Weekend social 31/05/2013
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2:00 pm, May 31st, 2013 - 17 comments
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Weekend social is for non political chat. What’s on for the weekend, gigs, film or book reviews, sports, or whatever.
No politics, no aggro, why can’t we all just get along?
17 comments on “Weekend social 31/05/2013 ”
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- Jobs for Nature funding will create training and employment opportunitiesA major investment to tackle wilding pines in Mt Richmond will create jobs and help protect the areaâs unique ecosystems, Biosecurity Minister Damien OâConnor says. The Mt Richmond Forest Park has unique ecosystems developed on mineral-rich geology, including taonga plant species found nowhere else in the country. âThese special plant ...1 week ago
- Pre-departure testing extended to all passengers to New ZealandTo further protect New Zealand from COVID-19, the Government is extending pre-departure testing to all passengers to New Zealand except from Australia, Antarctica and most Pacific Islands, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said today. âThe change will come into force for all flights arriving in New Zealand after 11:59pm (NZT) on Monday ...1 week ago
- Bay Cadets learn skills to protect environmentBay Conservation Cadets launched with first intake Supported with $3.5 million grant Part of $1.245b Jobs for Nature programme to accelerate recover from Covid Cadets will learn skills to protect and enhance environment Environment Minister David Parker today welcomed the first intake of cadets at the launch of the Bay ...1 week ago
- Cook Islanders to resume travel to New ZealandThe Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern and the Prime Minister of the Cook Islands Mark Brown have announced passengers from the Cook Islands can resume quarantine-free travel into New Zealand from 21 January, enabling access to essential services such as health. âFollowing confirmation of the Cook Islandsâ COVID ...2 weeks ago
- Supporting communities and landowners to grow employment opportunitiesJobs for Nature funding is being made available to conservation groups and landowners to employ staff and contractors in a move aimed at boosting local biodiversity-focused projects, Conservation Minister Kiritapu Allan has announced. It is estimated some 400-plus jobs will be created with employment opportunities in ecology, restoration, trapping, ...2 weeks ago
- Border exception for some returning international tertiary studentsThe Government has approved an exception class for 1000 international tertiary students, degree level and above, who began their study in New Zealand but were caught offshore when border restrictions began. The exception will allow students to return to New Zealand in stages from April 2021. âOur top priority continues ...2 weeks ago
- Tiwai deal gives time for managed transitionTodayâs deal between Meridian and Rio Tinto for the Tiwai smelter to remain open another four years provides time for a managed transition for Southland. âThe deal provides welcome certainty to the Southland community by protecting jobs and incomes as the region plans for the future. The Government is committed ...2 weeks ago
- New member for APEC Business Advisory CouncilPrime Minister Jacinda Ardern has appointed Anna Curzon to the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC). The leader of each APEC economy appoints three private sector representatives to ABAC. ABAC provides advice to leaders annually on business priorities. âABAC helps ensure that APECâs work programme is informed by business community perspectives ...2 weeks ago
- Govtâs careful economic management recognisedThe Governmentâs prudent fiscal management and strong policy programme in the face of the COVID-19 global pandemic have been acknowledged by the credit rating agency Fitch. Fitch has today affirmed New Zealandâs local currency rating at AA+ with a stable outlook and foreign currency rating at AA with a positive ...2 weeks ago
- Additional actions to keep COVID-19 out of NZThe Government is putting in place a suite of additional actions to protect New Zealand from COVID-19, including new emerging variants, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said today. âGiven the high rates of infection in many countries and evidence of the global spread of more transmissible variants, itâs clear that ...2 weeks ago
- 19 projects will clean up and protect waterways$36 million of Government funding alongside councils and others for 19 projects Investment will clean up and protect waterways and create local jobs Boots on the ground expected in Q2 of 2021 Funding part of the Jobs for Nature policy package A package of 19 projects will help clean up ...3 weeks ago
- Two new Auckland cases test positive for Covid-19 South African variant
*This article first appeared on RNZ and is republished with permission. Two new community Covid-19 cases have been identified as the more infectious South African variant, but Auckland Mayor Phil Goff say it would be "premature to go into lockdown now". The two new cases of Covid-19 identified in the ...31 mins ago - Dunne Speaks: Why Do We Panic About Covid19, But Not Use The Scanning App?
...1 hour ago - KiwiRail Stop Hauling CoalToday, for the second time in two months Dunedin climate protectors have locked themselves to the railway tracks outside the Dunedin Railway station to stop the KiwiRail coal train from Bathurst Resourcesâ Takitimu mine in Southland to Fonterraâs ...1 hour ago
- Climate Protectors Again Stop Coal TrainKiwiRail STOP Hauling COAL Today, for the second time in two months Dunedin climate protectors have locked themselves to the railway tracks outside the Dunedin Railway station to stop the KiwiRail coal train from Bathurst Resourcesâ Takitimu mine ...1 hour ago
- How do we counter COVID misinformation? Challenge it directly with the facts
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adam Dunn, Associate professor, University of Sydney The government is rolling out a new public information campaign this week to reassure the public about the safety of COVID-19 vaccines, which one expert has said âcouldnât be more crucialâ to people actually getting ...2 hours ago - Needles are nothing to fear: 5 steps to make vaccinations easier on your kidsSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Therese O’Sullivan, Associate Professor, Edith Cowan University The COVID vaccine rollout has placed the issue of vaccination firmly in the spotlight. A successful rollout will depend on a variety of factors, one of which is vaccine acceptance. One potential hurdle to vaccine ...2 hours ago
- NZ needs an evolving pandemic strategy if itâs to keep the publicâs trustSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bernard Walker, Associate Professor in Organisations and Leadership, University of Canterbury Kiwis know what itâs like when life throws curveballs. Weâve had major quakes, floods, fires, an eruption, a terrorist attack and now a pandemic. In those situations, itâs the ability to ...2 hours ago
- Protect your dog from this new deadly disease outbreak. We still donât know how it got hereSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Irwin, Emeritus professor, Murdoch University While we continue to be occupied with the COVID pandemic, another life-threatening disease has emerged in northern Australia, one thatâs cause for considerable alarm for the millions of dog owners around the country. This disease â ...2 hours ago
- Most government information on COVID-19 is too hard for the average Australian to understandSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Cath Ferguson, Academic, Edith Cowan University Almost half of Australian adults struggle with reading. Similar levels of struggling readers are reported in the United Kingdom and United States. This does not mean all struggling readers are illiterate. It means they often struggle ...2 hours ago
- COVID is keeping us in our homes, but what makes working there a success or failure?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Abbas Shieh, Assistant Professor of Urban Planning and Design, Islamic Azad University The industrial revolution transformed cities, resulting in places of residence and work becoming more distant than ever before. This spatial segregation is still largely embedded in the design of our ...2 hours ago
- Occupation: Rainfall review: Australia is primed for a well-made alien invasion film. This is not itSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ari Mattes, Lecturer in Communications and Media, University of Notre Dame Australia Review: Occupation: Rainfall, written and directed by Luke Sparke Historically, when a sequel to a film was greenlit, you could rest assured this was because the first film made a ...2 hours ago
- Live updates, January 28: Testing links new Covid-19 cases to Pullman Hotel
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for January 28, keeping you up to date with the latest local and international news. Reach me on stewart@thespinoff.co.nzOur members make The Spinoff happen! Every dollar contributed directly funds our editorial team – click here to learn more about how you can support us ...3 hours ago - The Bulletin: Tourism suffers in shadow of Covid-19Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Tourism suffers in the shadow of Covid-19, two new positive cases in Auckland confirmed, and National will contest the Māori electorates.The front page of the January 4 Greymouth Star carried grim tidings for several of the glacier towns on the ...3 hours ago
- Two more people linked with Pullman Hotel treated as confirmed Covid cases
*This article first appeared on RNZ and is republished with permission. Two people who left managed isolation on January 15 have been confirmed as positive Covid-19 cases, with the Ministry of Health urging anyone who visited the same locations during the same time period as the infected pair in Auckland to ...3 hours ago - Perverse consequences of low interest rates exclude first homebuyers
By ruling out significant tax changes, the Government looks bereft of ideas to address severe housing problems. ...3 hours ago - Births Registrar extends watchlist of unacceptable baby names
The watchlist of 'offensive or unreasonable' babies' names is to be reviewed, to include more names from other languages. Generations of the ÄȘhaka family have played a meaningful role in bringing Te Reo and stories of MÄori to our wider community. Archdeacon Sir KÄ«ngi Matutaera ÄȘhaka (Te AupĆuri, 1921-93) was known as the orator of ...3 hours ago - Ballance Agri-Nutrients Continue Importing Plunder From A War ZoneAfter Moroccoâs flagrant violation of the terms of the ceasefire in Western Sahara on Friday 13 November 2020 war broke out between the two sides. In the midst of this war Tauranga based Ballance Agri-Nutrients has decided to carry on importing phosphate ...3 hours ago
- Ex-MP welcomes National's possible return to MÄori seats
National may be poised to roll back on a policy decision made 18 years ago - not to contest MÄori electorate seats. ...3 hours ago - Livestock Improvement reports improved first-half result
Business & Investing: Good news at LIC and for Meridian - Plus the thrilling new stock battle over Game Stop in the US ...4 hours ago - Has the Treaty played a role in our Covid success?
Nicholas Agar suggests that our handling of the pandemic could be partly down to our distinctive Treaty of Waitangi relationship, and MÄori ideas that enabled us to make it through without tens of thousands of deaths A mission for universities in the coming decade will be a deep understanding of the meaning ...5 hours ago - Covid-19: 'May I see your vaccine passport?'
The function of a vaccine passport in reopening New Zealand depends on the policy settings around vaccination and the border. ...5 hours ago - The women ruling the waves on America's Cup course
A young girl who once sent $5 to an embattled America's Cup team is now among the women on the water helping run the contest for the Auld Mug. As an eager and generous nine-year-old, Melanie Roberts posted a letter, with a $5 note, to OneAustraliaâs Americaâs Cup team. It was 1995, ...5 hours ago - Climate Commission's advice likely to shock
On Monday, the Climate Change Commission will release a raft of advice for reshaping our economy in the face of the climate crisis. ...5 hours ago - Revealed: the 2021 Ockhams finalists â who should win and whoâs been slightedAt 5am today, cock’s crow, the embargo lifted on the Ockham New Zealand Book Awards longlist. Here are the books in the race, followed by thoughts from poetry editor Chris Tse and books editor Catherine Woulfe. A shortlist of four books in each category will be announced March 3, with ...5 hours ago
- Not scanning in? Your barista is judging youIgnoring those QR codes when you drop into the supermarket? Can’t be bothered when you grab a coffee? The people serving you notice, and you’re freaking them out.So far, New Zealanders’ use of the Covid-19 Tracer app has been notably woeful. Food industry workers who’ve watched streams of customers walk ...5 hours ago
- Shock: Nothing very shocking about this year's book awards longlist
Steve Braunias reveals the longlist of the 2021 Ockham New Zealand book awards Apart from one or two unfortunate omissions which cast doubt on the sanity and intellectual acumen of judges, especially the nobodies who judged this year's non-fiction, the longlist for the 2021 Ockham New Zealand book awards is ...5 hours ago - Port Moresby hospital under strain with overcrowding, says doctorBy Lulu Mark in Port Moresby Papua New Guineaâs biggest hospital is straining to provide medical services to the growing population of the capital Port Moresby â with an estimated growth rate of 3 percent annually, a medical executive says. Port Moresby General Hospital chief executive officer Dr Paki Molumi ...9 hours ago
- Newsletter: New Zealand Politics Daily â January 27 2021Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage. Today’s content Covid: Vaccine Tova O’Brien (Newshub): New Zealand catching up to allies on COVID-19 vaccines but mass roll-out won’t begin until mid-year Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Not much time for DHBs to get ...14 hours ago
- View from The Hill: Coal push from Nationals is a challenge for Scott MorrisonSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Nationals who attend Thursdayâs memorial service in Tweed Heads for Doug Anthony, who died last month aged 90, may muse on the contrast between the state of their party when he led it and now. ...14 hours ago
- Passport, customs… blood test: Kiwi technology to help restart global travel
Returning to quarantine-free travel in 2021 doesn't just need a vaccine, but a way to check whether arriving passengers are actually immune to the virus. A smart Kiwi science start-up is working with a global biometrics giant to make that happen. A deal signed between Kiwi research and development company Orbis Diagnostics, ...16 hours ago - Itâs bee season. To avoid getting stung, just stay calm and donât swatSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Caitlyn Forster, PhD Candidate, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney This summerâs wetter conditions have created great conditions for flowering plants. Flowers provide sweet nectar and protein-rich pollen, attracting many insects, including bees. Commercial honey bees are also thriving: ...16 hours ago
- Lotto and Six60 withdraw controversial scratchie tickets
Lotto scratchie tickets featuring the pop band Six60 are being withdrawn after a public backlash. In a statement, Lotto NZ said there had been a mutual decision made with the band to remove the tickets from sale following the negative feedback, and it offered an apology. The band faced criticism, both ...17 hours ago - More than half a billion years ago, the first shell-crushing predators ground up their prey between ...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Russell Dean Christopher Bicknell, Post-doctoral researcher in Palaeobiology , University of New England Shell-crushing predation was already in full swing half a billion years ago, as our new research published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B reveals. A hyena devouring ...17 hours ago
- Calls to can John Banks over MÄori âstone age cultureâ comments on Magic TalkVodafone has suspended advertising on the radio station amid calls for talkback host John Banks to be taken off air after yet another racist outburst. Alex Braae reports. In an alarming segment of talkback radio, former Auckland mayor John Banks endorsed the views of a caller who described Māori as a ...18 hours ago
- COVID-19: Northland case is a reminder NZâs âdumb good luckâ may run outSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Welch, Senior Lecturer, University of Auckland When a COVID-19 case was found in Northland last Sunday, Aotearoaâs second-longest period with no detected community case came to an end. ESR scientists worked late into Sunday night to obtain a whole genome sequence ...19 hours ago
- The mullet, the moustache, the myth: Joel Rindelaub is NZâs newest science celebHe has the perfect moustache, an exceptional mullet, and he uses terms like ‘face hole’ on national TV. Who or what is Dr Joel Rindelaub?I was drawn in by the moustache, but it was the mullet that really kept me there. Watching TVNZ’s Breakfast yesterday morning I was fixated. Often, ...19 hours ago
- Declined Baby Names For 2020Weâll never be royals with nearly a quarter of declined baby names featuring âRoyalâ in some form or another. Te Tari Taiwhenua Department of Internal Affairs has released the list of names declined in 2020 by the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and ...20 hours ago
- Kelvin Davis appoints a team of four (with no places for Pakeha) to advise him on Orangi Tamaraki an...
After a raft of inquiries delving into and recommending what should be done about the politically beleaguered Orangi Tamaraki, along with the briefing papers we suppose he has been given, we imagined Childrenâs Minister Kelvin Davis would have no more need for expert advice.   Wrong. He has ...20 hours ago - Do men really take longer to poo?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Vincent Ho, Senior Lecturer and clinical academic gastroenterologist, Western Sydney University Thereâs a common assumption men take longer than women to poo. People say so on Twitter, in memes, and elsewhere online. But is that right? What could explain it? And if ...20 hours ago
- Frame: Finding a home on the asexual spectrumJust as sexuality is a spectrum, so too is asexuality. In Ace of Hearts, members of New Zealand’s asexual community talk about the challenges and misconceptions of identifying as ace.First published November 17, 2020.Ace of Hearts is part of Frame, a series of short documentaries produced by Wrestler for The Spinoff.“A ...20 hours ago
- I watched nothing but kids TV for a week and I lost my mindSam Brooks wasn’t allowed to watch kids TV as a kid. Now, as a 30 year old man, he watches it for the first time.My mother’s approach to parenting was unorthodox. I wrote weekly book reports on top of my actual homework, I did maths equations in Roman numerals and ...21 hours ago
- State-sanctioned racism against West Papuans âshows Jakartaâs true agendaâPacific Media Watch newsdesk More leading Indonesian figures have made racial slurs against Natalius Pigai, former chair of the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) â and all West Papuans, says United Liberation Movement of West Papua (ULMWP) interim president Benny Wenda. âSince the illegal Indonesian invasion in 1963, Indonesian ...21 hours ago
- Auckland Tram: Taxpayers Deserve The Respect Of A Cost-benefit AnalysisâThe Governmentâs failure to even conduct a standard cost-benefit analysis for the most expensive infrastructure project in New Zealandâs history is mind-bogglingly arrogant,â says New Zealand Taxpayersâ Union spokesman Louis Houlbrooke. âA ...21 hours ago
- We are the 1% â the wealth of many Australians puts them in an elite club wrecking the planetANALYSIS: By Alex Baumann, Western Sydney University and Samuel Alexander, University of Melbourne Among the many hard truths exposed by covid-19 is the huge disparity between the worldâs rich and poor. As economies went into freefall, the worldâs billionaires increased their already huge fortunes by 27.5 percent. And as many ...23 hours ago
- MOH Draft Vaping Regulations Could Stub Out Smokefree 2025 SuccessThe Ministry of Health is today drawing backlash from the local New Zealand vaping industry following its release of proposed regulations for the Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products Act. Vaping Trade Association New Zealand (VTANZ) President, ...23 hours ago
- Dietary Requirements: What makes the perfect pub?Sophie Gilmour and Simon Day are joined by special guest Hugo Baird, co-owner of Grey Lynn’s Honey Bones and Lilian, to talk about opening new pub Hotel Ponsonby.Auckland is a city of many bars but few really good pubs – the kind of places you’d be just as comfortable going ...23 hours ago
- Advisory Board Welcomed As Step Toward A By MÄori For MÄori Approach For Care And ProtectionThe appointment of an advisory board for Oranga Tamariki is welcome and should be a step toward a total transformation of the care and protection system to a by MÄori, for MÄori approach, Childrenâs Commissioner Andrew Becroft said today. Minister ...24 hours ago
- Ten tips to fertilise your finances in 2021Taking control of your financial wellbeing can have cascading positive impacts for your life and it can also be fun. With the help of the team at Kiwi Wealth, we’ve compiled some simple tricks for balancing your books in 2021. There’s something about the beginning of a new year, especially after ...24 hours ago
- If border restrictions increase to combat new COVID-19 strains, what rights do returning New Zealand...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kris Gledhill, Professor of Law, Auckland University of Technology As we know, getting into New Zealand during the COVID-19 pandemic is difficult. There are practicalities, such as high airfare and managed isolation costs. And there are legal requirements, including pre-flight testing, mandatory ...1 day ago
- Housing: Judith Collins says free up land and bring in more tradespeopleNew Zealand faces the risk of a generation being locked out of the housing market unless land is freed up and more houses built, National Party leader Judith Collins says. ...1 day ago
- âThese people are my heroesâ: An industry insider on NZ musicâs #MeToo reckoningOn Sunday, Stuff published a months-long investigation by Alison Mau detailing allegations of harassment and exploitation within the local music industry.The piece, ‘Music industry professionals demand change after speaking out about its dark side’, includes allegations of inappropriate behaviour and abuse of power by male artists, international acts and executives; ...1 day ago
- Pfizer Boss Pours Cold Water On Ardern Claim Of Possible Aussie DelayâThe Government is all at sea on timelines for Australia and New Zealandâs respective vaccine roll-outs, with the worst news coming from the mouth of Pfizer Australia CEO Anne Harris,â says ACT Leader David Seymour. âYesterday, under increasing ...1 day ago
- Could the Biden administration pressure Australia to adopt more humane refugee policies?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Claire Higgins, Senior Research Fellow, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law, UNSW As a presidential candidate, Joe Biden promised the US would demonstrate âglobal leadership on refugeesâ. Once elected, he pledged to vastly increase refugee resettlement in the US. If history is ...1 day ago
- Domestic violence soars after natural disasters. Preventing it needs to be part of the emergency res...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jennifer Boddy, Associate Professor and Deputy Head of School (Learning and Teaching), Griffith University Domestic and family violence soars in the months and years following natural disasters. It usually involves physical and psychological violence perpetrated by men against women and children, but ...1 day ago
- We are the 1%: the wealth of many Australians puts them in an elite club wrecking the planetSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alex Baumann, Casual Academic, School of Social Sciences & Psychology, Western Sydney University Among the many hard truths exposed by COVID-19 is the huge disparity between the worldâs rich and poor. As economies went into freefall, the worldâs billionaires increased their already ...1 day ago
- Itâs not just about the rise in anti-Semitism: why we need real stories for better Holocaust educa...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jan Lanicek, Senior Lecturer in Modern European History and Jewish History, UNSW On January 27 communities worldwide commemorate the liberation of Auschwitz â the largest complex of concentration camps and extermination centres during the Holocaust. This is the first year the International ...1 day ago
- Dressed for success â as workers return to the office, men might finally shed their suits and tiesSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lorinda Cramer, Postdoctoral Research Associate, Australian Catholic University The summer break is over, marking a return to the office. For some, this ends almost a year of working from home in lockdown. Some analysts are predicting it might also mark an enduring ...1 day ago
- Live updates, January 27: âReally unlikelyâ Covid-19 spread through Pullman ventilationWelcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for January 27, keeping you up to date with the latest local and international news. Reach me on stewart@thespinoff.co.nzOur members make The Spinoff happen! Every dollar contributed directly funds our editorial team – click here to learn more about how you can support us ...1 day ago
- With the US now calling Chinaâs treatment of the Uyghurs âgenocideâ, how should NZ respond?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Gillespie, Professor of Law, University of Waikato New Zealand has a strong history of protecting and promoting human rights at home and internationally, and prides itself on being an outspoken critic and global leader in this area. So, when the most ...1 day ago
- The Bulletin: Collins outlines the plan forward for NationalGood morning and welcome to the Bulletin. In today’s edition: Collins outlines the plan forward for National, no spread of Covid spotted yet in Northland, and students return for climate protest.In front of a Rotary Club at the Ellerslie Racecourse in Auckland, National leader Judith Collins yesterday set out her ...1 day ago
- Long wait for trans-Tasman bubble just got even longer
*This article first appeared on RNZ and is republished with permission. The tourism industry isn't holding its breath for a trans-Tasman travel bubble being in place after Australia temporarily closed its borders to New Zealand. New Zealanders could be waiting even longer for a full trans-Tasman bubble, with the ...1 day ago - Near-empty hotels hibernate for winter
âââââââThe hurt caused by border closures is proving unsustainable for some of the country's 330 hotels, and they are closing their doors. ...1 day ago - PÄkehÄ invading the MÄori mind: The strange case of Roderick Finlayson
We continue our week-long examination of New Zealand writer Roderick Finlayson with an essay by Anahera Gildea on cultural appropriation Every night at 7pm sharp, my Irish Catholic father and his eight siblings would have to kneel on the carpet of the living room, facing the freshly polished nudity of ...1 day ago - Covid concerns continue to weigh on travel stocks
Business & Investing: While travel stocks felt pressure, Chorus and Synlait had good news ...1 day ago - Plan flexibly, build more or pay the price
A Covid reset will force costly and inflexible cities to take a hard look at their planning systems, or people will vote with their feet. Broken urban planning systems make for misery even in the best of times. If land use and housing regulations prevent metropolitan areas from growing up or out as ...1 day ago - Govt moves again on Oranga Tamariki
Children's Minister Kelvin Davis will have independent eyes and ears across Oranga Tamariki over the next five months as the Government tries to change the work and practices of the ministry. The Government has created a MÄori-led watchdog to oversee how the children's ministry, Oranga Tamariki, deals with parents and ...1 day ago - Covid-19: At the back of the vaccine queue
What if it was better for the world â and even for NZ â if we waited at the back of the line for Covid-19 vaccines? ...1 day ago - A disaster no one is paying attention to
When an Auckland school classroom went up in flames in December last year, exploding asbestos over neighbouring houses, five separate government agencies were involved. Yet stressed residents dealing with the aftermath on their homes say the response felt chaotic and uncoordinated; even local MPs who got involved couldn't get the information they wanted. Hundreds of thousands of ...1 day ago - The new bank branch: pull up a stool
The pandemic has accelerated the trend of doing our banking online instead of in person. This rapid digital embrace has, in turn, sped up the closure of many smaller bank branches. But, as Mark Jennings writes, there are new branches springing up with a different look and purpose. Aucklandâs Wynyard ...1 day ago - At 58, waka ama legend still leads the way
Corrina Gage has represented New Zealand in a trio of water sports. But it's her love for waka ama - and the opportunities it gives paddlers from 5 to 85 - that keeps her racing and coaching around the world. Lake KarÄpiro is quiet and still now. But last week, it was all noise ...1 day ago - Judith Collins wants to help solve the countryâs housing crisis. Do people care?Telling a Rotary Club audience that housing is a serious problem and they should care deeply about it landed flat but took some daring from the National leader, writes Justin Giovannetti.Judith Collins’ level of control over the National Party is still a question best answered by a shrug.Elevated to her ...1 day ago
- Is there an end in sight for Ćtaraâs gang problem?A gang turf war gripped the South Auckland suburb in late 2020, forcing schools to lock down and armed police to patrol the streets. Community leaders are now warning the cycle of violent retribution could continue in 2021, unless radical interventions are made.The violent altercations that loomed large in Ōtara ...1 day ago
- Go hard and go early on climate change
This will be a watershed year as we move from climate advocacy to action. We proved we could do it with Covid. ...1 day ago - Contaminated waste dumping: Ardern weighs options against companies in breachThe prime minister has put companies dumping contaminated waste into sewers on notice, saying she's seeking advice about the available options. ...2 days ago
- Protesters demand rapid action on climate changeMore than 100 climate strikers gathered at Parliament to hand over a list of demands for rapid action from the government. ...2 days ago
Cricket tonight.
When I saw the first ODI was on tonight I went Woo hoo…then I remembered the Black Caps were shit.
/chuckle
Get slightly drunk and then it wont matter đ
that’ll just make crosser and crosser until I drunkenly smash the TV before logging onto The Standard and getting into some pointless discussion about nothing of any real importance.
Heh
[lprent: Please reread the post.. Even I have to be nice here despite it being against my deepest blogging principles. r0b insists. ]
I’m just fucking with ya lprent. Calm down, princess.
You’d be better off trolling freepers on the Free Republic forums, for there is much lulz to be mined.
Lots of lolz. I watched the end of the England innings, went down to the shop thinking when I got back it would be worth tuning in for the beginning of the NZ innings – just in case they batsmen weren’t rubbish. Got back at the beginning of the 2nd over – 2 wickets down already!
Ja, but we won!
I never had even a second of doubt đ
Finally hitting the hills this weekend:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/150111651725052/permalink/484025305000350/
Otherwise it’s a pretty lax long weekend in sight, with monday looking like a good day to bake more bread and read. As I frakking nailed it yesterday and now just have to work out better delayed fermentation methods to get tastier bread.
I’ve been trying to find out a book name about nz labour written ages ago. It was called something like keep to the left, no right turn and I thought it was written by someone in the Else family. I have looked a few places but to no avail. Can anybody give me something definite as my searches aren’t much use.
Chris Trotter, No Left Turn (Random House, 2007)
Margaret Thorn, Elsie Locke, and Jacqueline Matthews, Stick Out, Keep Left (Auckland University Press; Bridget Williams Books, 1997).
Morrissey and Murray Olsen
Sweet! I think you’ve given me the word all right. Thanks
Maybe this one: Thorn, Margaret, Elsie Locke, and Jacqueline Matthews, Stick Out, Keep Left (Auckland [N.Z.], Auckland University Press ; Bridget Williams Books, 1997).
http://www.ebay.com.au/ctg/Stick-Out-Keep-Left-Margaret-Thorn-Paperback-1997-/95969272
http://www.wheelersbooks.com.au/books/9781869401436-stick-out-keep-left/
This sounds like me. “What do you do with your time?”:
ï»ż https://fbcdn-sphotos-a-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-fr/312274_368045953295176_1531300923_n.jpg
I found fresh taro, cassava, and Hawaiian kumara at a market in Brisbane. First time I’ve found cassava here. The normal kumara they have is tasteless. Apparently it’s the Asian variety, because the ones I ate in Brazil had plenty of taste. They were like our good Kiwi ones. Finding cassava made my wife very happy, because it’s part of the staple diet where she’s from. Now all I have to find is a decent pumpkin instead of the watery rubbish they sell here. Then maybe some lamb with taste, a few scallops, and some smoked trevally. Auckland is much, much better for food than Brisbane.
Nice animation of Asteroid 1998 QE2, comparing QE2’s, which passed us by the other day.
Thanks for the link, mm – well worth watching.
Not quite as spectacular, but some beautiful photography in this article on Stuff of the aurora austalis last night taken from the Port Hills in Christchurch
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/8747245/Aurora-australis-seen-from-Port-Hills