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February 17, 2025 8:00am by Kokila Patel

General Debate 17 February 2025

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General Debate

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Cassandra

Damien Grant’s low opinion of Christopher Luxon: Luxon can tell us what he is doing, but struggles to explain why. His challenge, and something his colleagues need to consider, is his inability to do more than manage a team when the country appears to be looking for leadership. Grant thinks that National is so used to FPP momentum that taking a firm stand on any of the major issues and then explaining what needs to be done and, importantly, doing it seems beyond its current top team. Part of the problem is that Luxon has not had to argue a position and persuade his Party to accept it. He’s not a believer and he’s not an advocate. A manager, not a leader. My words , not Grant’s but I think I’ve captured his thrust. Better than Labour? Of course. Helped by Act and NZF? Of course. But could we do better?
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February 17, 2025 8:00am
- Souvlaki
  
  Agree entirely, and thats before we get to the issues raised by Muriel Newman in this piece, which I consider a ‘must read’ for those of us increasingly alarmed by Luxon.
  https://breakingviewsnz.blogspot.com/2025/02/nzcpr-newsletter-parliamentary.html?m=1
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:07am
  - septic skeptic
    
    Excellent article that! A must read folks!
    
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    February 17, 2025 8:23am
    - Mark Hanley
      
      The Luxon Derangement syndrome is in full force this morning with more repetitive, generalized un-referenced false opinions.
      
      Kiwiblog used to have infrastructure engineers, university professors, MPs, and experienced senior managers providing useful information to enrich discussions. Disappointingly, the fact based informative posters have disappeared.
      
      The other thing which has disappeared lately is ACT support, I wonder how many ACT voters read Kiwiblog and conclude that if being an ACT supporter involves constantly, falsely, and unadvisedly denigrating the person responsible for ACT being in government, then they’ll look elsewhere.
      
      Anyone who writes this sentence “his inability to do more than manage a team” has never managed anything in their life.
      
      Successfully managing a team of 3500 Air NZ employees, whilst being consistently scrutinized by, and answerable to a board of typically successful, experienced managers, requires a fierce intellect, a mastery of numbers, superhuman people skills, an ability to set a vision and a plan, and the ability to communicate effectively to 3500 different people.
      
      lets have a look at some of Luxon’s teams’ achievements:
      – school attendance up markedly and still rising.
      – crime falling. from the salvation army 2025 state of the nation report…
      “Victimisation rates fell by 3.9 percent—the first decline since 2019”
      “There were 207,846 family harm victims reported to police, which is a decline of 9.5 percent in the past year.”
      – The economy is about to turn a corner
      “Economic outlook brighter for 2025 with 2.5% growth forecast – Westpac”
      
      But the Luxon Derangement Syndrome posters somehow forget to mention the many positive achievements and continue repeating useless Laboresque mantras “manager not a leader” etc. whilst still falling for the Adern Maori smokescreen.
      
      Polls show NZers don’t really care about race issues. They want their children to be safe, well educated, successful, and prosperous. Which coincidentally are the very goals Luxon and his team are prioritizing.
      
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      February 17, 2025 11:36am
      - Tom Hunter
        
        Eeeeewwww…
        
        Luxon is a genius.
        
        I’ve seen this before:
        
        “the great leader, the great supreme commander, the great teacher and the great helmsman”
        
        Or perhaps this more recent one:
        
        To Follow You is to Follow the Sun”
        
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        February 17, 2025 1:06pm
      - Fender
        
        What a lot of pretentious rubbish, how do you know who is commenting, Ive read plenty of posts on electricity supply for example to realise that some know exactly what is happening and why.
        Mps like they are all super qualified and we should listen to their expert knowledge
        Finance ministers with no relevant qualifications ring a bell, pm s who were ex farmers
        I would guess that airnz survived despite luxon not because of, it was making so much money and had obviously competent management teams he was merely a figurehead.
        You could argue he started their path to decline with wokeness.
        
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        February 17, 2025 1:41pm
      - Mark Hanley
        
        MOD. What happened to “stick to the discussion”?
        
        [Mod – if you want to start off a post stating people have Luxon derangement then you can expect the replies you get]
        
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        February 17, 2025 1:57pm
      - Mark Hanley
        
        Fender, coming back to my point about the quality of the discussion on Kiwiblog,
        
        Care to post some references to back up your Luxon derangement syndrome claims…..
        
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        February 17, 2025 2:16pm
      - Damocles11
        
        ACT support has ‘disappeared’, yet the latest poll had ACT’s support at 10%, so you’re not being factual Mark. To claim that the only people criticising Luxon on this site are ‘ACT supporters’ is quite deluded as well: those criticising Luxon could and no doubt would included NZ First supporters, undecided’s, disgruntled National supporters, and those who support the smaller religious conservative and fringe parties. You seem to have a big problem with ACT, and roll out your standard list of purported ‘achievements’ which apparently National are mostly responsible for. Most don’t stand up to close scrutiny. It is easy to spout slogans, but Luxon and National are shying away from tricky decisions and instead putting their faith in a PR blitz. It won’t work.
        
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        February 17, 2025 2:20pm
      - Mark Hanley
        
        Tom Hunter, Thx for the wonderful example to illustrate my point…..
        
        “Disappointingly, the fact based informative posters have disappeared.”
        
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        February 17, 2025 2:38pm
      - Mark Hanley
        
        Domacles. Thx for another great example in support of my comment “Disappointingly, the fact based informative posters have disappeared.”
        
        1. Try looking at the most accurate NZ poll results…. The latest Roy Morgan poll showed a substantial drop in ACT support.
        
        2. Try reading my post before attempting to criticize it. I did not state that the only people criticizing Luxon on this site are ‘ACT supporters’. your claim that i did is {ironically} deluded.
        
        3. Try looking at the references I supply to support the facts I state. You will find they stand up to scrutiny, the trick is to actually scrutinize them before posting diatribes.
        
        4. you state ” It is easy to spout slogans” yet you don’t post one referenced fact to support your diatribe.
        
        Shout out to “infrastructure engineers, university professors, MPs, and experienced senior managers”…. come back! I need intelligent fact based challenges / discussions, the Luxon derangement syndrome falsehoods are boring and so easily batted away!
        
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        February 17, 2025 3:45pm
      - Tom Hunter
        
        BTW, Having closely observed Trump Derangement Syndrome for eight years now, including some up-close-and-personal examples, and the BDS that preceded it, your rather desperate attempt to attach it to Luxon’s critics here is as cringely funny as your “Luxon is a genius” and “wonderful Luxon” comments.
        
        Worthy only of mockery.
        
        The likes of the Standard and The Daily Blog suffer from it because they are unhinged in associating every human vice to Luxon. That is LDS.
        
        Here it’s more that many of us think he’s largely useless.
        
        Call it LTS instead: Luxon Tiresomeness Syndrome.
        
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        February 17, 2025 4:58pm
      - Mark Hanley
        
        Tom. It is very nice of you to recognize my comedic talent.
        
        I find you amusing as well. Particularly you classifying Eeeeewwww as ridicule.. very funny!
        
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        February 17, 2025 6:36pm
  - pdm
    
    Luxon and his advisers do not want to listen at the moment.
    
    He does not (well his staff do not on his behalf) reply to emails on this, or any subject.
    
    Open and transparent – definitely not. In fact every bit as opaque as Jacinda Ardern.
    
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    February 17, 2025 8:23am
    - G the giant from Dunedin
      
      Oh right, do they actively have a policy to get the public to give ideas about helping the economy. No they don’t want to listen
      
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      February 17, 2025 9:26am
      - pdm
        
        G they were elected on a mandate.
        
        They are walking away from that mandate and Luxon is stifling ACT and NZFirst as well it would seem to me.
        
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        February 17, 2025 11:20am
      - Mark Hanley
        
        PDM. The coalition were elected on several mandates, which are listed in the coalition agreements, then at the start of every quarter in the quarterly plan, then again at the end of every quarter in the quarterly plan progress report.
        
        You might try reading them.
        
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        February 17, 2025 11:49am
  - David Garrett
    
    Souv: Ms Newman is spot on. When the Marine and Coastal area Act was being passed we in ACT pointed out that as drafted, the Bill could lead to successful challenges by various Maori groups and individuals to the entire coastline.
    
    I recall being mocked by that odious liar Chris Finlayson when i made that assertion in more than one speech.
    
    Unlike many members of the Key government – few of whom were lawyers – Finlayson knew exactly what the Act would make possible. And what we warned about is coming to pass at a beach near you.
    
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    February 17, 2025 8:25am
    - Observer of Life
      
      DG: “ I recall being mocked by that odious liar Chris Finlayson when i made that assertion in more than one speech.”. Ditto, but from the odious Andrew Bayly – National, Port Waikato, when I spoke to him (on the phone) with the exact same concerns. Apparently I just didn’t understand.
      
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      February 17, 2025 9:25am
      - David Garrett
        
        Observer: Yeah, that was the subtext of anything Finlayson ever said to me, inside or outside of the House: “Ah dear boy, you are a broken arse barrister from Albany, while I, a former partner in a major law firm, are now greatly respected by all for my wisdom and ability”
        
        I never bought his shit then, and I sure as hell don’t buy it now.
        
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        February 17, 2025 11:14am
    - cmm
      
      This really underlines that woke National did not start with Luxon and his merry band. It has been in place a long time, just maybe slightly less brazen.
      
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      February 17, 2025 9:43am
  - Grunter
    
    “Iwi leaders and communities will continue to shape the political landscape with constructive partnerships that hold the Government accountable and work for the benefit of all.
    
    By 2040, we will have fully embraced the idea that all of New Zealand benefits when iwi succeeds…”
    – Christopher Luxon –
    
    So, if that doesn’t scare the pants off you then you are not thinking clearly IMO.
    
    Luxon is clearly saying that the direction set out by Ardern’s racist Government is still on track to be implemented. Maybe his Government won’t implement co-governance of public services (maybe…??), but that just leaves the door wide open for the next Labour Government to roll it out on top of all the Luxon “partnership” initiatives.
    
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    February 17, 2025 8:31am
    - cmm
      
      “By 2040, we will have fully embraced the idea that all of New Zealand benefits when iwi succeeds…”
      
      The stupid prick has the cause and effect the wrong way around.
      
      Mr Luxon, let me fix that for you:
      “Iwi succeed when the whole of New Zealand succeeds”.
      
      Maori success is a result of NZ success.
      If you want Maori to succeed, then enact policies that allow the whole of NZ to succeed.
      
      It amazes me that he speaks of growth and attracting skilled people, then immediately talks up this Maori-first guff which is part of what is chasing the investment and skilled people away.
      
      Get off the fence boyo. Chose NZ first or Maori first. You can’t have them both.
      
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      February 17, 2025 9:48am
      - Steve Otto N Shore
        
        Get off the fence boyo – I like that.
        
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        February 17, 2025 10:31am
      - imalwaysright
        
        Iwi won’t be happy until everyone else is skint.
        
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        February 17, 2025 10:34am
      - cmm
        
        iam: Yup, that killing the goose that lays the golden egg attitude is not good for anyone long term – and certainly not Maori.
        
        If Maori want a pre-taste then I suggest a few months living in PNG or Africa.
        
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        February 17, 2025 10:44am
      - notreadyet
        
        as my father always used to say ” give them an inch and they will take a mile”
        he wasn’t referring to maori but to human nature
        
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        February 17, 2025 12:31pm
    - kowtow
      
      That’s his 2025 Waitangi speech where he mentions “partner” in various iterations no less than 8 times.
      
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      February 17, 2025 10:18am
  - Steve Otto N Shore
    
    “empowering Labour’s vision”
    What do you expect from Jacinda in a blue tie?
    
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    February 17, 2025 8:39am
    - imalwaysright
      
      He’s starting to remind me of Kamala Harris. Word salad and giggles with a dollop of marxism on top.
      
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      February 17, 2025 9:36am
  - keepcalmcarryon
    
    100% agree and it’s not just the seabed and foreshore, decolonization and cogovernance are an end to democracy and Chinas massive opportunity to take New Zealand.
    Madness.
    
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    February 17, 2025 8:59am
- septic skeptic
  
  The only issues on which I feel I know what Luxon believes is that he is a big believer in DEI and Maori co-governance of everything EXCEPT the provision of state SERVICES. Oh and apparently growth is good. It would be nice to have some of that.
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:12am
  - igm
    
    He is even greasing to Hipkins this morning, kicking Tamaki to touch. Tamaki is surely more popular than either Hipkins or Luxon.
    
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    February 17, 2025 8:45am
    - Morgan H
      
      Tamaki is not popular at all. That’s why his attempts at politics have completely failed. He now uses “former” gang members to intimidate others. It shows the government was right to not give a cent to “ManUp”.
      
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      February 17, 2025 10:50am
  - G the giant from Dunedin
    
    And he has kicked out ownership over other NZers, how the hell does that leave any of Labours governance
    
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    February 17, 2025 9:28am
    - pdm
      
      Wanganui, Rotorua District Councils promoting Co Governance right now.
      
      Ngai Tahu trying to take control over all of the South Island Fresh Water through the courts right now.
      
      Not a word from Luxon, Potaka, Collins or any Government Ministers.
      
      G it has reached the stage where he is aiding and abetting these moves.
      
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      February 17, 2025 11:25am
      - Mark Hanley
        
        So wonderful Luxon’s team made Local government Maori wards subject to a binding poll…..
        
        Binding polls will be restored with the same policy settings as they were prior to 2021, including that a petition from 5 percent of electors on a council’s roll at the last local elections will require the council to hold a binding poll.
        
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        February 17, 2025 12:47pm
      - Tom Hunter
        
        wonderful Luxon…
        
        I can see where you’re going with this as Gen-Z is noted for loving cringe.
        
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        February 17, 2025 1:10pm
- Simon
  
  Any opinion that is “right wing” which appears in MSM is garbage by default. Luxon is leadership for Maorification, overseas capital – with special rights and guaranteed profits and groveling obedience to man made climate fraud.
  
  Luxon is leadership but not for the people who voted National. Luxon’s leadership will cause great damage to NZ. Grant is just bog standard MSM containment for cattle.
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:13am
- NoFax
  
  We need major reforms in more than a dozen big areas. Managers either manage people or processes but not create plans or cast a vision. If we are going to follow on with the corporate system then National need a board that sets the vision and goals and Luxon as CEO implements the vision and he is measured by the success of implementation. But right now there is no vision, no goal, no endpoint to direct the ship. Therefore, we are directionless and drifting.
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:13am
  - Steve Otto N Shore
    
    I have said it may times, Luxon may be a good manager but he is not a leader.
    I was saying this before the coalition was formed.
    
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    February 17, 2025 8:41am
    - cmm
      
      Is he a good manager?
      
      IMHO a good manager facilitates the staff to perform at their best.
      
      In a PM context that means helping the various ministers achieve their best.
      
      I think John Key did that well – creating room for the likes of Bill English to do their thing.
      
      It is still early days but I don’t think we’re really seeing that with Luxon.
      
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      February 17, 2025 9:17am
      - Steve Otto N Shore
        
        He delegates, makes it someone else’s problem. They do it or lose their warrant.
        
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        February 17, 2025 10:34am
      - cmm
        
        Steve: Yup, most politicians do that.
        
        They virtue signal in the present and delegate all action to future generations. Look cool in the present and bugger the consequences.
        
        Will Luxon be around in 2035 to deal with the new climate commitments? Of course not.
        
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        February 17, 2025 10:46am
      - mogg
        
        Luxon has operated under a constant barrage of criticism from every news channel from the word go. He is not stupid and will have anticipated this in advance, maybe he has chosen not to take on the left’s favourite hobby horse of climate alarmism, or Māori rights because he wants to concentrate on the most serious problems first. Considering what he has had to do to overcome Jacinda and Robbo’s economic vandalism it is surprising that the coalition is not further behind in the polls.
        There are now the first signs of growth in services and manufacturing which is a good indicator of future growth in the economy. This will change everything over the final 18 months for this government. The choice will be between a growing economy or the Left’s politics of victimhood.
        
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        February 17, 2025 1:36pm
      - cmm
        
        mogg: I hope you are correct, but I don’t think you are.
        
        Luxon needs to show some very clear action now. He cannot keep playing this “long game”.
        
        As has been reported elsewhere, 47,000 New Zealanders – many of those likely amongst the most skilled, and highest tax payers, left NZ last year. That is maybe 10% of NZ’s effective tax base (only net taxpayers really count).
        
        Those people are not not waiting for Luxon to play some long game. I fully expect more to leave this year.
        
        If there really is some long game then Luxon needs to:
        1) Articulate it clearly.
        2) Convince people that it is real.
        3) Have the conviction to face the MSM and push through and get that message out.
        4) Back the Act policies that really do have the best interests of the country at heart.
        
        Some tub-thumping about growth without a meaningful plan that people believe in is not enough.
        
        Quite frankly I do not believe Luxon is playing some sort of 3D chess. I think he is frightened and has chickened out.
        
        And I really, really, hope I am wrong.
        
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        February 17, 2025 4:40pm
  - keepcalmcarryon
    
    Keys Blue Dragons in National will be very very happy with his ratification of the UN rights of indigenous peoples, Finlaysons co governed national park precedent, the open doors in the foreshore legislation and Luxons commitment to partnership. Upcoming Ngai Tahu water rights for the South Island another golden opportunity.
    How much over the valuation did that Chinese guy buy Keys house for again?
    
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    February 17, 2025 9:55am
- kowtow
  
  We can’t forget though that in opposition the Nats had an internal struggle that basically led to a purge and the Wets ( progressives) winning.
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:25am
  - imalwaysright
    
    Instead of internal struggles they should have been behaving like a shadow government and been formulating policy and legislation/ repeal ready to go on day one.
    They knew the country was fucked but all we got from them for the first year was how bad the books were.
    Everyone knew that except them.
    They should have prepared for the worst and hoped for the best.
    
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    February 17, 2025 9:44am
- Matt Long
  
  Rodney Hide on the anti White, anti western propaganda being taught in schools.
  When will Erica Sanford, seen here at the Pride Parade fix it? You don’t fix something you believe is right. https://www.facebook.com/NicolaWillisMP/posts/%EF%B8%8F-auckland-pride-parade-with-chris-bishop-erica-stanford-mp-and-the-nz-young-nat/1078712555939320/,
  
  “We have a supposedly conservative-led government that sees nothing wrong with Critical Theorists tearing down our Judeo-Christian heritage from within the education system. Indeed, the Minister is steeped in Critical Theory. She can’t argue it or defend it. But she doesn’t need to. She has power. That is all that counts. And so death to the oppressors. And up with the oppressed.
  
  Ms Stanford has a BA with honours from Auckland University. She majored in Political Science. And minored in Maori Studies.”
  
  https://www.bassettbrashandhide.com/post/rodney-hide-schooling-through-a-te-ao-maori-lens
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:45am
- artemisia
  
  Maybe the Prime Minister has a different strategy. So making decisions that are not what some want.
  
  If so, suggest stability will be a decent part of that strategy. Rather than chaos.
  
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  February 17, 2025 9:04am
  - pdm
    
    `Maybe the Prime Minister has a different strategy. So making decisions that are not what some want.’
    
    Arty he is making decisions in some areas, Treaty Principles Bill being one example and Treaty Partnerships another, that are not what the Majority (60% plus) want.
    
    He seems lost in his own misguided world.
    
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    February 17, 2025 9:31am
    - Jack5
      
      But how does a coalition replace its leader?
      
      National, ACT, NZ First agreeing on a new boss?
      
      Perhaps realistic valuation of a coalition is “least worst” or “least bad”.
      
      Labour-Greens would be worse.
      
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      February 17, 2025 10:30am
- Paulus
  
  Some would say that Dame Ardern was at the pinnacle of lies, but many loved her.
  
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  February 17, 2025 10:03am
- Nigel Kearney
  
  Yes, Luxon is bad, but is he really worse than Muldoon, Bolger, or Key? People have expectations of the National party that are much too high and are inconsistent with previous behaviour. National have ~~sucked giant donkey cocks~~ failed to even be minimally adequate for the last 50 years at least. Please don’t keep telling yourselves that if they just change the leader, everything will be different.
  
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  February 17, 2025 10:42am
- Ra Henare
  
  Mr Luxon as manager not leader has been apparent since day one of his Prime Ministership.
  
  Looking back on his career, when he was anointed as Leader of National it was apparent to me that he was not a generator of vision but a follower of trends(Ie the woke shit at Air NZ). History at Unilever ie one company since graduating from University. A company Man!!!!
  
  Management Trainee: Began his career at Unilever in Wellington.
  Sydney: Worked in Sydney from 1995 to 2000.
  London: Held positions in London from 2000 to 2003.
  Chicago: Worked in Chicago from 2003 to 2008, becoming the “Global Deodorants and Grooming Category” Director.
  Unilever Canada: Became President and CEO in 2008, leading the company’s $1.4 billion Canadian business and 1,500 employees.
  
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  February 17, 2025 3:24pm
NeverMindTheBollocks

Daman Kumar should be given residency. I’m against 501 returns where the criminal concerned went to Aus as a baby, and this is no different – in fact, as far as I know, Daman has committed no non immigration offences.

His parents however should be deported and not allowed to return. Any future family gatherings can happen in Australia, or India, but not here.

The real story is why and how this family have managed to stay in NZ as overstayers for circa 20 years. NZ govt appeal processes take far too long. Once offenders have been found guilty they should be deported forthwith, with any appeal taking place from their home country.

http://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/542071/new-zealand-born-teen-faces-deportation-to-india-due-to-mother-s-invalid-visa
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February 17, 2025 8:01am
- Taieri
  
  Daman Kumar should be given residency.
  —————-
  
  He should.
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:49am
  - lifesgood
    
    Agree, he should ..BUT…does that not open the door to scores of others. I imagine there are many, many children born to overstayers since the law was changed. They would all be able to argue their case based on Daman being given residency, wouldn’t they?
    
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    February 17, 2025 10:10am
    - MCōs
      
      I’ve got no problem with that.
      Are the same people that wail about Kiwis leaving the country now wanting to chuck out people who were born and educated here at taxpayer expense?
      I would have thought we should be encouraging people to stay and contribute to our nation
      
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      February 17, 2025 2:24pm
  - PurplePen
    
    Agree. But not the parents if they’re overstayers. There are plenty of examples of family split by choice across countries and continents. If you allow the parents to remain, it rewards breaking the law and encourages the practice. The parents knew they had broken the law and were always at risk of being deported. If they were honest with their child they would have explained this to them saying that one day we may have to return home.
    
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    February 17, 2025 12:31pm
    - MCōs
      
      That’s not the child’s fault
      Btw
      How on earth did the parents manage to remain under the Immigration radar so long & why have they been caught now?
      I talked to a Thai chef who overstayed in Tokyo for nine years and was arrested at the airport. He was jailed for six months and then deported. He said the Japanese prison was like a holiday camp. Perfect way to recharge before looking for a new job back home!
      
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      February 17, 2025 2:40pm
      - NZer In Exile
        
        I’ve heard and read that Thai prisons are generally a hell on earth to be avoided at all costs.
        
        Japanese prisons are apparently very strict and prisoners are kept under tight control. Probably a holiday camp compared to Thai prisons, if one respects and obeys the Japanese prison rules.
        
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        February 17, 2025 8:20pm
- Maggy Wassilieff
  
  I was surprised to see that it was a Labour Government that did away with citizenship for children born to overstayer parents.
  
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  February 17, 2025 9:32am
  - peterwn
    
    Donald Trump is trying this in USA but is having a bit of a problem with the 14th Amendment and a 130 year old Supreme Court decision.
    
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    February 17, 2025 10:05am
    - Maggy Wassilieff
      
      We should send over Helen Clark to show him how she accomplished it.
      
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      February 17, 2025 10:15am
  - peterwn
    
    The problem was not so much as overstayers but women who zoomed into NZ on a visitors visa or similar, had their baby then left with the main intention that the baby would be a NZ citizen.
    In the immediate case, Immigration officials would be concerned that his rellies could come to NZ on his coat tails in due course. After ‘flush passport down the gurgler’ Zaoui was allowed to stay in NZ as a ‘refugee’, he was able to sponsor his rellies to come to NZ. If he was a real refugee he would not have returned to Algeria where he is currently in prison awaiting a subversion trial (there is one born every minute).
    
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    February 17, 2025 1:35pm
    - David Garrett
      
      Peter: Yes, I read that Zaoui was back in Algeria, the country he supposedly fled for fear of persecution or worse…I wonder how the gullible Deborah Manning – his lawyer – feels about that?
      
      She would have done literally hundreds if not thousands of hours of legal work for him, if not all then certainly most of it for free
      
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      February 17, 2025 4:15pm
- NoFax
  
  I would deport a lot of people from NZ and defund all public funding for non NZ citizens but this guy would be low on the list of deportions but he should go.
  
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  February 17, 2025 9:33am
  - MCōs
    
    Careful what you wish for
    Currently Permanent Residents, who pay tax just like anyone else including gst, petrol and all the rest, get the same entitlements as citizens.
    There would be a mass exodus if that changed, which is the last thing the country needs
    
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    February 17, 2025 2:51pm
artemisia

The Day of the DOGE Master.

There is a lot of talk at the moment about Elon Musk and the DOGE, Department of Government Efficient and that got me thinking. If there is one thing you can guarantee, it’s governments are terrible at spending your hard earned money. Anything that can be done to shine a light on where your money goes is a good thing but could this help businesses too?

The author, Charles Duance, offers examples of software licensing and automation.

Probably the DOGE Master works well with a president or a CEO required to deliver a profit. But MMP? How could that possibly work? Maybe very quietly, a couple of tasked kid geniuses in the Ministry for (a lot less) Regulation?

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/do-companies-need-doge-master-charles-duance-mbcs-kunpe
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February 17, 2025 8:04am
- Dudley Quaffquaff
  
  Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
  What light? What actual findings and evidence has DOGE presented?
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:18am
  - Steve Otto N Shore
    
    Elon Musk’s Oval Office Economics Lesson Shocks Political Elite.
    Video.
    
    https://conservativeadvocacy.com/elon-musks-oval-office-economics-lesson-shocks-political-elite/?
    
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    February 17, 2025 8:52am
    - Dudley Quaffquaff
      
      There’s no specific, evidenced examples of spending that’s been found to be wasteful, fraudulent or corrupt at all in that article.
      
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      February 17, 2025 10:44am
      - NZer In Exile
        
        Oh rubbish. The waste earmarked is in the 100s of billions if not trillions already. I’ll go back and get links when I can be bothered. Or you could yourself do an honest search outside the lefty echo chambers?
        
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        February 17, 2025 8:26pm
  - Gravelroad
    
    Why don’t you go online and look up what DOGE is doing?
    It is not hard to find plenty of information recorded there about results to date.
    
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    February 17, 2025 9:01am
    - RoboRob
      
      The lefts defence of waste spending and attack on Doge is that they aren’t providing detailed examples of the fraud. The implication being they are making it all up.
      
      Remember this is the same left that claim doge cant operate because they shouldn’t have access to confidential information.
      
      So on one hand things need to stay confidential and on the other, when Elon talks about 150yr old beneficiaries, he needs to provide a details example otherwise he is lying.
      
      So in other words Dudleys question isn’t really a question it’s a backhanded attack on doge following a particular lefty playbook .
      
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      February 17, 2025 9:13am
      - Steve Otto N Shore
        
        How do you investigate fraud when you are stopped from investigating by the left?
        
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        February 17, 2025 10:35am
      - Dudley Quaffquaff
        
        If only there were an independent, non-partisan entity staffed by qualified auditors that had access to all the information, that could be tasked to investigate and report on any aspect of Government spending and that produced and published hundreds of detailed reports every year. It might be called the Office of Government Audit, or the Audit Government Office, or something like that.
        
        https://www.gao.gov/about/what-gao-does
        
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        February 17, 2025 10:59am
      - RoboRob
        
        @Dudley
        
        Doge is doing far more then the GAO. This isn’t exactly the first time a new entity has been established to look at cutting waste, apparently Nixon, Reagan (Grace Commission) and Clinton (National Performance Review) previously also setup agencies doing similar things.
        
        Lets face it the people who are upset about cutting wasteful spending are the people who are benefiting from it.
        
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        February 17, 2025 11:17am
      - Dudley Quaffquaff
        
        the people who are upset about cutting wasteful spending are the people who are benefiting from it
        
        The fact that somebody is “upset” by a spending cut doesn’t prove that the spending was wasteful. People who were legitimately benefiting from un-wasteful spending that had been duly authorised by proper procedure, had been properly audited and had been found to be delivering the results intended are also likely to be “upset” (at best, some of them might die, or lose their livelihoods) when it is cut.
        
        All this does is take us back to the original issue. How does DOGE know that the spending that has been cut, is wasteful? And when are they going to share that knowledge with the rest of the US government and US taxpayers?
        
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        February 17, 2025 12:15pm
      - Dudley Quaffquaff
        
        Point is, that all the information that Republicans are claiming has been hidden and is only just now being uncovered, has already been published extensively and on a regular basis by an established organisation staffed by qualified and experienced people who know how to read accounts and how to assess the effectiveness of spending. We’ve not seen any evidence that Musk and his team have that expertise or that they’ve found anything genuinely fraudulent, corrupt or even wasteful.
        
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        February 17, 2025 1:05pm
  - artemisia
    
    Did you look DQ? Check here. Not official (yet) and in its infancy but might give you a clue.
    
    https://dogegov.com/dogeclock
    
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    February 17, 2025 9:07am
    - Dudley Quaffquaff
      
      Again – I don’t see any explanation there as to exactly what spending has been stopped or why.
      
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      February 17, 2025 10:46am
      - In Vino Veritas
        
        For starters all departments and staff that are involved with DEI have been disbanded|terminated.
        And then a few others: DOGE has cancelled a DHS contract for ‘people and culture survey and climate support services.
        From USAID: $1.5 million to “advance diversity equity and inclusion in Serbia’s workplaces and business communities”
        $70,000 for production of a “DEI musical” in Ireland
        $2.5 million for electric vehicles for Vietnam
        $47,000 for a “transgender opera” in Colombia
        $32,000 for a “transgender comic book” in Peru
        $2 million for sex changes and “LGBT activism” in Guatemala
        $6 million to fund tourism in Egypt
        Hundreds of thousands of dollars for a non-profit linked to designated terrorist organizations — even AFTER an inspector general launched an investigation
        Millions to EcoHealth Alliance — which was involved in research at the Wuhan lab
        “Hundreds of thousands of meals that went to al Qaeda-affiliated fighters in Syria”
        Funding to print “personalized” contraceptives birth control devices in developing countries
        Hundreds of millions of dollars to fund “irrigation canals, farming equipment, and even fertilizer used to support the unprecedented poppy cultivation and heroin production in Afghanistan,” benefiting the Taliban
        
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        February 17, 2025 6:40pm
  - artemisia
    
    It is possible that DOGE is flying a few kites. Quite likely some are politically motivated. However, it is very early in this term and parties will be gathering and evaluating evidence to prosecute or defend. The legal process will take its course. Three weeks may not be quite long enough to meet your requirements, DQ. Be patient.
    
    Meantime, and as always, political decisions will be taken by politicians. And on the face of it, some previous funding decisions would be hilarious if actually defensible in line with those times. Same when looking back on decisions made by the present administration.
    
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    February 17, 2025 12:33pm
    - Colville
      
      It is 100% locked in that DOGE is doing some serious shit talking about things…100% that some of the things it says are nonsense intended to aggravate and distract the Dems machine… obvious that you would throw out some distractions for the media while you go hunting the bigger prizes.
      
      BUT its also 100% that the bulk of what they are doing and saying is justified as there were so many soft targets to hit early on.
      
      The only reason people are wailing about this is because they have had free money on tap and its going to stop!!
      
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      February 17, 2025 12:46pm
- Ra Henare
  
  Remembering that DOGE has no executive authority.
  Working FOR Trump, who takes advice and has the resultant executive authority.
  
  It’s not public, but I am sure the Donald has declined to support some DOGE recommendations.
  
  And at an appropriate time will undo/suspend some DOGE stuff
  
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  February 17, 2025 3:29pm
Grunter

The JD Vance speech at Munich was world class IMO.

A must watch. Easy to find on You Tube (it’s about 18 mins).

Don’t rely on any MSM re-interpretation, it will most likely be bollocks. Watch the speech for what it is and make up your own mind what you think.

The far-left are now in meltdown mode of course, along with the MIC and the powerless European leaders such as Macron and Shultz.
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February 17, 2025 8:05am
- Northshoredoc
  
  I largely disagree.
  
  ‘The Munich Security Conference is the world’s leading forum for debating international security policy. It is a venue for diplomatic initiatives to address the world’s most pressing security concerns.’
  
  Vance’s speech ignored the major security issue a few hundred kilometres to the East in favour of delivering a speech chastising most of the people in the room.
  
  If his intention was to unite Western and Central Europe in the view that they can no longer depend on the US and they must look to themselves for their own security then job done.
  
  Beyond that, I don’t think it achieved a great deal apart from putting a smile on Tsar Poots face.
  
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  February 17, 2025 9:00am
  - Ross Bayer
    
    Looks like you have a bad case of TDS
    The security issues in the east are largely the fault of the west and demonizing of the Russians has passed its use by date
    My suggestion is you watch one of the many podcasts where Jeffrey Sachs talks about the Ukraine war and the one with Piers Morgan would be a good start
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mULVrUGh6wo
    
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    February 17, 2025 9:27am
    - Northshoredoc
      
      Just because someone holds a different view of the utility of a speech at a conference does not mean they have what you call TDS.
      
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      February 17, 2025 10:52am
  - Grunter
    
    ‘The Munich Security Conference is the world’s leading forum for debating international security policy. It is a venue for diplomatic initiatives to address the world’s most pressing security concerns.’
    
    Yep, and as JD Vance explains, with several examples, the most pressing security issue is infact internal. As we all know, the extreme-left wokism of Europe in particular, but also the Dems in the US, is destroying ‘The West’.
    
    JD Vance and Trump are talking up a peace deal in Ukraine, so yes, that will obviously put a smile of a lot of faces, including the Russians. No one in their right mind wants an on-going pointless war that results in more than a million deaths.
    
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    February 17, 2025 10:04am
    - Northshoredoc
      
      I don’t disagree that there is a problem with certain countries in Europe tying themselves up in knots trying to be politically correct.
      
      I disagree that this is the most pressing security issue in Europe when you have a hot war in progress in eastern europe and the aggressor in that war has been making a fair bit of mischief in european countries for some years now.
      
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      February 17, 2025 10:56am
      - Ross Bayer
        
        NS Doc
        When the war in Ukraine started my lack of knowledge in the European theatre meant I was not well enough informed to determine which side of the conflict more closely aligned with my values
        
        This meant I had look for someone whose geopolitical understanding was better than mine and hopefully one of the most credible sources of information on this subject matter I could find
        That person turned out to be Jeffrey Sachs a professor at Columbia who was a go between with the east and west during the collapse of the soviet union
        In his view, which I support ,US foreign policy has done more damage to the planet than all other countries combined over the last 40 years and Russia poses little or no threat to Europe
        
        What JD pointed out and rightfully so it is not Russia that poses the biggest threat to Europe but the politicians themselves who have destroyed their respective countries with the policies of the last 10 years while lying to their citizens ( the previous regime here in NZ did the same)
        The US has a new direction, there is a New Sheriff in town, and shift in direction from the new US administration has the potential to save the world from itself and change course just as we here in NZ need to do.
        The JD Vance speech has all the elements and detail that sets out a better path for humanity and the mere fact that talks are now underway between US and Russia is by itself both a significant change in direction but also a path to world peace
        
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        February 17, 2025 12:02pm
  - Notsofast
    
    So Europe banning X would be a smart move?
    
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    February 17, 2025 10:19am
  - Philview
    
    I think you have missed some of the background noise which is the USA will no longer provide ‘Free’ support. Ukraine seems to have joined the dots and is happy to provide US access to rare minerals.
    
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    February 17, 2025 10:46am
    - Matt Long
      
      I’m not sure that deal is set in stone, but I’m sure Trump won’t be using the Ukraine war as a money laundering scheme for Democrat insiders, and he’ll want a payment for America, hopefully aside from Blackrock for aid to Ukraine.
      
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      February 17, 2025 11:31am
- Ross Bayer
  
  For those of you who have not watched this speech please do so
  This speech shows there is a seismic shift in the US and this will change the world for the better
  How it influences the German election will be known in a few days but I would expect the AFD to be the biggest party
  JD delivered this speech in a manner that even those who suffer from TDS must surely admire
  My personal view is this is one of the greatest political speeches of my lifetime and I was alive when JFK was assassinated
  
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  February 17, 2025 9:21am
  - sungsamning
    
    Yes, one of the best since JFKs ‘moon speech’.
    
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    February 17, 2025 3:41pm
- PurplePen
  
  You do have to wonder what all the security analysts in each European and UK foreign office have been doing over the last four years. Surely they must have done some scenario planning during Trump 1.0 and as a result a strengthening of NATO collective excluding the US being an outcome as well as a strengthening of the collective armed forces. It doesn’t seem this is the case judging by Macron’s rushed summit this week. It should have been a summit called four years ago. All asleep at the wheel or just opportunists.
  
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  February 17, 2025 10:37am
- Nigel Kearney
  
  Or as somebody summarised on Twitter:
  
  Vance: Europeans need to accept freedom of speech.
  Germany: The speech by Vance was unacceptable.
  
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  February 17, 2025 10:46am
  - Grunter
    
    That’s a very good summary!
    
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    February 17, 2025 11:29am
Yabster

so our kids are being taught the NZ Government tried to exterminate the maori people. In a generation or two that will become fact unless something is done- I had hopes for Stanford- but I think she is very left leaning and doesn’t appear to be concerned with what the Min of education is rolling out- maybe it’s because of her minoring in maori studies….

https://www.bassettbrashandhide.com/post/rodney-hide-schooling-through-a-te-ao-maori-lens
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February 17, 2025 8:08am
- cmm
  
  Did they ever try to state they were anything other than left leaning?
  Willis has claimed to be green-blue (or was that blue-green?) multiple times.
  The Aotearoification still seems to be in full flight.
  
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  February 17, 2025 9:00am
- Grunter
  
  That’s peak brainwashing.
  
  Targeting teenagers.
  
  In New Zealand.
  
  If that doesn’t massively grind your gears then there is no hope.
  
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  February 17, 2025 10:11am
- PurplePen
  
  Maori being made up of tribes that were not all one people can effectively be seen as many tiny nations. Many of those tiny nations wiped out others which is genocide.
  
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  February 17, 2025 12:36pm
Tauhei Notts

A boring Sunday had me go to Facebook. I was surprised to see a bit on Sam Stubbs of Simplicity Group addressing the Finance and Expenditure Committee on banks.
Stubbs spoke particularly well. If anybody can provide a link please do so. I am sure Kiwiblog readers would want to see the clip.
I had seen a clip elsewhere when a man suggested that all children in Year Eight (Form 3) be given a $100 kickstart to open a Kiwibank KiwiSaver account. Within fifteen years it would make Kiwibank a force to match the Aussie Big Four. The Big Four’s managerial income from captive KiwiSaver funds is eye watering.
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February 17, 2025 8:13am
- Cassandra
  
  I think that was Robert McCulloch. It’s a very interesting proposal, designed to encourage a savings culture and to grow Kiwibank. It’d rival Westpac quite quickly.
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:19am
  - Taieri
    
    What stops Kiwibank from growing now?
    
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    February 17, 2025 8:22am
    - RoboRob
      
      People dont often change banks. It is painful. People tend to sign their kids up to the bank they use. When the kids are older, they dont change.
      
      Kiwibank, being ‘new’ can only grab new clients who are willing to change, normally that is through mortgages.
      
      The idea is that if the kids are signed up with KiwiBank, they will stick with it when they are older. The savings in their accounts will add capital to the bank and allow more lending.
      
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      February 17, 2025 8:48am
      - sungsamning
        
        Not a bad idea. Something along the lines of the savings accounts opened with the Post Office in the 60s.
        
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        February 17, 2025 10:23am
      - Dougal10
        
        It didn’t work last time and doing socialism slightly different wont make it work this time either. The $100 dollars needs to be borrowed to do this means its a pyramid scheme.
        
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        February 17, 2025 11:18am
    - pdm
      
      The constraints of Government ownership and being a black hole for taxpayers funds means they do not need to make too much effort to grow.
      
      Sell it.
      
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      February 17, 2025 9:11am
      - Taieri
        
        Does Kiwibank differentiate? Is its offer better that that of the other banks? Why should the clients of other banks take their business to Kiwibank then?
        
        Does it need taxpayers’ subsidy to operate? If so, why?
        
        Kiwibank is 24 years old. Sell it? Yes!
        
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        February 17, 2025 9:50am
      - cmm
        
        Taieri: Even with zero $ injected it still has a massive taxpayer subsidy.
        
        A lot of the cost of banking is risk. An “company” which is underwritten by the taxpayer carries virtually zero risk.
        
        Nor does Kiwibank have to compete for shareholders. The “shareholders” (aka taxpayers) are forced to participate at gunpoint.
        
        The fact that Kiwibank has all these advantages and is incapable of operating competitively with other banks with shows that it is very poorly run.
        
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        February 17, 2025 11:12am
  - Ra Henare
    
    I well remember school banking days when we all had Post Office Savings Bank books. (in the 1950s)
    
    Memory has washed out the details, but I think it was a shilling?? deposit each banking day.
    
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post_Office_Squirrel_savings_account
    
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    February 17, 2025 3:40pm
    - David Garrett
      
      Ra: Yep, a shilling, later to become 10 cents at Mangapapa school in the mid sixties…the pass book came in a brown envelope with a wise owl on the cover IIRC
      
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      February 17, 2025 7:11pm
- alex Masterley
  
  Mr Stubbs spoke to my service club last week.
  No notes, articulate and able to answer questions without umms or ahhs or even the words “so” or “like”.
  Very refreshing.
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:23am
  - Graeme Hall
    
    Maybe Sam Stubbs can talk and has extensive media contacts but have a look at his actual performance when he was investment officer at Tower Insurance. When shares & bonds & even term deposits were returning well Tower was making less than a cash call account on its investments. He left, or was booted out, soon after.
    
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    February 17, 2025 10:40am
    - Swifty
      
      He was CEO of Tower Managed Funds.
      
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      February 17, 2025 1:53pm
  - Paulus
    
    Really have you looked at his History try London.
    
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    February 17, 2025 1:49pm
- wsk12345
  
  Within a few years the $100 would have disappeared in fees.
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:28am
  - Matt Long
    
    And inflation. I got my boys selling Kumara on the Roadside when they were 6 and 8 and banked the majority of the profit, five years later their deposits are worth at least a third less.
    
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    February 17, 2025 8:53am
    - Quail
      
      Yes ML,
      Inflation is just another Government tax!
      
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      February 17, 2025 10:53am
    - Ra Henare
      
      Deposits are the same in dollar terms?
      Purchasing power is down
      
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      February 17, 2025 3:44pm
  - pdm
    
    It shouldn’t if it is in a growth fund wsk12345.
    
    ml your boys must be in Defensive or Conservative funds.
    
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    February 17, 2025 9:12am
- PurplePen
  
  Stubbs achievement in the kiwisaver area is low fees which sadly attracts some punters. What really matters is the return after fees which is what anyone should base their decision on, not the amount of fees. Fees don’t matter a jot. And the younger you are growth or aggressive all the way.
  
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  February 17, 2025 12:41pm
Bridgenag

Sunday Strip: The Platypus Conspiracy –
Another fact check down the drain

A Tourism Video For Australia (Made By A New Zealander)”

https://open.substack.com/pub/rwmalonemd/p/sunday-strip-the-platypus-conspiracy?r=1aj1bv&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
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February 17, 2025 8:14am
In Vino Veritas

It turns out that Joe Biden broke a record. He took 577 days holiday during his 1,463 days in office. Not a bad gig if you can get it. A day off for each 2.5 days work. As leader of the free world….
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February 17, 2025 8:17am
- Frank the tank
  
  His holidays likely corresponded with the times when his medication/drugs didn’t work.
  
  I suspect next time we see him in public he will look like a patient from a dementia ward.
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:32am
- kowtow
  
  He also got up late , went to bed early and had a recoed low number of cabinet meetings. Also couldn’t stay awake at what meetings he did have .
  
  All well known by the WH press gallery who actively protected him and the Democrat programme of illegal immigration , climate scam ,holding Israel down and keeping the war in Europe festering along.
  
  But oh no ! Trump’s the danger!
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:40am
- Grunter
  
  Many wish that he took 1,463 days of holiday…..
  
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  February 17, 2025 10:14am
- JackRabbit
  
  He wasn’t needed and didn’t need to work. Obama did his work for him.
  
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  February 17, 2025 3:02pm
- NeverMindTheBollocks
  
  If only Joe had got his wish of a second term. He’d have smashed that record out of the park!
  
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  February 17, 2025 7:50pm
Yvette

Bob Edlin: Musk’s mischief in the skies – his Starlink is impeding the journey of Maori loved ones’ spirits to the stars at Matariki
Scientist, and Indigenous astronomy expert Te Kahuratai Moko-Painting is part of Sustainable Space – a group seeking to save Earth’s lower orbit, under 2000km, from uncontrolled development …

While modern technologies might be used to navigate the oceans, he acknowledged, but “… that’s not the point. “Indigenous knowledge is something that is a self-determination thing. ”Māori know who they are because of their ancestors’ achievements. And now you’re going to take that all away from us.”

The “you” who are going to take all ancestors’ achievements away from Maori are Musk and other satellite launchers, presumably. Yes, the satellite industry is cluttering the heavens with its hardware and yes, this is becoming an issue.
But what Musk and co. will do with the achievements of Maori ancestors and/or how they intend disposing of them is as unclear as the skies during a heavy fog.
https://www.bassettbrashandhide.com/post/bob-edlin-musk-s-mischief-in-the-skies-his-starlink-is-impeding-the-journey-of-maori-loved-ones

I can not add any really constructive comment to this, I just thought readers should be aware, if not already aware, of one gift of scientific knowledge confronting another gift of knowledge.
And as the treaty is a “living document” which taonga does it “protect”?

And as another clash of knowledge, what does up-ticking this remark mean? – or is it as meaningless as down-ticking it. Checkmate …

See: “Terminator” (take out Starnet), “the Mouse That Roared”, “Dr Strangelove” and “the Hellions”
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February 17, 2025 8:17am
- Blog-aholic
  
  I doubt Mr. Musk give a kiore’s bum.
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:59am
- cmm
  
  The fatal flaw in the treaty is having a Maori version that was signed.
  Using a language without a written history for any legal, administrative or scientific purpose is fundamentally flawed because the language lacks precision and stability.
  
  I would think that even “modern Maori” ripe with English borrrow words and concepts would struggle to be useful as a language for an official agreement of that magnitude. The Maori language of the day certainly was not up to it.
  
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  February 17, 2025 9:07am
  - Taieri
    
    Using a language without a written history for any legal, administrative or scientific purpose is fundamentally flawed because the language lacks precision and stability
    ———–
    
    Very easy to miss or incorrectly translate the nuances, particularly when translating between the languages belonging to different linguistic groups.
    Another problem is interchangeability of concepts between different languages. Even professional translators with many years of experience encounter difficulties there.
    
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    February 17, 2025 10:01am
    - cmm
      
      Yup, translating from any language to any other has its challenges. All languages have expressions. grammatical constructs etc that others lack.
      
      My father, rot his bones, and I would sometimes mix English, Afrikaans and Zulu as we spoke because each had ideas that the others lacked.
      
      For example, Zulu and Xhosa have two tenses that English and Afrikaans lack (past tense is split into recent and historic past tense, same for future tense).
      
      It is one thing translating between two stable, written languages that have a long history of use for administration (eg. English, French, Spanish, Chinese languages). It is entirely different to translate into a language which lacks a history of precise use and lacks basic words/concepts for administration like “contract”.
      
      At best you can generate a document that vaguely captures some of the ideas. But that should be considered an explanatory note – not the contract itself. A bit like a frequently asked questions explanation to a contract. You might read the faq for extra info, but you sign the contract – not the faq.
      
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      February 17, 2025 11:01am
      - Dougal10
        
        Maori should be translated into latin and then that needs to be translated into english, there should be no direct translation as they are incompatible languages.
        
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        February 17, 2025 11:25am
  - In Vino Veritas
    
    No cmm, the Maori version was OK to be signed. It’s just the modern Maori is interpreting in any way they choose. Sir Apirana Ngata translated the English version to Maori and confirmed it said in Maori, exactly the English version. Ngata said “The Treaty made the one law for the Maori and Pakeha. If you think these things are wrong and bad then blame our ancestors who gave away their rights in the days when they were powerful”. And he viewed the First Article of the Treaty “The main purport was the transferring of the authority of the Maori chiefs for making laws for their respective tribes and sub-tribes under the Treaty of Waitangi to the Queen of England for ever.” And a complete cession of authority to the British Crown.
    Eye witness accounts of the signing of the Treaty at Waitangi reported quite a few chiefs objecting strenuously to having the governor as a chief over them. So they knew exactly what was happening. Anyone that claims the Maori version doesn’t spell out ceding of sovereignty, is just being disingenuous at best, and lying at worst.
    
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    February 17, 2025 11:04am
    - cmm
      
      There mere fact that the old Maori version was so vague that it can easily be re-interpreted to mean something completely different less than 200 years later shows what I mean.
      
      The Maori language then was not precise and was even less precise than modern Maori.
      
      We can “know what they meant at the time”, but that is not a solid grounding for a “constitution”.
      
      What should have happened was an articulation of what they meant at the time, written in a stable language (ie. English) and then signed. Any Maori documents along the way should be considered FAQ-like material not part of the binding agreement.
      
      That original document has been “re-explained” (ie. effectively re-negotiated) many times including the 1975 Act and on an ongoing basis.
      
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      February 17, 2025 11:21am
    - Paulus
      
      Ngata now would be considered the wrong kind of Maori !
      
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      February 17, 2025 11:37am
      - Swifty
        
        A useless Maori, according to Willie Jackson!
        
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        February 17, 2025 12:10pm
    - PurplePen
      
      Interestingly in the NZ Herald today a senior law lecturer and former PI Forum policy advisor Sione Tekiteki explains that in relation to the 2001 agreement with the Cook Islands, the word consultation had become somewhat of a sticking point. From a legal perspective there’s an ambiguity of what the word consultation means.
      
      So that’s an agreement in English that’s nigh on 25 years old and they’re having issues with what it means and both sides speak and write in English.
      
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      February 17, 2025 1:42pm
    - gravedodger
      
      Hold my beer;
      “blame our ancestors who gave away their rights in the days when they were powerful”
      
      The newbie elites, yes looking at you Finlayson, Palmer, et al who have opened the never closed door for the modern interpretations to flourish.
      1840 English was an only acceptable language for any law discussion as Maori with a very limited word vocabulary with many differing parts of the Language in that era, would never be acceptable as anything beyond a language to transmit sufficient meaning to satisfy the Chiefs being offered British citizenship and an end to intertribal conflict that had become so much more lethal with Muskets replacing Mere.
      
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      February 17, 2025 5:29pm
  - Ra Henare
    
    What is rarely explained is that the vast Majority of Chiefs could not read.
    Hence the discussions through the night about what the treaty meant.
    
    In that context, arguing about the words written are a bit meaningless.
    
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    February 17, 2025 6:06pm
- Swifty
  
  Treaty claims incoming!
  
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  February 17, 2025 9:23am
- Maggy Wassilieff
  
  I can not add any really constructive comment to this,
  
  Allow me to, then.
  
  I read the original piece in disbelief because Joel Maxwell quoted an indigenous astronomy expert Te Kahuratai Moko-Painting who stated:
  
  Having 100,000 satellites in orbit might be good for “pinpoint accuracy” all around the world, but those who rely on the stars for guidance won’t know which is a satellite and which isn’t.
  
  “They’ll obliterate most of the patterns that we all depend on to help us find our way.”
  
  At that point I wondered whether Moko-Painting had ever looked at a night sky, because one thing even a blind old bat like me can discern is the difference between a satellite and a star.
  
  If you can see a satellite, it will be moving fast across the sky; a star will appear stationary.
  
  (The geostationary satellites are beyond our natural sight range)
  
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  February 17, 2025 9:47am
  - cmm
    
    Quite, the satellites being talked of here are clearly the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites below around 2000 km which woosh cross the sky at around 28,000km/h.
    
    By far the majority of satellites are in LEO for three major reasons:
    1) Shorter range, so radio signals are stronger and less powerful transmitters are required.
    2) Shorter range, so radio signals can get there and back quicker (aka ping time).
    3) Closer to earth so much less fuel is required to get them there.
    
    There are relatively few satellites in MEO (mainly GPS etc) and in geostationary orbit (TV satellites etc)
    
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    February 17, 2025 10:01am
  - PurplePen
    
    Perhaps Maori need some teaching in the science of astronomy.
    
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    February 17, 2025 12:44pm
    - Paulus
      
      But, But, they invented Astronomy on their voyages to Niu Tirena.
      
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      February 17, 2025 1:53pm
      - PurplePen
        
        I’ve seen two spellings for that. Niu Tirani in the ToW and in the 1835 document He Whakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tireni – the Declaration of Independence of the United Tribes of New Zealand.
        
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        February 17, 2025 3:34pm
  - david
    
    But, but, but … surely pre-European inhabitants of this fair land were familiar with making clear glass and grinding it into lenses for their telescopes ! If they weren’t I suppose they zoomed in using their cellphones and googled star positions for navigation purposes.!!!!//sarc
    
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    February 17, 2025 3:26pm
Simon

For the Government, 2025 will bring a relentless focus on unleashing the growth we need to lift incomes, strengthen local businesses and create opportunity.

https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/pm-emphasises-importance-growth-2025

Goodhart’s law is the idea that a metric or measurement is no longer effective when it becomes a target. It’s often stated as “When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure”.
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February 17, 2025 8:20am
- Frank the tank
  
  With Orr and the Public Service in its current state…… Championing economic growth is like having a car race with the handbrake on.
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:47am
- Dudley Quaffquaff
  
  True, but not particularly useful.
  
  Competition is a far better way to motivate performance improvement, and it’s delivered better value, technological development and innovation in markets everywhere. But getting genuine competition in public provision has proved a hard and contentious nut to crack, and not just in New Zealand.
  
  One of the problems with it is that everybody has a different opinion as to what constitutes “better”, and it’s not obvious who providers are supposed to be trying to please, when Jill’s money is being used to provide a service to Jack. And it’s in the nature of news reporting that you’ll always hear most from those who aren’t pleased.
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:47am
- rjay
  
  Growth isn’t a vision. It’s mechanism
  
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  February 17, 2025 8:54am
- cmm
  
  “When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure”
  Yup, we see the system being gamed to achieve the measurements and not the desired outcomes.
  
  You can emphasise how important growth is as much as you want, but achieving growth is quite another matter. Don’t show me the hand-wringing – show me the plan.
  
  Worse yet, there is good growth and bad growth. Bad growth is far easier to achieve but does not set you up well for the long run.
  
  For example, we could take all the Mexicans etc that Trump is kicking out. That would create growth and lots of it. But that would not be good growth.
  
  Two years ago we had Melissa Lee on KB talking about creating growth, especially in the IT sector. None of that has turned into action and we’re left with negative growth since then.
  
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  February 17, 2025 9:13am
  - Quail
    
    CMM,
    Can’t blame Melissa Lee Perhaps the Prime Minister?
    
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    February 17, 2025 9:14pm
- cmm
  
  “we need to lift incomes, strengthen local businesses and create opportunity.”
  
  Government needs to get the fuck out of the way and stop “helping”.
  
  All useful growth etc comes from the private sector. Get out of the way so they can do their thing.
  
  What government can do is to clean up crime, de-woke education, simplify immigration, put the brakes on Aotearoification etc to make NZ more attractive to skilled people who are here and are considering leaving, as well as prospective high skilled immigrants.
  
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  February 17, 2025 11:07am
  - Paulus
    
    Somehow we must make more people actually pay taxes and not as recipient benficiaries !
    Like Local Government all the people say over 16 should be liable to pay a local tax, as they use all the facilities too !
    
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    February 17, 2025 11:42am
kowtow

NZME editorial very strongly against Destiny ( fair enough).

But does anyone remember NZME support for Posie Parker .

There is essentially at some official levels a promotion of a 2 Tier society .

Libraries/ local council facilities available for trans /drag promotions , but not for people concerned about race politics and the constitution.

Race occupation of public land OK , but not the parliament lawn for anti mandate people .

Climate /Palestine protests OK , pro family not.
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February 17, 2025 8:35am
- Chuck Bird
  
  Kerri Woodham is having a go at Brian Tamika as was Luxon and Hipkins. Hipkins supported the violent protests at Albert Park and has the freak who violently assaulted a 70 year old woman working for Labour.
  
  Unlike Luxon and Hipkins I support Trump. Men have no right to play against women and have no right in women’s spaces.
  
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  February 17, 2025 10:11am
  - riffer
    
    The flaw in your logic here is that Hugo Grrrl (George Fowler) is a drag king, or a trans man.
    
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    February 17, 2025 10:26am
    - wsk12345
      
      How is that a flaw. We know that it is a woman pretending to be a man pretending to be a woman. So what? We don’t need this crap.
      
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      February 17, 2025 10:42am
    - Swifty
      
      Riffer, do you believe Hugo is an actual man?
      
      Do you think Hugo should be accepted and treated as an actual man, indistinguishable in law from a natural-born man?
      
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      February 17, 2025 11:21am
      - riffer
        
        My thoughts on the matter are irrelevant. Hugo hasn’t done anything to harm me, and I certainly don’t have any issues with them reading books to kids.
        
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        February 17, 2025 11:58am
      - Swifty
        
        Heh.
        
        Kinda knew you’d avoid answering my questions.
        
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        February 17, 2025 12:05pm
  - Ghost
    
    So you disagree with luxon saying its important to respect freedom of speech and peaceful protests? Luxon was right this protest went to far.
    
    This was a female dressed as a man reading a book.
    
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    February 17, 2025 10:31am
    - Chuck Bird
      
      I disagree with Luxon on many issues. He could end up allowing another Labour led government.
      
      I support the Taxpayer’s Union. My rates should not go to pay for drag queens in libraries.
      
      My taxes should pay for groups like Inside Out while Family First lost it charitable status.
      
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      February 17, 2025 11:04am
      - Ghost
        
        So again do you disagree with luxon saying it is important to respect freedom of speech and peaceful protests?
        
        Do you support freedom of speech?
        Do you support peaceful protests?
        
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        February 17, 2025 11:07am
      - Paulus
        
        Yes I can see a new Coalition with Labour as the only way to form a Government in New Zealand.
        Winston is already jumping the shark !
        Gonna be many long days to the next election as
        Seymour fades and retains his boyhood, and not act as though he is really meaningful.
        
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        February 17, 2025 2:14pm
    - Chuck Bird
      
      “So again do you disagree with luxon saying it is important to respect freedom of speech and peaceful protests?”
      
      I would like to see consistency.
      
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      February 17, 2025 11:13am
      - Ghost
        
        Still can’t answer the question
        
        Do you support freedom of speech and peaceful protests?
        
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        February 17, 2025 11:17am
      - Chuck Bird
        
        I do support peaceful protests and freedom of speech as long as it does not involve incitement.
        
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        February 17, 2025 1:42pm
      - Ghost
        
        And yet here you are attacking luxon for that comment. Destiny’s protest was far from peaceful. If you actually supported peaceful protesters and freedoms of speech you would be commenting on what destiny church did yesterday and their leader telling them to storm the building. But you only support it when it suits you.
        
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        February 17, 2025 1:59pm
      - Pineapple Lumps
        
        Ghost I will answer your questions:
        
        Do you support freedom of speech? YES
        Do you support peaceful protests? YES
        
        But do I think Luxon has landed correctly in condemning Destiny? NO
        
        Firstly, I am not going to believe that destiny’s protest was violent just because the legacy media, Chloe Schwarbrick and the rainbow movement say so. They are the same group that incited violence against elderly women at the Posie Parker Let Women Speak event. They have never condemned the extremely violent assaults committed by the rainbow community. They are a bunch of lying hypocrites.
        
        I have attended protests run by Destiny Church against the trampling of our human rights. They were extremely well organised and did not promote violence or bad behaviour. They were peaceful protests.
        
        The police, judiciary and media condemned Liz Gunn. She was prosecuted for assault. Her crime: touching someone’s arm in a reasonable manner. We live in times where we can no longer trust the very institutions that only 5 years ago would have commanded my utmost respect.
        
        So Destiny Church marched into the Te Atatu building signs and protested against the Drag storytime. There was some pushback from supporters of the Rainbow event. I couldn’t see who was responsible for the little push and shove scuffle I saw on video. But it did not strike me as a major level of violence nor an angry and violent crowd.
        
        Destiny also protested with a haka in front of the Pride parade. Again, this was a non-violent protest. They weren’t making gun symbols like TPM MPs to David Seymour. This was very much a non-violent protest.
        
        Now Destiny are accused of hate crimes. Most of the leaders of political parties are weighing in that their actions are wrong. It is now a big moral outrage! And our great woke Luxon has taken the bait and weighed in like an overly emotional wet blanket. Disappointing to say the least!
        
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        February 17, 2025 7:44pm
    - david
      
      Can someone please enlighten us as to the title/plot/contents of the “book” in question. I would hate to think that someone (anyone at all) had been given licence to peddle a message to children that Trans is “normal” when that is far from given and is even disputed by many in the gay community. That would amount to brainwashing IMHO
      
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      February 17, 2025 3:49pm
      - Ghost
        
        Probably the same books she read online in this video.
        
        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mWOL9fVYok
        
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        February 17, 2025 4:14pm
Frank the tank

Is anyone within government going to ask why our establishment media is indirectly funded by USAID via Internews? Who is Internews and what agreements underpin this investment? Who owns and controls Internews?

David Seymour? Winston Peters? Anyone?
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February 17, 2025 8:45am
- sungsamning
  
  David, or Winston might ask. They might even throw it in the face of the MSM every time they ask a question. Fat chance of Labour lite doing a thing.
  
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  February 17, 2025 10:34am
- Ghost
  
  If tvnz and radio nz weren’t involved, it appears they weren’t. Then what private news agencies do is really their own business
  
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  February 17, 2025 10:43am
  - kowtow
    
    ‘Then what private news agencies do is really their own business’
    
    How “private” are they when they receive directly or indirectly ( via advertising) taxpayer funds , domestic or foreign .
    
    Or indeed when media organisations sign up to any number of international and/or domestic climate , race, ‘diversity’ NGO’s mandating certain editorial positions , those NGO’s also receiving foreign /domestic taxpayer support .
    
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    February 17, 2025 11:30am
    - Ghost
      
      They are a private business, who ever advertises with them doesn’t change that. Just as I don’t own my mechanic, supermarket, pharmacy or the numerous other business I pay to use. Again, if they sign up to something that is their business decision. The government is not responsible for what these private businesses have signed up to, and that includes stuff signing up for funding from google for climate friendly articles.
      
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      February 17, 2025 11:40am
  - Frank the tank
    
    https://stoppress.co.nz/news/groupm-nz-launches-back-to-news-programme-to-support-responsible-journalism/
    
    OneNews is involved – changed your opinion?
    
    So if Stuff received funding via an intermediary from the Kremlin and then took sympathetic views toward’s Russia’s war with Ukraine that would be Ok because it is a private company?
    
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    February 17, 2025 12:14pm
    - Ghost
      
      I’ve searched since this story broke, there are no credible links verifying anything, just two stories on websites most people have never heard of in nz. The only news company I have found which mentions prior to this working with groupm and internews is nzme.
      
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      February 17, 2025 1:11pm
  - Greenheart
    
    Except that the press claims to be the Fourth Estate and as such has an influence on public and political opinion which should require them to behave responsibly and reflect the range of public opinions.
    Of course they do not.
    
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    February 17, 2025 12:33pm
    - sungsamning
      
      That’s why the MSM is dying.
      
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      February 17, 2025 3:54pm
imalwaysright

Remember the good ‘ol days when the cops would close down conservative events because lefties told them they would lose their collective rag and get very upset?

I wonder what the cops would have done if Brian Tamaki tried the same?

Arrest him, probably.
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February 17, 2025 8:47am
- pdm
  
  ima.
  
  I remember the husband/partner of Union activist Jill Ovens some 30 or more years ago hitting someone with a megafone at a protest gathering.
  
  He got away with it as I recall.
  
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  February 17, 2025 9:37am
  - Chuck Bird
    
    What about the freak that assaulted a 70 year old woman? He should have been jailed. He got a slap on the wrist and a job with Hipkins who support the violence against Possie Parker.
    
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    February 17, 2025 11:07am
    - Ghost
      
      No he didn’t get a job with Hipkins.
      
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      February 17, 2025 11:13am
    - Maggy Wassilieff
      
      The chap who carried out the assault on the old lady was a 20 year-old Gisborne man, not Shaneel Lal, who now works for the Labour Party.
      
      https://www.odt.co.nz/news/national/posie-parker-protest-discharge-without-conviction-after-punching-71-year-old-woman
      
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      February 17, 2025 11:41am
      - RichardF
        
        Shaneel Lal works for Labour? That’s a genious vote winning strategy if I’ve ever seen one.
        
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        February 17, 2025 12:04pm
      - Notsofast
        
        Shaneel Lal was blowing the trumpet that caused hearing impairment to people if I understand correctly.
        He is the most unfit and improper person to be any where near politics in this sad nation.
        
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        February 17, 2025 12:37pm
Yvette

Tech agencies lawyer up after claim they failed to protect Jacinda Ardern from ‘violence, misogyny’
In fact “It is what it is”
And about as hard to put back in its box as is “co-governance”

And would people now hiding behind keyboards, as myself (although I believe I am quite readily traceable as needs be) if not having this initial anonymity, would formulate more terrorist intentions to make a point, or just say “dammit, it is too hard”, and do something more positive? But miss out on the cathartic release of expressing oneself, and one’s view.

Meanwhile, how full would Dame Jacinda’s tank have remained, had she got someone else to take it in mental health-preserving turns to read her emails for her?
Since there are ways around it without gutting the Internet – a Herculean task if ever – I wonder if this article is just a portion of the Jacinda-underdog meme I may be supposed to swallow.
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February 17, 2025 8:58am
- PurplePen
  
  No-one forces anyone to read posts about themselves on social media and no-one forces anyone to open or even read emails. I fail to see how the PM needed to be affected by the above, particularly when she would have had staff to filter it all if necessary.
  
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  February 17, 2025 12:49pm
RoboRob

Saw Erica Stanford on TV in the weekend. Really like her and if what she says is true, is making decent progress.

Two major surprises

1. There ARE going to be FOUR teacher only days again this year (we have had this argument here many times, with some claiming it will be two and that the prior 4 day years were an aberration). These are required for the new curriculum (notice a trend here!). These four days will be DURING TERM TIME. Remember Seymour saying, only during holidays. According to Stanford he was 100% wrong and the govt cant legally force them to be taking during holiday period. Its the unions and their contracts. Note that the teachers could take them during the masses of holiday leave (as ECE teachers do) but they chose not to. Remember this the next time the Unions say ‘we need more teachers and money, it’s for your kids’.

2. Stanford raved about how good it was to be rolling out ‘free’ lunches into the ECE system as well. So not only has National / Seymour failed to end them, but they are also expanding the system and proud of it.

I think Stanford is good and really cares about improving education, but come on. With #1, again this is the whole ‘we cant’ we are only the government. Fucking BS. Remember when the govt expanded holidays from 3 to 4 weeks, what happened to everybody’s employment contracts? They were overridden. Nothing, but the will to do so, is stopping the government passing a law saying ‘No teacher only days during term time’ and overriding that part of teachers contracts. Why doesn’t National have Seymours (and out kids) backs on this?

Between Stanford not backing Seymour on teachers only days and her happily expanding free lunches, it is becoming more and more obvious this govt want to maintain the status quo (with better management). That would make them conservative, if it wasn’t for the fact the things they are conserving are lefty policies. I even heard Chris Bishop on TV this morning says ‘.. More 3 waters projects coming on line’, clearly he misspoke but its also clear that much of 3 waters is continuing except with a different name.
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February 17, 2025 9:03am
- Swifty
  
  RoboRob, ‘3 Waters’ was a phrase in use long before Labour and Maori radicals hijacked it for their use.
  
  It simply referred to and provided a simple abbreviation for ‘freshwater, stormwater and wastewater’.
  
  Perhaps that’s to what Bishop was referring.
  
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  February 17, 2025 9:31am
  - cmm
    
    Quite possibly this is what Bishop is referring to, but it would be tin-eared to use such a politically loaded term.
    
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    February 17, 2025 12:17pm
- cmm
  
  If they really do have to back down on the teacher only days then I hope they insist that:
  a) the teachers actually turn up
  b) they spend the whole day there
  c) they actually work during that time
  
  From my non-scientific observation of some of the local school the teacher only days are just another day off.
  
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  February 17, 2025 9:36am
  - RoboRob
    
    Mnay schools have already taken their first of the four. The Friday after Waitangi day. I will leave it to people to decide if that was a training / PD day.
    
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    February 17, 2025 9:51am
    - Oskar
      
      From what I have heard a number of schools took that day as a “teacher only” days because they were aware a lot of their parents were intending to take a four day weekend so their children would not be at school on the Friday – and this would affect their attendance figures.
      By making the Friday a “teacher only” day they would keep their attendance figures up.
      Whether teachers actually went to school or whether they too took a four day weekend is another story.
      
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      February 17, 2025 11:25am
  - Paulus
    
    What about free lunches for them too on Teacher’s Days.!
    
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    February 17, 2025 11:45am
- Matt Long
  
  Three Waters means projects for Potable Water Supply, Storm Water and Waste Water.
  Under Labour it came to mean the taking of council water assets to be handed over to 4-5 racially appointed boards.
  It’s difficult to know which Bishop is referring to.
  
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  February 17, 2025 9:41am
- NoFax
  
  I agree that National only want to maintain the status quo but some how we will get different results. I’m not sure how that’s supposed to happen. We need major reform and they think it’s all fine except a tweak here and there.
  In regards to 3 waters, depending on context it can just mean blue (fresh), grey water (e.g. from the shower and sink) and black (sewerage). I think water engineers use that terminology. But who knows with Bishop.
  
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  February 17, 2025 9:43am
- imalwaysright
  
  You would think that those teachers who will be teaching the new curriculum would have turned up a few days before school start to familiarise themselves.
  
  That’s being generous, if a teacher can’t walk into a classroom, read a lesson and then teach it to some children, then they aren’t a teacher.
  
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  February 17, 2025 10:02am
- Dougal10
  
  Chris Bishop should be in the labor party
  
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  February 17, 2025 11:32am
WaynelSexton

Zelensky thinking he has any say in the matter is hilarious

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14403163/zelensky-ukraine-russia-peace-deal-donald-trump-europe.html
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February 17, 2025 9:21am
- Greenheart
  
  Are you serious
  
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  February 17, 2025 12:35pm
- Grunter
  
  Zelensky now finds himself caught between harsh reality 1 & harsh reality 2.
  
  He’s already lost the ‘hot war’ to a much larger and more powerful enemy (Russia). And now he finds that, under Trump, the USA has no desire to support woke & broke Europe and continue to fund a pointless war. You may not like that outcome, but that is the REALITY.
  
  Of course, Europe and Ukraine will continue to ‘fight forever’ without the USA. Trump will do his best to resolve this, but Russia won’t stop until Zelensky is gone and Ukraine surrenders. How badly Ukraine loses has always been Zelensky’s choice. Based on the last three years, he will keep going until Ukraine is completely annihilated..
  
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  February 17, 2025 2:00pm
  - James Stephenson
    
    It seems pretty evident to me that the Ukrainian people have a solid “better to die on your feet, than live on your knees” attitude to their situation.
    
    If Russia wins, it will be the most Pyhrric victory since the original.
    
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    February 17, 2025 2:34pm
sungsamning

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2025/02/3-pages-solid-gold-wh-staff-hit-every/
Here Are the 3 Pages of Solid Gold That WH Staff Hit Every Lib Reporter With Right Before Press Briefing.
The White House Press Corps received a reality check to wrap up this week’s news.

Daily Caller White House Correspondent Reagan Reese posted to social media platform X Friday a 3-page document that was handed out that day listing all of President Donald Trump‘s accomplishments for the week.
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February 17, 2025 10:03am
sungsamning

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2025/02/victor-davis-hanson-gives-funny-explanation-why-eu/
Victor Davis Hanson Gives Funny Explanation for Why EU Leaders Reacted Badly to JD Vance’s Speech.
Vice President JD Vance gave an amazing speech in Germany on Friday, calling upon leaders to join America in the quest for greater freedoms and ending unfettered illegal immigration.
Some of the European elites in the audience did not appreciate Vance’s finer points.
During an appearance on FOX News on Friday night, conservative scholar Victor Davis Hanson explained why these EU leaders didn’t get it and his analysis was pretty funny.
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February 17, 2025 10:03am
Bobba Fret

Mike Hosking read out a text that made me laugh this morning roughly as follows:
“Apparently some parents are so disappointed and angry with David Seymour’s school lunches, that they have started making lunches for their children!”
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February 17, 2025 10:19am
imalwaysright

Erica Stanford said that she is increasing the cost of a visa for skilled immigrants from over $4k to over $6k.
Three reasons: NZ is a beautiful country.
We have a lot to offer.
She wants the Ministry to cover their costs.

This is why we can’t have nice people…
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February 17, 2025 10:22am
- cmm
  
  “She wants the Ministry to cover their costs.”
  
  I would think it costs less than $200 to process an immigrant’s visa application.
  
  When I came to NZ in 1992 it cost around $NZ560 (?? if I remember correctly??) for our Permanent Resident application. That would be $1200 in today’s money. With that we became NZ Permanent Residents the moment the Immigration guy stamped our passports.
  
  That was pre-internet so it took a lot more effort on the part of Immigration NZ to do their investigations.
  
  Worse yet, that $6k she proposes will not get you PR status – just a temporary work permit. That makes it hard for people to fully settle down.
  
  Yes, NZ is a beautiful country but you can’t eat the scenery.
  
  Stanford is deluded. We should be bending over backwards to encourage skilled people to NZ – not being arrogant and making them jump through hoops.
  
  Skilled people have opportunities. Do things that attract them – don’t chase them away.
  
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  February 17, 2025 12:15pm
  - imalwaysright
    
    Presactly,
    Capable people are in demand around the world, as can be seen by the recent rise in emigration of kiwi engineers etc.
    Other countries are offering incentives.
    NZ are offering an expensive opportunity to convince us that we need you.
    Arrogant and ignorant .
    
    And if the aim is for the ministry to self fund then withdraw government money and let them operate as a company.
    I bet we would get a lot more good immigrants.
    
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    February 17, 2025 12:26pm
  - Colville
    
    cmm
    
    I would think it costs less than $200 to process an immigrant’s visa application.
    
    I dont know what you do for a living but hopefully nothing connected to money. You cant get a plumber to have a look at a job and scratch his arse for $200. Its probably 30 minutes of time to a consultant. You expect a VISA application to be researched, checked and processed in how long?
    
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    February 17, 2025 12:55pm
    - cmm
      
      I would expect they have some sort of scripts etc which automatically scan the pictures and use those to check against international criminal databases etc.
      
      All the points system (if they still use that) will be auto-magically calculated when they submit the web form.
      
      I would be surprised it if takes half an hour.
      
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      February 17, 2025 4:48pm
- NoFax
  
  Skilled immigrants? Like Uber drivers and KFC shift managers? We would be better off pausing all new immigrants and let the country breath for a bit. But of course house prices might go down so we can’t have that!
  
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  February 17, 2025 12:28pm
  - cmm
    
    Unfortunately we are losing the quality and replacing them with Uber drivers.
    
    That said, the nice Punjabi Sikh gentleman that I rode with a fortnight ago said he was going back to India in a couple of months because things were booming there and he could do better there than in NZ.
    
    “We would be better off pausing all new immigrants and let the country breath for a bit”
    
    Absolutely not. We lost 47,000 people last year – mainly skilled. We’re going to lose at least half that again this year. We cannot keep losing the people that drive the economy.
    
    What we certainly don’t need though is just looking at the raw numbers and pretending that quantity is a substitute for quality.
    
    While it is easy to point fingers at immigrants, a lot of the problem with housing is that utilisation is going down as kids leave home and the parents now sit on an empty nest. That means that even if our population is stagnant we need many more houses.
    
    The 10 houses closest to where I sit now have a total of 20 inhabitants:
    * Three have one person.
    * One has 4 people (2 adult kids – both moving out later this year).
    * One has 3 people (1 adult kid, probably living at home for another few years)
    * The rest are houses of 3, 4 or 5 bedrooms with a couple.
    
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    February 17, 2025 5:00pm
Steve Otto N Shore

Trump Nominees Face Fierce Senate Battle Against Establishment Forces.
I don’t know how Trump does it – fighting the swamp.

https://conservativeadvocacy.com/trump-nominees-face-fierce-senate-battle-against-establishment-forces/?

“If I have learned anything over the last 4 years, it’s that the Democrats are everything they accused Donald Trump of being.”

https://x.com/AllisterClisham/status/1887907053030801432?
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February 17, 2025 10:29am
Benedict Yu

I received an out of office reply from a contact who I emailed.

“I am on leave and will reply to you on 20th Pepuere.”

Without searching how many folk know the Maori names for each month? 1 in 100 adults? Or am I totally out of touch?

It is not the end of the world but it is just one more thing to do. IMO it does not encourage folk to learn Maori.
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February 17, 2025 10:33am
- Blog-aholic
  
  Pure signalling of virtue. Unnecessary and frankly unprofessional if they also did not add the English equivalent.
  When one knows it is contrived it certainly does not embolden a desire to learn…..
  
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  February 17, 2025 10:36am
- Steve Otto N Shore
  
  Pepuere.
  It does sound like February. Another made up word.
  
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  February 17, 2025 10:38am
  - Blog-aholic
    
    My favorite made to measure job is wakatopatopa………
    
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    February 17, 2025 11:04am
  - Sacha
    
    I think it sounds vaguely hormonal –
    
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    February 17, 2025 11:19am
  - Paulus
    
    Nah – Maori invented the 12 months Calender.
    
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    February 17, 2025 11:47am
    - NeonTeepee
      
      And a base-10 counting system
      
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      February 17, 2025 2:36pm
      - Jethrod
        
        And the invention of …… tuanaki…… in the 12th Century by Kupe …………. calculus…… so prove me wrong!
        
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        February 17, 2025 7:02pm
- Im Right
  
  It’s arrogance BY, it’s a ‘look how progressive I am’ flag waving.
  I don’t doubt the person has pronouns after their name at the bottom of their emails.
  They are everywhere….especially in Govt dept’s
  
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  February 17, 2025 10:52am
- cmm
  
  It’s easy.
  
  Maori never had the concept of months so any of these words are borrow words.
  
  Just listen to the word and substitute in what sounds most similar. Clearly February.
  
  But woke bullshit – certainly.
  
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  February 17, 2025 11:28am
  - Blog-aholic
    
    Shouldn’t it be Whepuere?
    
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    February 17, 2025 11:52am
  - Maggy Wassilieff
    
    Maori never had the concept of months
    
    They were aware of lunar cycles
    
    https://www.tepapa.govt.nz/discover-collections/read-watch-play/maori/matariki-maori-new-year/what-maramataka-maori-lunar
    
    as were most Polynesian peoples
    e.g.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapa_Nui_calendar
    
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    February 17, 2025 4:50pm
    - cmm
      
      I am far from impressed – even invertebrates have some concept of lunar cycles.
      
      What would impress me – and I don’t think they achieved – is an understanding of the mechanisms that caused the lunar cycles.
      
      You know, real stuff about the movement of big hunks of rock and not something about Maui’s mother putting a basket over the moon every four weeks.
      
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      February 17, 2025 5:07pm
      - Maggy Wassilieff
        
        is an understanding of the mechanisms that caused the lunar cycles.
        
        Absolutely..
        
        All Fairy tale explanations for easily observed phenomena…
        
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        February 17, 2025 6:28pm
    - NeverMindTheBollocks
      
      If Maori were aware of lunar cycles then they’d have 13 months per year.
      
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      February 17, 2025 8:05pm
- Ghost
  
  Pepuere? February, learned that in primary school in the early 80’s. as well as the numbers and all the Māori songs that went along with the sticks and poi.
  
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  February 17, 2025 11:43am
  - cmm
    
    Has that been a useful skill to have?
    
    I am not at all opposed to people learning different languages, in fact I encourage it.
    
    But learn the useful stuff that comes from the language and enriches people.
    
    Learning all the borrow words and them dropping them into English sentences does nothing useful.
    
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    February 17, 2025 12:01pm
    - Ghost
      
      It was simply something we all learned at that primary school. I probably remember more Māori than I do from the few years of German in high school
      
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      February 17, 2025 12:06pm
      - cmm
        
        Genuine question: Could you use Maori for everyday conversation? Could you go a whole day using only Maori?
        
        Remembering songs is pretty artificial. They are very constrained and the pattern of the song makes them easy to remember. It doesn’t mean they make any real sense.
        
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        February 17, 2025 12:32pm
      - Ghost
        
        It was just the basics, days, months, numbers. Different things, food. A few word sentences. Māori myths, etc. I think more effort was put into teaching sign language in standard 4.
        
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        February 17, 2025 1:27pm
      - graham
        
        cmm: “Remembering songs is pretty artificial. They are very constrained and the pattern of the song makes them easy to remember. It doesn’t mean they make any real sense.”
        
        Agreed. At high school, well over 40 years ago now, I learned a song in French that I can still remember to this day. This is written solely from singing it through in my head and a guess at the spelling:
        
        Aupres de ma blonde
        Quil fait bon, fait bon, fait bon,
        Aupres de ma blonde
        Quil fait bon, fait bon
        
        I have absolutely no idea what the words mean. But I still remember the lyrics 40-plus years on.
        
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        February 17, 2025 2:53pm
      - NeverMindTheBollocks
        
        Any fool can drop the odd noun into a sentence; but to speak a language you also need verbs.
        
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        February 17, 2025 8:06pm
    - PurplePen
      
      Except, but for a few Maori words, most are not borrowed. They are artificially inserted for no reason that makes communication clear and effective. A language will readily borrow a word from another when the language borrowing doesn’t have an expression or word for whatever is being communicated. Languages are efficient and there’s no motive to borrow a word that has exactly the same meaning as one that already exists. It seems NZ is the only country that does this. It’s our ‘intelligensia’s’ way of showing off and thinking they are the one’s that know what the rest of us need.
      
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      February 17, 2025 12:57pm
      - RichardF
        
        Exactly. How many Maori would write ‘moni’ instead of money?
        
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        February 17, 2025 2:29pm
  - Dougal10
    
    I dont remember learning it but I guess it hadn’t been made up yet in the 70s
    
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    February 17, 2025 1:00pm
- graham
  
  I certainly didn’t know that “Pepuere” is the Maori for “February”. And I agree, it certainly doesn’t encourage me to learn Maori. On the contrary it just annoys me because I now have to waste my time looking up the word to figure out what they mean.
  
  And why did they stop there? Why not have their out of office reply completely in Maori? Or throw in some additional words like “I am on hararei and will whakautu to you on 20th Pepuere.” (Courtesy of Google). Is this person on a personal mission to try and spread Maori, and thinks that by doing it one word at a time nobody will mind?
  
  It’s pointless.
  
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  February 17, 2025 12:11pm
  - David Garrett
    
    Graham: both pointless and as others have observed extremely annoying
    
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    February 17, 2025 1:26pm
- NoFax
  
  Government employee I assume. Most private businesses actually need to compete so won’t make things difficult.
  
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  February 17, 2025 12:30pm
- Colville
  
  Pebruary?
  
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  February 17, 2025 12:56pm
Matt Long

Reason seven billion and five why the government is simply unable to cut spending.
In November 2024, performer George Fowler, also known by the stage name “Hugo Grrl,” received $1.1 million in public funding to produce an eight-episode series of drag storytime performances aimed at children. The series is set to air on TVNZ later this year, raising significant debate among various segments of the public.
https://x.com/MatuaKahurangi/status/1891176741118644722
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February 17, 2025 10:36am
- RichardF
  
  Loneliness can be a big problem for elderly people. I’m sure there are many elderly people who could contribute to the community and meet people by reading stories at the library. Who decided the best person to read stories to kids are drag “queens” and “kings”?
  
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  February 17, 2025 2:36pm
sungsamning

The election of Donald trump as president should give the government political cover to get rid of RNZ, and TVNZ. Also, the Department of Women’s Affairs, and the racist departments. So far…. crickets.
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February 17, 2025 10:43am
- Tom Hunter
  
  “Well there you have it. You think that National should be against Ministry of Women’s Affairs. What you don’t seem to understand is that many National women MP’s were and are strongly in favour of the Ministry and were much part of its origins.”
  
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  February 17, 2025 11:08am
  - PurplePen
    
    It’s been in existence for nearly 40 years. What’s the spend over those years and what has it achieved that the private sector wouldn’t have on their own.
    
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    February 17, 2025 12:59pm
  - sungsamning
    
    Which is why people keep calling them Labour lite.
    
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    February 17, 2025 4:04pm
- Paulus
  
  Ah, but Rugby has started !
  So nothing else matters.
  
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  February 17, 2025 11:48am
  - Colville
    
    yeah the wailing when an unfit player gets injured and is out for the season!
    
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    February 17, 2025 12:58pm
Steve Otto N Shore

More on DOGE.
Elon Musk’s DOGE Exposes Shocking Federal Spending Under Biden.
So it was under Biden, but it is still happening. They don’t want their binkies taken away!

https://americanvoterpolls.com/elon-musks-doge-exposes-shocking-federal-spending-under-biden/?
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February 17, 2025 10:43am
- Northshoredoc
  
  Have you found a site that actually lists the federal spending rorts Steve ?
  
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  February 17, 2025 11:04am
  - Matt Long
    
    Doge does have a social media presence.
    https://x.com/doge?lang=en
    
    4 1
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    February 17, 2025 11:25am
    - Gravelroad
      
      “ $10M for “Mozambique voluntary medical male circumcision”
      Nice payout for the health authorities there – presumably.
      
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      February 17, 2025 11:56am
      - cmm
        
        That is something I would support and I would suggest is within the general spirit of what USAID should do.
        
        In many areas of Africa there is ritualistic/cultural circumcision that is done in a very backyard fashion.
        
        For example, all Xhosa boys are circumcised . Every year there are dozens of deaths and hundreds of boys maimed by this. Only do a search about this if you have a very strong stomach.
        
        That is in relatively civilized South Africa. I would expect things are worse in Mozambique and elsewhere.
        
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        February 17, 2025 12:27pm
      - kowtow
        
        If they didn’t get those payments they’d have to live off the tips.
        
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        February 17, 2025 3:16pm
      - Sir Henry Morgan
        
        Indeed. Genital mutilation is an odd thing to be promoting.
        
        As for cmm’s comments, I do not think male genital mutilation is a traditional practice in Mozambique. So millions of dollars are being spent flogging snake oil in an untapped market. There are rather obvious parallels to the trans stuff.
        
        In parts of Africa, you will have one US aid agency trying to end female genital mutilation, while another promotes male genital mutilation as a miraculous cure-all. Since the African societies that practice female genital mutilation invariably also practice male genital mutilation, the locals must find it baffling.
        
        Of course, with millions of dollars sloshing around there will always be takers. You occasionally see African media stories about angry parents who send their son off to school only for him to be mutilated so some teacher can snaffle a bounty of US$10 or so.
        
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        February 17, 2025 3:55pm
    - All_on_Red
      
      But Matt NS Doc would have to open his eyes first…
      
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      February 17, 2025 1:14pm
  - Steve Otto N Shore
    
    Uncle Google can help you, if you have the time.
    I don’t.
    
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    February 17, 2025 12:55pm
  - kiwi_chileno
    
    USA Spending – official, open data source of all Federal spending (contracts, grants, and loans) https://www.usaspending.gov/search
    
    For example, ‘gender’ related spending by USAID (probably not all of it) https://www.usaspending.gov/search/?hash=e727e47ab337ab777a63f49a3bba0e83
    
    Eg, US govt contracts with, and grants to (incl USAID), Auckland University https://www.usaspending.gov/search/?hash=b7f5446abbaee78ef488052611492721
    
    All US Foreign Assistance (not just USAID) https://foreignassistance.gov/ USAID 2024 https://foreignassistance.gov/agencies (USAID.govt is offline)
    
    NZ’s foreign assistance (International Development Cooperation – IDC) https://devdata.mfat.govt.nz/
    
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    February 17, 2025 4:22pm
- Tom Hunter
  
  I see that none other than the NYT was trying the new attack angle on Musk/DOGE, that they really haven’t uncovered anything much that really makes a dent in the $1.8 trillion deficit (Hey, the news has to come from somewhere).
  
  Unfortunately for them environmentalist Michael Shellenberger actually read the whole article:
  
  Forty-three paragraphs into the NYT’s latest hit piece on @elonmusk, the six (!) by-lined reporters reveal that the federal government lost $236 billion to apparent fraud (“improper payments”) in 2023 alone. Maybe this isn’t the dunk you guys thought it was?
  
  That figure comes from the Government Accountability Office, (GAO) and last year the Congressional Budget Office identified a minimum of $516 billion that was paid out on programs that had either not started or had expired, in many cases expiring a long time ago.
  
  Now it’s likely that as DOGE actually looks at the IT payment systems they’ll end up covering the same ground, but perhaps the key difference is that because they’re directly reporting to the President they’ll have an impact on spending decisions in Congress that the likes of the CBO and GAO did not?
  
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  February 17, 2025 12:50pm
cmm

It is interesting seeing the gaslighting in South Africa after Trump’s offer to Afrikaners.

Most Afrikaners that want to leave would have left sometime during the last 35 years so and those that are still there are likely pretty committed to staying.

There have been apparently 17,000 enquiries so far which is a substantial amount. Each commercial farmer in South Africa feeds around 3000 people so if 10% of those are commercial farmers then there are a lot of people who are going to starve.

The MSM seem to be trying to put a “nothing to see here” light on this by quoting a 78 year old man from Bothasig (in Cape Town) and some people from Afriforum who claim to represent Afrikaners.

I would argue that neither of these are good examples.

A 78 year old in Cape Town is not facing any of the problems of workplace discrimination as he is not in the work force and is in Cape Town which has less off the discrimination.

Afriforum are a bit like the Maori NGOs in NZ. They get there funding and power from the existence of the discrimination against Afrikaners. Solving the problems for Afrikaners reduces their relevance.

It will be interesting to see how many take up the offer when it is clear what the offer really is, but I think that even losing 5 to 10, 000 Afrikaners will severely dent South Africa.

Remember it is generally the most capable people that can organize themselves into doing something like emigration. That will tend to skim the cream from the top.

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/no-thanks-white-south-africans-turn-down-trumps-immigration-offer-2025-02-09/
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February 17, 2025 11:48am
- I remember when
  
  Zimbabwe here we come?
  
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  February 17, 2025 11:54am
- Tom Hunter
  
  Meh! It’s Reuters. Another MSM source that was on the Biden Administration tit for two juicy DARPA projects:
  – Active Social Engineering Defense (ASED)
  – Large Scale Social Deception (LSSD)
  
  Like the AP, Politico and others they now have extra reasons for going after Trump and no detail is too obscure to ignore in the fight, hence the interview with a 78 year old Afrikaner and Afriforum. Given your comment about the latter’s funding Reuters must have felt empathetic talking to them.
  
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  February 17, 2025 12:36pm
  - cmm
    
    For clarity, the Afriforum funding will be by Afrikaners for Afrikaners – not government or USAID funding.
    
    But like anyone that feeds on a problem, curing the problem makes their raison d’etre go away, so they very much want to be seen to be the only people who can help Afrikaners and Trump is monkeying with that.
    
    It is funny how history goes… Afrikaners are some of the more conservative and least communist people on the planet (Communism was outlawed during the 1970s/1980s and “Furthering the aims of communism” was a very broad-sweeping criminal act).
    
    Yet communism actually got its foot hold in South Africa in the 1920s with the Afrikaans miners’ unions which became Solidariteit (Solidarity), the Afrikaans trade union which is now in bed with the reasonably conservative Afriforum.
    
    Funny old world…
    
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    February 17, 2025 1:58pm
goNZ1

Stats NZ released a short time ago an annual NETT migration loss of 47,100 New Zealand citizens for the y/e 31 December 2024. For context that means we are hemorrhaging our own Citizens the equivalent of Upper Hutts population in 1 year!
That is a lot of taxpayers and productive potential giving up on our country – well seriously who can blame them?! Makes me wonder how many others are planning to bunk off if things drift on…
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February 17, 2025 11:50am
- cmm
  
  Bloody hell!
  It should be realised that the cream comes off the milk first.
  
  It is way easier to emigrate now than it was, say, 20 years ago. Now people can easily do research, find jobs and fill out forms via the internet. It was much more difficult back in the day.
  
  Still, it is generally the more useful and skilled people that are the ones that move. Consider:
  1) They are the people most likely to have high value skills that are attractive elsewhere and earn good coin that is worth moving for (ie. nobody is going to move to Aus to make $1 an hour more, but they will for $50 an hour more).
  2) They are the people who are better at doing research.
  3) They are generally more motivated and organised and can navigate the process.
  
  Very likely that those are either net taxpayers or will be in the next 5 to 10 years. There are likely less than 250,000 net taxpayers in NZ so we’ve probably lost 10% of them in 2024 alone.
  
  Unfortunately this is not a once off. We have been bleeding capable people for a few years and it will continue. Worse, a few sound bites won’t stop this.
  
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  February 17, 2025 2:11pm
I remember when

Mariameno Kapa-Kingi Enters Members Bill To Establish Mokopuna Maori Authority:
Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, released her members bill that will see the return of tamariki and mokopuna Maori from state care back to te iwi Maori.
She states, “this authority (an independent authority) will be their primary national agency that ensures the care and protection for mokopuna and tamariki Maori, prioritising whakapapa because whanau know what is best for their own mokopuna, not the state.”

Whakapapa – genealogy, genealogical table, lineage, descent – reciting whakapapa was, and is, an important skill and reflected the importance of genealogies in Maori society in terms of leadership, land and fishing rights, kinship and status.
It is central to all Maori institutions. (Te Aka Maori dictionary.)

Obviously Mariameno does not see the genealogical problems in her arguments.
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February 17, 2025 11:50am
- Maggy Wassilieff
  
  Here’s a couple of Oranga Tamariki kiddies that need a bit of wrap-around iwi care…
  
  Dad (age 20) is heading off to jail again….
  Mum is just out of jail….
  2 of their siblings are with Granny….
  
  https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/542112/facebook-marketplace-fraudster-monaro-kerr-wilson-is-at-it-again-this-time-scamming-30-000-worth-of-property
  
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  February 17, 2025 1:00pm
  - Swifty
    
    Thanks welfare state!
    
    6 0
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    February 17, 2025 1:11pm
  - RichardF
    
    You have to be very stupid to sell something worth $30k on Facebook and hand over the keys based on a screenshot of a bank app.
    
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    February 17, 2025 2:43pm
- Eastlander
  
  Overseas adoption would best for them – putting them back in their horrid communities is simply a willful refusal to solve the problem.
  
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  February 17, 2025 1:41pm
- PurplePen
  
  “because whanau know what is best for their own mokopuna, not the state”.
  
  Well that’s blatantly not true in all cases. The sentence in English is “because extended family know what is best for their own children and young people, not the state”.
  
  There are many instances where the extended Maori family hasn’t demonstrated what’s best for their children and young people, Ruthless Empire being one example.
  
  The people that know what’s best are loving and caring people carrying out the role of a parent. The statement above is outright racist and false.
  
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  February 17, 2025 3:41pm
imalwaysright

NZ governments have been weak for the last 50 years. For them to survive we have to be weak. Therefore they don’t want us being wealthy and having the choices that wealth brings.
They want us fearful, poor, ignorant, and against each other.
That way they have a chance of controlling us.
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February 17, 2025 12:04pm
I remember when

Dr. Michael Bassett: Who is a Maori? (11/6/2023).
“The 17% of New Zealand’s population who claim to be Maori all have more DNA from non-Maori ancestors.
The are now no full-blooded Maori alive, and few, if any, half Maori.”

Stats NZ states that 170,000+ Maori live in Australia, 8,000 in the UK and 3,500 in the US.
Roughly 20% of the total Maori population.

Takuta Ferris states : “Te Iwi Maori gave a piece of themselves to our Pakeha counterparts.”

And, obviously, got a bigger part back!
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February 17, 2025 12:04pm
Steve Otto N Shore

Trump asks Supreme Court to fire ethics chief as mass purge runs into legal roadblocks.
Strange, I thought Trump was Commander in Chief?

https://www.msn.com/en-nz/news/other/trump-asks-supreme-court-to-fire-ethics-chief-as-mass-purge-runs-into-legal-roadblocks/ar-AA1zar8W?
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February 17, 2025 12:44pm
- Cassandra
  
  Steve: the employee has gone to the SC, Trump is making the case as a party to it. He has sacked the employee, now it’s a legal matter.
  
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  February 17, 2025 1:15pm
- fernglas
  
  The guy who wrote the headline was too lazy to read the article Steve. Otherwise it would have read “Trump asks Supreme Court to lift injunction preventing him from firing ethics chief”.
  
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  February 17, 2025 1:39pm
Bridgenag

The Hidden Dangers of Hospital Births and How to Protect You and Your Baby
Unmasking the Business of Being Born

https://open.substack.com/pub/amidwesterndoctor/p/the-hidden-dangers-of-hospital-births?r=1aj1bv&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
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February 17, 2025 1:03pm
- cmm
  
  I would be careful reading too much into this. Experiences in USA are likely very different from NZ.
  
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  February 17, 2025 2:25pm
Notsofast

This looks great!
From the FSU

The proposed principles for the new constitution include the following:

InternetNZ must centre Te Tiriti o Waitangi in its work
That users must be able to enjoy the Internet free from harm
InternetNZ will be co-governed with two co-chairs – one of whom must be Māori
Any member who does not agree with InternetNZ being a Te Tiriti centric organisation will be ineligible to be on the Board
The number of elected board members will drop from nine to five, and appointments increased from two to four so almost half the board will be appointed
At least one third of the Board must be Māori

Bye bye Kiwiblog
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February 17, 2025 1:09pm
- Blog-aholic
  
  Let’s define what exactly is a ‘maori’ first then we can have that discussion………
  
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  February 17, 2025 1:52pm
- Swifty
  
  Before I leap to judgement, I must ask the question, how did Maori run their internet before European arrival?
  
  Maybe they have some lessons for us?
  
  //
  
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  February 17, 2025 1:57pm
  - JackRabbit
    
    Anyone that actually understands the internet and its complexities will be too busy being employed to be on a board that wants to censor others.
    
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    February 17, 2025 3:20pm
  - mandk
    
    Māori didn’t run their internet, silly.
    
    Papatuanuku and Ranginui provided the service. That’s why Māori offer karakia to them.
    
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    February 17, 2025 3:25pm
    - Swifty
      
      Thanks mandk!
      
      I stand corrected.
      
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      February 17, 2025 4:48pm
  - Mod88
    
    It was developed alongside their Gene Technology…
    
    2 0
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    February 17, 2025 5:07pm
- cmm
  
  Bye bye NZ.
  
  8 2
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  February 17, 2025 2:17pm
- PurplePen
  
  “InternetNZ must centre Te Tiriti o Waitangi in its work”. What does that mean in practice. You see it all the time, but no one says what that means.
  
  “That users must be able to enjoy the Internet free from harm”. Well first you’d need to define what harm is. Good luck with that. Consider the previous government couldn’t say what hate was except dear leader said ” you’ll know it when you see it”.
  
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  February 17, 2025 3:47pm
- PurplePen
  
  “InternetNZ must centre Te Tiriti o Waitangi in its work”.
  
  I’ll have a go. The 3 ToW articles are essentially 1. Crown is sovereign. 2. You can do what you like on and with your own property so long as its not a crime. 3. Everyone has the same rights and duties as subjects of the Crown.
  
  1. Crown makes the rules or law. InternetNZ must abide.
  2. If the internet is on or passes through your property you can do with it what you want, so long as it’s legal. Eg. no child pornography posts.
  3. You have all the same rights and duties as everyone else in relation to access and usage of the internet.
  
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  February 17, 2025 3:53pm
- PurplePen
  
  Good lord. Have any of you seen their website .. completely mired in Manglish.
  
  https://internetnz.nz/about-internetnz/our-strategy/
  
  And here’s who their they’re in bed with, no wonder:
  
  Home Funding Our partners
  Our partners
  
  We’ve developed partnerships with other Internet-related organisations over the years. Take a look at who they are here.
  
  Tāiki E!
  Tāiki E!
  Tāiki e! Impact House is a dynamic hub dedicated to changemakers, people eager to tackle pressing social and environmental challenges through entrepreneurship. Tāiki e! believe business should be a force for positive social and environmental innovation.
  
  Tāiki e!
  Te Matarau logo
  Te Matarau
  Te Matarau is a collective that aims to provide its membership with networking and collaborative opportunities, as well as coordinate the efforts of Māori who are working in the technology sector.
  
  Te Kōhanga Reo logo
  Te Kōhanga Reo
  Te Kōhanga Reo is about whānau working together to revitalise and strengthen te reo Māori me ōna tikanga. Tamariki in Kōhanga are totally immersed in the Māori language, customs and values.
  
  Katoa Connect logo
  Katoa Connect (previously 20/20 trust)
  Katoa Connect delivers a range of leadership, research, and programmes related to Digital Inclusion in New Zealand. Founded in 1994, we’ve worked with them on a range of projects.
  
  Katoa Connect
  New Zealand Policy Research Institute Te Kāhui Rangahau Mana Taurite
  AUT
  AUT has been a partner of ours for a long time. During that period, we have worked with them on a number of projects; particularly with the NZ Work Research Institute (NZWRI) on the World Internet Project.
  
  AUT, NZ Work Research Institute
  Figure.nz logo
  Figure.nz
  Figure.nz’s mission is “to get the people of New Zealand using data to thrive”. It provides a range of data and graphs enabling people to understand and communicate important information.
  
  Figure.nz
  Tuanz logo
  TUANZ
  The Technology Users Association of New Zealand, or TUANZ, is a membership association with over 30 years of experience encouraging positive change in telecommunications.
  
  TUANZ
  Digital Future Aotearoa logo
  Digital Future Aotearoa
  With programmes such as Code Club Aotearoa and Code Club 4 Teachers under their wing, Digital Future Aotearoa’s mission is “Raising the Digital Capability of all New Zealanders”.
  
  Digital Future Aotearoa
  Partnerships 2019-2023
  Partnership given by financial year (1 April-31 March)
  
  Partner organisations FY2023/24 FY2022/23 FY2021/22 FY2020/21 FY2019/20
  20/20 Trust $65,000 $65,000 $100,000 $100,000 $100,000
  Auckland University Technology (AUT) $65,000 $65,000 $50,000 $100,000
  Digital Future Aotearoa $65,000 $65,000 $100,000 $190,000 $64,400
  FigureNZ $65,000 $65,000 $125,000 $150,000 $75,000
  Nga Kaihoe o Aotearoa, Waka Ama New Zealand $40,000 $40,000 $40,000
  Research Trust of Victoria University $50,913
  Telecommunications Users Association (TUANZ) $20,000 $10,000 $44,500 $60,000 $25,000
  Te Kōhanga Reo National Trust $50,000
  Te Matarau – Māori Tech Association $65,000
  Tohatoha $110,000 $110,000 $130,576
  Tohatoha additional funding $25,000 $75,000
  Tāiki e!
  
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  February 17, 2025 4:03pm
  - kevn
    
    PP… Calling DOGE.
    
    6 1
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    February 17, 2025 5:43pm
  - H. Upmann
    
    We are completely fucked.
    
    4 0
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    February 17, 2025 7:26pm
- Steve Otto N Shore
  
  More takeover tactics. And so the cancer spreads.
  
  4 2
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  February 17, 2025 4:31pm
Steve Otto N Shore

Treason. Why Maori Activists (And Some Politicians Too) Should Face Charges.
Maori TV reported Julian Batchelor’s Treaty Bill Oral Submission. Have to ask why?
The committee is stacked with activists!

Video 22 min.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s41KpjMlb0I
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February 17, 2025 4:40pm
Ra Henare

Things you will never read in NZ MSM.

Where its Israeli good. Palestinian Bad.

From Miami, not the Middle East.
https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/crime/article300433159.html
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February 17, 2025 6:19pm
greybeard

https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/360584517/helpless-screams-man-sentenced-beating-four-month-old-puppies
Where is the name and photo of this feral ?
How can he get away with such cowardly, inhumane behaviour ?
Someone out there: tell us who he is.
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February 17, 2025 7:52pm
- Ghost
  
  Get better news sources
  
  https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/palmerston-norths-crimson-toto-sentenced-for-beating-two-puppies-with-a-fence-paling/LA5QAX2MFRGBJHZKJTSOF4WB6I/
  
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  February 17, 2025 7:56pm
  - greybeard
    
    Thank you.
    
    2 0
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    February 17, 2025 9:17pm
- Scooter
  
  In the comments on a facebook page, there is his photo with a baby and toddler. He’ll be getting some karma.
  
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  February 17, 2025 9:35pm

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