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March 30, 2026 8:00am by Kokila Patel

General Debate 30 March 2026

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General Debate

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NeverMindTheBollocks

The weekend just gone featured Cuba Dupa, in Wellington. That follows on from the opening of the new Central Library, the Newtown Festival, Lantern Festival, the International Festival of the Arts and Gay Pride Month. All of these parties featured Council funding.

Meanwhile, Council insists that rates need to rise so that infrastructure can be repaired.

Judge them not by what they say, but what they choose to fund.

Did these people not have Aesop’s ‘The Ant and the Grasshopper’ read to them as children?
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March 30, 2026 8:01am
- lifesgood
  
  Wellington’s a lost cause. The people keep voting in useless mayors and councils. You reap what you sow.
  
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  March 30, 2026 9:15am
  - MCōs
    
    Do you want the city run by democratically elected leaders or not?
    Below others are grizzling because unelected people have some sort of influence in decisions . . . .
    I suppose the answer is a council elected by ratepayers who are also taxpayers resident in the area with an appropriate IQ under a certain age and so on . . . .
    
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    March 30, 2026 12:25pm
- Bullion
  
  The current govt has a $70m fund to bring the likes of Robbie Williams to NZ.
  
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  March 30, 2026 9:49am
  - Quail
    
    It is Taxpayers money not Governments!
    
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    March 30, 2026 6:38pm
- Prince
  
  Note that Wellington Council has nothing to promote Christmas in years. No children’s parade, no banners on lamposts, no trees.
  
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  March 30, 2026 10:55am
  - Groggy
    
    That is just bollocks. There was considerable upset at the traffic come Xmas tree, and last year there were MORE Xmas events, not less
    “Brought to you by Wellington City Council, there’ll be four free, whānau-friendly and different themed events across four locations in Pōneke. They’ll be on every Saturday (weather permitting) between 22 November and 13 December 2025, from 11am to 5pm.”
    
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    March 30, 2026 11:31am
    - Paulus
      
      Where are the four free (assume ratepayers) whanau Poneke events please ?
      
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      March 30, 2026 3:08pm
    - Prince
      
      The cone tree, if you think that’s festive, was 2023.
      My ‘whanau’ were not advised of any events in Poneke – but then we’re OBU supporters ourselves.
      
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      March 30, 2026 9:33pm
    - Manu-Rau
      
      Where’s Poneke? And why would the Wellington City Council be funding events there?
      
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      March 31, 2026 3:03am
- Handyman
  
  The council and media are priming the public to rage to the government to fund its much-needed water assets. TVNZ took to the streets to record people answering the question: Is that affordable for you?
  Stand by for Labour/Greens to promise billions of dollars to Wellington Water at this year’s election.
  
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  March 30, 2026 2:39pm
NeverMindTheBollocks

A woman, a black guy, a widower and a Canadian walk into a bar …

Nope, turns out that it’s NASA’s Artemis moon trip crew.

I’m sure they were all selected based solely on their technical merits. //

https://nationaltoday.com/us/ca/pomona/news/2026/03/28/nasa-unveils-diverse-artemis-crew-for-historic-moon-mission-2/
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March 30, 2026 8:03am
- Philview
  
  They are all brave people regardless of recruitment protocol.
  
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  March 30, 2026 11:13am
- JackRabbit
  
  How dare NASA deem Artemis II a historic moment. Their claimed ‘historic moment’ was 57 years ago, and live streamed.
  
  This current mission, 57 years later, with so many advances in technology, propulsion, shielding, and navigation, and all run by AI, is just a walk in the park.
  
  And you have to compare that with the ancient that Maori paddled to Antarctica, and walked barefoot to the South pole.
  
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  March 30, 2026 2:20pm
BarryB

Re Christ Church Cathedral. I saw the comments yesterday but being busy all day was unable to get a chance to comment.
The spire on the Cathedral has fallen down 4 times – all due to earthquakes. (1881, 1888, 1901, and 2011). So that puts an end to thoughts that Christchurch doesnt have earthquakes.
The next earthquake could well be a rupture of the Alpine fault. Based on its history of rupturing its overdue. Earth sciences estimate that it will be magnitude 8 or above. Earthquakes are funny things in that each one is different which means an alpine fault earthquake could cause anything from hardly any damage in Christchurch right through to making the 2011 earthquake look like an insignificant event. The later is much more likely.
The Cathedral was built to standards that are used in northern Europe where earthquakes just don’t happen – because that part of Europe is just one big slab of solid rock.

The idea of repairing the Catheral has no moral or sensible or practical or honest basis. The money already spent and any more money will be a total waste. Even totally rebuilding it in the centre of a swamp is just as stupid.
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March 30, 2026 8:05am
- Paulus
  
  And Jim Anderton will get his way as whatever will cost the Anglican Church, which is what he and Burton wanted for the Catholics.
  
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  March 30, 2026 9:37am
  - Steve Todd
    
    Philip Burdon is an Anglican.
    
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    March 30, 2026 11:03am
    - Paulus
      
      Did he not back Anderton in all this fiasco ?
      
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      March 30, 2026 3:09pm
      - Steve Todd
        
        That’s not what you said.
        
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        March 30, 2026 3:20pm
  - David Garrett
    
    Jim Anderton is dead…
    
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    March 30, 2026 3:39pm
- Nukuleka
  
  You would presumably use the same odd logic to condemn the wholesale rebuilding of Christchurch city – on a swamp.
  
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  March 30, 2026 9:52am
  - BarryB
    
    Quite right.
    You may have noticed that there were no historical Maori interest in the area – because it was a swamp and they – admitedly slowly – learned that the area was nothing but trouble.
    My own personal view is that Christchurch missed a glorious opertunity to effectively relocate after 2011.
    It would have been cheaper and better.
    
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    March 30, 2026 10:13am
  - waikatosinger
    
    Christchurch isn’t the only city on a swamp. Hamilton is also a swamp.
    
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    March 30, 2026 10:22am
    - Maggy Wassilieff
      
      Invercargill, Lower Hutt, Palmerston North, Blenheim, S. Dunedin….etc, etc
      
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      March 30, 2026 3:59pm
  - RoboRob
    
    I take it you dont live in Christchurch?
    
    We are talking the restoration of a site that the owner never wanted rebuilt. They were legally forced too by factions. The owner had the money to bulldoze and build a new church, not to do a restoration. The faction promised funds to cover the additional cost and the council topped it up.
    
    We are talking a rebuild cost around half the cost of the new covered stadium! This is a building smaller then many houses.
    
    Some older Christchurch residents have fond memories of the cathedral but for most it is a non event and they would be happier with the rubble cleared and something else built.
    
    Re you comment, most earthquake damage was rebuilt, NOT restored. Christchurch is the better for it.
    
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    March 30, 2026 10:40am
    - septic skeptic
      
      I think just leave the rubble as a monument to arrogance, entitlement and the insatiable desire to do whatever YOU want at other people’s expense.
      Thanks Jim et al.
      
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      March 30, 2026 10:50am
- ObligatoryMarxist
  
  They should rebuild it as a Basilica with a nice dome instead of a tower. Domes are much more stable.
  
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  March 30, 2026 12:59pm
  - waikatosinger
    
    Domes also have really cool acoustics.
    
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    March 30, 2026 6:52pm
- pb
  
  Italy earthquake prone. And packed full of cathedrals, amongst the biggest and best in the world. Should we tell them to bulldoze them all and huddle in tents on the mudflats? For safety.
  
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  March 30, 2026 2:48pm
  - Scooter
    
    Christchurch and the cathedral cannot be compared to Italy. For one thing it gets funding from the EU for reconstruction of churches and cathedrals, like the Basilica in Norcia which was destroyed in the 2016 earthquake and reopened end of last year. Another point is the historic value, in Italy these places of worship date back 1000 years and even before. A quick Google search, cost to rebuild Norcia Cathedral $30mill (nzd), projected cost for Chch $245mill.
    
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    March 30, 2026 7:30pm
Cassandra

The Dream Palace of the West: Why the Old Order Is Gone for Good by Kishore Mahbubani is an article published by the Council on Foreign Relations. He is a former Permanent Secretary of Foreign Affairs of Singapore.

He argues that the 12% West has not listened to the 88% global South. That the world has changed and so should the West. The UN and the IMF should be restructured eg Britain should give its Security Council permanent seat to India. Democracy isn’t the only or even best form of government eg the Chinese have had their best 40 years out of 2,000 without it.

An extract: “In theory, when Trump backed away from confronting Russia and cut off U.S. financial flows to Ukraine earlier this year, the EU could have stepped in to bridge the gap. As Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk put it in March, “500 million Europeans are begging 300 million Americans for protection from 140 million Russians who have been unable to overcome 50 million Ukrainians for three years.”

But to replace lost American funding, the EU leaders would have to be brave and cut domestic spending, demanding sacrifices from their own populations. None of the leaders of EU countries have so far dared to significantly cut the welfare benefits of their own populations to support the war in Ukraine.”

It’s a lengthy article and I don’t agree with all of it but it is food for thought. I think you can read a freebie occasionally. Google “Foreign Affairs” and then look for it in the current issue.
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March 30, 2026 8:08am
- fightingtemeraire
  
  The UN Security council should be reformed and not have Veto powers.
  
  Why is France there??? Or the UK??? The seats should be revolved around the G 20.
  
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  March 30, 2026 8:51am
  - Charlotte Wells
    
    They were the first nuclear armed nations.
    
    Imagine what it would look like now if it was expanded to include all the current nations with nuclear weapons.
    
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    March 30, 2026 9:45am
    - Poppax8
      
      They are all nuclear armed now. But the reason they were the 5 permanent members of the security council is they were the primary allies and victors from WWII and wanted to preserve peace and stability.
      
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      March 30, 2026 11:21am
      - Manu-Rau
        
        I’m not sure that France can claim to be one of the primary victors of WW2. Half the country (Vichy France) was effectively a German ally.
        
        India, Canada, and Australia contributed more to the Allied victory than France.
        
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        March 31, 2026 3:14am
- Wayne1749
  
  Kishore is a very typical Singaporean political leader: logical, intelligent, coherent, and relentlessly focused on outcomes. Whether it’s governance or assessing other political and social systems, he looks at what actually works—largely free of ideology.
  
  By contrast, our leaders often seem more concerned with optics—putting on a hijab, hugging people, or making cringeworthy statements about kindness—while showing far less interest in implementation or real-world results.
  
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  March 30, 2026 11:57am
Scott

The media never fails to disappoint. Their coverage of the Iran war has been notable for the use of the phrase “war crimes”. The phrase has been exclusively used by them with regard to the actions of the USA and Israel but never Iran:

https://www.camera.org/article/how-the-media-is-failing-to-hold-iran-accountable-for-war-crimes/

The main charge is the alleged targeting of a girls school. This may be due to outdated intelligence as the site was once part of the adjacent military base in Minab, Iran. If it was an American missile it was a tragic mistake as opposed to a war crime.

On the other hand Iran has been firing cluster munitions at all and sundry in populated areas without even the pretence of firing at legitimate military targets.

The media, in this case BBC, CNN, NBC, New York Times and the Washington Post appear to be both virulently anti trump and anti their own side. I suspect if it was a democrat in the White house, especially an Obama like figure, it would be all good. But if it’s a republican, think George Bush, and especially if it’s Trump, then they would be happy for their own side to lose. It’s a shame that the whole tenor of the reporting depends almost entirely on who is in the White House, rather than the actual facts on the ground.
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March 30, 2026 8:08am
- RichardF
  
  The MSM are acting as the propaganda arm of the IRGC. Undermining Trump is the goal.
  
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  March 30, 2026 9:18am
- Northshoredoc
  
  Both sides are guilty of appaling acts with the people of iran and region in general caught between two sets of loons.
  
  To minimise the bombing and slaughter of students at the school in Iran as a tragic mistake is a disgrace.
  
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  March 30, 2026 9:33am
  - David George
    
    It was either a mistake or it was deliberate, that is the question. Surely we can’t invoke a moral judgement without establishing intent.
    
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    March 30, 2026 9:50am
  - Scott
    
    Northshore – yes if they deliberately targeted the girls school knowing full well that it was a girls school, then that would be a war crime.
    
    But if it was an error, if they thought it was still part of the military base then it was a tragic mistake. Surely a war crime has to be a deliberate targeting of civilians rather than an error based on outdated intelligence? They thought they were targeting a military base. Which to be fair is adjacent to the school.
    
    NOTE – if indeed that what was happened? We’re not sure yet, the investigation is still ongoing?
    
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    March 30, 2026 9:51am
    - Northshoredoc
      
      If the get out of jail card for blowing up the general public is ‘we made a mistake’ then perhaps we need to be somewhat more circumspect in if/where/when bombs are dropped.
      
      We would be rightly outreagde if this had happened to our side why aren’t we when it happens to the other side?
      
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      March 30, 2026 10:37am
      - OlderChas
        
        My oh my – Russia has made a helluva lot of mistakes hitting civilian apartment blocks miles from any strategic or military target in Ukraine then.
        
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        March 30, 2026 12:21pm
      - David George
        
        “We would be rightly outraged if this had happened to our side”
        
        The Islamist deliberate targeting of civilians has been a feature, not a bug, for 1400 years. There is outrage but it’s drowned out and excused by the West’s useful idiots.
        “Two anti-Western projects, Islam with its fourteen-century mandate of submission, Marxism in all its postmodern, critical, decolonial flavors, had hunted for a common symbol for generations. They found it in the Jews. Demonize Israel and you delegitimize the entire Western project. Legitimize violence against Jews and every other anti-Western grievance becomes instantly righteous.”
        
        https://www.danburmawi.com/p/the-re-zionization-of-the-west
        
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        March 30, 2026 12:32pm
      - Northshoredoc
        
        What point are you trying to make David?
        
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        March 30, 2026 3:11pm
    - Paulus
      
      Maybe they learned from Hamas as to where to set up a base next to a school.
      Hamas went underground for hundreds of kilometers.
      
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      March 30, 2026 3:13pm
- septic skeptic
  
  Scott, if you look into Hegseth it’s pretty obvious by now he is a war criminal and should be brought to justice.
  1. Attacks on alleged drug boats, many of which could not have been heading to the US.
  2. The “kill the survivors” incident in the above campaign.
  3. No quarter.
  4. We negotiate with bombs.
  5. Bringing religion into the military.
  6. This and other wars are ending too soon.
  
  Not all war crimes but surely enough to convince anyone with an open mind of his complete and utter unsuitability for his role.
  
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  March 30, 2026 11:02am
  - In Vino Veritas
    
    skeptic, you start with “it’s pretty obvious by now he is a war criminal” and finish with “Not all war crimes”. I guess my question for you is, which ones would you hang your hat on to say he was a war criminal?
    I think you will find the “kill the survivors” thing to be a Democrat beat up. The mission was to sink the boat. If the boat wasn’t sunk first time, then to complete they went round again.
    I’d suggest that Hegseth is well suited to the role of Secretary of War. Why would you want a wet as your Secretary of War?
    
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    March 30, 2026 11:40am
  - Scott
    
    Septic, mate, I think you are talking to the wrong guy.
    Regarding drug dealers, I don’t have a lot of sympathy for them. And now that they know that drug smuggling can get you targeted by a missile then that’s a big deterrent. So I hope that drug smugglers will repent and find some other employment.
    
    “Negotiate with bombs” – the decision to start bombing is with the president and if the war department is bombing then that is at the behest of the potus, not Hegseth.
    
    Hegseth and Trump do want to finish the job. If the mullahs are toppled and Iran is ruled by say the Crown Prince then that would be a good thing. Good riddance to the Ayatollahs I say.
    
    Lastly I’m probably the last person to complain to about the bringing of religion into the armed forces. I think the chaplains do play a big role in morale in the armed forces. And I much prefer that than what’s happening in NZ where they appear to be reviving Maori cosmology in the police, the armed forces and even our national airline. No thank you.
    
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    March 30, 2026 1:11pm
- Wayne1749
  
  The fact is the girls school was part of the first wave of attacks. It would have been planned ahead for some time. This was not a decision made in the heat of conflict.
  
  Now even if the massacre of 170 school girls was a tragic accident, Trump and Hegseth did not seem to care very much, and made light of it. Evil sociopaths regardless.
  
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  March 30, 2026 11:53am
- KH
  
  The Yankees are famous for bombing the wrong target. They have a tendency to fire at anything and everything. Like Weddings in Afghanistan became a terrorist gatherings.
  Plenty of great WW2 jokes about it.
  
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  March 30, 2026 2:41pm
- Ra Henare
  
  The Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM) is an international treaty that prohibits all use, transfer, production, and stockpiling of cluster munitions, a type of explosive weapon which scatters submunitions (“bomblets”) over an area.
  
  IRAN
  ISRAEL
  USA
  
  are not signatories.
  So they are not covered by, or agree to the convention
  
  Ergo. NO WAR CRIME.
  
  List of non signatories include
  
  United States, Russia, China, India, Israel, Pakistan, Egypt, Iran, North Korea, South Korea, Turkey, Greece, Brazil, Poland, Romania, Singapore, and Ukraine.
  
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  March 30, 2026 4:32pm
artemisia

Has the US Department of Agriculture been peeking at New Zealand’s funding for whale music for trees? Secretary Brooke Rollins had DOGE run a few rulers over USDA and found grants studying how racism had affected the pest industry and the menstrual cycles of transgender mice.

Rather more importantly, though less hilarious, is the food stamps (SNAP) fraud uncovered. So far, and said to be much more to come, around 500,000 people collecting two or more SNAP benefits, and almost 200,000 dead people still collecting benefits. “As of March, a whopping 3.3 million people have stopped receiving SNAP benefits since Rollins took office for reasons including fraudulently collecting benefits.”

So inputs protected and outcomes whistling Dixie? Sound a bit familiar to here? Though have to say that numerous government contracts with suppliers here have been renegotiated and outcomes strengthened, or have been cancelled. Not much publicity apart from sad stories about people losing jobs due to cancelled contracts or more closely monitored contracted outcomes. Comments about a weak current government might be missing these quiet changes.

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2026/03/28/exclusive-usda-sec-brooke-rollins-reveals-number-snap-program-fraud-arrest-cases/
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March 30, 2026 8:12am
- Im Right
  
  Wow Artimisia, 3.3 million stopped receiving SNAP benefit, and yet no huge outcry from the Democrats, no marching in the streets in protest of this outrageous reduction in benefits…
  Well, we all know why now, can’t protest or bring it up in the senate when they were receiving fraudulent welfare payments.
  Democrats should be ashamed, but that’s an oxymoron!
  
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  March 30, 2026 9:01am
- Bullion
  
  When I see people complaining about public funding of scientific research into animals, I’m glad they weren’t around to stop research into things like the blue blood of horseshoe crabs or gila monster venom.
  
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  March 30, 2026 10:06am
Andrew Worth

I recently heard that Iran is offering to let tankers through the straits for a toll of $2 million, as large crude carriers contain 1-2 million barrels, that would add $1-2 dollars to the cost of a barrel of oil.
Should shipping companies take up the offer?
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March 30, 2026 8:15am
- Cassandra
  
  Interesting question, Andrew. Probably yes in the short term and then the appropriate western government agency should get it back with a penalty. It is mafia extortion.
  
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  March 30, 2026 8:30am
  - Simon
    
    “It is mafia extortion”
    
    lol – Don’t mention the war that Iran is winning
    
    Iran is making billions from its oil exports which have started to flow since the war started, thus making the sanctions irrelevant.
    
    Charging vessels $2 million a trip is chicken fed compared to the money Iran are now making.
    
    Iran making a point here. [Mod -just debate the topics]
    
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    March 30, 2026 9:07am
  - Northshoredoc
    
    ‘It is mafia extortion.’
    
    Bit like Trump’s tarrifs then.
    
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    March 30, 2026 9:34am
    - Charlotte Wells
      
      Nope, nothing like it at all.
      
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      March 30, 2026 9:49am
  - cmm (semi-retired edition)
    
    The whole of OPEC is essentially a mafia extortion operation.
    
    The worst of the extortion for us still happens voluntarily – self imposed government taxes.
    
    Adding $1 per barrel of oil as a “SoH tax” would be a cheap way to resolve the situation – far cheaper than anything else – but it is open to being changed at any time. $1 could become $20 or $50.
    
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    March 30, 2026 9:48am
  - KH
    
    “It is mafia extortion”
    We don’t mind killing Iranians (including kids at school). But oh dear, lets clutch our pearls when they fight back with what they can.
    
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    March 30, 2026 2:49pm
- Inandout
  
  AW, I wouldn’t heed what you heard because Iran has very little government left. As Winston has said ‘it will end soon’. Hopefully he is correct.
  
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  March 30, 2026 8:33am
  - Andrew Worth
    
    It (the conflict between the US and Iran) almost certainly won’t end soon. For the same reason the Ukrainian conflict won’t end soon, the leadership on both sides has no option other than to double down. Backing out would be a fatal political decision.
    
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    March 30, 2026 9:03am
    - David George
      
      I wonder what the Islamic regime’s doubling down would look like?
      Their ability to counter is now a fraction of what it was. Another factor that is not widely recognised is the rising level of defections from police and military. Once that reaches a tipping point, and the 80 million Iranians that loath the regime enter the fray in large numbers it’s game over for the Mad Mullahs.
      
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      March 30, 2026 9:31am
      - Andrew Worth
        
        There’s no better way to unite a country than to go to war against it. To Iranians, at least they’re their mad mullahs.
        
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        March 30, 2026 9:40am
      - Andrew Worth
        
        It’s an interesting game that I’ve been thinking about with regard to the Ukraine war.
        Putin has always used his propaganda machinery and the elimination of opponents to stay quite popular, but recently, with the high Russian casualties and the economy under strain, there have been higher rates of dissatisfaction with his leadership.
        By not siding strongly with Ukraine, Trump has helped weakened Putin domestically.
        Russian’s would be united behind Putin if the US could be painted as the true enemy.
        
        As all Iranians know, they’re at war with the great Satan.
        
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        March 30, 2026 9:49am
      - David George
        
        Andrew W: “As all Iranians know, they’re at war with the great Satan”
        Well that’s what they’ve been told. They’re not stupid ; the regime that bludgeons young women to death for showing their hair and machine guns tens of thousands protesters or the 700 butchered in the women’s march a couple of years ago or their immiseration and oppression over decades has changed all that.
        While it’s hard to get reliable survey results in a brutal tyranny the 2024 Gamaan report had regime support at only 11% – hence the 80 million in opposition that I used.
        https://gamaan.org/2025/08/20/analytical-report-on-iranians-political-preferences-in-2024/
        
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        March 30, 2026 10:42am
      - septic skeptic
        
        It’s pretty hard to coordinate a revolution though. Defections isn’t going to cut it.
        
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        March 30, 2026 11:07am
    - MCōs
      
      Even in NZ there are different groups of Iranians who are opposed to the war or support the war. Both groups loathe the present current administration
      There was a bloke on First Up this morning who was adamant that outsiders killing civilians was not going to change anything.
      We can sit back and pontificate from a distance.
      What the fuck do we know when most of the cards are hidden up someone’s sleeve
      
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      March 30, 2026 10:04am
      - Inandout
        
        MC, I had to look up what ‘First Up’ was and then found it was taxpayer funded Red Radio. That term reminded me of my ‘wild oats’ years.
        
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        March 30, 2026 11:45am
      - MCōs
        
        I take it from that despondent memory of your virile youth you can’t get it up anymore
        
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        March 30, 2026 5:52pm
  - Simon
    
    “Iran has very little government”
    
    My god, Iran are winning. Mind you this is probably National party position on the war that Israel/ US are winning.
    
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    March 30, 2026 9:10am
    - Andrew Worth
      
      “Winning” is a meaningless term at this point.
      
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      March 30, 2026 9:23am
    - cmm (semi-retired edition)
      
      “Winning” a war is not a real thing and is not a useful way of looking at things.
      
      You achieve, or do not achieve, objectives. Those objectives vary from person to person.
      
      For most people, the objective to be achieved is opening SoH so that ships can bring oil to the rest of the world.
      For most people, Iran can murder millions of its citizens and few will really care (other than performative outrage).
      
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      March 30, 2026 9:53am
      - Taieri
        
        You achieve, or do not achieve, objectives.
        —————-
        
        The objectives in this war appear to be changing by the hour. Does anyone really know what they are?
        
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        March 30, 2026 10:20am
      - septic skeptic
        
        Surely the objective for this war wasn’t to open the SOH for shipping????
        
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        March 30, 2026 11:09am
      - rockape
        
        CMM the objectives are decided bu the force commanders. They are not decided from”person to person”. The stated objectives were to destroy their nuclear capacity, destroy their leadership, destroy their missile capacity and stop the mass killings by the IRGC of the Iranian people. The USA seems to be well on the way to achieving those. What objectives have the IRGC achieved
        
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        March 30, 2026 12:29pm
      - cmm (semi-retired edition)
        
        rockape: “CMM the objectives are decided bu the force commanders.”
        
        You are correct.
        
        What I meant was that the interpretation of winning (or not) will differ from person to person depending on their individual interpretation of the objectives.
        
        I don’t know what the objectives for US forces are. They have no doubt made statements of those objectives, but stated objectives and the actual objectives can differ.
        
        I don’t know what the IRGC objectives are. Not sure anyone does. Maybe they are to give their lives for Allah – in which case some are doing pretty well.
        
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        March 30, 2026 12:54pm
  - David Garrett
    
    Inand: Two things immediately leap to mind: firstly nothing The Great Charlatan says should be relied upon, and secondly, “soon” is extremely imprecise.
    
    Andrew: I agree
    
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    March 30, 2026 9:18am
- [email protected]
  
  Due to numerous markups before getting to market this will have a bigger effect. Another excuse to raise fuel prices more.
  
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  March 30, 2026 8:37am
  - Flossie
    
    Undoubtedly right, but would you rather have none?
    
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    March 30, 2026 9:08am
- David George
  
  How could the Islamic regime just “let tankers through” if the straits are mined?” If there is a safe channel available what’s to stop other ships using it?
  
  Though their air force and navy are now (mostly?) inoperable they do have 1500 of these small swarming missile equipped attack vehicles that are difficult and expensive to contain.
  
  Queue the 50 year old A 10 warthog to take them out. Here’s a very good video on this development.
  https://youtu.be/dEAS7wYPFoM
  
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  March 30, 2026 8:39am
  - Andrew Worth
    
    The main threat to tankers is drones.
    
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    March 30, 2026 8:45am
    - All_on_Red
      
      No problem
      They have put Laser guidance on the 70mm Rockets the Warthog and Apache carry
      ‘The 2.75in test rockets integrated standard M151 warheads and Mk66 motors with APKWS precision guidance kits and a newly developed proximity fuse. This combination enabled the rockets to target and neutralise airborne drones at a significantly lower cost compared to conventional counter-UAS (C-UAS) strike solutions.’
      https://www.army-technology.com/projects/advanced-precision-kill-weapon-system-apkws/?cf-view
      Some of the US ships also have the Helios system and also mobile versions of Israel’s Iron Beam
      Much cheaper than missiles.
      
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      March 30, 2026 9:02am
      - Andrew Worth
        
        The straits are narrow enough, and tankers slow enough, that even little $200 FPV fibre optics drones can hit the tankers.
        And the shipping lines and crews have to risk their floating bombs and lives.
        Even after the Houthis stopped attacking shipping in the Red Sea, the majority of vessels that could transit the Suez Canal continue to take the extra 10 days to go around the cape of Good Hope, simply because the threat, in terms of the Houthis capabilities, remains.
        
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        March 30, 2026 9:09am
      - Andrew Worth
        
        “The semi-active laser-guided rocket system”
        This means that the targeting aircraft (probably the lfiring aircraft) has to hold the laser on the target as it and the target are moving, some of the latest Shahid drones move at 600mph, little FPV drones are not even visible on radar. So not simple.
        
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        March 30, 2026 9:21am
      - All_on_Red
        
        The Laser is used to designate (at the speed of light) the target.
        The system incorporates tech from the Hellfire Seeking Head so is a hybrid of both Laser and self seeking.
        The US tested it on F16s last year when Iran was firing huge amounts of Rockets and missiles at Israel.
        Apparently it worked very well.
        https://www.twz.com/air/f-16s-with-larger-laser-guided-rocket-loads-drone-kill-marking-emerge-over-middle-east
        Not so sure little Drones arent visible on Radar either. Missiles certainly are.
        Then of course there is the Air Superiority from Satellites and A10’s/Apaches watching everything and blowing anything up if it moves- like people launching Drones…
        
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        March 30, 2026 10:33am
    - David George
      
      Aerial drones are certainly being used and there are various means of countering those – including Ukrainian anti drone technology and the AlDeraa anti-drone drone recently developed by the UAE.
      Water borne attack drones are one of the principle targets of this A-10 deployment.
      
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      March 30, 2026 9:17am
  - Gravelroad
    
    Thanks for the video @ D. George.
    Coincidentally, 12 year old grandson was here yesterday and was making a card game involving various aircraft – the A10 Warthog being one.
    He showed it to me and described its functions in detail as I had never heard of it before – combat aircraft not being one of my specialist subjects!
    
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    March 30, 2026 9:04am
    - Don Beckett
      
      In 1998 I was in Canada on Vancouver island, staying with my cousin who lived on a hillside suburb about a mile from the Sydney airport (on Vancouver island), and they were holding an air show. There is a US airbase about 70 miles away, and they sent over 3 A10 Warthogs (as well as F 15s & Hercules). they demonstrated the capabilities of the Warthogs – amazing – very powerful engines which enabled them to climb vertically & short take off & landing.
      It was a great day, sitting on Stewart & Erin’s front lawn, drinking beer etc for about 4 hours watching the show.
      
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      March 30, 2026 11:22am
      - Don Beckett
        
        Does the downticker think I am lying? What a muppet.
        
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        March 30, 2026 12:22pm
      - rockape
        
        I was 2 I/c of an air defence unit in Germany. We used to deploy on the fringes of ranges used by ground attack aircraft to give our operators tracking practice. For the aircraft it was live firing and the A 10 s gun was an impressive sight though 20x optics coming towards you all guns blazing even if what they were firing at was 1000 meters in front of us. We videoed through the optics and debriefed each pilot then went and got pissed in their mess with them. Happy days!
        
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        March 30, 2026 12:36pm
  - Mr T
    
    A very good video well worth a watch
    
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    March 30, 2026 9:59am
  - cmm (semi-retired edition)
    
    “How could the Islamic regime just “let tankers through” if the straits are mined?””
    
    Remotely armed mines. They have existed since forever and were used during WW1 very successfully to guard approaches to restricted channels.
    
    A tanker is a soft-skinned vessel. It is not armoured. An attack with a couple of repurposed Grad missiles using an anti-ship warhead rather than an anti-personnel shrapnel warhead would easily sink one. Range 40km. Can be deployed off a ute.
    
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    March 30, 2026 10:03am
  - Stu2
    
    The tankers are not using the usual shipping lanes, they are travelling far closer to the coast than they usually do
    
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    March 30, 2026 12:27pm
  - KH
    
    In this stupid war the mad mullahs are the Americans and Israelis. And they have prior form.
    Perhaps they have yet to work out why they are disliked.
    
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    March 30, 2026 2:56pm
- Taieri
  
  Should shipping companies take up the offer?
  ———–
  
  They may have no choice, but ultimately it’s the end consumer who will pay.
  
  There’re quite a few places that levy such charges. Some examples:
  – a 20000 TEU container ship has to pay up to USD600K for a single passage.
  – a similar ship transiting the Bosphorus and Dardanelles Straits would pay up to about USD500K for a single passage.
  -a neopanamax ship (up to about 14K TEU) pays over USD1M per passage through the Panama Canal.
  One major shipping route, which doesn’t charge for passage are the Danish Straits, which under the Copenhagen Convention of 1857 are free to all international shipping.
  
  Port fees can be just as high. A handysize product tanker (similar to the ones that used to operate on the Kiwi coast) bringing 10K tons of petroleum products to the Port of Timaru could pay port charges of about NZD 180K per a single one day visit.
  
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  March 30, 2026 10:15am
  - soothsayer99
    
    It depends on the alternative, and if the cargo get sanctioned.
    
    Bit say a 14 million shipping fee say from Panama to Korea. 1 million fee plus war insurance might work…
    I haven’t looked at the price around the either cape.
    Panama Canal may be a tight fit.
    
    I see there are tankers heading to Aus from the (cough) American gulf, think there are few already heading up to Korea as well.
    
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    March 30, 2026 10:32pm
- Ra Henare
  
  Some have already paid the reported $2mill.
  
  So some facts (Thanks AI)
  Given VLCC 2 mill barrels Irainian light crude.
  
  To save you the workings.
  
  Cost increase per liter of Petrol: ~0.63 cents
  Cost increase per liter of Diesel: ~0.63 cents
  
  A Barrel of crude is approx 159 litres.
  
  Note. Even withthe $1 a barrel charge. Its still cheaper than the equivalent Norwegian Oil
  
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  March 30, 2026 4:49pm
Yvette

Just “3 Waters” …
IAWAI is your new water organisation, publicly owned by Hamilton City Council and Waikato District Council and working in partnership with Waikato-Tainui.
https://www.waikatodistrict.govt.nz/services-facilities/water/iawai-flowing-waters/water-services-strategy

TIAKI WAI is jointly owned by five councils – Hutt City, Porirua City, Upper Hutt City, Wellington City and Greater Wellington Regional Council. The mana whenua partners are Ngāti Toa Rangatira and Taranaki Whānui ki Te Upoko o Te Ika. It will be accountable to a Partners Committee of representatives from each council and mana whenua.
https://www.tiakiwai.co.nz/about

TE KURA TAKA PINI was established in 2019 to progress the Ngāi Tahu Rangatiratanga over Freshwater Strategy. To advance this kaupapa, TKTP is focused on supporting the Ngāi Tahu wai māori legal claim, and on leveraging the opportunities provided by the claim and the current reform and political environment to advance Ngāi Tahu rangatiratanga.
https://ngaitahu.iwi.nz/te-runanga-o-ngai-tahu/our-work-pou/ngai-tahu-rangatiratanga-over-freshwater/.

One of these things …
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March 30, 2026 8:17am
- pdm
  
  Co Governance just as Nanaia Mahuta wanted.
  
  There may still be time to stand up and be counted against it – but will people do so?
  
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  March 30, 2026 9:54am
  - Paulus
    
    Nah, as they are totally confused by using a foreign language which they would never understand being different to the languages they use all the time.
    
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    March 30, 2026 3:20pm
- Maggy Wassilieff
  
  …is not like the other.
  
  The trouble with co-governance between democratically elected folk and unelected elite decision-makers:
  
  https://www.brashandmitchell.com/post/don-brash-hidden-in-the-agenda-when-your-vote-isn-t-enough
  
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  March 30, 2026 10:01am
  - Yvette
    
    One of these things … is not like the other.
    
    Maggy, the odd one out of those three is “the claim and the current reform and political environment to advance Ngāi Tahu rangatiratanga.” They have got what they want yet.
    
    We have always said, that we’re not interested in owning the water assets. What we’re interested in is the proprietor rights over water, and that is a discussion to be had with the Crown, not with councils.” – Tuku Morgan, Waikato Tainui descendant
    https://www.1news.co.nz/2022/03/09/claims-maori-will-own-nzs-water-infrastructure-dismissed/ – 4th paragraph
    
    Pdm – Co Governance just as Nanaia Mahuta wanted.
    
    No, Mahuta wants control. Tuku wants proprietary ownership (and if that means ‘ownership’ ownership, you have got it! – and he wants it!)
    
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    March 30, 2026 10:53am
Damocles11

‘A vital US plane needed to hunt deadly drones has been obliterated in a missile strike which also left at least five American troops seriously injured.
Photographs taken at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia show the ravaged remains of an E-3 Sentry aircraft after it was struck on Friday amid the Iran conflict.
Air Force Colonel John ‘JV’ Venable said the destruction of the plane is ‘a huge deal’ because there are a limited number of E-3s and they cannot be replaced.’
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March 30, 2026 8:58am
- Charlotte Wells
  
  Only 15 left.
  
  They are obsolete and replaced by the E-7.
  
  The impact of the loss is described as moderate and will not lessen the pace of the US operations.
  
  I sugget the retired colonel is a bit exciteable and prone to hyperbole.
  
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  March 30, 2026 10:00am
  - Ra Henare
    
    Some facts are always nice.
    
    Historically, the E-3 has a mission-capable rate of approximately 56%. With only 15 aircraft left, this means only 8 or 9 aircraft are typically ready to fly worldwide at any given time.
    
    The E-7 is the intended successor to the E-3, but it is not yet “operational” in the USAF fleet.
    
    So 1 lost E-3 means more than 10% loss of operational capability. That of course is the world wide scenario.
    
    Not all E3s are in the middle east.
    
    So both stories could be true depending on context
    Moderate looking overall/ worldwide
    Significant if looking at the Middle East (and the fact that one just got junked by a missile)
    
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    March 30, 2026 5:00pm
imalwaysright

Seems co-governance isn’t enough.
The Gore District Council proposed a plan designating the entire district as a Site and Area of Significance to Māori (SASM)

https://www.farmersweekly.co.nz/opinion/council-ropes-farmers-into-a-silly-game/

These restrictions can also be applied to domestic properties.
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March 30, 2026 9:14am
- David Garrett
  
  Imalways: I wonder how many Maori were resident in the Gore area – even part time – pre-European contact? Very few I would imagine; you can’t grow kumera in the South Island, and Gore is inland – but on a river – so the only fish available would have been eels.
  
  And it gets bloody cold down that way.
  
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  March 30, 2026 9:53am
  - David George
    
    Yes. The South Island population collapsed
    The Polynesians had no temperate climate crops, their kumara, yams and taro grew OK when they arrived here during the medieval warm period. The coming of the little ice age changed all that, they were forced into hunter gatherer subsistence, the further loss of Moa and accessible seal colonies made life very difficult for settled populations. Widespread resource wars and cannibalism followed.
    
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    March 30, 2026 10:52am
  - imalwaysright
    
    DGarrett
    
    Be aware that other Councils are also doing this.
    
    If the local Iwi declare an interest in your home it will be registered on your title. If you want to alter your property you have to ‘consult’ some people and get their blessing (somehow…).
    
    There seems to be no regulations regarding the permission of Iwi.
    
    Is their permission permanent?
    Can it be rescinded?
    Can permission be subject to ongoing payments?
    Can the cultural interest be expanded to co ownership?
    
    This is a major strike against property ownership rights.
    
    The Great Robbery of NZ is happening right under our noses.
    
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    March 30, 2026 11:37am
    - imalwaysright
      
      What Act of Parliament allows unelected, essentially self appointed, people posing as an interested party, to unilaterally reduce the property rights of another?
      
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      March 30, 2026 12:59pm
    - KH
      
      Simple.
      If you pay them there are no cultural problems.
      If you don’t pay them huge cultural problems magically appear.
      
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      March 30, 2026 2:59pm
- Blog-aholic
  
  Put a C into that and the anagram becomes SCAMS.
  
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  March 30, 2026 11:42am
peterwn

A classic case of who runs councils – Councillors or CEO/paid staff has come up again.
https://www.thepost.co.nz/a/nz-news/360973926/legal-threat-over-wellington-council-cleaning-contract-staff-mayor-odds?lid=xl1vbydaiztv&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=post_wday_20260330
The Mayor and Council has expressed the view that the Council should bring the cleaning contract in house. The CEO and senior officials seem to claim that this is an ‘operational’ decision outside the ambit of the Mayor and Councillors. Quite from the pro’s or con’s of any decision, this is a matter where the Mayor and Councillors should prevail. There is no statutory constraint in this instance (compared with for example a decision to do away with building permits). If the CEO does not like the Mayor and Councillors decision, then the CEO should offer his resignation.
The Unions are threatening so seek Judicial Review of the matter the fundamental point effectively being whether Councillors or the CEO run the show. The outcome of any such judicial review would be very interesting.
Incidentally the officials were rather reckless in calling tenders for cleaning services knowing that Councillors favoured bringing the work back in-house. If the Council does not award a cleaning contract, then the tenderers would have a good case for reimbursement of the costs of preparing tenders (although council tender documents may purport to allow the council to decline awarding a contract).
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March 30, 2026 9:53am
- pdm
  
  Go the Mayor and Councillors.
  
  Gosh never ever thought I would support Angry Andy on anything but he must win this one for all Councils in New Zealand.
  
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  March 30, 2026 9:57am
  - Prince
    
    He needs to win this to fulfil his obligation to the Union.
    
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    March 30, 2026 11:01am
    - peterwn
      
      If the Union takes the Council to court, it is no skin off Andy’s nose. Not sure if he could direct the CEO not to defend any court action.
      
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      March 30, 2026 11:32am
      - imalwaysright
        
        Its amazing that changing a job title from Town Clerk to CEO seems to confer power greater than that of the employer.
        
        Andy should amend the title to Town Clerk and tell the person if they don’t do what the Mayor tells them to then they can resign.
        
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        March 30, 2026 12:25pm
      - peterwn
        
        imalwaysright – in the old days a council had two employee heads – the Town Clerk and the Borough/City Engineer. Anyone could be a Town Clerk but the Engineer had to be registered under the then Engineers Registration Act 1924. Councils had to offer appropriate pay to attract a qualified engineer and Town Clerks convinced their councils that they should be paid more than the engineer, meaning they were often overpaid. Then roundabout the time of Rogernomics the concept of a unitary Chief Executive came into being and he or she ran the whole show. Hospital Boards had three joint Chief Executives – the Medical Superintendent (who managed the doctors), the Matron (nurses) and the Administrator (accounts, property, stores etc).
        
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        March 30, 2026 8:25pm
Master Mariner

https://www.fuelclock.nz/
Is this not a catalyst to have action on defining what are regarded as Strategic Energy assets.
Do we need to seriously look at alternatives like Coal to Gas / Liquid Plants ?
Do we need a nationalised Oil / Gas company much the same as Petrocorp was initially set up?
Unfortunately time is not on our side.
All GCC states have severly reduced capacity due to attacks on Oil/Gas Terminals and likely looking at losing another 10% Worlds Oil due to closure of Red Sea by the Houthis.

Seyed M. Marandi: Yemen Joins the War – Red Sea Could Be Blocked Next
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxZbxiv600I

Where is NZ going to source Diesel, Short, Intermediate and long term.?
NZ Foreign Policy should always be Neutral.
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March 30, 2026 10:02am
- David Garrett
  
  MM: Do we need a nationalised Oil / Gas company much the same as Petrocorp was initially set up
  
  The problem with a “Petrocorp 2.0” is that when Labour next gets in – and they will – they will simply shut it down and sell off its assets at fire sale prices, thus wasting large amounts of taxpayers’ money.
  
  Incidentally very few people know that Petrocorp had an excellent strike rate with their wildcat wells – much better than the industry average. They also discovered the McKee field, which is the largest onshore oilfield in Australasia – or at least it was at the time.
  
  And for the “capped wells” conspiracy theorists. McKee is beneath land which French company Acquitaine explored – and relinquished having found nothing – back in the 1960’s.
  
  As I’m sure you know – but some do not – once you relinquish a permit you have no rights to anything which a subsequent explorer might find. So Acquitaine missed the largest onshore oil field in Australasia – Petrocorp found it.
  
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  March 30, 2026 10:56am
  - Ghost
    
    It looks like companies aren’t afraid of labour returning with the United Arab Emirates wanting a permit
    
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    March 30, 2026 11:15am
    - David Garrett
      
      Ghost: Really? Source please.
      
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      March 30, 2026 11:23am
      - Ghost
        
        Timaru Herald
        
        Prospecting for oil and gas could start off the South Island’s east coast as the nation’s fuel prices hit record highs.
        
        CBX Energy Ltd, a newly formed New Zealand-based company with a 50% United Arab Emirates shareholding, has applied for a prospecting permit for the Canterbury Basin.
        
        CBX Energy was incorporated in January. It shareholders are Craig Barry of Wellington, who is its sole director, and United Arab Emirates company Potai FZ-LLC.
        
        Since the removal of the petroleum exploration ban in late 2025, two exploration permit applications have already progressed through the competitive process and are now under assessment, with decisions expected later this year
        
        Interesting, I have only read of the Aussie permit, I wonder who the second one is
        
        If that is paywalled, use this link
        
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        March 30, 2026 12:07pm
      - David Garrett
        
        Yeah, didn’t think so.
        
        Why on earth would a UAE company, sitting near to some of the biggest oilfields in the world, want to come here – a “gas prone” country will very difficult drilling conditions in which political certainty – once one of our biggest assets -has now gone?
        
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        March 30, 2026 3:02pm
      - David Garrett
        
        Ghost: I stand corrected. Still don’t know why on earth a UAE company would be interested in exploring down here…for all the reasons I have outlined before. I suspect there may be tax reasons?
        
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        March 30, 2026 3:31pm
      - Ghost
        
        I’ve been digging into it, took a bit but the UAE company is a financial investment arm of NZ born geologist Timothy Barry
        
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        March 30, 2026 3:53pm
    - Master Mariner
      
      Incorporated in January, What is there expertise ?
      Pftt, 3rd Tier newly incorporated Company.
      We need expertise with an Oil Major, not a micky mouse shelf company.
      Did we not learn with Tamarind holding costing tax payers under a Billion.
      Unfortunately with the Annointed Ones “Captains Call” that is all we can procure.
      Dont even reply, And I will say again NZ is TOO Unstable to do Business with ( Unless we pay them).
      
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      March 30, 2026 1:20pm
  - Master Mariner
    
    “The problem with a “Petrocorp 2.0” is that when Labour next gets in – and they will – they will simply shut it down and sell off its assets at fire sale prices, thus wasting large amounts of taxpayers’ money.”
    
    Maybe Not if we had an efficient Coalition Government and put all options on the table regarding Energy Security.
    I personally think we will have major shortages Well before then and there is nothing like Fuel shortages to convince the unwashed Loonies who have to pay more for food and near mT supermarket shelves etc.
    Unfortunately this is what it will require to wake up most of NZ such is the education system including indoctrination.
    Never let a looming disaster go to waste.
    
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    March 30, 2026 1:28pm
- Ra Henare
  
  why is nobody talking bio diesel? ISnt NZ great at growing stuff?
  
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  March 30, 2026 5:04pm
I remember when

Democracy Briefing – Te Kaika and thebroken model of social service contracting: Dr Bryce Edwards.
“The tempting response to all this is to write Te Kaika off as an outlier : one rogue charity, exceptional in its disfunction.”
“So all three of these state-funded charities (Te Kaika, Waipareira Trust, Manukau Urban Maori Authority) have featured what looks like nepotistic governance structures.”

Lately Bryce seems to be moving against the tide, by recognising that simply throwing money in the direction by Maori, for Maori, may not be the answer.
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March 30, 2026 10:08am
cmm (semi-retired edition)

“Recidivist offender David Cossill sentenced after Glenfield, Auckland robbery turns violent”

This bloke is 43 and has racked up over 200 convictions. Impressive. That’s almost one a month for his adult life.
Since he has been in prison for over half his adult life (he claims he has been in prison for over 20 years), that really means he has only managed about a week or two out of prison before racking up another conviction – though I suppose some convictions could have happened behind bars.

In 2032 he fired a fired a gun in a stand off with police. By 2024 he was out again and planned an armed robbery as well as supplying weapons.

His sentencing started at 5 years and that then got watered all the way down to 21 months. “Judge Sharp ordered 21-and-a-half months’ imprisonment but said he could reapply for home detention if a suitable drug rehab facility was available.”

So back on the streets…

Oh, and he said he’s had enough of crime and is going straight. The judge gave him the benefit of the doubt!

Now didn’t National say they were getting tough on crime?

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/crime/recidivist-offender-david-cossill-sentenced-after-glenfield-auckland-robbery-turns-violent/2PBAT3TYXZDKFAHTVQD7HQATVU/
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March 30, 2026 10:14am
- imalwaysright
  
  Watched a US show on Youtube where the bad guy, who beat up a bus driver, was caught and processed.
  
  Because he had a single previous conviction he was ineligible for a plea bargain and was sentenced to the full 10 year term plus ten years parole after release.
  
  If we had that here we would be relatively crime free very quickly.
  
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  March 30, 2026 12:31pm
I remember when

Has the right decision been made with the axing of the catch size reduction ruling?
Would having to account for under-sized fish by using quota, rather than discarding them (many already dead) over the side, without cost, have resulted in less under-sized catch?
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March 30, 2026 10:20am
cmm (semi-retired edition)

F22s were pulled out of Warbirds over Wanaka “for obvious reasons” without specifying what those are.

What “obvious reasons”?

I can think of many reasons to pull them out, some reasonable, some ridiculous, but none are obvious.

Can anyone inform what those “obvious reasons” are?

The best I could come up with are:
* Uncle Sam needs all the F22s he can muster and they were flown off to the Middle East.
* There’s a fuel crisis and F22s burn too much fuel.
* They might fly over the Al Noor mosque or the Afghani Centre and the Muslims might get PTSD.

But no, it is more than that: all military aircraft including RNZAF and visiting military have been withdrawn.

Can someone explain?

https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/360957394/disappointing-military-jets-pull-out-warbirds-over-wanaka-airshow
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March 30, 2026 10:22am
- Flossie
  
  I’m just going to guess that it would be an unnecessary waste of fuel at this time?
  
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  March 30, 2026 10:27am
  - cmm (semi-retired edition)
    
    Possibly, but then just cancel the whole exercise since all planes burn fuel – not just military planes.
    
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    March 30, 2026 10:36am
    - Don Beckett
      
      If the privateers wish to carry on, let them go for it – it’s their own cost.
      
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      March 30, 2026 11:32am
- Taieri
  
  “The New Zealand Defence Force has confirmed the rising cost of aviation fuel is what grounded the Royal New Zealand Air Force’s (RNZAF) participation at the Warbirds Over Wānaka this Easter.”
  
  https://www.odt.co.nz/regions/wanaka/fuel-costs-behind-air-force-no-show
  
  (Paywalled)
  
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  March 30, 2026 10:42am
  - cmm (semi-retired edition)
    
    Thanks.
    
    That’s a perfectly rational reason.
    
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    March 30, 2026 12:58pm
- Northshoredoc
  
  Just in case some loon(s) decide they need to protest and ruin peoples long weekend.
  
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  March 30, 2026 10:42am
  - MCōs
    
    Grant Kitto – Logistics Manager at Médecins Sans Frontières, who is hardly a loon, isn’t happy about the F22 appearing at Wānaka
    https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/warbirds-over-wanaka-display-of-deadly-jets-sparks-backlash/IQE5MQOMRFGX3PFJ7OSX6LSH3U/
    
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    March 30, 2026 12:07pm
    - Don Beckett
      
      Tough.
      
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      March 30, 2026 12:27pm
    - cmm (semi-retired edition)
      
      Médecins Sans Frontières is primarily an activist organisation these days, so yes, a loon.
      
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      March 30, 2026 12:58pm
      - Paulus
        
        MSF has changed from its original intention particulalrly within Gaza and is now no less a left political ideal, albeit it’s intentions were good.
        
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        March 30, 2026 3:25pm
      - MCōs
        
        The chap from Médecins Sans Frontières was expressing an opinion as anyone in this country is entitled to do.
        Of course Médecins Sans Frontières is an activist organization. That’s in part why they won the Nobel peace prize back in 1999
        
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        March 30, 2026 4:50pm
      - Ra Henare
        
        CMM, what do you base this opinion on?
        
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        March 30, 2026 5:07pm
    - Hugh Jarse
      
      Oh dear, he is not happy, oh dear what should we do to make life easier for him ?. Maybe remind him that while one man is not happy, between 50,000 and a 100,000 people attend over the three days and would have been hugely entertained seeing the F22’s. I think he had a wee cry a few months ago on the same subject. Sorry for the overt sarcasm, just sick and tired of the tyranny of the minority in this country.
      
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      March 30, 2026 3:34pm
- imalwaysright
  
  Wasn’t there some Lefty Marxist group protesting the jets participation before the fuel issue?
  
  Maybe this is a get out of jail card for the organisers and the NZ military…
  
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  March 30, 2026 11:45am
- Hugh Jarse
  
  I think it’s a pretty big logistical effort getting USAF jets here from the northern hemisphere, multiple tankers and refuelling required, also probably an unnecessary expenditure and distraction particularly when there are large amounts of US war materiel required elsewhere.
  
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  March 30, 2026 3:38pm
  - MCōs
    
    So why did they pull the plug?
    At a guess I’d say it was going to cost too much in these difficult times
    
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    March 30, 2026 4:55pm
NothingLeft

Pretty grim podcast from lotus eaters podcast in which Connor Tomlinson details some of incidents showing how british ‘blob’ (ie deepstate) is using police and security services acting extra judicially to target right wing individuals and political parties to try and nerf them. Like for example putting agents into UKIP some years back to sabotage them, and likely doing similar now to Reform etc.

https://youtu.be/WfhGAsqr0D0

UK democracy is falling apart.
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March 30, 2026 10:31am
- Charlotte Wells
  
  I often read here that we must vote National to keep Labour out.
  
  Let’s look at the UK. The Conservative governments of the last few years were increasingly inept, imcompetent and utterly useless. People kept voting for them as they were better than Labour.
  
  There was never an effort to change becasue they kept getting elected.
  
  In the last election that Labour won in a landsilde it wasn’t becasue the electorate wanted Labour; it was to tell the Conservatives that they needed to change.
  
  If National get elected this year, simply because they aren’t Labour, what motivation is there to change their policies? Where do they get the signal they aren’t what the electorate want?
  
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  March 30, 2026 1:14pm
  - NothingLeft
    
    Blair govt wrought large structural changes to civil service in UK that have progressively led to removal of most effective power from elected govt – that power being instead vested in unelected senior civil servants and (ever more activist) judiciary appointed by (left wing captured) appointment bodies.
    
    Much the same has happened in most western democracies where left wing bureaucrats have subverted he power of elected politicians – and increasingly ignored preferences of govt and voters in foisting ideologically driven destructive social and economic policies on their countries.
    
    Ex senior govt advisor Dominic Cummings has done numerous podcasts on how it all went wrong in UK’s case.
    
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    March 30, 2026 4:22pm
  - rouppe
    
    The signal is if the coalition combination changes.
    
    National barely making 20%, the remainder made up of ACT and NZ First.
    
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    March 30, 2026 6:57pm
Swifty

The late Shah of Iran warns against the alliance of ‘the black and the red’ and that it will destroy modern societies.

https://x.com/e_aria_n/status/2038088960279548362?s=46

The black – the Islamists
The red – the commies.

I see even the rat Blair has come out this week saying that same thing.
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March 30, 2026 1:11pm
Swifty

I don’t suppose it’s occurred to the many folk marching in Western cities in support of the Iranian regime – that it is the regime, and in fact Islam, that is the invading, oppressive and colonising power.

https://x.com/awakenedoutlaw/status/2038337216070697296?s=46

All power to the Iranian people.
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March 30, 2026 2:18pm
- rouppe
  
  I saw a bit of a show on Sky Open this afternoon about Sweden. Happiest place, free health care, 400 days paternity leave, free schooling, funded by high taxation. Soooo wonderful.
  
  Then came some interesting bits: the swedish person being interviewed says this is based on the expectation that everyone contributes. You get a job, you pay tax.
  
  That’s a problem here. A large undercurrent of not contributing by not getting a job.
  
  Then the elephant in the room. An incredible increase in violence in the last 10 years. Led by ethnic drug gangs. They’ve gone from zero, to two IED explosions a WEEK. The gangs have leveraged Sweden’s hands off policing approach to children to recruit them for throwing grenades at their opponents.
  
  What a disaster.
  
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  March 30, 2026 6:54pm
graham

I see it was Tova O’Brien’s first day on the TVNZ Breakfast show today. Someone called Greg Bruce has written a review at the Herald, and it’s … bleah.

Mr Bruce starts by informing us of, “arguably the most important moment of the whole show and maybe of O’Brien’s entire Breakfast tenure because it set the tone, laid down a marker, told the audience exactly who she is and what to expect.”

This breath-taking moment, where anyone who was watching supposedly found out exactly “who Tova is” occurred during the opening few minutes where Chris Chang asked Tova, “how did you sleep?” The incredible, breath-taking answer was, “It was iterative.”

Wow. I’m … lost for words.

But wait, there’s more! Later on in the show, Ms O’Brien apparently said during an interview with Helen Clark about the US war on Iran: “Is that a risk analysis? That we don’t want to p*** off the US and the US President too much.”

Mr Bruce can scarcely believe this! Tova O’Brien actually said “p*** off”! To the former Prime Minister and former third most powerful person at the UN! Imagine!

But wait, she’s not finished! We’re told the show ended with an interview with former Wiggle and now solo performer Emma Memma, where O’Brien asked the almost unbelievable question, “When do you think kids should get involved in screens?”

“Ooooooh!” Memma replied, looking nervously at Chang.

“Big question!” Chang said.

“That’s really controversial!” Memma said.

I’m just glad I ~~couldn’t be bothered~~ didn’t have time to watch the show. I don’t think I could have coped with such controversy and hard-hitting interviews.

Here endeth the sarcasm …
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March 30, 2026 3:25pm
- MCōs
  
  So you didn’t actually watch yourself
  Why not link to the original review rather than providing a tepid review of the review
  https://www.nzherald.co.nz/entertainment/tova-obriens-first-morning-on-tvnzs-breakast-reviewed/HFBTCNEQL5HGVLAR6JI7V5XBIM/
  Readers could actually cut the middlemen and look at a rerun of the show for themselves on TVNZ+ I suppose
  Btw
  I watched the Helen Clark interview and the language was no worse than Sir Ed saying well George we knocked the bastard off in 1953, Peter Jones telling the nation he was absolutely buggered on live radio back in 1956 or Brooke van Velden saying cunt in parliament last year without censure
  
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  March 30, 2026 5:38pm
  - Ghost
    
    why watch something when you know you are just going to whinge about it anyway? Strange thing, i don’t bother watching things that don’t interest me, but some people live the kind of life where they just spend it complaining.
    
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    March 30, 2026 5:40pm
  - Prince
    
    Actually it was Tinetti who introduced the word to Parliament, and Hipkins took responsibility for it.
    
    https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/561119/chris-hipkins-takes-responsibility-for-labour-mp-s-question-that-led-to-c-bomb
    
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    March 30, 2026 9:40pm

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