Values versus science by Susan Grimsdell
New Zealand has been seeing some pretty scary behaviour from seemingly ordinary people lately. Government staff have been the target of a torrent of abuse and threats, on social media, in phone calls and by email. This has included death threats and, following up on that, some staff have had the wheel nuts on their cars loosened. Dead birds have been thrown on the steps of Parliament and thousands of people have marched in fury down the streets of our cities. Predator danger The issue? Dept of Conservation dropping a poison, referred… Read More
Truth and alt truth by Susan Grimsdell
It’s bad enough when individuals form “opinions” that have little or no bearing on actuality, but much worse when governments do, because their opinions become policies that we all have to comply with. Trump’s a grand master at doing this – alt truth. But he sure isn’t the only one. Toxic decisions Here the news lately is full of the disaster of so-called “P” houses, where no one in government making decisions had bothered to look into the scientific evidence, and as a result, handed down polices that meant millions of public… Read More
From the back of the front line by Trevor Plumbly
Honours and horrors I’ve made a few mistakes this week. The first was to scan the Queen’s birthday honours list. For some strange reason, I follow this every year; it’s a bit like squeezing pimples, it’s not pleasant but people do it anyway. I do it, not to check if I’ve been included, more to see if they can top last year’s inanities. True to form, there’s a ‘Sir’ for a rejected prime minister, baubles for a forgotten pop star, some sportsfolk and whoopee, a ‘cookery writer’ (services to glazed carrots?). Those… Read More
Anzac Day 25 April by Susan Grimsdell
The airwaves here in New Zealand are full of war. Remembrance of war, that is. 25 April marks the anniversary of the first major military action fought by Australian and New Zealand forces during the First World War. When I listen, I always get an uneasy feeling. I hear that it’s all about “honouring” those who were killed, but when I think of all those sad, sad white crosses in the European war cemeteries, I have to wonder if the young men and women there would find any comfort from knowing that people… Read More
