Quick rant thread.

[Navin 180]

Found this quite funny but annoying, picked up my new car from Coombes Johnston a couple weeks ago and was told the car would be in my name by the time I got home that day. Low and behold I received a certificate of registration in the mail yesterday for a 2010 Rav 4.

[Driftit 2078]

1 hour ago, Navin said:

Found this quite funny but annoying, picked up my new car from Coombes Johnston a couple weeks ago and was told the car would be in my name by the time I got home that day. Low and behold I received a certificate of registration in the mail yesterday for a 2010 Rav 4.

Congrats? I guess.

[NZ BMW 368]

Seeing a cop on the side of the motorway near Greenlane with his radar gun out today. 

Really?! ?

[kwhelan 241]

its the claim of being the most open and transparent gvnmt and "not going to lie' and "we're the source of all truth' re covid that gets me. there are some serious questions over the timelines of this and who knew what when.

not that any of that matters we just need to get it done now,/rant

there are some amazingly good studies now on 3 common cheap drugs that are proven to work, except facebook and youtube takedowns control the narrative.but you will be tarred and feathered if you mention them. Guess theres no money in it for them so shut it down quick

[gjm 3258]

Conspiracy theories.

[kwhelan 241]

a good conspiracy I heard today is that the current outbreak is pretty much overhyped /managed so that on friday they can say their team who have trained for this emergency have stepped in and saved us all from another lockdown with their procedures. The Rugby can go ahead on Saturday and everyone will rejoice and thank Jacinda for saving us again

no policies needed, election in the bag

hopefully thats what pans out, I was looking forward to the game

[M3AN 4016]

Also looking forward to the game but I can't understand how they can have level 3 for less than 14+ days?

I understand why they only announced 3 days (to avoid rebellion) but surely, given they're unlikely to be able to contact trace everybody, we need at least 14 days?

I don't think the question is whether we'll go to level 2 in Auckland, I think it's whether we can avoid level 4.

A good thing I saw today, amongst the madness, was that many, many people were wearing masks or face coverings, actually being responsible. 

Edited August 12, 2020 by M3AN
sp

[Breaker 980]

Panic buying, again. FFS people we aren’t going to run out of milk, like ever!

[HalfJobHarry 106]

23 minutes ago, M3AN said:

Also looking forward to the game but I can't understand how they can have level 3 for less than 14+ days?

I understand why they only announced 3 days (to avoid rebellion) but  surely, given they're unlikely to be able to contract trace everybody, we need at least 14 days?

I don't think the question is whether we'll go to level 2 in Auckland, I think it's whether we can avoid level 4.

A good thing I saw today, amongst the madness, was that many, many people were wearing masks or face coverings, actually being responsible. 

It's because if they can trace the contacts and locate the source they will make a decision based on that. The reality surely is that we are not going have just 3 days of level 3. At this stage there are in excess of 150 people designated as 'close contacts' (although this is a very broad term) of the current cases. One of the cases went to Rotorua on Saturday, broadening the blast radius to who knows how many. Agreed, the data just isn't in yet on the next stage, that will become apparent by end of the week. It's very much a remain at 3 or go to 4 in my mind right now. 

This isn't a failure of anything IMHO, this is the system working as best it it ever can in the face of a highly infectious virus like this. My homeland the UK has the highest excess deaths in all of Europe and looks to be on course for the worst recession of most European countries (currently showing a 20% drop in GDP ...20%!!). To date here in NZ we have paid with minimal human lives and the impact the the economy seems to me to have been managed as best as possible. Simply 'carrying on' Australia style is somehow seen to be a way to save your economy...it's not true given the global nature of things as countries like the UK and Australia are finding out. 

I'm very curious as to what the source of this new outbreak is, given that it's been 100+ days, surely it's must have come via quarantine or some lapse in border control? Either that or there is something more going on with COVID than we yet understand. 

[HalfJobHarry 106]

6 minutes ago, Breaker said:

Panic buying, again. FFS people we aren’t going to run out of milk, like ever!

Wife saw a woman in a wheelchair being pushed aside so people could buy wine yesterday....people turn into animals. Is this an Auckland thing because I don't see much of the oft talked about Kiwi solidarity when the iron is in the fire

[kwhelan 241]

bit harsh.humans are humans barely evolved from other animals in reality, its got nothing to do with where your from or your race or religion, theres good and bad in everyone and we can all have proud and shameful secrets

[Young Thrash Driver 1020]

Level 4 coming Saturday morning.

[M3AN 4016]

30 minutes ago, HalfJobHarry said:

This isn't a failure of anything IMHO, this is the system working as best it it ever can in the face of a highly infectious virus like this. My homeland the UK has the highest excess deaths in all of Europe and looks to be on course for the worst recession of most European countries (currently showing a 20% drop in GDP ...20%!!). To date here in NZ we have paid with minimal human lives and the impact the the economy seems to me to have been managed as best as possible. Simply 'carrying on' Australia style is somehow seen to be a way to save your economy...it's not true given the global nature of things as countries like the UK and Australia are finding out. 

I couldn't agree more really.

31 minutes ago, HalfJobHarry said:

II'm very curious as to what the source of this new outbreak is, given that it's been 100+ days, surely it's must have come via quarantine or some lapse in border control? Either that or there is something more going on with COVID than we yet understand. 

They're now suspecting it could be a boarder link or from imported packaging! If it's the later the whole world has an even more terrible problem to solve.

And the Yanks are still partying... Sturgis... smh.

[HalfJobHarry 106]

4 minutes ago, M3AN said:

I couldn't agree more really.

They're now suspecting it could be a boarder link or from imported packaging! If it's the later the whole world has an even more terrible problem to solve.

And the Yanks are still partying... Sturgis... smh.

Packaging huh? Curious, I read many many months ago in some study that COVID-19 can stay active on damp cardboard for weeks.....

Murica....nuff' said..

[coop 261]

It's not a failure? 

The whole thing has been a farce with a govt making it up as they go along. Reactive not proactive. IF this is the first case of community transmission, the authorities are bloody lucky it has taken this long...

US film crews isolating in a Wellington hotel that was being shared with domestic tourists on holiday. 

The countless number of people who escaped isolation. 

The amount of people let out of isolation early. 

The amount of people let out of isolation without being tested. 

The number of people entering isolation and mixing with others in there who were about to be released. 

The whole thing is a f**k up and every kiwi that has sacrificed so much this year has every right to be pissed off at the most incompetent Govt this country has seen. 

 

Remember the two infected women that drove Auckland - Wellington for a funeral. Supposedly had 300 contacts, yet no community outbreak. 

That, or there are a whole lot of people out there infected and they don't know. 

 

To top it off, it took me 1 hour 50 minutes to get from Ramarama off ramp to Bombay Caltex this afternoon. Only for a cop at the Bombay off ram to ask me where I was going, who then ushered me back towards south bound motorway. I didn't have to show my ID, wasn't asked why I was leaving Auckland or why I was there in the first place. A complete waste of time. Forgetting the fact the govt gave Aucklanders a 9 hour heads up to leave the place,  they still haven't put proper measures in place to prevent this spreading to other parts of the country by interrogating those trying to leave. 

[M3AN 4016]

The core statistics are infections and deaths. Regardless of any other noise, we are doing remarkably well despite the lapses mentioned above. It also appears like we're learning and improving all of the time, and faster than elsewhere.

International tourism accounts for <7% of our GDP, unfortunately some businesses will suffer and fail but our economy will not.

[NZ BMW 368]

8 hours ago, M3AN said:

The core statistics are infections and deaths. Regardless of any other noise, we are doing remarkably well despite the lapses mentioned above. It also appears like we're learning and improving all of the time, and faster than elsewhere.

International tourism accounts for <7% of our GDP, unfortunately some businesses will suffer and fail but our economy will not.

Remarkably lucky. I think we are kidding ourselves if we think periodic lockdowns and restrictions are not going to be part of life until a vaccine. 

Well. I discovered this morning I have a grand total of 4 rolls of toilet paper in the house. Hopefully people have not panic bought all of it when I emerge to go shopping on the weekend. Otherwise I’ll have to use a leaf or something! ?

[treone 648]

Something to consider... it never left the ‘community’.  

As @Olaf said, its about time they started managing and stop trying to eradicate. 

[Olaf 3317]

8 hours ago, M3AN said:

International tourism accounts for <7% of our GDP, unfortunately some businesses will suffer and fail but our economy will not.

What's your source for this figure, Dave?  All my research indicated 12-13% before Covid hit.

There are businesses failing now - plenty of them.  Look at all the empty retail stores, engineering businesses closing and plant up for auction.  I wonder what the UDC indicator (based on NZTA heavy vehicle rego data) is predicting?

[Olaf 3317]

1 hour ago, NZ BMW said:

Well. I discovered this morning I have a grand total of 4 rolls of toilet paper in the house. Hopefully people have not panic bought all of it when I emerge to go shopping on the weekend. Otherwise I’ll have to use a leaf or something! ?

Nissan EV owners will be understandably concerned.  Demure car previously unable to pull the skin off a rice pudding now associated with skid marks.

[M3AN 4016]

2 hours ago, Olaf said:

What's your source for this figure, Dave?  All my research indicated 12-13% before Covid hit.

It's summarised here as 5.8% direct impact https://www.tourismnewzealand.com/about/about-the-tourism-industy/. Indirect contributions of 4% should also be considered but not in their entirety.

Regardless of whether it's 7% or 12%, it's a contributing industry, not a dominant one in NZ. For example 80% of the Cook Islands GDP is from tourism, they're royally screwed on that front but their economy is so relatively small that they can be bailed out by NZ and Aus if need be.

I'm not denying there is pain and businesses are failing, just that it won't be the end of the world for our economy. And realistically, irrespective of the action our government takes, we're not going to benefit from international tourism for quite some time, local lock downs in NZ aren't going to change that. Organisations that rely entirely on international tourism can't expect to survive I'm afraid. ?

[gjm 3258]

This is the sort of scenario that globalisation cannot deal with. The drive to ever more dependence on overseas money means a downturn of any sort has a significant impact nationally (in NZ).

I wasn't in the country when imports were previously (1976?) halted in an effort to create an uptick in locally sourced revenue - no imported cars led to many older cars being on the road far longer than might have been anticipated, for instance. (As I understand it.)

It's too easy to blame one majority political party or another, especially when all they seem to do is criticise any activity or position the opposition might take. But this is a *government* issue. In business terms, what's the DR plan? Where is the bigger picture view? For a moment, let's assume we do need to drastically reduce international travel - what does the self-reliant NZ position look like?

NZ can do this. It just needs preparedness to change. And change is the issue - it tends to not suit those who will influence the really big decisions.

[HalfJobHarry 106]

16 hours ago, coop said:

It's not a failure? 

The whole thing has been a farce with a govt making it up as they go along. Reactive not proactive. IF this is the first case of community transmission, the authorities are bloody lucky it has taken this long...

US film crews isolating in a Wellington hotel that was being shared with domestic tourists on holiday. 

The countless number of people who escaped isolation. 

The amount of people let out of isolation early. 

The amount of people let out of isolation without being tested. 

The number of people entering isolation and mixing with others in there who were about to be released. 

The whole thing is a f**k up and every kiwi that has sacrificed so much this year has every right to be pissed off at the most incompetent Govt this country has seen. 

 

Remember the two infected women that drove Auckland - Wellington for a funeral. Supposedly had 300 contacts, yet no community outbreak. 

That, or there are a whole lot of people out there infected and they don't know. 

 

To top it off, it took me 1 hour 50 minutes to get from Ramarama off ramp to Bombay Caltex this afternoon. Only for a cop at the Bombay off ram to ask me where I was going, who then ushered me back towards south bound motorway. I didn't have to show my ID, wasn't asked why I was leaving Auckland or why I was there in the first place. A complete waste of time. Forgetting the fact the govt gave Aucklanders a 9 hour heads up to leave the place,  they still haven't put proper measures in place to prevent this spreading to other parts of the country by interrogating those trying to leave. 

22 deaths....the numbers speak for themselves. It's almost universally accepted that we have handled COVID-19 as well as humanly possible given the unknowns. Sure there have been issues, but when you set a high bar you are certain to have failures like this. When you don't really even try (like the US and the UK) you can effectively do no wrong. I'm pretty cheesed off my grandmother in the UK had to die at 72 (not a bad run admittedly) from COVID because the country is run by total fu*kwits these days...but hey ho I suppose some folks here in NZ couldn't go to their batches when they wanted to so were "put out"... 

Edited August 13, 2020 by HalfJobHarry

[HalfJobHarry 106]

4 hours ago, gjm said:

This is the sort of scenario that globalisation cannot deal with. The drive to ever more dependence on overseas money means a downturn of any sort has a significant impact nationally (in NZ).

I wasn't in the country when imports were previously (1976?) halted in an effort to create an uptick in locally sourced revenue - no imported cars led to many older cars being on the road far longer than might have been anticipated, for instance. (As I understand it.)

It's too easy to blame one majority political party or another, especially when all they seem to do is criticise any activity or position the opposition might take. But this is a *government* issue. In business terms, what's the DR plan? Where is the bigger picture view? For a moment, let's assume we do need to drastically reduce international travel - what does the self-reliant NZ position look like?

NZ can do this. It just needs preparedness to change. And change is the issue - it tends to not suit those who will influence the really big decisions.

I've given this some thought and the issue is that for rich people to get richer, they don't want to sell produce at low prices to a local market, they want to export in insane quantities that we would never consume if they only had to serve NZ. Hence why NZ Avocados are 60 cents each in the UK (all year round) but $7 dollars here and never less than $3...when we can get them.  

Agreed, it's certainly a government issue, but it's the first challenge of exactly this type in the post WWII time frame...certainly in the 21st century. Our modern globalized society has no 'runbook' for dealing with this kind of thing. I was/am hoping it will be a catalyst for a new, fairer and more equal distribution of wealth, via something like a Universal Basic Income (so all people can have some basic financial security even in the face of issues like COVID), although it's looking less and less likely that will become a reality :(. 

Additionally, it's clear to me that the long term reliance on agricultural exports is not a safe position, as ultimately apart from relying on the 'NZ Quality' and 'Clean/healthy' selling points, pretty much any other country with the right conditions can produce meat and veg. China is always trying to establish illegal versions of Kiwi owned variets etc etc. The question for NZ is what is the future on the global stage? I feel like we seem to want to have it both ways, be a 'global player' but be a local little insular country at the edge of the world at the same time. I'm not certain both of those positions are compatible. 

[Jacko 2154]

Im no conspiracy nut, but I'm starting to think there is way more to this than meets the eye. Big power shifts are happening. 

Vanuatu must be close to defaulting on their chinese loans due to covid ending tourism, which means china essentially own em, they already have clandestine presence in the pacific and this will just make it formal.  

If Taiwan gets invaded (sep/oct is apparently the best Wx), the chinese then have a clear run down through micronesia into the pacific..... 

/tinfoil hat off.