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6:00 am, July 28th, 2025 - 46 comments
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Today's Posts (updated through the day):
Imported culture wars
Judith Collins believes proposed changes to enrollment laws breaches Bill of Rights
New Post up:
Imported culture wars
New Post up:
Judith Collins believes proposed changes to enrollment laws breaches Bill of Rights
What is going on in the UK with prescription is absolutely disgraceful. The Starmer government is unfit for public office.
Terrorism Charge for Dangerous Driving?! – YouTube
Haven't time right now to watch the whole clip, but from what I did see, it sounds as though the UK authorities are making it up as they go along!
Latest leak suggests UK govt was already planning to prescribe prior to PA throwing red paint into an RAF plane. This looks more like attempting to criminalize protest than anything else. They are also trying to avoid jury trials which have previously aquitted on criminal damage charges.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/568179/will-the-government-s-changes-bring-down-building-costs
My suspicion is that builders will pocket any savings. There will be little passed down to buyers.
Nah its a very competitive market and a fairly significant number of substantive build contracts are on a cost plus basis so the value of the materials invoice plus a pre agreed markup. So cheaper materials will lead to cheaper builds.
As a builder, I agree the home owners etc will see little if any of these savings, though my take is building material suppliers are a lot like supermarkets with their buying power etc so they will have record profits for the next decade then the govt of the day will have a review into whats going on….. and nothing will happen, all the while your house build costs will keep rising.
Difference with this is that we'll see a few new suppliers spring up offering alternates. Watch pencils get sharpened considerably on products like gib and insulation as new brands/products start to get traction.
Good to see the trial of Gloriavale's Howard Temple start trial.
20 years of sexual abuse activity, it has to be up there for NZ crime records.
100,000 people not being able to vote and all Luxon can say about it is, Oz does not have same day voting.
They are requiring people to be enrolled 12 days before.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/568207/christopher-luxon-defends-voting-changes-after-judith-collins-raises-problems
What do Luxon and co think will happen if they strip the franchise from 200-400,000 New Zealanders who for a generation have assumed they can enrol right up to, and on, election day when they show up to vote and get told they can't vote – and the coalition sneaks home with a small majority?
Confidence in the electoral system will collapse and the entire legitimacy of the government will be questioned, that is what will happen. Sure, NZME and the rest of the MSM will actively suppress stories of voter suppression but anger will explode and potentially they'll be confronted with more than just opposition – they'll start to get the creation of bodies to organise more active resistance.
“Opposition” in my view is writing letters, making submissions, voting for politicians, lobbying the establishment media, setting up social media channels etc etc.
Resistance is building parallel structures to challenge the institutions of the state, think everything from a parallel economy (the success of the parallel Maori economy is what provoked the settler invasion of the Waikato in 1863 and the revanchist racism of this government is heavily influence IMHO by the re-emergence of a successful, parallel Maori economy which is frightening the beejesus out of the squatter settler class), think acting illegally – general strikes, wildcat walkouts, riots, the creation of active networks to shelter those wanted for such political crimes – to parallel armed groups, AKA guerilla movements.
I guess that is why they are seeking to widen the terrorism laws – almost as if they expect creating a "managed" limited democracy will require a coercive police state to enforce.
"who for a generation have assumed they can enrol right up to, and on, election day"?
A generation of fruit flies perhaps but unless you were a very precocious child it isn't a generation of human beings.
It was only brought in in 2020 for crying out loud and has only applied in the 2020 and 2023 elections.
Since 1993 people have been able to enrol during the early voting period. Don't be dense.
Perhaps I'm old fashioned.
When someone says that for a generation people have assumed that they can enrol on election day that is what they mean
You are ignoring that it also says "right up to" because you think you can score pedantry points.
Removing enrolment during early-voting is the generational change referred to, and it is unjustified and undemocratic and you know it.
Can you even read dude?
"New Zealanders who for a generation have assumed they can enrol right up to, and on, election day "
Honestly, the average right winger probably thinks Carl Schmitt owns a hamburger franchise.
Yes, euphemistically speaking, you are old-fashioned.
Golly you right wing types have an extremely low view of your fellow citizens, who you seem to compulsivly wish to categorise as as being fruits flies and drop kicks, and that in public one can only speculate on how you refer to them in private. Any other perjorative epithets you want to get off your chest?
I think you should try some remedial reading lessons. I never referred to anyone being a fruit fly. I said that equating a generation with less than 4 years might be appropriate for a fruit fly but it wasn't for a human being. Still, you are never going to understand are you?
And again, you’re wrong on all counts; the lifespan of a fruit fly is nowhere near 4 years. You must have been asleep in that Biology class at school or you were at remedial reading.
I never had Biology classes at school.
When I was there Biology was pretty much a course for the pupils who couldn't do, or even understand, mathematics. Those who could did Physics and Chemistry.
University was a bit the same way. It tended to be the ones who couldn't handle Maths who majored in subjects like Geology.
Perhaps Rutherford was right. He is reputed to have said that "all science is either physics or stamp collecting". I guess Biology was just stamp collecting.
Biology was just stamp collecting.
It's true that Linneaus established such a scheme, but Darwin used a triad to explain evolution (mutation/blend/selection), you've got the dyad of genetics and epigenetics and Sheldrake had a go at shifting the field up to the level of physics via morphogenetic theory. The frontier currently hinges on how info operates at the basis of both physics and biology.
Profs who bridge the twain have authored interesting books in recent decades. Whilst no academic is ever likely to tell the truth and admit that `we got no effing idea' where info comes from, at least a few of them have published books on the question. Gleick's book The Information is the best intro to the emerging interdiscipinary arena…
The next election is likely sometime around October 2026 or later. You have over 15 months to get enrolled (and confirm you are enrolled). That is plenty of time.
You have less than 12 months to get a WOF for your car (and a rego!). Will you have time to get sorted to do that?
Well thats your opinion, which is the problem, nes pas?
You seem to think that your cunning example supports your argument. It doesn’t and does the opposite.
https://www.thepress.co.nz/nz-news/350017191/new-app-makes-forgetting-renew-wof-and-rego-thing-past
Yeah but they're bottom feeder and drop kicks I'm sure, ah Jimmy?
I wouldn't use that term to describe them myself, but I would say if they haven't bothered getting a WOF, and they haven't bothered to register their vehicle, then they should not be driving on the roads. The vehicle may not be road worthy and even dangerous and probably uninsured.
With RW trolls it’s always a toss-up between allowing them to comment here to display their lazy biased thinking and moderating/banning them for wasting people’s time with their lazy stupid comments – it’s fine line between amusement & entertainment and outrage & contempt.
https://www.nzta.govt.nz/vehicles/warrants-and-certificates/warrant-of-fitness
So you condemn luxon and seymour for using those words?
I mean atleast the right is finally being honest on how they see their fallow kiwis!
"…fallow kiwis!"
I think you have touched on something there.
I'm sure you're playing with words but ,you'll have explain that one 😁
fallow means at rest or taking a break from production.
My go's how did that face get so big?!?
Thanks
What weka says, also idle and could be a lazy synonym for can't be arsed.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/politics/360605837/live-nz-politics-blog
Luxon got booed at the netball of all places!!
He should have gone to the rugby instead. Dropkicks are BAU there.
Technical question.
How do I put in an image out of my iPads images app?
NZ's Economy….a mixed bag. In the bigger part ( sour, boiled lollies)
In the smaller, but far sweeter part of the bag (butterscotch, dairy whip, etc )
No fucking wonder the optimism. They have an ex FarmFed head, Andrew Hoggard, as not only a Minister…but an ACT MP with all that entails.(along with the other FedFarm MP reps in NACT1 Govt now).
They are maybe whistlin' dixie…or something.
Farmers are optimistic because it looks like they'll be getting a $10 per kg payout from Fonterra which is about 30% up on last year, Beef is also up a similar amount even Lamb is on the up… nothing like having some money coming in to help the world view.
July 16, 2025 "New Zealand’s construction industry is emerging from one of its toughest periods, with more than 17,000 jobs lost over the past 18 months". https://www.thepress.co.nz/business/360754839/work-interrupted-building-slowdown-cuts-deep-wiping-out-17000-jobs
When asked about this on RNZ this morning, Christopher Luxon managed to not answer specifically. He instead commented on importing building materials and increasing construction projects. He did not explain who will be available to do the work, since many construction workers and other trades people have left NZ. https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2018997401/pm-luxon-on-electoral-law-changes-clashing-with-constitutional-rights
July 28, 2025 "The Government should be doing everything it can to stop the steady flow of construction workers leaving New Zealand for better pay, conditions and work opportunities. Instead, Luxon's stop-start approach has cost people their jobs and pushed people overseas …
Christopher Luxon’s decisions have cost 18,000 people their jobs in the construction sector.
“Losing 18,000 workers since 2023 is devastating for a sector that should still be booming with work. A thousand more in the last month is a tragedy,” Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said.
“National stopped a huge amount of construction work when they came in and today we see clearly the consequences of that". https://business.scoop.co.nz/2025/07/28/construction-workforce-crisis-under-national/
Clearly the Government is panicking that they are losing popularity due to their destruction of NZ's economy. Requiring enrolment or updated details 13 days prior to the election reflects this, in the hope that thousands of people will not vote. Judith Collins' apparent concerns about the proposed electoral law changes seem out of character, given her past behaviour. https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/568207/christopher-luxon-defends-voting-changes-after-judith-collins-raises-problems
"Cheap" Immigrants, Luxo hopes, just like his mentor sir Key.
I Italicise as they never work out to be cheap. As with everything neolib there are the hidden costs, which somebody else pays.
And once here, they discover their New Country also has shit bosses , but in NZ, they also discover we also have Employee Protections and Unions.
Although NACT1 are hooking in to those problems rapidly
So they bring in more…and tighten the screws further, until, NZ is fucked.
Stablecoin.
A different form of cryptocurrency – a payments system.
https://www.attali.com/en/finance-2/do-you-know-what-a-stablecoin-is-you-should/
Something the South Pacific Forum should confab about.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/568219/nauru-seeks-to-transform-its-economy-by-becoming-a-cryptocurrency-powerhouse
How TF did this woman end up in Parliament?
/
https://www.stuff.co.nz/politics/360772813/what-exactly-are-you-announcing-minister-asked-press-conference-where-she-said-there-would-be
Average Scaffolding Costs in Wellington in 2025
While prices vary between providers, here’s a rough guide:
https://erectitscaffolding.co.nz/how-much-does-scaffolding-cost-in-wellington/
I can’t see comments on articles. ok on open mike.
on an ipad