Fearmongering or telling it how it is?
42 is not the meaning of life and 13 is not an unlucky number.
Social issues
health
The Golden Ticket
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern claimed yesterday that a very high vaccination rate in New Zealand would represent a “golden ticket” and make level 4 lockdowns redundant. What could that mean that’s positive for New Zealand?
The more difficult end to the vaccination programme
The country is reaching an interesting stage in the vaccination programme where reluctant vaccinees will have to receive the jab to make sure that we reach herd immunity.
Why did the chicken cross the road?
Government has taken a ‘calculated risk’ with opening up Auckland somewhat tonight.
Lockdown decision – which way will it go?
Cabinet meets today to decide on the future of the lockdown levels in Aotearoa and more specifically on Tamaki Makaurau. Which way will it go?
Trump’s not so bad: the nuclear holocaust edition
An occasional series
What should we call the Vaccination bus?
The Prime Minister has sparked another national debate. What should we call the new mobile vaccination vehicles that will be rolled out over the next week or so.
COVID, We Need To Talk About Class
We’ve never seen a nationwide disease illustrate class and deprivation like the future of the country depended on it. Not like this. This should change us.
Delta Covid – the battle so far
As Tamaki Makaurau enters week four of lockdown things are at an interesting stage.
Dirty Politics does not work any more
Egged on by a shock horror smear campaign on Cameron Slater’s latest post Judith Collins has attacked Dr Siouxsie Wiles by fat shaming her.
Is this the post Covid world?
Just as we did with travel security after 9/11, we are about to get our next set of global regulations to control crisis.
Until all of us are safe none of us are safe
On Monday of this week David Seymour received a roasting after posting a confidential Health code that was to be used by Waitakere Whanau to receive priority vaccination slots. He has now doubled down on his effort and claimed that prioritisation is wrong.
Seymour undermines vaccine roll out for Maori
David Seymour has publicised a code designed for West Auckland whanau to try and improve poor vaccination rates amongst Maori.
National’s next leader?
As the damage caused by Judith Collins’ leadership of the National Party intensifies it is inevitable that there will be internal discussions about who should replace her, and soon. And I think the best candidate is clear.
Judith’s very bad two days
Judith Collins’ insistence that Parliament be reconvened even at a time that the country was in lockdown level 4 has backfired spectacularly.
Covid and the media
This week there has been some argy bargy between the Twitterati including the Waitakerati and the media on coverage of Covid in Aotearoa with elements of the media complaining that the criticisms are unjustified. A brief review of some of the offerings this week would suggest otherwise.
How Far Ought The State Go In A Pandemic?
Even in a time of crisis, people have human rights that must be upheld.
Gumming up the works
Last night it was revealed that National and Act had refused to agree to a proposed virtual Parliament sitting where questions could be asked, and instead wanted face to face meetings, even though this would mean a third of the country’s MPs travelling regularly to Wellington from a Covid delta hotspot.
Ardern Needs to do More Than Manage Crisis
For a country that has sought to form advantage for itself with strong and hard COVID-19 lockdowns, we’re not gaining any more advantage than yet another binge-purge cycle of supply tension and shortages, rapid economic downturn softened by tens of billions of subsidy, followed by unsustainable booms, over and over again.
The mysterious socialist hermit kingdom
Various commentators including Nigel Farage have claimed that New Zealand’s Covid elimination strategy is a failure. Our death rate and the possibility that we can again return to a normality that other nations can only aspire to suggests they are wrong.
China reports zero local symptomatic Covid-19 cases for first time in weeks
You probably won’t see this in our local media, as our pundits today debate whether it is time to ditch our elimination strategy and Australia gives up on it. China is also well ahead on ensuring its vast population is vaccinated as well.
Matt King caught blowing anti vaccination dog whistle
Former National MP Matt King has been publicly posting anti vaccination propaganda under the ruse of only wanting a conversation.
The importance of Jacinda’s 1 pm press conferences
Jacinda Ardern has resumed the 1 pm briefings where she communicates effectively the country’s current situation and what the plan is. But National and some elements of the media are complaining, presumably that she is doing too good a job.
The Covid vaccine may not be the nirvana
Claims that a comprehensive vaccination scheme will allow life to get back to normal ignores the experience of Israel, which despite having a large proportion of its population vaccinated is having a surge of new infections of Covid that is stretching its health system.
The antidote page for all those chickens
This is the page that I read at least once a week. With a clean brevity it gives me almost all of the strategic summary information about the progress of the vaccinations in NZ. Even it’s title is clean and clear. COVID-19: Vaccine data. But I’m trained in operations and rather more interested in reality rather than the average untrained pundit or politician who run around like a Chicken Little saying the equivalent of “the sky is falling” every other week. Thankfully they were ignored.
A little bit of understanding can go a long way …
Our online Persona is not us, but just a mask.
Here again, but Delta gives less latitude. So give less latitude.
We’re back in a Covid-19 lock down. Until we get to a very high level of vaccinations >80-90%, something that no state has yet achieved, this is our only realistic defence against outbreaks. Delta is way more infectious than previous variants. It infects the vaccinated to act as spreaders. Don’t know about anyone else. But this time I intend to exert my right to give less social latitude to idiots.
The importance of political leadership in dealing with Covid
Political leadership in the time of Covid is important. As the Government urgently swung into action and imposed a level 4 lockdown after news of a community case of Delta Covid who lived in Auckland and had spent time in Coromandel while infectious, Thames-Coromandel District Mayor and former National MP Sandra Goudie admitted to not scanning regularly.
Covid-19 and the risk-based border plan
Details on the government’s plan for New Zealand’s borders, and the Delta variant of Covid.
Youtube punishes Murdoch’s Sky News for pedalling Covid misinformation
This will have the conspiracy theorists spinning. Youtube have stopped Murdoch’s Sky News Australia from uploading videos for the next seven days after the channel uploaded videos questioning Covid and advocating for the use of alternative medicines including Donald Trump’s favourite hydroxychloroquine
The latest Reid Research Poll result
Last night’s Reid Research poll result suggests that the electorate is reverting back to a more conventional dynamic after the stratospheric heights that Labour enjoyed immediately post Covid elimination.
Nurses refuse pay offer
NZNO members who work in district health boards (DHBs) have voted by clear majority to reject the latest offer in their negotiations with the DHBs, saying it fails to address the chronic and systemic safe staffing issues in a way that would ensure and protect the future of the health system.
Letting private enterprise handle Covid quarantine is a really stupid idea
Leader of the Opposition David Seymour has proposed that private enterprise should provide quarantine services. The recent experience of Melbourne where private security firms failed dramatically to properly managed quarantine facilities suggests that this is a really stupid idea.
The many and varied takes of Des Gorman on covid
A review of Des Gorman’s comments about Covid over the last 15 months, pretty well all of which have been negative, makes you wonder how it is possible that we have been able to maintain an effective Covid free status in Aotearoa New Zealand.
What If Boris Is Right?
Now that UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has “opened up” the United Kingdom from many of the Covid19 strictures that it had undergone, there is a lot at stake to his reputation and indeed to the lives and livelihoods of its citizens.
The bubble pops
The appearance of community spread Delta variant Covid in Australia has caused New Zealand to suspend the trans Tasman travel bubble.