Over the holidays I travelled through Whanganui. It made me think me about that amazing nun Mother Suzanne Aubert, who started the sisters of Compassion, and worked with Māori families up the Whanganui river. Aubert was an incredible woman. She worked alongside Māori from the time she arrived as a … [Read more...]
Garry Writes – the end of 2021
The poet Rumi once wrote:Out beyond ideas of wrong-doing and right-doing, there is a field. I’ll meet you there. This week the government announced that they were not going to fast track their proposed Bill on the 3 Waters legislation before Christmas. It’s a good call. This gives local … [Read more...]
Garry Writes 7 December 2021
On Thursday evening our bar, Smash Palace, has motorbike night. It’s full of all sorts of people who ride motorbikes. It’s a sort of egalitarian mix of people, businesspeople, tradies, artists, employees from a vast array of places. Young and old. This week we had a spirited debate on the … [Read more...]
Garry Writes 20 Nov 2021 What is happening to LOCAL?
This government seems committed to remove the “local” from government. In an article in Newsroom it was reported this week that yet another minister announced that: It (the government) has two parallel work streams to seize control of housing regulation from local authorities. This has been … [Read more...]
Garry writes – 23 November 2021
As somebody passionately interested in politics, I despair how our politicians get distracted by keyboard warriors who plague them with opinions which so often are misguided. I well remember as an elected politician that there were people who knew what they were talking about and who gave me … [Read more...]
Garry writes – on Three Waters…
Who is on the Advisory Panel, and what they are advising on (or not!) To say I am disappointed in the makeup of the people appointed by the Minister of Internal Affairs to the advisory panel to review the governance of the proposed 3 Waters structure is an understatement. Here’s who’s on … [Read more...]
Garry writes 9 November 2021
Years ago, I was with a mate in a shop, and he was treated dreadfully by the person behind the counter. As we walked up the road I said, “I wouldn’t have put up with being treated like shit by that woman”. His reply has stuck with me forever. He said, “you’re not a Māori”. I was reminded of this … [Read more...]
Garry’s thoughts 2 November 2021
Today I am considering the decision by the Labour government to remove our water infrastructure from local control. This is the worst abuse of power I have ever seen by central government toward local government. In this column I analyse the actions of the Minister, the involvement of an … [Read more...]
Garry Writes 26 October 2021
I have written many times that I am increasingly frustrated by MP’s who ignore community wishes because they think they know better. This causes the population to be cynical of politics and to diss them and what they are doing, when it essential that politicians retain public support. Just for the … [Read more...]
Garry’s thoughts 19 Oct 2021
It is disconcerting to have friends say that they are not going to get vaccinated. Their reasons are multitude, and most are easily discounted. Like I saw it on Facebook, or Youtube, etc. Or, have you heard this statistic…The internet is an amazing addition to our lives, but it is also a … [Read more...]
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