1.1

            it's bigger than slights though. What's going to happen when climate activism kicks off again? Are we going to tell them to all work within the boundaries of society? Remember the Tour, what was needed to force change?

            The thing about the Wgtn protest is that it was a group of people holding a wide range of views and values. The numbers of white supremacists/alt right was probably small, but had a big reach. There were Māori there ready to fight the state. Hippy libertarians who know there's something wrong with the mainstream (and they're not wrong). Young and not so young men spoiling for the fight that the police eventually gave them on the last day. A bunch of arsheholes who wanted to strorm the citadel and who apparently believe that executing MPs is fair and reasonable. People fucked off and fed up because they lost their jobs.

            In all that, there are legit grievances, and seriously illegit ones. We can't just write them off as 'Q adjacent white supremacist instigated rioting and civil disobedience'. We have to tease out what's fair and what isn't. Most of those people weren't threatening MPs. And the whole 'right avenues' thing is a for people in positions of privilege. We are being failed by our democracy all over the place, and the last two years just brought the problem into the foreground.

            (What I still haven't seen is the peace and love crowd front up and explain why they didn't deal with that at the time)

            • DB Brown 7.2.1.1.1.1

              Aren't you just mish-mashing it even further adding climate change – there was a climate hoaxer there I personally know. And The Tour – What? Why?

              Don't legitimise these mongrels (the spreaders of lies and inciters of violence) because they co-opted people with legitimate complaints.

              • weka

                Aren't you just mish-mashing it even further adding climate change – there was a climate hoaxer there I personally know. And The Tour – What? Why?

                I'm saying that right avenues don't always work and that protest that crosses boundaries is sometimes warranted.

                Don't legitimise these mongrels (the spreaders of lies and inciters of violence) because they co-opted people with legitimate complaints.

                I'm not. How did you get that from my comments? It's possible to push back against the fascists and arseholes without throwing all the protestors under the bus.

            • As we say in Germany, if there’s a Nazi at the table and 10 other people sitting there talking to him, you got a table with 11 Nazis.

              Dr. Jens Foell

              • PsyclingLeft.Always

                Absolutely. And re Climate protests…being proffered as some kind of equivalence…or future mix scenario. Complete BS ! I have been on a few. Many diverse People. Including lots of older NZers..and School kids.

                NO white supremacists…or nazis…or trump supporters. Ever.

                • weka

                  And re Climate protests…being proffered as some kind of equivalence…or future mix scenario.

                  No-one made that equivalence. I didn't make that equivalence. What I said, twice, was that protests can't always stay within the boundaries of what is acceptable to society.

                  If we use the argument that protest should go through the right avenues, what happens with climate protest? Should XR never have happened?

              • weka

                not sure that was in reference to but the ratios are wrong. There weren't 10 neonazis at the protest for every 1 non-nazi. More like 1 neonazi to every several hundred or more other protestors.

                The Foell doesn't work here unless you are suggesting that the presence of even one nazi makes everyone else a nazi whether they know he is a nazi or not.

                • Shanreagh

                  I don't think one should get picky about about the numbers. The purpose of the quote is to warn to be careful of who your protest mates are and what their causes are.

                  Your cause, while just and above board, will be tainted as you, the wider you, have let or enabled Neo Nazis to be part of it.

                  One neo-Nazi is one too many. One person who turned a blind eye to their presence or who could not be bothered saying 'oh actually we don't want you here' to neo Nazis' is one enabler of neo Nazis.

                  The presence of Counterspin media should have been fair warning to those involved that others had come into the protest and were pushing their own views/agendas. And they did this by making on the ground commentary.

                • barry

                  The "reasonable" people in the protests were all (to some extent) radicalised so you can't tell who was the NAZI, and who was just in the same room. The documentary made the point of interviewing one (very reasonable seeming woman) and then showing footage of her as part of a group threatening and chasing reporters away from the protests.

  8. pat 8

    The problem is the breach of the social contract.

    Governments are losing their ability to manipulate (yes, manipulate) their populations as the benefits of belonging to that society are increasingly enjoyed by a diminishing proportion of that population.

    Largely as a result of abdicating their responsibility in ensuring that inequality dosnt get too extreme….and until that is addressed the problems will continue to grow, until the point of collapse of any functionality.

  9. Ad 9

    Even after watching the videos, I am impressed that there are so few of these people.

    We are one of the least equal societies in the world but our social contract is remarkably strong. Their polling is ludicrously low. Even in this most woeful of local elections there are very few loonies.

    Even Brian Tamaki is feeling the walls of the law pull in close.

    Go well New Zealand you are 99.9% awesome and truthful people who are working together to our common good.

    • pat 9.1

      The lunatic fringe are symptomatic of the wider problem, and it dosnt take a majority to initiate 'change'.

      • Ad 9.1.1

        No rational being could accuse this government of losing its ability to to manipulate people.

        This government has manipulated us (often with worthy policy reasons) particularly since March 2020, with high success and with all instruments at its disposal.

        This government has run successful behaviour-change campaigns in vaccination, transport, shopping, housing investment, gender identity, water management, and more. Usually a combination of massive pr + social media and law with dumploads of social bribes and public funding.

        There doesn't appear to be any level of inequality that has bearing upon whether New Zealanders are manipulated.

        • pat 9.1.1.1

          The fact that an increasing portion of the population are unwilling to adhere to the social norms is indicative that the manipulation is failing….social tipping points have been shown to occur at rates as low as 3%.

    • Sanctuary 9.2

      The video is certainly a strong defense of the 5% threshold. Imagine if we had an Israeli style MMP. VFF would have 1 MP, Brian Tamaki would have 4 MPs, The "Gun Rights & We don't like Maori Alliance" would have 3 MPs etc etc.

  10. Stuart Munro 10

    It's an interesting phenomenon – but government needs to be wary of the trap of lending credibility to hostiles (among which we may number the authors of much of the disinformation) as well as those that are frankly wrong. To try to engage constructively with persons that are not acting in good faith is self-defeating folly. To insist on a standard of truth is another minimum requirement of engagement.

    We had old laws about incitement and sedition. The authors of the occupy movement should be facing the penalties those laws specified – commensurate with the damage they intended.

    The issue of the decline of democracies is separate. These mobs are scarcely even demagoguery – they cannot muster anything resembling popular support. The quiet desperation that results from NZ governments consistently betraying our populace must be addressed, but it should not be imagined that the instigators of the occupation are competent to delineate the issues, much less play any constructive role in solutions. They are noise, not signal.

    • Maurice 10.1

      Ah! But there is only one source of all truth and information … //s

      It is just that differing factions have different sources which have different truths and sources of information.

      Even Diogenes the Cynic could not search out an honest man (or is that 'person' now?)

      • Stuart Munro 10.1.1

        Although there is something in what you say, the wannabe occupiers are not philosophers, but charlatans, who mean to create civil disorder in hope of profiting from the ensuing chaos. This is readily discoverable – even Stuff were able to find it out.

        There is no benefit, and considerable cost in pretending their malicious fictions have substance.

        • Robert Guyton 10.1.1.1

          Stuart – your 2 comments (above) are insightful and perfectly describe the issue, imo.

          • Shanreagh 10.1.1.1.1

            I agree with your comment Robert about Stuart's posts.

            Some how many people were enabled to let good sense be overwhelmed so there could be a free for all of various malcontents at parliament grounds. Those of good sense would have left the protest very early on once it became clear that the presence of RW jocks and neo Nazis made unexpected bedfellows.

            I agree that no govt should seek to sup with those who are so hostile. It is a waste of time. As Maurice says above they punch back twice as hard. There comes a time when being open for discussion does not work, the Govt recognised this at the time by not meeting the occupiers.

            I too am keen for an exploration of the 'following the money', and VFF. I am keen for the Fire and Fury doco to be shown on TV and also put forward for selection into Film Festivals.

  11. The difficult aspect that bothers me is that this conspiracy thinking is very common in the Christian churches — seems more common than not, unfortunately. Much of it is imported from America but there is a special kind of resentment against Jacinda and the "podium of truth", and various bits of legislation that we find threatening, almost a Trojan horse, that taken together, looks like an agenda ("cultural Marxism") to marginalise Christianity and traditional families.

    While agreeing that some of the Government's initiatives are misguided or hamfisted, I do not share in the belief that a Satanic agenda is at play. Because I measure governments on ONE single attribute – how they treat the poorest and most vulnerable. (Matthew 25:31-46)

    This is also where I depart from the Evangelical mainstream because they feel that a cultural and spiritual battle is more important than something as simple as feeding the hungry or ministering to the sick. (Luke 4:17-21)

    • roblogic 11.1

      I suspect that wealthy church leaders find it easier to get lathered over "cultural Marxism" and rant about Government tyranny, than to call out Capitalism and admit how much they personally are worshiping Money

  12. Jenny how to get there 12

    The tragedy is that many of those drawn to the Far Fight have real unaddressed grievances.

    It is the cowardly failure of the Left to address these grievances that has driven them into the arms of the Far Right.

    Historically there are two main sections of society that are attracted to fascist views and movements,

    The middleclass small proprietors whose lunch bar, restaurant, small retail business or shop, that lost custom during the pandemic and lockdowns. (In Germany in the '30s, it was the small proprietors ruined by the Great Depression.)

    With no income, unable to meet the mortgage and rental costs on their business premises, squeezed by the banks and landlords, this sector begged the government for rent and mortgage relief.

    It wasn't forthcoming. And this sector squeezed by the banks and landlords, held the Ardern administration responsible.

    The big foreign owned banks that clip the ticket on all rents and mortgages, and could have afforded to take a hit, were left to keep extracting their pound of flesh right through the pandemic, walking away with record breaking profits.

    The first Labour government imposed a rent and mortgage moratorium, preventing this country sliding into chaos and political violence. The Ardern Labour administration could have done the same. But chose not to, and reaped the result.

    .https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-26-10-2021/#comment-1827622

    The other sector drawn to fascist views and movements is that lumpen proletariat or precariat that hover between homelessness unemployment and prison, that just want to lash out. Fascists give the precariat backing and a target to focus their grief and anger on. The tragedy is that it is always the wrong target, and never those really responsible for their hardship.

  13. Mike the Lefty 13

    There were a few common themes with the parliament grounds rabble.

    1. A lot of them were bogans who were enjoying the chance to shit stir and have a good time smashing up other people's property.

    2. A lot of them believed that covid was a socialist trick and that the vaccine inserted nano probes into your body so that the state could control you.

    3. Some of them, at least, believed that the earth was flat.

    It is difficult to deal rationally with f..wits like that.

    • PsyclingLeft.Always 13.1

      Aye !!

    • coge 13.2

      Where is you evidence to support any of those claims? Ultimately the elected political classes prosecuted an agenda of widespread segregation upon the people of NZ. Perhaps they didn't think it through, and didn't conceive of what the consequence would be. Such segregation is indefensible, it never belonged on our country. Hence endless farcical claims will be made to to justify it.

      • Barfly 13.2.1

        "Such segregation is indefensible"

        Once in a century plague not enough reason? Saving thousands of lives and our economy not enough reason? ok….

        Was talking to a bloke a little while back who has angry about the 'othering' of anti-vaxxers and believed the Government was fostering division in NZ society. The same man was unconcerned about the National Party's previous 'othering' of beneficiaries and using promises of 'crackdowns and sanctions' for electoral advantage

        I suspect that humanity is collectively insane.

        • Robert Guyton 13.2.1.1

          "The gubbermint's creating divisions", squawk those people who call most New Zealanders, "sheep".

        • Maurice 13.2.1.2

          Hmmmm – wonder why the old phrase:

          "A plague on both your houses"

          spring to mind?

      • Mike the Lefty 13.2.2

        Evidence: The billboards, the behaviour and the wreckage.

        Any more evidence you need?

        “agenda of segregration??????”
        what a dufus!

    • Andy 13.3

      Do you have any evidence for these claims? I'm particularly interested in the flat-earth one

      I get pulled up by mods here for making unsubstantiated claims. Fair dinkum I suppose, and I'm slowly learning, but there do seem to be some rather wild stereotypes being thrown around here willy-nilly

  14. Incognito 14

    [Comment from from Darien Fenton @ 2022/08/14 at 3:36 pm]

    Yeah I see Bomber's mad rant on this. It's all the Left's (*aka Woke's) fault. This ia chilling stuff, but I have chosen not to repost on my FB Wall least I be accused of "stirring the pot." But thank you Weka for sharing.

  15. DB Brown 15

    We once enjoyed/tolerated or even celebrated the town cryer/idiot, but now large numbers of people live in an alternate reality, or are at least consistently fed a diet of that nonsense, some of which is definitely sinking in to more of the populace.

    How bad are these alternate realities? In US people are hunting feds in their pick-up trucks – there's tik-toks of it. Many other are putting out 'lock and load' videos. The set up is the same – Donald's a victim, the tyranny! Killing in the name of. It's very bad right now.

    Over in Canada yesterday so called sovereign citizens led by self appointed Queen of Canada Romana Didulo went to arrest Police for some covid related stuff. That didn't go well but followers were assured by her saying a triangular craft had materialised when she called for help (being the queen and all) and military were there to sort the traitor cops out. That's all shared and aired on another platform our locals use.

    She'd previously been calling for executions but after a legal snafu she dialed it down.

    They're using the same platforms our locals are using.

    We have private citizens trying to keep track of the madness, and hopefully law enforcement with some kind of a plan?

    Knocking out the platforms is just whack a mole. Maybe we need laws to knock out malicious content creators and bad faith actors from those platforms.

    See for yourself this is not lots of graphic content (you can skip arrest vid perhaps) it’s mostly just bonkers insane.

    https://twitter.com/ARCCollective/status/1558875062580547584

    • Maurice 15.1

      Ah! But if they were Gagged where would you get them super out takes to post?

      …. just to show us all how bad they are – of course!

      I wonder if much of this is there for the express purpose of winding up those not in that particular alternate universe?

      • DB Brown 15.1.1

        I prefer not to read into it. There's plenty enough idiots looking for signs and clues.

  16. Andy 16

    The "documentary" is a well-polished piece of one-sided propaganda.

    There is no attempt to engage with any of the legitimate concerns of many of the original protests. If you don't accept that people who have been v-injured are legit concerns then you are part of the problem.

    Oh, and I do acknowledge that there are some unsavoury types involved.

    I have no time for crazies calling for mock trials and executions

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    Like earlier this year, members from our team will be involved with next year's General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union (EGU). The conference will take place on premise in Vienna as well as online from April 14 to 19, 2024. The session catalog has been available since November 1 ...
    2 days ago
  • Under New Management
    1. Which of these best describes Aotearoa?a. Progressive nation, proud of its egalitarian spirit and belief in a fair go b. Best little country on the planet c. Under New Management 2. Which of these best describes the 100 days of action announced this week by the new government?a. Petulantb. Simplistic and wrongheaded c. ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • While we wait patiently, our new Minister of Education is up and going with a 100-day action plan
    Sorry to say, the government’s official website is still out of action. When Point of Order paid its daily visit, the message was the same as it has been for the past week: Site under maintenance Beehive.govt.nz is currently under maintenance. We will be back shortly. Thank you for your ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    2 days ago
  • DAVID FARRAR: Hysterical bullshit
    Radio NZ reports: Te Pāti Māori’s co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer has accused the new government of “deliberate .. systemic genocide” over its policies to roll back the smokefree policy and the Māori Health Authority. The left love hysterical language. If you oppose racial quotas in laws, you are a racist. And now if you sack ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    2 days ago
  • ELE LUDEMANN: It wasn’t just $55 million
    Ele Ludemann writes –  Winston Peters reckons media outlets were bribed by the $55 million Public Interest Journalism Fund. He is not the first to make such an accusation. Last year, the Platform outlined conditions media signed up to in return for funds from the PJIF: . . . ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 1-December-2023
    Wow, it’s December already, and it’s a Friday. So here are few things that caught our attention recently. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt covered the new government’s coalition agreements and what they mean for transport. On Tuesday Matt looked at AT’s plans for fare increases ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    3 days ago
  • Shane MacGowan Is Gone.
    Late 1996, The Dogs Bollix, Tamaki Makaurau.I’m at the front of the bar yelling my order to the bartender, jostling with other thirsty punters on a Friday night, keen to piss their wages up against a wall letting loose. The black stuff, long luscious pints of creamy goodness. Back down ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to Dec 1
    Nicola Willis, Chris Bishop and other National, ACT and NZ First MPs applaud the signing of the coalition agreements, which included the reversal of anti-smoking measures while accelerating tax cuts for landlords. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • 2023 More Reading: November (+ Writing Update)
    Completed reads for November: A Modern Utopia, by H.G. Wells The Vampire (poem), by Heinrich August Ossenfelder The Corpus Hermeticum The Corpus Hermeticum is Mead’s translation. Now, this is indeed a very quiet month for reading. But there is a reason for that… You see, ...
    3 days ago
  • Forward to 2017
    The coalition party agreements are mainly about returning to 2017 when National lost power. They show commonalities but also some serious divergencies.The two coalition agreements – one National and ACT, the other National and New Zealand First – are more than policy documents. They also describe the processes of the ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    3 days ago
  • Questions a nine year old might ask the new Prime Minister
    First QuestionYou’re going to crack down on people ram-raiding dairies, because you say hard-working dairy owners shouldn’t have to worry about getting ram-raided.But once the chemist shops have pseudoephedrine in them again, they're going to get ram-raided all the time. Do chemists not work as hard as dairy owners?Second QuestionYou ...
    More than a fieldingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Questions a nine year old might ask the new Prime Minister
    First QuestionYou’re going to crack down on people ram-raiding dairies, because you say hard-working dairy owners shouldn’t have to worry about getting ram-raided.But once the chemist shops have pseudoephedrine in them again, they're going to get ram-raided all the time. Do chemists not work as hard as dairy owners?Second QuestionYou ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Finally
    Henry Kissinger is finally dead. Good fucking riddance. While Americans loved him, he was a war criminal, responsible for most of the atrocities of the final quarter of the twentieth century. Cambodia. Bangladesh. Chile. East Timor. All Kissinger. Because of these crimes, Americans revere him as a "statesman" (which says ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago
  • Government in a hurry – Luxon lists 49 priorities in 100-day plan while Peters pledges to strength...
    Buzz from the Beehive Yes, ministers in the new government are delivering speeches and releasing press statements. But the message on the government’s official website was the same as it has been for the past several days, when Point of Order went looking for news from the Beehive that had ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • DAVID FARRAR: Luxon is absolutely right
    David Farrar writes  –  1 News reports: Christopher Luxon says he was told by some Kiwis on the campaign trail they “didn’t know” the difference between Waka Kotahi, Te Pūkenga and Te Whatu Ora. Speaking to Breakfast, the incoming prime minister said having English first on government agencies will “make sure” ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Top 10 at 10 am for Thursday, Nov 30
    There are fears that mooted changes to building consent liability could end up driving the building industry into an uninsured hole. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Here’s my pick of the top 10 news and analysis links elsewhere as of 10 am on Thursday, November 30, including:The new Government’s ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on how climate change threatens cricket‘s future
    Well that didn’t last long, did it? Mere days after taking on what he called the “awesome responsibility” of being Prime Minister, M Christopher Luxon has started blaming everyone else, and complaining that he has inherited “economic vandalism on an unprecedented scale” – which is how most of us are ...
    4 days ago
  • We need to talk about Tory.
    The first I knew of the news about Tory Whanau was when a tweet came up in my feed.The sort of tweet that makes you question humanity, or at least why you bother with Twitter. Which is increasingly a cesspit of vile inhabitants who lurk spreading negativity, hate, and every ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • Dangling Transport Solutions
    Cable Cars, Gondolas, Ropeways and Aerial Trams are all names for essentially the same technology and the world’s biggest maker of them are here to sell them as an public transport solution. Stuff reports: Austrian cable car company Doppelmayr has launched its case for adding aerial cable cars to New ...
    4 days ago
  • November AMA
    Hi,It’s been awhile since I’ve done an Ask-Me-Anything on here, so today’s the day. Ask anything you like in the comments section, and I’ll be checking in today and tomorrow to answer.Leave a commentNext week I’ll be giving away a bunch of these Mister Organ blu-rays for readers in New ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    4 days ago
  • National’s early moves adding to cost of living pressure
    The cost of living grind continues, and the economic and inflation honeymoon is over before it began. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: PM Christopher Luxon unveiled his 100 day plan yesterday with an avowed focus of reducing cost-of-living pressures, but his Government’s initial moves and promises are actually elevating ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Backwards to the future
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has confirmed that it will be back to the future on planning legislation. This will be just one of a number of moves which will see the new government go backwards as it repeals and cost-cuts its way into power. They will completely repeal one ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago
  • New initiatives in science and technology could point the way ahead for Luxon government
    As the new government settles into the Beehive, expectations are high that it can sort out some  of  the  economic issues  confronting  New Zealand. It may take time for some new  ministers to get to grips with the range of their portfolio work and responsibilities before they can launch the  changes that  ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    4 days ago
  • Treaty pledge to secure funding is contentious – but is Peters being pursued by a lynch mob after ...
    TV3 political editor Jenna Lynch was among the corps of political reporters who bridled, when Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters told them what he thinks of them (which is not much). She was unabashed about letting her audience know she had bridled. More usefully, she drew attention to something which ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • How long does this last?
    I have a clear memory of every election since 1969 in this plucky little nation of ours. I swear I cannot recall a single one where the question being asked repeatedly in the first week of the new government was: how long do you reckon they’ll last? And that includes all ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago
  • National’s giveaway politics
    We already know that national plans to boost smoking rates to collect more tobacco tax so they can give huge tax-cuts to mega-landlords. But this morning that policy got even more obscene - because it turns out that the tax cut is retrospective: Residential landlords will be able to ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • CHRIS TROTTER: Who’s driving the right-wing bus?
    Who’s At The Wheel? The electorate’s message, as aggregated in the polling booths on 14 October, turned out to be a conservative political agenda stronger than anything New Zealand has seen in five decades. In 1975, Bill Rowling was run over by just one bus, with Rob Muldoon at the wheel. In 2023, ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • GRAHAM ADAMS:  Media knives flashing for Luxon’s government
    The fear and loathing among legacy journalists is astonishing Graham Adams writes – No one is going to die wondering how some of the nation’s most influential journalists personally view the new National-led government. It has become abundantly clear within a few days of the coalition agreements ...
    Point of OrderBy gadams1000
    4 days ago
  • Top 10 news links for Wednesday, Nov 29
    TL;DR: Here’s my pick of top 10 news links elsewhere for Wednesday November 29, including:The early return of interest deductibility for landlords could see rebates paid on previous taxes and the cost increase to $3 billion from National’s initial estimate of $2.1 billion, CTU Economist Craig Renney estimated here last ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Smokefree Fallout and a High Profile Resignation.
    The day after being sworn in the new cabinet met yesterday, to enjoy their honeymoon phase. You remember, that period after a new government takes power where the country, and the media, are optimistic about them, because they haven’t had a chance to stuff anything about yet.Sadly the nuptials complete ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • As Cabinet revs up, building plans go on hold
    Wellington Council hoardings proclaim its preparations for population growth, but around the country councils are putting things on hold in the absence of clear funding pathways for infrastructure, and despite exploding migrant numbers. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Cabinet meets in earnest today to consider the new Government’s 100-day ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • National takes over infrastructure
    Though New Zealand First may have had ambitions to run the infrastructure portfolios, National would seem to have ended up firmly in control of them.  POLITIK has obtained a private memo to members of Infrastructure NZ yesterday, which shows that the peak organisation for infrastructure sees  National MPs Chris ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • At a glance – Evidence for global warming
    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
  • Who’s Driving The Right-Wing Bus?
    Who’s At The Wheel? The electorate’s message, as aggregated in the polling booths on 14 October, turned out to be a conservative political agenda stronger than anything New Zealand has seen in five decades. In 1975, Bill Rowling was run over by just one bus, with Rob Muldoon at the wheel. In ...
    5 days ago
  • Sanity break
    Cheers to reader Deane for this quote from Breakfast TV today:Chloe Swarbrick to Brook van Velden re the coalition agreement: “... an unhinged grab-bag of hot takes from your drunk uncle at Christmas”Cheers also to actual Prime Minister of a country Christopher Luxon for dorking up his swearing-in vows.But that's enough ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago
  • Sanity break
    Cheers to reader Deane for this quote from Breakfast TV today:Chloe Swarbrick to Brook van Velden re the coalition agreement: “... an unhinged grab-bag of hot takes from your drunk uncle at Christmas”Cheers also to actual Prime Minister of a country Christopher Luxon for dorking up his swearing-in vows.But that's enough ...
    More than a fieldingBy David Slack
    5 days ago
  • National’s murderous smoking policy
    One of the big underlying problems in our political system is the prevalence of short-term thinking, most usually seen in the periodic massive infrastructure failures at a local government level caused by them skimping on maintenance to Keep Rates Low. But the new government has given us a new example, ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • NZ has a chance to rise again as our new government gets spending under control
    New Zealand has  a chance  to  rise  again. Under the  previous  government, the  number of New Zealanders below the poverty line was increasing  year by year. The Luxon-led government  must reverse that trend – and set about stabilising  the  pillars  of the economy. After the  mismanagement  of the outgoing government created   huge ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    5 days ago
  • KARL DU FRESNE: Media and the new government
    Two articles by Karl du Fresne bring media coverage of the new government into considerations.  He writes –    Tuesday, November 28, 2023 The left-wing media needed a line of attack, and they found one The left-wing media pack wasted no time identifying the new government’s weakest point. Seething over ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • PHILIP CRUMP:  Team of rivals – a CEO approach to government leadership
    The work begins Philip Crump wrote this article ahead of the new government being sworn in yesterday – Later today the new National-led coalition government will be sworn in, and the hard work begins. At the core of government will be three men – each a leader ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Black Friday
    As everyone who watches television or is on the mailing list for any of our major stores will confirm, “Black Friday” has become the longest running commercial extravaganza and celebration in our history. Although its origins are obscure (presumably dreamt up by American salesmen a few years ago), it has ...
    Bryan GouldBy Bryan Gould
    6 days ago
  • In Defense of the Media.
    Yesterday the Ministers in the next government were sworn in by our Governor General. A day of tradition and ceremony, of decorum and respect. Usually.But yesterday Winston Peters, the incoming Deputy Prime Minister, and Foreign Minister, of our nation used it, as he did with the signing of the coalition ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago
  • Top 10 news links at 10 am for Tuesday, Nov 28
    Nicola Willis’ first move was ‘spilling the tea’ on what she called the ‘sobering’ state of the nation’s books, but she had better be able to back that up in the HYEFU. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Here’s my pick of top 10 news links elsewhere at 10 am ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • PT use up but fare increases coming
    Yesterday Auckland Transport were celebrating, as the most recent Sunday was the busiest Sunday they’ve ever had. That’s a great outcome and I’m sure the ...
    6 days ago
  • The very opposite of social investment
    Nicola Willis (in blue) at the signing of the coalition agreement, before being sworn in as both Finance Minister and Social Investment Minister. National’s plan to unwind anti-smoking measures will benefit her in the first role, but how does it stack up from a social investment viewpoint? Photo: Lynn Grieveson ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • Giving Tuesday
    For the first time "in history" we decided to jump on the "Giving Tuesday" bandwagon in order to make you aware of the options you have to contribute to our work! Projects supported by Skeptical Science Inc. Skeptical Science Skeptical Science is an all-volunteer organization but ...
    6 days ago
  • Let's open the books with Nicotine Willis
    Let’s say it’s 1984,and there's a dreary little nation at the bottom of the Pacific whose name rhymes with New Zealand,and they've just had an election.Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, will you look at the state of these books we’ve opened,cries the incoming government, will you look at all this mountain ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago
  • Climate Change: Stopping oil
    National is promising to bring back offshore oil and gas drilling. Naturally, the Greens have organised a petition campaign to try and stop them. You should sign it - every little bit helps, and as the struggle over mining conservation land showed, even National can be deterred if enough people ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago
  • Don’t accept Human Rights Commission reading of data on Treaty partnership – read the survey fin...
    Wellington is braced for a “massive impact’ from the new government’s cutting public service jobs, The Post somewhat grimly reported today. Expectations of an economic and social jolt are based on the National-Act coalition agreement to cut public service numbers in each government agency in a cost-trimming exercise  “informed by” head ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • The stupidest of stupid reasons
    One of the threats in the National - ACT - NZ First coalition agreements was to extend the term of Parliament to four years, reducing our opportunities to throw a bad government out. The justification? Apparently, the government thinks "elections are expensive". This is the stupidest of stupid reasons for ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago
  • A website bereft of buzz
    Buzz from the Beehive The new government was being  sworn in, at time of writing , and when Point of Order checked the Beehive website for the latest ministerial statements and re-visit some of the old ones we drew a blank. We found ….  Nowt. Nothing. Zilch. Not a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • MICHAEL BASSETT: A new Ministry – at last
    Michael Bassett writes – Like most people, I was getting heartily sick of all the time being wasted over the coalition negotiations. During the first three weeks Winston grinned like a Cheshire cat, certain he’d be needed; Chris Luxon wasted time in lifting the phone to Winston ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    7 days ago
  • Luxon's Breakfast.
    The Prime Minister elect had his silver fern badge on. He wore it to remind viewers he was supporting New Zealand, that was his team. Despite the fact it made him look like a concierge, or a welcomer in a Koru lounge. Anna Burns-Francis, the Breakfast presenter, asked if he ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    7 days ago
  • LINDSAY MITCHELL:  Oranga Tamariki faces major upheaval under coalition agreement
     Lindsay Mitchell writes – A hugely significant gain for ACT is somewhat camouflaged by legislative jargon. Under the heading ‘Oranga Tamariki’ ACT’s coalition agreement contains the following item:   Remove Section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 According to Oranga Tamariki:     “Section ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    7 days ago
  • BRIAN EASTON:  Peters as Minister
    A previous column looked at Winston Peters biographically. This one takes a closer look at his record as a minister, especially his policy record. Brian Easton writes – 1990-1991: Minister of Māori Affairs. Few remember Ka Awatea as a major document on the future of Māori policy; there is ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    7 days ago
  • Cathrine Dyer's guide to watching COP 28 from the bottom of a warming planet
    Is COP28 largely smoke and mirrors and a plan so cunning, you could pin a tail on it and call it a weasel? Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: COP28 kicks off on November 30 and up for negotiation are issues like the role of fossil fuels in the energy transition, contributions to ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    7 days ago
  • Top 10 news links at 10 am for Monday, Nov 27
    PM Elect Christopher Luxon was challenged this morning on whether he would sack Adrian Orr and Andrew Coster.TL;DR: Here’s my pick of top 10 news links elsewhere at 10 am on Monday November 27, including:Signs councils are putting planning and capital spending on hold, given a lack of clear guidance ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    7 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on the new government’s policies of yesteryear
    This column expands on a Werewolf column published by Scoop on Friday Routinely, Winston Peters is described as the kingmaker who gets to decide when the centre right or the centre-left has a turn at running this country. He also plays a less heralded but equally important role as the ...
    7 days ago
  • The New Government’s Agreements
    Last Friday, almost six weeks after election day, National finally came to an agreement with ACT and NZ First to form a government. They also released the agreements between each party and looking through them, here are the things I thought were the most interesting (and often concerning) from the. ...
    7 days ago
  • How many smokers will die to fund the tax cuts?
    Maori and Pasifika smoking rates are already over twice the ‘all adult’ rate. Now the revenue that generates will be used to fund National’s tax cuts. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The devil is always in the detail and it emerged over the weekend from the guts of the policy agreements National ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    7 days ago
  • How the culture will change in the Beehive
    Perhaps the biggest change that will come to the Beehive as the new government settles in will be a fundamental culture change. The era of endless consultation will be over. This looks like a government that knows what it wants to do, and that means it knows what outcomes ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    7 days ago
  • No More Winnie Blues.
    So what do you think of the coalition’s decision to cancel Smokefree measures intended to stop young people, including an over representation of Māori, from taking up smoking? Enabling them to use the tax revenue to give other people a tax cut?David Cormack summed it up well:It seems not only ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • 2023 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #47
    A chronological listing of news and opinion articles posted on the Skeptical Science  Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Nov 19, 2023 thru Sat, Nov 25, 2023.  Story of the Week World stands on frontline of disaster at Cop28, says UN climate chief  Exclusive: Simon Stiell says leaders must ‘stop ...
    1 week ago
  • Some of it is mad, some of it is bad and some of it is clearly the work of people who are dangerous ...
    On announcement morning my mate texted:Typical of this cut-price, fake-deal government to announce itself on Black Friday.What a deal. We lose Kim Hill, we gain an empty, jargonising prime minister, a belligerent conspiracist, and a heartless Ayn Rand fanboy. One door closes, another gets slammed repeatedly in your face.It seems pretty ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago
  • “Revolution” is the threat as the Māori Party smarts at coalition government’s Treaty directi...
    Buzz from the Beehive Having found no fresh announcements on the government’s official website, Point of Order turned today to Scoop’s Latest Parliament Headlines  for its buzz. This provided us with evidence that the Māori Party has been soured by the the coalition agreement announced yesterday by the new PM. “Soured” ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 week ago
  • The Good, the Bad, and the even Worse.
    Yesterday the trio that will lead our country unveiled their vision for New Zealand.Seymour looking surprisingly statesmanlike, refusing to rise to barbs about his previous comments on Winston Peters. Almost as if they had just been slapstick for the crowd.Winston was mostly focussed on settling scores with the media, making ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • When it Comes to Palestine – Free Speech is Under Threat
    Hi,Thanks for getting amongst Mister Organ on digital — thanks to you, we hit the #1 doc spot on iTunes this week. This response goes a long way to helping us break even.I feel good about that. Other things — not so much.New Zealand finally has a new government, and ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    1 week ago
  • Thank you Captain Luxon. Was that a landing, or were we shot down?
    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.Also in More Than A FeildingFriday The unboxing And so this is Friday and what have we gone and done to ourselves?In the same way that a Christmas present can look lovely under the ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago

  • New Zealand welcomes European Parliament vote on the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement
    A significant milestone in ratifying the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was reached last night, with 524 of the 705 member European Parliament voting in favour to approve the agreement. “I’m delighted to hear of the successful vote to approve the NZ-EU FTA in the European Parliament overnight. This is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Further humanitarian support for Gaza, the West Bank and Israel
    The Government is contributing a further $5 million to support the response to urgent humanitarian needs in Gaza, the West Bank and Israel, bringing New Zealand’s total contribution to the humanitarian response so far to $10 million. “New Zealand is deeply saddened by the loss of civilian life and the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

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