Shouldn’t this global shock from this COVID-19 virus make us all wake up to the power of collective global action on climate change? Well, the minor upsides are vastly outweighed by the bad on this question – so far as I can see. We do…
A healthy democracy relies on a well-functioning Opposition whose job it is to hold the Government to account and to represent an alternative government (in waiting). Over the years, this has morphed into a dirty game of point scoring, which has undermined public trust in…
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The Council of Trade Unions has launched an online tool allowing employees to log complaints against ill treatment by employers during the Covid-19 lockdown. From Rob Stock at Stuff: The Council of Trade Unions has launched an online register for workers who have been shoddily-treated…
Only three months ago our media were lauding the visit of total Tolkein obsessive and massive U.S. entertainer Stephen Colbert. Now the new Tolkein series is stopped and the studios shut for now. Along with all tourism completely. Tourism was until March 2020 New Zealand’s…
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Anyone who has read even briefly into written human history is going to be aware that it is as much defined by our epidemics and pandemics as by any of our technical and societal achievements. This post is essentially a quick range over the history…
Social media has become interesting lately. Twitter has become civilised. Apart from Democracy Mum and Hamish Price most right wing commentators have become much more respectful. The left have toned it down as well. And an unusual consensus has been reached. https://twitter.com/MarjaLubeck/status/1243643663650963456 https://twitter.com/GregPresland/status/1243296570818232320 The Government's…
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A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away … Well, not that long ago, and not that far away, secondary school students were striking against Climate Change. National had stepped up their election campaign since 19 October 2017 and were in full-flight electioneering.…
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The All of Government COVID-19 National Response 27 March. Speakers: Sarah Stuart-Black, Director of Civil Defence Emergency Management – update on Covid-19 national response Dr Ashley Bloomfield, Director-General of Health – health update. https://youtu.be/DWCcnwEJW3k RNZ: Covid-19 update: 85 new cases, one person in intensive care…
A post for the duration: what's inspiring us or helping us get through? Music, film, books, games, or just sharing what's keeping us occupied as we hunker down. No politics, no aggro, no drama. _________________________________________________________________________ Starting us off with this lovely short (7 min) interview…
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Apologies I have not posted much lately. My small business has demanded my attention. The four week stay at home order and the lead up has had a profound effect. Existing work has to be finished. Cruicial work has to continue. The Courts, normally thriving…
The man who killed 51 people in Christchurch a year ago has changed his plea to guilty on all charges. At the High Court in Christchurch, the right wing terrorist admitted 51 counts of murder, 40 of attempted murder and one charge under the Terrorism…
Waking up this morning was a bit of an eerie feeling. The alarm went off as usual at 0700 (and the 0880 one just clicked over). Very little traffic noise. The quiet sound of the workstation and server fans was louder than the the remaining…
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New York Governor Cuomo was told CoVid-19 was like an approaching freight train. More like a bullet train was his response. Watching the White House daily briefing with Trump dominant it looks like a massive train wreck is on the way in the US. With…
Daily review is also your post. This provides Standardistas the opportunity to review events of the day. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Don’t forget to be kind to each other …
Gotta love parliament - James Shaw "there are no fiscal conservatives in a foxhole". Anyway, parliament in the chamber will be going dark for a few months. So will parliamentary TV (but you can still get that live). Have a look at the archives from today-…
Fairly soon every group and their dog are going to come out with recovery plans for New Zealand. First off the block - even before we went into lockdown - is the ten point plan from Infrastructure New Zealand. 1. Fund local transport and water…
There are still a few people around playing the inter-generational blame game, although I am relieved to see it has dropped way down. The horrendous 'bye-boomer' meme earlier in the pandemic seems to have disappeared, and I'm not seeing regular ok boomer dismissals online. There…
I've been heartened by cross party support for the idea of a temporary UBI. Finance Minister Grant Robertson has confirmed on Radio NZ this morning that the idea is being considered (*5 mins in) and sensibly, Simon Bridges has not ruled out supporting it. No…
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
Daily review is also your post. This provides Standardistas the opportunity to review events of the day. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Don’t forget to be kind to each other …
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
I find it useful to keep constructing a future even as the immediate moment changes according to government command, so I thought I’d give it a go for us. We’ll need to keep thinking through this and adjust. Last week Politico speculated on how this…
Heading into phase three, moving into phase four 48 hours later. Here is the video briefing and the quick analysis. https://youtu.be/OFRvKKPeKGc So far I'm loving how controlled our government has been performing. While I'm no expert, I've been around the periphery of the civil defense…