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6:00 am, July 23rd, 2025 - 50 comments
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Open mike is your post.
For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose.
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Step up to the mike …
Today's Posts (updated through the day):
The Time For The Left To Act Is Now
Ian Taylor is back on his narrative trail.
This time he conflates the kindness brand to the the closed border policy alone and says small Pacific Islands did it better, so there.
He makes no mention to Oz.
The small islands had most of their offshore population in Oz and New Zealand – whereas the Tasman nations had their offshore population in lands where COVID was spreading.
Guess why their policy was safer to apply than it was for us, or Oz.
He seems incapable of making fair comparisons.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/360765709/ian-taylor-any-doubts-about-dame-jacindas-brand-power-are-gone
And he is still banging on about the cost of the lockdown in Auckland, all without reference to the otherwise facing the risk of either applying one nationwide, or face a health system crisis.
And claiming to be the real “the single source of truth”.
Seriously…!…I read it…
Don't bother…I don't know why he did .
It adds nothing to nothing …
And is basically an act of self-gratification..
While he continue this argument with the self-entitledness of "I'm the only one who was personally inconvenienced by a global pandemic" attitude (safe to say we all have our negative lockdown experiences), there are many amongst us now who- when the next pandemic comes along- will never agree to another lockdown or any sort of restrictions on their God-given liberty. And people like Taylor are doing everything possible to keep that group perpertually angry and ignorant/stupid, and the media are happy to give him a platform.
So the next time a global pandemic wants to create havoc, those of us who hold onto basic common sense will be the ones isolating- to protect ourselves from the idiots, who are probably more dangerous than a pathogen.
Dear Sir Bold Sir Ian,
I know you feel funny when you see a picture of Dame Jacinda and you feel even funnier when you tell her what to do. Sometimes it’s too much and you have to sit down. Sometimes you sneakily touch yourself a little bit as you read your letters. They’re not at all the sign of a strange obsession, you tell yourself. You’re Sir Ian. They must listen to me.
It’s good you only feel funny when you look at Dame Jacinda and what to tell her what to do, otherwise we’d have had to read what you think about Sir John or Sir Bill or even one or other of the Chris’s (not Sir). That wouldn’t be right.
Next time you get the urge to spread the seed of your wit and spray it all around the country via a newspaper, perhaps try not doing that. Even if Sinead calls and asks if you’ve been thinking and you have you’ve been sitting in your office thinking everywhere, perhaps just don’t share.
Because you are a privileged prize pillock and you should piss off.
Keep your flagellation to yourself and maybe buy a boat or a faster car.
Sincerely, etc, with love
Excellent work
Opinion sniping makes Taylor look petty and small. Why doesn't the entitled pillock write his COVID memoir – My Journey Around Jacinda – that might shut him up for a bit.
Investigative : RNZ
Earlier…and was well covered here on The Standard too, many comments and Links !
One..of many
Rnz has reported that there are 750 vape products on the market…
They do not need to be tested before going to market..(!)
And 1% of them are tested …every three months ..(!)
..is everyone happy with that ..?
.. nothing to see there…?
..this is stuff people suck into their lungs ..
(f.f.s..!)
..I wonder which politicians are responsible for that act of group sex..?
This must be a simple vote winning policy.
Vapes are available on prescription only for the intention of getting off the ciggies.
Job done.
I am actually gobsmacked this crap doesn't need to be tested before going to market..
That certainly also has to change..
I'm gobsmacked by the completely foreseeable costs vapes are going to impose on individuals and society. Doubt we'll see any sort of personal or electoral accountability though. Kinda like leaky homes again and again, but very personal for those affected this time.
I used to follow a health promotion expert on twitter, she was hard core in favour of vapes because it got people off cigarettes and from a public health perspective this improved the situation. There was no discussing it. NZ has had a pretty successful stop smoking strategy since the 90s but the shift to vaping just seems so unnecessary.
With hindsight we seem to have gone from something that got people off cigarettes, but onto something way more insidious. Cigarettes had a relaxed vibe around them, vaping seems to give users a more aggressive addiction vibe, but maybe that just how society has changed in that time
At one stage in the life I had a strong affection for crack cocaine…the one you smoke ..
And one of my takeaways from that was that it is one of the most obsessive drugs…in that other drugs you get whacked…and mellow out ..
…with crack cocaine you just want more and more…
..and like you say…I watch vapers…and their smoking has that same obsessive urgency about it…
You just know that if you tried to take their vape from them…the resistance would be strong…
..and have you ever seen vape-panic..?..when they have misplaced their nicotine delivery vessel…
..blind panic sets in…
..so so much like misplacing the crack pipe ..
..and we are told this is better..?
..right ho…!
Yep
Cocaine certainly removed your capacity for grammar.
Do you mean my different attitude to punctuation ..?
I can see issues there for the anal retentive…(Hello..!)
But I would defend my use of the language..
..so unsure what you mean by grammer..
..and my crack use was before my dive into academia…so…
..and if you want a brain killing drug…meet alcohol…
(Would you like some bacon with that booze .?…go for the cancer double whammy..!..)
Black Sabbath singer Ozzy Osbourne dies at 76
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/world/567720/black-sabbath-singer-ozzy-osbourne-dies-at-76
Legend….Blew many minds. Memory best.
RIP. One of the greats.
https://theconversation.com/do-countries-have-a-duty-to-prevent-climate-harm-the-worlds-highest-court-is-about-to-answer-this-crucial-question-261396
Now this will cause apoplexy in the white gold halls of power.
“If the ICJ affirms that states have binding obligations to prevent climate harm, including trans-boundary impacts, New Zealand’s climate change policies and progress to date could face increased legal scrutiny.”
Interesting discussions about lowering the voting age to 16. Yes, it’s an Australian perspective, but valid here.
https://theconversation.com/should-australia-lower-the-voting-age-to-16-like-the-uk-we-asked-5-experts-261469
At the moment, I’m ambivalent. Whether 16 year olds would take the responsibility seriously worries me. OTOH, would that matter?
Your last three words get to dismiss those bullshit arguments against lowering the voting age….
And the strongest case for lowering it.. IMHO…is that it is they who are inheriting the mess we have made of the planet…
..the least we can do is give them power to drive the needed changes ..and the sooner the better..
Your last three words get to dismiss those bullshit arguments against lowering the voting age….
And the strongest case for lowering it.. IMHO…is that it is they who are inheriting the mess we have made of the planet…
..the least we can do is give them power to drive the needed changes ..and the sooner the better..
It may be true that some 16 and 17 year olds don't know enough about the world to make good decisions. But lots of (maybe all) older people 'know' things about the world that aren't true at all – and they also may fail to make good decisions. This is the permutation that the esteemed epistemologist Donald Rumsfeld neglected to mention – the "unknown knowns". So appeals to knowledge or maturity of thought processes seem to be a bit dubious as the basis for allowing people to vote or not.
But obviously it would feel silly and would be silly for (say) 8 year olds to be voting. We need a clearer understanding of exactly why that's the case.
I have personally thought about this..a lot. However, I have also done research on same.
As per my earlier comments on same..it seems that me saying : "mature people are fucking our Planet", didnt go down well..with a small minded few.
To my mind, the old (and I am getting there) have indeed fucked the Planet. (FYI I absolutely acknowledge there are many that have and do,fight to save it, but still)
The Young..some immature, as maybe, but it is their World soon. As ever, we are always only tenants of our Planet. And temporary at that.
I would so much like to be a part of handing over an opportunity…for something better : )
Some links from my research….First up Andrew Becroft. Another NZer I greatly respect…..2018
A young person. Again 2018
Another thoughtful article. What are we scared of..indeed? (FYI..I have endeavoured mightily to keep an open mind : ) 2020
I found this next Interesting….But really, the Young have always been against discrimination, racism, unfairness, etc etc..
I found much more. As always, its up to a personal interpretation.
Mine is, Yes !
Why am I unable to delete duplicate comment..?
Poltergeist.
Dr Phil & Mr Ure
Dr heckle and Mr jive.
@wag..
That's clever..!
Seems ro fit
Guyon Espiner must have hit a nerve with Winnie.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/in-depth/567711/nicotine-lobbyists-said-winston-peters-was-very-powerful-and-very-
Winnie has put up a long rant on his Facebook feed.
“Guyon Espiner’s “hot reckons” attack piece this morning is the latest in the long line of what is clearly such an obsession for him – he likely lays awake at night congratulating himself for throwing yet another piece of frivolous mud at New Zealand First” etc etc
I don’t know how to link to a Facebook post, sorry.
On the post itself, click 'share' and then select 'copy link'.
Assume you mean this one – https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1MXRce9bE2/
Watch Medhi Hasan's debate with young conservatives to see driven by overconfidence in their own cognitive abilities in action.
https://x.com/mehdirhasan/status/1946948641303769495
Belief in conspiracy theories is often attributed to some form of motivated reasoning: People want to believe a conspiracy because it reinforces their worldview, for example, or doing so meets some deep psychological need, like wanting to feel unique. However, it might also be driven by overconfidence in their own cognitive abilities, according to a paper published in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. The authors were surprised to discover that not only are conspiracy theorists overconfident, they also don't realize their beliefs are on the fringe, massively overestimating by as much as a factor of four how much other people agree with them.
"I was expecting the overconfidence finding," co-author Gordon Pennycook, a psychologist at Cornell University, told Ars. "If you've talked to someone who believes conspiracies, it's self-evident. I did not expect them to be so ready to state that people agree with them. I thought that they would overestimate, but I didn't think that there'd be such a strong sense that they are in the majority. It might be one of the biggest false consensus effects that's been observed."
https://arstechnica.com/science/2025/07/conspiracy-theorists-think-their-views-are-mainstream/
https://www.skynews.com.au/insights-and-analysis/money-that-can-expire-rba-laying-groundwork-for-a-dystopian-financial-reality-where-money-is-given-a-brain-and-then-the-switch-is-handed-to-someone-else/news-story/540f4ddbd02fdb7c7436970dbec81c81
Wow this is one to watch,(out for)
Gotta be real fast to keep up with the loose cannon. Gordy does it well:
Conspiracy theorists remain attached to cabal theory but looser collegial ties at the top seem a better description of how the control system works. Gordy gets to the point:
Lux would probably respond thus: "Hey, me thick sheeple rep like other Chris, not clever like Gordy. Asking betters for help is cheeky. Bad form."
https://werewolf.co.nz/2025/07/gordon-campbell-on-new-zealands-peter-thiel-problem/
Slippery old Winnie….
"for the right investor"…..That Is Winnie-speak for?
Donors and anyone else that will keep the coc's in power
And by his own words..shall he be judged : )
My bank account no is…
I did have a laugh at that : ) , however….. maybe watch out, might be some Winston facebook ructions : )
I hope someone in the Labour party is keeping count of the number of CoC bills that have been rushed through Parliament under urgency – what's sauce for the goose…
More than 200 mostly Palestinian media workers and journalists have been killed since October 2023 during Israel's war on Gaza.
https://www.aljazeera.com/features/longform/2024/12/31/know-their-names-the-palestinian-journalists-killed-by-israel-in-gaza
Israel intends starving any who remain.
https://www.npr.org/2025/07/22/nx-s1-5476532/agence-france-presse-gaza-afp
Israelis are monstrous people.
If the public weren't clear that the dairy industry is more powerful than the government, the Minister of Finance meets with the head of Fonterra in a highly publicised context about the price of dairy and butter in particular, and the public version of this is:
Silence. From everyone.
It's almost like previous Fonterra executive Willis has a relationship with Fonterra far deeper than anything Winston could generate with William Morris.
Tough call for both them, payout vs opposition benches from Nov 26, or sooner. Although I doubt either would have the insight to see it that way.
Given that William Morris died almost 50 years before Winston Peters was born that is not surprising.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Morris
However several of NZ First's party executives have gone on to work for Philip Morris International.
https://theintegrityinstitute.substack.com/p/philip-morris-nz
What on earth did the Fonterra executives say to Nicola Willis to make her reverse her butter stance so comprehensively?? Oh to be a fly on the wall…..
She is such an idiot.