New Zealand Listener Issue 34, 2022

The Green Party’s ructions over the co-leadership of James Shaw reminds me of my own experience as a former leader of the Values Party. A minority group of Green Party members seems to feel that, as Minister of Climate Change (outside cabinet), Shaw has not performed as well as expected, and has not advanced climate-change-mitigation policies to their satisfaction. He failed to get 75% support at the last vote over his leadership and will face another vote next month. Since its inception, I have voted for the Green Party due to my admiration and appreciation of the dedication, integrity and political acumen of my former Values Party colleagues, the late Jeanette Fitzsimons and Rod Donald. I have also wanted to ensure that the natural environment – the stage on which all human…

WINNING CAPTION John Edgar, Christchurch FINALISTS Grant Robertson: “I don’t want a Fitbit, because I need to get more than a bit fit.” – Chris Bossley, Lower Hutt Robertson: “If we herd Brian Tamaki’s flock over there, that leaves plenty of room for the Fifa teams.” – Kate Gore, Tauranga Robertson: “When I said ‘raising interest rates’, I meant in the Women’s World Cup.” – Paul Kelly, Palmerston North Andy Foster: “We were hoping for a Grant or a handout, but didn’t expect to get both!” – Alan Belcher, Christchurch Robertson: “In tai chi, this is ‘repel the lioness’.” – Ann Love, Nelson Robertson: “I can see you now, Andy, standing in front of a huge crowd saying, ‘Make Wellington great again!’” – Richard Cole, Waipu Caption Competition {listenercaption@aremedia.co.nz} TO ENTER Send your captions for the photo at right to listenercaption@aremedia.co.nz,…

I was pleased to read the Listener’s feature article (“The ties that bind”, August 13) on adoption as I believe there is a lot still to be addressed. As the sister of an adoptee and the mother of an adopted son, adoption has had a big impact on my life. With current changes to abortion law in the United States, it is clear there is a worldwide movement to turn back the clock on women’s rights. Before the mid-1970s and the advent of the domestic purposes benefit, the attitude towards a young woman who found herself “in trouble” was that she deserved to be punished. Her education was terminated and she was left without support and banished, usually to a Salvation Army home. She bore the child in secret — a secret…

“Originality is the fine art of remembering what you hear but forgetting where you heard it.”– Laurence J Peter“I don’t think the Earth is flat but it should be (I’m hiking).”– Singer Lucy Dacus“To advise is not to compel.”– Anton Chekhov“And may I remind you, Kansas is a state so bright red it looks like me after 30 seconds on the beach.”– Stephen Colbert on the recent referendum in which Kansas decided to keep rights to abortion in its state constitution“So glad I’m not repeating my parents’ mistakes. But I am making a whole bunch of new ones.”– Seen on Twitter“My memories are inside me. They’re not things or a place. I can take them anywhere.”– Olivia Newton-John“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”– Leonardo da Vinci“Science has been quite embattled. It’s…

1. What is the world’s all-time highest-selling studio album by a solo female artist? ❑ True Blue, Madonna❑ Come On Over, Shania Twain❑ Music Box, Maria Carey❑ Jagged Little Pill, Alanis Morissette 2. Which of these is an invention that greatly advanced textile production during the Industrial Revolution? ❑ Braided bull❑ Nodding donkey❑ Bobbing horse ❑ Spinning mule 3. What is the name for the small band of fabric on the back of some men’s dress shirts, which can be used to hang them up? ❑ Valet ring❑ Service hoop❑ Butler band❑ Locker loop 4. The mnemonic expression “Mary’s Virgin Explanation Made Joseph Suspect Upstairs Neighbour” is a way of remembering what? ❑ Guitar string names❑ Steps for resuscitation❑ Units of measure❑ Order of planets 5. Which US state is the subject of John Denver’s song Take Me…

My daughter has a male friend who appears when it rains. Gordon, a furry huntsman spider the size of her 18-year-old palm, rests above her bed during the wet. Sydney’s sodden weather of the past eight or nine months has meant that Gordon is a semi-permanent guest seeking shelter. A few months ago, smaller but more dangerous redbacks moved into the dry spaces beneath the ranch-slider doors in our lounge. The city is on track to have its wettest year since rainfall statistics began in 1859. A record-breaking 1547.4mm fell between January and June. The July rainfall record was broken just halfway through the month. The city has since recorded its wettest July ever – and the great wet is not over. Above-average rainfalls for August, September and October are forecast. Sydney’s annual rainfall…