Archive for September, 2010

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  Dominion Road and the North-Western Busway - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  Those of you who have read some of my recent blog posts about Dominion Road should be pleased to hear that we saved the busway! After a fiery meeting  Auckland City Council agreed it would be foolish to allow cars with 2 passengers into the busway. This is great news as this is one of the [...] read more
  September 14, 2010 12:04 pm - 4 Comments
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  Tuakau sits-in to get rail in - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  As the Herald reports, this weekend three communities in the Waikato – Huntly, Tuakau and Te Awamutu, staged sit-ins at their local train station. They were there to show their support for a passenger rail service between Auckland and Hamilton. You can see some footage of the sit-ins here. The sit-ins had huge support with over [...] read more
  September 13, 2010 2:51 pm - 23 Comments
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  Podcast: Bird of the Year - by frog

  
  
  
  Forest and Bird are launching their Bird of the Year competition this week and Green Co-leader, Russel Norman, is officially championing the kokako. I talked to Russel about his choice of native bird and his great dream of a Giant Totara National Park that inspired it…along with a gaggle of other Green MPs on their [...] read more
  September 13, 2010 12:20 pm - 1 Comment
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  Multi cultural Eid celebration in Mangere - by Keith Locke

  
  
  
  It was a pleasure to be able to celebrate the Eid yesterday with members of the Muslim community at a big event in Mangere. It was a very multi-cultural event. There are 27 nationalities represented in the Auckland Muslim community. read more
  September 13, 2010 11:12 am - 2 Comments
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  A Week in Town can be a Long Time - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  I speak with a carpenter who is repairing a roof…He freely admits to bursting into tears on two occasions, something he hasn’t done since childhood. read more
  September 12, 2010 12:31 pm - 3 Comments
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  From Oakland to Otara – teachers for social justice - by Catherine Delahunty

  
  
  
  Last week I went to Otara to hear some inspirational korero from educators who believe in social justice. It was such a relief to listen to the wisdom of Professor Jeff Duncan Andrade and Professor David Stovall who are also high school teachers from the mean streets of urban Oakland and Chicago. They have a [...] read more
  September 12, 2010 10:30 am - 3 Comments
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  Child Poverty Action and the reframing of welfare - by Catherine Delahunty

  
  
  
  On Friday, the Child Poverty Action Group co-hosted an excellent all day seminar on welfare issues at Auckland University. The speakers included Australian academics and researchers Paul Smyth, Eve Bodsworth and the legendary Professor Peter Saunders (i.e. not the Peter Saunders whom Paula Bennett appointed to advise the Government’s Welfare Working Group and who writes Islamophobic novels in his spare time). read more
  September 11, 2010 4:04 pm - 19 Comments
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  General debate, September 11, 2010 - by frog

  
  
  
  A good day to reflect on how the world works, or doesn’t, and remain calm. read more
  September 11, 2010 7:05 am - 109 Comments
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  SIS looking in the wrong direction - by Keith Locke

  
  
  
  The SIS is pretty good at checking people’s backgrounds, its just that they are looking at the wrong people. read more
  September 10, 2010 6:05 pm - 21 Comments
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  A favourite Canterbury business succeeds - by David Clendon

  
  
  
  It was a big weekend for a small Canterbury business, South Pacific Motorcycle Tours, based a few k’s west of Kaiapoi.  I’m a bit of a fan of this operation, having earlier in the year been a very satisfied customer when Lindis and I hired one of their bikes for an all too brief ‘R&R’ [...] read more
  September 10, 2010 11:35 am - No Comments
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  Supporting welfare justice with the Alternative Welfare Working Group - by Catherine Delahunty

  
  
  
  Yesterday I attended the Welfare Justice Alternative Welfare Working Group forum at Tätai Hono Marae in Auckland. The fora, which are being held in a diverse range of communities, are stimulating a positive vision of welfare without the narrow parameters and punitive agenda of the Government’s official Welfare Working Group. read more
  September 10, 2010 6:10 am - 43 Comments
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  1: Reflections on the 2010 Christchurch Experience - by Kennedy Graham

  
  
  
  The searing memory of the day occurs near the end. I am driving home from the city centre, up Montreal St. in the fading light. A building is being demolished, the debris catching the setting sun as it falls. It looks surreal in pink. I stop the car and walk into Victoria St read more
  September 9, 2010 5:05 pm - 7 Comments
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  Domestic violence and the Canterbury earthquake - by Catherine Delahunty

  
  
  
  I was dismayed but not altogether surprised to read yesterday that police have reported a marked increase in domestic violence in Canterbury since Saturday’s earthquake. The trauma of the earthquake itself, followed by days of stress from damaged homes and businesses, fear from aftershocks, lack of sleep, and worry as the extent of the challenge [...] read more
  September 9, 2010 10:33 am - 17 Comments
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  Rebuilding Canterbury after the quake - by Russel Norman

  
  
  
  Re-opening the Christchurch office last night was an opportunity to talk to locals about what’s ahead. Obviously we need to work on the immediate issues of safety and welfare, but we also need to think ahead at the same time. Some of the issues raised were: Making sure that the community of Christchurch and Canterbury [...] read more
  September 8, 2010 10:55 pm - 33 Comments
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  What about communities of national significance? - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  Transport will be one of the big local issues of the looming Mana by-election. The Kapiti Expressway, currently being rammed through by the Government, is attracting considerable opposition because it is an unpopular, unsustainable and uneconomic 1950s-style solution. Rather than a smart, integrated and affordable solution, this project is like hitting a nail with a sledgehammer though the community. read more
  September 8, 2010 1:35 pm - 19 Comments
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  Australia has a Government, but needs to consider electoral reform - by frog

  
  
  
  The decision of Independent MPs Rob Oakeshott and Tony Windsor to support Labor has given Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard the numbers to govern. Their decision follows those of the sole Green Party House of Representatives MP Adam Bandt and former Tasmanian Green Andrew Wilkie (who was elected as an independent) to also support Labor [...] read more
  September 7, 2010 6:41 pm - 10 Comments
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  Will the Black Ferns get the credit they deserve? - by frog

  
  
  
  What comes after ‘three peat’?  ‘Four peat’ doesn’t quite have the same ring to it. That’s the problem we have describing the awesome success of the Black Ferns who just won the Rugby World Cup for the fourth time in a row. It’s a great problem to have.   Congratulations to all the New Zealand players, [...] read more
  September 7, 2010 3:33 pm - 5 Comments
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  It’s dob in a bludger time - by frog

  
  
  
  Someone dropped a pen from ACC near my lilypad yesterday. Could it have been Dr Felicity Goodyear-Smith, who advised ACC to require a diagnosis of mental illness before sex abuse survivors could get counselling paid for by ACC and who thinks sexual abuse counselling is ‘a scam’? read more
  September 7, 2010 8:14 am - 29 Comments
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  Goff and Cullen come out for a republic - by Keith Locke

  
  
  
  It was good to see Labour leader Phil Goff come out in the Herald on Sunday for starting the move to a republic. According to Phil the “succession of the monarchy is the time to have a head of state who is a New Zealander”.  This echoed the view of former deputy PM Michael Cullen [...] read more
  September 6, 2010 10:22 am - 46 Comments
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  Young people inspire others to believe change is possible - by Kevin Hague

  
  
  
  One of the events I really wanted to take part in last year was a festival called “A Day at the Beach”. It was the idea of a couple of young West Coasters, Louis Brown and Guy Ryan. Louis would walk 350km (to represent 350 ppm Carbon in the atmosphere) down the beach from Karamea [...] read more
  September 5, 2010 11:00 pm - 5 Comments