Open mike 07/07/2022

24 comments on “Open mike 07/07/2022”

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  1. 1

    He says the amount of food rescued is still a fraction of what's sent to the dump in both commercial and household waste – and the Food Network could take more.

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/programmes/the-detail/story/2018848447/new-zealand-s-food-wastage-problem

    A south Auckland marae is establishing a community compost collection service that not only reduces waste, but will help the next generation learn about living more sustainability.

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/ldr/463498/composting-initiative-to-supercharge-mangere-marae-s-good-works

    Above are 2 partial solutions to NZs massive food WASTE. The worst being NZ’s supermarket duopoly….overpriced so doesn’t sell…and then dumped. Criminal waste.

    Big ups esp to the Marae. Onya !

    1. 1.1
      1. 1.1.1

        It was challenging research because of the competition between two supermarket chains. They had to sign all sorts of confidentiality agreements, they said.

        There were no New Zealand figures for retail food waste until Prof Mirosa and Prof Sheila Skeaff, of the university’s human nutrition department, supervised research on the topic by master’s degree student Francesca Goodman-Smith, who is now waste minimisation manager for Foodstuffs

        https://www.odt.co.nz/lifestyle/food-wine/news-features/supermarket-food-waste-complex-conundrum

        Yea…maybe. I wouldnt trust the duopoly supermarkets….at all. Massive Greenwash budget. And Massive profits. Of course they are trying to appear caring..and concerned.

        But still…

  2. 2

    Quick question – does anyone know if the software used for this site support "likes" for posts?

  3. 3

    Also relevent to NZ.

    And why changes to our electoral finance Act, do not go far enough.

    It’s democracy v plutocracy – this is the endgame for our planet | George Monbiot | The Guardian

    "the ease with which democracy is crushed by the power of money. We cannot protect the living world, or women’s reproductive rights, or anything else we value until we get the money out of politics, and break up the media empires that make a mockery of informed political consent"

  4. 5

    T.I.N.A.

    "In this light, we can see that we never sat around a table and debated whether to use fire, agriculture, science, fossil fuels, technology, or capitalism. Sure, we had discussions, and may fool ourselves into thinking we were in control—yet another facet of our human exceptionalism. But it wasn’t a true choice, in that those opting out are either gone or not faring well in our current global civilization. So it can seem in hindsight like a series of deliberate moves that put us on the “right” track—where “right” just means “current,” possibly translating to “disastrous.”

    https://dothemath.ucsd.edu/2022/07/the-ride-of-our-lives/

    "Some may find my perspective about lack of agency and a collapse-scale waterfall ahead to be fatalistic and full of despair. That’s not how I feel. First, I would rather understand the situation than not. Secondly, at some level, it absolves us of responsibility: not so much a matter of us screwing up as just inhabiting a world where this sort of thing is natural or even inevitable."

    1. 5.1

      And while we’re arguing, we'll go over the edge.

      .

      We’re all trapped on a bus.

      The bus is barreling towards a cliff.

      Beyond the cliff is a canyon plunge any of us will be lucky to survive.

      Even if we survive, none of us know how we’ll climb out of that deep canyon.

      Some of us want to yank the wheel.

      The bus is going so fast that yanking the wheel could cause the bus to roll.

      There might be some broken bones.

      There might be worse than broken bones.

      The driver won’t yank the wheel.

      The people in expensive front row seats agree.

      “Yank the wheel? Are you crazy? Someone could break a leg!”

      We say, “But there’s a cliff! We’re going to go over the cliff! We’re going to die!”

      “Nonsense,” they say. “Long before we go over the cliff, we’ll have figured out how to put wings on this bus.”

      We argue.

      https://locusmag.com/2022/07/cory-doctorow-the-swerve/

      1. 5.1.1

        We can 'yank the wheel'…

        "Yet, when have we ever truly steered our path as a species? Are we actually in control at all? I’ll argue that we’ve never really been in the driver’s seat on the decisions that have mattered most. Our path has been more like an amusement park ride equipped with an ornamental steering wheel, giving the adorable tykes an intoxicating but illusory sense of control."

        1. 5.1.1.1

          have we ever truly steered our path as a species?

          Of course not. We consume like rodents during a mast year and when it's done, we turn on each other. It’s who we are.

        2. 5.1.1.2

          "I’ll argue that we’ve never really been in the driver’s seat on the decisions that have mattered most. "

          Go on then, pat. I'll pick up that gauntlet enthusiastically.

          Humans have been "in the driver's seat", at the table, front & centre of every decision that matters most. Humans, individually and collectively have chosen their paths, even when those who could see the disaster looming, warned loudly against those choices.

          I look forward to learn why it is you think otherwise.
          Edit: I do agree, however, with this:
          “not so much a matter of us screwing up as just inhabiting a world where this sort of thing is natural or even inevitable.”
          Agreeing to that doesn’t negate my original comment – it’s a natural process but still involved us choosing our “inevitable” path. There were a myriad of ways to get here; we chose those paths. Others, as you allude, chose not to join us and have suffered/are suffering, as a result. They/many of them are however, still waiting in the wings to help.

            1. 5.1.1.2.1.1

              I considered the nearness of each of our positions, pat, but felt feisty.

              I hadn't read the link 🙂

              Now I'm free to garden for the afternoon, untroubled by the need to check TS every 5 minutes – thanks, pat!

              I am interested in the pathologies that have been spawned by our species as we've moved through time, and the difficulty we are experiencing in managing/controlling them. That's our real challenge, imo.

            2. 5.1.1.2.1.2

              Now I have read the link. I enjoyed his thoughts.

              "The “river” does not have our best interests at heart. "

              It's this I disagree with.

              The rest was pretty fair, I thought.

              Coincidentally, I'm listening to Joanna Macy et al, discussing "Climate change as spiritual practice" – I suspect they all have read your link also 🙂

      2. 5.1.2

        Perfect definition of 'Progress' and 'Growth'. Here's the second line:
        We're all trapped on a bus, the night is dark.

  5. 6

    To carry out his atrocity, like the Christchurch shooter the Chicago shooter acquired his weapons legally.

    Following the Christchurch massacre, our PM had the courage to impose a total ban on the private ownership and sale of military style semi-automatic weapons in this country.

    Maybe this latest shooting tragedy in the US will give US legislators the same needed steel in their spines to finally ban the private possession and sale of military style semi-automatic weapons in the US.

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/us-canada/300631271/chicago-parade-shooting-victims-include-both-parents-of-toddler-found-wandering-alone-after-gunfire

  6. 7

    The 6 maxims:

    1. Work hard to grasp the immensity of the change;
    2. Cultivate radical hope;
    3. Have a line in the sand;
    4. Appreciate the astonishing opportunity of life at this time;
    5. Train your body and mind;
    6. And act for the future generations of all species.
  7. 8

    New pronouns for Natural gas and nuclear energy sustained in Europe Parliament (by large majority)

    https://twitter.com/business/status/1544631803981488128?cxt=HHwWgICzkaSc0e8qAAAA

    France nationalizes its nuclear giant.

    https://twitter.com/SStapczynski/status/1544690933589233664?cxt=HHwWgMDShYqO7O8qAAAA

    Germany faces large unemployment as industry faces huge electricity crisis.Russia will shut Nordstream for maintenance on the 11th,whether it reopens problematic.Tesla Berlin will shut for two weeks as 60% of its electricity (co generation) is from gas,wait on electric vehicles in europe extends to 12 months.

    https://twitter.com/JavierBlas/status/1544709859194683394?cxt=HHwWhIC-5djb9O8qAAAA

      1. 8.1.1

        In other languages things (objects) can have their own pronouns, but perhaps what was meant was adjectives? Green is an adjective in the context.

        My mind then wandered to if the 'its' in other languages could be classed as intersex and what the impact on its could be with things such as trans etc. But before delving into whether this was possible…..

        wink

    1. 9.1

      Hi. I was going to post something re this. As local small paper today has full page spread…..incl a despicable cartoon ..by one Garrick Tremain. Racist.

      And here more of same.

      https://www.nzcpr.com/newsletter/

      I was pretty shocked by it.

      Who would believe Matariki was only a week ago?

      Racist Scumbags

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