America is divided, and it always has been. We're going back to the moment when that split turned into war. This is Uncivil: Gimlet Media's new history podcast, hosted by journalists Jack Hitt and Chenjerai Kumanyika. We ransack the official version of the Civil War, and take on the history you grew up with. We bring you untold stories about covert operations, corruption, resistance, mutiny, counterfeiting, antebellum drones, and so much more. And we connect these forgotten struggles to the ...
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In August of 1619, a ship carrying more than 20 enslaved Africans arrived in the English colony of Virginia. America was not yet America, but this was the moment it began. No aspect of the country that would be formed here has been untouched by the 250 years of slavery that followed. On the 400th anniversary of this fateful moment, it is time to tell the story. “1619” is a New York Times audio series hosted by Nikole Hannah-Jones. You can find more information about it at nytimes.com/1619pod ...
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Andrew Dickens: The Government has to learn perceptions stick
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Manage episode 387446722 series 2098448
Contenuto fornito da NZME and Newstalk ZB. Tutti i contenuti dei podcast, inclusi episodi, grafica e descrizioni dei podcast, vengono caricati e forniti direttamente da NZME and Newstalk ZB o dal partner della piattaforma podcast. Se ritieni che qualcuno stia utilizzando la tua opera protetta da copyright senza la tua autorizzazione, puoi seguire la procedura descritta qui https://it.player.fm/legal.
So there was a little bit of excitement yesterday as Jack Tame caught the National Party spreading misinformation on Q+A.
Chris Bishop was talking about dropping smokefree legislation and made the claim that there would only be one outlet in all of Northland.
Tame had done his research and said there was more likely going to be 35, which resulted in a classic caught out face from Chis Bishop, who stuck to his line and said he understood there was only going to be 1.
Unfortunately, Jack never asked him where that understanding came from. It came from the Prime Minister, who made the same claim earlier in the week. It was not questioned then, but there was more than enough time for the media to research it and wait for someone to use it again publicly. Which Bishop did and walked into a "gotcha" trap.
Now you've got opponents of the Government jumping up and down going on about the lying Government. Which is a wild over-exaggeration. The factoid was not crucial to their argument about black market trade and gang involvement in tobacco.
Mr Luxon did the right thing and came out and said his team made a mistake. He has urged them to fact check more before they give his Government talking points.
But it's still a thing- and a lesson not to be loose with facts.
As the Prime Minister noted last week about the Pubic Interest Journalism Fund - he stopped short of calling it bribery, but said there was a perception of it. And perceptions are dangerous. But not necessarily true.
The Prime Minister has already been caught out amplifying incorrect statistics through the campaign, so there is a perception that making up statistics is their modus operandi.
As the numbers of outlets was clearly and easily available, a perception could be made that policy is being formulated without sufficient research.
Chris Bishop used to be a tobacco industry lobbyist. Now caught using misleading statistics to support continued sales of tobacco there could be a perceptions of favour for former employers- which is a bad look.
The Prime Minister could be perceived to be in thrall of the Dairy Owners Association who have argued against prohibition, because it would wreck dairy profitability.
The Labour Government found out that perceptions stick. Considering this new Government is only a week old, they might want to learn that lesson fast.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
656 episodi
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Manage episode 387446722 series 2098448
Contenuto fornito da NZME and Newstalk ZB. Tutti i contenuti dei podcast, inclusi episodi, grafica e descrizioni dei podcast, vengono caricati e forniti direttamente da NZME and Newstalk ZB o dal partner della piattaforma podcast. Se ritieni che qualcuno stia utilizzando la tua opera protetta da copyright senza la tua autorizzazione, puoi seguire la procedura descritta qui https://it.player.fm/legal.
So there was a little bit of excitement yesterday as Jack Tame caught the National Party spreading misinformation on Q+A.
Chris Bishop was talking about dropping smokefree legislation and made the claim that there would only be one outlet in all of Northland.
Tame had done his research and said there was more likely going to be 35, which resulted in a classic caught out face from Chis Bishop, who stuck to his line and said he understood there was only going to be 1.
Unfortunately, Jack never asked him where that understanding came from. It came from the Prime Minister, who made the same claim earlier in the week. It was not questioned then, but there was more than enough time for the media to research it and wait for someone to use it again publicly. Which Bishop did and walked into a "gotcha" trap.
Now you've got opponents of the Government jumping up and down going on about the lying Government. Which is a wild over-exaggeration. The factoid was not crucial to their argument about black market trade and gang involvement in tobacco.
Mr Luxon did the right thing and came out and said his team made a mistake. He has urged them to fact check more before they give his Government talking points.
But it's still a thing- and a lesson not to be loose with facts.
As the Prime Minister noted last week about the Pubic Interest Journalism Fund - he stopped short of calling it bribery, but said there was a perception of it. And perceptions are dangerous. But not necessarily true.
The Prime Minister has already been caught out amplifying incorrect statistics through the campaign, so there is a perception that making up statistics is their modus operandi.
As the numbers of outlets was clearly and easily available, a perception could be made that policy is being formulated without sufficient research.
Chris Bishop used to be a tobacco industry lobbyist. Now caught using misleading statistics to support continued sales of tobacco there could be a perceptions of favour for former employers- which is a bad look.
The Prime Minister could be perceived to be in thrall of the Dairy Owners Association who have argued against prohibition, because it would wreck dairy profitability.
The Labour Government found out that perceptions stick. Considering this new Government is only a week old, they might want to learn that lesson fast.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Andrew Dickens Afternoons
So, the Herald, in the weekend, came out and called the anti-cycle lane movement a culture war in its editorial. They pointed out the bleeding obvious - that cycleways aren't the reason there is not enough money to improve our roads. They pointed out that cycleways make up 1 percent of our transport spending. It's far less than footpaths - but you never get talkback calls moaning about footpaths, do you now? This comes after the owners of the Westmere Butchery complained about a proposed cycleway outside their door affecting business. There's no parking outside their door. Look at Google Maps. There's 25 cars parked down Garnet Road and there's room for more. They're talking bull. They've turned out to be useful soldiers in a culture war. So was the Wellington owner of Pandoro Bakery, whose main shop on Allens Street is 100 metres from a free supermarket carpark and there's not a cycleway nearby or even proposed. I have no idea what their motivation is. Other than a desire to prevent us from having good things. Other than a desire to have a mediocre country. It's the common line from politicians these days - we can only have the 'need to haves' but not the 'nice to haves'. But it's a nonsensical slogan when you can't figure out the difference between the two. It's the 'need to have' thinking that gave us the flawed Harbour Bridge. Someone somehow figured out that 8 lanes and a railway line were a 'nice to have' and 'not a need' to have for a future growing city. The Prime Minister claimed that the Wellington Convention Centre was a 'nice to have' and that's we don't have money to fix the burst pipes. The pipes are broken because they weren't replaced 50 years ago and now they're 100 years old. That's because someone 50 years ago decided that water pipe maintenance was a 'nice to have' and that someone in the future can pay for it when it becomes a 'need to have'. On an overseas trip before the election, the Prime Minister gave New Zealand a serve for being wet and having no mojo. Well, look in the mirror, Christopher and Simeon. Businesses will look at you and all your false economy and see a so-called CEO who doesn't believe in capex or investment in plants and machinery. And we'll look at other countries and wonder why our 'nice to haves' are their 'need to haves'. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.…
So the latest twist in the Treaty Principles debate is that the churches have come out against it. More than 400 church leaders are urging MPs to vote against David Seymour's bill. It's the latest chapter in a debate that has been described as 'divisive'. If you don't think it's been divisive you weren't listening to Māori at the King's funeral. They're not hearing the One People argument, because they don't believe the bill promotes that. In fact, they believe the opposite. They believe the Treaty is how we achieve One People Together in agreement. Personally, I don't care. I don't care if you support Māori and I don't care if you support Mr Seymour. The fact of the matter is this is a virtue-signalling sideshow and it is divisive. Just like vaccinations and mandates and the Middle East. The Treaty Principles Bill is divisive. And the reason why it's a virtue-signalling sideshow is because both National and New Zealand First have already said it won't get past the first reading. So it's a dead policy walking. Why not kill it now and stop wasting our time, money and emotion? Or the other parties could change their minds and help their coalition partner. But then you'll be branded as flippy-floppy. Either way, I can't see how this helps National. You have a divided angry nation at each other's throat or you look weak. Who's in charge of this coalition? And speaking of which: Former gun lobbyist Nicole McKee has used her power as a Government minister to reduce regulation for gun clubs - without any public consultation. It's not a major thing, but it is an abandonment of the true democratic process. Perhaps National needs a reminder that when the legislation was first introduced after the mosque atrocity that every single member of National voted for it. So were you wrong then or are you wrong now? Both these stories feel like the tail wagging the dog and makes National look weak. And I don't like that. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.…
I was going to start my programme today with some thoughts about the energy crisis, but something else has popped up. But I will share with you some fun facts: Did you know that New Zealand uses the same amount of electricity in 2024 as we did in 2004? Even though our economic activity and population have grown immensely in the past 20 years. What happened is that we, as consumers, became more efficient with our electricity use. We started using LEDs, we started saving, we started being more careful with our use. So the energy crunch is because we're not making as much electricity as we used to - even though we've been saving electricity ourselves Meanwhile, did you also know that there are currently 22 renewable electricity projects fully consented but not started by the gentailers? So sure, blame the oil and gas exploration ban and that will result in an energy crunch in 10 years. But today's energy crisis is because the generators, who are also the retailers, have not ensured supply despite having it all available to them for years now. I've got more on that - but right now, I have to mention outgoing Treasury head Caralee McLiesh who's leaving for a job as Australia's auditor-general. In her exit interview she said the New Zealand Government needs to make more revenue. And the only way a Government makes more money is more taxes. She'd like to see a capital gains tax She's like to see a capital gains tax - and she says the Government needs to save more in the big expensive items. She mentions super. She'd like to see the age limit raised. Now, Caralee is not some crazy ideological lefty who wants to see the old and rich punished. She's pointing out the bleeding obvious. We are structurally bad. Economists have been saying this for generations. We don't tax enough. When we tax, we tax the wrong people. We don't spend enough and when we do, we do it cheap and too late and then complain when it all starts to fall apart. Faced with all this economic reality, the current Government decided to reduce its revenue to help some taxpayers and landlords. That's the exact opposite of what the problem needs. And then to make things worse, they've stopped spending. And we end up with a country where pregnant Mums can't have toast, Nelson can't get a new hospital building, we run ferries that should be in museums, we run out of power and water, and then we moan we're becoming a third world country and it's all Labour's fault. Someone has to point out the bleeding obvious now and then. I'm pretty sure nothing will happen on Caralee McLeish's advice because to change our structure would be too expensive politically. No turkey votes for Christmas. So before you moan again about how useless this country is, remember it's the country you voted for. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.…
Do I need to remind you that politics is show business? It's all about seeming to be the best instead of necessarily being the best. This is why politicians often say the most ridiculous things and make the most outlandish promises. It’s also why they boil complex issues down to simple catchy slogans which are repeated ad nauseum until they gain their own reality. But eventually, reality catches up. Yesterday’s backdown over the Fast-Track legislation is proof of that. Under the coalition’s original proposal Simeon Brown, Shane Jones and Chris Bishop had the power to green-light anything, even if all advice was against it. This was all in service of the thesis that New Zealand is bogged down in red tape. A slogan hammered time and time again in the election until a significant number of electors believed that giving 3 ministers such power was without risk - and possibly good for the country. The coalition’s answer was totalitarian. I was flabbergasted when I first read the policy and astounded that there was not more outrage. It was immense power in the hands of 3 men. Imagine if Michael Wood, Megan Woods, and Willie Jackson had been granted such power in the last Government. You’d be up in arms saying it was undemocratic and dictatorial. It was much more undemocratic than any co-governance plan. But we all heard silence. We’d been well trained and well indoctrinated and no one complained. Now the National-led coalition has seen sense and now the new Fast-Track legislation means a panel of experts in the field will have more say. Which looks almost the same as Labour introduced before the last election - because it is. So in other words, this Government is no more committed to fast tracking as the last lot. So then you ask yourself - what was all that about? It's all about politics, it's all about getting your vote. Meanwhile, the credit agency Fitch came out with their assessment of our credit rating and with it our economy. And despite the widely distributed idea that we’re stuffed for generations - the credit agency called us an advanced and wealthy economy. Excuse me? They paid credit to macroeconomic corrections that started during Labour’s reign. I beg your pardon? They said New Zealand has a long-standing commitment of fiscal prudence. This is all running against the popular mantra that the last Government left an economy in tatters. It’s not in good shape but it’s also not in tatters. Fitch pointed out that the real problem with New Zealand’s economy is our high level of household debt and a high current account deficit. In other words, we save less than we spend and make up the difference by borrowing foreign capital. That’s on you and me and the long-running housing crisis rather than any crisis in Government spending. But you know, politics. Good politics says it’s all the fault of the last lot and the best Government policy is to do less. We’ve become wet, scared, and lacking mojo and confidence. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.…
The corner has been turned. The 5-year pandemic pandemonium has been tamed. Inflation is down and we've had the first interest rate cut since the Reserve Bank realised they’d overstimulated everything 5 years ago. Proof that tax cuts were not inflationary, says the Finance Minister. And that is the case, but it’s not a sign that the cost of living crisis is over. Inflation and cost of living increases are two heads of the same monster. Tax cuts are not being sucked up by discretionary spending. But they are by increases in charges brought about by a cut in Government spending, a continued housing shortage and its costs, and local Government trying to bridge the infrastructure deficit that’s been growing for decades. For example, my family's tax cuts are going straight onto increased rates and increased public transport costs now that the subsidies have ended. But put on your dancing shoes - said Thomas Couglan at the Herald in the weekend. The rock star economy is back. And we can thank Luxon and Willis. This is a nightmare scenario for the opposition. Well sure. Even though economists have been saying that would happen for a year now. In fact, Shamubeel Eeaqub has been saying all year that a lot of money has been dormant waiting for a turn in the interest rates as a signal that it’s all back on again. So here we go. But was the rock star economy really ever a rock star in the first place? And do we want it back? It was an economy of growth spurred on by high immigration, low interest rates, and big capital gains from a strangled housing market. It was a rock star as long as you had property that you could raise capital on. Throughout the glory days, many warned that there were no productivity gains, that there was too much reliance on dairy and tourism, that there was too much spending on fripperies, there was too little investment on infrastructure that made us competitive Can we really say the rock star economy is back when we wait a month for a doctor's appointment? Or 3 months for surgery in a rotting, past its use by hospital? Can we be a rockstar economy if we can't make enough electricity? Can we say we're a rock star economy when half our water is lost in leaks? The return of a Key Government-style rock star economy will benefit me and I'm grateful. But I want something better than that. It's time this country put its big boy pants on and fixed the stuff that's been plaguing us for decades and makes us seem like a third-world country. Then we will be a true rock star. And the people who manage that will be hailed as true masters of an economy. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.…
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Andrew Dickens Afternoons
The winter solstice was on June 20 and 21. The longest night and the shortest day, but wisdom tells us that the depths of winter does not fall until 6 weeks after the solstice. It takes a while for actions to provoke a reaction. So right now is the depths of winter and much is at the worst it has ever been and ever will be. The All Blacks lost. In front of a disappointing crowd. Many are saying the poor crowd was down to economic hardship in the capital as the Government wages war on the size of the public service. The public service in Wellington is being slashed to cut the government spending to help the economy. However, this is all happening just as the Reserve Bank tries to fix their Covid mistake. We’re in a double squeeze. In Covid, the Reserve Bank underestimated how well we’d operate under Covid lockdowns. With the benefit of hindsight, we know they splashed too much virtually free money. So now they have to strangle our economy after setting it on fire. It’s debatable whether we needed a double squeeze. But here we are. Whipping ourselves big time for future good. Meanwhile, the country is low on power. A dry winter and our gas reserves running out means that energy-dependent industries are finding it hard to make a buck and some are now on hiatus. Reality check. We need gas. A fossil fuel and we have no alternative. Labour had a policy but no alternative. But another reality check. From the discovery of gas to coming online takes at least 10 years, so today’s shortage is on previous governments and gas companies. No matter what Simeon Brown says. We’re still low on health workers and the cuts on government spending suggest we’re not really going to splash cash on them. We’re still importing 100,000 people every year and not increasing contingencies to cope with their demands, like housing and health. But we’re more than happy to count whatever money they contribute to the economy. In John Key's years, they were called our rock star economy. To add to all of that we have one of the most negative governments I can remember who seem to enjoy telling us how bad we are and to blame it all on the past 6 years when the rot set in 30 years ago. They’ve followed a government that told us we had 9 years of neglect. No wonder we have a generation wanting to leave. Government after government promising the world and making no difference and telling us how rubbish we are. But then we watch our Olympians and their work ethic and we feel good. Then we discover that all regions are having an economic recovery. Except for Wellington for obvious reasons. And we have an OCR statement later this week. Could it be the long winter of discontent is finally over and we have green shoots and a good spring to come? New Zealand is where I want to be. We’re not the cot case the Government portrays. We do need to rediscover our mojo. We need to stop saying no to good ideas. We need better public transport, we need more houses, we need more gas. We need to look after ourselves. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.…
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Andrew Dickens Afternoons
I have always avoided getting into the Treaty principles debate. It’s just too much of a swamp to get trapped in. Either you’re for David Seymour's debate on a reset, in which case some will call you a racist. Or you’re against a select committee debate means the racists will call you a wokester. Both of which are gross exaggerations of what’s really going down, so it’s best to just avoid it. However, with the resignation of Dr Anthony Jordan from the Pharmac board, I find myself truly confused. Dr Jordan quit over the Government's treaty directive. David Seymour told Pharmac it was inappropriate for the agency to keep considering the Treaty of Waitangi in the health sector. Dr Jordan said he "could not with good conscience" continue to work for the agency following that direction. But as an outsider, I can’t understand how the treaty was factored into Pharmac’s decisions. If ever there was an agency that’s work was based on need, it’s Pharmac. Everybody gets sick, everybody needs medicine. Pharmac’s job is to decide what medicines work for New Zealand. While it’s true that Māori get some illnesses more than others it’s still a need. If that need is great enough it may get funded. It’s a bit like the belief that the Māori Health Authority and Te Whatu Ora’s setup meant that Māori received priority in healthcare. It’s a factor to be looked out for in identifying need but at the end of the day nobody jumped the queue. Once your need is identified you join a raceless list based on priority. But Dr Anthony Jordan has now resigned, and I wonder if he’s ever considered that this will have more effect on Māori seeking equitable healthcare results from Māori than David Seymour's war on Treaty principles. Dr Jordan is, by the way, the partner of a Labour MP and his resignation smacks to me more of political virtue signalling than standing up for Māori in the healthcare system. The question for Dr Jordan is: Was it better to be fighting for Māori inside the tent or sitting around outside the tent moaning and achieving nothing at all? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.…
There is only one story in town. I realised this when I entered the newsroom and everyone was still itching to talk about it. Firstly, I am so glad the assassin was unsuccessful. The repercussions from this attempt are already dramatic enough. If Trump had been slaughtered, then the reaction could have been disastrous for the United States. Imagine January 6 and the insurrection and then multiply that horror by a thousand. Every Trumpist and their dog would be reaching for their guns right now and the chances of an uprising or a civil war would have increased dramatically. Obviously, there was a failure in the security detail, the assassination was only averted by a chance movement of the president's head, even though he was already in the sights of a Secret Service sniper. This is disturbing - but also unfortunate in that the rumour mill online now suggests that the Biden camp had deliberately scaled down security for Trump despite obvious signs the whole election race was getting tetchy. I don't believe this because the sniper had the shooter in his sights. The attempt was preventable, but the Secret Service has lost its edge. This is also understandable, considering this was the first attempt on a President in 40 years. Meanwhile, the escalating tension has been covered by the MSM for some time now, complete with warnings that it could all get too real. This means that many supporters at the rally believed it was the media's fault. "You wanted political violence well you got it". Or- "the liberal media is responsible", one person said. Warning it's rising is not wishing it would happen. This shows that many have fallen for the 'look over there' trick played by many politicians and media commentators. Shooting the messenger and not listening to the message is a weakness. When a truth is not liked by a politician they attack the media. They've been doing this for decades. And then tension in the States is spreading. In my whole life, I have never heard more commentary on the left and the right. There is no left and right in America. Their left is right of our National Party. But there is a real battle between liberals and conservatives. And it centres on touch paper issues like immigration and abortion and governmental overreach in civic life. And the language used is extreme and exaggerated to drive home the points, and that creates anger and dispute. And we end up with the disunited states of America. And the real question is whether there can be a return to civil public discourse. Biden has already expressed this and a desire to bring unity back to the United States in an address from the Oval Office. And I will ask the question - can the US discover unity, or have we gone too far down a track of division? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.…
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Andrew Dickens Afternoons
I wasn't here last week because I was attending a funeral. A dear friend. 58 years old. Gut cancer. A reminder to us all- live life. Don't put things off. So, last week I thought I'd talk about the ferry debate and I thought that the issue would be over by now. But it's not. It rumbles on like the stubbed toe it is. Today, the Government receives a report that will outline some of the options going forward and what cancellation of the ferries will cost. This is not an insubstantial amount. Industry sources believe it's $200-$300 million dollars. Supporters of the Government say that's a bargain compared to spending billions on unnecessary rail infrastructure. And that answered a question I'd had all along. I've been confused at the continual assertion that the ferries were gold plated. They appear to be a very reasonable price, mostly because they were ordered during the Covid lull and the shipbuilders were grateful for the business. Yes they were bigger, and yes that means work on the wharves. But these wharves have remained unchanged for 50 years and needed an upgrade. Particularly the Kaiwharawhara port in Wellington. It's seismically vulnerable, so no matter what boats we eventually order, there will be a huge costs in earthquake proofing. There are no cheaper second hand options, otherwise known as the Corollas of the ferry world. No the reasons they are gold plated is because they are rail capable and National is no friend of railways. This is the party that sold the railways to Toll, who then asset stripped it to such an extent we bought it back for $1. They stopped the electrification of the Main Trunk line and stood in way of the CRL until they no longer could. They also gave way to the trucking lobby allowing trucks of more than 44 tonnes on our road. Killing rail freight and causing potholes that they're now spending $4 billion to fix. It's this sort of difference in opinion between Labour and National that is causing our paralysis in infrastructure, and this example is one of the worse. Meanwhile, I wonder if anyone has been investigating what the costs will be to convert these ferries into road ferries only. Because frankly, I can't see any better deal anytime soon. And time is of the essence. The Cook Strait crossing is part of our State Highway 1. Whether it's rail or trucks, tourists or cars, it is a major piece of our supply chain and to have allowed it to get into such disrepair and with no real solution in sight is a pox on both the National and Labour houses. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.…
On this day 60 years ago, 4 young lads from Liverpool arrived in Wellington on a plane to commence a week long tour of New Zealand. And they changed everything. It was the Beatles. It wasn't like we weren't warned. The week before was chaos as they toured Australia. 250,000 youngsters welcomed the band in sleepy old Adelaide. But the older generation were not prepared for the excitement, the hysteria and disorder that followed the band wherever they went. They were agog. It was the beginning of the generation gap. It was the beginning of the rise of youth culture. The Beatles opened New Zealand's eyes. The advent of international travel and of television meant they were the world's first international superstars and they were here. Andrew Dickens chats with listeners who remember the day and the week. The adventures are legendary. Most were extraordinarily young and yet the time is burnt into their memory. Take a trip. LISTEN ABOVE When We Was Fab: Inside the Beatles Australasian Tour 1964 (Woodland Press). Andy Neill has ticketed book launch events at Unity Books, Wellington, June 21; Hedley’s Books, Masterton, June 22; Big Fan, Auckland. June 25. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.…
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Andrew Dickens Afternoons
So I went to a party at the weekend. Quite a swanky one. Negronis and burgers and all sorts of people. Judges and doctors and advertising people and even musicians. An old mate was there, a card-carrying lefty. We're chatting and he says he's part of an urbanism group. Studying and advocating for urban development, and he says, "you right-wing ZB types would hate it." So I said, "I beg your pardon?" What part of having a well-designed and functional city is either left-wing or right-wing? It's not about politics it's about practicality. Who doesn't want a functioning public transport system? Who doesn't want accommodation solutions for the poor and the young so they don't have to leave the cities for a house? By the way right-wingers love trains. Mussolini made them run on time. The politicisation of city designs is why nothing ever happens anymore and our cities just get worse and worse. So it was good to open the paper on Sunday and see the Auckland mayor talking about that city's abortive light rail plans. He said it was good that the Government killed Labour's plan off because it was disastrously handled. The main problem with it was the cost which had been calculated at 400 million dollars a kilometre. Mayor Brown said he was recently in a town in France, the size of Christchurch, who have built a very successful light rail, at a cost of 50 million a kilometre. Nearly 90 per cent cheaper? Then he went into all the reasons big projects cost so much in New Zealand. The gold plating of design, the contracts granted to constructors who are also suppliers who have no reason to contain costs, and then there's the politics. What idiot wanted to put a light rail into a tunnel? Michael Wood, that's who. But the problem with all of this is that a good idea is thrown away because of bad management. When Labour came in in 2017, AT had a 6 billion dollar light rail plan, ready to go. But Labour and then the New Zealand Superannuation Fund thought they could do it better and suddenly it was 15 billion because of the tunnelling and it stalled and then National killed it. Much was made of the 228 million spent with no track laid which shows us how little people know of projects. That money was spent on geo-tech reports and surveys and buying land and planning. It's still all valid now and to throw it out is a blatant waste of taxpayers' money. Light rail is not left wing. Light rail is not a bad idea. Labour was just a bad government that cocked it up. LISTEN ABOVE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.…
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Andrew Dickens Afternoons
A report from Auckland Council's boarding house inspectors shows out of 44 properties suspected to be breaking the law, 40 were “operating unauthorised transient accommodation or boarding houses.” Many had issues with fire safety breaches, growing numbers of gang-affiliated guests, and owners questioning council authority. Andrew Dickens had two callers today who discussed their situations. The first, Jamie, lives in a boarding house with his son. Jamie told Andrew Dickens “There’s one room here that’s $500 – the guy’s killing it,” Jamie said “You’re living with alcoholics and drug users. I’ve had to send my kid to his mum’s because it’s no place for a kid.” The second, John, owns two boarding houses and lives there himself. John told Andrew Dickens “When they come here, they are lost. When I give them a room, they sleep for a week - they are that exhausted.” John said “It’s an ideal situation to get these people off the street and give them independence.” LISTEN ABOVE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.…
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Andrew Dickens Afternoons
I presume the lead story in the Herald on Sunday was welcomed by police and those behind our stronger gun laws. An Auckland pensioner and his daughter have been caught for legally buying 13 guns for the Comancheros motorcycle gang. It's the latest of dozens of discoveries by police of licensed gun owners buying for gangs who cannot legally purchase guns. It was validation of good old-fashioned police work. Over the past 4 years the police have analysed more than 350,000 sales records looking for suspicious patterns of spending. They then correlate the purchases with the records of gun owners, and they discover the gang's straw buyers. But to me, it also validates the strengthening of the laws back in 2019 after the Christchurch mosque massacre. That saw the banning of military-style semi-automatics, stricter rules on the “fit and proper” test to hold a license, the establishment of a gun registry, and a set of rules designed to ensure gun clubs and ranges are safe places. At the time, gun owners made out that the laws criminalised legal gun owners which was a massive over-exaggeration. It criminalised a type of gun only. A type of gun that non MSSA owners find intimidating and unnecessary. A gun that turns any idiot into a killing machine as long as they can handle the recoil. And the new rules also told the citizens of New Zealand that ownership of a gun is not a right but a privilege that must be earned. But they also say that once it's earnt there's no problem at all as long as it's not a military-style automatic. And slowly it's beginning to make sense to even the law's hardest detractors. Act campaigned on a full repeal of the legislation and the minister in charge is Act's Nicole Mckee She is also the former spokesperson for the council of licensed firearms owners. She was also interviewed in the paper yesterday where she said gun owners hoping for a rollback will be disappointed. Act campaigned on greater access to MSSAs and scrapping the gun registry, but these didn’t make it into coalition agreements. Instead, the National-Act agreement committed to repealing the regulations around gun clubs and shooting ranges - which Mckee has now backed off from doing completely - a review of the registry and a rewrite of the arms act. But, at the moment, the laws are being seen to work. And here's the rub. If you support getting tough on crime then you must also support getting tough on gun ownership. LISTEN ABOVE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.…
Welcome to Budget Week. Which I am looking forward to. After all the warnings from economists and world agencies like the OECD, that this is the wrong part of an economic cycle to bring in tax cuts, it ill be interesting to see the way they're going to pull it off. Personally, I can't see the budget being nearly as harsh, nearly as radical or nearly as transformational and beneficial as all the politicians say. I've already decided to call it the bad day at the office budget. Which we'll all get through. Meanwhile, we're getting little bones thrown at us to keep the headlines flowing. $50 million odd to hire teachers feels like a small change when you look at the entire education wage budget. My grizzle today is about doctors. The Waikato times weekend paper featured a couple of young doctors at Waikato Hospital and their impossible workload. Both are just 27 years old, 4 years out of school. 10 years into learning their trade. One ended out working alone on a cardiology ward with 100 patients in it. There should have been 3 doctors on duty. The other, a medical registrar, told a similar story about how patients in agony in E.D spent 12 hours waiting for care. Things are not getting better anytime soon. The population is growing, people are living longer, patients are getting sicker and arrive more sick because they haven't seen a GP. Because there's not enough GPs either. Meanwhile our underpaid, over worked 27 year olds have 6 figure student loans to pay off. So when choosing their specialty they often choose the better paying so good by psychiatry, hello dermatology. This perfect storm of dysfunction is the result of decisions made a long time ago. Not just the last regime. Student debt dissuades many except the determined or the already wealthy. Limiting our doctors' numbers. Immigration has been allowed to blow out for decades without any increase in doctors in training. So fewer doctors per person Entry numbers to med school are still embarrassingly low. So once again fewer doctors What have we been thinking for the past 40 years? We have a malaise. Not enough doctors, teachers, police, houses, roads, public transport, energy generation. The list goes on. We're like a 2 bedroom shack trying to house 10 people in it. But every 3 years someone comes in and wallpapers one room. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.…
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Andrew Dickens Afternoons
Now, I'm not part of the tribe who automatically thinks that Auckland Transport is a bunch of ideological toss-pots who want to force us out of our cars. I'm the sort of urbanist that gets there's a limit to the number of cars that can use our roads, and when that limit is hit then you have offer choices so we can all get somewhere. I don't reflexively hate cycleways or bus lanes. I comprehend congestion charges and I'm excited for the Central Rail Link and even Light Rail. Mostly because I've seen the good a co-ordinated public transport system has done elsewhere in the world. But AT's 24/7 parking charges change is beyond the pale. Having developed the city centre with apartments, it will inconvenience residents who have been trying to take their cars off the roads by living in town. It's going to cost ratepayers. Either directly, such as the residents who reckon it will cost them $11,000 a year to park their car now. Or by funding a bureaucracy to run resident parking schemes. It's said it will affect hospo workers. It won't stop punters who tend to cab or even use public transport into town because they're on the lash. The people it will really affect are the minimum waged workers who need to get in and out of the city outside public transport times - and who are least able to afford it. But the most chilling part of the story is that the mayor and the Council are powerless to stop it, even though they've helped to cause the problem. Councils fund council controlled organisations but they don't run them. In this case, the Council looked to reduce its funding so AT unilaterally increased its external fundraising by hiking the parking charges. But that is AT’s constitutional right. The main Council body, including the elected representatives, have no operational control. Rodney Hide designed them that way so politicians couldn't get the filthy, compromised hands on big assets. Which is why I've always laughed about National's plan for council controlled operations to run all our water. Councils may own and fund CCOs, but they certainly don't control them. Just look at Auckland Transport. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.…
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