Hi Ani. The house in the photo at 44 Riddiford St, Newtown, Wellington isn't heritage listed. Googling the street address & looking at the AI result will say it is! But if the link had been clicked on it would have shown the heritage listed house is in a nearby street. AI isn't reliable!
I walked my dog past that dump in Newtown a while back. There’s weeds I’ve never seen before, like sentient alien invaders out of a horror movie growing in the path down the side. Even my dog was shocked and declined to go further, and he’s normally a big fan of stinky abandoned urban spaces full of rubbish and decay.
The sad death of MP Ms Kemp, whom I know almost nothing about (other than that she was a member of a party based on race & demanding special treatment based on race so I’d aver she was part of a racist party) will see the usual tributes in the media. I’d rather read an honest review of her politics & beliefs and then make up my own mind re her character. I also note, again sadly, that she was awaiting a kidney transplant. Having had a bit to do (tangentially) with organ transplants, I’d love someone in the media to discuss donor rates & the sector in general. (Also blood donations…). I once suggested, to improve donor rates, to a senior figure in donor services that we should default to ‘opt out’ as some other countries wisely do. Why not? The answer was ‘for cultural reasons’ and we all know what that means. Was Ms Kemp an organ donor? Relatively few Maori are. Yet they’re happy to ask for organs.
Agree with the Maori donation rate of 0% but a 100% request rate. I’m a donor and had considered requesting that no Maori receive my organs, or any other bits. Am I racist?
I must have missed the news about the Minister of Education. With the Teachers Union being the core of the Labour Party I was impressed that she seemed to be holding her own but you seem to be indicating that all is not as it seems with Erika?
On a far more trivial matter. What is with Lorde and NZ media. She seems to be a singer on decline and yet they all seem to have become part of her HR puff machine for her latest album. It's all very back to Kiwi cringe.
The Education and Training Amendment Bill no.2, Section 127 will force every school board in the country to reflect “local tikanga Māori, mātauranga Māori, and te ao Māori” in their policies, plans, and classroom teaching.
The Bill even goes so far as to require that schools take “all reasonable steps” to provide instruction in tikanga and te reo Māori.
In my view there is a difference between indoctrination and education.
Yes I am very comfortable with integrating te reo and cultural practices into education as they are unique and special to our country, but we are talking about a huge amount of class time and resources being diverted with this. I spoke to a parent this week whose state school has announced that 9 of the 25 teaching hours each week will be in te reo. That is hugely excessive. Parents have the choice to send their kids to kura kaupapa and immersion schools if they want that level of Māori education.
To the fake Left and PMC in NZ, anything worth doing is worth overdoing, and then they can add a whole extra level of bureaucracy and commentariat to castigate/control those who express scepticism or openly rebel.
Surely there should be a choice. Let the parents and students decide. I am multilingual, but don't speak Te Reo and have never felt the need to learn it. Forcing people to learn things that they are not interested in is counter productive and I suggest is one of the reasons why some are moving o0ffshore for a better education.
Hi Ani, love your work, but with respect here I offer a counter view to this comment. ‘Integrating te Reo & cultural practices into education’ is a deeply flawed strategy. Too many reasons why for a short comment…. But a couple of quick ones…
1. Te Reo can’t cope with complex topics like science or philosophy or economics. So they’re forced to make up transliterations which is just pointless & stupid. Teach the subject using the most effective language, ie English.
2. Te Ao Maori is a worldview (animism & superstition) that is antithetical to science. It doesn’t work.
3. Offer te Reo as an option, fine, but for most kids it’s a pointless distraction. Won’t help them get a job (unless with some useless Govt dept). Teach history, sure, but do it honestly.
4. Tikanga is just an excuse to leverage control of the sector. It has no place in education. Serves no purpose.
5. What value do te Ao, Mataurangi & Tikanga add? I see no value at all, just costs & distraction.
Oh sorry Noel, I may have been a little vague. For clarity, I think trying to base a modern education system on Maori spirituality, customs, tikanga, voodoo, superstition etc is completely & utterly insane. An animistic worldview cannot and will not provide a sound platform for scientific inquiry. I can not think of any benefit that it can provide for an education framework. Of course I am happy for someone to explain how a worldview steeped in witchcraft and tree spirits can help. Thus far I have not heard a single good reason why we would (already have!) abandon the western scientific framework (itself based on Judeo Christian principles) that has facilitated the modern world we are so fortunate to live in. There is a very good reason Maori did not have wheels until the White Man arrived. (ps Matauranga Maori is simply not science)
I think the Bill doesn't introduce these requirements, as they already exist in the current legislation which was passed in 2020. It reads to me as changing the order of criteria, with educational achievement now the first objective. That won't satisfy those who wish to see the cultural matters prioritised, nor those who would like them removed altogether. The Minister faces a Gordian Knot.
While I don't know her and don't live in her electorate, I had the impression Erica was a v good, reasoned person. But she def wasn't on ZB with Hosking on Fri morning. Quite a disappointment, and even worse if what Ani hints at is correct about her staff.
"Staff" should be treated as people who work WITH you (rather than FOR you) and deserve the utmost respect. When I worked in a largish office, I went out of my way to always talk to the cleaners and ensure everyone treated them with respect
Dr Laking from the Auckland Uni Medical School, was the first of Seymour's targets for the meme. Although he did criticise the RS Bill, he isn't a public figure that I can see. I think this sort of behaviour on the part of a senior politician could have a chilling effect on would-be academic critics: if you're going to cop ridicule from a senior politician, amplified by the pollie's social media supporters, is it worth bothering with?
Is this the type of content I would choose to create if I was ACT? No. Should ACT be punished or made to stop? Also no.
I think we need to get better at realising that there is a gulf between things we ourselves do not necessarily approve of or think are very nice and things that are so egregious they need to be deleted and punished. Academics do tend to fall into the place of public figures as they are experts who comment publicly on things but they are not celebrities or politicians.
No point in punishing him as he'd just play the victim. As regards academics, I'd be more concerned about younger ones who'd be deterred from speaking out about something because of fear of being attacked or ridiculed by someone with the public reach of a politician. DS champions the freedom of academics to avoid constraints from uni administrations, and then has a go himself. But it's all just politics: he has a constituency and he's cultivating it in different ways.
But I don't think it fitting for someone in a position of power to behave in this way. One thing about memes is that a lot of people will just stop at that, and not read the accompanying argument. Especially when shared on X. What I'd stress about DS is that he always knows what he's doing, he's clever, and he plays both sides (champion of academic freedom + slags off at people who disagree with him). But we're stuck with him for the foreseeable future.
Claire - I've read his "write back". How can you defend him or other academics who appear to be anti-democracy? Consider what he's saying "For reasons of both justice and political survivability, constitutional change needs to happen as part of a wider process that involves the whole of society. The RSB is trying to make a constitutional change via the back door of a simple majority vote in Parliament."
Can I suggest that's a snide comment. To refer to a decision as a "simple" majority is bordering on outrageous. What I assume he's suggesting is that minority interests can override what's best for the majority of us. So we get disadvantaged, so some minority can "get what they want".
I assume he means that the Bill is not represented as a constitutional change, but it really is. This is because it applies what he thinks of as a limited range of criteria for evaluating legislation, and puts in an overarching body to do the evaluation. If the change is constitutional, there should be a different process than just a Bill going through Parliament on a majority vote. I may be wrong about what he means, and am not sure if he's right (I found the Bill a muddle myself). But I don't think he's saying that a minority should determine the outcome.
You surely get that OnlyFans is abusive. Full stop.
But further than that, and I'm NOT endorsing SAFE, using farm animals on a porn site for porn reasons is kind of, you know, fucking gross. For the humans as much as the bovines. It's all about intent. And OnlyFans does not have good intent.
Soooo many issues here but maybe your feminism is different from mine. It's a generational thing probably. But as an ex-dairy farmer and a current woman (they tell me one can change sex overnight!) I reckon it's all wrong. Your 'once over lightly' did not do it justice.
Rachel, come on. You have engaged with my discussions on X about the harms of porn. I am outspoken about porn being a cancer on society. I am also outspoken against only fans. This is a wrap up of politics that is intentionally lighthearted and brief. Please do not consider each weekly instalment a sum total of all my political opinions.
I also have a Change My Mind Read on 'Takedown: Inside the Fight to Shut Down Pornhub for Child Abuse, Rape, and Sex Trafficking' by Laila Mickelwait sitting in my drafts which I hope to get finished and complete soon. It is a very good book on this matter. https://x.com/aniobrien/status/1915330087223689591
I always get ornery (apologies) at the interface between animals and human behaviour. I can't really quite understand (yet) what's bothering me about this so much. Whenever that confusion I get toey. Not personal, even if it sounds like it is.
Do you think SAFE nutters are anti-porn? Doubtful. They are anti because it is sexualising dairy consumption. It is bloody weird from all sides. That was the point of the few sentences I wrote.
Hi Ani. The house in the photo at 44 Riddiford St, Newtown, Wellington isn't heritage listed. Googling the street address & looking at the AI result will say it is! But if the link had been clicked on it would have shown the heritage listed house is in a nearby street. AI isn't reliable!
Thank you for pointing this out! I went off what Stu said on X. I have done some digging and updated that section. I'm determined to find out now!
I walked my dog past that dump in Newtown a while back. There’s weeds I’ve never seen before, like sentient alien invaders out of a horror movie growing in the path down the side. Even my dog was shocked and declined to go further, and he’s normally a big fan of stinky abandoned urban spaces full of rubbish and decay.
A good summary, thanks, Ani.
The sad death of MP Ms Kemp, whom I know almost nothing about (other than that she was a member of a party based on race & demanding special treatment based on race so I’d aver she was part of a racist party) will see the usual tributes in the media. I’d rather read an honest review of her politics & beliefs and then make up my own mind re her character. I also note, again sadly, that she was awaiting a kidney transplant. Having had a bit to do (tangentially) with organ transplants, I’d love someone in the media to discuss donor rates & the sector in general. (Also blood donations…). I once suggested, to improve donor rates, to a senior figure in donor services that we should default to ‘opt out’ as some other countries wisely do. Why not? The answer was ‘for cultural reasons’ and we all know what that means. Was Ms Kemp an organ donor? Relatively few Maori are. Yet they’re happy to ask for organs.
Agree with the Maori donation rate of 0% but a 100% request rate. I’m a donor and had considered requesting that no Maori receive my organs, or any other bits. Am I racist?
What about her close whanau? No marches there?
Bloody tragic really.
I completely agree with your stance on sex offenders. I also believe chemical castration should be implemented on the very worst.
I must have missed the news about the Minister of Education. With the Teachers Union being the core of the Labour Party I was impressed that she seemed to be holding her own but you seem to be indicating that all is not as it seems with Erika?
On a far more trivial matter. What is with Lorde and NZ media. She seems to be a singer on decline and yet they all seem to have become part of her HR puff machine for her latest album. It's all very back to Kiwi cringe.
The Education and Training Amendment Bill no.2, Section 127 will force every school board in the country to reflect “local tikanga Māori, mātauranga Māori, and te ao Māori” in their policies, plans, and classroom teaching.
The Bill even goes so far as to require that schools take “all reasonable steps” to provide instruction in tikanga and te reo Māori.
In my view there is a difference between indoctrination and education.
Yes I am very comfortable with integrating te reo and cultural practices into education as they are unique and special to our country, but we are talking about a huge amount of class time and resources being diverted with this. I spoke to a parent this week whose state school has announced that 9 of the 25 teaching hours each week will be in te reo. That is hugely excessive. Parents have the choice to send their kids to kura kaupapa and immersion schools if they want that level of Māori education.
To the fake Left and PMC in NZ, anything worth doing is worth overdoing, and then they can add a whole extra level of bureaucracy and commentariat to castigate/control those who express scepticism or openly rebel.
Surely there should be a choice. Let the parents and students decide. I am multilingual, but don't speak Te Reo and have never felt the need to learn it. Forcing people to learn things that they are not interested in is counter productive and I suggest is one of the reasons why some are moving o0ffshore for a better education.
Hi Ani, love your work, but with respect here I offer a counter view to this comment. ‘Integrating te Reo & cultural practices into education’ is a deeply flawed strategy. Too many reasons why for a short comment…. But a couple of quick ones…
1. Te Reo can’t cope with complex topics like science or philosophy or economics. So they’re forced to make up transliterations which is just pointless & stupid. Teach the subject using the most effective language, ie English.
2. Te Ao Maori is a worldview (animism & superstition) that is antithetical to science. It doesn’t work.
3. Offer te Reo as an option, fine, but for most kids it’s a pointless distraction. Won’t help them get a job (unless with some useless Govt dept). Teach history, sure, but do it honestly.
4. Tikanga is just an excuse to leverage control of the sector. It has no place in education. Serves no purpose.
5. What value do te Ao, Mataurangi & Tikanga add? I see no value at all, just costs & distraction.
Sigh, not so short after all sorry.
Do you support those 5 reasons you've provided, or oppose them Boris?
Oh sorry Noel, I may have been a little vague. For clarity, I think trying to base a modern education system on Maori spirituality, customs, tikanga, voodoo, superstition etc is completely & utterly insane. An animistic worldview cannot and will not provide a sound platform for scientific inquiry. I can not think of any benefit that it can provide for an education framework. Of course I am happy for someone to explain how a worldview steeped in witchcraft and tree spirits can help. Thus far I have not heard a single good reason why we would (already have!) abandon the western scientific framework (itself based on Judeo Christian principles) that has facilitated the modern world we are so fortunate to live in. There is a very good reason Maori did not have wheels until the White Man arrived. (ps Matauranga Maori is simply not science)
I think the Bill doesn't introduce these requirements, as they already exist in the current legislation which was passed in 2020. It reads to me as changing the order of criteria, with educational achievement now the first objective. That won't satisfy those who wish to see the cultural matters prioritised, nor those who would like them removed altogether. The Minister faces a Gordian Knot.
The minister moved the clause to be under section 127 Paramount Objectives…
She has embedded it further and that has created a world of pain for herself.
Ah, thank you for pointing that out. This shows the perils of my skim reading of the Bill and the Act.
While I don't know her and don't live in her electorate, I had the impression Erica was a v good, reasoned person. But she def wasn't on ZB with Hosking on Fri morning. Quite a disappointment, and even worse if what Ani hints at is correct about her staff.
"Staff" should be treated as people who work WITH you (rather than FOR you) and deserve the utmost respect. When I worked in a largish office, I went out of my way to always talk to the cleaners and ensure everyone treated them with respect
Dr Laking from the Auckland Uni Medical School, was the first of Seymour's targets for the meme. Although he did criticise the RS Bill, he isn't a public figure that I can see. I think this sort of behaviour on the part of a senior politician could have a chilling effect on would-be academic critics: if you're going to cop ridicule from a senior politician, amplified by the pollie's social media supporters, is it worth bothering with?
If you comment in public then surely you’ve got to expect a response. Seymour is not being abusive. He’s entitled to respond.
He's ridiculing people to a wide audience and from a position of power. Wouldn't shut him down, but he's made a poor choice here.
Is this the type of content I would choose to create if I was ACT? No. Should ACT be punished or made to stop? Also no.
I think we need to get better at realising that there is a gulf between things we ourselves do not necessarily approve of or think are very nice and things that are so egregious they need to be deleted and punished. Academics do tend to fall into the place of public figures as they are experts who comment publicly on things but they are not celebrities or politicians.
No point in punishing him as he'd just play the victim. As regards academics, I'd be more concerned about younger ones who'd be deterred from speaking out about something because of fear of being attacked or ridiculed by someone with the public reach of a politician. DS champions the freedom of academics to avoid constraints from uni administrations, and then has a go himself. But it's all just politics: he has a constituency and he's cultivating it in different ways.
Please make allowance for public distaste for "know it all" academics, after the Covid farce
Dr Laking is in the public arena, a critic of the bill. He’s fair game for a send up. Academic critics should accept that they’re not sacred cows.
As it happens, Dr Laking has written back: https://e-tangata.co.nz/home/
But I don't think it fitting for someone in a position of power to behave in this way. One thing about memes is that a lot of people will just stop at that, and not read the accompanying argument. Especially when shared on X. What I'd stress about DS is that he always knows what he's doing, he's clever, and he plays both sides (champion of academic freedom + slags off at people who disagree with him). But we're stuck with him for the foreseeable future.
Claire - I've read his "write back". How can you defend him or other academics who appear to be anti-democracy? Consider what he's saying "For reasons of both justice and political survivability, constitutional change needs to happen as part of a wider process that involves the whole of society. The RSB is trying to make a constitutional change via the back door of a simple majority vote in Parliament."
Can I suggest that's a snide comment. To refer to a decision as a "simple" majority is bordering on outrageous. What I assume he's suggesting is that minority interests can override what's best for the majority of us. So we get disadvantaged, so some minority can "get what they want".
I assume he means that the Bill is not represented as a constitutional change, but it really is. This is because it applies what he thinks of as a limited range of criteria for evaluating legislation, and puts in an overarching body to do the evaluation. If the change is constitutional, there should be a different process than just a Bill going through Parliament on a majority vote. I may be wrong about what he means, and am not sure if he's right (I found the Bill a muddle myself). But I don't think he's saying that a minority should determine the outcome.
You surely get that OnlyFans is abusive. Full stop.
But further than that, and I'm NOT endorsing SAFE, using farm animals on a porn site for porn reasons is kind of, you know, fucking gross. For the humans as much as the bovines. It's all about intent. And OnlyFans does not have good intent.
Soooo many issues here but maybe your feminism is different from mine. It's a generational thing probably. But as an ex-dairy farmer and a current woman (they tell me one can change sex overnight!) I reckon it's all wrong. Your 'once over lightly' did not do it justice.
Maybe you enjoy porn?
Rachel, come on. You have engaged with my discussions on X about the harms of porn. I am outspoken about porn being a cancer on society. I am also outspoken against only fans. This is a wrap up of politics that is intentionally lighthearted and brief. Please do not consider each weekly instalment a sum total of all my political opinions.
I also have a Change My Mind Read on 'Takedown: Inside the Fight to Shut Down Pornhub for Child Abuse, Rape, and Sex Trafficking' by Laila Mickelwait sitting in my drafts which I hope to get finished and complete soon. It is a very good book on this matter. https://x.com/aniobrien/status/1915330087223689591
If you need some reminders:
https://x.com/aniobrien/status/1501775420504510466
https://x.com/aniobrien/status/1739229631272878552
https://x.com/aniobrien/status/1738511553966809547
https://x.com/aniobrien/status/1690559098407079937
https://x.com/aniobrien/status/1620882245442756609
https://x.com/aniobrien/status/1690559101779234816
https://x.com/aniobrien/status/1739420614455382481
https://x.com/aniobrien/status/1739428219588379069
https://x.com/aniobrien/status/1636899777098182656
https://x.com/aniobrien/status/1427169118197739521
https://x.com/aniobrien/status/1636887404157214720
Yeah, yeah. Of course, of course.
This wasn't an attack on your beliefs. It was a comment designed for further discussion. Nothing to discuss then.
I always get ornery (apologies) at the interface between animals and human behaviour. I can't really quite understand (yet) what's bothering me about this so much. Whenever that confusion I get toey. Not personal, even if it sounds like it is.
And, no, SAFE is not actually about "not liking dairy consumption".
SAFE actually hit on something that many can't see. I can see it.
Do you think SAFE nutters are anti-porn? Doubtful. They are anti because it is sexualising dairy consumption. It is bloody weird from all sides. That was the point of the few sentences I wrote.
As always, you know better than me about all matters farming.
I don't even know why anybody even bloody talked about it. Unless it was condemnatory of porn and animals.