Fuck this shit
It’s not enough to say fuck this shit, but it’s necessary to start with. We then have to tell a different story, one that people want, that inspires hope, and opens the door to something better than denial or doom.
hope
English rising anti-fascism
This is more hope than I have felt about humans in a long time
An Early Christmas.
Christian tradition dictates Christmas falls on the 25th of December. This year though, if we simply view Christmas through a lens of ‘good things happening’, then Christmas is coming early.
Quite a day or two then!
A quick smorgasbord of reported news from Syria, to China and Sweden, to antisemitism and (hidden behind the links) an interview with (hopefully) the first woman who will serve as President of the USA.
Updated
Hope – A powerful but dangerous tool.
Some interesting musings on hope and dashed hope by “Upper Hutt boy in London” – Nick Kelly.
Jacinda Ardern’s speech
If you missed it last night – Jacinda Ardern’s first speech as PM elect is everything that we could want and expect. But the take-home line of the drama belongs to Winston Peters.
Hope for Pike River families
Most major political parties apart have agreed to a commitment which would set up a government agency to take over Pike River Mine and reclaim the miners’ bodies. Naturally the exception is National – isolated on this issue prior to the election….
Corbyn-esque NZ
This post was written and ready to go and then news of Metiria Turei stepping down hit. Some of it might read a little strangely because of that. I’ve changed some of the tenses used.
This Bloody Vote.
Disentangling the veritable plate of spaghetti that’s been set before us this election.
Book review: Here on Earth – An Argument for Hope
A brief review of Here on Earth: An Argument for Hope, by Tim Flannery. An argument for hope is exactly what we need, but does Flannery make the case?
Climate change – beyond the politics and the maths and the fear
Climate change is the most important issue of all time. Beyond the politics and the maths and the fear there is simply doing the right thing.
English wants Pike River out of the headlines in election year
Any sign of progress is welcome, but let’s hope English is not deliberately stringing along the Pike River families with false hope.
Remembering our personal political power
Even in times of upheaval there are things we can do. Here are 11 post-Brexit ways to act right now.
COP21 making history
Big news from COP21 in Paris, with a final draft of the agreement just released. It is sounding surprisingly good, 1.5 degree target, “fair, durable, balanced and legally-binding”.
Dunedin climate consultation meeting
“It was an emotional meeting and I felt in turns angry, frustrated, helpless, very sad, and disillusioned. I also felt privileged to be in the company of so many knowledgeable, passionate people.”
Obama talks the talk on climate change
The first State of the Union of Obama’s second term was widely anticipated. As many hoped, Obama made a strong statement on climate change. Good start – now let’s see words become actions – please…
The innovation that we need
We’re going to need a lot of innovation to survive the coming decades. Today’s innovation is a simple modification that at least doubles the energy output of a wind turbine. Brilliant.
Suicide and community
Following the release of data by the Chief Coroner, suicide is once again getting some time in the headlines. Coincidentally, news from Christchurch supports the suggestion that stronger communities reduce suicide rates.
An argument for hope?
It’s crunch time for humanity and for our current way of life. Ever since the failure of the Copenhagen summit on climate change I have been less than optimistic about the outcome. So the Christmas break was a good time to read Here on Earth: An Argument for Hope by Tim Flannery. An argument for hope was exactly what I was looking for…
Hopeless
Anyone remember Helen Clark’s announcement during Labour’s election campaign that there would be no new significant spending promises: “We have judged it not prudent […]