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June 23, 2024 8:00am by Kokila Patel

General Debate 23 June 2024

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General Debate

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Chuck Bird

There was a meeting of ratepayers and two Councillors in Taupo about rates spent trying to save the planet. The link is below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-5yl4oOoVc

This made me look at my own council in the Waikato District.

I think councils should stick to rubbish, parks, and libraries and not spend my rates on stuff that is the role of central government. The link below is from my council.

https://www.waikatodistrict.govt.nz/docs/default-source/your-distric/climate-change/climate-change-facts/clarifying-climate-change.pdf?sfvrsn=e6a99dc9_1

Does anyone here support their rates going to this sort of nonsense?
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June 23, 2024 8:10am
- Chris Nisbet
  
  Sigh. When a councillor is asked how many submissions are needed before they pay attention to them he responds by saying there are submissions from both ends of the spectrum, and it’s impossible to keep everybody happy.
  IOW he’s saying that submissions from both sides have equal weight, which is nonsense. Councils need to look at the content of the submissions to evaluate their worth.
  It’s quite obvious, and, when pushed, politicians will even admit it, that money spent on ‘fixing’ the climate (btw, it ain’t broken) won’t alter the climate in any meaningful way. Therefore, money spent this way is wasted and would be better spent on useful things instead (or not taken from people in the fitst place).
  
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  June 23, 2024 8:41am
  - Steve Otto(North Shore)
    
    So he did not answer the question.
    Money not taken from the people in the first place is a good idea, how about it Councils?
    
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    June 23, 2024 8:52am
    - pdm
      
      `Money not taken from the people in the first place is a good idea, how about it Councils?’
      
      Hastings District Council are you listening. Dropping the proposed rates increase from 25% to 19% is not acceptable. In fact it is obscene and an insult to ratepayers.
      
      Get your act together and get it down to 4% to 6%.
      
      You are not there to grandstand and build monuments to your years on council.
      
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      June 23, 2024 9:06am
      - SWIM
        
        pdm.
        Hastings Council are intent on turning the town to a total basket case.
        They have announced that Development Contributions will go from $27K to $53K per site. This is at a time of record low development and record housing deprivation.
        HDC have banked on Plan Change 5 (inner city infill) to be their saviour … saying that 3000 new sites will be created.
        Who in their right mind is going to cut the back yard off a property when its going to cost at least $150,000 to do and devalue the site by $100,000. To achieve a site worth maybe $250,000. Do the math.
        
        HDC are now going to be double fucked with the Nats proposing consent free granny flats, so anyone with a back (or front)yard that can fit a secondary dwelling will do so at low cost and rent it out. No fees to Council. Not even building consent. Massive demand currently for houses that can take multi generational living as people try to cut costs.
        
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        June 23, 2024 10:01am
      - oldgolfer
        
        The old trick: start high, then edge down and claim the council is listening to the ratepayers. Pfft.
        
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        June 23, 2024 10:43am
      - Paulus
        
        But who is going to pay and look after the most important part of all Councils, the staff and all their perks, and outside associates.
        
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        June 23, 2024 10:44am
      - jkt
        
        I think you will have your work cut out to find any council that increased rates and taxes by more than inflation up to 2017.
        
        Climate emergencies were declared left right and centre and then Covid hit!
        
        It will be interesting to get a council employee head count pre 2018 to compare with current head count and also look at the cost of employees and the deployment.
        
        The battle against Atmospheric CO2 cannot be fought and won by local authority employees.
        
        Climate adaptation will need more resources, but I think you will find that there was a very moderate growth in council capacity to deal with adaptation and that most of the capacity growth was to deliver soft or social services.
        
        Inflation does not mean there is more work, it just means that one needs more money to do even less. Why then, the increases in head count?
        
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        June 23, 2024 3:13pm
  - cmm
    
    Exactly right.
    Submissions are not votes.
    Just one submission, containing the right facts, should be enough to sway a decision.
    
    Anyone with this level of understanding should not be in politics.
    
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    June 23, 2024 10:09am
    - Colville
      
      Greens/Greeenpeace/Twig and Tweet types will always use volume of submissions as an agrument..
      
      “1000 submissions were received and 97% were against the proposal” type bullshit.
      
      Which means 950 members clicked a link and filled out name and address and an auto submission was sent… save the gay snails!!
      
      But 30 well thought out submissions were received in support.
      
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      June 23, 2024 10:27am
      - rouppe
        
        To be fair, the fsu and tu use the same tactic.
        
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        June 23, 2024 11:25am
  - NeverMindTheBollocks
    
    In my view, unless submissions are overwhelmingly in favour of a change, the status quo should prevail. If the proponents of a change cannot persuade neutrals of the merits of their case then it must fail.
    
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    June 23, 2024 12:21pm
- redeye
  
  I’m not a climate scam supporter but at least it very loosely relates to council activities.
  Unlike these geese that think they can influence middle eastern policy.
  https://community.scoop.co.nz/2024/06/whangarei-councillors-slam-mayor-over-palestine-refusal/
  
  Whangārei Mayor Vince Cocurullo is being slammed by five of his councillors for refusing to allow council debate on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict next week.
  
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  June 23, 2024 9:12am
- Mod88
  
  Try Wanganui, Ratepayers funding Marae improvements when said Marae are exempt paying Rates. 55% of Ratepayers said “No Way” so Wanga’s Council does it anyway. Rates Strike time methinks, Nationwide.
  
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  June 23, 2024 9:43am
- PurplePen
  
  Wgtn council, which many have concluded is stuffed, wants to sell airports shares and spend the proceeds on climate and green stuff, not pipes. Enough said
  
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  June 23, 2024 9:53am
- AitchW
  
  Of course not. If they are proposing rates increases of 10%+ they need to stop the mayoral jollies like visits to twin cities, they need to stop painting dots on the roads, they REALLY need to stop building cycle lanes that only cause congestion and they need to stop renovating perfectly functional playgrounds and libraries.
  Just like the last government they need to stop throwing everyone else’s money around like confetti and live within their means.
  Leave the ‘nice to haves’ until they’ve balanced the books and paid off debt.
  
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  June 23, 2024 9:58am
  - pdm
    
    AW – cycle lanes in Hastings don’t cause congestion because;
    1. The oldies in Hi Vis ride on the footpath.
    2. The lycra luvvies ride down the middle of the road 3 and 4 abreast.
    
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    June 23, 2024 11:10am
    - AitchW
      
      Freaking MAMILs ! Lots of tar seal and perfectly smooth concrete cycleways in and around our town. The entitled wanna be Olympic athlete shun those preferring to ride on, often narrow and winding, roads.
      Their Lycra and sanctimony force fields will not save them when they the are collected by a milk tanker…
      
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      June 23, 2024 11:21am
      - Toes on the nose
        
        As an (non annoying) bike commuter… half of me wonders if the MAMILS are actually on to it… who needs bike lanes when you’ve got perfectly good roads to bike on (aside from their annoying 3 abreast habit).
        Cos the bikelane I go on would actually be pretty scary for a semi-fast MAMIL on account of the zillion driveways peepps are backing out of onto said platinum bikelane..
        
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        June 23, 2024 2:15pm
    - NZer In Exile
      
      You know what’s even dumber than an self righteous MAML riding on busy roads as if on a suicide mission? A lefty on a bicycle, obliviously floating along WITH A KID ON THE BACK in a busy urban setting with roads chock full of frustrated and aggressive dangerous idiot drivers!
      
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      June 24, 2024 9:58pm
- Chuck Bird
  
  Would anyone living in Waikato District who is concerned about their rates please email me.
  
  [email protected]
  
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  June 23, 2024 10:24am
  - AitchW
    
    CB who have you pissed off to attract 3 downticks on a very innocuous post? Or has the resident downticker set up another couple of aliases?
    
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    June 23, 2024 1:45pm
    - Chuck Bird
      
      Like Maggie Pie says some people are haters. I do think I will need any counselling thanks.
      
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      June 23, 2024 2:57pm
- Positan
  
  Councils, like parliament, have become irrelevant to the future of this country due to several influences.
  
  A magnificent, cogent article by Professor Robert McCullough presents the actuality in depth.
  
  https://breakingviewsnz.blogspot.com/2024/06/professor-robert-macculluch-has-new.html
  
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  June 23, 2024 10:54am
  - PurplePen
    
    Read that thanks. One comment on the page actually suggested a solution, so I quote here. Not sure about 1, but definitely 2, 3 and 5. Some sort of version of 4 also.
    —————
    The current Government needs to make the following changes:
    1. Disband the Supreme Court and return to the Privvy Council fold
    2. Cut off all media funding and let them stand on their own commercial feet
    3. Remove the Māori electorate roll and race based seats
    4. Return our electoral system back to Electoral MPs only. Reduce MP numbers by at least a third.
    5. Refocus spending on core activity only. Disestablish any government department that doesn’t contribute to core functions
    
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    June 23, 2024 1:33pm
- [email protected]
  
  No I do not support it
  
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  June 23, 2024 11:03am
- NeverMindTheBollocks
  
  Roads, rates, rats, rubbish. That’s about it.
  
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  June 23, 2024 12:18pm
Matt Long

Social media is continuing with the election interference, this time blocking the Reform party from advertising.
Chinese algorithm Tiktoc has been turning youth into mindless anti Semites and trans activists, and all of the major platforms have pushed TDS hoaxes.
How long before the people behind it face charges?
https://x.com/Nigel_Farage/status/1804565965679845504
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June 23, 2024 8:14am
- Muttonbird
  
  I don’t like much about Farage except for being the target of the odd milkshake.
  
  But he’s spot on here:
  
  UK’s Nigel Farage sparks outrage from opponents after saying West ‘provoked’ Ukraine war.
  
  https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/2024/06/uk-s-nigel-farage-sparks-outrage-from-opponents-after-saying-west-provoked-ukraine-war.html
  
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  June 23, 2024 10:24am
  - Matt Long
    
    In fact he was quite prescient about the UK setting Ukraine up and leaving them out to dry in an much older interview I just saw.
    Glad to see you siding with Farage and Trump Mutton, it’s hard to understand why the leftists like Obama provoke so many wars.
    Incidentally Google has reinstated the Reform Party’s advertising account.
    
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    June 23, 2024 2:33pm
    - Grunter
      
      Yep, the only time I’ve agreed with Muttonman.
      
      Trump in the last few days has come out quite strongly saying Biden and the State Dept did everything they could to provoke Putin. Which is clearly true.
      
      We’re going to allow Ukraine into NATO and we’re going to give them some nukes – Biden, Blinken and Nuland
      
      OK, we will and send troops into Ukraine – Putin
      
      No you won’t, we’re the USA, the most powerful nation that has ever existed! – Bidens teleprompter
      
      Putin – you dickhead, send the troops in.
      
      Trump has said he can not believe what Biden has done. Farage is the only UK politician that has a brain.
      
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      June 23, 2024 5:36pm
  - NoFax
    
    The West did not provoke the war – Russian imperialism caused it. No country has the right to “co-govern” another country and when the likes of Ukraine and the Baltic states look for help against continual Russian threats that isn’t provoking.
    
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    June 23, 2024 4:26pm
    - Grunter
      
      So if you were Putin, what would you have done? Just let NATO put nukes into Ukraine?
      
      If China threatened to put nukes into Mexico what would the US do?
      
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      June 23, 2024 5:40pm
  - Caine9
    
    Absolutely incorrect. NATO is a defence alliance to protect members. The only reason Putin would be threatened by NATO is because he wants to invade countries who are not NATO members without the risk of NATO defending them and wrecking his plans of empire expansion.
    The EU is a trading and political membership. The only reason Putin won’t like it is because it again threatens to limit his expansionist agenda.
    If Russia is non-confrontational and focusses on it’s own people, whatever happens elsewhere is irrelevant.
    Justifying Putin’s stance is tantamount to giving him free rein to attack anyone he wants and standing back while he does it.
    Shameful.
    
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    June 23, 2024 7:19pm
  - NZer In Exile
    
    Trump and Farage will make a great transatlantic tag team!
    
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    June 24, 2024 10:00pm
Bridgenag

We have rapist sitting at home too…….

Woman receives a two-day prison sentence for insulting a rapist who took part in a group sexual assault on a 15 year-old girl; the rapist himself and seven of his fellow perpetrators get no time
The German criminal justice system has become a cruel farce.

https://open.substack.com/pub/eugyppius/p/woman-receives-a-two-day-prison-sentence?r=1aj1bv&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
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June 23, 2024 8:16am
- Inandout
  
  Brid, Germany is heading toward the Right because of this.
  
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  June 23, 2024 8:37am
- MCōs
  
  I thought I’d look a bit more into the story, but it’s a bit difficult when all the links reference German language articles
  The judge, Anne Meier-Göring, presided over the trial of some ninety year old former concentration camp guard who was 17 at the time.
  
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  June 23, 2024 8:46am
peterwn

So according to the Left and their compliant media, The Aratere problem was caused by the cancellation of the two turkey ships ie if Nicola had left the order to proceed, then the grounding would not have happened. Perhaps the incident shows that the new ships could not have operated safely in the Picton arm of the Sounds or in Tory Channel. In particular the new ferries would not have been able to turn near Picton and this did not seem to have been addressed in the design or business case (one has to ask what business case – seemed Labour Cabinet thumbed its nose at Treasury advice). So presumably Kiwirail would have gone cap in hand to the Government for more money to add a second bridge and extra propulsion equipment so the ferries could go safely in reverse until they reached the main part of the Sound opposite Lochmara Bay.
If Kiwirail had stuck to two new rail-enabled ferries that fitted existing shore facilities everyone would have been happy.
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June 23, 2024 8:26am
- rouppe
  
  Exactly right.
  
  The Aratere had just come off significant maintenance. If the steering fails just after that it’s because the maintenance work was poor. I heard them complain they used second hand parts. Well plenty of vehicles are repaired with second hand parts taken off a wreck, and plenty of vehicles are repaired with refurbished parts off other vehicles. Why is no one complaining about the quality of the work done on that boat?
  
  The proposed replacements could not turn around at picton which means it would have to reverse for some 14km between picton and Tory channel. I can’t see that as being safe, not to mention the wave created by the blunt end being pushed through the water and the damage that would cause to all the small jettys of home owners and that coastline in general.
  
  Just crazy
  
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  June 23, 2024 11:39am
  - Taieri
    
    The Aratere had just come off significant maintenance. If the steering fails just after that it’s because the maintenance work was poor.
    ————–
    
    Not necessarily. I’ve had similar breakdowns on 2-3 years old, well maintained vessels.
    BTW:using 2nd hand parts is very common in shipping. For example, when you do main engine overhaul you don’t buy new pistons, just overhaul the existing ones.
    
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    June 23, 2024 12:27pm
    - peterwn
      
      There is supposed to be duplication in steering systems. So the issue is why did both systems fail? Or was it a common mode failure>
      
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      June 23, 2024 4:00pm
      - Taieri
        
        A bit of a mystery there. There are two separate rudders actuated by two separate steering gears. Each steering gear has two motor/pump units. There’re also an independent remote control systems for each steering gear, with quite sophisticated circuitry and which is complemented by a direct push button control, which by passes the main control system. Each steering gear has two independent power supplies. In addition to all that it is possible to control steering gear from the local position, located in the steering gear compartment.
        So, there’s plenty of redundancy there. What went wrong then?
        
        There’s a few other questions:
        
        Why emergency steering wasn’t used?
        
        How long did it take from the vessel going off course to grounding?
        
        Was an attempt made to stop the vessel’s movement, with engines and/or anchors?
        
        Were thrusters used to divert the vessel from its eventual “place of rest”? If not, why not?
        
        No doubt there’ll be a thorough investigation and we may get some answers. But, at the end of the day, there’s something very wrong with the technical management of the Interislander. Their fleet is pretty old but this is not the reason why they should have so many breakdowns. There are plenty of ships that are even older, yet they operate without too many problems. The majority of NZ deep sea fishing vessels are 30 years or more, yet they operate with a very high reliability in a very harsh conditions.
        
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        June 23, 2024 5:11pm
  - G the giant from Dunedin
    
    Yes, and we now find the dugs were too small
    
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    June 23, 2024 2:09pm
  - DeepBlue
    
    The steering system was completely changed to a “state of the art” (Kiwirail CEO) system last week as they couldn’t get spare parts. They ran 7km of new cabling to do this.
    
    My pick is a software or electrical problem that caused the ship to turn early. It was going along its usual course and then deviated.
    
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    June 24, 2024 3:19am
- greybeard
  
  I think the cost of the new shore facilities required by the much larger ferries is probably the main reason for the budget blowout and subsequent cancellation. Maybe I am wrong.
  
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  June 23, 2024 11:40am
  - peterwn
    
    Exactly. Shore facilities would have been a secondary consideration with a nominal guesstimate cost added to the cost of the ferries. It was not (or chosen not to be) the deal breaker it turned out to be.
    
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    June 23, 2024 12:07pm
    - AitchW
      
      I’m happy to be corrected but I believe that the shore facilities were 80% of the total cost of replacing the existing ferries.
      
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      June 23, 2024 12:43pm
  - G the giant from Dunedin
    
    Yes, the 3 billion blow out is virtually all infrastructure, the left are saying it’s onl1.5 billion. But Kiwirail had already received significant extra funds, snd there was no funds to replace the tugs which were not powerful enough to move the larger ships
    
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    June 23, 2024 2:12pm
    - Taieri
      
      there was no funds to replace the tugs which were not powerful enough to move the larger ships
      ———–
      
      These vessels do not usually require tug assistance.
      
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      June 23, 2024 5:17pm
- Local Miller
  
  That is such a stupid argument from the leftist media. The proposed new ferries wouldn’t have been delivered for a several years yet, so their cancelation by this government had no relevance to this weekend’s grounding.
  Why don’t they put blame where it belongs, in Kiwirail and Liebour? Oh, I forgot Right = BAD, Left = good.
  
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  June 23, 2024 12:04pm
  - Tricati
    
    And Helen Clark just needs to stay out of it, as it was her and Cullen that bought the shambolic Railways back, and left further debt for National to deal with – Its like history repeating itself.
    
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    June 23, 2024 12:22pm
    - G the giant from Dunedin
      
      Media should get . Clark on snd question her over the infrastructure was not adequate, and the tugs that were too small, we would see them just how much of a maritime expert she is
      
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      June 23, 2024 2:14pm
    - peterwn
      
      She is trying to remain relevant probably hoping to be appointed Governor General.
      Anyway if she was grilled (and she would decline all but patsy interviews) she would trot out her “I am not going to stand here and …..” line.
      
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      June 23, 2024 4:03pm
      - JimBobJoe
        
        The next Labour Govt will appoint Clark GG – 70% certainty
        
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        June 23, 2024 4:22pm
      - AitchW
        
        Surely when Labour get re-elected she’ll be far too old?
        
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        June 23, 2024 7:22pm
      - MCōs
        
        Keith Holyoake was the only politician ever appointed governor general and he was still in parliament at the time
        The appointment by National’s Rob Muldoon attracted so much criticism at the time on both counts it’s doubtful if it’ll be repeated, but there is a precedent
        
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        June 23, 2024 7:36pm
    - MCōs
      
      The railway system was bought back because it was shambolic.
      
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      June 23, 2024 4:47pm
      - AitchW
        
        Was it not equally shambolic before it was privatised?
        
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        June 23, 2024 5:47pm
  - Taieri
    
    That is such a stupid argument from the leftist media.
    ————
    
    But it is very useful for scoring political points.
    This whole business should have no political aspect at all. The Interislander should have been privatised long time ago. A government, any government, has no business running ships.
    
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    June 23, 2024 5:19pm
- Damocles11
  
  Looks like the MSM and every current and former Left wing politician is blaming ‘the cancellation of the new ferries’ as the reason for the grounding. “They’d rather give tax breaks to landlords” is invariably being trotted out by the on-line Lefty bot army. Given that half the population is of below average intelligence it is a worry how the public will perceive this whole business.
  
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  June 23, 2024 1:22pm
- G the giant from Dunedin
  
  Not just that, but the infrastructure would not have been ready, the tugs we now find out were too small, and they would not have been delivered for three years, Willis was right to can this sham, notice absolute no sign of Hipkins over this, I just wonder if that has something to do with this ship having power outages twice in Feb last year, 650 passengers, snd they were floating out of control for twenty minutes, government silence, that tight there f SSC Gould be dragged out
  
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  June 23, 2024 2:08pm
  - Quail
    
    Another option which was raised during the “ fast ferry debate ( and before) was establishing a ferry terminal at Cape Campbell. From memory turn around times supported this concept.
    This concept had substantial advantages for rail and also meant fast ferries were not damaging the iconic Marlborough sounds beaches.
    Again cost was the issue among other things!
    All options should be on the table to ensure state highway one does the best job it can!
    
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    June 23, 2024 4:50pm
  - Taieri
    
    I just wonder if that has something to do with this ship having power outages twice in Feb last year
    ———–
    
    That’s a different vessel. Kaitaki.
    
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    June 23, 2024 5:21pm
- freemark
  
  Possibly there were a few drunk/stoned/asleep at the wheel. We won’t know as apparently there were no post incident tests done. Union rules.
  Can we rule out a deliberate act to try & embarrass this Govt? Seeing the the many posts by the screeching left on social & main stream media one may wonder whether they were pre-written.
  Ditto for the pylon. Nobody injured, some inconvenience, massive headlines, hands-on work being performed.
  Not much would surprise me anymore.
  
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  June 23, 2024 10:01pm
Scott

Once again in the fraught area of race relations we find TVNZ refusing to follow the government’s lead. Health New Zealand now appears as the main title on their website, followed in smaller letters by Te Whatu Ora.
This is in line with the new government’s decision to use English names for government departments and agencies.
https://www.tewhatuora.govt.nz/
While Health NZ is implementing this change imperfectly, TVNZ reporter Benedict Collins was having none of it. During a long report about nurses pay and employment on Thurs night 1 news, he constantly referred to the organisation as Te Whatu Ora, never once Health NZ. He repeated “Te Whatu Ora” on Friday night reporting on the same issue.
This appears to be in line with the state broadcasters’ seeming refusal to accept the will of the electorate, the change of government and the government’s new policies.
Will TVNZ ever accept the changes or are they going to be a constant holdover of the defeated Labour government?
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June 23, 2024 8:46am
- Jack5
  
  The Government’s core web site has the Maori description not only first and above, but in bolder type than the the English wording. It also greets visitors with a large and bold “kia ora”.
  
  If that’s not a f-you to the Coalition politicians the undertaker will process me into a toi moko.
  
  https://www.govt.nz/
  
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  June 23, 2024 11:23am
- greybeard
  
  On the other hand I have noticed a huge reduction in the number who start their interviews with Hosking ( and other ZB hosts ) with some sort of maori greeting: the ones who still do so are usually employed by some Govt department or some govt-funded outfit.
  
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  June 23, 2024 11:37am
  - wsk12345
    
    I’m surprised on RNZ how many interviewees say Morena but pronounce it “marina”, ie clearly been told to use it but no effort at all….
    
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    June 23, 2024 12:23pm
    - NZer In Exile
      
      Seems like a pretentious affectation of the left that has only arisen in the last 8 or so years. A bit like Aotearoa though that has been hovering for a bit longer.
      
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      June 24, 2024 10:02pm
Close Hen Counters

I’m not sure what to say about lawyer who strangled girlfriend gets new name and is allowed to practice again – my son graduating with a law degree soon can’t for the life of him get work in NZ despite top grades and glowing CV … we suspect because of diversity hire at play, so is going to work in Australia
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June 23, 2024 8:53am
- wsk12345
  
  [Please no casual racism comments. mod.]
  
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  June 23, 2024 12:26pm
- NeverMindTheBollocks
  
  Hmm, a tricky one. It was 8 years ago, and he’s making the right noises. Should there be second chances, and if so, what do you have to do to get one?
  
  http://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/520315/lawyer-who-assaulted-girlfriend-has-new-name-defending-people-facing-domestic-violence-charges
  
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  June 23, 2024 12:51pm
imalwaysright

I wonder if the CEO responsible for the ferries will resign voluntarily ?
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June 23, 2024 9:06am
- AitchW
  
  No because it’s all nasty Nicola Willis’ fault.////
  
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  June 23, 2024 11:24am
- greybeard
  
  Have you seen this ?
  https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/350319695/live-kiwirail-chairman-handed-resignation-days-ship-ran-aground
  Great timing: I don’t recall seeing anything about this resignation in the past week, so is there something dodgy about the timing?
  Can resignations be officially back-dated?
  
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  June 23, 2024 11:44am
  - peterwn
    
    He would not have known the ship would run aground. I think he recognised he was in an impossible situation and wanted out. This gives the Government the chance to appoint a new chair who is not carrying baggage and hence is not burdened by the path in his or her thinking.
    
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    June 23, 2024 12:19pm
    - G the giant from Dunedin
      
      Sounds like the board will be refreshed as well
      
      3 0
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      June 23, 2024 2:20pm
  - imalwaysright
    
    Grey
    Well spotted. Hard to know what to believe anymore.
    
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    June 23, 2024 12:29pm
  - wsk12345
    
    Wonder if the trade off was “we will say you did it last week if you resign now” – otherwise we will be getting rid of you.
    
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    June 23, 2024 12:31pm
- G the giant from Dunedin
  
  They were given their orders just last eeek, I am sure Broen told them any maintenance issues you will resign, good for him, it looks like they feel on their swords
  
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  June 23, 2024 2:19pm
Yvette

The “plot” of the One NZ campaign is unusual, however, in that it centres on a transracial adoptive family who have apparently not disclosed or discussed adoption. This is despite it being plainly apparent from the physical differences between the Māori son and his very Pākehā adoptive parents.
In real life, such late or non-disclosure of adoption and whakapapa would be unethical and out of step with current adoption realities or good practice. The fact this and other aspects of the adoptive experience are depicted for comic effect is deeply insensitive to those directly affected.

It is an advertisement, of course, and not an objective depiction of reality. But this portrayal also belies the angst and anguish that can often accompany an adoptee’s decision to search – let alone the vulnerability of approaching potential family members. The fear of rejection looms large for many adopted people.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/on-the-inside/520221/does-one-nz-s-new-ad-campaign-connect-many-adopted-people-might-not-think-so

It is an advertisement, of course, and not an objective depiction of reality
“That it is not reality” should extend to the One shop friend, Pepper, who as well as pointing out that the stone was not that important as was the tartan on the box it came in, as a clue to the seeker’s identity, but that had the young woman been smart enough to also point out that a few One international phone calls, on the network she was employed by, would have avoided the guy travelling to Scotland to solve his problem, and deleted the ad’s plot line in doing so?

The sad thing about the ad, is that it is very long (indicating how cheap television spots must now be, and indicative of the failure of tv channels’ commercial operation) so having seen it once, it is a bloody bore to then see it so often. Like the Maori phrases, on particularly TVNZ news, now so glibly delivered that some are mispronounced (if it is correct that no Maori syllable ends in a consonant), and like the One ad, are then just an alienating irritation.
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June 23, 2024 9:15am
- NeverMindTheBollocks
  
  Interesting that the Maori “son” speaks English with a heavy Maori accent, despite his “parents” presenting as pakeha.
  
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  June 23, 2024 12:27pm
MCōs

Eighty years ago today my uncle and his mates took off from their airfield in Scotland in a Halifax on only his seventh bombing mission.
They were attacking some military target near Laon north of Paris in the aftermath of D-Day.
His flight log, which records basic information of every flight he did, abruptly ends with the word Missing
The plane came down in a field near a tiny village called Montchâlons and everyone was killed. The locals retrieved the bodies and they’re buried in the churchyard and there they remain.
He is the only Kiwi; the rest are British, one of whom was 18 when he died.
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June 23, 2024 9:15am
- AitchW
  
  I don’t think we can overstate how much we owe these guys. Both of my parents served in WW2, my dad fought in Africa and Europe, my mum in the WAAF in the south of England. She was engaged to a fighter pilot who was killed in the Battle of Britain.
  My paternal grandfather was killed in WW1, along with his 2 brothers.
  My grandfather was in his 50s.
  
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  June 23, 2024 10:02am
  - David Garrett
    
    Aitch: Quite so…if Adolf had won, the shape of the world would have been very different…maybe for as long as communism dominated Eastern Europe
    
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    June 23, 2024 11:35am
    - MCōs
      
      There’s no way Germany would have won WWII. They didn’t have the resources; a problem they tried to resolve by attacking the USSR, which had the food, oil etc they didn’t, but once they hadn’t quickly achieve their objectives on that front within a few months it was all over Red Rover.
      Declaring war on the USA was also a disaster.
      
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      June 23, 2024 5:16pm
- David Garrett
  
  MCos: You should rightly be very proud of your uncle; he was one of 1800 New Zealanders who failed to return from service with Bomber Command.
  
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  June 23, 2024 10:24am
Steve Otto(North Shore)

Taylor Swift’s jet targeted.
Well he jet was not even there. Bright sparks these Just Stop Oil idiots.
Maybe some of this is not true, just modern “news.”

https://discernreport.com/climate-activists-target-taylor-swifts-jet-deface-2-random-planes-in-london/?
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June 23, 2024 9:32am
- Paulus
  
  Anarchy is now part and parcel of society’s that we think we understand and know.
  They know that any judgement will be minimal and it will encourage them to do more.
  New Zealand is similar now with professional (Social Welfare paid) people who have nothing to do – often led by the media underneath encouraging them to destroy our country in the name of their freedom.
  
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  June 23, 2024 10:49am
Swifty

Check out Tamihere’s views on the desirability of complying with electoral law:

https://www.thepost.co.nz/politics/350315215/manurewa-marae-subject-complaints-during-local-council-elections/?utm_source=stuff_article&utm_medium=referral

Welcome to our future under ‘decolonisation’ – corrupt elections and a massive loss of the integrity of our public institutions.

I confidently predict it.
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June 23, 2024 9:34am
Grunter

Another thoughtful piece from Don Brash. I totally agree with his point – NZ should follow the example of Singapore when it comes to AUKUS and foreign policy.

https://www.bassettbrashandhide.com/post/helen-clark-and-don-brash-we-re-approaching-a-critical-junction
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June 23, 2024 9:40am
- nathie
  
  Oh dear I noticed Helen Clark’s scripted mouthpiece, Don Brash, didn’t mention the CCP hacking into NZ Parliament, as he pushes Clark’s worn-out anti-Americanism agenda.
  
  Recall when Helen Clark’s Labour Govt (1999-2008) wheeled out Jim Bolger (to much astonishment) as the right-leaning “friendly face” of Kiwibank?
  
  Looks like the string-puller puppeteer-in-chief, H1, has replaced the Jim Bolger “dummy” with a brand new Don Brash “friendly-face dummy” … in a desperate attempt to “woo” right-leaning pundits to continue supporting her 50-odd years of pro-marxism and anti-americanism.
  
  (Would make a great “Spitting Image” type satire programme if NZ still had one)!
  
  In the meantime Don Brash really needs to re-assess who his so-called new found friends are … particularly when the same H1 got up to her usual dirty tricks and flung the mud at him, derailing him at the last minute from becoming Prime Minister in 2005.
  
  Oh and didn’t she denounce him as “racist” aka Iwi/Kiwi (oh and pro-Bretheran) at the time as the mud went flying into hyper-drive (gaining sympathetic media-party coverage and allowing her to scrape back into power in 2005)?
  
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  June 23, 2024 12:28pm
  - Grunter
    
    You obviously don’t know Don Brash. No way he is a H1 mouthpiece. Yes they agree on this single topic.
    
    Keep cheering on the corrupt US view of the world. They will drag us into another unwinnable war soon.
    
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    June 23, 2024 5:45pm
- marcw
  
  Singapore 2024 Military Defence “one of the most capable, robust, technologically sophisticated and powerful militaries in the Southeast Asia region.”
  
  Active armed services: 51,000
  Available armed services: 1,255,000
  Air Force: 247 units, incl. 60 F16 & 40 F15, 20 F35 in use or on order.
  Navy: 4000 active personnel, 5000 reserves, 32 surface ships, 4 submarines, described as the 24th most powerful Navy in the world.
  Missile Defence: Operational integrated Astor 30 SAM all-weather anti-aircraft, anti-missile system.
  
  There would have to be something wrong with someone who compared NZ’s contemporary military requirements and future plans with Singapore’s current capability. Thoughtful, I don’t think so.
  
  Pussies vs tigers indeed.
  
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  June 23, 2024 1:15pm
Steve Otto(North Shore)

They’re never going to let the vaxx truth out.

Study on Covid vaccine autopsies find 74% were caused by the vaccine. Then removed 24 hours later.
You are not considered vaccinated until at least two weeks after your second vaccination. That means during that time you are considered unvaccinated. So if you die one week after the second shot you were unvaccinated! Really?
A long time ago I said the World needs Nuremberg 2.0.

https://rumble.com/v532o2x-censored-lancet-study-confirms-theyre-never-going-to-let-the-vaxx-truth-com.html?
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June 23, 2024 9:46am
- Steve Otto(North Shore)
  
  From my Discern Report email:
  “The war against the truth as it pertains to the deadly Covid-19 “vaccines” is all about self-protection. Complicit active participants and their supporting casts have way too much to lose if the truth comes out because they were the ones gaslighting Americans into getting the jabs they didn’t really want.
  
  Doctors and journalists. Politicians and bureaucrats. Big Pharma and Big Tech. All of them were involved in some way in shaming and bullying people into taking the experimental drugs even when they knew they were neither safe nor effective.
  
  Now that bits of truth are starting to come out, there’s a mad scramble to suppress any study that confirms what more and more Americans are starting to realize: The jabs are deadly and those pushing it in the past are more interested in covering their tracks than helping those they’ve harmed.”
  
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  June 23, 2024 9:49am
  - MCōs
    
    People like you do more harm than good
    Whenever a vaccine has come out in the past there have been people who say ‘beyond a shadow of a doubt’ that it causes all manner of grotesque side effects
    
    9 29
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    June 23, 2024 10:20am
    - newview
      
      Agree MC. 72% of the world’s population has had at least one shot. That’s good enough for me and I’m fully vaccinated and still alive.
      
      7 16
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      June 23, 2024 10:44am
      - pdm
        
        mrspdm and I have missed one booster.
        
        We have them because our GP recommends that we do.
        
        5 9
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        June 23, 2024 11:25am
      - Conservatarian
        
        The issue is not that you are jabbed to the eyeballs and still alive and healthy with no side effects. The issue is that governments around the world underwent a one size fits all mass jabbing programme (a massive afront to our individual rights) with an experimental gene therapy not fit for purpose based on a partnership between national health authorities, One World Health and pharma giants. Massive chunks of those jabbed received no actual benefit from being jabbed. Those aged under 55, those who were fit and heathy, had nothing to fear from Covid 19 – this much was clear after the [Diamond Princess?] cruise ship “experiment” that showed C19 only affected the elderly as a general rule, and those with respiratory issues and certain co-morbidities e.g. obesity. People who are “vax” injured (and the relatively small numbers of people who died) have every right to be aggrieved.
        
        I’m not jabbed, and I fought tooth and nail with my jabbed wife (a teacher) not to have my children jabbed. The argument ended up a stalemate with a jabbed daughter and an unjabbed son. Their ages were 10 and 8 at the time. Neither female in my household (nor any in my wider family or friend circle) appears to have any side affects. My son and I don’t have this worry. However, I have two workmates who are “vax” injured.
        
        24 2
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        June 23, 2024 11:39am
      - Dougal10
        
        But the real problem is you and your friends backed the compulsory vaccination of the population, and are still saying everyone should do it because it didn’t hurt me .
        
        23 2
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        June 23, 2024 11:46am
      - MCōs
        
        I was referring to vaccines past for all manner of diseases; polio, measles, chickenpox etc
        They all fired up earnest opposition from some small corner of the medical conglomerate, but in those days they didn’t have the reach provided by the internet.
        
        2 1
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        June 23, 2024 5:31pm
      - Jake Dee
        
        i don’t know where you are getting your figures from and maybe you are combining ALL vaccines. There haven’t been enough doses of the mRNA vaccine manufactured to dose anywhere near 72% of the world population.
        
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        June 23, 2024 10:53pm
    - Ghost
      
      So true, no side effects with this vaccine
      
      https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/why-a-popular-covid-19-vaccine-has-been-withdrawn-worldwide/9okw3jkkd
      
      10 2
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      June 23, 2024 11:58am
    - Steve Otto(North Shore)
      
      People like you can never explain the deaths. You never got hurt so the vax is OK?
      People like you are the reason the Aliens won’t talk to us.
      
      10 4
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      June 23, 2024 12:12pm
      - newview
        
        SO. Not sure if you are responding to my comment but if you are. Your silly alien comment says more about you than me. When I chose to get vaccinated I was, and are aware of the risks. IMO most who get vaccinated know there is some risk. To say I survived and so everyone should be vaccinated is nonsense. My point was by far the majority have no issues and some illnesses attributed to the vaccine is suspected but not proven.
        
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        June 23, 2024 2:11pm
    - wsk12345
      
      Should I have been forced to be jabbed as a healthy young person with zero physical contact with coworkers colleagues (who are overseas)?
      
      If yes, why?
      
      6 3
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      June 23, 2024 12:37pm
      - Steve Otto(North Shore)
        
        No!
        A lot of us just complied and got two jabs to get the fucking silly Ardern passport!
        
        5 2
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        June 23, 2024 2:05pm
  - Sacha
    
    My elderly in-her-eighties friend cheerily told me that she had her 4th booster last Thursday.
    About 4 weeks after her 3rd, last year, she had a sudden copious bleed from her small bowel, and required emergency surgery. Fortunately she recovered well after a bit of cut-and- stitch. She was told that there was no apparent reason for the bleed.
    I am keeping my fingers crossed that this active, healthy Great Grandma will have no further incidents.
    
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    June 23, 2024 12:04pm
- imalwaysright
  
  S.O
  Good post.
  Hard to fathom why you are getting downticks.
  Maybe denialism is a side effect of the jab, or maybe it is a feature of the propaganda.
  
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  June 23, 2024 10:19am
  - Steve Otto(North Shore)
    
    I get the downticks from those who can’t explain the deaths because they are vaxxed and OK.
    They also refuse to believe that the World was conned.
    “Safe and Effective” my arse!
    
    14 3
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    June 23, 2024 12:14pm
    - Benedict Yu
      
      I have repeatedly posted data, large scale data, that shows that the vaccinated have much lower mortality than the unvaccinated. Month on month every month. For me, that is the beginning and end of the argument.
      
      My only objection is that politicians lied about the effectiveness of the vaccine in preventing transmission. It never did that very well, except perhaps over a very short period. It was never like, say, the measles vaccine. However it significantly lowered the incidence of hospitalisation and deaths.
      
      I have now had 6 shots of the vaccine. I expect that I will have one annually for the rest of my life. Just like the flu vaccine. Totally routine.
      
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      June 23, 2024 12:41pm
      - imalwaysright
        
        “…the vaccine in preventing transmission. It never did that very well, except perhaps over a very short period…”
        
        What an odd statement. There is absolutely no way any scientist could design a test to confirm that.
        You keep telling us that you have seen the data. What data have you seen that proves what you say.
        Citing selected data on one hand and then making convenient assumptions on the other is the makings of a weak argument and, therefore, probably why you seem resistant to posts that refer to information that contradicts you.
        
        7 4
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        June 23, 2024 1:00pm
      - Bridgenag
        
        Please look at Robert W Malones posts,
        Steve Kirsch, EUGYPPIUS, and be educated as to how it is all happening.
        
        6 3
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        June 23, 2024 1:04pm
      - Steve Otto(North Shore)
        
        It is fine that you choose to have 6 shots of the vaccine and no side effects Benedict.
        Some have not been so lucky – they had reactions or died. Sometimes underlying medical conditions of course. Some get reactions, some don’t.
        eg, the drug suxamethonium is used as a relaxant to get a tube down your throat under anesthesia. Fine, but it nearly killed my by a anaphylaxis attack.
        I had two vaxes and I am fine. Others came off second best – under 6 foot of dirt.
        
        5 2
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        June 23, 2024 2:22pm
      - Grunter
        
        Bene – still using your Jan 2023 cumulated excess deaths data chart eh!
        
        2 0
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        June 23, 2024 5:53pm
  - Debsta
    
    It’s a planned feature.
    
    6 1
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    June 23, 2024 12:18pm
O C Smith

Are we facing a shortage of gas?
7 1
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June 23, 2024 9:53am
- All_on_Red
  
  Not on Kiwiblog
  
  10 2
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  June 23, 2024 11:29am
- Benedict Yu
  
  Yes.
  
  2 2
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  June 23, 2024 12:41pm
- Jethrod
  
  I have noticed popcorn cause copious amounts.
  
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  June 23, 2024 5:31pm
Maggie Pie

The WOKE CEO of ‘KiwiBank’ strikes again!
Same outfit who brought you Shaneel Lal as New-Zealander-of-the-Year 🙁

Imagine pulling one of these out of your wallet to pay for lunch at Leo’s……

https://x.com/wahinetoa7/status/1804369121892798737

We were dicussing this after Mass earlier. One of the guys reckoned the government should appoint Simeon Brown to oversee Kiwibanks entire operation before it’s too late. (see comments)
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June 23, 2024 10:02am
- pdm
  
  Pleased we don’t bank with `Jims’ bank – it is past time it was sold.
  
  How about Simeon (called Simon somewhere the other day in a news bulletin) Browne and Brooke van Velden to oversee it. They are both Ministers who don’t tolerate fools and get things done, including a sale.
  
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  June 23, 2024 10:19am
  - MCōs
    
    He’s not Simon and he’s not Browne
    
    Simeon Brown has a lot on his plate already.
    SH1 blocked in two locations up north, pylon fallen over, ferry aground and needs replacement, various councils in turmoil
    
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    June 23, 2024 10:27am
    - Paulus
      
      Simeon Brown is doing remarkedly well – good to see.
      What we voted for, despite the media.
      
      33 1
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      June 23, 2024 10:55am
    - pdm
      
      Mcos – Browne was my typo error but I think you missed the thrust of the rest of it,
      
      BTW as I said it was a news bulletin that called him Simon last week – probably NewstalkZB.
      
      8 1
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      June 23, 2024 10:59am
    - Jack5
      
      The Government owns a shade under 80 per cent of Kiwibank. It would have to change the directors if it wanted to reform it.
      
      Present Kiwibank directors are: Ian Cameron Blair, Anna Valerie Curzon, Mary Jane Daly, Jonathan Peter Hartley, Kate Louise Jorgensen, Jonathan Keith Macdonald, Kevin Mark Malloy, and Scott John Pickering.
      
      6 1
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      June 23, 2024 11:18am
      - Maggie Pie
        
        Surprised that Shaneel hasn’t been given a seat 😛
        
        13 2
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        June 23, 2024 12:03pm
  - Paulus
    
    Sold, but only in respect of putting it on the open market and getting properly capitalised under a real non Governmental Board, unlike the Reserve Bank.
    – it will not happen because at present its clients are those the other Banks will not touch.
    
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    June 23, 2024 10:53am
- Muttonbird
  
  Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
  Certainly, if you want to wreck an institution, Simeon Brown is your man.
  
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  June 23, 2024 10:21am
  - AitchW
    
    What do you base that assertion on?
    
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    June 23, 2024 11:02am
    - Steve Otto(North Shore)
      
      Witchcraft?
      
      13 0
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      June 23, 2024 12:18pm
- AitchW
  
  Presumably those cards are opt in?
  I would be less than impressed if my new card expressed pride in the rainbow community.
  I have no problem with the LGB bit, the rest of the alphabet soup can go away quickly.
  
  6 0
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  June 23, 2024 10:45am
  - Notsofast
    
    Trans is homosexual or autogynephile.
    Non binary is bisexual.
    
    1 1
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    June 23, 2024 12:36pm
  - PurplePen
    
    With you on that re the LGB. Still don’t get it why a credit card of all things needs to ‘celebrate’ or stand for anything sociological. Its an innocuous piece of equipment. But I guess if it keeps someone in the bank happy, what the heck. Waste of money tho
    
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    June 23, 2024 1:21pm
    - Notsofast
      
      Everything remotely promoting Trans is extremely dangerous.
      To children women and society.
      
      0 0
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      June 23, 2024 7:11pm
- Benedict Yu
  
  I don’t know who Leo is but I take your point. 😕
  
  It really is too much.
  
  6 2
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  June 23, 2024 12:45pm
  - MikeMan
    
    I am assuming they mean Leo Molloy, owner of the HQ bar in Auckland, former Mayoral candidate and right wing commentator.
    
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    June 23, 2024 4:22pm
Maggie Pie

WATCH

“It’s probably illegal, but I’m asking you to do it anyway”

– John Tamihere

https://www.thepost.co.nz/politics/350315215/manurewa-marae-subject-complaints-during-local-council-elections
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June 23, 2024 10:27am
- MikeMan
  
  Just made the Polices job easier I guess.
  
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  June 23, 2024 10:53am
  - imalwaysright
    
    MM,
    Don’t be too optimistic, the woke cops will be doing everything they can to not do everything they should.
    
    8 1
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    June 23, 2024 12:40pm
    - AitchW
      
      This will be a real test of the Commisioner’s ability to comply with the new minister’s expectation that the police will now be tougher on crime. It should be make or break. Never in my experience has such systematic corruption been exhibited so publicly and blatantly. JT et al should be before the beak in short order.
      
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      June 23, 2024 1:54pm
      - imalwaysright
        
        Aitch
        
        Everyone involved, including ministry employees, should have been suspended pending investigation.
        They are all still at work with access to the data being investigated.
        I can’t think of another country, including the corrupt banana republics, that would permit this to happen.
        Luxon and Mitchell must resign, they have failed to take the necessary steps to protect our democracy.
        
        3 3
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        June 23, 2024 2:41pm
- AitchW
  
  My god is there no corruption Tamahere will not entertain. It appears that he thinks he’s untouchable.
  Will his supporters riot outside the courtroom when he appears on a laundry list of corruption charges?
  Is this the spark which ignites the powder keg Tamahere and TPM have been packing since before the election?
  The authorities now have no option but to act, surely. Will they wait for the inquiry to hand down its decisions?
  
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  June 23, 2024 10:55am
Muttonbird

Any link between the Warriors’ pathetic capitulation this season and the endorsement of one Mike Hosking?

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/warriors-v-titans-coach-andrew-webster-struggles-to-explain-record-nrl-defeat-to-titans-vows-team-will-rebound/J2NNDT4RP5EBROEEKQKJW3XU3Y/

Computer says, “yes”.
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June 23, 2024 10:27am
- Graeme Hall
  
  Wonder if Kate will release her usual weekly video of husband & long-time Warriors fan Mike Hosking watching the game? He surely worked his magic on them last night.
  
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  June 23, 2024 2:25pm
- JimBobJoe
  
  Oh dear Mutty, you are a triffle silly on occasion.
  
  The Hosk has pumped the Wahs up every year since the first appear and certainty for the last 10!
  
  The Wahs have one good season every now and then, mainly when they have 5 to 8 Aussies in the team
  
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  June 23, 2024 4:31pm
  - MCōs
    
    How many Aussies in this year’s team.
    They certainly played a lot better a few weeks ago when a number of second stringers were in the team
    I watched until half time and read the collected speeches of Brad Thorne for light relief until the Blues game came on.
    
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    June 23, 2024 5:45pm
Muttonbird

Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
NZ royalists will be wondering why King Charles has decided to snub them on his tour down under but I can elucidate:

The King, a noted environmental activist, will not endorse by visiting a country which has voted in climate change deniers and grifters determined to undermine its environmental credentials for profit.

https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/entertainment/2024/06/king-charles-queen-camilla-to-skip-new-zealand-in-down-under-tour-reports.html
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June 23, 2024 10:33am
- Jack5
  
  Muttonbird, now that long-line and trawling fishing fleets are killing so many shearwaters, in the name of indigenous people’s natural conservation, will you swear off eating them? Your pseudonym will then be honourable.
  
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  June 23, 2024 11:32am
- Benedict Yu
  
  So why have these “climate change deniers” continued with the same climate change policy as the previous government?
  
  https://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2019/0061/latest/LMS183736.html
  
  What the government has done is cancel programmes that made ZERO difference to emissions, while reallocating wealth from low to high income earners, and from everyone to corporations, many of them foreign owned.
  
  You are surely a parody account. 😂
  
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  June 23, 2024 12:17pm
  - Swifty
    
    No, he’s no parody Benedict.
    
    He’s the left’s champion. The best they’ve got! Sent here to dazzle us with his brilliance….!
    
    Snigger.
    
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    June 23, 2024 1:35pm
- peterwn
  
  If that is his reason for not visiting NZ, then why is he visiting Oz? Oz would have equal if not more environmental concerns about mining. Perhaps Gina Rinehart is bullying the Oz media just like greenies and lefties bully the NZ media.
  Anyway when His Majesty does visit NZ in the future he would more than make up for not being able to visit NZ this year.
  
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  June 23, 2024 12:29pm
Prince

Apparently National Promised funding for some new Cancer drugs if elected.
The Opposition and media are going berserk because they were not delivered in the first Coalition Govt budget.
Does that mean all election promises must now be delivered in the first year of any Govt ? Does the fact that a party is in coalition alter that ?
Or is it just another stick to beat National with ?
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June 23, 2024 11:02am
- Benedict Yu
  
  I agree but the government has done a poor job in explaining its intentions.
  
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  June 23, 2024 12:22pm
  - G the giant from Dunedin
    
    Not really, they stated they will be delivered this year, there is issues with some of these drugs to now worked through, tomorrow they will tell us that the drugs will start this year, funding is in place, but a couple of these drugs will be delayed until we can get them signed on
    
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    June 23, 2024 2:34pm
    - Benedict Yu
      
      Yes really. There have been negative stories every day for last 3 weeks.
      
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      June 23, 2024 7:55pm
- surfing
  
  Or, maybe they only decided increase cancer drug funding after the budget criticism?
  
  Serious communication problems, or , fudging along as it goes? Either way, not good.
  
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  June 23, 2024 2:03pm
Yvette

Te Pāti Māori and data
Earlier this month, a government inquiry was established after the Sunday Star-Times revealed allegations that census data and private information collected during a Covid-19 immunisation drive run out of the marae, was used to help Te Pāti Māori’s general election campaign.
The marae was used as a voting place during the election last year; controversial because Kemp was running as a Te Pāti Māori candidate in the Tāmaki Makaurau seat.
https://www.thepost.co.nz/politics/350315215/manurewa-marae-subject-complaints-during-local-council-elections

A stoush between John Tamihere and the Ministry of Health will head to the High Court on Friday as Tamihere seeks urgent access to Māori health data to drive up their lagging vaccination rates.

The Ministry says it is still considering a request from Tamihere to access the vaccination data of all Māori, in his role as chief executive of the Whānau Ora Commissioning Agency (WOCA), an umbrella body for North Island Māori health providers.

But it’s indicated it is likely to say no, citing privacy reasons, so Tamihere has followed through on vows to file proceedings.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/126703647/john-tamihere-v-ministry-of-health-vaccination-fight-goes-to-high-court
________________

And an aside separate to the question above of what Tamihere wanted data for,
he also –

… criticised a ‘Māori to Māori’ outreach campaign by Telehealth, or Whakarongorau, saying it had just an 11 per cent success rate and had not worked because “Māori are not stupid, changing the name from Homecare to Whakarongorau is no better than painting a cow to look like a zebra … there is resistance from Māori when a non-Māori organisation (is) representing the ‘government’ calls”.

Where does that comment fit in with Winston’s want to weed out the zebra names and just leave sacred cows? (sorry, Asian Indians)
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June 23, 2024 11:02am
Jack5

Worry, worry time ..

United States national debt – $US28 trillion (about $NZ45. 7 trillion, that is “billion billions”) – will suck up government interest payments this year of $US892 billion (about $NZ1.45 trillion).

An article in the Wall Street Journal notes the view of historian Niall Ferguson that “any great power that spends more on debt service (interest payments on the national debt) than on defence will not stay great for very long.” Ferguson cites as examples Spain, pre-Revolution France, and the Ottoman and British empires.

The newspaper reports US Federal Government debt payments are now higher than amounts spent on defence.

For comparison, New Zealand’s debt clock (from the Taxpayers’ Union):

https://www.debtclock.nz
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June 23, 2024 11:06am
- Steve Todd
  
  A trillion is a thousand billion, not a billion billion.
  
  According to the US National Debt Clock, here, https://mail.usdebtclock.org/, the national debt is 34.8 trillion dollars.
  
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  June 23, 2024 11:25am
  - Jack5
    
    Steve, you are right. Thank you.
    
    A trillion to most in the Anglosphere is now a million million. This is known as the short-scale version, Wikipedia explains.
    
    Britain used the long-scale trillion, or a billion billion, officially until 1974, and I’m guessing NZ did, too. Wikipedia suggests some countries still use the long-scale trillion.
    
    There are also two definitions of “billion”: short scale, a thousand million; long-scale, a million million.
    
    America used the short-scale versions of the numbers long before British and Commonwealth nations (Canada may be an exception) moved to them.
    
    I remember confusion in NZ in the 1970s about “billion”.
    
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    June 23, 2024 11:51am
    - Jack5
      
      Steve, on total US national debt I’ll stick with the “Wall Street Journal” amount of “accumulated national debt of $28 trillion”.
      
      An additional piece from its report on US national debt: “This year, it will be about equal to the entire gross domestic product (and by some measures higher when additional government accounts are included),”
      
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      June 23, 2024 12:05pm
      - Steve Otto(North Shore)
        
        I’ll fix it for you:
        “The difference between a million and a billion is three zeros, and as zeros have no value there is no extra cost.”
        AOC.
        
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        June 23, 2024 12:24pm
      - Steve Todd
        
        Thanks for your responses, Jack. Given that we’re talking about US debt, I thought we should also use the US definition of a trillion, being a thousand billion.
        
        I, too, remember the confusion in the 70s about a billion.
        
        As for the actual US national debt, one wonders why the debt clock is so different from the figure used by The Wall Street Journal, which, as I recall, is an organ that some Kiwibloggers no longer give credence to. Also, $US34T has previously been referred to by commenters as being what the US national debt is now up to.
        
        By all means stick with the WSJ figure, but I suspect it is a bit light. Either way, I believe what you say to be true: it’s Worry, worry, time .. and, in my humble view, has been for many years now.
        
        One day — who knows when? — it’s all going to collapse. My worry is, the quality of those who will be called upon, over time, to “put things right”, won’t be anything like the quality of those who “put things right” following the Great Depression and World War II.
        
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        June 23, 2024 1:05pm
    - G the giant from Dunedin
      
      Yes, it was always said back then the US had a different measure of a billion, they also have a different measure of a gallon, I think theirs is 4 litres while here it’s 4.45 litres
      
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      June 23, 2024 2:37pm
      - MCōs
        
        3.785411784 liters equals one US gallon
        4.54609 liters equals one UK gallon
        
        Good fun if you’re comparing petrol prices
        
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        June 23, 2024 7:16pm
  - cmm
    
    A billion is really a million million. A thousand million is a milliard.
    
    But the Americans used a billion to represent a thousand million and now the whole world rolls with that.
    
    Just like we now use flammable instead of inflammable etc etc.
    
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    June 23, 2024 8:27pm
Maggie Pie

I hate rugby, but thort this might be worth sharing with the group.
Just overheard my partner say that once again the Wahs still have a mathematical chance of reaching the top 8.
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June 23, 2024 11:57am
- Steve Otto(North Shore)
  
  The Wahs play that “lurg” game, not Rugby.
  
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  June 23, 2024 12:25pm
- Benedict Yu
  
  They don’t play rugby.
  
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  June 23, 2024 1:01pm
  - Colville
    
    Yes they do. They dont play Union.
    
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    June 23, 2024 2:19pm
  - MCōs
    
    Originally there was just rugby union, which was strictly amateur until late last century
    Rugby league was a breakaway professional working class version dating back to 1895 with all sorts of different rules that originated in the north of England and became popular here on the West Coast
    
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    June 23, 2024 7:06pm
Benedict Yu

Interestingly the Tasmanian government owned shipping company will soon take delivery of two brand new roll on roll off ferries for the Bass Strait route between Melbourne and Hobart. Passenger capacity 1,800.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirit_of_Tasmania_IV?wprov=sfla1

https://newships.spiritoftasmania.com.au/ship-facts/

Cost for two ships is $A 900 million. For both, not each. Built in Finland.

There was recently some consternation at an $80 million cost over run. 😳😐 If only they knew what a cost over run looks like. 😐

This episode in New Zealand is sickening. The previous government sat by while disaster unfolded with the new ferries. Now they scream at the government because Nicola Willis refused to continue with the disaster.
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June 23, 2024 12:13pm
- Jack5
  
  The supplier of the Tasmanian ferries, Finland, is best known for building large cruise liners and icebreakers.
  
  Finland’s a great little country, population similar to NZ’s, extreme climate. GDP per capita, 34th in the world (NZ 41st).
  
  High wages, but the Finns have hung on to their shipbuilding industry:
  
  https://swzmaritime.nl/news/2023/12/18/shipbuilding-in-finland-not-the-cheapest-but-the-best/
  
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  June 23, 2024 12:28pm
  - Benedict Yu
    
    Maybe if Tasmania and New Zealand had clubbed together to order 4 ferries from Finland we could have got a good deal?
    
    These Tranzrail executives were in their own dreamland, fuelled by the Grant Robertson fire hose of cash.
    
    They devoted considerable resources to negotiate a “partnership” with the South Island iwi. It is not clear why this was required. AFAIK the iwi was not bringing any money to the table.
    
    https://www.nzherald.co.nz/kahu/ferry-project-cancellation-a-heavy-blow-says-waitohi-picton-iwi/6EHZ7RBHXZB6DL6C32VB4TYQBE/
    
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    June 23, 2024 5:18pm
- NeverMindTheBollocks
  
  Does Tassie have any late model, low mileage second hand ferries available at mates rates?
  
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  June 23, 2024 12:33pm
- imalwaysright
  
  Tasmania probably employed someone who knows about ferries to buy their ferries.
  
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  June 23, 2024 12:48pm
- Taieri
  
  the Bass Strait route between Melbourne and Hobart.
  ———–
  
  It’s actually Geelong-Devonport route.
  
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  June 23, 2024 1:07pm
  - Benedict Yu
    
    You were half right. 😃. Melbourne to Devonport
    
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    June 23, 2024 5:21pm
- AitchW
  
  Isn’t it interesting that the left blamed pretty much everything that went wrong on “9 long years of neglect”.
  Now they ignore the last 6 years and, surprise surprise, everything that goes wrong is….National’s fault. And the media breathlessly report the accusations as fact.
  
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  June 23, 2024 2:23pm
- NoFax
  
  In the city of Utsunomiya Japan they were able to build a brand new light rail system consisting of 19 stations along 14.8 km for ¥68.4 billion or around NZD$700m. In Auckland the light rail from Central to Mt. Roskill (the equivalent length) was estimated at least twice that cost.
  
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  June 23, 2024 4:43pm
kevn

BY… Maybe Transrail could buy the old ferries from Tassie? Bass is a longer stretch of water compared to the Cook Strait. The old ferries must be capable.
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June 23, 2024 12:21pm
- Steve Otto(North Shore)
  
  Wot’s the steering like?
  More important, can the steering be operated by staunch unionists?
  
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  June 23, 2024 12:26pm
  - Lance
    
    I hear the stearing lurches hard to the left when they are in charge.
    
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    June 23, 2024 4:46pm
    - Steve Otto(North Shore)
      
      Hard left then the fuse blows.
      Funny that.
      
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      June 23, 2024 6:20pm
- Benedict Yu
  
  Indeed. It is a 9 hour crossing.
  
  I think they are too big for the Wellington and Picton ports.
  
  It is now bloody obvious that Kiwirail should have ordered replacement ferries that could fit the existing port facilties, or with only affordable upgrades. Truly a Kiwibuild level disaster, in fact much worse.
  
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  June 23, 2024 12:27pm
  - wsk12345
    
    The harbourmaster at picton was saying on RNZ years ago that he would not give permission for these new larger proposed ships to go in through the Tory Channel route for at least 6 months, possibly never. I can’t recall but I think it was 3-4 years ago. The alternative northern entrance would be 30-50 min longer. Tranzrail went ahead with the order anyway probably assuming they would force him to comply with their wants.
    
    I know some fishing noat operators that live out in Tory, they said they had seen so many near misses (and groundings) over the years, they couldn’t comprehend bringing in ships that were 40m longer.
    
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    June 23, 2024 12:46pm
  - AitchW
    
    Rather like ordering a new car for 75k only to find that you then need to spend 300k on a new garage to house it.
    Is there no end to the unexploded land mines left by Ardern, Hipkins and Robertson?
    
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    June 23, 2024 12:56pm
  - Steve Otto(North Shore)
    
    I thought Picton had started on upgrades to the berthings?
    
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    June 23, 2024 2:37pm
    - wsk12345
      
      It started on the area for queuing the traffic and also on demolishing the old terminal building (earthquake damaged). Not sure if they have started the wharves.
      
      Picton is a complete mess.
      
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      June 23, 2024 7:01pm
  - R
    
    When you ideologically believe that money actually does ‘grow on trees’, then there is no problem imagining that a gold plated berthing infrastructure just for two gold plated sized Ferries, can be financially justified.
    
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    June 23, 2024 4:16pm
  - Handyman
    
    Every other ferry discussed in this blog is not rail enabled, and that is the big difference. The Interislander is different because it is run by a rail company as part of the rail system. All options proposed by KiwiRail involve having one or two rail capable ferries.
    If the “need” for a rail capable ferry is removed from the “requirements document” then all options become cheaper and quicker to deliver.
    I agree with comments above. Get the process under way for non rail replacements as soon as possible and get the process under way to sell as a FERRY service. Include the custom shore facilities lease and operation as part of the deal.
    
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    June 23, 2024 6:28pm
- Taieri
  
  The old ferries must be capable.
  ——–
  
  The old Tassie ferries are of a similar vintage as the Interislander fleet.
  
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  June 23, 2024 1:10pm
  - Maggy Wassilieff
    
    I must have made 80+ problem-free Cook Strait ferry crossings in the late 1970s when I was working in the Marlborough Sounds.
    
    I quite liked coming back to Wellington on the late freight crossing as there was always space for sleeping (you didn’t have to leave the ship until sometime around 6am), and the late ferry never got stinky if it was a very rough crossing.
    
    My memory is that the crossing took 3hrs 20 min… I see that the time taken now is given as 3hrs 30 min.
    
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    June 23, 2024 3:06pm
Jack5

In the absence of Milky, here’s an “On this day” post.

On 23 June 1869, American newspaper editor Christopher Sholes, and a partner, Amos Densmore, patented the typewriter.

Sholes sold his half-share to Remington, best known as a gun maker, for $US12,000. Densmore hung on, and took royalties instead, which the source below estimates earned him about $US1.5 million.

Things have moved on from the old click-clacks, but the QWERTY keyboard it contained lives on.

Apparently Sholes and Densmore first tried a keyboard set out alphabetically, but the arms clashed, so they settled on the QWERTY pattern, which endures on our keyboards.

Source:

https://www.onthisday.com/articles/how-the-qwerty-keyboard-was-born
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June 23, 2024 12:58pm
- All_on_Red
  
  In a similar vain, Bette Nesmith invented Liquid Paper, commonly called Typist Correcting Ink.
  She had some ups and downs with regard to control of her company but did very well out of it.
  https://www.thoughtco.com/liquid-paper-bette-nesmith-graham-1992092
  Notably she was the mother of Michael Nesmith from the pop Band The Monkees
  
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  June 23, 2024 1:44pm
- marcw
  
  So in 1869 a device was introduced to enable easy dissemination of “news” reporting by “journalists” worldwide.
  What could possibly go wrong?
  
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  June 23, 2024 1:55pm
Gravelroad

There is a particularly stupid advert currently appearing on TVNZ.
(Yes, I know, the advertising company has achieved its goal of getting people to look at it – and talk about it).
But this advert, for a telco, shows two people sitting in a round blow-up boat on a large lake (probably AI manipulated).
The woman is blindfolded and says she cannot swim.
She portrays that she is scared of her predicament.
Helluva funny, eh.
The giggling man with her seems to think so.
Call me old fashioned, but using as an advertising gimmick the depiction of a nervous, isolated blindfolded woman in the middle of a lake, is not going to encourage me to buy any product or communications service
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June 23, 2024 1:00pm
- Benedict Yu
  
  Yes I happened to see it. Totally creepy.
  
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  June 23, 2024 1:03pm
imalwaysright

Saw Judith Collins on Q&A.
She was clear, honest, and personable and answered questions in an open manner.
She would be a great PM.
She, Winston, and Seymour would make a better top three.
Luxon should be relegated, he’s not a leader.
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June 23, 2024 1:11pm
- All_on_Red
  
  I really don’t know what Luxon, and Willis actually stand for.
  
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  June 23, 2024 1:51pm
- surfing
  
  Collins was not great at telling Maori that the best way to make it in this world is to work for a living.
  
  The media would especially try to construct her as a racist Karen. It was quite disgusting.
  
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  June 23, 2024 1:55pm
- Steve Otto(North Shore)
  
  I said he was not a leader long before the last Election. Some defend him saying what he has done. Rally? He did not do anything. Like a “manager” he had others do it so he could take the credit.
  Sharpen up Mr Luxon of give the job to someone else. Is Judith in the hunt for a job?
  
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  June 23, 2024 2:43pm
- NoFax
  
  While I wouldn’t disagree, she had a go and the public never warmed up to her. It’s like that sometimes – some people have the X-factor others don’t. I never saw the attraction of John Key, for example, but I was in the minority.
  
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  June 23, 2024 4:47pm
- MCōs
  
  Judith Collins had her chance
  
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  June 23, 2024 5:49pm
surfing

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/brick-hurled-on-to-auckland-motorway-smashes-into-familys-car-child-left-traumatised/PL7IMVW4GVFVVOYM6RTZZYPD5E/

Is this attempted murder?

I’d expect the very possible outcome of throwing a brick onto a car doing 100kph is to kill people.
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June 23, 2024 1:54pm
- Maggy Wassilieff
  
  Yep,
  
  RIP Chris Currie… killed by 14 year-old Ngatai Rewiti
  
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killing_of_Chris_Currie
  
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  June 23, 2024 2:42pm
- kowtow
  
  This shit has to be nipped in the bud quick smart.
  
  There tends to be a copy cat element to it once it starts , again , as we’ve had it before here and it was a dangerous scourge in England sometime back.
  
  I’m not confident though as it doesn’t involve rainbow crossings .
  
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  June 23, 2024 3:29pm
Ra Henare

True wisdom comes to each of us when we realize how little we understand about life, ourselves, and the world around us.
Socrates

I know that I know eff all about most things.

My method, right or wrong, is take a view on a subject that is not popular and debate it. ie be a contrarian.
That way I learn more.

Hence my stance on Kiwiblog that is generally “against the flow””
I challenge all the anti Russian comments, the pro Israel posts & comment and the Anti Maori stances of many.

To be clear. I do not support either side in those debates.

I unfortunately have fallen in to the trap of denigrating the comments of others. My only defense is that having been exposed to so much personal abuse(Including Jew Hater, Putin lover etc) I have slid down the slippery slope.

I got banned for replying to a commenter.
Are you stupid or just being a troll.

In reflection. The Kiwiblog I joined many many years ago is no longer the great source of debate I loved. But with few exceptions has just become a way for many to vent their spleen(see their name in print?) without adding a single positive input.

I am making an honest attempt to not personalize/satirize/disparage my responses to comments.

Wouldn’t it be nice if the vitriol was eliminated from this blog.
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June 23, 2024 1:57pm
- AitchW
  
  On the surface that sounds suspiciously like trolling.
  I’d very much support trolls and those who regularly indulge in ad hominem arguments being banned.
  
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  June 23, 2024 2:52pm
  - Ra Henare
    
    How would you define trolling please, so I can understand what I am being accused of?
    
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    June 23, 2024 5:03pm
    - AitchW
      
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troll_(slang)
      
      0 1
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      June 23, 2024 6:10pm
      - Ra Henare
        
        Thanks for that Aitch.
        I liked in the description.
        
        Application of the term troll is subjective. Some readers may characterize a post as trolling, while others may regard the same post as a legitimate contribution to the discussion, even if controversial.
        
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        June 23, 2024 11:06pm
- Swifty
  
  If you don’t like it here then you know what you can do.
  
  Honestly, in my more than 15 years here, I struggle to remember anyone writing so many pieces about themselves, how they’ve been wronged on here, how misunderstood they are or how so many other commenters are so mean and nasty.
  
  Get over yourself.
  
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  June 23, 2024 3:00pm
  - Ra Henare
    
    Unfortunately these responses are predictable.
    So be it.
    
    4 2
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    June 23, 2024 5:02pm
- Ghost
  
  Don’t know why you come here when all you do is write childish little posts attacking the blog like this.
  
  I’d also be willing to bet there is far more to your banning than what you claim, people always like to look innocent in their behaviour
  
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  June 23, 2024 5:24pm
  - Swifty
    
    A moderator wrote he got banned for multiple personal attacks of fellow commentators – not ‘for replying to a commentator’ as he claims.
    
    3 1
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    June 23, 2024 7:46pm
    - Ra Henare
      
      Thanks for that Aitch.
      I liked in the description.
      
      Application of the term troll is subjective. Some readers may characterize a post as trolling, while others may regard the same post as a legitimate contribution to the discussion, even if controversial.
      
      1 1
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      June 23, 2024 11:07pm
  - Ra Henare
    
    Ghost, How much are you willing to bet LOL.
    $100 sound good?
    
    The one moderator responded.
    Comments were related to similar style comments. The Ban was one week.
    
    Sorry no accusing people of being a jew hater or Putin Puppet. Just questioning the comments origin/opinion.
    
    I have been accepting the slings and arrows of outraged KBers for years. Water off a ducks back.
    
    Its Social media. I expect personal attacks even if they have nothing to do with the tenure of my posts/comments. and yes I have challenged Ghost and Swifty in the past, hence their expected responses.
    
    [Mod – you were banned for constantly abusing members of this blog, and then turning around and abusing moderators for warning you]
    
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    June 23, 2024 11:18pm
- imalwaysright
  
  Good post Ra,
  
  It is possible to criticise an argument that you fundamentally agree with to develop a different viewpoint or even to reinforce the argument. Its also a good way to test your own point of view.
  I’ve read your posts and they are usually above average. That might be why some might think of you as a troll. Its much easier for some to call someone a name than to try to debate them.
  
  Keep on rockin’ the boat!
  
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  June 23, 2024 5:46pm
- RightNow
  
  Don’t enter the ring if you don’t like the fight
  
  3 1
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  June 23, 2024 6:38pm
- Country Air Ian.
  
  Dont worry about the down tickers. You are voicing your opinion and approach in the future.
  
  There will always be angry commenters. Ignore them.
  
  [Mod – this level of deception is unacceptable Ra, do not use a second account to pretend to have a discussion without yourself]
  
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  June 23, 2024 11:24pm
Steve Otto(North Shore)

PM Luxon, Mark Mitchell, Karen Chhour make announcement. They were at Auckland Police Station. I can’t get any of the feeds or videos to work.
The media must be editing it before us plebes are allowed to see.

https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2024/06/livestream-pm-christopher-luxon-police-minister-mark-mitchell-children-s-minister-karen-chhour-make-announcement.html
https://www.1news.co.nz/2024/06/23/watch-live-pm-luxon-makes-law-and-order-announcement/
4 4
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June 23, 2024 2:45pm
freemark

Globally there are only a very few politicians brave & wise enough to stand up against the woke, rainbow, climate hoax narrative being shoved down our throats by WEF etc. Putin & Trump are the most important ones. We see the lengths to which the paid-off Establishment will go to discredit or take them down. Says it all really.
6 9
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June 23, 2024 3:06pm
- Lance
  
  Bloody hell…
  Putin is an example of a brave and wise politician?
  
  Wow
  
  I personal would put Putin in the murderoulsy evil lying sack of shit category.
  
  7 3
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  June 23, 2024 4:56pm
  - Mike
    
    And Trump admires him…
    
    3 6
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    June 23, 2024 5:25pm
    - All_on_Red
      
      Yet Putin has endorsed Joe Biden…
      
      2 3
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      June 23, 2024 6:46pm
  - kevn
    
    Lance… Yep, like biden. lol
    
    1 1
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    June 23, 2024 6:39pm
- imalwaysright
  
  Correct Freemark.
  There are plenty who can’t seem to get themselves off the Magic Media Roundabout and start thinking for themselves.
  Trump and Putin are pragmatic and they are realists, unlike many of the western leadership who are driving this misery in pursuit of power and wealth.
  
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  June 23, 2024 6:05pm
  - freemark
    
    I’m thinking many of them watched & bought into the 1PM Ardern clown show/global fear porn/jab saviour narrative too. I now have no doubt at all that subliminal mind control/psychological warfare is being beamed into living rooms via the telly. Why else would people be so divorced from facts, data, science, history & current affairs?
    I’m gobsmacked, totally.
    
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    June 23, 2024 9:33pm
PurplePen

Christchurch Catholic Cathedral has announced its shortlist of names for the new one the headline said. I thought, will I bother looking as they’ll all be Maori names I suppose. Anyway, I had a look, nervous at first, and was pleasantly surprised. Not a single bit of te reo anywhere! Catholic colonialist guilt at least hasn’t taken over the catholics. How refreshing.

https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/520342/shortlist-of-possible-names-for-christchurch-s-new-catholic-cathedral-released
5 3
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June 23, 2024 5:15pm
- Mike
  
  Hope they name it after the Eytie milennial kid the Pope is promoting to divine status.
  
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  June 23, 2024 5:32pm
- MCōs
  
  I happen to know that the visit of Pope John Paul II wasn’t universally well received among the clergy when he visited NZ because his conservative views went against prevailing local church’s thinking.
  More appropriate for Oz
  
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  June 23, 2024 5:58pm
Taieri

lying sack of shit category
———

I’d put most politicians into this category, although may be without using this particular phrase.
3 2
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June 23, 2024 5:29pm
surfing

This is the crap journalism we have in this country…
https://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/350306779/mum-absolutely-gutted-after-paying-urgent-passports-unfair-system

“Two women who paid hundreds to get their children’s passports processed urgently say the system is unfair, after hearing about others who received their passports within days without paying extra.”

Stuff start with promise, stating this as a fact…

“Stuff is aware of people who have paid for standard passports and had them delivered within days.”

Stuff then ask the DIA for an explanation, who say…
“In a statement, DIA general manager of services and access Adrian Jarvis said passports were processed in the order the applications arrived, with the exception of urgent passports, which were prioritised.”

The DIA explanation does not explain the discrepancy. A good journalist would have resolved this discrepancy. There is some mumbling about why applications may drag, but is never attributed to being a cause in the mentioned cases.

Sloppy , crappy, journalism and DIA are off the hook!
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June 23, 2024 5:56pm
- greybeard
  
  Agreed. And the article is over a week old.
  
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  June 23, 2024 6:08pm
sht1971

10 minutes into the ‘news’ bulletins. We have rugby on one channel and the Beatles 60years on on the other. Ffs
5 1
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June 23, 2024 6:16pm
greybeard

https://www.stuff.co.nz/world-news/350320421/pm-gives-king-charles-and-camilla-open-invite-aotearoa

This headline, with its token maori language shit is exactly why King Charles won’t bother coming to NEW ZEALAND.
4 3
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June 23, 2024 6:17pm
- Ghost
  
  King Charles was never confirmed to be coming here, and with his cancer his trip is being reduced.
  
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  June 23, 2024 6:19pm
Steve Otto(North Shore)

4 times tonight I have had a comment deleted as I was typing it.
The problem is not at my end.
Others?
2 3
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June 23, 2024 6:30pm
- Ghost
  
  Sounds like a weird issue your end. Until you hit post it’s your end
  
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  June 23, 2024 7:39pm
Inthe09

You can just picture all the various council hand-wringers and assorted ‘checkers’ having a field day with this ferry grounding for months.

Apparently there is going to be a team of people investigating the damage to the sand it washed up on tomorrow morning.
3 0
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June 23, 2024 6:50pm
Quail

Re Blues v Chiefs.
Before the Aucklands heads get too big,, let’s remember they still have not beaten the Crusaders
0 2
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June 23, 2024 7:45pm
- Inthe09
  
  23 March 24 – Blues 26, Crusaders 6.
  
  Or was that a pre-season game?
  
  1 0
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  June 23, 2024 7:57pm
Loddenthinks

As DPF himself pointed out on X, Bluebridge Ferries has managed to run a reliable, affordable Cook Strait ferry service for decades, without putting its hand out to the gummint for assistance.

Check out the hit-job on Stuff – https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/350320003/every-man-and-his-dog-not-impressed-struggling-ferries and see if you can find a single reference to Bluebridge. I’ll save you the bother – you can’t.

MSM in their desperation to score points against the government ignore this fact and gloss over the outrageous cost bow-outs that required a sensible and pragmatic Finance Minister to nip the bloated project in the bud. Now that the grown-ups are in charge, I expect we’ll see some progress in the form of ferries the taxpayer can afford.
5 1
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June 23, 2024 8:04pm
- fightingtemeraire
  
  Strait Shipping started with a small ex Tasmanian Livestock Carrier called the Straitsman.
  
  Bloke that started it had trouble getting livestock across the Strait.
  
  It is now on its third owner I think and has operated with good 2nd hand tonnage. Nothing flash and now carries 50% + of the traffic.
  
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  June 24, 2024 6:49pm

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