Look, what I have been saying is that I know nothing about Christian country music, but when I see a man in his 50s bragging about a Spotify age of 27, I think “take your hand off it, you try-hard loser”

I know, obviously, that the private sector is inherently lean and efficient, but can anyone tell me, in the name of all that is holy, how on earth I can connect with someone at Spark who could take an order for a new broadband connection?

Kia ora e hoa mā. I'm pleased to announce that I'm coming out of retirement to take up the role of Chief of Staff role for the Green Party in Parliament (think Malcolm Tucker, Leo McGarry). I'm not moving away from Te Tai o Poutini, but just now going the process of setting up a 2nd home in Wgtn.

Warren Forster is absolutely right: this is exactly what ACC did in 2009-10. I’m proud of my part in the successful campaign to reverse that approach. Needed again. ACC stops payments to record numbers of long-term clients www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...

There’s a double rainbow! Everything is going to be okay

Jon Stewart’s latest Daily Show was fantastic. Azerbaijan has never been at war with Armenia

My go-to cafe in Invercargill was always Zookeepers, but the grieving can finally end. Kahu Ariki at SIT in Esk St is excellent

I’m a simple man. I do not understand the ABs’ kicking strategy

This hadn’t been a story I was following but was prompted to read this excellent article by being perplexed by the contradictory RNZ reporting, which said both that the data centres were ‘live’ and that they were still to be built. Emperor’s new clothes.

So great to be a Petri dish for experimentation by US libertarianism again: New Zealand’s Epstein Files open.substack.com/pub/melanien...

Who'd have guessed? It turns out that the Regulatory Standards Bill is not only the decades-long ideological project of ACT and the NZ Initiative/Business Roundtable but also of the American extreme libertarian right: New Zealand’s Epstein Files open.substack.com/pub/melanien...

Watching a film set in 1974 in the US. In one scene someone goes through an airport metal detector and then straight onto a plane. While in the air he pays for his ticket with cash, like a train. I don’t remember that happening. Anyone else?

How sad it is that Moondance saved Van Morrison financially after Astral Weeks (objectively one of the best albums ever released) was a commercial flop

We just watched the Thursday Murder Club movie. I won’t say anything about it, except to note how extraordinary it is that professional actor Pierce Brosnan seems completely incapable of adopting and maintaining an accent different to his own

Look, I don’t like to be critical, but the Argentinian national anthem could really use some work

Here's a link to our new report on the determinants of health and wellbeing, published today. It follows up on a landmark report from 1998 and finds that these determinants are largely the same, and we've done a patchy job (at best) of improvement.

I think this is what was meant to be linked. Thanks for your work on this and for sharing!

1/5 Awesome work Kevin! Mihi to you and your team. And just love the "Reset Economic Levers" recommendations 🙂❤️🙂❤️. 🧵

Here's a link to our new report on the determinants of health and wellbeing, published today. It follows up on a landmark report from 1998 and finds that these determinants are largely the same, and we've done a patchy job (at best) of improvement. www.health.govt.nz/publications...

Well, amongst other things: To fix health, minister advised he must fix climate, tax and Treaty newsroom.co.nz/2025/08/22/t...

Before the tūī start trashing all the flowers! They have started to arrive but so far are mostly focused on chasing other birds away

Does anyone know anything about ‘A Remarkable Place to Die’? It’s on TVNZ on Demand but I don’t think it was on any of their broadcast channels. But it’s much better than their usual streaming-only fare

I’m just engaging with the argument the phonics-only zealots are using as a smokescreen for the actual - racist (Elizabeth Rata, her hour come at last) - reason for removing Māori words from school books.

What’s with the stories about sprucing up CVs? There’s a structural issue: way more people wanting work than jobs, along with inadequate social support. Deckchairs/Titanic

I feel we can do a better job of celebrating the outstanding achievements of Niamh Fisher-Black, 5th in the Tour de France. Brilliant!

I’ve spent the weekend in Te Anau for the Half Marathon. Beautiful mostly off-road course - highly recommended - and great to be able to support local businesses in the off-season (in what’s obviously a very seasonal economy)

Fast Track backwards #nzpol #cartoon #repost

Did you know "She sells seashells is about a real person?" 🧪

Thanks. Done now.

I’m sure I saw a sensible voting guide for Internet NZ candidates but now can’t find it. Help please?

If you have Acorn, can I recommend ‘Collision’? It’s it’s a 5-parter, and it’s REALLY good but it’s leaving soon apparently. Similar Vaseline as the film ‘Crash’ and actually we’d seen it before but didn’t remember anything material

This is literally episode 1 of The Thick Of It

Thought experiment: would there be any significant cost to allowing people to choose the order of Te Reo Māori and English on their passports? How would the numbers fall?

It would be good to see some discussion of the role of Free Trade Agreements prohibiting domestic commodity subsidies in coverage of the price of butter

Spending the night in Murchison because the EV charger is faulty. It’s a critical ‘single point of failure’ in the charging network, a necessary stop for many journeys, including mine between Māwhera and Waitohi (Picton). Not enough charge to get to Reefton so cord through motel unit window it is

I’m wondering today what makes butter ‘premium’. Is there anything different about the butter itself, or is it just a question of branding?

My middle-aged son is too busy (table top gaming) to have dinner with me tonight in Wellington. This is the modern version of the Harry Chaplin song, Cat’s in the Cradle

Toitū Te Reo, described as a two-day “celebration, inspiration, education, and activation of the language and culture”, will take place in Heretaunga Hastings on November 13-14.

Maybe this is how the frog slowly dies as the temperature increases. I realise that I have come to expect that most media coverage of things Seymour has said, or even of criticism of him, will closely resemble an uncritical megaphone for him. But WTF is that Stuff poll?

It shouldn't need saying but it is unacceptable for the deputy prime minister to be attacking public servants for doing their job. Different agencies providing their expert opinion on Bills is a key step in how issues are identified and sorted before bills become law. www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...

Great to see the breakdowns of oral submissions on the RSB from @fran4dunedin.bsky.social @duncanwebbmp.bsky.social and I especially love the ones from @tinangata.bsky.social. Opposition has overwhelmed support numerically and in quality. The written submissions are even more overwhelming opposed!

Okay, but besides Epstein calling him his “closest friend,” flying on the Lolita Express 8 times, showing up in both contact books, co-organizing a "beauty pageant" together in which they flew 28 girls to FL, and dating one of Epstein's victims--why do people think Trump is in the Epstein files?

Just re-upping this because I’m hearing journalists echoing Seymour’s line. It is ABSOLUTELY NOT game over. National and NZ First still have a choice to make and we can help them make the right one. Keep going team!

Looked like a Wayne Smith try to me

@brianboru.bsky.social your submission was terrific Brian!

On RNZ’s political panel I heard that Seymour has been saying that Nats & NZ1st HAVE to support RSB because they said they would support THE Bill in Coalition Agreements. That’s pure rhetoric: THE Bill didn’t EXIST at the time so the Agreements have to be read as contingent

My oral submission on the RSB. Thanks Jason for figuring out how to do this with Vimeo!

For those who have been following the RSB oral submissions, just imagine a two column table that lists supporting organisations and experts on one side and those opposed on the other. Has anyone been working on that?

@drdeanknight.bsky.social Great job Prof Knight! 5 minutes is so frustrating!