General Debate 20 April 2009

Email
Facebook
Twitter
Comment32

Uncategorized
General Debate

Comments (32)

Login to comment or vote

Chthoniid

Well, before the mayhem begins- and while I enjoy my first coffee- how about a photo to begin the week.

NZ riroriro or grey warbler
http://chthoniid.zenfolio.com/img/v8/p674456826-5.jpg

One of my ‘nemesis’ birds, but success was had last week 🙂
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 8:41am
Rebel Heart

I’m sorry but the post never did get re-enabled, so was this topic ever discussed?

Paula Bennett has announced:

Child care and protection expert John Angus has been appointed Children’s Commissioner for six months while a permanent appointment is sought, Social Development and Employment Minister Paula Bennett said today.

“I have decided to make an interim appointment to allow time to find the right permanent appointee for this important position,” Ms Bennett said. “I am grateful that we have someone of Mr Angus’ ability and standing available while we work to fill the role long-term.”

John Angus is a former front-line social worker, and was later a senior public servant. More recently he worked on the review of the Children Young Persons and their Families Act 1989, and he led inter-departmental work on preventing child abuse and neglect for the Taskforce for Action on Violence Within Families.

“Mr Angus has high integrity and immense respect within the sector for the policy research and academic work he has done on child care and protection over many years,” Ms Bennett said. “He is regarded as thoughtful, considered and a safe pair of hands.”

Sounds very safe.

Ms Bennett thanked outgoing commissioner Dr Cindy Kiro for her commitment to children and young people over more than five years in the position.

“Dr Kiro has been a strong advocate for the rights of children, and she has left a lasting impression.

Well yes it has been a lasting impression. I doubt there has ever been such a divisive Commissioner before in that role, and hopefully there won’t be again.

The Children’s Commissioner should be one of our heroes. Others have done sterling jobs. Kiro, while I am sure absolutely doing what she thought was right, was a disaster. Far far too ideological, too lecturing, too divisive.

Comments are disabled as I am heading out drinking and not got time to delete and moderate the comments that will no doubt ensue.

Seriously, what made this topic any different from the others that the debate needed to be shut down? I get the feeling David disabled the comments because he didn’t want anything to be raised about this decision by the National Party.
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 8:46am
Adolf Fiinkensein

This sounds like a very thin skin bursting its bubble. Some sort of defective condom.
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 8:51am
stephen

“NZ riroriro or grey warbler”

Don’t see many of them around, where are they?
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 8:51am
dime

rebel heart – i think comments were disabled because of the ill feeling towards the woman.
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 8:57am
Inventory2

Well deserved ill-feeling too dime!

Meanwhile – are these two events related, or is it a mere coincidence?

http://keepingstock.blogspot.com/2009/04/co-incidence.html
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 8:59am
Chthoniid

The grey warbler is typically hard to spot, but easy to hear. The ‘trilling’ bird sound often heard in the bush are grey warblers. It’s one of our smallest insectivorous birds (only the rifleman and rock-wren are smaller).

They like hiding amongst the leaves, and with their small size and drab appearance, challenging to spot. Which suits them as that reduces predation by bush falcons and other predatory birds. It also makes them hard to photograph (in the wild). I got very lucky…

Another shot- http://chthoniid.zenfolio.com/img/v7/p588676454-5.jpg if David will indulge me the linking…
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 9:02am
Murray

Not in the public service buildings or Starbucks cafes stephen.

A mythical place we call “outside” or “rurual New Zealand”.
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 9:02am
barry

I see H2 is going with H1 to New York.

No surprise, but I guess that explains why P1 isnt going……………………
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 9:04am
Murray

I can get by without my husband, but I can’t get by without my mum.
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 9:06am
stephen

“A mythical place we call “outside” or “rurual New Zealand”.

Your time for Starbucks will come, just you wait.
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 9:10am
Patrick Starr

What McCully actually said on Q&A; “I’m not specifically including Fiji in this equation”
What the Herald reported him as saying; “Mr McCully said he was not including Fiji in that scenario.”

Do these junior reporters just miss the distinctions – or is it deliberate?
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10567469
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 9:22am
dime

This is from another blog:

“Australia has decided not to participate in the Durban Review Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance to be held in Geneva from 20 to 24 April 2009.”

Apparently Canada, Israel, Italy, the United States & Sweden have pulled out too…

ummmm are we going?
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 9:32am
Murray

Its simply lazy journalism Patrick. They’re not actually clever enough for it to be deliberate.
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 9:33am
chfr

David I have noticed that the blog takes longer and longer to load now, why is this??

Today it was the twitter feed that meant the front page took 5 mins to load.
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 9:57am
s.russell

I was very saddened when Radio NZ tried to scrap the morning birdcall. Now they have it only once a day, bracketed by a pappy advert for themselves.

Once it was a beautiful little counterpoint to the bustle of news. A brief moment of purity and clarity that cleared the mind and cleansed the soul. It has been wrecked now, and for some reason all the birdcalls seem to be the raucous squawks of the black backed gull, the pied stilt or the greater spotted Kiro.

Thank you Chthoniid for your picture. A lovely way to start the day.
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 10:03am
stephen

chfr, his front page really is a monster. I stay off it as much as I can…
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 10:09am
bharmer

Chthoniid (274) Vote: 4 0 Says:
April 20th, 2009 at 8:41 am
Well, before the mayhem begins- and while I enjoy my first coffee- how about a photo to begin the week.

NZ riroriro or grey warbler
http://chthoniid.zenfolio.com/img/v8/p674456826-5.jpg One of my ‘nemesis’ birds, but success was had last week

Thanks for this. I hear them a lot around my place but never see them. Great work!
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 10:09am
Chthoniid

Thanks s.russell and bharmer. This species has eluded me for a couple of years now, so I’m pleased to have finally got some photos of it.
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 11:20am
stephen

David’s face in the ‘Che’ Powershop banner? “Blog about your experiences and be in to win $1000 free power for winter”? Did I miss the disclosure in that last post?
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 11:30am
stephen

unless the timing was off
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 11:36am
Jack5

New topic briefly if I may …

New Zealand Herald’s Lincoln Tan today again champions immigration consultant Tuariki Delamare.

Delamere, with up to 12 court cases in the pipeline, is trying to keep Chinese families in NZ against immigration rules.

This is the same Delamere who will long be remembered in the South. As Immigration Minister he threw out a family of young white NZ-born children because of some distant drug office of the German father. This despite a huge swell of support for the family to stay from the local c ommunity. What a hypocrite Delamere is!

The heading on the NZ Herald web site also goes beyond the facts. It states “China strips NZ-born children of citizenship”.

No qualification. Yet this is merely the unsubstantiated allegation of Delamere. No call by Tan to the Chinese embassy.

If Tan had stayed in Singapore would have written this story championing hired consultants against Government immigration decisions? Yeah right.

The web story is at http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10567473
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 11:55am
bharmer

stephen (2515) Vote: 2 0 Says:
April 20th, 2009 at 8:51 am
“NZ riroriro or grey warbler”

Don’t see many of them around, where are they?

They seem quite widespread in NZ and there are plenty of them around Wellington and the Hutt. Their sound is a distinctive and repetitive cascading of notes (listen here http://www.kiwi-wildlife.co.nz/Sounds/grey_warbler_nz.mp3)
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 1:15pm
hayek

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10567473

Murray McCully is not going to intervene in the right of a younger New Zealander, William Wu (5), to return home to New Zealand because China’s refusal to allow him to travel home on a NZ passport is “In accordance with Chinese law”. Instead, McCully suggested that William needs his parents to first apply for a Chinese passport and then apply for a NZ visa, and all this to return home.

What is the role of our foreign affairs minister if not to intervene when the crappy laws of foreign countries impinge the rights of our citizens?
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 1:41pm
getstaffed

🙂

The chemistry of Governmentium

Research at Cambridge University has led to the discovery of the heaviest element yet known to science.
The new element, Governmentium (Gv), has one neutron, 25 assistant neutrons, 88 deputy neutrons, and 198 assistant deputy neutrons, giving it an atomic mass of 312.

These 312 particles are held together by forces called morons, which are surrounded by vast quantities of lepton-like particles called peons. Since Governmentium has no electrons, it is inert; however, it can be detected, because it impedes every reaction with which it comes into contact.

A minute amount of Governmentium can cause a reaction that would normally take less than a second to take from four days to four years to complete. Governmentium has a normal half-life of 5 years; It does not decay, but instead undergoes a reorganization in which a portion of the assistant neutrons and deputy neutrons exchange places. In fact, Governmentium’s mass will actually increase over time, since each reorganisation will cause more morons to become neutrons, forming isodopes.

This characteristic of moron promotion leads some scientists to believe that Governmentium is formed whenever morons reach a critical level of concentration. This hypothetical quantity is referred to as critical morass.

When catalyzed with money, Governmentium becomes Administratium, an element that radiates just as much energy as Governmentium since it has half as many peons but twice as many morons.

🙂
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 1:48pm
stephen

bharmer, thanks, don’t think i’ve seen them, but I’m halfway sure i’ve heard them. Then again they might not even be in Auckland at all so maybe i’m dreaming.
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 2:21pm
stephen

The chemistry of Governmentium – that really is very good.
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 2:22pm
Chthoniid

There are a lot of grey warblers in and around Auckland, Stephen. They don’t need much native bush to persist 🙂
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 2:50pm
johnbt

I have heard that there is quite a lot of native bush in the K Road area.
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 3:45pm
starboard

easily fixed with a brazilian..
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 6:01pm
oob

Caprica – S01E00 – Pilot
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 20, 2009 6:33pm
stephen

Disclaimer – I don’t drink at starbucks.
0 0
Log in to Reply
Report
April 21, 2009 8:32am

Add a Comment Cancel reply

Login to comment or vote

« In depth article on NZ blogging

Clayton Cosgrove at work »

Donations

You can now donate to Kiwiblog

Exclusive content from DPF on Patreon

Become a Patron!

Never miss a post

Email Address

Join 37.4K other subscribers

Highlights

Health Target 5 – elective treatments
Health Target 4 – Specialist appointments
Health Target 3 – Emergency Dept Waiting Times
Health Target 2 – Immunisations

Links

Justice in Brazil
No Right Turn
The Presidential Bicameral Adjournment Clause Is Almost An American Equivalent to Prorogation
Utopia
"Seymour is only doing openly what M?ori nationalists and their Pakeha allies have been doing, quietly for the past 50 years."
Not PC
This Weeks Email To Prime Minister Luxon.
No Minister
Daily review 22/11/2024
The Standard
More young offenders will get boot camp, bus drivers will get some protection – and there’s relief for southern farmers
Point of Order
Sowell says
Hompaddock
New Zealand government urged to back ICC arrest warrants for Israeli leaders without equivocation
The Daily Blog
The transgender agenda sunk Kamala
Bob McCoskrie's McBlog
SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT
No Punches Pulled (Bob Jones)
What does “reciprocity” mean in New Zealand laws?
Croaking Cassandra
A Day of Reckoning
NZCPR
Media Link: “A View from Afar” on the US elections.
Kiwipolitico
This will not end well
Offsetting Behaviour
Top 14 Predictions for Round 10
Stats Chat
Tory Whanau may have to sell Wellington mayoralty to make ends meet
The Civilian
The Accidental Engagement
Imperator Fish
Making this movie might have been a mistake
Liam Hehir
Why I am retiring from political blogging
Kiwi FireWalker
Angie Warren-Clark: Meet the Newbies
Dan Moskovitz

editor@kiwiblog.co.nz

PO Box 12270, Thorndon, Wellington 6144

Facebook
Twitter
FourSquare
Instagram
LinkedIn
Google+

Archives
Disclosure Statement
Editorial Policy
Privacy Policy
Complaints Policy
Comments Policy

Design by cre8d