New Zealand Listener Issue 49 2019

We hope not to become a nation of renters, but our latest census data confirms we need to pull the blinds up and face facts. Although home ownership increased by 5% in the past decade, the number of rented houses was up by 25%. That’s 625,900 households that, depending on circumstances, may feel vulnerable about the roof over their heads. The Government’s new plans to improve security for tenants are overdue, given the increasing shortage and expense of rentals. This can take a terrible social toll, especially on children forced to change schools as families repeatedly move. Construction cannot keep up with demand, and some landlords are able to charge seemingly at will. Landlords will in future be able to raise rents only once a year rather than twice, and the obnoxious practice…

In Donna Chisholm’s excellent story on direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) of prescription drugs (“As seen on TV”, November 9), advertising association chief Lindsay Mouat claimed there was no public drive for a ban on drug ads. Not true. In June, we surveyed Kiwis to ask whether DTCA was right for them. The majority wanted it to be given the boot. Fifty-seven percent supported banning drug ads, in favour of a health information service that provided independent information about treatment options. Just 15% thought DTCA should continue. While drug companies are fond of claiming DTCA helps inform consumers, most Kiwis don’t share this view. Our survey found the majority didn’t hold these ads in high regard. Fifty-nine percent were strongly of the opinion drug companies were likely to spend most money advertising medicines that…

Claudia Freeman, Gisborne. FINALISTS Elmo: “Okay, boomer.” – Rex McGregor, Auckland Clinton: “So what does Melania think of your tan, Donald?” – Owen McMahon, Auckland Clinton: “I see Bernie Sanders isn’t the only red muppet in this party.” – Owen McMahon Elmo: “Don’t take this personally, but you look as though you did inhale.” – Claudia Freeman Clinton: “I’ve been in some hairy situations myself.” – Hans Zindel, Palmerston North Elmo: “I hope to blend in when I meet the President.” – Hans Zindel Elmo (thinks): “And he reckons I’m a muppet.” – Ian James, Dunedin Bill Clinton: “I did not have sexual relations with that muppet.” – Steven Farrelly, Palmerston North…

“Tonight, on the exit ramp, I helped a man change his tyre. He had his MAGA hat and a Trump 2020 bumper sticker. I didn’t care. He’s someone in need. We’re all human. Did I then give the wrong directions taking him 20 miles west of his destination? You’re goddam right I did.”– South Park writer Toby Morton “They’re only in yellow and green and they’re not intimidating colours.”– netballer Laura Langman about Australia “In New York, it dropped 40 degrees in 24 hours. It’s so cold the Empire State Building shrank from 102 storeys to 63.”– the Late Show’s Stephen Colbert “OBE – Other Buggers’ Efforts.”– heard in the Koru Club “If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.”– Marcus Tullius Cicero “The President called the hearing a joke,…

Breeding pair numbers have more than doubled in the past six years, from 66 in 2013 to 130 today. Otago Daily Times, 5/10/19 New $300 wing announced by Health Minister David Clark as next stage of Taranaki Base Hospital Development stuff.co.nz, 13/10/19 It has definitely stopped large-scale state-home selloffs and has dramatically increased the overall stock of state homes. There were 61,437 state homes in June 2017 and 61,084 two years later… Dominion Post, 26/10/19 Buddleias will fill gaps at the back of a border, lovely silver blue foliage and blue cerise/purple flowers, must be cut back well after flowering to keep bushy, also a great food sauce for butterflies. Oamaru Telegram, 15/10/19 Potential pus in prime location Property Press, 25/10/19 LIFE IN NEW ZEALAND: Entries must describe New Zealand events. The first sender of those accepted will receive a…

1. True or false? Cow tipping is a form of rural fun in some countries. ❑ True❑ False 2. Which Italian city is situated near Mt Vesuvius? ❑ Naples ❑ Milan❑ Palermo ❑ Rome 3. Whose flagship was named Queen Anne’s Revenge? ❑ Blackbeard ❑ Horatio Nelson ❑ William Bligh ❑ Francis Drake 4. Which 90s movie features a character who names himself Dirk Diggler? ❑ Pulp Fiction ❑ Forrest Gump ❑ Boogie Nights ❑ The Usual Suspects 5. In the Arabian Nights tales, why does Scheherazade tell stories for 1001 nights? ❑ To gain immortality❑ To delay her own execution ❑ To appease a genie ❑ To delight her children 6. Which crime figure was associated with the early development of the Las Vegas Strip? ❑ John Gotti ❑ Machine Gun Kelly ❑ John Dillinger ❑ Bugsy Siegel 7. What is…