Goodbye, Auckland
For the hundreds of thousands of Aucklanders who have decided to holiday at a town near you, just be careful: they may never leave.
Social issues
Anarchy in the UK
Boris Johnson is on the ropes. Not because of the disastrous effects of Brexit which only passed because of some of the whoppers that he told, but because of a Christmas party held last year at 10 Downing Street at a time when the UK was under a strict lockdown.
The Freedom Bus is on the move *
But special entry conditions including being double vaccinated or having a recent clear Covid test apply.
Some good news about Covid
In Auckland there ares welcome signs that the spread of Covid is declining and the Health system is holding up. And the Vaccination roll out has gone that well that Chris Luxon has described Auckland as having some of the highest vaccination rates of any city in the world.
Who will be the next Auckland Mayor?
Efeso Collins has announced that if Phil Goff does not stand as Mayor and Labour runs a selection process for the next Mayoralty he would be keen to nominate.
Wanted: a new Leader of the Opposition
National needs a new leader of the opposition. The Standard has been leaked a list of the necessary qualifications …
National’s factional problem
National’s basic problem is that it has three discrete factions, christian conservatives, urban liberals and the country grouping. And no coherent vision to reconcile these totally disparate groupings.
Class oppression and discrimination
A brief analysis of power.
What National Needs To Do
Since the left are experts at internal knifing, National should learn from the left about how to recover. What National needsto do to recover.
National – let the virus rip
There is no other explanation, and this week Paul Goldsmith gave the game away, National thinks that we should let the Corona virus rip.
He Waka Eke Noa?
While a core of farmers protested a few days ago against farm environmental regulation with long lines of tractors, the organised form of agribusiness, Maori and government working together have concluded that making a climate different isn’t possible.
See what happens when you put a woman in charge?
Remarkably low Covid death and infection rates, good and improving vaccination rates, low unemployment and debt to GDP …
BORA vs pandemic mandate
The Bill of Right Act (BORA) is an interesting because it is what I would call a balancing act. It enshrines certain individual rights but they are not absolutes against community needs. So far the decisions about challenges to the vaccine mandate balance are supporting the Crown.
The pandemic response is like driving a car
Staying safe from Covid-19 this summer can be as simple as a few basic steps.
Is This The New State We Want?
The New Zealand state is gaining power again, but is it what we want?
National is being utterly irresponsible
In the middle of a pandemic where the numbers in hospital are increasing and a number of Kiwis have died from a virus that is spreading promising the loosening of current restrictions is the most irresponsible, stupid, foolhardy, idiotic, imbecile thing I could ever expect a political party to do.
Auckland could become a ghost town this summer
Domestic tourism could become extreme tourism this summer.
The Mandate To Say Goodbye
In the next two weeks we will find out how many teachers in New Zealand are immune to facts, were happy to enforce vaccinations upon their children for multiple diseases over multiple decades but not themselves, and after decades enforcing state rules in daily attendance and behaviours of young people at school could not themselves be subject to that same force of state.
Down the rabbit hole
Former National MP and University Lecturer Simon Thornley are in the news after publishing a video interview questioning the effectiveness of the Covid vaccine and suggesting that the evidence that Ivermectin is useful in treating Covid is epidemiologically sound and strong.
How Covid may play out
Modelling produced for the Government suggests that weekly new covid infections could plateau in the next two weeks. And the modelling so far has been remarkable accurate.
COP26 Results
The deal is done. Together with lots of side-agreements, big-up pledges, finance, and no definite language the phasing out of Coal or fossil fuel subsidies.
The 2022 We Are Heading Towards
Most of us have been diminished by COVID in 2020-21 so it’s time for everyone to prepare 2022 as an honest accounting of damage to our whole society.
Covid and the latest polls
The results of two polls were leaked recently both showing a drop in support for Labour. Clearly the Delta outbreak has rattled confidence. But National has not surged up in support and the Greens have picked up some of the former Labour vote.
Shock horror, Ardern chooses to keeps her mask on
Barry Soper has accused the Prime Minister of, wait for this, not taking her mask off when she was inside visiting a vaccination centre in South Auckland.
What is gender?
“When people are arguing about gender, quite often one of them is talking about sex, one of them is talking about social stereotypes, and a third one is talking about gender identity, and they’re all shouting at each other”
The Freedumb Protesters give protesting a bad name
As a principle the right to protest is important. But the freedumb protesters making outlandish claims and at the same time plagarizing the language of progressive protest movements deserves to be called out.
Freedom Protesters are a pain in the ass
Human rights are a pain in the ass. Yesterday’s protesters were rude, unfit to invite home to dinner, shouty, and so incoherent that you could’t make any sensible point with them. They were and are a pain in the ass. But they are OUR pain in the ass.
Cuba’s covid response
Well paint me red and call me Joseph Stalin. Cuba has not only developed its own Covid vaccines but it has vaccinated pretty well all of its people and driven back a Covid Delta outbreak that was threatening the island.
New Zealand’s New Low Carbon Economy Stays Difficult
Southland Mayor Gary Tong has justified felling a forest to construct a coal mine by saying “[w]e all want to make a cleaner, greener planet, but we can’t do it in five minutes.”
The Labour Conference
Labour is this year holding its Conference on line. There will be some attention on a proposal to allow a supermajority of Caucus to avoid members and affiliates from having a say in a future Parliamentary leader.
The Rules To Save The World
Beyond the NGO emotion and singing and joyous arm waving, country leaders at COP 26 actually have to achieve stuff this week.
Covid alters Auckland
With in-person shopping about to re-start in Auckland next week, this is the best moment we will have to reinvent Auckland: one customer at a time.
Even China is struggling with Delta
China, which has previously successfully suppressed the Covid virus, is struggling with a delta outbreak. And questions are being asked if suppression is still viable.
We are all in this together
Increasing levels of angst at the current lockdown can be related to privilege.
COP26 is on
The show is now on for Conference of Parties 26 (COP 26), where countries show each other how they will achieve the Paris […]
The Entrust election debacle
National aligned C&R has shown how bad it is at running elections by running an election where less than one in ten eligible people voted.