I was thinking of a really dull and tedious weekend. ..no real estate speculation or tax avoidance calculus. No getting ticketed at 200 in the Mazeratti. No fine dining with oodles of fine Otago pinot noir. Tutukaka game fishing or similar. None of that nonsense for Ennui. No………………… …..For some bizarre February reason Super Rugby starts tonight.
Mrs Ennui will yawn and run a bath…my cup will floweth over.
“I only drink champagne when Iâm happy, and when Iâm sad. Sometimes I drink it when Iâm alone. When I have company, I consider it obligatory. I trifle with it if I am not hungry and drink it when I am. Otherwise I never touch it â unless Iâm thirsty.
– Lily Bollinger”
She of course had the advantage of not having to pay for it.
After having my wallet stolen while I was pissed as a parrot I had such rage and hatred of myself that it was enough to get me through the first 2 months (not really an incentive I guess)
Chilled water on a hot day. Delicious. You can feel it flowing inside your body cooling all over. Water is your friend. I’ve been reading that it gives muscles a boost, keeps away cramps, releases the prickly feelings from calcium spurs in your elbows when you are older.
Big weekend down in the King Country the A’N’P shows on in Taumarunui as well as the classic gliders turning up for a week at the airport.
But of most interest to me is the king country center champs dog trail at mahihi otarohanga it the best chance for a easy entry to the north island/new Zealand champs in may. Is Bess the mighty good enough.
I will be carrying on with my efforts to rear an endangered species – monarch butterflies. I keep wondering which group of brassica growers convinced who in which government department to ask some idiotic minister to permit the importing of a caterpillar eating wasp. Even caterpillars left outside that are less than a cm long are being eaten by the very efficient wasps and all that is left is black blood.
P.S. There are lots of white butterflies around, are they not as tasty as the colourful monarch?
I don’t think they were deliberately introduced, just someone not being careful enough with imports. Bloody things make a mess of monarch caterpillars.
White butterfly’s are destroyers of brassicas, monarchs eat the swan plant as far as I know. The whiteys are menaces and seem to be around awhile whereas the monarch had a very short life cycle.
We hate them with a passion as they monster the winter crops coming up now.
I have 17 swanplants growing but have sighted only one monarch butterfly. Those leg trailing paper wasps seem to patrol the plants looking for caterpillars. same last year. Monarchs Nil.
I live rurally. I have paddocks for neighbours. Recently the property was refenced to stop the cows from coming in. Before the fencing, i had a bit of a wild garden thing growing. Lots of flowers, colour, insect life and even a rat nesting under the harakeke.
Well, the fencing contractor, whom I know very well, unilaterally decided to have his workers ‘clean up the place’ and had them remove every plant and every bit of colour from the section. This happened last week and my blood is still boiling.
The fencing contractor is a good person and runs a crew of youths who otherwise would be in prison. He is also a Tuhoe bushman. I said to the dude “how the fuck would you like it if I went through Te Uruwera with a chainsaw. ” That’s how badly violated I feel.
So I really do get the wild garden thing. And on a final note, Bob, the rat, is now trying to store his nuts in my ceiling. I need to really think about that one.
“I said to the dude âhow the fuck would you like it if I went through Te Uruwera with a chainsaw. â Thatâs how badly violated I feel.”
Makes sense to me. Lots of people socialised into tidy is best and the beauty and abundance of wilderness in our backyards is lost on them. I’ve been in that situation a few times where people thought they were doing something useful or kind but were in fact destroying something essential. It’s hard. Did the man get it when you pointed it out?
Rats on the other hand, once they make it into the ceiling, that’s a step too far. It was always the young males who would come in at 3 o’clock in the morning and run riot over my bedroom ceiling. That was the time for me to push back.
“Rats on the other hand, once they make it into the ceiling, thatâs a step too far. It was always the young males who would come in at 3 oâclock in the morning and run riot over my bedroom ceiling. That was the time for me to push back.”
I know exactly what you are saying. So far I think it still is just Bob, the solitary rat. I have yet to see or hear evidence of the whanau or mokopuna. He is already in the ceiling space rattling his nuts about.
I have had endless discussions with the locals on how to remove rats, which generally involves trapping or poisoning. I am at an impasse. I don’t want to kill but I also don’t want to come home to a horde of rats arguing over the remote.
Can you cover the swan plant bush with fine netting – dress material type? Or fine muslin? Monarchs are beautiful. Do you belong to the Trust? I am sorry about the demise of the NZ preying mantis and the way that the South African has swamped it. But I feel that wasp may be getting into the preying mantis too.
@Janine
Naa the white ones only eat the tougher green stuff, Cabbage and my Silverbeet (out with the dust again) so must be bitter compared to the Swan Plant eating butterfly. . I have a friend here in Levin who’s house has hundreds of chrysalis mainly empty now and butterfly’s everywhere. Oh if they eat the plants too quick or too far She put Cucumber out for them. The forum Second link should elp with your wasp problem.
Thanks for the links DH. It is good to see that some people have living caterpillars. I got some net to cover my two mature trees greywarsharrk, but the wasps managed to get underneath the cover and there was carnage! Of the 22 caterpillars that I knew of only 4 remained. One was hanging ready to turn and only half of it was left. I live in the Franklin district so if there was a deliberate release of wasps I guess it would have been here. We are also close (as the crow flies) to the Auckland Airport, so I suppose if something came in there it would head for this area as a good source of food. Now I go over the trees at least twice a day and any branches with eggs on I bring inside.
@ Janice
Good luck with raising them inside. Perhaps a trend could be started for people to adopt the ones ready to change, bringing them inside when they went into their J shape. And then viewing them as living works of art – I find them beautiful with their cases of light green with gold spots. Watching the amazing work of the nature as their wings form and colours deepen till they can be seen through their thin cover is interesting. The beautiful end comes as they emerge and slowly waft their wings to dry and circulate their blood. Set them high enough so the cat won’t get them would be a rule!
Monarchs! I used to see them all the time at my parents (Chch) growing up. Haven’t seen one for many years. I had forgotten. Thank you for your efforts…
Flying home to winter after 4 fabulous weeks with friends and family in Aotearoa. Highlights included family wedding, Abel Tasman track and several visits to Raglan. Best.holiday.ever.
Only rained while we were on the track – reckon it was Puck paying us back for a dry Milford walk some years ago.
This is where Facebook could come in handy. A group with transport and revolving and reliable sober driver task could contact each other and set up trips like this Contrarian.
Writing this, I have the wonderful Dick Gaughan playing in the background. Militant working class folk music as its sinewy, caustic best.
One of the things I like most about Dick is that, like a string of singer-songwriters of his time, he is a very accomplished guitar player. Back in the 60s and 70s being a guitar-playing singer-songwriter you had to be a really good guitarist. Like Dick, or like Bert Jansch or John Renbourn or Davy Graham. Or NZ’s own wonderful Chris Thompson (‘Echoes from the Pit’ and ‘Minstrelsy’ are wonderful albums).
The Gaughan album I have on is ‘Gaughan Live!’, recorded at the Hebden Bridge Trades Club in the north of England.
Gaughan is a Cot, but he has a couple of nice songs exposing the myths peddled by Scottish nationalists, pointing out that the Scottish landowners and capitalists ruthlessly exploited the working people of Scotland and also emphasising the solidarity between Scottish and English workers: “No Gods” is a powerful, raucous number, while “Both Sides the Tweed” is just beautiful as a song, even if you didn’t follow the lyrics.
“Tom Paine’s Bones” is another great track, sinewy and emotional.
“Whatever happened?” is magnificent; it’s a rollicking, biting condemnation of all those who espoused revolutionary views in their youth but moved right as they climbed the socio-economic ladder (but might have kept the odd Che Guevara t-shirt).
He also has some wonderful guitar-playing on two instrumental medleys.
Gaughan first came to my attention at the time of the 1981 hunger strikes in the H-Blocks. He does a beautiful version (my favourite) of an old Irish republican movement song, “The Galtee Mountain Boy” and it was on a fund-raising album put out by the POW Dept of Sinn Fein. The live album contains my favourite version of “Both sides the Tweed” but there’s a nice version of it by Dick with Emmylou Harris at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlDijR0Y60Q
One of my favourite tracks on that great album was “Back Home in Derry”, written by Bobby Sands (although Sands was from Belfast). But my favourite version of that song is by the wonderful Gary Og, however his best vid of it seems to have disappeared from youtube. But he does a nice version of Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song: here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iP7r0cg7Oc&list=PLDC4C4612C68C0D55&index=16
One of my favourite Irish songs is “James Connolly” and my favourite version is this one, which accompanies one of the annual Easter Rebellion commemorations organised by the Belfast branches of the socialist-republican movement eirigi: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EghEkVe80e0
and I’ll be digging out some of the old magnificent Van der Graaf Generator; this is one of my favourite songs of theirs, “Arrow” (from 1975): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiLv2f3QKzs
I share your admiration for Gaughan. Fine guitar player and also a voice which I find very rich with an expressive warmth. “Kist of Gold” is my favourite album. Great political songs and also a way with a love ballad. He’s one of my “Gee, I wish I could play/sing like Gaughan.”
“…songs exposing the myths peddled by Scottish nationalists…”
you seem to infer that Scottish nationalist were (are?) on the side of the landowners and capitalist and they they were fellow travellers in ther attitudes towards working people.
Can you expand? I don’t see the current SNP in that light.
Blew the head gasket on the Commodore last week! Off to buy a bicycle this arvo.
Starting a new job on Monday. Will need the $$$ to pay for the Holden dramas. Arrgh
On Radionz. I thought this was a breakthrough in social understanding and the Joy of Mathematics. It is not airy fairy ideas, really factual and provable and repeatable.
And can be applied to NZs as a democratic people if trying to understand why our democracy and we are going down the plughole. http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/20167277
Hannah Fry – Love and Mathematics (â21âČâ27âłâ)
09:40 Just in time for Valentine’s Day weekend – Dr Hannah Fry tells Wallace the
mathematical equation for love. Her new book The Mathematics of Love offers a unique perspective on matters of the heart. As a mathematician, Dr Fry answers such burning questions as: What is the chance of finding love? How long will it last? And what are your chances of divorce?
âSelma, the stunning new film based on Paul Webbâs screenplay and directed by the previously unheralded African-American Ava DuVernay, makes for an interesting side-by-side comparison with Stephen Spielbergâs Lincoln. Both films revolve around the circumstances attending the passage of key legislation affecting Black America: in the first instance, the Thirteenth Amendment that abolished slavery and in the second the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that sealed the doom of Jim Crow, a legacy of white Americaâs abandonment of Reconstruction. . .â
Another film. – Edward Snowden and how it feel to be really unpopular in a pseudo-democracy.
Citizenfour â A panel discussion (â19âČâ19âłâ) http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/20167273
08:40 The Oscar nominated and BAFTA winning documentary Citizenfour tells the story of Edward Snowden – a former NSA employee turned whistle-blower.
Radio New Zealand National held a screening of the film in Auckland earlier this week and followed it with a panel hosted by Wallace Chapman and featuring: Mediawatch’s Colin Peacock; former Listener editor Finlay McDonald; documentary filmmaker Annie Goldson; and, Sandra Kailahi – a freelance journalist and director.
Also be aware of something lighter – Alan Davies UK Jonathan Creek QI etc is coming.
10:40 Alan Davies â Telling Stories
Alan Davies is a standup veteran of 25 years. He starred in the crime show Jonathan Creek which ran for 14 years, and is a permanent panelist of the QI show hosted by Stephen Fry. Alan Davies is bringing his new show Little Victories to NZ for a series of gigs across the country in July. http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/20167279
I met an honest-to-God Alex Jones 911 truther today who told me that “God’s judgment is upon America”, that “Obama can kill anybody he wants”, and that “FEMA is constructing death camps around the nation”.
This guy is around 65 and very overweight, has renounced his U.S citizenship and emigrated to New Zealand. He also said “the church in America is corrupt” and “America is the whore of Babylon” and something about Revelation chapter 16.
Tried injecting a little bit of sanity into the conversation but soon realised I was wasting my time and looked for an exit strategy. But on reflection I pretty much agree with his criticism of US militarism, although his logic and religious rhetoric was totally insane. I think he got NZ citizenship because of his Australian wife.
No doubt he will pull a NZ pension while complaining about big government and voting NACT
I am among the most pro-free speech people I know. I don’t doubt there are others more strident than me, but I’m certainly up there. And my support for freedom of expression isn’t limited to opposition to government-imposed restrictions. It extends to a belief that employers should have limited powers ...
With over 69,000 confirmed cases and 1,600 deaths, here’s your round-up of the latest coronavirus news. New disease and virus have now officially been named On the 11th February, the WHO Director General announced a new name for the disease: COVID-19 which is short for coronavirus disease 2019. The naming ...
A chronological listing of news articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week, i.e., Sun, Feb 9, 2020 through Sat, Feb 15, 2020 Editor's Pick ANALYSIS-Climate change opens up 'frontier' farmland, but at what cost to the planet?Climate change could expand farmland globally by ...
After cross-examination Jones knew he would lose the defamation case he took against film maker Renae Maihi. That’s why he threw in the towel. The weight of evidence was clearly against the old tycoon with the defense presenting fifty articles to confirm Jones’ racist views.Being unable to harass somebody into ...
Sprung! Former NZ First president, Lester Gray, chats with RNZ's Guyon Espiner in the carpark of a Tauranga shopping centre.(Photo supplied anonymously to NZ First and The BFD.)IT’S CLEAR THAT an important aspect of Jacinda Ardern’s political success is her willingness to seek – and take – advice. This ...
Ruth Cunningham, Charlotte Paul, Andrew MoorePublic health responses to infectious diseases such as COVID-19 require us to draw on our common humanity and be explicit about our values. Recognising this will help us make good decisions in difficult situations so that, for example, the need to impose restrictive measures ...
The Helen Clark Foundation has released its report on the housing crisis, and found that house-hoarders are to blame for it:Property investors are to blame for New Zealand's high house prices, a new research paper published by the Helen Clark Foundation says. [...] McArthur said previous attempts to address housing ...
The Abortion Legislation Committee has reported back on the Abortion Legislation Bill and recommended that it be passed with some amendments. Unfortunately, the latter include even more hoops to jump through for those seeking abortions after 20 weeks, including a time-wasting requirement to consult a second doctor. No-one casually seeks ...
Brexit is likely to be a disaster for the UK (how sad, never mind). But now that they're out of the EU, the latter has finaly taken the opportunity to blacklist one of their key tax havens:The Cayman Islands, a British overseas territory, is to be put on an EU ...
I’m not quite sure of what to make of the new figures for COVID-19 (as we must now call the novel coronavirus – though I’m not sure the capitalisation is correct) from Hubei province:Image from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-51495484The spike yesterday is a consequence of a using a different way of ...
Bob Jones has dropped his defamation case against Renae Maihi. Good. But at the same time, it perfectly exposes what the case was all about: not protecting Jones' reputation, but punishing someone who had dared to criticise him, and deterring others from doing the same. This rich pompous asshat dragged ...
As I've done for the past few years, I'm curating and presenting The Listening Lounge, the talk programme at Splore. On the morning of Saturday the 22nd at the Living Lounge stage, the korero goes like this.Yes, we're talking about drugs again, not just because I'm professionally interested in drug ...
What Were They Thinking? RNZ's CEO Paul Thompson (left) and Jim Mather, Chairman of the RNZ Board of Governors, attempt to justify the debacle arising out of their attempt to downgrade RNZ Concert to the Economic Development, Science and Innovation Select Committee at Parliament on Thursday, 13 February 2020.WHAT IS ...
Dame Tariana Turia with former PM John KeyWhat is it about Tariana Turia’s grudge against the Labour Party? Not content with attacking the Government over Whānau Ora funding, which was increased by $80 million in 2019, she has now made it personal by saying that Jacinda Ardern is out of her ...
Back in 2017, right after being elected, Jacinda Ardern promised that there would be no new mines on conservation land. Since then, her government has done nothing to make that happen, and now the policy has been officially "parked" for the election:West Coast-Tasman MP Damien O'Connor says the "no new ...
So the guy who advocated for public burning and beheading feels offended because someone called him a racist!Perhaps Bob Jones hasn't heard of the very old saying; Live by the sword, die by the sword?I mean for someone who often writes opinionated nonsense about Maori; this is a ridiculous case ...
The government today announced a major support package aimed at reducing homelessness. A thousand new transitional housing places, more support for people to find homes (or not lose them in the first place), all good stuff. The one problem with it is that they're going to start charging people in ...
Courtroom Drama: There is no off-switch in a courtroom. Neither is it possible to turn the page in disgust. Ill-formed and ill-defended opinions will be exposed ruthlessly and unapologetically. As Shakespeare put it: “Reputation is an idle and most false imposition; oft got without merit, and lost without deserving.” Sometimes the ...
As of today, the novel coronavirus spreading in China is called COVID-19. Why does it matter? Around the office, we’ve had several conversations over the past few weeks about how 2019-nCoV needed its own name. First, it was getting annoying calling it by the above designation, and ‘novel coronavirus’ doesn’t ...
by Philip Ferguson Last month B’Tselem, the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, reported: “In 2019, Israeli security forces killed 133 Palestinians, including 28 minors. Of the casualties, 104 were killed in the Gaza Strip, 26 in the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and three within ...
A ballot for a single Member's Bill was held today, and the following bill was drawn: Arms (Firearms Prohibition Orders) Amendment Bill (No 2) (Brett Hudson)Its basicly more "tough on crime" nonsense (its already illegal for unlicensed people to own guns) designed to wedge NZ First against its arsehole base. ...
In 2015 the world agreed to the Paris Agreement to fight climate change. Each country would offer a Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) "that it intends to achieve", and "pursue domestic mitigation measures, with the aim of achieving [it]". And every five years, they'd improve on it, ratcheting up ambition until ...
In theory, the emissions trading scheme should reduce emissions. Making polluters pay for permits to pollute lets them save money by reducing pollution, giving them a financial incentive to do the right thing. But right from the start the ETS was broken with a system of free allocation, so polluters ...
Irish voters went to the polls on Saturday in parliamentary elections, and perhaps delivered a political revolution. Since independence, Irish politics has been dominated by two parties, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. Basicly patronage networks with indistinguishable policies, their cleavage isn't ideology, but who killed whose father or grandfather in ...
Once again the Aotearoa Bike Challenge is on us, and once again I’m participating. In principle this is not hard because it does not represent a significant switch in behavior for me. I already bike nearly every day. The Bicycle The fascinating thing about cycling is the realisation that this ...
Lately there has been a great deal of misinformation regarding the origins and purpose of Skeptical Science. As John Cook wrote nearly a decade ago, Skeptical Science is primarily a website that debunks climate misinformation with peer-reviewed science. Despite the ever-worsening impacts from climate change, with record after record being broken in ...
Under Attack: By sacking not only RNZ Concert’s presenters, but also its producers and librarians, and reducing the station to an automated purveyor of classical music in-between parliamentary broadcasts, RNZ’s CEO, Paul Thompson, wasn’t simply announcing an operational shake-up, he was declaring war on one of the most important guardians of ...
Story of the Week... Editorial of the Week... Toon of the Week... Quote of the Week... Coming Soon on SkS... Climate Feedback Reviews... SkS Week in Review... Poster of the Week... Story of the Week... Australian smoke plume sets recordsThe recent wildfires in Australia sent one of ...
The Global Protest to #FightInequality was powerful – thankyou and what next? Dear allies, We started the decade with a huge protest to #FightInequality that was heard around the world, including the 1% at Davos. Watch and share the highlights on facebook and twitter. A huge thank you. Together we ...
The Ministry of Health have announced a package that might ensure NZ will never experience another measles epidemic. While at the time of writing the details are still limited it appears that the important limitations in our current programme have been acknowledged and the intent is to address them. Great ...
Prof Nick Wilson, Prof Michael BakerIn this blog we briefly summarise our assessment of the highly uncertain new coronavirus threat. Given its potential to become a severe and prolonged global pandemic, a precautionary response now means activating all components of our pandemic plan, with a particular focus on ‘keep ...
When Labour was running for election, Jacinda Ardern famously said that climate change was "my generation's nuclear free moment". The implication was that her government would take the problem seriously, and act swiftly to reduce emissions. The reality:New Zealand will emit a million more tonnes of greenhouse gases in 2020 ...
James Renwick is Professor of Physical Geography at Victoria University of Wellington. He studied at Canterbury and the University of Washington and has worked on diverse aspects of climate science, including global atmospheric circulation and Antarctic sea ice. In December 2019 he was appointed to the New Zealand Climate Change ...
by Philip Ferguson Exit polls are showing a three-way virtual tie between the main parties in the south of Ireland. Sinn Fein, Fianna Fail and Fine Gael are all on just over 22%. FG on 22.4, SF on 22.3, FF on 22.2. Exit polls indicate that over 30% of 18-24 ...
A chronological listing of news articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week, i.e., Sun, Feb 2, 2020 through Sat, Feb 8, 2020 Editor's Pick New Report Details How Fossil Fuel Industry's Climate Destruction Also Exacerbates Human Rights Abuses"Even in the face of the ...
In a previous post I described briefly when and how the Starlink satellite chains – recent launches by Space-X in a scheme to bring 5G internet connectivity to the whole globe – could be seen from New Zealand with the naked eye. Here I provide an update and predictions for ...
Keeping The Faith: This Government’s broad, new, heavily moderated, progressive faith does not require a prime minister with the powers of a medieval pope. Jacinda’s regime has no need of subterranean torture chambers to ensure compliance. A gift for diplomacy and the ability to inspire her fellow human-beings is all ...
Jonathan Freedland of the Guardian has penned a column which chastises the left wing of the Labour party for daring to retain principles and ideals, qualities - it seems - that should be jettisoned in pursuit of power.Never mind that Freedland was an ardent Remainer, that is to say, one ...
Tonight’s news suggests the coronavirus outbreak may have originated from pangolins. Details are very sketchy, almost nothing at all beyond a claim of high similarity. My impression is this claim comes from a press release by South China Agricultural University. Initial discussion online suggests this is a more likely candidate ...
by Susanne Kemp The Fire and Emergency service (FENZ) has recently asked firefighters in Auckland Areas 3, 4 and 5 to take on an additional duty that has rather ominous implications. Namely, to collect names and addresses of everyone on the premises of fires they attend. The firefighters’ union, the ...
Part of the story of the Nazis' rise to power in Germany was the willingness of mainstream right-wing parties to work with them to keep out the left. Because of this, one of the fundamental rules of postwar German politics has been "do not work with Nazis". As a result, ...
There has long been a truism in public broadcasting: don't mess with Concert FM. The theory was that although the station has been in a long-term audience decline, and that audience is steadily ageing out, it has powerful establishment support – and any threat to it would provoke a fury.As ...
This is a re-post from the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists The heat absorbed in Earth’s oceans reached a new record in 2019, found a recent study published in the journal Advances in Atmospheric Sciences. Despite the fact that this has been the case for almost every year over the past decade, this information ...
We are confronted with the spectre of Simon Bridges making clear he cannot, will not, trust Winston Peters – the oft-cited “King Maker” in New Zealand politics.Supporters are lauding it as a master stroke, naturally, because in their eyes, it prevents him being the tail that wags the dog. ...
by Don Franks Under a government claiming empathy with the fine arts, Radio New Zealand ( RNZ) is poised to cut back its classical music station, RNZ Concert. The plan is replacing it on FM radio with music “for a younger audience” as part of a new multimedia music brand. ...
More Thwaites This past week we heard disturbing news about Antarctica's Thwaites Glacier. Helping to fill in the longer term history of Thwaites' behavior and especially helpful in interpreting results of the recent drilling project and what it may say about the future of this unstable mass of ice is Revealing the ...
Inaccuracies are very common in scientific paper abstracts. Image credit:Science in the Abstract: Don’t Judge a Study by its Cover I have come to accept anti-fluoride campaigners will never stop cherry-picking research and findings ...
“The scene is set, the players met…”. And what players they are in this farce of an Election coming up in the United States this year. There is a multi-faceted anger in the broader situation the world finds itself in, in which the false promises of so-called “moderates” find themselves ...
A few years ago, a company lowballed a contract to dispose of toxic waste from the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter. So, they dumped it in a disused paper mill in Mataura, then went into liquidation - effectively dumping the problem on local councils. The waste is dangerous - it releases ...
Unhappy with the demonisation of Iran in Western media, I was fortunate to have the Australian Institute of International Affairs invite me to write an alternative analysis for their on-line journal Australian Outlook. I did, and they serialised it into two parts. The essays are short, so I did not ...
Over on The Good Society, Max Rashbrooke suggests that its time to start directly taxing wealth:A wealth tax would be levied on net wealth – that is, the value of people’s assets once their debts have been subtracted. Such a tax would be highly redistributive. Levied at 1% on wealth ...
The quarterly labour market statistics have been released, and unemployment has dropped to 4%. There are now 111,000 unemployed - 15,000 fewer than when Labour took office. Its not the performance we had under Clark (when unemployment was ~3.3%), but its still a reasonable improvement over prevailing conditions under National. ...
Prof Michael Baker, Prof Nick Wilson, Louise Delany, Prof Richard Edwards, Prof Philippa Howden-ChapmanThe current national measles epidemic in New Zealand is amongst the largest we have experienced in the last 40 years. It can be linked to the problems created by long-term erosion and fragmentation of national public health ...
I’m about to start teaching science communication to tertiary students, which is equally hilarious and terrifying to me. (Hi to my students who have Googled me and found this post.) I loved English at high school, but we spent most of our time reading The Outsiders, discussing the differences between metaphors and ...
Space-X has started launching its Starlink satellites into low-Earth orbit with a plan to use some tens of thousands of these to deliver 5G wifi to the whole globe. Chains of these satellites can be seen in the evening or before-dawn skies, through the sunlight they scatter. Here I provide ...
New Zealand was the first country to decriminalise prostitution and it was promoted as a progressive move. Yet survivors of the sex trade say that pimps and johns are emboldened operating within the law, and that the women are treated more like a piece of property to be used and ...
An obscene 12 percent pay jump for already overpaid CEOs last year reveals a willful ignorance from much of corporate New Zealand to the on-going harm inequality is causing the very society they live in, said Peter Malcolm, spokesperson for the income equality project Closing the Gap. In its annual ...
One thing I remember about the interview I did with Rex Halliday for Planet magazine in 1992 was a couple of times being on the verge of tears.Rex was reflecting on the community effort that went into the second Hero party at the old Princes Wharf building – and the ...
Something you don't see: Malawi's constitutional court has annulled fraudulent elections and ordered new ones:Judges in Malawi have annulled last year’s elections and called for a new ballot within 150 days. In a landmark judgment that experts hailed as a step forward for democracy, the country’s constitutional court found that ...
Our Scibloggers have been providing updates on the ongoing coronavirus outbreak. This page will be updated as more posts are published. 3 February 2020 Coronavirus ‘infodemic’ The WHO has called the coronavirus outbreak an ‘infodemic’, with information spreading rapidly – and sometimes incorrectly – online. Sarah-Jane O’ConnorLately, in Science 2 ...
If you haven’t watched Newsroom’s video showing Oranga Tamariki staff attempting to uplift a newborn baby yet you should do so. Although it's not the worst case as far as interventions go, it’s certainly not a good look for the Government. Because of this controversy there’s been a plethora of ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sarah Wesseler As one result of modern farming practices that strip organic matter from the ground, between 20 and 60% of the carbon once stored in the world’s agricultural soils has been lost. Putting it back – a process known as carbon ...
Lately, my morning routine includes opening up our work email and checking the latest World Health Organization coronavirus situation report. It’s sobering to see the numbers increasing so rapidly – about 2,500 new confirmed cases every day and about 45 reported deaths. But I’m also reminded of the stark contrast ...
by Don Franks If you haven’t been to see it, “Just Mercy” is a hell of a movie. It’s based on African American lawyer Bryan Stevenson’s book of the same name, about his struggles to reverse death sentences in Alabama. The film version homes in on one particular case, a ...
India is the world's largest democracy. But under prime minister Narendra Modi it has become increasingly undemocratic, with police increasingly stifling dissent. And now that has reached its nadir with a group of school children questioned and their teachers arrested for sedition for staging a play which criticised government policy:Days ...
Last year, Newsroom exposed Oranga Tamariki's kidnapping of Māori children, with graphic video of the organisations efforts to "uplift" a newborn baby from its mother. The public reacted with revulsion, and multiple inquiries were launched. Now one of them - by the Whānau Ora Commissioning agency - has recommended that ...
Story of the Week... Opinion of the Week... El Niño/La Niña Update... Toon of the Week... Coming Soon on SkS... Climate Feedback Claim Review... SkS Week in Review... Poster of the Week... Story of the Week... Scientists alarmed to discover warm water at "vital point" beneath Antarctica's "doomsday glacier" ...
It may have been the first sitting week of 2020, but our Government is already in full-swing - managing a strong economy, investing in infrastructure, and working to break the cycle of homelessness. Read below for all that, and more... ...
In a heated debate in Parliament, National's Deputy Leader Paula Bennett claimed that “nearly 1600 patched gang members have been added” since the Coalition Government took power. To illustrate her point, she altered a chart used by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to show her government’s progress in housing to instead ...
Speech by the Rt Hon Winston Peters at Parliament’s Opening 2020 "We all need insurance" This year New Zealanders are going to have a clear choice to make That choice is between: Optimism versus pessimism; More progress versus back to the future; Investment versus divestment; Unity versus division. New Zealand ...
Infrastructure Minister Shane Jones has slammed the Board of Auckland Airport following the airport's runway closing twice within two weeks due to maintenance. Around 2,000 passengers were affected by last week’s runway closures, according to 1NEWS. Another maintenance closure on January 24 saw two international flights and three domestic flights ...
Jenny Marcroft, Spokesperson for Broadcasting New Zealand First supports the commissioning of a business case to assess the viability of a new public media entity. “A strong media environment is critical for a healthy democracy. New Zealand First is a strong supporter of a diverse, independent media,” New Zealand First broadcasting spokesperson ...
Pounamou and technology industries in the West Coast region are set to receive more than $2 million in Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) funding. This was announced by the Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau during Waitangi Day commemorations in Hokitika. He said $800,000 would be given to Development West ...
Clayton Mitchell MP, New Zealand First spokesperson for Labour and Industrial Relations Unemployment and wage growth numbers released by Stats NZ today demonstrate a labour market in good shape with unemployment falling to 4.0%, the underutilisation rate falling to an 11 year low, and wage growth at a 10-year high ...
Hon. Ron Mark, New Zealand First Spokesperson for Defence New Zealand First Spokesperson for Defence Ron Mark, welcomes the official opening of Te Rau Aroha, a new museum at Waitangi Treaty Grounds as part of our Coalition Agreement. “It is a great honour to be part of an effective Government ...
Rt. Hon. Winston Peters, Deputy Prime MinisterGood morning,Let us start with important acknowledgements.First, this special day, in remembrance of the 28th Maori Battalion, is also to honour all those men and women who have risked their lives in the service of our country.Second, special guest Robert ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters says New Zealand will look to build on its relationship with the United Kingdom and recommit to the European Union, after the country officially left the continental union recently. The Minister said New Zealand already cooperates closely with Britain on defence and security issues and has ...
Today, our Government announced the biggest infrastructure investment in a generation.We’re investing $12 billion to upgrade and build rail, roads, schools and hospitals across the country – modernising our infrastructure, preparing for climate change and helping to future-proof our economy.Find out everything you need to know about the ...
Hon. Ron Mark, Minister of Defence Minister of Defence Ron Mark met with United States Secretary of Defense Mark Esper today. “This was an excellent opportunity to meet with one of our closest security partners,” Ron Mark said. “The main focus of the meeting was to discuss challenges that New ...
The Coalition Government’s investment in a strong border and disrupting transnational organised crime produced record results for stopping drugs in 2019, says Minister of Customs Jenny Salesa. The illegal drugs were seized at the New Zealand border by Customs, and overseas by Customs’ international border partners before the drugs could ...
Transport Minister Phil Twyford today kicked off construction of a separated cycleway alongside Tamaki Drive. A two-way separated cycleway will be built along the northern side of Tamaki Drive, between the Quay Street Cycleway extension and Ngapipi Road. There will be a separate walking path alongside. Phil Twyford said giving ...
Owner-occupiers of unit and apartments living in earthquake-prone buildings will have certainty about the financial support they’ll be eligible for with the release of criteria for an upcoming assistance scheme, Minister for Building and Construction Jenny Salesa says. The Residential Earthquake-Prone Building Financial Assistance Scheme will help unit owners facing ...
Temporary restrictions on travel from China will remain in place as a precautionary measure to protect against the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus. The restrictions which prevent foreign nationals travelling from, or transiting through, mainland China from entering New Zealand have been extended for a further 8 days. This position ...
Employment Minister Willie Jackson announced today that Tairāwhiti rangatahi will benefit from an investment made by the Government’s He Poutama Rangatahi (HPR) scheme. The funding will go to the Tautua Village, Kauneke programme and the Matapuna Supported Employment Programme which will fund 120 rangatahi over two years. “Both programmes work ...
All parents and caregivers need to ensure that their children go to school unless they are sick, Associate Education Minister Tracey Martin said today. “The school attendance results for 2019 show, across the board, a drop in the number of students going to school regularly,” the Minister says. “Apart from ...
A Deed of Settlement agreeing redress for historical Treaty claims has been signed by the Crown and Moriori at Kōpinga Marae on Rēkohu (Chatham Islands) today, Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations Andrew Little has announced. Moriori have a tradition of peace that extends back over 600 years. This settlement ...
Transport Minister Phil Twyford today with Māori King Tuheitia Pōtatau Te Wherowhero VII officially opened the country’s newest road, the $384 million Huntly section of the Waikato Expressway. The 15km four-lane highway with side and central safety barriers takes State Highway 1 east of Huntly town, across lowlands and streams ...
The rapid uptake of life-saving new hepatitis C medicine Maviret since it was funded by PHARMAC a year ago means the elimination of the deadly disease from this country is a realistic goal, Health Minister David Clark says. Hepatitis C is a blood-borne virus which attacks the liver, proving fatal ...
Kaupapa Māori will underpin the Government’s new plan to deal with homelessness announced by the Prime Minister in Auckland this morning. “Māori are massively overrepresented among people experiencing homelessness, so, to achieve different outcomes for Māori, we have to do things very differently,” says the Minister of Māori Development ...
1000 new transitional housing places delivered by end of year to reduce demand for emergency motel accommodation. Introduce 25% of income payment, after 7 days, for those in emergency motel accommodation to bring in line with other forms of accommodation support. Over $70m extra to programmes that prevents those at ...
Clear requirements for ensuring customers are treated fairly by banks, insurers and other financial service providers are included in new financial conduct legislation that passed its first reading today. “The recent reviews, by the Financial Markets Authority (FMA) and Reserve Bank of New Zealand, into the conduct of banks and ...
Applications are now open for the fifth round of the Regional Culture and Heritage Fund Associate Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Grant Robertson announced today. “I am delighted to open this year’s fund which has some $7 million available to support performing arts venues, galleries, museums and whare ...
The Minister of Māori Development, Hon Nanaia Mahuta today congratulated Associate Professor Amokura Kawharu on her appointment as the next President of the Law Commission. “Amokura Kawharu will be a standout in her new role, leading in an innovative and forward looking approach to the law reform process. She will ...
Auckland University legal academic Amokura Kawharu has been appointed as the next President of the Law Commission, Justice Minister Andrew Little announced today. Associate Professor Kawharu will take up her new appointment on 11 May 2020. “I would like to congratulate Associate Professor Kawharu on her appointment,” Andrew ...
A programme for employers to help them engage effectively with younger employees was launched today by Minister of Employment, Willie Jackson. The Youth Ready Employer Programme contains a range of on-line templates that employers can easily access to help with employing and retaining young people in their businesses. The programme ...
Budget 2020 will be delivered on Thursday 14 May, Finance Minister Grant Robertson announced today. “This year’s Budget will continue the Coalition Government’s focus on tackling the long-term challenges facing New Zealand while also preparing the economy for the future. “Those challenges and opportunities cannot be resolved in one budget, ...
I move, That this House place on record its appreciation and thanks for the devoted and distinguished service to New Zealand by the late Rt Hon Michael Kenneth Moore, member of the Order of New Zealand, a member of Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, an Honorary Member of the ...
Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor has today classified the drought conditions in Northland as an adverse event for the primary sector, unlocking $80,000 in Government support. “This is recognition that the extreme and prolonged nature of this dry spell is taking its toll on our farmers and growers and additional support ...
The Minister of Police says an operation to smash a trans national drug smuggling ring today will make a significant impact on the methamphetamine trade fuelling harm in our communities. Police have announced 10 arrests and the seizure of up to five million dollars’ worth of illicit drugs after an ...
The Government’s books are in a strong position to withstand global headwinds, with the accounts in surplus and expenses close to forecast, Finance Minister Grant Robertson says. The Treasury today released the Crown accounts for the six months to December. The operating balance before gains and losses (OBEGAL) was above ...
Race courses can improve safety with this year’s second round of funding from the Racing Safety Development Fund. Minister for Racing Winston Peters has announced the second funding round of 2019/20 is open with $347,875 available for distribution. “The racing industry is integral to the economic and social fabric of ...
The Government is committing $300,000 to fund research to update behavioural information to make sure HIV and STI prevention services are targeted appropriately in New Zealand. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Finance Minister Grant Robertson made the announcement at today’s Big Gay Out in Auckland. “There is much talk about ...
The Minister of Broadcasting, Communications and Digital Media has announced work will begin on a business case to assess the viability of forming a new public media entity. “The Government must ensure New Zealanders have a strong independent public media service for decades to come, which means ensuring public ...
Minister of Civil Defence Hon Peeni Henare announced today that the Government will contribute $100,000 to the Southland regional Mayoral Relief Fund, to support communities impacted by the recent flooding in Southland. Mr Henare says this week’s flooding has caused significant disruption to communities in the lower South Island. ...
Heritage buildings throughout New Zealand will benefit from the $1.1 million in Heritage EQUIP funding grants announced today. “These grants for seismic strengthening projects help private building owners get the advice they need to start building work or to get the work completed,” Grant Robertson says. “Timaru’s Grosvenor Hotel has ...
A new survey has found New Zealand’s game development sector has grown beyond expectations and is on track to becoming a billion dollar industry in 2025, Economic Development Minister Phil Twyford says. “New Zealand’s interactive media sector grew by 42 per cent in last financial year to $203.4 million, according ...
Te Tii, the lower marae at Waitangi, is among more than 70 marae now connected to broadband internet thanks to the Provincial Growth Fund’s marae connectivity scheme, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones said today. In February 2019, the Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) allocated $21 million to connect rural towns ...
The West Coast has had a funding injection of over $1.2 million from the Provincial Growth Fund, Under Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau announced at Waitangi Day commemorations in Hokitika today. The PGF projects announced are: $800,000 to Development West Coast for a Grey District Regional Digital Hub ...
Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor has declared an adverse event for the Southland and Otago regions, unlocking Government support for farmers and growers. “Widespread flooding has resulted in severe disruption, with many people evacuated from their homes and many farms being affected by flood waters. It’s putting pressure on our farmers, ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has announced a funeral service for former Labour Prime Minister the Rt Hon Mike Moore, ONZ, AO. A public service will be held on Friday 14 February at 2pm at Dilworth School senior campus, 2 Erin Street, Epsom, Auckland. “The service will be a celebration of ...
Today’s news of low unemployment, rising wages and record numbers of Maori in work shows the economy is in good shape and that the Government is delivering better outcomes across New Zealand. “The Coalition Government has overseen a strong economy. Our investments in infrastructure, our focus on lifting wages of ...
Opening of Waitangi Museum Te Rau Aroha 9.30am, 5 February 2020 [CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY] Good morning, Let us start with important acknowledgements. First, this special day, in remembrance of the 28th Maori Battalion, is also to honour all those men and women who have risked their lives in the service ...
The government has agreed to help crayfish exporters to minimise the impact of trade disruptions caused by the coronavirus outbreak in China. Between 150 and 180 tonnes of live rock lobster are currently held in New Zealand in pots and tanks, at sea and on land, after export orders were ...
Rural Communities Minister Damien O’Connor is travelling to Southland today. The region is in a state of local emergency following widespread flooding. “I’m heading down there to support response and recovery efforts and meet with the locals”, he said. “A lot of people have been evacuated from their homes, have suffered ...
Te Rau Aroha, a new museum at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, acknowledges the duty and sacrifice of Māori who served in New Zealand’s armed forces, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones says. The museum, whose construction was funded by the Government’s Provincial Growth Fund (PGF), was officially opened today at ...
More top-performing students can now be recognised with one of New Zealand’s most prestigious secondary school awards, in changes announced by Education Minister Chris Hipkins today. “Changes to New Zealand Scholarship awards will allow more young people to be acknowledged for their significant academic achievements,” Chris Hipkins said. “Up to ...
E nga iwi e pae nei ki runga o Waitangi Karanga mai, mihi mai. Nga aitua o te tau kua hipa, koutou e Ta Hek, e Pita, e Piri, e Mike, Koutou Katoa, Harae atu ra. Tenei te Whakarongo atu nei ki nga kupu korero. Kei aku rangatira e hui ...
***Check against delivery*** Tēnā koutou katoa. Acknowledgements to the many Heads of Mission gathered this evening. It is good to see so many nations represented here to share in this 180th commemoration of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. Welcome, especially to those for whom this is your first ...
It was on these very grounds in February 1940, 100 years on from the signing of Te Tiriti, that Sir Āpirana Ngata gave a call for participation He spoke of the “price of citizenship” for Māori as the 28th Māori Battalion prepared to go to war just 3 months later. ...
NZ's effective policy of tempting guest workers here with the chance of permanent residency and then quietly withdrawing that chance has become a damaging economic addiction that is mean and fraudulent, Bernard Hickey argues. ...
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Bridges gives signal of tax cuts, police under pressure over family violence problem, and condemnation rains down over Peters scandal.Expect plenty of news today about National’s economic manifesto to take into the next election. From Simon Bridges’ appearance on Q+A yesterday (welcome back ...
A "surreptitious" conspiracy to introduce special NZ gold kiwifruit plants into China could cost a Chinese-born local grower $15m for breaches of intellectual property laws. ...
Maia Wilson is being tipped as the next Maria Folau in the Silver Ferns shooting circle, but she wants to stamp her own unique footprint on netball history. ...
Dental decay is NZ's most common chronic disease, yet it is not covered by the health system. Cat McLennan explains why we should introduce free dental care for adults. ...
Winston Peters was once the one who could plausibly rail against the self-interest of the establishment. Today that seems laughable, So where are the real critics offering reform, asks Danyl Mclauchlan. Politics is messy. It’s chaotic; most things happen for complex combinations of reasons and these are not always obvious, ...
The conversation around how we prepare for coronavirus here needs to be guided by a sense of our common humanity, write Ruth Cunningham, Charlotte Paul, Andrew Moore, Ayesha Verrall of the University of Otago’s Department of Public Health.Borders have been closed, arrivals from Wuhan are in quarantine, and New Zealanders ...
Pretty much everything has a breaking point. The only questions are where, when and how. Might it be coming soon with climate change policy? This week there was disarray in the Australian Liberal and National party coalition over the costs of climate change policy. This was one of the issues ...
Ex-tropical cyclone Uesi is due to reach the west of the South Island this afternoon, bringing further pain to flood-hit Southland. Here’s what you need to know.Ex-tropical, you say. What on earth does that mean? A tropical cyclone, which is a low-pressure system that forms over warm waters in the tropics, ...
The Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand has confirmed anti-poverty campaigner Ricardo Menendez March as their candidate for Maungakiekie in this general election. Ricardo Menendez March has been working as the Coordinator for Auckland Action Against Poverty, ...
We review the entire country and culture of New Zealand, one thing at a time. Today, a bunch of us have a hoon on Burger King’s new chip butty.The United Kingdom’s contributions to world cuisine, like its contributions to the world in general (Morris dancing, Piers Morgan, colonialism etc), are ...
Emily Writes reviews the now infamous orgasm episode of the even more infamous Netflix show The Goop Lab.It was four days after the fourth person asked me to review the orgasm episode of Netflix’s The Goop Lab that I finally sat down to watch it.I don’t like Gwyneth Paltrow but ...
Beige and on-trend? Not for this poet. Paula Harris gives some real-life, applicable decor advice.Last night I was procrastinating and avoiding working on some poem revisions, because being a poet means that when you have other things to do, you write a poem, and when you have a poem to ...
Have we reached peak smartphone? Henry Burrell reviews the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip, an engineering marvel which all but highlights how few ways there are to improve phones in 2020.In the age of smartphones, notifications and constant communication, you might wish for a simpler time when the old flip phone ...
By Hans Nicholas Jong in Jakarta Experts have warned that a slate of sweeping deregulation planned by the Indonesian government could prove disastrous for the environment and create even more conflicts over land and resources. The administration of President Joko Widodo is preparing to submit to Parliament two bills ...
Dr Bryce Edwards.Does money buy policy in New Zealand politics and government? Based on the ongoing political finance scandal involving New Zealand First, which comes hot on the heels of the Serious Fraud Office charging four people in relation to donations to the National Party, New Zealanders have every ...
It’s an unprecedented level of excitement in the US for a New Zealand novel. It’s also very sudden. The hype for The Absolute Book, published by Victoria University Press in September last year, took off with a hiss and a roar after Dan Kois’s ...
Taxpayers were called on to cough up $87,994 million in the 2019 Budget, accounting for much of the $120,984m which the Treasury estimated would be collected in government revenue this financial year. In his Budget speech, Finance Minister Grant Robertson said: So, today in this first Wellbeing Budget, we are ...
The State Housing Action Network (SHAN) is deeply disappointed that the Government’s recently announced Aotearoa Homelessness Action Plan fails to provide for increases in the state housing stock which are essential for addressing the homelessness crisis. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Norris, Associate Professor, Programme Director (Composition), Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington After a week-long controversy, New Zealand’s public broadcaster Radio New Zealand (RNZ) has withdrawn a proposal to axe its classical music station RNZ Concert. But despite the ...
Serena Bentley writes on an illuminating survey in Auckland and Christchurch of the work of a daring modernist artist deserving of wider attention.Cigarette in hand, Dame Louise Henderson stares straight down the barrel of the camera. Her gaze is magnetic. So begins this exhibition, a partnership between Christchurch and Auckland ...
A secretive group excavating a cave near Huntly believe it’s filled with a race of pre-Polynesian giants’ skeletons, but iwi and archaeologists have serious concerns, reports RNZ’s Susan Strongman.Archaeologists say a group of people tunnelling into the side of a country road in search of a race of pre-Polynesian giants’ ...
Friends, it’s a new dawn, it’s a new day, and season five of our beloved Outlander is finally here.Droughtlander is done for another year, and while we might be shrivelled husks of our former selves, the first episode of our favourite time-travelling drama quenched our thirst with a ginger tsunami of ...
The cancellation of this weekend’s Lantern Festival isn’t the only knock-on effect from the novel coronavirus outbreak to reach Auckland, with the city’s Chinese restaurants reporting a decline in custom.The ban on inbound travel from China combined with overly cautious local diners avoiding their establishments has hit Auckland Chinese restaurateurs ...
"The man I had liked became the man I knew I would detest for a long time": a short story from the new collection by a master of the form, Vincent O'Sullivan. ...
A special national event happened yesterday in Epsom, Auckland. A remarkable life of national and global success was recognised from all points on the political spectrum. Tim Murphy was there. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The secretary of the Prime Minister’s department, Phil Gaetjens, has criticised “significant shortcomings” in Bridget McKenzie’s decision-making in the sports rorts affair, while outlining his argument that her allocation of grants was not politically biased. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The secretary of the Prime Minister’s department, Phil Gaetjens, has criticised “significant shortcomings” in Bridget McKenzie’s decision-making in the sports rorts affair, while outlining his argument that her allocation of grants was not politically biased. ...
By Lian Buan in Manila A Philippines court has issued arrest warrants against former senator Antonio Trillanes IV and 10 other people for conspiracy to commit sedition, the court confirmed. The branch clerk of Quezon City Metropolitan Trial Court (MeTC) Branch 138 confirmed today that the warrants had been ...
5 & 6 August 2020 (pre-conference workshop on 4 August) Grand Millennium Hotel, Auckland New Zealand has an exceptional reputation internationally for the food it produces, exporting premium quality produce to meet the growing demands of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Michelle Grattan talks with Deputy Vice Chancellor Geoff Crisp about the week in politics, including further developments in the “sports rorts” affair, the future of Michael McCormack’s leadership of the Nationals, and the extension of ...
To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before was the Netflix hit of 2018, but the sequel feels designed to replicate the success of the original without half as much heart, writes Sam Brooks.Despite the bevy of Oscar nominations for Netflix at the recent Academy Awards, there’s still a stigma around a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jayne Lucke, Honorary Professor, The University of Queensland A study published today claims to have found a link between having had ten or more sexual partners and an increased risk of cancer. But it’s not as simple as that. While having a ...
This post by TOM FREWEN is one of two being published on Point of Order today on the restructuring of state broadcasting and the fate of RNZ’s Concert programme. Tom is a journalist and broadcaster who has worked for both commercial and publicly funded media. He reported on the NZ House ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Susan Hardy, Honorary Lecturer, Arts & Social Sciences, UNSW What’s in a name? A lot when it comes to disease outbreaks, according to the recent communication from the World Health Organisation (WHO) on the previously named coronavirus, now to be known as ...
This has always been about highlighting the harm and impact that racist language has, both now and historically. It is important for us all to remember that language and articles of this nature, whether intentional or not, can and do cause hurt. ...
Think Big was both bold move to stimulate the economy and a debt disaster. Two Cents' Worth examines the legacy of Think Big in the light of the new government's $12 billion spend-up announcement. ...
The Public Service Association welcomes the government’s announcement it will invest $300 million in transitional housing, and says union members will want to make the plan a success. The campaign for housing justice is a key priority of the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rob Grenfell, Director of Health and Biosecurity, CSIRO The World Health Organisation said this week it may be 18 months before a vaccine against the coronavirus is publicly available. Let’s explore why, even with global efforts, it might take this long. China ...
ALRANZ Abortion Rights Aotearoa welcomes the Abortion Legislation Select Committee’s report, released today. The select committee made a few significant changes to the bill. “A section had been added creating a positive duty on the part of the Minister ...
The Abortion Legislation Committee has presented its report on the Abortion Legislation Bill to the House. A copy of the report is available here. The bill seeks to have abortion services provided like other health services. The committee has recommended, ...
The NZX says its full year result reflects the stellar performance of the capital markets over the past year, with momentum expected to drive growth in the coming year. ...
At the highest gathering place of New Zealand sport, UFC champion and sportsman of the year Israel Adesanya delivered the message he has long been destined to give, writes Scotty Stevenson.I met Don Rowe in a Hamilton toilet. At the time I was editing a sports magazine and he was ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi (Picador, $20)Before the Dishes Get DoneBefore the Marmite Gets ...
The Real Pod reassembles to dissect the nude and rude third week of The Bachelorette NZ with special thanks to Nando’s.Two wonderful women and a mixed bag of lads jetted off to Argentina this week, one which saw a serious culling of the meek set of the herd. Conor, Flynn ...
A new poem by Island Bay poet James Brown.InsulationMy barber says that people no longer being able to afford houses is a no-brainer opportunity. He turns on the tele. Cue the leafy suburbs. Cue the dawn chorus. The tent of realty is specially crafted to respond to inequity. Its breathable ...
Not everyone is feeling the love this Valentine’s Day in their workplace. The workplace bullying statistics are alarming and worrying. The effects are deep and traumatic for the victim. Allan Halse, the director of Culturesafe, an anti-workplace ...
Politicians from both sides of the House will join family, friends, and the public to farewell the former Prime Minister Mike Moore this afternoon. ...
This post by BARRIE SAUNDERS is one of two being published on Point of Order today on the restructuring of state broadcasting and the fate of RNZ’s Concert programme. In the 1970s Barrie worked for the NZBC, ABC, UPITN, NBR and the BBC, he was a director of TVNZ ...
The journalists union, E tū is seeking an assurance from New Zealand First on behalf of its journalist members, that it is not involved in tracking journalists as they go about their work. Reports that coalition member New Zealand First took photographs ...
By Global Voices A backlash against China’s official response to the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak has left local officials and the central government scrambling to offset responsibility. While the central government has accused local officials of being “inefficient,” the local government has reminded the public it is blocked from sharing ...
This week I watched a man shoot himself in the foot so many times I was amazed he could walk out of the courtroom. Here’s my honestly held opinion.The high profile case of Robert E Jones suing Renae Maihi for defamation after she called a column he wrote racist came ...
A report released today by LGNZ provides a roadmap for councils finding their way through the complex policy, regulatory and market tools available to help enable more affordable housing developments for New Zealanders. With demand soaring, rents ...
Three Countdown stores are currently trialling drastically reducing plastic from their fruit and veg… but it’s a solution that comes with problems of its own.Ah, plastic. The synthetic material we love to hate. In a world where many of the biggest contributors to the climate crisis are not exactly easy ...
The high-profile case at the Wellington High Court has come to an early halt after lawyers for Bob Jones, who was suing writer and director Renae Maihi, announced they will no longer continue.Sir Bob Jones was suing Renae Maihi for defamation after she presented a petition to parliament in 2018 ...
EDS has filed its submission on the Urban Development Bill. The Bill is a companion piece to last year’s Kāinga Ora – Homes and Communities Act, which established Kāinga Ora as a government developer and landlord. What the Urban ...
Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.Today’s contentPolitical donations Toby Manhire (Spinoff): Dirty Politics déjà vu as Peters says ‘we took the photographs’ on attack blog ...
The main events of the 2021 Apec leaders' week will need a new home after the Government has effectively ruled out the fire-damaged SkyCity International Convention Centre. ...
Weekend social 13/02/2015 
Weekend social is for non political chat. What’s on for the weekend, gigs, film or book reviews, sports, or whatever.
I am among the most pro-free speech people I know. I don’t doubt there are others more strident than me, but I’m certainly up there. And my support for freedom of expression isn’t limited to opposition to government-imposed restrictions. It extends to a belief that employers should have limited powers ...3 hours ago
With over 69,000 confirmed cases and 1,600 deaths, here’s your round-up of the latest coronavirus news. New disease and virus have now officially been named On the 11th February, the WHO Director General announced a new name for the disease: COVID-19 which is short for coronavirus disease 2019. The naming ...12 hours ago
A chronological listing of news articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week, i.e., Sun, Feb 9, 2020 through Sat, Feb 15, 2020 Editor's Pick ANALYSIS-Climate change opens up 'frontier' farmland, but at what cost to the planet? Climate change could expand farmland globally by ...1 day ago
After cross-examination Jones knew he would lose the defamation case he took against film maker Renae Maihi. That’s why he threw in the towel. The weight of evidence was clearly against the old tycoon with the defense presenting fifty articles to confirm Jones’ racist views.Being unable to harass somebody into ...2 days ago
Sprung! Former NZ First president, Lester Gray, chats with RNZ's Guyon Espiner in the carpark of a Tauranga shopping centre. (Photo supplied anonymously to NZ First and The BFD.)IT’S CLEAR THAT an important aspect of Jacinda Ardern’s political success is her willingness to seek – and take – advice. This ...2 days ago
The Helen Clark Foundation has released its report on the housing crisis, and found that house-hoarders are to blame for it:Property investors are to blame for New Zealand's high house prices, a new research paper published by the Helen Clark Foundation says. [...] McArthur said previous attempts to address housing ...3 days ago
by Philip Ferguson Last month B’Tselem, the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, reported: “In 2019, Israeli security forces killed 133 Palestinians, including 28 minors. Of the casualties, 104 were killed in the Gaza Strip, 26 in the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and three within ...5 days ago
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Jonathan Freedland of the Guardian has penned a column which chastises the left wing of the Labour party for daring to retain principles and ideals, qualities - it seems - that should be jettisoned in pursuit of power.Never mind that Freedland was an ardent Remainer, that is to say, one ...1 week ago
We are confronted with the spectre of Simon Bridges making clear he cannot, will not, trust Winston Peters – the oft-cited “King Maker” in New Zealand politics. Supporters are lauding it as a master stroke, naturally, because in their eyes, it prevents him being the tail that wags the dog. ...1 week ago
Inaccuracies are very common in scientific paper abstracts. Image credit: Science in the Abstract: Don’t Judge a Study by its Cover I have come to accept anti-fluoride campaigners will never stop cherry-picking research and findings ... 2 weeks ago
“The scene is set, the players met…”. And what players they are in this farce of an Election coming up in the United States this year. There is a multi-faceted anger in the broader situation the world finds itself in, in which the false promises of so-called “moderates” find themselves ...2 weeks ago
Unhappy with the demonisation of Iran in Western media, I was fortunate to have the Australian Institute of International Affairs invite me to write an alternative analysis for their on-line journal Australian Outlook. I did, and they serialised it into two parts. The essays are short, so I did not ...2 weeks ago
New Zealand was the first country to decriminalise prostitution and it was promoted as a progressive move. Yet survivors of the sex trade say that pimps and johns are emboldened operating within the law, and that the women are treated more like a piece of property to be used and ...2 weeks ago
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I was thinking of a really dull and tedious weekend. ..no real estate speculation or tax avoidance calculus. No getting ticketed at 200 in the Mazeratti. No fine dining with oodles of fine Otago pinot noir. Tutukaka game fishing or similar. None of that nonsense for Ennui. No………………… …..For some bizarre February reason Super Rugby starts tonight.
Mrs Ennui will yawn and run a bath…my cup will floweth over.
Valentine’s day on saturday – sponteneity doesn’t usually go too far wrong đ
I’m “celebrating” 192 days sober…with another water /sigh
It is a celebration – good for you!
I used to work in a brewery, long (long) ago. So much alcoholism. It put me off alcohol for my early life, and even now I very seldom drink.
Might be time to change your handle to barfree đ
Over 3 years for me. It was easier than I’d expected.
But you will miss out on this view of life
“I only drink champagne when Iâm happy, and when Iâm sad. Sometimes I drink it when Iâm alone. When I have company, I consider it obligatory. I trifle with it if I am not hungry and drink it when I am. Otherwise I never touch it â unless Iâm thirsty.
– Lily Bollinger”
She of course had the advantage of not having to pay for it.
Good on you Barfly. What a massive effort. I hope you’ve been well supported through out and continue to be. Take care and enjoy your achievements.
I’ve heard it’s better than the alternative. Congrats on your willpower
Barfly. Great news. What was your greatest incentive to choose this hard row?
After having my wallet stolen while I was pissed as a parrot I had such rage and hatred of myself that it was enough to get me through the first 2 months (not really an incentive I guess)
There are some ratbags out there. But using that trigger to recognise a problem and deal with it is the best response you could have made.
Chilled water on a hot day. Delicious. You can feel it flowing inside your body cooling all over. Water is your friend. I’ve been reading that it gives muscles a boost, keeps away cramps, releases the prickly feelings from calcium spurs in your elbows when you are older.
Grime Music time..
Well OK Only Dizzy Rascal
But hoping other’s can offer up some Grime Tunes.
Big weekend down in the King Country the A’N’P shows on in Taumarunui as well as the classic gliders turning up for a week at the airport.
But of most interest to me is the king country center champs dog trail at mahihi otarohanga it the best chance for a easy entry to the north island/new Zealand champs in may. Is Bess the mighty good enough.
May the inside of your gumboots stay dry.
Not sure if that’s a curse or a blessing could do with a drop of rain or two , might even leave the coat at home to temp mother n into getting me:-)
Well, if it’s real dry, you won’t be needing your gumboots to keep you out of the hospital or infirmary đ
I tell you the next time I see mud I may strip off and roll in it.
Mud wrestling?? CAn we watch???
The only thing I wrestle with is the implications of being human and if you read my posts you’re already watching. đ
Dang an event I was prepared to travel to. ” put in chuckle icon”
I’m a slightly chubby hairy in all the wrong places middle aged man you would be better to watch the “borat” fight scene.
you are a ‘bear’..
..and you do have yr own fan sub-set..
..so nude-wrestling shouldn’t be ruled out for those ‘bear’-like reasons..
Not quite a bear but gravity is shifting the follicles from my head to all sorts of odd places.
“You don’t walk around Muddy puddles. You jump in them.
Peppa Pig.
Oh the joys of having a 3 year old đ
There’s nothing more satisfying than jumping in a muddy puddle & getting your mates soaked……lol
I will be carrying on with my efforts to rear an endangered species – monarch butterflies. I keep wondering which group of brassica growers convinced who in which government department to ask some idiotic minister to permit the importing of a caterpillar eating wasp. Even caterpillars left outside that are less than a cm long are being eaten by the very efficient wasps and all that is left is black blood.
P.S. There are lots of white butterflies around, are they not as tasty as the colourful monarch?
I don’t think they were deliberately introduced, just someone not being careful enough with imports. Bloody things make a mess of monarch caterpillars.
White butterfly’s are destroyers of brassicas, monarchs eat the swan plant as far as I know. The whiteys are menaces and seem to be around awhile whereas the monarch had a very short life cycle.
We hate them with a passion as they monster the winter crops coming up now.
I have 17 swanplants growing but have sighted only one monarch butterfly. Those leg trailing paper wasps seem to patrol the plants looking for caterpillars. same last year. Monarchs Nil.
i have six six foot high swanplants..
..and i have swarms of monarchs…
..birds and stuff love my yard..
..the lawns haven’t been mowed in five yrs..(i walk it down when it gets too high..)
..so there is a whole eco-system going on in there..
..and tho’ in suburbia..the fence/trees make it a green-cave of sorts..
..a safe haven for them all..
..and even wild birds like being whistled-at/talked to..
..my great grandfather taught/showed me that when i was a kid..
..he used to do it all the time..and i thought it was very cool..
..so also do it..
Kiaora Phil
I live rurally. I have paddocks for neighbours. Recently the property was refenced to stop the cows from coming in. Before the fencing, i had a bit of a wild garden thing growing. Lots of flowers, colour, insect life and even a rat nesting under the harakeke.
Well, the fencing contractor, whom I know very well, unilaterally decided to have his workers ‘clean up the place’ and had them remove every plant and every bit of colour from the section. This happened last week and my blood is still boiling.
The fencing contractor is a good person and runs a crew of youths who otherwise would be in prison. He is also a Tuhoe bushman. I said to the dude “how the fuck would you like it if I went through Te Uruwera with a chainsaw. ” That’s how badly violated I feel.
So I really do get the wild garden thing. And on a final note, Bob, the rat, is now trying to store his nuts in my ceiling. I need to really think about that one.
morena adele..
..i find if it gets too unruly/high..
..that walking it down is preferable to cutting..
..i did my backyard yesterday..
..and it is strangely satisfying to do..
(..much more so than clattering around with a lawn mower..
..faster..and no mountain of clippings to deal with after..)
..and freshly-tamped it all packs down to about 10cm high..
..and then the cycle starts again..
..and doing that i get a glimpse of the insect-life in the eco-system that has built up..
..and i really recommend growing some swan-plants..
..it is way cool to have monarch butterflies flying around the place..
Kiaora Adele,
“I said to the dude âhow the fuck would you like it if I went through Te Uruwera with a chainsaw. â Thatâs how badly violated I feel.”
Makes sense to me. Lots of people socialised into tidy is best and the beauty and abundance of wilderness in our backyards is lost on them. I’ve been in that situation a few times where people thought they were doing something useful or kind but were in fact destroying something essential. It’s hard. Did the man get it when you pointed it out?
Rats on the other hand, once they make it into the ceiling, that’s a step too far. It was always the young males who would come in at 3 o’clock in the morning and run riot over my bedroom ceiling. That was the time for me to push back.
Kiaora Weka
“Rats on the other hand, once they make it into the ceiling, thatâs a step too far. It was always the young males who would come in at 3 oâclock in the morning and run riot over my bedroom ceiling. That was the time for me to push back.”
I know exactly what you are saying. So far I think it still is just Bob, the solitary rat. I have yet to see or hear evidence of the whanau or mokopuna. He is already in the ceiling space rattling his nuts about.
I have had endless discussions with the locals on how to remove rats, which generally involves trapping or poisoning. I am at an impasse. I don’t want to kill but I also don’t want to come home to a horde of rats arguing over the remote.
Ben the movie springs to mind.
Can you cover the swan plant bush with fine netting – dress material type? Or fine muslin? Monarchs are beautiful. Do you belong to the Trust? I am sorry about the demise of the NZ preying mantis and the way that the South African has swamped it. But I feel that wasp may be getting into the preying mantis too.
@Janine
Naa the white ones only eat the tougher green stuff, Cabbage and my Silverbeet (out with the dust again) so must be bitter compared to the Swan Plant eating butterfly. . I have a friend here in Levin who’s house has hundreds of chrysalis mainly empty now and butterfly’s everywhere. Oh if they eat the plants too quick or too far She put Cucumber out for them. The forum Second link should elp with your wasp problem.
http://www.monarch.org.nz/monarch/species/monarchs/monarch-host-plants/feeding-monarch-larvae/
http://www.monarch.org.nz/monarch/forum/
Thanks for the links DH. It is good to see that some people have living caterpillars. I got some net to cover my two mature trees greywarsharrk, but the wasps managed to get underneath the cover and there was carnage! Of the 22 caterpillars that I knew of only 4 remained. One was hanging ready to turn and only half of it was left. I live in the Franklin district so if there was a deliberate release of wasps I guess it would have been here. We are also close (as the crow flies) to the Auckland Airport, so I suppose if something came in there it would head for this area as a good source of food. Now I go over the trees at least twice a day and any branches with eggs on I bring inside.
@ Janice
Good luck with raising them inside. Perhaps a trend could be started for people to adopt the ones ready to change, bringing them inside when they went into their J shape. And then viewing them as living works of art – I find them beautiful with their cases of light green with gold spots. Watching the amazing work of the nature as their wings form and colours deepen till they can be seen through their thin cover is interesting. The beautiful end comes as they emerge and slowly waft their wings to dry and circulate their blood. Set them high enough so the cat won’t get them would be a rule!
Monarchs! I used to see them all the time at my parents (Chch) growing up. Haven’t seen one for many years. I had forgotten. Thank you for your efforts…
Flying home to winter after 4 fabulous weeks with friends and family in Aotearoa. Highlights included family wedding, Abel Tasman track and several visits to Raglan. Best.holiday.ever.
Only rained while we were on the track – reckon it was Puck paying us back for a dry Milford walk some years ago.
Leaving the land of intense cold for Auckland tomorrow. Yay, warmth!
There’s a Wellington/Wairarapa outdoor dj and laser party this weekend.
Although I’m not going to it I usually enjoy these type of events.
https://www.facebook.com/events/448976005256415/
I know a number of the DJ’s and lighting guys – quite friendly with the organisers too. They always do good work so will be fun I am sure.
I was thinking of going but the problem is the drive back the next day. There would be no way I would be sober enough to drive.
This is where Facebook could come in handy. A group with transport and revolving and reliable sober driver task could contact each other and set up trips like this Contrarian.
Writing this, I have the wonderful Dick Gaughan playing in the background. Militant working class folk music as its sinewy, caustic best.
One of the things I like most about Dick is that, like a string of singer-songwriters of his time, he is a very accomplished guitar player. Back in the 60s and 70s being a guitar-playing singer-songwriter you had to be a really good guitarist. Like Dick, or like Bert Jansch or John Renbourn or Davy Graham. Or NZ’s own wonderful Chris Thompson (‘Echoes from the Pit’ and ‘Minstrelsy’ are wonderful albums).
The Gaughan album I have on is ‘Gaughan Live!’, recorded at the Hebden Bridge Trades Club in the north of England.
Gaughan is a Cot, but he has a couple of nice songs exposing the myths peddled by Scottish nationalists, pointing out that the Scottish landowners and capitalists ruthlessly exploited the working people of Scotland and also emphasising the solidarity between Scottish and English workers: “No Gods” is a powerful, raucous number, while “Both Sides the Tweed” is just beautiful as a song, even if you didn’t follow the lyrics.
“Tom Paine’s Bones” is another great track, sinewy and emotional.
“Whatever happened?” is magnificent; it’s a rollicking, biting condemnation of all those who espoused revolutionary views in their youth but moved right as they climbed the socio-economic ladder (but might have kept the odd Che Guevara t-shirt).
He also has some wonderful guitar-playing on two instrumental medleys.
Gaughan first came to my attention at the time of the 1981 hunger strikes in the H-Blocks. He does a beautiful version (my favourite) of an old Irish republican movement song, “The Galtee Mountain Boy” and it was on a fund-raising album put out by the POW Dept of Sinn Fein. The live album contains my favourite version of “Both sides the Tweed” but there’s a nice version of it by Dick with Emmylou Harris at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlDijR0Y60Q
One of my favourite tracks on that great album was “Back Home in Derry”, written by Bobby Sands (although Sands was from Belfast). But my favourite version of that song is by the wonderful Gary Og, however his best vid of it seems to have disappeared from youtube. But he does a nice version of Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song: here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iP7r0cg7Oc&list=PLDC4C4612C68C0D55&index=16
One of my favourite Irish songs is “James Connolly” and my favourite version is this one, which accompanies one of the annual Easter Rebellion commemorations organised by the Belfast branches of the socialist-republican movement eirigi: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EghEkVe80e0
and, of course, lots of the wonderful Damien Dempsey: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2014/03/28/damo-does-the-dux-gig-review/
the wonderful Seth Lakeman: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2014/12/30/seth-lakemans-workers-lives-review-of-tales-from-the-barrelhouse-and-word-of-mouth/
and I’ll be digging out some of the old magnificent Van der Graaf Generator; this is one of my favourite songs of theirs, “Arrow” (from 1975): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiLv2f3QKzs
Phil
I share your admiration for Gaughan. Fine guitar player and also a voice which I find very rich with an expressive warmth. “Kist of Gold” is my favourite album. Great political songs and also a way with a love ballad. He’s one of my “Gee, I wish I could play/sing like Gaughan.”
“…songs exposing the myths peddled by Scottish nationalists…”
you seem to infer that Scottish nationalist were (are?) on the side of the landowners and capitalist and they they were fellow travellers in ther attitudes towards working people.
Can you expand? I don’t see the current SNP in that light.
since the 10th feb i have posted/linked to 40 items in my music/ent/lit category..
http://whoar.co.nz/category/musicentlit/
..and there is some seriously good shit in there..
..ranging from one for joni mitchell fans..
..to lord of the rings in five minutes..
..(having tired of all the walking..i walked out of the first lord of the rings..
..so i found that one useful/a time-saver..)
..happy scrolling..!
Oceania Badminton Champs starts this weekend at North Harbour. Some good battles between Aussie and NZ. Pacific Island teams eliminated early đ
I asked a Cook Islander if he was going to play in his jandals, he said “I wish, it’s too bloody hot in here” đ
Quite a fun tournament, not too serious like the NZ Open…
Blew the head gasket on the Commodore last week! Off to buy a bicycle this arvo.
Starting a new job on Monday. Will need the $$$ to pay for the Holden dramas. Arrgh
A song just for Holden owners…….LMAO đ
Shuddup! Made myself feel better with these⊠đ
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=ford+on+fire
On Radionz. I thought this was a breakthrough in social understanding and the Joy of Mathematics. It is not airy fairy ideas, really factual and provable and repeatable.
And can be applied to NZs as a democratic people if trying to understand why our democracy and we are going down the plughole.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/20167277
Hannah Fry – Love and Mathematics (â21âČâ27âłâ)
09:40 Just in time for Valentine’s Day weekend – Dr Hannah Fry tells Wallace the
mathematical equation for love. Her new book The Mathematics of Love offers a unique perspective on matters of the heart. As a mathematician, Dr Fry answers such burning questions as: What is the chance of finding love? How long will it last? And what are your chances of divorce?
did she get to the bit about how many people are simply not suited to lifelong monogamy? đ
There was too much for my tiny brain to encompass weka. May have done. There’s something for everyone in the book it seems.
âSelma, the stunning new film based on Paul Webbâs screenplay and directed by the previously unheralded African-American Ava DuVernay, makes for an interesting side-by-side comparison with Stephen Spielbergâs Lincoln. Both films revolve around the circumstances attending the passage of key legislation affecting Black America: in the first instance, the Thirteenth Amendment that abolished slavery and in the second the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that sealed the doom of Jim Crow, a legacy of white Americaâs abandonment of Reconstruction. . .â
full review at: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2015/02/02/selma-the-movie-the-history-and-its-relevance-today/
Another film. – Edward Snowden and how it feel to be really unpopular in a pseudo-democracy.
Citizenfour â A panel discussion (â19âČâ19âłâ)
http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/20167273
08:40 The Oscar nominated and BAFTA winning documentary Citizenfour tells the story of Edward Snowden – a former NSA employee turned whistle-blower.
Radio New Zealand National held a screening of the film in Auckland earlier this week and followed it with a panel hosted by Wallace Chapman and featuring: Mediawatch’s Colin Peacock; former Listener editor Finlay McDonald; documentary filmmaker Annie Goldson; and, Sandra Kailahi – a freelance journalist and director.
Film has been shown in auckland and Wellington.
Will be opening from Feb 19 in Christchurch and Dunedin.
Trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XiGwAvd5mvM
Also be aware of something lighter – Alan Davies UK Jonathan Creek QI etc is coming.
10:40 Alan Davies â Telling Stories
Alan Davies is a standup veteran of 25 years. He starred in the crime show Jonathan Creek which ran for 14 years, and is a permanent panelist of the QI show hosted by Stephen Fry. Alan Davies is bringing his new show Little Victories to NZ for a series of gigs across the country in July.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/20167279
I met an honest-to-God Alex Jones 911 truther today who told me that “God’s judgment is upon America”, that “Obama can kill anybody he wants”, and that “FEMA is constructing death camps around the nation”.
This guy is around 65 and very overweight, has renounced his U.S citizenship and emigrated to New Zealand. He also said “the church in America is corrupt” and “America is the whore of Babylon” and something about Revelation chapter 16.
Tried injecting a little bit of sanity into the conversation but soon realised I was wasting my time and looked for an exit strategy. But on reflection I pretty much agree with his criticism of US militarism, although his logic and religious rhetoric was totally insane. I think he got NZ citizenship because of his Australian wife.
No doubt he will pull a NZ pension while complaining about big government and voting NACT