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[] | 2016-08-27T00:50:44 | null | 2016-08-27T00:04:53 | New propaganda video shows five children participating in an execution attempt on kneeling captives. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Fmiddle-east%2F83628756%2FNew-Isis-propaganda-video-shows-child-soldiers-participating-in-execution.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/g/c/n/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsgd0.png/1472256396162.jpg | en | null | New Isis propaganda video shows child soldiers participating in execution | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | New Isis propaganda video shows child soldiers participating in execution
ONE News Now Graphic Warning: The footage shows five boys, aged around 12 or 13, about to execute prisoners with hand guns.
An Isis propaganda video released on Friday has shown five children participating in an execution attempt on kneeling captives.
One of the five boys has been determined to be from Britain.
The other executioners, who are all of similar ages, are Egyptian, Kurdish, Tunisian and Uzbek, according to captions of the video shot in Syria's Raqqa province.
TVNZ Child soldiers are featured in the latest Isis propaganda video.
The nine-minute video shows the shooting of prisoners identified as "atheist Kurds".
At least 12 child killers have appeared in Isis propaganda videos. One British boy, Isa Dare, the young son of jihadi bride Grace "Khadijah" Dare from London, appeared in a video in January saying that jihadists will "kill the kuffar" (unbelievers).
Sally Jones, a mother of two from Kent, who travelled to Syria and married a British jihadist, reportedly took her 10-year-old son with her.
Research earlier this year estimated that up to 50 British children are being brought up in the self-styled caliphate of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isis), after being taken to the region by their parents.
Boys face indoctrination with a rigid Isis curriculum and jihadist training that includes shooting practice and martial arts.
- The Telegraph, London | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/middle-east/83628756/New-Isis-propaganda-video-shows-child-soldiers-participating-in-execution | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/a98b55a6e7b8779deac81ee80800c01daad92173afecdbd43874241b3717a582.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T13:01:03 | null | 2016-08-26T09:42:28 | Burglars met by a thick cloud of fog after breaking into a Masterton service station. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fnational%2Fcrime%2F83604314%2FFog-machine-foils-attempted-burgalry-of-Masterton-petrol-station.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/4/4/y/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1drxi2.png/1472204548529.jpg | en | null | Fog machine foils attempted burgalry of Masterton petrol station | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Fog machine foils attempted burgalry of Masterton petrol station
SUPPLIED/Fog Cannon NZ Ltd A fog cannon like the one activated in action.
Burglars who broke into a Masterton service station were blinded by a face full of fog and fled the scene with very little to show for their efforts.
The would-be robbers smashed a glass door in the early hours of Friday and then used a crowbar on the cigarette cabinet before the fog cannon quickly filled the station with a dense mist.
Station owner Blaine Smith said cigarettes appeared to be the target of the robbery, with the burglars making straight for the highly-taxed product upon gaining entry to the store.
ILLYA MCLELLAN/FAIRFAX NZ Faulknors Mobil in Masterton.
The cannon was set to a timer, activated by the alarm, and it proved effective in disorienting the robbers and causing them to flee with very little, he said.
READ MORE:
* Fog cannon thwarts robbery
* Fog cannons effective in homes as well
* Burglars vision foggy
* Security deterring "scumbags"
"It's a non-harmful fog that is thick as hell and they couldn't see a thing. It's always annoying, a break in like this, but it's great to see the new system works."
SUPPLIED A fog cannon can fill a room within seconds.
The fog cannon was installed six months ago and this is the first time it had been triggered. The devices are now standard across all Mobil stations in this country.
Mobil Oil NZ public affairs manager Samantha Potts said the company was investing heavily in technology designed to prevent robberies and catch offenders.
"The fog cannons are the latest updates in security systems and provide a new and effective weapon in the battle against theft and potential theft."
Andre Weibel, of Fog Cannons NZ Limited, said use of the cannons had really taken off.
In the past they had only been ordered by high-end retailers and private buyers, he said.
"It's really good to hear the cannon is working effectively. There was an incident in Auckland earlier this year as well where it was a success, but this is further proof of that."
Senior sergeant Gordon Crawley, of Wairarapa Police, said it was no secret that cigarettes are a targeted item but that businesses should be applauded for putting in systems like this to deal with potential issues.
"The more people can do to stop others committing crime against them, the better."
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/83604314/Fog-machine-foils-attempted-burgalry-of-Masterton-petrol-station | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/9444ceb7b37113ad70c4b5b47e49875c7d632c3c6c636761d018af8e139fc68e.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T04:51:41 | null | 2016-08-30T04:22:23 | A one-day sellout of 100 sections boosted PGC's coffersQueenstown | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fbusiness%2F83728166%2FPGC-result-lifted-by-sale-of-100-Queenstown-sections-in-a-day.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/u/l/m/e/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dul2e.png/1472530943877.jpg | en | null | PGC result lifted by sale of 100 Queenstown sections in a day | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | PGC result lifted by sale of 100 Queenstown sections in a day
Chris McLennan PGC has boosted its coffers with the sale of Queenstown sections.
A one day sellout of sections near Queenstown improved Cayman Islands-based Pyne Gould Corporation's annual result.
The former Canterbury-based rural services company lost £7000 pounds for the year ending June 2016 compared with last year's £22million loss (approximately NZ$39m).
The company's main investment is Torchlight Fund
Torchlight's two main investments are Lantern Hotel Group and a larger stake in RCL, which is selling the Queenstown sections in a development called Hanley Farms next to Jack's Point.
READ MORE
* 100 sections sold in a day as Queenstown's Hanley's Farm hits the market
* Boss warns long road ahead for PGC
Further development of the Queenstown sections is the main focus of RCL, with capacity at Hanley Downs for 2000 more sections.
PGC is also involved in several court cases over the management of Torchlight Fund.
PGC chairman George Kerr said PGC's main strategy remains selling "non core" investments, and building a long term business from distressed assets.
He gave the example of the sale of one of its investments, Local World, in late 2015 for four times its purchase price.
In keeping with practice in recent years the company won't be paying a dividend to shareholders.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/83728166/PGC-result-lifted-by-sale-of-100-Queenstown-sections-in-a-day | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/54a58dc2f9de6ed4cb52d850d4af165b9da6c9a81c07228e9c94c7e07b66b605.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T16:51:27 | null | 2016-08-29T16:02:12 | South Africa experience batting slump but still hold massive advantage over Black Caps | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Fcricket%2F83692011%2FBlack-Caps-fight-back-but-South-Africa-still-in-command-of-series-decider.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/t/t/e/p/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dtt63.png/1472487327216.jpg | en | null | Black Caps fight back but South Africa still in command of series decider | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Black Caps fight back but South Africa still in command of series decider
SIPHIWE SIBEKO/REUTERS Kane Williamson top scored with 77 as the Black Caps fell 267 runs short of matching South Africa's total at Centurion.
The Black Caps meekly surrendered a substantial lead, yet are not quite prepared to concede defeat although South Africa still command the second and final test at Centurion.
Once New Zealand's ceded a 267-run advantage at SuperSport Park, the Proteas might have anticipated setting a notional run chase with relative ease at the expense of a bowling attack that had less than 24 hours to recover from their first innings' exertions.
Instead an invigorated Tim Southee, Trent Boult, Doug Bracewell and Neil Wagner revised those plans by ripping through South Africa's top order - admittedly a bittersweet achievement as the pitch is expected to become even harder to bat on over the remaining two days, or six sessions.
SIPHIWE SIBEKO Tim Southee claims JP Duminy for a duck three balls after removing South African dangerman Hashim Amla during an eventful day three of the second cricket test.
South Africa were 105-6 at stumps on day three, an overall lead of 372, which history - and form - suggests is sufficient although Temba Bavuma [25] and Vernon Philander [3] will extend their partnership as long as possible.
READ MORE:
* Live: Black Caps v South Africa Day 3
* Latham shocker caps horror day for Black Caps
* Black Caps made to suffer
* Black Caps toss away initiative
* Oz take lead against Sri Lanka
* Isis 'targeted Aussie cricketers'
SIPHIWE SIBEKO/REUTERS Raw pace bowler Kagiso Rabada's claimed three wickets as the Black Caps folded on day three of the second cricket test at Centurion.
New Zealand's fightback, though admirable after they were skittled for 214 inside 59 overs, is tempered by the realisation the highest successful run chase at South Africa's most successful test venue is the 251-8 made by England in 1999-2000.
Realistically Faf du Plessis had banked enough runs before he became the fourth specialist batsman to follow up at least a half century in South Africa's first innings of 481-8 declared with a single figure contribution on Monday.
Quinton de Kock, who volunteered to open with Dean Elgar was ruled out through injury, was the only exception as the wicketkeeper relied on the philosophy he applies to batting in ODIs by slugging 50 from 43 deliveries.
SIPHIWE SIBEKO/REUTERS Henry Nicholls triggered the Black Caps slid on day three of the second test at centurion when he was dismissed for an encouraging 36.
De Kock cracked eight boundaries, and remarkably four in succession to get off the mark, while his more stylish contemporaries succumbed to the swing and accuracy of Boult and Southee.
Boult, who deserved better figures than 0-107 in the first innings, provided an early lift when Stephen Cook was plumb lbw; Southee then produced a double wicket maiden to remove Hashim Amla [1] and JP Duminy three balls later.
Full cordon for Southee who has got it swinging beautifully here. Double wicket maiden last over. 34/3 #savnz ^WN pic.twitter.com/ovUeVRuNXx — BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) August 29, 2016
RYAN WILKISKY/BackpagePix Dale Steyn in full cry as he appeals for the wicket of New Zealand opener Tom Latham, who was given out caught behind.
Du Plessis, who opted against enforcing the follow, adopted his usual conservative approach but was well taken by Ross Taylor at slip when Boult gained more recognition for an excellent opening burst.
Bracewell then ensured the Black Caps resurgence was sustained when de Kock had a change of heart against a brute of a short ball, tried to take evasive action but could only deflect the delivery from a glove to Kane Williamson in the gully.
Williamson complemented his safe pair of hands by juggling his weary bowling resources expertly, though it his impact with the bat that will influence New Zealand's fate as they strive to win a historic series, or at least avoid defeat.
Williamson brings up 50, a lovely skip down the wicket & flick over mid wicket. Gutsy knock off 115 balls #savnz ^WN pic.twitter.com/NPi6WuxGGa — BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) August 29, 2016
Fittingly the Black Caps captain was the last batsman to perish as New Zealand managed only 214 in response to a consistent, cohesive effort from the Proteas.
Williamson displayed precisely those traits as he compiled a serene 77 from 133 deliveries, a forlorn though resolute knock once New Zealand resumed on 38-3.
Williamson (77) marching on. A lovely straight drive for four. STAT: he's now gone 5 straight innings without being dismissed before 50 ^WN — BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) August 29, 2016
The ICC's No 3-ranked test batsman lived up to that status as he posted his 22nd test fifty, obviously without fanfare given his side's predicament.
Ultimately Williamson, who averaged 34.25 against South Africa before he took guard as stumps approached on Sunday, had no tangible support although Henry Nicholls [36] helped add 60 for the fourth wicket before the six-test rookie was deceived by Kagiso Rabada's express pace and trapped lbw.
Nicholls became the first of the 21-year-old's three scalps while Rabada also enjoyed exacting a measure of revenge after Wagner clocked him with a bouncer at Kingsmead.
The combative adopted Kiwi, who took 5-86 in South Africa's first innings, suffered the same fate when he faced his first ball, a blow that left him needing a replacement helmet.
Undeterred by the confrontation, Wagner clubbed 31 from 30 deliveries, including a trio of boundaries and a six from one Dale Steyn over.
South Africa's spearhead sledged his former countryman after that assault and eventualy had the final say when Wagner was caught at the wicket when in search of a fifth boundary.
Perhaps inspired by Wagner's belligerence, Williamson added a top-edged six to his scoring repertoire though he generally played along the carpet - and he will have to do likewise when he bats again, if the Black Caps are to climb off the canvas.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/cricket/83692011/Black-Caps-fight-back-but-South-Africa-still-in-command-of-series-decider | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/9097bc0271f770a60632504e397da2ee51b5210ca7cd445bf98b4fd7a4967ffc.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T14:51:56 | null | 2016-08-30T14:01:17 | Nightmare game for the Black Caps as record chase disintegrates. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Fcricket%2F83737509%2FBlack-Caps-in-disarray-after-Steyns-triple-strike.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/u/s/l/o/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dus9x.png/1472565677854.jpg | en | null | Black Caps in disarray after Steyn's triple strike | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Black Caps in disarray after Steyn's triple strike
RYAN WILKISKY/BACKPAGEPIX Dale Steyn claimed two wickets in the first over of New Zealand's second innings as South Africa head for victory in the second test at Centurion.
RYAN WILKISKY/BACKPAGEPIX Black Caps captain Kane Williamson batting through the pain barrier with a finger injury before joining New Zealand's casualties on a grim morning against South Africa at Centurion.
RYAN WILKISKY/BACKPAGEPIX Tom Latham triggered New Zealand's slide when he played on the first ball of the Black Caps second innings by Dale Steyn.
Dale Steyn has removed the faintly beating heart of New Zealand's top order with ruthless efficiency as South Africa accelerated to an emphatic series-deciding victory at SuperSport Park in Centurion.
The Proteas senior strike weapon removed both Black Caps openers - for golden ducks - in the first over of New Zealand's quest for a record run chase of 400 at the venue, and then removed a rueful Ross Taylor after he was beaten by the pitch, rather than pace or guile.
Vernon Philander, who also has an imposing record against the Black Caps then snared the key wicket of captain Kane Williamson, who batted through the pain barrier with a finger injury until he was brilliantly caught by wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock.
LEE WARREN/GALLO IMAGES Martin Guptill's unconvincing run against top-tier test opposition has continued in the two-test series in South Africa.
Williamson's demise for five to the first ball of the fourth over left New Zealand languishing at a hopeless 7-4 - a new all-time low in a Black Caps test innings after four dismissals - so ambitious plans to win or draw the second and final test have been scaled back to eclipsing the 45 they made at Cape Town on their previous tour to the Republic in 2013.
READ MORE:
* Live: Black Caps v South Africa second test, day 4
* Steyn takes long handle to Wagner's batting
* South Africa in control against NZ
* Latham shocker caps horror day for Black Caps
* Black Caps made to suffer
* Black Caps toss away initiative
* Plunket Shield faces nocturnal test
New Zealand started their quest to achieve the highest successful run chase at the venue disastrously when Tom Latham played on Steyn's first pinpoint delivery - the left hander stood mortified as the ball cannoned off a glove onto the stumps.
Guptill, who is perpetually under scrutiny to retain his place in the test side, then sparred his first ball to Hashim Amla at slip - meaning Steyn is the first bowler to dismiss both openers first ball since Bob Willis removed Pakistan's Mudassar Nazar and Mohsin Khan at Leeds in 1982.
Taylor, who ran himself out in the first innings, was absolved from blame a second time as he retreated for a five-ball duck - he couldn't help but smile after a Steyn delivery struck a crack, kept low and had him plumb lbw.
At lunch the Black Caps were 18-4 with Henry Nicholls [7] and BJ Watling [5] tasked with adding a modicum of respect to a task that records suggested was always going to be beyond New Zealand once South Africa declared at 132-7 midway through the morning session.
Although the Black Caps had ample time to achieve their first test win in South Africa since 1994, the venue's background indicated the Proteas were always in a position of strength at the ground where they have an impressive success rate.
The highest successful run chase at SuperSport Park is England's 251-8 in 1999-2000, far in excess of what the Black Caps were set with more than five sessions remaining.
Brian Lara's West Indies completed the biggest fourth innings run chase in history when making 418-7 against Australia at Antigua in 2003.
Resuming on 105-6 after New Zealand's four-pronged pace attack finally provided the Black Caps with a dominant session late on day three, Temba Bavuma and Vernon Philander carried the score sedately to 129 before the latter lost his off stump on 14 when leaving a Tim Southee cutter.
Bavuma was unbeaten on 40 from 113 when Faf du Plessis pulled the pin.
Southee ended with the leading figures of 3-46 from 16 overs.
Although their top order failed on day three, with the exception of makeshift opener Quinton de Kock, South Africa already had the security of a 267-run first innings lead after they dismissed the Black Caps for 214.
Ominously New Zealand had also lost their two previous tests at Centurion by 128 runs and an innings and 59 runs in 2006 and 2007 respectively.
South Africa have won 16 of the 21 tests staged at Centurion since 1995, dropping only two, a ratio that is not about to diminish given Steyn has 3-9 from four overs; Philander 1-8 from three.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/cricket/83737509/Black-Caps-in-disarray-after-Steyns-triple-strike | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/15bce51b1a2b7e68044889f014c54d60758fbceae993326bd990b93b8a2d2895.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T22:50:12 | null | 2016-08-26T21:59:48 | A Polish athlete has sold his silver medal to help fund cancer treatment for a 3-year-old boy. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Flife-style%2Fcutestuff%2F83627370%2FPolish-discus-thrower-Piotr-Malachowski-sells-Olympic-medal-to-help-3-year-old-with-eye-cancer.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/f/f/o/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsfai.png/1472250475017.jpg | en | null | Polish discus thrower Piotr Malachowski sells Olympic medal to help 3-year-old with eye cancer | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Polish discus thrower Piotr Malachowski sells Olympic medal to help 3-year-old with eye cancer
Facebook/ Piotr Malachowski Olek is suffering from retinoblastoma.
An Olympian has sold his medal to help fund cancer treatment for a 3-year-old boy.
Polish discus thrower Piotr Malachowski auctioned off the silver medal he won at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics to help pay for the medication of Olek who suffering from eye cancer.
Malachowski said that siblings Dominika and Sebastian Kulczyk, among the richest Poles, "declared the intention to buy my silver medal,'' which he put up for auction to help pay for treatment of the boy, Olek, who is suffering from retinoblastoma.
ALESSANDRO BIANCHI Piotr Malachowski said the target for his medal was NZ$178,000 and it had been met.
Malachowski did not reveal the amount raised, but said the target - which was almost 500,000 zlotys (NZ$178,000) - had been met.
"My silver medal is worth much more today than it was a week ago,'' Malachowski said.
- AP | http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/cutestuff/83627370/Polish-discus-thrower-Piotr-Malachowski-sells-Olympic-medal-to-help-3-year-old-with-eye-cancer | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/2a6639a5a4d4738c54b48a64c7013f67ca5beca8f1ee4638d402bac5be20cc47.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T18:50:42 | null | 2016-08-26T18:43:27 | South African judge denies state prosecutors permission to appeal Oscar Pistorius' six-year murder sentence. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Fafrica%2F83626344%2FJudge-rejects-prosecution-bid-to-extend-Oscar-Pistorius-jail-term.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/c/q/6/h/y/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsei0.png/1472237007797.jpg | en | null | Judge rejects prosecution bid to extend Oscar Pistorius' jail term | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Judge rejects prosecution bid to extend Oscar Pistorius' jail term
GETTY IMAGES Oscar Pistorius is comforted by family members as he leaves the High Court in Pretoria after sentencing for the murder of girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.
A South African judge said on Friday (Saturday NZ Time) she would not grant permission to state prosecutors to appeal Oscar Pistorius' six-year murder sentence, saying their petition had no reasonable prospects of success.
Judge Thokozile Masipa had sentenced the Paralympic gold medallist in July for the 2013 murder of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, but the prosecution claimed the decision was too lenient.
Pistorius' defence had earlier argued the state was prejudiced and had dragged the case on for too long
GETTY IMAGES Judge Thokozile Masipa has faced a criticism over the sentence.
"I'm not persuaded that there are reasonable prospects of success on appeal or that another court may find differently," she said in her ruling.
READ MORE:
* Pistorius' sister Aimee 'grateful' to judge
* 'Fallen Hero' Pistorius sentenced to six years
* Oscar Pistorius: 'There was so much blood'
"For that reason, I grant the following order: The application for leave to appeal is dismissed with costs."
Pistorius did not attend Friday's (Saturday NZT) hearing.
Prosecutor Gerrie Nel, who had sought 15 years for Pistorius for the murder conviction, told Reuters he could not comment.
It was not immediately clear whether the state would now directly petition the Supreme Court of Appeal.
Nel has said Pistorius had not shown any remorse and had yet to explain why he fired the fatal shots.
Women's rights groups say Pistorius has received preferential treatment compared to non-whites and those without his wealth or international celebrity status. His backers say he did not intend to kill Steenkamp.
Pistorius says he fired four shots into the toilet door at his luxury Pretoria home in the mistaken belief that an intruder was hiding behind it.
His defence has argued that his disability and mental stress that occurred in the aftermath of the killing should be considered as mitigating circumstances. Pistorius had the lower part of his legs amputated when he was a baby.
- Reuters | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/africa/83626344/Judge-rejects-prosecution-bid-to-extend-Oscar-Pistorius-jail-term | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/085abef823f077a39a17df5a58437dbee58ba33f6c089c1cd00914c957ca0abb.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T10:51:56 | null | 2016-08-30T08:57:40 | Teachers at high school allegedly forced black girls to arrange their hair in certain styles. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Fafrica%2F83738577%2FWatch-Black-students-at-South-African-high-school-accuse-teachers-of-being-racist.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/u/t/4/g/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dut3l.png/1472547460515.jpg | en | null | Watch: Black students at South African high school accuse teachers of being 'racist' | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Watch: Black students at South African high school accuse teachers of being 'racist'
AL JAZEERA There have been protests by black girls who say they are being forced by teachers to arrange their hair differently, alleging that they are being made to follow strict style rules that are racist and discriminatory.
Teachers at high school in Pretoria, South Africa, have been accused of racism for forcing black girls to arrange their hair in certain styles.
Students at Pretoria High School For Girls say they have often been told to straighten their hair and not to have afros that were deemed untidy, The Guardian reported.
Over the weekend, students held a protest at the school to voice anger against the alleged longstanding rule, many wearing afro hairstyles and braids.
REBA/TWITTER Student at Pretoria High School for Girls protest the rules around the hair styles they're allowed to wear.
They were told by their school that their hair is "untidy." They are now protesting.#StopRacismAtPretoriaGirlsHigh pic.twitter.com/WEaRZqbQQF — Philip Lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) August 29, 2016
The students have also started an online petition, which has gathered more than 10,000 signatures since it was created on Friday.
The petition, titled Stop Racism at Pretoria Girls High, calls on authorities to ensure that the "school's code of conduct does not discriminate against black and Muslim girls".
"We are being discriminated against because of our hair. They want us to relax our hair – they want our hair to look a certain way," one student told the PowerFM radio station.
Panyaza Lesufi, the Minister of the Education Department in Gauteng province, visited school on Monday to talk with senior staff and students.
"I really want to arrest the situation before it gets out of control," Lesufi said.
The school's code of conduct has been suspended, and the Lesufi has ordered a formal investigation to look into the allegations levelled against the school, News24 reported.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/africa/83738577/Watch-Black-students-at-South-African-high-school-accuse-teachers-of-being-racist | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/3e9ff71a02077705b68eea646e19e9b0982dbea46653084570adb6560aaf84dc.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T08:51:27 | null | 2016-08-29T07:41:33 | You're into Paleo and yoga, he likes beers and burgers with mates. Can you make it work? | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Flife-style%2Flove-sex%2F83692712%2FDo-opposites-really-attract-and-can-they-make-a-relationship-work.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/1/6/0/m/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dttpk.png/1472456493677.jpg | en | null | Do opposites really attract - and can they make a relationship work? | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Do opposites really attract - and can they make a relationship work?
123rf 'Opposite' qualities are often part of the initial excitement of a new relationship. But will they be a deal-breaker later on?
When it comes to lifestyle choices, Jane Turner and her partner of two years couldn't be more different.
"I'm really into wellness, so for me that includes natural eating, mostly Paleo, and no sugar," she says. "My partner, on the other hand, loves all things carbs and sugar, and bread and pasta are his preference."
Whilst Turner rarely drinks, her partner drinks every day and goes out more socially. For a long time, he was also a smoker.
And the differences in terms of lifestyle don't stop there. "Generally I exercise more than he does, Sometimes he just drinks coffee and reads the news while I do yoga."
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Turner admits that sometimes her partner feels like she's judging him for his unhealthy habits – which she says isn't true – and he sometimes gets annoyed because he feels he's missing out on eating what he enjoys.
Despite this, she says that their differences are mostly not a big deal and it's just a matter of compromise on both of their behalves.
"We accept each other for who we are," she says. "We fell in love with each other for reasons totally separate to diet and exercise and that still forms the backbone of our relationship."
With more similarities than differences she says they laugh a lot, communicate well and want the same things from a relationship.
"We're supportive of each other being happy, and if that means occasionally going out for a burger with him, then so be it. I don't necessarily like burgers, but it's nice to share in something that he likes."
So is this the norm for couples that have different lifestyle habits? Or is Turner's relationship an exception?
"The saying 'opposites attract' is true because, when we find something different and intriguing, we can become attracted to it," says health psychologist, Marny Lishman.
She says that we can be attracted to opposite looks, sense of humour, point of view, exercise habits, careers, and personality traits.
She also says that "opposite" qualities are often part of the initial excitement of a new relationship.
"The feeling of doing something different, adventurous, and a bit outside of our comfort zone is what makes opposites attract," she says.
"But, in order to keep the spark alive, they're often the differences that need to remain."
Despite this, Lishman agrees that, for some, the initial attraction of being different may wear off in the long term if one partner wants to do more of what they like.
She says that this can be the case if lifestyle habits are the differing factors.
"To a small degree couples need to have similar lifestyle habits," she says. "Problems can arise when one partner feels like the lifestyle habits of their partner are more important than them."
She also notes that opposing lifestyle choices can mean that couples end up spending more time apart than together.
"Couples are generally more compatible if they have common interests and a better understanding of what the other person is doing or going through," she says.
But that's not to say that these issues can't be overcome, providing the couples are open to change.
"As long as the foundations of a relationship are reasonably compatible, such as values, basic energy for life, and personal habits, lifestyle differences shouldn't have a massive impact," says Lishman. "In fact it could lighten things up."
Relationship counselor, Susie Tuckwell, agrees that couples can make lifestyle differences work if they want to, but says the key is about respect and communication.
"When a particular behaviour becomes "controversial", such as differences in exercise frequency, it's often enlightening to ask if there's a meaning, a value, or a history behind yours or your partner's position?" she says.
She suggests asking yourself what does it mean to you or your partner to be "healthy" or "unhealthy", or to be a vegan, a non-drinker, a marathon runner, or a meditator?
By doing this, Tuckwell says it's easier for couples to unpack what's going on, and understanding each other's motives and values greatly helps in developing respect and kindness towards each other.
However, she advises that for some people, certain things are simply non-negotiable and strongly held beliefs may be hard to shift.
"If you come from an alcoholic family, it may be truly unbearable to live with a drinker. Whilst committing to veganism may not be easy to reconcile with a fridge full of chops," she says.
To assess your long-term compatibility, Tuckwell suggests asking yourself, "How much difference can I tolerate?" and "Do I require my partner to be like me?"
She also recommends considering: "What of my partner's habits are worthwhile in my view, and are there any I dislike or even secretly despise?" and "Is this just a fad that my partner will grow out of?"
Whilst Tuckwell admits that compromise can help to a certain degree, she says it's also important to respect and acknowledge when differences are too hard to bridge.
"A shared commitment can be very bonding, but remember, your partner is not necessarily wrong if they don't share your particular hobbyhorse," she says.
"People can make almost any lifestyle differences work if they want to, but the fewer things that have to be continually negotiated, generally the easier life is."
- Juicedaily.com.au | http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/love-sex/83692712/Do-opposites-really-attract-and-can-they-make-a-relationship-work | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/6e2949f40496acc4ac1af594cd26bb47da704114e089d72e441b6ad088f4fe56.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T00:52:14 | null | 2016-08-31T00:45:03 | A pawed passenger has escaped injury free from a car crash in Dome Valley and won over the hearts of emergency services. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fauckland%2Flocal-news%2Frodney-times%2F83745736%2FLucky-dog-escapes-serious-crash-on-State-Highway-1.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/v/0/u/4/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1duymg.png/1472604303926.jpg | en | null | Lucky dog escapes serious crash on State Highway 1 | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Lucky dog escapes serious crash on State Highway 1
SUPPLIED Warkworth Volunteer Fire Brigade's Ariana Billington comforts Tess at the scene.
A pawed passenger has won over the hearts of emergency services after escaping injury free from a car crash in Dome Valley.
Tess the dog was riding in a vehicle involved in a two car incident outside Sheep World on Friday afternoon.
Emergency services were called to the accident scene on State Highway 1 at around 4pm, and traffic flow was reduced to one lane.
SUPPLIED The accident scene on SH1.
By 5.15pm, officials had closed SH1 between Warkworth and Wellsford and detours were put in place.
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The accident saw drivers of both vehicles receive medical attention at the scene.
SUPPLIED Warkworth Volunteer Fire Brigade firefighter Louis Tailby hands Tess over to police.
Warkworth Volunteer Fire Brigade senior station officer Devan Flewellyn says Tess' owner was transported to hospital in a serious condition.
"The female driver had to be freed from the vehicle by the brigade using hydraulic rescue equipment," Flewellyn says.
"Her little dog was quite shaken and scared. She was being cared for by a member of the public initially, then our firefighters were looking after her, before [she was] chauffer driven to Orewa by the police officer."
SUPPLIED Tess rides in the police car.
Police delivered Tess to a family friend of the driver to be looked after.
By 6.15pm, the accident had been cleared and SH1 was reopened.
The accident is under investigation by the serious crash unit.
The Warkworth Volunteer Fire Brigade attended another crash on Matakana Rd on Sunday.
- Rodney Times | http://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/local-news/rodney-times/83745736/Lucky-dog-escapes-serious-crash-on-State-Highway-1 | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/387897b2dc4e15f021ac86d3b7ef7502a29760a777abcbbe3f89888cc30a7bfa.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T08:50:58 | null | 2016-08-28T07:16:11 | Video posted to Facebook appears to show police officer pushing teenager off his bicycle and into a fence. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fauckland%2F83647916%2FVideo-appears-to-show-south-Auckland-police-officer-pushing-teen-off-bike.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/etc/designs/ffx/nz/stuff/social-media-logos/stuff-180x180.jpg | en | null | Video appears to show south Auckland police officer pushing teen off bike | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Video appears to show south Auckland police officer pushing teen off bike
Cee La Tonga Taumoefolau/Facebook
A video has been posted on Facebook which appears to show a police officer pushing a teenager off his bicycle and into a fence.
Cee La Tonga Taumoefolau posted the video on Facebook around midnight on Saturday.
It has since been viewed 18,000 times and has drawn more than 160 comments.
The teenager in the video, 13-year-old Matthew Lamar, said he and his friends had been having a music "battle" in the street in Mangere Bridge, south Auckland.
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The group of 13- and 14-year-olds attach loudspeakers to their bikes and compete to see whose music is most audible.
Matthew said he had turned off his speaker earlier because the battery was dead.
"I jumped on my bike and I was on my way home."
He said he had exchanged curse words with the officer before the incident.
"The cop got out of the car, then he threw me down off the bike. Then he picked me up and threw me against the fence and cuffed me."
Alex Eliu witnessed the incident and said Matthew had been riding on the road.
The police officer asked Matthew to get off the road and Matthew swore at him, Eliu said.
"That's when they pulled him over and said 'get off your bike'. He didn't listen, so the officer threw him off."
Matthew was handcuffed and put in the back of a police car for a short time.
"They ... told him to listen the first time and don't swear back. Then they let him go," Eliu said.
A police spokesperson said the police were looking into the incident.
"Until the full picture is established, we are unable to comment on what may have taken place," the spokesperson said.
"It is important to note that as this video appears to start part-way through communication between police and the young person, the full context and circumstances leading up to the event are yet to be determined."
Matthew said he was uninjured in the incident.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/83647916/Video-appears-to-show-south-Auckland-police-officer-pushing-teen-off-bike | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/4d769e603a31bf2084a0115a87f75722c51ec96e84b880746801e4647b5f8922.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T04:51:03 | null | 2016-08-28T04:31:11 | Some train services stopped after a person was hit in the Auckland suburb of Penrose. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fauckland%2F83645608%2FPerson-dies-after-being-hit-by-train-in-Aucklands-Penrose.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/u/1/5/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dstd4.png/1472358671315.jpg | en | null | Person dies after being hit by train in Auckland's Penrose | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Person dies after being hit by train in Auckland's Penrose
SAM SWORD/SHARP FOCUS MEDIA Emergency services were called to the incident in Penrose at about 3.45pm.
A man has died after being hit by a train in Auckland.
The incident happened on the corner of Maurice Rd and Station Rd in Penrose at about 3.45pm.
Witness Greg Curry-Black said a man stepped out in front of a train at a railway crossing.
"I saw the train go by with all the lights and everything flashing and a guy walked across, trying to beat the train," he said.
"The train was going fast but [the driver] was doing everything he can - he had the lights and everything going and the [barrier] arms were down."
The man looked to be in his 30s, Curry-Black said.
His friends had gathered at the railway crossing, which was near Mt Smart Stadium.
An Auckland Transport spokesman said the Penrose-Onehunga train line was closed until further notice.
Buses would be put in place between Onehunga and Penrose.
Train services between Britomart and Penrose were still running to schedule, he said.
The southern line had not been affected and traffic in the area was flowing as normal.
More to come.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/83645608/Person-dies-after-being-hit-by-train-in-Aucklands-Penrose | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/2ee6ba1bd8c6e630a6a23a6fb44b99121ee3a53724e3995bbdb451e12bd9ec45.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T16:51:25 | null | 2016-08-29T16:27:06 | US neighbourhood on high alert after | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Famericas%2F83695084%2FClowns-attempts-to-lure-children-into-woods-put-US-neighbourhood-on-high-alert.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/t/v/k/w/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dtvjg.png/1472488212201.jpg | en | null | Clowns' attempts to lure children into woods put US neighbourhood on high alert | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Clowns' attempts to lure children into woods put US neighbourhood on high alert
123RF.COM Locals reported seeing creepy clowns in the street and in a wooded area.
Residents of a US town have been warned to keep their kids home at night amid reports of a "suspicious" clown trying to lure children into nearby woods.
South Carolina's Greenville County Sheriff's Department confirmed to Stuff that they had received several reports of "a suspicious character" in a clown costume, with their face painted white, "enticing kids to follow him/her into the woods".
Police said several children in the Fleetwood Manor apartment complex said they had seen clowns in the woods behind the building. They were "displaying large amounts of money" to try to get children to follow them.
One mother laid a complaint after her son reported seeing "clowns in the woods whispering and making strange noises", a copy of her complaint, provided to Stuff, reveals.
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The womansaid her son also "mentioned and observed several clowns in the woods flashing green laser lights", before the "clowns" ran off into the woods.
The woman's eldest son then heard "chains and banging" on the front door of their home in the Fleetwood Manor apartment complex.
The next morning, the woman was speaking to a neighbour who had returned home about 2.30am, and saw "a large-figured clown with a blinking nose" standing under a street light.
The clown waved at her, and she waved back, the police report said.
Police said the children believed the clowns lived in a house at the end of a man-made trail in the woods.
An officer who went to the house was unable to find any sign of clowns, the report said.
The property manager of the apartment complex had since circulated a typo-ridden letter to residents, urging them to keep a watchful eye on their kids.
"At no time should a child be alone at night, or walking in the roads or wooded areas at night. Also if a person or persons are seen you are to immediately call the police," the letter said.
The property manager's letter was posted on Facebook.
Police added that there had also been reports of gunshots near the apartment complex.
They believed the shots were fired into the woods by a group of men who had heard other residents talking about the clowns.
A sheriff's department spokesman told Stuff the case had been assigned to a follow-up unit for further investigation, and extra officers were patrolling the area.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/americas/83695084/Clowns-attempts-to-lure-children-into-woods-put-US-neighbourhood-on-high-alert | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/9c55b87d6b4376a417dcbaa378a1068da10bcc6af0fe048521aa9b1f679e0374.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T00:50:50 | null | 2016-08-27T23:36:36 | At 74 years old, this mum never thought she'd be trying to find someone to look after her mentally unwell daughter. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fnational%2Fhealth%2F83464637%2FMother-struggles-to-get-her-daughter-treatment.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/q/l/2/y/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1doxq5.png/1472340996479.jpg | en | null | Mother struggles to get her daughter treatment | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Mother struggles to get her daughter treatment
JOSEPH JOHNSON/FAIRFAX NZ An elderly woman has lost all hope for her daughter's future.
EMILY SPINK investigates an elderly mother's desperate bid to find someone to help her troubled adult daughter.
At 74 years old, Jane* never thought she'd face trying to find someone to look after her mentally unwell daughter.
Twice, Jane has trespassed her daughter, who is in her late 40s and has borderline personality disorder (BPD), from her rental property.
JOSEPH JOHNSON/FAIRFAX NZ In a message to her elderly Mum, Jenny apologised for her recent behaviour, which included breaching a trespass order.
The mental health and justice systems are at a loss to help her daughter, Jane says.
Over the years her daughter, Jenny*, has been to prison for violent assaults on others and in Hillmorton Hospital several times since she was 19.
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Jenny is bright and has degrees in German and Japanese. She taught English in Korea in 2006, but there seems little anyone can do to help her.
The trouble started when Jenny was 18.
"A councillor rang me up and said Jenny says people are saying things about her, talking about her. So they sent her home."
Jane says Jenny was prescribed some pills, although what they were for exactly, she was unsure.
"She was always paranoid and always thinking people are saying things. She's had a fiance and he couldn't cope. She's had different boyfriends and they can't cope."
At one stage her symptoms were put down to Bipolar. Then it was thought to be anxiety. She had overdosed on five occasions, with her worst landing her in A & E.
In 2000, Jenny was diagnosed with BPD, which is characterised by unstable social relationships, switching between love and hate in personal relationships, acting impulsively or recklessly, frantically avoiding real or imagined abandonment, experiencing extreme and unwarranted anger and engaging in recurrent self-harm or suicidal behaviour.
In 2013, she admitted stabbing a man with a screwdriver after an argument about money.
The then 47 year-old pleaded guilty to assault with a weapon, four charges of wilful damage, possession of a knife and an assault of a police officer. She went to prison for two months.
Jane says Jenny had committed "so many misdemeanours" over the years. Initially, stints in Hillmorton helped Jenny.
"They would keep her in and treat her. . . Now it's all changed. They're all out the door if they get a bit abusive. The ones like Jenny that play up, they just wash their hands of."
In the community, Jenny is lost and is often homeless. Jane had tried putting her daughter in a backpackers, but her paranoia meant that failed.
Canterbury DHB mental health general manager Toni Gutschlag says its Specialist Mental Health Service did not discharge patients for physically assaulting staff or other patients, in the context of a mental illness.
"We are unable to comment on an individual patient's care. If a patient or members of their family are unsatisfied with any aspects of our care, then we encourage them to make a formal complaint.
They can ask any member of our staff to assist them in making a complaint at any time."
Psychologist and counsellor Jenni Beckett, who started the country's first support group for women with BPD in 2014, says it is not rare for those with BPD to slip through the cracks.
"If they self harm and then they go to hospital, then the hospital discharges them back the very next day. So they're just revolving back and forth until they commit suicide or something horrible happens."
Beckett says it is crucial to diagnose BPD at an early age, but that was not yet the norm in New Zealand due to a lack of understanding and stigmatisation.
"Because it's under the personality disorder cluster, they [clinicians] don't want to label young people, but early detection is the best thing because while they're young the brain is so plastic and the therapy works so well.
"But often it isn't diagnosed and it goes on and on and the behaviours get worse and then the person is isolated because of their bad behaviour."
Jane says her daughter would continue to deteriorate without help.
After Jenny trespassed her daughter from her rental property on August 12, she'd asked the courts to order an independent psychiatrist's assessment in the hope of getting Jenny help.
"She has no hope left . . . The most frustrating part for me is there is no hope. No-one has an answer. . . It's going on and on and I can't see an end to it."
Jane's only hope was Jenny might find a "safe space" where she could be looked after and where medical professionals understood her mental illness.
*Not their real names to protect the family.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/83464637/Mother-struggles-to-get-her-daughter-treatment | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/cf3887cd127a571cc99a8c46e9901ef7c49f2b98ffb511477bc932bb132ad00c.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T13:07:32 | null | 2016-08-26T08:31:16 | Police have arrested two men linked to attack on a Porirua dairy owner who was stabbed in the head. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fnational%2Fcrime%2F83624519%2FPolice-arrest-two-men-in-connection-with-knife-attack-on-Porirua-dairy-owner.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/d/0/w/x/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsd3b.png/1472200276122.jpg | en | null | Police arrest two men in connection with knife attack on Porirua dairy owner | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Police arrest two men in connection with knife attack on Porirua dairy owner
CAMERON BURNELL/FAIRFAX NZ Police have arrested two men linked to the attack that saw Porirua dairy owner Jacob Ismail stabbed in the head and neck.
Two men have been arrested in connection with a vicious robbery in Porirua, where a dairy owner was stabbed in the neck.
The incident happened on August 6 when three people entered Astrolabe Food Market in Porirua suburb of Cannons Creek, stole cigarettes, then stabbed owner Jacob Ismail repeatedly.
The incident left him with several knife wounds to the back of his head and neck.
CAMERON BURNELL/FAIRFAX NZ The Astrolabe Food Market in Cannons Creek, Porirua, where the stabbing took place.
Nisha Ismail, the owner's wife, said at the time that one of the offenders appeared to have been brandishing a butcher's knife.
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Detective Senior Sergeant Grant Ferguson said two men appeared in Porirua District Court on Friday.
A 15 year-old-boy was also spoken to as part of the investigation and has been referred to Youth Aid.
The level of violence was extreme and a real cause of concern for police, Ferguson said.
"We were determined to identify those responsible, hold them to account and protect the community from them."
He acknowledged the efforts of some "very brave individuals" within the community who came forward to help police.
"It's fantastic when the community and police are able to work in partnership to solve and prevent crimes from reoccurring."
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/83624519/Police-arrest-two-men-in-connection-with-knife-attack-on-Porirua-dairy-owner | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/d1c765b34d8155fe17884c500c68132c2a42f61114499b1f06972122cd6f6601.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T22:51:46 | null | 2016-08-29T22:47:07 | Victoria University bought a Wellington campus for $10 in 2014. Now they could sell the 3.7 hectare site for $20m. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fnational%2Feducation%2F83697513%2FVictoria-University-to-sell-Karori-campus-possibly-bringing-20-million-windfall.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/t/z/i/u/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dtxex.png/1472510827814.jpg | en | null | Victoria University to sell Karori campus, possibly bringing $20 million windfall | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Victoria University to sell Karori campus, possibly bringing $20 million windfall
MAARTEN HOLL/Fairfax NZ Public meeting about the possible sale of Victoria University's Karori campus.
Victoria University has decided it doesn't need its Karori campus in Wellington, which was transferred to it from the government for $10 in 2014.
The site, potentially worth more than $20 million, was the university's teacher training college, but education staff and students moved out in February.
The university had found the site to be surplus to requirements, and would need to work out what to do with it.
CAMERON BURNELL/FAIRFAX NZ The 3.7 hectare site has tennis courts, pools, a hall, music suites, a gymnasium and classrooms.
A decision was made at the university council's meeting on Monday night.
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It would now start the process that needed to be followed to dispose of the campus, which was expected to take between 12 and 24 months, Vice Chancellor Professor Grant Guilford said.
CAMERON BURNELL/FAIRFAX NZ The university's vice chancellor Grant Guilford says it will take up to two years for the university to dispose of the campus.
This involved following a programme of activity which included getting formal approval to dispose of the campus, fulfilling the university's responsibilities under the Public Works Act, and making sure the needs of stakeholders and the Karori community were taken into account.
Victoria was communicating directly with key stakeholders, including Wellington City Council and the two child care facilities located on the Karori campus, to discuss what would happen next.
The university would hold a public meeting in September with Karori residents to answer the community's questions about what the decision would mean for them.
In the short to medium term, Victoria would continue to let residents use it the facilities at the campus.
One option is to sell the 3.7 hectare site, potentially worth more than $20 million, at market value.
Any sale would be governed by the Public Works Act, and other educational or public uses of the buildings would have to be considered before it could be put on the public market.
In April a public meeting was held where Karori residents expressed their concerns about the future of the site, should the university decide it wasn't needed.
Locals pointed out the different ways they used the sports, arts, and community facilities the campus had.
It has six netball courts, six tennis courts, cricket nets, a gymnasium, a marae, a dance studio, a field and a 400-seat hall.
The Karori tennis and cricket clubs said the tennis courts and cricket nets were integral to their clubs and losing them could result in a huge drop in members.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/83697513/Victoria-University-to-sell-Karori-campus-possibly-bringing-20-million-windfall | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/fb1ff4df0387f73c46e3c13c20edbdf24bb598b003fe730decacd99252274e08.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T10:52:49 | null | 2016-08-31T09:23:58 | The world's first cervical cancer vaccine, developed in Australia, continues to protect and has halved cancer rates. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Faustralia%2F83779246%2F10-years-on-HPV-vaccine-halves-cervical-cancer-rates.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/v/o/h/r/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dvoha.png/1472635442853.jpg | en | null | 10 years on, HPV vaccine halves cervical cancer rates | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | 10 years on, HPV vaccine halves cervical cancer rates
Robert Shakespeare Professor Ian Frazer, chairman of Translational Research Institute Australia.
The world's first cancer vaccine, developed in Queensland, Australia, will celebrate it's 10th anniversary on Monday as its co-creator continues his battle to end cervical cancer.
The first Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine was administered in Australia on August 29, 2006 and has since managed to protect against 70 per cent of all cervical cancers in women.
The vaccine works to protect the body against infections caused by the papillomavirus that can lead to a variety of different cancers, including cervical cancer.
The link between the virus infection, which is often transferred through sexual intercourse, and cervical cancer was made in the early 1980s, however it was assumed it was a rare infection that couldn't be grown, and therefore easily tested on.
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HPV vaccine co-creator and Translational Research Institute chief executive officer Professor Frazer from the Diamantina Institute at Brisbane said almost a decade later, the virus was found to be a very common infection.
"One in two of us will get it in our lifetime so it is extremely common infection," he said.
"The chances of you getting a cancer if you have the virus is about one in 100.
"Most of us get the virus, we don't know we have it, we get rid of it ourselves and we never knew we have it but of course while we have it we are infectious and can pass it on to other people."
He worked with his colleague, the late molecular virologist Dr Jian Zhou and a research team to use genetic engineering to build a virus replica in order to create the vaccine, some 16 years later.
Frazer said in addition to protecting women against cervical cancer, the vaccine works to protect against 90 per cent of all HPV-related cancers in men, including head, neck and genital tract cancers.
"Five per cent of all cancers worldwide are caused by papillomavirus infection, cervical cancer is the big one, but there are also some cancers in the throat and mouth we recognise are being increasingly caused by these viruses and then on top of that are a number of rarer cancers caused by these viruses," he said.
"About 20 per cent of all cancers are caused by a virus infection and about a quarter of those are caused by papillomavirus."
With more than 187 million doses of the vaccine administered across 130 countries, the number of new cases of cervical cancer in women has halved.
Frazer, who is also the chairman of the Australian Cancer Research Foundation's Medical Research Advisory Committee, said the vaccine could eliminate HPV-associated cancers within 40 years.
"Observations from over the past 10 years are that the HPV vaccines, if delivered effectively to the majority of 10-12 year-old-girls in the developing world from today forward, should lead to the global elimination of new cervical and other HPV associated cancers by 2050," he said.
He said there was more to be done and was now looking at a way of treating those already infected with the virus.
"If you look worldwide, a quarter of a million women worldwide die of cervical cancer every year and most that will die in the next 20 years are already infected with the virus and therefore for them the vaccine hasn't got anything to offer," he said.
"We are looking at a way to treat people who are already infected with the virus so they can get rid of it before they get cancer.
"If you go to the developing world screening programs like we have in Australia are just not available and therefore the only protection would be if we could find something that we could give to women who are already infected and that would stop the infection in its tracks."
"Up until now we have done the pap smear test and that is looking for the chances that the virus causes, in the future we are also going to screen for the virus itself."
- brisbanetimes.com.au | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/australia/83779246/10-years-on-HPV-vaccine-halves-cervical-cancer-rates | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/ab4900cf931a9610a832a164498ee7d138af4fe0ece67fc6aecbd499e8d8b164.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T06:51:42 | null | 2016-08-29T06:33:52 | A court has found a caregiver was interfering and behaved suspiciously but her family trust still gets cash. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fnational%2F83674357%2FAkaroa-caregivers-trust-gets-587-000-despite-suspicious-behaviour.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/t/n/p/1/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dtfjp.png/1472453176370.jpg | en | null | Akaroa caregiver's trust gets $587,000 despite suspicious behaviour | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Akaroa caregiver's trust gets $587,000 despite suspicious behaviour
Akaroa caregiver Prunella Downes has walked away with $587,000 for her trust despite suspicious behaviour.
An Akaroa caregiver's family trust has netted $587,000 from her millionaire client's will, despite a High Court judge disbelieving her evidence and finding her behaviour suspicious.
Former businesswoman Prunella Downes, 75, became a caregiver to Akaroa identity and millionaire Frank Sheward in 2010, initially as a contractor for an agency and then also in a private capacity. Sheward, desperate to avoid a rest home, thought Downes might marry him and became increasingly dependent on her.
Her private hours were paid as gifts, cash cheques, payments for medical expenses and by a new Subaru car worth about $50,000.
Sheward, who died on September 6, 2013, was partly deaf and blind and struggled with reading and writing. He owned a 2-hectare block of land in Rue Balguerie valued at $750,000 and about $587,000 in other assets.
READ MORE: Court bid accuses caregiver of grooming Akaroa client to leave her property
In the months before he died, Sheward, a former Akaroa harbourmaster and farmer, executed two wills, one on April 14, in which he gave his land to his friends and neighbours Alastair and Neroli Davidson and the rest of his estate to Downes's family trust.
Alistair and Neroli Davidson challenged a will that left a caregiver land and cash.
In another will, signed on April 18 at the local pharmacy, he gave the part of his property containing his house to the Downes trust and the remaining portion of land to the Davidsons. The trust also received the residue of the estate.
Sheward had also executed a will in 2011 in which he gave the land to the Davidsons and the remainder of his estate to the Guardians of Akaroa Hospital.
Justice Rachel Dunningham, in the High Court in Christchurch, had to decide which will was valid. She endorsed the April 14 will and invalidated the April 18 will, saying Downes's behaviour had aroused the suspicion of the court.
She found the April 18 will was signed without Sheward's proper knowledge and approval and under Downes's undue influence.
Justice Dunningham said Downes had encouraged Sheward to regard her family as his surrogate family and increased his dependency on her. At the family's suggestion, he became godfather to her adult children.
Downes intervened in the last days of his life to keep the Davidson's away from his hospital bed and intervened inappropriately in other ways.
The judge was not, however, satisfied Downes had exerted undue influence on Sheward in relation to the April 14 will.
"She largely met his needs in the last three years of his life . . . no matter how rigidly she observed the boundaries of carer, he would have wanted to reward her generously."
In a written judgement released last week, Justice Dunningham said Downes had been rewarded generously by Sheward for her work and showed a considerable lack of judgement in observing the ethical standards required by her position.
The judge said she was suspicious of the April 18 will because it resulted from an amended copy of Sheward's April 14 will sent to Sheward's lawyer with handwritten notes and asterisks on it.
Although Downes denied it, the judge was satisfied Downes was active in making the suggested amendments.
"The fact Ms Downes sought to deny her involvement in amending this document or, indeed, of even knowing the content of this will, reinforced to me she was aware that such involvement was inappropriate."
Justice Dunningham said asterisks on the amended document were in Downes's handwriting and she did not accept Downes told Sheward not to leave her money.
Downes had taken Sheward to a place to execute the April 18 will "where he was unlikely to be questioned or advised on the document".
Downes did not want to comment when contacted on Monday. The Davidsons are understood to be considering an appeal.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/83674357/Akaroa-caregivers-trust-gets-587-000-despite-suspicious-behaviour | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/2677fe3a3f3c51cdb976ed3c7c2a0fd5019820ffd16ecbcfae1033460d6dbdb2.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T00:51:11 | null | 2016-08-28T00:29:24 | Substitute Marcus Rashford scored in the second minute of stoppage time to earn Manchester United a 1-0 win at Hull. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Ffootball%2Fworld-game%2F83640473%2FRashford-scores-late-earns-Man-United-1-0-win-at-Hull.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/p/f/o/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dspeh.png/1472344164220.jpg | en | null | Rashford scores late, earns Man United 1-0 win at Hull | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Rashford scores late, earns Man United 1-0 win at Hull
LEE SMITH / REUTERS Manchester United's Marcus Rashford celebrates scoring against Hull.
Substitute Marcus Rashford scored in the second minute of stoppage time to earn Manchester United a 1-0 win at Hull and a third straight victory to open the English Premier League on Saturday.
Rashford capped an impressive cameo as a 71st-minute substitute by tapping in from close range after Wayne Rooney cut in from the left and sent across a low ball.
After previous wins over Bournemouth and Southampton, United was on course to drop points for the first time this season in the face of an obdurate defensive performance by promoted Hull, which also won its first two games.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic's three-match scoring run came to end, but United was saved by a striker at the opposite end of his career. The 18-year-old Rashford burst onto the scene in the second half of last season, earning a place in England's European Championship squad, but has been displaced by Ibrahimovic under new coach Jose Mourinho.
United joined Chelsea on maximum points after three games.
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"We deserved it and in a more comfortable way,'' Mourinho said. ``We had an amazing mentality. We tried and tried and got it.
"I tell the boys every day, we have to go into every match to win. We know we will draw or lose matches but the mentality has to be, `Go to win.' Today they showed that.''
Hull has been the surprise team in the first weeks, winning its first two games despite having no permanent manager, a slew of injuries, no signings since the end of last season, and with its owners looking to sell up.
They fell agonizingly short of taking away a point from the KCOM Stadium, having spent almost the entire match on the back foot
Ibrahimovic was looking to become only the second United player, after Jimmy Hanson in 1924-25, to score in his first four games for the club but the Swedish striker was shackled well by Hull center back Curtis Davies _ possibly the best player on the field. United's other high-profile signing, Paul Pogba, also had a quiet game and was off target with two decent sightings of goal from the edge of the area.
Rashford and fellow substitute Henrikh Mkhitaryan gave United something different when they come on as substitutes, offering pace and direct running. It was Rashford's first appearance of the season in the league, having been an unused sub in the first two games.
Rashford had a low shot tipped around the post and Mkhitaryan had a goalbound shot blocked by Davies, but Hull finally caved in.
- AP | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/football/world-game/83640473/Rashford-scores-late-earns-Man-United-1-0-win-at-Hull | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/957a039271d3e8de9f703f2e62011745c9a97016eaf2b11e456a86fb54fba60a.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T13:08:24 | null | null | Francis Saili remains a rough diamond, but All Blacks centre Conrad Smith liked what he saw after playing outside the Blues tyro for the first time. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsunday-star-times%2F9027532%2FConrad-Smith-likes-look-of-young-Francis-Saili.json | en | null | Conrad Smith likes look of young Francis Saili | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Conrad Smith likes look of young Francis Saili TOBY ROBSON
Getty Images BRIGHT FUTURE: Francis Saili in action for the All Blacks during a practice game earlier this week. Relevant offers
Francis Saili remains a rough diamond, but All Blacks centre Conrad Smith liked what he saw after playing outside the Blues tyro for the first time.
In many ways Saili was the All Blacks' standout player during Friday's training match against Wellington and a Canterbury XV in Wellington.
The issue is that the 22-year-old's play didn't always stand out for quite the right reasons before he limped off late in the match with a heavily iced ankle that threatens his immediate future.
There were a handful of electric breaks, an exquisite long pass to Julian Savea, a nice grubber for Charles Piutau's try and some thumping defence.
And then there was the wayward pass to the grandstand, the odd kick with the try line beckoning and the low percentage passes in contact.
Smith believes it won't be long before Saili is tormenting international defences.
"He's great. He's young and he loves having a crack. He's very handy and he'll be a better player for that experience," the All Blacks centre said.
"He was with the team early in the year [for the series against France] and didn't get a crack so you could see tonight it really meant a lot to him and I thought he played very well.
"He creates a lot with his footwork and he has a great passing game."
Smith sees plenty of similarities between the stocky Saili, who is close to 100kg, and incumbent All Blacks No 12 Ma'a Nonu. And Ma'a has been great working with him on his game. The more of that he can get in the coming years the better he'll be for it."
Saili, who is one of three wider-training-group players in the All Blacks Rugby Championship squad, may have to wait a little longer to get his chance in the test arena.
Nonu remains the rock of the All Blacks' backline and, despite an ankle injury, should be right for Saturday's Rugby Championship opener, while Dan Carter is likely to provide immediate cover at second five-eighth.
But midfield depth is not great and it may not take much for Saili to come into the equation.
Nonu picked up the ankle injury in club rugby two weeks ago, and Carter has had his share of injuries in recent seasons.
But Smith is confident his young teammate will handle the transition.
"Whether that comes this year or next, or whenever, I'd say he'll get his chance."
- Sunday Star Times | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sunday-star-times/9027532/Conrad-Smith-likes-look-of-young-Francis-Saili | en | 2016-08-01T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/303586d34be4c901dfda8580bb05cc72d782c237f2ce22ad8ebad3c9e7495d1c.json | |
[] | 2016-08-26T20:50:18 | null | 2016-08-09T13:19:21 | He's only been on Instagram for two weeks, but Tom Hiddleston has fallen victim to a hacker. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fentertainment%2Fcelebrities%2F83626554%2FActor-Tom-Hiddlestons-Instagram-account-hacked.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/e/n/m/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsenu.png/1472241628294.jpg | en | null | Actor Tom Hiddleston's Instagram account hacked | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Actor Tom Hiddleston's Instagram account hacked
Stuart Wilson/Getty Images Tom Hiddleston is currently in Australia filming the new Thor blockbuster with co-star Chris Hemswort.
British actor Tom Hiddleston fell victim to an Instagram hacker on Friday.
Taylor Swift's boyfriend only joined the photo-sharing site on August 9, but just over two weeks later, he suffered his first hack attack.
Followers noticed something was wrong early on Friday, when a series of strange posts appeared on Hiddleston's page, including a Snapchat clip from an unknown user, and uploads promoting other people's Instagram profiles, which featured messages in a foreign language.
twhiddleston/Instagram One of the strange posts that has since been deleted.
One such image was captioned, "Follow me. I will (show) you some thing important."
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Hiddleston's team managed to regain control of the Instagram account two hours later, and promptly removed the unauthorised posts, reported E! News.
The 35-year-old actor is currently in Australia filming the new Thor blockbuster with co-star Chris Hemsworth, who portrays the titular comic book character, and in his very first Instagram post, Hiddleston shared a photo of himself in full costume as Thor's evil brother Loki.
He's back! A photo posted by Tom Hiddleston (@twhiddleston) on Aug 9, 2016 at 6:19am PDT
"He's back!", he captioned the shot.
The lone snap earned Hiddleston over 200,000 followers in just a few hours, and the figure has since swelled to one million.
Hiddleston has only shared three more images on Instagram since his social media debut, including a sweet picture of himself and Chris in costume, meeting sick kids at a children's hospital in Brisbane, Australia on Tuesday.
The actors took time out of filming Thor: Ragnarok to put a smile on patients' faces at the Lady Cilento Children's Hospital, where they happily posed for photos with young fans.
Hiddleston's image featured the stars crouching down to chat to a smiling boy and girl, who held up a replica of Thor's powerful hammer.
"'Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor!' (i.e. everyone but the weirdo in the black suit)," Hiddleston wrote beside the picture, referring to himself as the "weirdo".
He added: "Unforgettable meeting all the children @ladycilentochildrenshospital. They're the real heroes."
- Cover Media | http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/celebrities/83626554/Actor-Tom-Hiddlestons-Instagram-account-hacked | en | 2016-08-09T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/8a9ac3dec925a646010f4d2fc73857b56b849aaf16a6a427772318c3f5c2bd51.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T18:50:44 | null | 2016-08-25T07:00:00 | How widespread is porn and what can we do about it? | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Flife-style%2F83418519%2FSex-mis-education-The-problems-with-porn.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/h/v/g/i/8/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dny53.png/1472234706542.jpg | en | null | Sex mis-education: The problems with porn | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Sex mis-education: The problems with porn
FAIRFAX AUSTRALIA Young consumers of porn have never had to worry about sneaking magazines down the back of the couch or visiting porn shops.
The digital age has transformed porn as we know it.
If you're still dealing in dirty magazines, you've got a lot to learn.
With hardcore, often violent porn just a few mouse clicks away, the long-term impacts for today's young people are unknown.
Here's what we do know:
How does New Zealand's porn consumption compare internationally?
On a per capita basis Kiwis are the fifth most regular visitors to website PornHub, behind the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Ireland and ahead of Norway, Iceland, Australia, Sweden and Denmark. Kiwis spend an average of nine minutes and 37 seconds on PornHub, 21 seconds longer than the worldwide average length.
How old are today's young people when they are first exposed to porn?
How should we deal with sex education? Share your stories, photos and videos.
It's hard to say but it's thought the average age of first-time exposure to pornography is around 11. A survey of college students in New England in the United States found 93 per cent of boys and 62 per cent of girls had seen online pornography before age 18. Boys were significantly more likely to view online pornography more often and to view more types of images. A 2011 AU Kids Online Study found that of the 9-16 year-olds surveyed, 44 per cent said they had seen sexual images in the past 12 months. Almost 30 per cent said they had seen sexual images online. Younger children were less likely to have seen images on the internet, with 11 per cent of 9-10 year-olds reporting they had seen sexual images online, compared to 56 per cent of 15-16 year-olds.
Is it legal to watch pornography?
For the most part, however if it falls under "objectionable material" then it's not legal. Objectionable is defined under the Films, Videos and Publications Classification Act 1993 as: "a publication...(that) describes, depicts or expresses, or otherwise deals with matters such as sex, horror, crime, cruelty or violence in such a manner that the availability of the publication is likely to be injurious to the public good." All objectionable material is banned. Anybody found "knowingly" in possession of objectionable material can receive a maximum of 10 years imprisonment. Anybody who knowingly makes or knowingly trades, distributes, or displays an objectionable publication via the internet can receive a maximum of 14 years imprisonment.
What if I come across objectionable material accidentally?
Leave the site immediately. You can fill out a Content Complaint Form or notify the Department of Internal Affairs' Censorship Compliance Unit.
What are the consequences of revenge porn?
In 2010, Judge Andrew Becroft made legal history in New Zealand when he sentenced a man under the Morality and Decency section of the Crimes Act for posting a photo of his ex-girlfriend naked on Facebook. Becroft said he was adapting an old print law for the internet age. "Technology can't be used in this way," he warned. "You would do incalculable damage to someone's reputation."
Do young people know porn isn't representative of real-life sex?
A Swedish study found most young people under the age of 20 acknowledged pornographic sex was different to sex in real-life relationships, although girls were somewhat concerned that boys would want to enact some of the things that they watched, such as anal sex.
What's the most common form of porn on the web?
Gonzo porn – short, "amateur" clips, often posted by average punters, but with hardcore action – is now the most common form of porn on the web, making its boundary-testing sex seem even more "everyday".
Terry Crews, Russell Brand, and our own Nick Willis have admitted to suffering from "porn addiction". What does that even mean?
Good question. The status of porn addiction is still controversial, with the current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) leaving it off its list of behavioural addictions. The American Psychological Association says experts disagree over how to classify excessive porn use: "Whether or not pornography is a diagnosable addiction, it's clear it hurts some people. For them, there just isn't much evidence about how best to control this behaviour."
So young people today are exposed to more sexual content. Does this mean they're having more sex?
A study of 33,000 Americans published in the Archives of Sexual Behaviour suggests not. It found those born between 1982 and 1999 aren't having as many sexual partners and are not having sex as often as Generation Xers (born between 1965 and 1981) and the baby boomers (born between 1946 and 1964). On top of that, 15 per cent of people aged between 20 and 24 reported having no sexual partners since the age of 18. The study also found Gen Y (also known as Millennials and Gen Me) was more comfortable with casual sex and non-marital sex, encompassing teenage sex, same-sex encounters and sexual relationships outside of marriage.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/83418519/Sex-mis-education-The-problems-with-porn | en | 2016-08-25T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/74770b8a014c781edf324b72b4c90e6df90abafef5bbf55fad2b3f538894a297.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T20:52:03 | null | 2016-08-30T20:07:01 | null | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Flife-style%2Fparenting%2Ffamily-life%2F83727110%2FAfter-my-mum-died-my-dad-had-to-be-a-mother-too.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/u/k/7/o/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1duk92.png/1472587621860.jpg | en | null | After my mum died, my dad had to be a mother, too | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | After my mum died, my dad had to be a mother, too
Supplied Rebecca McLean and her amazing father on her wedding day in Whakatane.
It's taken me 32 years, and becoming a mother for the first time, to realise how incredible my father is.
When my triplet siblings, Brigid and Michael, and I were 12-years-old, our mother, Kay, died suddenly.
Dad was thrown into single parenthood with three pre-adolescent children and our older sister, Shae, who was 19 at the time. We were living in the small town of Coromandel before Dad made the brave decision to give us a fresh start by moving to Whakatane.
Still a young girl, I hadn't even spoken to mum about all those "firsts" like the first bra, periods, boyfriends or first kisses.
Supplied Kay McLean with her triplets.
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It was Dad who now had to take all of that on, and although his tact may not have been the same as mum's, his intentions were the same.
We also had to start a new school, get used to a new town and make new friends. Dad didn't shy away from anything; he confronted the awkward situations and got it sorted because he had to.
And this was all while, I'm sure, his heart was breaking that his wife had died and he was watching his daughters uncover womanhood without their mum. But he never once let the cracks show.
Supplied Michael, Rebecca and Brigid with mum, Kay, in 1985.
Moving four kids to Whakatane, and leaving the town where their mum is buried, was a gamble that has definitely paid off. Whakatane is and will always be our home.
Dad has always been a tower of strength and our rock. He's always showered us with affection, he constantly tells us he loves us, and, for as long as I can remember, he always asks "are you OK, are you happy?".
I've never thought anything of all of that, but now that I have my own child, I know how important it is to give your kids lots of affection, and to be open when it comes to checking they're OK.
September 24 marks 20 years since mum died, and while I've always missed her, her death didn't truly hit me until I fell pregnant in 2014. I think this was because I was finally in a situation where only a mother could answer certain questions and she wasn't there.
I also think it took nearly 20 years to realise the impact of her death because Dad is so hands-on and has played mum and dad so well. He's kept us a close unit, we have supported each other and we adore being in each other's company.
Dad always talks about mum and the way he speaks about her is warming. A teacher, too, he describes her as an incredibly gifted teacher with an incredible mind who loved her kids.
Supplied The McLean family: clockwise from back left, Shae, Rebecca, their father, Brigid and Michael in 2015.
Dad could have easily let her memory fade as time went by but he doesn't; he speaks of her in the present and that, too, has been a huge comfort in dealing with our great loss. Our parents were the best of friends, they had been married for 23 years at the time of her death, and 20 years on I still don't think of myself as raised by a single parent. I feel like I still have two loving parents, one just isn't on this Earth anymore.
I now live in Melbourne, and when anything is wrong, Dad is always quick to offer to fly over. He was there for me at the birth of my son, and stayed with us for three weeks. He cooked and cleaned, watched the baby while my husband and I caught up on sleep, and did everything a mum would have done.
My siblings and I have all gone on to gain university qualifications, have travelled the world, and are all successful in our chosen careers. Dad has never once pushed us to do any of these things; we did them because we wanted to and because of his encouragement. His words to us have always been "I will support and love you in whatever you want to do."
Dad is modest and will never admit to the incredible job he has done. I know he still worries about us to this day, and the impact of mum's death, but I honestly do not know of many men who would have got on with it like he did had they been put in that position.
- Stuff.co.nz | http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/parenting/family-life/83727110/After-my-mum-died-my-dad-had-to-be-a-mother-too | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/b2e1c58ad26d601d1eb69c562b8225c598c39162229dd8f1425a353eccaf0669.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T08:51:46 | null | 2016-08-30T08:03:16 | Russia's added another Paralympics to the list of Games it's missing. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Folympics%2F83695721%2FParalympics-Now-Russia-banned-from-2018-Winter-Games.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/u/s/f/2/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dtw15.png/1472544196654.jpg | en | null | Paralympics: Now Russia banned from 2018 Winter Games | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Paralympics: Now Russia banned from 2018 Winter Games
KAZBEK BASAYEV Russian Paralympic torchbearer Aleksey Ashapatov attends a training session at Yunost sports ground in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia. The country has since been barred from taking part in the 2016 Paralympics.
Russia, already suspended from next month's Rio Paralympics, have also been banned for the winter edition in Pyeongchang, South Korea in 2018 because of a state-sponsored sports doping programme.
The Russian Paralympic Committee (RPC) announced the latest punishment handed out by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) on Monday (Tuesday NZ time).
"The decision taken by the IPC, upheld by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) regarding Russian Paralympians being excluded from the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, has also been extended to include the Winter Games in 2018 in Pyeongchang," the RPC said on their website.
Last week the Lausanne-based CAS, sport's highest tribunal, rejected an RPC appeal against the Rio ban.
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The decision to exclude Russia's team means at least 260 competitors from the country are now set to miss the September 7-18 Paralympics.
- Reuters | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/olympics/83695721/Paralympics-Now-Russia-banned-from-2018-Winter-Games | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/cbfa0897a0ce7e941091e5104def51e3ab352b361872e05e8289fe4a7a69a0f5.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T20:50:25 | null | 2016-08-26T19:25:04 | Hope of finding more survivors fade as rescue efforts in some of the stricken areas are called off. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Feurope%2F83626425%2FItaly-quake-death-toll-hits-278-state-funeral-planned.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/e/k/f/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsek9.png/1472239504918.jpg | en | null | Italy quake death toll hits 278, state funeral planned | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Italy quake death toll hits 278, state funeral planned
MAX ROSSI/REUTERS Rescue efforts are ongoing three days after a quake struck the mountainous heart of the country.
Hopes of finding more survivors from Italy's powerful earthquake faded on Friday, with the death toll rising to 278 and the rescue operation in some of the stricken areas called off.
Three days after the quake struck the mountainous heart of the country, sniffer dogs and emergency crews continued to scour the town of Amatrice, which was levelled in the disaster, but there was no sign of life beneath the debris.
"Only a miracle can bring our friends back alive from the rubble, but we are still digging because many are missing," town mayor Sergio Pirozzi told reporters, saying, around 15 people, including some children, had not been accounted for.
Fairfax/Fair use A girl is pulled alive from rubble in Italy.
In nearby villages, such as Pescara del Tronto, rescuers pulled out after all the inhabitants had been accounted for.
READ MORE:
* Why Italy's earthquake was like Christchurch
* Hamilton kindy teacher loses family in Italy earthquake
* 'Voices under the rubble' as Italy searches for survivors
* New Zealanders in Italy share experiences of earthquake
* Drone captures extent of damage in quake-hit Italian town
Italy plans to hold a state funeral for around 40 of the victims on Saturday, which will be held in the nearby city of Ascoli Piceno. A day of national mourning was announced, with flags due to fly at half mast around the country for the dead, who include a number of foreigners.
ITN Drone captures extent of damage in quake.
The civil protection department in Rome said 388 people were being treated for injuries in hospitals, and 40 of them were in critical condition. An estimated 2,500 people were left homeless by the most deadly quake in Italy since 2009.
Survivors with nowhere else to go are sleeping in neat rows of blue tents set up close to their flattened communities. The government has promised to rebuild the region, but some local people feared that would never happen.
"I'm afraid our village and others like it will just die. Most people don't live here year round anyway. In the winter time the towns are virtually empty," said Salvatore Petrucci, 77, who came from the nearby hamlet of Trisunga.
TVNZ ONE News Europe correspondent Emma Keeling reports from Amatrice, which was levelled by a 6.2 magnitude quake.
"We may be the last ones to have lived in Trisunga."
More than 1,050 aftershocks have hit the area since the 6.2 magnitude quake early on Wednesday, bringing fresh damage to structures still standing. These included a bridge leading to Amatrice, which had to be closed on Friday, further complicating the rescue operation.
The original quake was so strong that the town nearest the epicentre, Accumoli, sank by 20cm, according to Italy's geological institute.
RADIO NEW ZEALAND As rescuers continue to search the rubble of quake stricken Amatrice, survivors' thoughts are now turning to how they can move on from the disaster.
FOREIGN VICTIMS
By Friday, most of the outlying communities were quiet and empty, buildings lying in crumpled mounds, the innards of private homes exposed to the skies and belongings scattered in the debris.
"We have removed the last bodies that we knew about," said Paolo Cortelli, a member of the Alpine Rescue national service who helped to recover about 30 bodies from Pescara del Tronto.
"We don't know, and we might never know, if the number of missing that we knew about actually corresponds to the people who were actually under the rubble."
The foreigners who died in the disaster included six Romanians, a Spanish woman, a Canadian and an Albanian. Three British holidaymakers, including a 14-year-old boy, also died.
The area is popular with vacationers and local authorities were struggling to pin down how many visitors were present when the quake hit.
The Romanian Foreign Ministry said 17 Romanians were still missing. Italy has a large Romanian community, and some of the victims were residents in the country.
The first funeral of a victim was held in Rome on Friday, for Marco Santarelli, the 28-year-old son of a senior state official, who died in the family's holiday home in Amatrice.
"I cannot find the words to describe the grief of a father who outlives his own children. Perhaps there are no words," Marco's father, Filippo Santarelli, told Corriere della Sera newspaper.
Later in the day, a funeral service for six other victims, including an 8-year-old boy and two girls aged 14 and 15, was held in their hometown of Pomezia, south of Rome.
Officials said 181 of the victims had been identified, including at least 21 children. The youngest was just 5-1/2 months old. The eldest was 93.
RAZED
Hardly a single building was left unscathed in Amatrice, which was last year voted one of the most beautiful old towns in Italy and is famous for its local cuisine.
"Amatrice will have to be razed to the ground," said mayor Pirozzi, who urged youngsters not to leave the area, saying that would mean the end of their community.
"No night can last so long that the sun never rises again. I am convinced that Amatrice will rise again. We owe it to the (218) people who died here."
Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has declared a state of emergency for the region, allowing the government to release an immediate 50 million euros (NZ$77.4 million) for the relief work.
He has promised to rebuild the shattered homes and said he would also renew efforts to bolster Italy's flimsy defences against earthquakes that regularly batter the country.
"We want those communities to have the chance of a future and not just memories," he told reporters in Rome on Thursday.
Italy has a poor record of rebuilding after quakes. About 8,300 people who were forced to leave their homes after a deadly earthquake in L'Aquila in 2009 are still living in temporary accommodation.
This latest disaster represents a major political challenge for Renzi, who has been in office for two years. Former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi was widely criticised for what was perceived to be a botched response to the L'Aquila calamity.
Renzi called for national unity and declined to predict when the homeless might be rehoused. "This is not about setting challenges and making promises. We need the pace of a marathon runner," he said.
Insurance association ANIA estimates that less than one percent of Italy's 33 million homes have private quake coverage, meaning the bill for insurance companies was likely to be low.
That means that the reconstruction bill will have to be paid by the heavily indebted state. Infrastructure Minister Graziano Delrio said on Friday he did not think rebuilding costs would reach the 14 billion euros earmarked for L'Aquila.
Most of the buildings in the Amatrice area were built hundreds of years ago, long before any anti-seismic building norms were introduced, helping to explain the widespread destruction.
Cultural Minister Dario Franceschini said all 293 culturally important sites, many of them churches, had either collapsed or been seriously damaged.
Italy sits on two fault lines, making it one of the most seismically active countries in Europe. Almost 30 people died in earthquakes in northern Italy in 2012 while more than 300 died in the L'Aquila disaster.
- Reuters | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/83626425/Italy-quake-death-toll-hits-278-state-funeral-planned | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/77bac731443617f12c65f8de431c222f4e2c1f700995c3ab74197593d4379acc.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T13:07:15 | null | 2016-08-26T09:58:30 | A person has been cut out of a crashed car, following a police chase in Rotorua. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fnational%2F83625183%2FFire-Service-cuts-person-from-crashed-car.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/b/m/f/r/x/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsdlr.png/1472205510995.jpg | en | null | Fire Service cuts person from crashed car | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Fire Service cuts person from crashed car
FAIRFAX NZ One person was trapped after an accident in Rotorua.
The Fire service has cut a trapped person out of a car, after a police chase in Rotorua on Friday night.
The accident happened at 8.30pm on the corner of Fenton and Pukaki Streets, after police attempted to stop a vehicle on Lake Road.
"The vehicle refused to stop and police initiated a brief pursuit before abandoning a couple of minutes later," a police spokesperson said.
The fleeing vehicle was soon found crashed.
The driver was arrested without further incident, while one passenger had to be cut free by the Fire Service and was taken to hospital with minor injuries.
Police are making enquiries into the incident.
- Waikato Times | http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/83625183/Fire-Service-cuts-person-from-crashed-car | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/07a515ac186611b5c3ae54917daf84c27a171b96793eece912ff393f879a74d0.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T04:51:37 | null | 2016-08-29T04:40:50 | NZ Rugby chief says Sydney confirmed ongoing fears they were being listened in on by interested parties. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Frugby%2Finternational%2F83686726%2FNZ-Rugby-chief-Steve-Tew-admits-they-waited-too-long-to-take-Sydney-bug-to-police.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/n/c/3/v/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dtp3a.png/1472445650848.jpg | en | null | NZ Rugby chief Steve Tew admits they waited too long to take Sydney bug to police | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | NZ Rugby chief Steve Tew admits they waited too long to take Sydney bug to police
JASON REED/REUTERS The All Blacks have been concerned for a while now that interested parties might have been listening in on them.
The Sydney bug and Chiefs stripper incident continue to remain on the radar of New Zealand Rugby who are adamant they're sweeping neither under the carpet.
NZR chief executive Steve Tew addressed both controversies in his Monday post-board meeting conference call with the media, though admitted he remained limited in what he could say on both.
The discovery of a state-of-the-art listening device in a team room at the All Blacks' hotel in Sydney during the week of the opening Bledisloe remained an ongoing concern for NZR, though at present they were bound by the police investigation across the Tasman which had to be allowed to play out.
"The matter is simply in the hands of the Australian police and we're awaiting their determination," Tew said initially. "What we know we've told you."
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Then the NZ rugby boss was asked if the fact the device was discovered to have a short-term battery life, and thus to have been clearly aimed at the All Blacks, raised any additional concerns.
"I'm not going to speculate whether it was aimed at us or not. Someone much more qualified than I can come to those conclusions and we'll take that advice," he said.
But Tew did hint that Sydney had not been the first time the All Blacks had suspected they were being listened in on by interested parties.
"The very fact we scanned a room for a bug would suggest we are suspicious that there is motivation from a variety sources to try and glean information that gives people some advantage in something they are doing," he added.
But as to whom that might be, Tew said he would leave that for the conjecture of others.
"It's unfortunate confirmation of our speculations, but professional sport is a big business and has a lot of people very interested in what's going on, both inside and outside of the game."
However Tew, when queried by Fairfax Media, did concede that the All Blacks had erred in not taking the matter to the attention of the police earlier than they did.
"Yes, it did take five days, but we handed it immediately to the hotel who initiated their own investigation. There will be some things for us to learn from this process and probably the delay in giving it to the police is something we would reflect on and say we could have done better.
"There was nothing sinister about it − we were simply relying on the hotel to find out what was going on."
As for the Chiefs, and the controversy surrounding their Mad Monday treatment of a stripper at the Okoroire hot pools hotel, Tew confirmed his organisation was nearing the end of a comprehensive investigation.
"We've got complete confidence in the work being done, and we would hope to bring that to a conclusion some time very soon. There are one or two further interviews to be conducted, and once we've done that we will share what we have found."
Tew confirmed a review into both the men's and women's Olympic sevens programme was under way, conceding results had fallen well short of expectations.
"We set a very aspirational target of two gold medals, so it was disappointing. The Olympics are a tough platform, and as we saw it's not a guarantee you turn up as the No 1 or 2 in the world and win a medal. You've got to deliver on the day, and in the case of our men we failed.
"We will review the campaign carefully, but we're also going to have to think in a wider context about how we position sevens going forward, and that probably applies to both men and women."
The NZ Rugby chief also had a well-chosen response to criticism from England's Premier Rugby chief executive Mark McCafferty's of the Lions' gruelling tour schedule in New Zealand next year.
"He's got his view and he's entitled to it. We could suggest that their competition runs a tad long too for player welfare reasons as well but we'll stick to our business and he can stick to his."
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/international/83686726/NZ-Rugby-chief-Steve-Tew-admits-they-waited-too-long-to-take-Sydney-bug-to-police | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/047758009f1748bb06f175491f42f00779f9022352832715075467e3ead5180c.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T00:52:24 | null | 2016-08-31T00:26:41 | The late Gene Wilder turned down a role in a Late Late Show sketch in a truly magical way. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fentertainment%2Fcelebrities%2F83753541%2FGene-Wilder-turned-down-Late-Late-Show-sketch-in-magical-fashion.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/t/w/f/r/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dv4n9.png/1472603607244.jpg | en | null | Gene Wilder turned down Late Late Show sketch in magical fashion | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Gene Wilder turned down Late Late Show sketch in magical fashion
REUTERS Gene Wilder loved the stage and the silver screen.
In true Willy Wonka fashion, Gene Wilder once turned down a chance to appear on The Late Late Show in the US.
The late actor, who died from complications from Alzheimer's disease on Sunday at the age of 83, is known to people around the world as fictional chocolate factory owner Willy Wonka.
His portrayal of the eccentric confectionery boss in the 1971 movie, based on Roald Dahl's famous novel, cemented his place in cinema history, and US talk show host James Corden wanted to emulate the movie when he first took over The Late Late Show in 2015.
Spl Gene Wilder in "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory".
After meeting Gene backstage while on Broadway, the pair exchanged emails and James asked the movie icon if he'd join him in the sketch, depicting the Brit landing the presenting job by winning a golden ticket.
READ MORE:
* Gene Wilder dies aged 83
* How much loss can our collective childhoods take?
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While Gene wasn't keen to take part, his message still managed to make the 38-year-old Into the Woods star smile.
MJ Kim The death of Gene Wilder, shown here with his autobiography, has left the world a much-less magical place.
"(The email read), 'Dearest James, I don't do or go where you were hoping, but I'll be looking for you. With my love, Gene," James shared on his Monday night show.
"Even the way he said no was so poetic, even his emails sounded somehow like Willy Wonka.
The truth of it is, he was just this magical person and he made everybody around him feel this incredible feeling of joy. It's what I felt when I watched him. It's what I felt when I met him."
Such very sad news. Words not enough. Treasured memories 💧 — Julie Dawn Cole (@realverucasalt) August 29, 2016
Celebrities and fans alike have been sharing their sadness at Gene's passing.
Wilder's Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory co-stars Julie Dawn Cole, who starred as Veruca, and Denise Nickerson, who played Violet, have both commented on the passing.
"Such very sad news. Words not enough. Treasured memories," Julie tweeted.
Denise added: "All of us have lost OUR Willy Wonka. Love, Violet".
In a statement released by Gene's family, his nephew Jordan Walker-Pearlman explained that Gene passed away as one of his favourite songs, Ella Fitzgerald's version of Somewhere Over the Rainbow, started to play.
RIP Gene. You were so talented and kindhearted. You will be sorely missed by so many. All of us have lost OUR Willy Wonka. Love, Violet — Denise Nickerson (@deniseviolet71) August 30, 2016
Jordan ended the announcement with a line from Gene's most famous film, Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory: "We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of dreams."
- Cover Media | http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/celebrities/83753541/Gene-Wilder-turned-down-Late-Late-Show-sketch-in-magical-fashion | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/35a5187dc3a9168056e93192554b4750012140f1d892b6b08832c4da6495348e.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T18:51:35 | null | 2016-08-29T17:00:00 | OPINION: Online shopping provides convenience, but traditional retails have the personal touch advantage. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fbusiness%2Fopinion-analysis%2F83666950%2FCas-Carter-Online-shopping-is-growing-fast-but-traditional-retailers-offer-the-personal-touch.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/8/p/3/3/q/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dt9ty.png/1472431742851.jpg | en | null | Cas Carter: Online shopping is growing fast, but traditional retailers offer the personal touch | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Cas Carter: Online shopping is growing fast, but traditional retailers offer the personal touch
SUPPLIED "One of my favourite stores in Raumati is a perfect example of what modern shopping should be. The owner knows my name, what I've bought before, even my colours," Cas Carter says.
OPINION: There has been a lot of David Jones labelled bags being walked up and down Wellington's Lambton Quay in the past month.
The Australian department store opened its first New Zealand shop in Wellington at the end of July. It was an interesting move when online retailers like Asos and Amazon seem to have lured a whole generation away from traditional shopping.
David Jones sells online, but only in Australia, In New Zealand, as yet, you have to shop the traditional way.
MAARTEN HOLL/FAIRFAX NZ Online retailers lack the personal touch a traditional bricks and mortar shop can offer.
Online shopping has increased exponentially in the last few years. Between 2013 and 2014 there was a 40 per cent increase of internet purchasing in New Zealand.
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The massive increase may be because some businesses such as accommodation providers, airlines and ticketing agencies are actively pushing us to purchase online.
KIRILL KEDRINSKIY/123RF Online shopping has increased exponentially in the last few years.
But a growing comfort with online shopping, which has enabled us to do serious damage to our credit cards without leaving the house, is a concerning trend for traditional shopping centres. And there are a few shopping centres around the country that are starting to look like ghost towns.
Want a blue coat? Just Google it. Type the genre of a book and find your online library. Why would you bother to go to a shop?
With shopping habits changing so quickly, retail centres and shopping malls will need to think innovatively about creating a shopping experience as a whole new generation takes to online purchasing.
Online shopping means no parking issues and avoiding crowds and incompetent shop assistants. It means I can do my supermarketing from my own table with a glass of wine in my hand.
Of course traditional shopping has advantages too. It offers instant gratification if you want something immediately. You can see touch and try the product and you can receive personalised human contact unavailable online.
There are so many choices of how to shop that both traditional shops and websites will need to keep offering reasons to choose them.
Online retailers must keep making it easy; easy to purchase, easy to get delivered and easy to send back.
Traditional retailers must offer everything that online shopping can't. Many will offer both. But what is very clear is that retailers need to be more aware of customer requirements than ever before.
We'll always go back to somewhere we've had a good experience.
One of my favourite stores in Raumati is a perfect example of what modern shopping should be. The owner knows my name, what I've bought before, even my colours.
Shopping there is like a teenage sleepover - you get to play dress ups without pressure to buy. But it's so much fun, buy is exactly what you do.
If every shopping experience was like that I would have to have my credit cards cut up for my own safety.
It's in the interest of sales assistants to provide a shopping experience. There are predictions 10 per cent to 20 per cent of salespeople, especially those who are selling a simple product with a short sales cycle, will lose their jobs in the next 20 years.
I shudder to think what our communities would be without shopping areas as the centre. We need to support our traditional retailers, but, in turn, they need to meet our changing needs.
I was one of many who visited David Jones in its first weeks of opening. I tried on some trousers that looked great on the hanger and hideous on me.
"At least now you know," the sales assistant said. "That's why you shouldn't shop on line."
Touche.
Cas Carter is a marketing, branding and public relations specialist.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/opinion-analysis/83666950/Cas-Carter-Online-shopping-is-growing-fast-but-traditional-retailers-offer-the-personal-touch | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/7a06a7866a3b1fa23bf4122c486ac151d4cb135f9ac756f650e45de34787708b.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T06:50:18 | null | 2016-08-27T06:48:45 | North Harbour's challenge came to life but Waikato's resilience saw them retain the Ranfurly Shield. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Frugby%2Fprovincial%2F83634083%2FSean-Botherway-proud-of-Waikato-for-digging-deep-in-defending-the-Ranfurly-Shield.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/k/q/g/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dskgz.png/1472280525872.jpg | en | null | Sean Botherway proud of Waikato for digging deep in defending the Ranfurly Shield | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Sean Botherway proud of Waikato for digging deep in defending the Ranfurly Shield
Bruce Lim Waikato's players battled back to win the arm wrestle and hold on to the Ranfurly Shield.
Waikato head coach Sean Botherway was beaming with pride after his side dug deep to hold on to the Ranfurly Shield for another week.
North Harbour were Waikato's first challengers from the national provincial championship in 2016, and they finally came to the party after the Mooloo men raced out to a 19-0 lead at Waikato Stadium in Hamilton.
Tries from Michael Little and Bryn Hall either side of half-time appeared to flip the contest in Harbour's favour.
And Waikato had a lucky escape when ahead 19-15, when Matt Vaega was about to give Harbour the lead. But he knocked on in the act of scoring, as Jordan Trainor did enough to dislodge the ball from his grasp.
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That desperate play from Trainor was key in swinging the momentum back in Waikato's favour. Atu Moli's big hit on Brandon Nansen then revitalised the holders, who soon went further ahead as hooker Hame Faiva scored in the 66th minute.
The Mooloo men held on to win 26-15 in their 100th shield game and denied Harbour their chance to win the shield back for the first time since 2007.
"That was Ranfurly Shield rugby at its best," said Botherway. "We put ourselves under a little bit of pressure late in that first half, and probably didn't start the second so well, but I'm really proud of the boys."
Waikato cut Harbour to pieces in the opening quarter, with tries from Isaac Boss, Loni Uhila and Nathaniel Apa. With a bit of luck and better execution, it could have been more.
"The boys were really excited. A lot's made of the challenge and the North Harbour boys were up for it," added Botherway.
"We played by far the better rugby in first quarter and that's going to tell the tale in the end."
36-year-old halfback Boss, who skippered the side in Stephen Donald's absence was rapt with Waikato's resilience.
"You've just got to fight your way back into it," he said. "There's no special trick to it. You've just got to grind it out, roll your sleeves up and all work together."
Manawatu will challenge Waikato for the shield next Sunday.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/provincial/83634083/Sean-Botherway-proud-of-Waikato-for-digging-deep-in-defending-the-Ranfurly-Shield | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/b265b7b4e34cffb8ed8244a7a0f9fc527928604b3998624e7c199c504fac69df.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T04:51:55 | null | 2016-08-30T04:38:06 | Bert, Ernie, Big Bird and Elmo are returning to TVNZ from September. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fentertainment%2Ftv-radio%2F83727940%2FSesame-Street-to-return-to-NZ-screens-on-TV2.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/5/7/d/y/x/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dukw4.png/1472532068439.jpg | en | null | Sesame Street to return to NZ screens on TV2 | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Sesame Street to return to NZ screens on TV2
Sesame Street is a favourite with Kiwi kids - and now TVNZ is putting it back on air.
A generation of Kiwi kids has been saved from a childhood bereft of Bert, Ernie, Big Bird and Elmo.
That's right: Sesame Street is back. The beloved children's show has been acquired by TVNZ, who will screen it from September 12.
Sesame Street, which began back in 1969, was cut from New Zealand television when Mediaworks replaced FOUR with Bravo.
ANDY JACKSON/Fairfax NZ New Plymouth mum Kerry Peacock started a petition to get child-friendly shows back on TV for her twins Elizabeth and Isabelle, 2, and their friend Isabel Gernhoefer, 2.
It was one of a host of children's shows cut in the reprogamming. The changes outraged some parents, including New Plymouth mum Kerry Peacock, who started a petition asking Mediaworks to bring back its children's programming.
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* Sesame Street definitely gone from NZ television
The petition accrued over 8000 signatures online before it was presented to Mediaworks.
On Tuesday a TVNZ spokesperson confirmed that Sesame Street would debut on TV2 at 6.30am on September 12, and would air on subsequent weekday mornings at 6.30. The show will also be available to view on TVNZ OnDemand.
Sesame Street is understood to be an expensive show for TV networks to acquire, especially since it was bought by American subscriber network HBO in January.
TVNZ was unable to say how much it had paid for the show due to commercial sensitivity.
"This is a show that there's a lot of love for and we're delighted to be bringing it to New Zealanders," the spokesperson said.
"High quality local and international children's content is part of keeping our littlest viewers happy."
The acquisition is an about-face for the network, which said in July it had no plans to acquire the show.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/tv-radio/83727940/Sesame-Street-to-return-to-NZ-screens-on-TV2 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/2a7eaf81a0515a0b52c1c72f8f50ea210f5606ef2e9ae20708cbba50baa53319.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T16:50:33 | null | 2016-08-27T16:05:03 | Black Caps potentially rue decision to bowl first as South Africa dominate second test | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Fcricket%2F83634765%2FSouth-Africa-in-commanding-position-in-series-decider-with-Black-Caps.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/l/1/w/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dskzx.png/1472314287786.jpg | en | null | South Africa in commanding position in series decider with Black Caps | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | South Africa in commanding position in series decider with Black Caps
LEE WARREN/GALLO IMAGES Unfinished business: Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor will have a big part to play if the Black Caps are to win their first test series against South Africa.
Kane Williamson had a South African to thank after the New Zealand captain's call at the toss inadvertently allowed the grateful Proteas to assume control of the series-deciding second test at Centurion.
Had Pretoria-born Neil Wagner not enjoyed a relatively happy homecoming to the ground where he watched cricket growing up, Williamson would have had even more cause to second-guess his decision to bowl first and essentially cede the advantage to counterpart Faf du Plessis on Saturday.
At the close of a day of missed opportunities for the Black Caps at SuperSport Park, South Africa were 283-3 and well set to bat New Zealand out of the contest.
SYDNEY SESHIBEDI/GALLO IMAGES Black Caps pace bowler Neil Wagner led a frustrated attack with two wickets on the opening day of the final test against South Africa.
Wagner at least denied volunteer opener Quinton de Kock his second test century and, more importantly, he prevented Hashim Amla amassing another significant score against the Kiwis.
READ MORE:
* Live: South Africa v Black Caps Second Test
* Series decider no lottery says Williamson
* Black Caps aiming for history
* Black Caps ready to strike
* Off to Lord's? Stick a cork in it
GALLO IMAGES Quinton de Kock made a successful transition to opening in test cricket as South Africa's wicketkeeper posted a century stand with Stephen Cook.
Using his preferred method of short-pitched aggression, Wagner coaxed de Kock to pull straight to Trent Boult just inside the long leg boundary for a belligerent 15-boundary 82; the earnest left-armer then drew Amla into a rare false when the Proteas leading strokemaker had made 1000 career runs against the Kiwis, and an effortless 58.
Doug Bracewell, Boult and Tim Southee also caused the South Africans anxiety from time with swing and seam movement but the trio were unable to make inroads with the second new ball as the shadows lengthened.
Williamson's debatable option was compounded by the Black Caps being figuratively outplayed in regard to the decision review system.
MUZI NTOMBELA/PHOTOSPORT Prolific South African strokemaker Hashim Amla was limited to 58 on the opening day of the second test against New Zealand at Centurion.
Twice, when opener Stephen Cook was 36 runs into his 56 and JP Duminy was on 20, did they decline to challenge English umpire Ian Gould's judgment to turn down lbw appeals where both deliveries were crashing into leg stump.
Amla and Duminy, meanwhile, wisely reviewed their initial lbw dismissals - by Gould - when on 17 and 44 respectively.
Boult's LBW which was given out on field on Amla is overturned by a coat of varnish... #savnz ^WN pic.twitter.com/GDiQzB2xCB — BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) August 27, 2016 Decision overturned. Bracewell has Duminy given lbw, but hawk-eye shows it pitched outside leg. South Africa remain 246-3 ^CE — BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) August 27, 2016
PHOTOSPORT South African pace bowler Dale Steyn took 10-91 when New Zealand first played a test at Centurion in 2006.
Although the pitch had a greenish tinge that will brown off as the contest unfolds, a lack of cloud cover soon cast a shadow over Williamson's call to bowl rather than set a target against the formidable new ball attack of Dale Steyn and Vernon Philander.
Cook and de Kock, who opened in place of an injured Dean Elgar, seized the initiative in contrasting style by posting 133 for the first wicket, South Africa's best opening stand at home since Graeme Smith and AB de Villiers put on 217 against Zimbabwe in 2015.
Their partnership was also the Proteas first triple figure contribution by the openers in 34 innings since late 2013 against India in Johannesburg in 2013 - the timing could not have been worse for New Zealand as they strive to win a historic series against South Africa.
De Kock, who opens in the ODI format and has a strike rate of 90.40, replicated that expansive game plan with his half century arriving courtesy of his 10th boundary - eight runs after he was dropped by counterpart BJ Watling.
Cook, a late-blooming 33-year-old who crafted 115 on debut against England at Centurion in January, reached his half century off 112 balls and added only six more before Bracewell - the unlucky bowler when de Kock was dropped - had the right-hander edging to Williamson in the gully.
The Black Caps limited South Africa to 82-2 in the middle session and although they removed Amla - who has scored 1201 runs at 85.78 at the venue - after tea the out-of-form Duminy and du Plessis added a patient 37 for the fourth wicket.
Duminy, who had another reprieve on 28 when Henry Nicholls could not hold a full-blooded pull at short leg, brought up his fifty with his ninth boundary off 84 balls to ease some pressure after he averaged 18.83 from his previous 15 innings.
He resumes on 67 while du Plessis, who replaced the injured de Villiers as captain, is on 13 as he tries to extricate himself from a rut after reaching fifty only once in his last 10 tests.
Wagner, the fifth bowler summoned, led the attack with an impressive 2-51 from 22 overs while Bracewell had 1-65 before he limped off late as stumps loomed with a tight hamstring.
Ominously for New Zealand, South Africa has only lost two of 21 tests at Centurion - and won 16 - while the team batting first has emerged victorious in the last four encounters at SuperSport Park.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/cricket/83634765/South-Africa-in-commanding-position-in-series-decider-with-Black-Caps | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/c71daff7ff8a13102d496aab0fdb4cc64d393033c360bc47eef9b9fe91a04318.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T02:51:42 | null | 2016-08-30T02:42:37 | Put otherwise good people in an environment created by a psychopathic boss and they could end up with ethical blindness. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fbusiness%2Fbetter-business%2F83721637%2FHow-to-tell-if-your-boss-is-a-psychopath-and-what-to-do-about-it.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/u/h/d/c/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dug11.png/1472524957851.jpg | en | null | How to tell if your boss is a psychopath - and what to do about it | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | How to tell if your boss is a psychopath – and what to do about it
123RF Some psychopathic traits can lead to success, at least in the short term.
Being in business calls for a determined if not ruthless mindset, the ability to be confident and in control, and to be forceful, calculating, and a meticulous planner. Attributes that few possess. But there is one category of person that has them in abundance - the psychopath.
Researcher Robert Hare estimates 1 per cent of the general population fits the profile, though the percentage of CEOs might be four times that figure.
Oxford University psychologist Kevin Dutton surveyed 5400 people across a wide range of professions. He compiled a list of the top 10 jobs ranking highest for psychopathy. Top of the list? CEO, followed by lawyer, media personality, salesperson and surgeon.
While psychopathic individuals are more likely than other people to commit crimes, most of them manage to live successful lives, their psychopathic personality helping them along the way.
READ MORE:
* Loathe your job in your 20s or 30s? That may hurt your health by your 40s
* Workplace psychopaths bring suffering for all
* Trump beats Hitler for psychopathic traits, study finds
* The key to motivating staff comes in the form of pizza and compliments
The problem is, it's the psychopathic boss who makes the culture and sets the tone for the way some organisations go about their business.
Does the boss like to operate ethically, or do they skate around in the grey zone between ethical and legal? Or worse, do they like to step over the line into illegality if the risks are low and the benefits outweigh the legal liability?
Those that work for such a boss can sometimes get caught in the trap, so set on not upsetting the boss, they develop a case of "ethical blindness". These workers are not usually conscious of being unethical, it is simply that management has created an environment in which ethics are not much considered, allowing otherwise decent people to become established in that behaviour.
Put an otherwise good person in a toxic environment, perhaps one created by a psychopathic boss, and that person will find it very difficult to resist the slide intoethical blindness and harmful behaviour.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Psychologist Phillip Zimbardo, best known for his Stanford Prison Experiment, came up with a set of social processes that "expedite evil". Reading them is a reminder for how we are all perched at the top of our own slippery slope:
Mindlessly taking the first small step. Its easy when there is something to be gained and little to lose. Its the "thin edge of the wedge" that creates forward momentum. In business, you might be expected to cut a few corners as an acceptable part of getting the job done. As time goes by, the practice moves beyond "is this the right thing to do" to "can I get away with it?", a transition that is easily made in a culture of ethical blindness.
Dehumanisation of others. When tribal "us and them" thinking leads people to see outsiders as sub-human. The blood-soaked history of warfare shows the destructive potential of this thinking. When a boss tells everyone that this is war, that we must "smash the competition", or "bury them" they are creating a hostile environment in which survival is linked to killing the enemy.
De-individuation of self (anonymity). People who mask their identity are more likely to behave in anti-social ways because anonymity gives permission to behave badly. If a worker is an anonymous cog in a machine-like organisation, they feel less than human themselves, and so less governed by human decency.
Diffusion of personal responsibility. Become swept up in the mob mentality (for example, a lynch-mob), and you are capable of almost anything. Thousands of usually law-abiding Londoners became looters and arsonists during the 2011 riots because "everyone else was doing it". A workplace with "the end justifies the means" culture makes it easy for people to do what everyone else is doing.
Blind obedience to authority. When an authority figure like the boss orders you to do something it is difficult to refuse, particularly if not complying carries serious consequences. In the past, such disobedience could be fatal.
Uncritical conformity to group norms. Norms exert a powerful influence over our behaviour, particularly if disobedience or being a nonconformist will get you fired from the organisation. In the evolutionary past, social exclusion was tantamount to death so our instincts are to conform.
Passive tolerance of evil through inaction or indifference. As Edmund Burke noted, "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing". You don't need to be a perpetrator, it's enough to simply stand passively by.
BOTTOM-UP LEADERSHIP
You can still establish yourself as an ethical person in your own sphere of influence provided the boss is not diabolical. This is a form of bottom-up leadership that sets a good example for others to follow.
When enough spheres of influence overlap, the culture changes. In the end, your best option may be to look for another job and exit gracefully. But don't underestimate the power of collective action to create an ethical workplace.
David Tuffley, Senior Lecturer in Applied Ethics and Socio-Technical Studies, Griffith University
This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. | http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/better-business/83721637/How-to-tell-if-your-boss-is-a-psychopath-and-what-to-do-about-it | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/7c083931741657a039fb7808e163394e1e1bcf6ba99caed918d76a63296b4e51.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T22:51:03 | null | 2016-08-25T17:28:49 | Amy Schumer made a waitress' week after leaving a $100 bill for a humble shepherd's pie. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fentertainment%2Fcelebrities%2F83637358%2FAmy-Schumer-leaves-a-big-tip-for-waitress-at-Dublin-bar.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/n/9/t/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsmzy.png/1472335307359.jpg | en | null | Amy Schumer leaves a big tip for waitress at Dublin bar | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Amy Schumer leaves a big tip for waitress at Dublin bar
INSTAGRAM Amy Schumer made a waitress' week after leaving a $100 bill for a humble shepherd's pie.
Amy Schumer was in Ireland recently as part of her world stand-up tour, Amy Schumer Live.
But before Friday night's gig, the comedian took a tour of Dublin's streets with her brother.
How bout these idiots? #siblingsindublin A photo posted by @amyschumer on Aug 25, 2016 at 10:28am PDT
The siblings enjoyed a walk around the capital city and stopped off at a local bar for a bite to eat.
After sampling some of the local fare, including chowder, shepherd's pie and bangers and mash, the waitress brought the celebrity guest her bill of €62.20 (NZ$96.20).
As an American, Schumer is probably accustomed to giving big tips but waitress Etain Bagnall was not expecting the US$100 (NZ$138) addition to the bill.
Big shoutout to @amyschumer for being a sound customer when I was trying to run the Cellar Bar by myself tonight and an even bigger shout out to her and her friend for managing to stomach 4 main courses! Your tip has made this waitresses day, maybe week. Best of luck with your show! #amyschumer A photo posted by Joey (@joey_bagnall) on Aug 25, 2016 at 3:34pm PDT
"Big shoutout to @amyschumer for being a sound customer when I was trying to run the Cellar Bar by myself tonight and an even bigger shout out to her and her friend for managing to stomach 4 main courses!" she wrote on Instagram.
"Your tip has made this waitresses day, maybe week. Best of luck with your show! #amyschumer".
Schumer clearly enjoyed herself on the short stop in Ireland and even had a pint of Guiness at her show.
Thanks for coming Dublin! A photo posted by @amyschumer on Aug 26, 2016 at 5:23pm PDT
Amy Schumer will perform at the Vector Arena on December 17.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/celebrities/83637358/Amy-Schumer-leaves-a-big-tip-for-waitress-at-Dublin-bar | en | 2016-08-25T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/7c9489204943e4d7517c559eddb9b53b00782aac4d1c89feae5d547617f174a2.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T18:50:43 | null | 2016-08-26T17:00:00 | OPINION: Rakon and an once-fabulous motorcycle have a lot in common, according to Mike O'Donnell. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fbusiness%2Fopinion-analysis%2F83594806%2FMike-O-Donnell-When-things-don-t-smell-right.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/r/q/e/3/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1drq5y.png/1472175531623.jpg | en | null | Mike O'Donnell: When things don't smell right | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Mike O'Donnell: When things don't smell right
KEVIN STENT/FAIRFAX NZ. Mike O'Donnell likens shares in Rakon to a shaky Suzuki he once called Godzilla.
OPINION: About 25 years ago I bought a Suzuki GSX-R 1100 Motorcycle. For most of the 1980s the big GSX-R was the king of the hill.
Positioned as a "race bike with lights," the GSX-R was a breakthrough model with 100 horsepower stock, easily boostable to 130-plus with a bit of fettling.
This particular bike was going cheap and I figured I couldn't go wrong so I snapped it up on the spot, being assured by a mate that it was impressive buying.
The engine was certainly impressive. Less impressive was its tendency to shake its head as the power came on, something that resulted me in nicknaming the bike "Godzilla," after another fearsome Japanese monster.
READ MORE:
* NZ Shareholders Association move to dump Rakon director
* Rakon sells Chinese subsidiary stake
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* Shareholders' Assoc challenge Rakon leaders
* Rakon optimistic despite $84m loss
I rode Godzilla for about a year before its rear suspension arm cracked, something that got my full attention as I was doing 120kmh at the time.
Turns out it had been cracked before and some idiot had welded it up rather than replace it – thereby putting subsequent owners at serious risk.
I still have that cracked piece of alloy, as a reminder of the stupidity of rushing in and buying on the spur of the moment.
Clearly I'm a slow learner as 20 years later I got burnt by another spur of the moment acquisition, buying shares in technology company Rakon.
Again a mate told me that at the price (79 cents) it had never traded cheaper and I couldn't go wrong.
Rather than look into the underlying company I just bought in, I watched the shares bleed value, day by day and year by year.
Today they are valued at just 22c. Like the bust suspension arm, I've held onto the shares as a reminder of my own folly.
While I've suffered a 70 per cent loss of shareholder value, others have suffered worse.
Overseeing this destruction of shareholder value has been the family who established Rakon, the Robinsons.
Rakon was founded by Warren Robinson in 1967 as a quartz crystal company.
In later years his sons Brent and Darren became directors and they had several decades of real success.
In 2006 the company staged a public offering which saw the family walk away with a reported $68 million – along with a windfall of about $70m from unrealised innitial public offering share holdings.
Today the Robinson family own just 23 per cent of the company but hold three of the six board seats.
Brent is managing director, Darren is head of sales and marketing, and both sit on the board with their dad – holding governance and executive roles at the same time.
It's hard to see such a concentration and persistence of family control sitting easily with a board's responsibility to represent all shareholders and create value rather than destroy it.
The resignation of two independent directors after shortish tenures doesn't make things look any better.
Little wonder then that the Shareholders Association decided to take action.
Along with the 5000 other Rakon shareholders I received a letter from them in early August, pushing for the removal of Darren from the board and delivering a blistering review of the company's management.
The association points to the fact that the company hasn't paid a dividend to shareholders since it was listed. None.
The other thing the association flushed to the surface was the way that the two brothers' salaries have gone seriously north while the share price went south.
The association noted that their pay-packets increased 23 per cent in 2016, in direct contradiction to an earlier annual general meeting promise around freezing pay rises until earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda) passed $25 million.
To be clear, ebitda is not within a bull's roar of $25 million.
Last week the board responded, with chairman Bryan Mogridge sending a letter to shareholders defending the Robinsons, giving praise to the managing director and asking for "orderly" change.
He also suggested that director Warren Robertson should be able to choose to retire with "dignity and the applause due to him".
It's a nice sentiment and I'm sure he's a good bloke. It's also categorically wrong.
Directorships are not gold watches for jobs well done, or daybeds for aging soldiers.
They are a keystone of governance and a tool to ensure current shareholders wealth is maximised.
To occupy such a critical role you must not only be beyond reproach, you must be seen to be beyond reproach.
To my way of thinking, directors have three core jobs. First, to appoint great chief executives and manage them up or out.
Second, to help set a strategy that will deliver wealth to shareholders.
Third, to monitor the strategy's implementation and deliver prudential oversight. It's not clear to me that this has occurred since I bought in.
When I first bought the big Suzuki, I couldn't help but think it "smelled" wrong. Not the actual smell but the mental odour when riding and the way it shook its head.
To me, a listed company with over-rewarded senior executives without enough arms-length governance and a history of destroying shareholder value, can have the same sort of mental odour.
Sadly, they are not alone in the listed markets.
Meanwhile, I reckon there could be a fair amount of head shaking at the Rakon annual meeting in a few weeks' time.
Mike "MOD" O'Donnell owns shares Rakon – he wishes he didn't.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/opinion-analysis/83594806/Mike-O-Donnell-When-things-don-t-smell-right | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/ae8f5023843df0b41d670f72816428b5a68c33039f08129926c9515c022def3c.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T10:51:05 | null | 2016-08-28T09:41:53 | When Disney's Moana lands this November, it will feel fresh to many moviegoers for an unusual reason. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fentertainment%2Ffilm%2F83649833%2FMoana-points-the-way-forward-for-actor-diversity.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/c/9/7/h/w/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dswmh.png/1472377313509.jpg | en | null | Moana points the way forward for actor diversity | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Moana points the way forward for actor diversity
Walt Disney Studios The first trailer for Moana, Disney's first animation featuring a Polynesian Princess, written by Kiwi filmmaker Taika Waititi, has dropped.
When the Disney film Moana lands this November, it will feel fresh to many moviegoers for an unusual reason: It is a mainstream Hollywood animated film that casts featured voice actors of colour who represent the culture being depicted.
Moana centres on the adventure of a young woman looking for a fabled Pacific island, with demigod Maui in tow. Princess Moana herself is voiced by young Hawaiian native Auli'i Cravalho -- who was discovered after an extensive casting call -- and Maui is voiced by Dwayne Johnson, whose mother is of Samoan descent.
The voice cast also features several New Zealand-sprung actors who are part Maori: Jemaine Clement (Flight of the Conchords), Temuera Morrison and Rachel House - as well as Nicole Scherzinger, who has Hawaiian and Filipino roots.
DISNEY Moana Waialiki is a Polynesian princess and navigator in Disney's upcoming animation.
Moana will arrive in the wake of complaints that another new American animated film, Laika/Focus Features' Kubo and the Two Strings, hired too many white voice actors for its lead roles. The film, which is set in a fantastical version of ancient Japan, centres on a folk tale in which some characters are transformed into animals.
READ MORE:
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* Moana: The Kiwi musician behind the next Disney blockbuster
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* Are you the Polynesian voice of Disney's Moana?
DWAYNE JOHNSON/INSTAGRAM The Rock shares his Moana Haka.
Kubo features the voices of Oscar winners Matthew McConaughey and Charlize Theron and Oscar nominees Rooney Mara and Ralph Fiennes, with Irish-born teen actor Art Parkinson voicing the title role. In secondary roles are the Japanese-American actors George Takei and Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, with the cast also including Minae Noji, Alpha Takahashi and Ken Takemoto, among others.
The Media Action Network for Asian Americans (MANAA), a watchdog group, has criticised Laika for casting white actors in the roles that receive the most screen time. "Why are white actors playing an entire extended Japanese family," MANAA's founding president, Guy Aoki, says in his criticism.
In other words, often when it comes to casting leading voices: #CartoonsSoWhite.
Gene Luen Yang, a Chinese-American cartoonist, says that the Kubo casting certainly is curious.
"There are so many Asian-American actors these days. It just makes me wonder why they didn't just go with one of them," Yang, a two-time National Book Award finalist (American Born Chinese, Boxers & Saints), says.
"The critical conversation around diversity is one that Laika cares very deeply about," Kubo director Travis Knight said in a statement. And when I asked Knight this month about the creative diversity behind Kubo, he pointed to Laika's global multiculturalism represented by its employees.
Hollywood at large, of course, has increasingly faced accusations of "whitewashing" -- by which white actors are cast in ethnic-specific roles - with Sony's Aloha (in which Emma Stone played a character who is part Asian and part Hawaiian), Marvel's forthcoming Doctor Strange (in which Tilda Swinton plays a character who traditionally has been of Tibetan descent), and 2010's The Last Airbender (in which some of the featured actors are white in the fantasy's tribal South Pole setting) as recent examples. (Since then, Yang has written for the Avatar: The Last Airbender comic books for Dark Horse Books.)
Lalo Alcaraz, the La Cucaracha cartoonist and cultural commentator, has long criticised Hollywood's lack of diversity, especially in high-profile and decision-making positions.
"I have seen plenty of animated films in the last decade where the cast is almost always 100-percent Anglo actors, with a token minority actor, if that," says Alcaraz, who recently served as a writer/consulting producer on Fox's animated Bordertown.
"It seems that most talking non-human characters somehow always seem to be voiced by white actors," Alcaraz, who is a consultant on Disney/Pixar's forthcoming Coco, tells The Post's Comic Riffs.
Judging by early signs, Coco, which includes a Day of the Dead theme, promises to be as culturally aware as Moana. And in Moana, in fact, you can detect a through-line in how Disney's approach to culturally sensitive casting has evolved over just the past quarter-century.
In 1992, veteran Disney directors John Musker and Ron Clements released Aladdin, featuring mostly white voice actors in the lead roles -- with Lea Salonga, the Asian American actress who sung in this film and Mulan, being a notable exception. (It's worth noting: The next year, the New York Times reported on how a lyric in Aladdin mentioned a barbaric act, and Disney changed it in response to criticism from the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee. The piece was headlined: "It's Racist, but Hey, It's Disney.")
By 2009, Musker and Clements were directing Disney's animated The Princess and the Frog, starring such actors of colour as Anika Noni Rose, Bruno Campos, Keith David and Michael-Leon Woodley in voice roles. (Oprah Winfrey and Terrence Howard were also cast.)
And now, with Moana, Musker and Clements can help lead mainstream American animation ever toward more culturally sensitive casting.
After all, if animation can't draw up a cast without an over-reliance on white tints, what chance does the rest of Hollywood have?
- The Washington Post | http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/film/83649833/Moana-points-the-way-forward-for-actor-diversity | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/92bdb9d3384696fb895b5b70ceff6b74281b8b52ff16cf644395ad64ae1b6167.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T12:51:21 | null | 2016-08-29T11:14:29 | Two sizeable quakes in Iceland's largest volcano, Katla, have put the country on alert. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Feurope%2F83694360%2FIceland-raises-alarm-after-largest-volcano-starts-to-rumble.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/t/v/4/y/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dtuzc.png/1472469269161.jpg | en | null | Iceland raises alarm after largest volcano starts to rumble | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Iceland raises alarm after largest volcano starts to rumble
NordicPhotos An aerial view of a volcanic eruption between the Myrdalsjokull and Eyjafjallajokull glaciers on March 24, 2010.
Iceland raised the alarm after its largest volcano was hit by the biggest tremors since 1977.
Two quakes larger than 4 in magnitude on early Monday rocked the crater of Katla, the country's Met Office said in a statement. That was followed by at least 10 more tremors at the volcano, which rises 1,450 metres (4,757 feet) into the air on the North Atlantic island's southern coast.
There were no immediate reports of casualties or damages to property.
Katla last erupted in 1955 and 1999. Neither of those were large enough to break the ice covering its 10 kilometer-wide (6 mile) caldera. Its last major eruption was back in 1918, when it spewed ash for more than five weeks.
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An eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano in 2010 caused the cancellation of more than 100,000 flights across Europe on concern that glass-like particles formed from lava might melt in aircraft engines and clog turbines. Historically, Eyjafjallajokull has been known to erupt one to two years prior to Katla.
A magnitude 6.2 quake killed at least 250 people in central Italy last week.
- Bloomberg | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/83694360/Iceland-raises-alarm-after-largest-volcano-starts-to-rumble | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/f31ff19912982dd9acb66c8d7758783053a96754d4bb935d8ebdfe85f848306d.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T18:51:29 | null | 2016-08-29T18:47:17 | Germany's second-in-command flipped the bird to a group of neo-Nazis. His regret? He wishes he'd been ruder. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Feurope%2F83695452%2FMerkels-deputy-wishes-he-d-given-neo-Nazis-both-fingers.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/4/9/r/p/0/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dtvto.png/1472496437382.jpg | en | null | Merkel's deputy wishes he'd given neo-Nazis both fingers | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Merkel's deputy wishes he'd given neo-Nazis both fingers
REUTERS Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel received both criticism and applause for the gesture.
Germany's second-in-command has only one regret after flipping the bird at a group of neo-Nazis recently.
He wishes he'd shown them both middle fingers, not one.
Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel received both criticism and applause for his unambiguous gesture of disdain toward far-right protesters in the town of Salzgitter earlier this month.
Sigmar Gabriel makes the gesture after far-right activists interrupt an election campaign event.
A video posted online showed about 10 far-right protesters hurling abuse at Gabriel and praising his late father, an ardent believer in Nazism.
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Gabriel told public broadcaster ZDF in an interview that "I made just one mistake, I didn't use both hands.''
In recent months, far-right groups have repeatedly interrupted meetings between German politicians and voters to protest the government's refugee policy.
- AP | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/83695452/Merkels-deputy-wishes-he-d-given-neo-Nazis-both-fingers | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/87f185ed697612527e9c6029b21a6adea33bc925089c2491321838f4052d5151.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T06:51:41 | null | 2016-08-30T06:09:28 | The irony of clean water being shipped offshore not lost on Hawke's Bay locals as thousands of them fall ill. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fbusiness%2Findustries%2F83664121%2F100-Pure-reputation-could-take-another-hit-after-Havelock-North-water-fail.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/m/3/l/b/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dt7nd.png/1472537368624.jpg | en | null | '100% Pure' reputation could take another hit after Havelock North water fail | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | '100% Pure' reputation could take another hit after Havelock North water fail
SIMON HENDERY/FAIRFAX NZ The site of a Havelock North water bore that was closed after three instances of bacterial contamination.
While Chinese-backed companies sell clean Hawke's Bay water to Asia, thousands of people in Havelock North have fallen ill from contaminated water.
The irony is not lost on locals, many of who opposed the bottled water enterprises in the first place.
Now the reputation of the industry could be at risk, with Chinese media and consumers picking up on the story.
Are we wasting NZ's water? Share your stories, photos and videos.
The outbreak resulted in thousands of people falling ill with dozens hospitalised. The deaths of two elderly people who were found to have contracted campylobacter were also linked to the contamination.
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* The bottled-water giants who are taking our water
* Search for gastro source homing in on bores and nearby Mangateretere Stream
* Poisoning the wells: a history of infected drinking water in Canterbury
* Second elderly woman dies after contracting campylobacter in outbreak
* Councils clash over gastro outbreak investigation
* Tukituki River 'very unlikely' source of water contamination
* Inquiry to be launched into Havelock North's contaminated water
* Questions on water crisis begin as residents return to health
Experts say New Zealand's "100 per cent Pure" reputation could take another hit thanks to the contamination, with the growing bottled water industry likely to be impacted.
iStock The irony's not lost on locals - They've fallen ill from contaminated drinking water while clean, bottled water is being shipped off overseas.
The major bottling companies in the area - New Miracle Water, which has links to New Zealand New Water Limited, and One Pure International Group - both have Chinese backers and export the water to China.
Chinese search engine Baidu now shows more than 100 reports on the Havelock North contamination, including local media reports of the outbreak.
A Reuters article, picked up by Chinese media, says "New Zealand touts its clean, green image abroad under a '100 per cent Pure' campaign to attract tourists, as well as to highlight its food and water safety as a hallmark of its premium export products".
TVNZ While clean water is being sold to China at a premium, Kiwis have become sick from contaminated water.
Massey University marketing associate professor Henry Chung said the incident had the potential to do "significant" damage to the water exporting industry.
Importers and host markets will be wanting strong proof that the imported water was safe to drink, he said.
"[The contamination] only refreshes consumers' memory to the incidents we had before (e.coli et al). We need to handle this accident promptly and properly as Hasting area is our most important horticultural and agricultural production area."
SUPPLIED This shows the location of the bores that provide water for Havelock North (bore 3 has not been used since last year). The sunbursts show sites where the HB Regional Council has found significant loads of e.coli in surface water.
The setback comes after Miracle Water's first shipment was rejected by China late last year.
The company said on arrival in China the water, which is drawn from the Heretaunga Plains, was found to contain nitrite levels too high for the local market and was sent home.
And while this outbreak has been confined to the hawke's Bay area, bottled water companies across the country may feel the impacts. Something that the industry can't afford with plans to take 1.4 billion litres of artisan water each year from the Canterbury plains.
Otago University public health professor Michael Baker said the contamination could have an effect on the fledgling bottled water business in New Zealand.
However, the incident provided a good opportunity to have a construction discussion and in-depth investigation into why this happened, how we can improve systems and how we can stop it happening again.
Chung said linking the incident to dairy farming could also have a negative reputational impact on exporting.
Those close to the investigation said it was likely an issue with the bore, rather than an issue caused by dairy cows.
Hawke's Bay Regional Council resource management group manager Iain Maxwell said investigations showed there was no widespread faecal contamination of the aquifer beneath the bores, yet the bores continued to show results indicating the presence of e.coli, indicating there had been contaminated surface water or shallow ground water getting into the bores.
However, dairy farming intensification has been a hotly debated topic in the area and had come to the surface by the latest outbreak.
New Zealand has one of the worst rates of water contamination in the developed world and dairy farming intensification critics say the industry was not worth the environmental and health damage it was doing.
While this was the country's worst campylobacter outbreak, it wasn't the first. Other outbreaks, mostly in the Canterbury region, have also seen people fall ill with vomiting and diarrhoea.
A Ministry for Primary Industries spokesman said it's still too early to categorically confirm how the water supply was contaminated.
However, there had been no impacts to trade in primary industries as a result of the incident, he said.
MPI was working with other agencies including the Ministry of Health in response to the gastro outbreak.
Local and regional councils had the responsibility for managing water supplies, while MPI was working to ensure businesses are taking appropriate action to ensure food safety.
"New Zealand has a long standing reputation for producing high quality safe and suitable food," he said.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/83664121/100-Pure-reputation-could-take-another-hit-after-Havelock-North-water-fail | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/061ac477c78752dced3efef8fcf0af62a68932c8d0739cecdc102078a4671dc2.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T02:50:17 | null | 2016-08-27T02:03:22 | Instead of saving points for luxury items, more people are using them for things like supermarket vouchers. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fbusiness%2Fmoney%2F83628172%2FFly-Buys-points-are-morphing-into-currency.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/h/3/t/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsfws.png/1472263403118.jpg | en | null | Fly Buys points are morphing into currency | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Fly Buys points are morphing into currency
SUMMER78/123RF Smoothie-making is a modern obsession.
Fly Buys points are morphing into currency.
There are a staggering 2.5 million people with Fly Buys cards, but the way they are using their points has been changing.
Instead of focusing on piling up points for guilt-free luxuries like smoothie-makers, there's a growing trend for people to convert their points to cash-equivalent items, like supermarket gift cards.
SUPPLIED Hamish Mitchell, Chief Strategy and growth officer at Loyalty NZ, says there is growing demand for points to be spent reducing the cost of living.
"There are numerous people who are starting to see their rewards as currency," said Hamish Mitchell from Loyalty NZ, which runs the Fly Buys scheme.
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"They are exchanging it for New World gift cards, and using it to top up their KiwiSaver. They are topping up their lifestyle, and making their dollar go further," he said.
The evolution of points use is leading to the evolution of the Fly Buys scheme. Loyalty NZ plans to respond by allowing Fly Buys cards to be used more like cash cards.
"You will be able to swipe it with any one of our retailers to use the points just like money," Mitchell said.
"We reckon about one third of the people in the programme are highly interested in using their Fly Buys points like money."
Mitchell said Loyalty NZ was seeing more use of points to either reduce the cost of living, such as helping pay for the weekly groceries, or to be smarter with money, such as BNZ customers using their points to top up their KiwiSaver accounts.
Since being introduced three years' ago, the BNZ KiwiSaver points-for-dollars swap has lifted it to third place in the biggest use of Fly Buys rewards points, though it remains a long way behind the New World gift cards.
Mitchell said: "If you give people cash, they will tend to be quite sensible with it."
In the future, Mitchell expects to see more options available to convert Fly Buys points into sober cash use, such as being able to make mortgage payments and reduce the cost of insurance.
TOP TEN FLY BUYS REWARDS
From August 2015 - July 2016
1. New World Gift Cards: This is people using their points to help pay for the weekly shop, but it probably also includes people making gifts to poorer family members to help them make ends meet.
2. Domestic Flight Reward: Flying to see loved one here and in Australia remains hugely popular, and so does using rewards poiunts to do it.
3. BNZ KiwiSaver Scheme Reward: The bank has been pushing this one hard. Instead of converting points into luxuries to be enjoyed today, Fly Buyers are converting them to dollars in their KiwiSaver accounts with BNZ, enjoying the rewards when they eventually stop working.
4 Spirit Selection: Hard liquor costs a pretty penny thanks to excise tax, so many people use their Fly Buys points to keep their drinks' cabinet stocked.
5 Avis Rent a Car: When off to see relatives in the other island, or are just heading off to see some of the beauties of this land, converting points into car hire is popular.
6 Nutribullet: Every year there's a kitchen item that's being heavily hyped, and it pops up in the Fly Buys top ten. Last year it was the George Foreman Mix and Go smoothie machine. THis year it is a different smoothie-maker.
7 New Zealand Gardener Subscription: A favourite to gift to mum at Christmas, or get delivered to your own home. This is one of two Fairfax Media magazines to make the top ten.
8 Beer Selection: Wine may have come a long way in the past 30 years, but beer is still the national drink. Craft beers, of which there has been an explosion of choice, can be pricey, so using Fly Buys points to buy them is attractive.
9 NZ House & Garden Subscription: The second Fairfax Media magazine to make the top ten.
10 Fitbit: New Zealand is a country split between the super-fit and the super-unfit. Fitbit's allow people to measure their progress to fitter, leaner versions of themselves. Since Loyalty NZ introduced the "Points + Cash" service, where people could make purchases by using points and cash, there had been a sharp decline in the number of kettles and toasters people bought, and a rise in higher-cost technology like Fitbits, iPads and iPhones.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/money/83628172/Fly-Buys-points-are-morphing-into-currency | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/e18fcd45a49187de593e354aecda77a73c7b59a7ca934ec8fc2975095629314c.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T00:52:32 | null | 2016-08-30T23:47:11 | It's a mystery. An island that moves around, surrounded by a warm murky swamp. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Famericas%2F83744335%2FMysterious-rotating-island-in-swamp-near-Buenos-Aires-surely-it-must-be-an-alien-base.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/v/1/h/p/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1duxjj.png/1472603353952.png | en | null | Mysterious rotating island in swamp near Buenos Aires - surely it must be an alien base | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Mysterious rotating island in swamp near Buenos Aires - surely it must be an alien base
THE EYE The Eye - a strange circular island hidden in swampy land near Buenos Aires.
An entrance to an alien base is being suggested as a possible explanation for a mysterious rotating island in swampy land near Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Given the name The Eye, the island is described as a circle of land, surrounded by a thin channel of water. The hole in which the island sits - within the surrounding marshland - is about 120 metres in diameter.
It is in the delta of the Parana River at coordinates 34°15'07.8"S, 58°49'47.4"W, which can be entered into Google Earth to show the location of the feature.
The thin ring of water around the island is said to be clear and cold, in contrast to all the swampy marshes surrounding the hole.
To find out more, the filmmakers who discovered the island have launched a crowd funding campaign on Kickstarter, wanting to raise US$50,000 (NZ$69,2781) to fund a scientific expedition to unravel the island's mysteries.
By Wednesday morning they were still short of US$5000 but have 40 days to go.
THE EYE The water around the island is unusually cold and clear.
Focusing on the alien base angle is not terribly fair to those behind the campaign. It's not their idea, rather it has come from a website called UFO Sightings Daily, which is unlikely to be the most unbiased of commentators.
Based on the accounts on the Kickstarter page, the island is easily strange enough without the alien angle thrown in.
The crowd funding site doesn't appear to touch on that possibility, but introducing the project Argentinian filmmaker Sergio Neuspiller does hint at the possibility of some unearthly origin.
GOOGLE EARTH The Eye is south of the Parana River, near Buenos Aires.
The island was found during pre-production work for a horror film in the area, supposedly based on real stories about UFOs, mysterious lights, extraterrestrials, ghostly creatures and other paranormal activity, he said.
Events in the stories happened in an area south of the Parana River, and it was in the middle of those locations that the team spotted the rotating island, while looking on Google Earth.
"We call it (dramatic pause) The Eye," Neuspiller said on a video, spooky music swelling in the background. In Spanish it is El Ojo.
THE EYE After fighting through swamp land for eight hours, the explorers finally reached the island.
Both the circular shape of the island and of the edges of the hole in which it sits were so perfect "it's hard to believe this a natural formation".
Using the time slider tool on Google Earth, it was possible to see the island had moved around within its hole since the first available picture in 2003.
Among the questions posed by the formation was why aquatic plants had not covered the island, given the lack of water currents, Neuspiller said.
The team had flown over the island and - on the second attempt - managed to fight through near impenetrable vegetation and swampland for eight hours to reach it.
"The place was amazing and extremely strange. We discovered that the water is incredibly clear and cold, something totally unusual in the area. The bottom is hard, in contrast to the swampy marshes surrounding it,' Neuspiller said.
"The centre parts floats. We don't know over what, but it floats."
Among others shown in footage on the Kickstarter page is Pablo Suarez, a researcher at Boston University.
"This business of The Eye is very, very intriguing," Suarez said.
"Basically we have an external perimeter that is constant in time, and it's almost circular, in a flood plain ... where things normally change and are muddy."
It did not seem to be some kind of crater or other typical natural phenomenon. The island inside the perimeter moved at times and sometimes became elliptical.
"What is going on and why, and what gave origin to this unusual feature?" Suarez said.
He hoped it might be possible to set up continual monitoring of the island from above, as well as putting instruments on the island, and having experts carry out research.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/americas/83744335/Mysterious-rotating-island-in-swamp-near-Buenos-Aires-surely-it-must-be-an-alien-base | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/52bee5c7a367320477bd9a8a1397732b159f11cdcb635b0acd838271e08d3e9c.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T00:51:30 | null | 2016-08-28T23:14:02 | There's a | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Frugby%2Fall-blacks%2F83659114%2FInternational-media-slam-All-Blacks-cloak-of-invisibility-over-Owen-Franks-incident.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/n/h/u/k/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dt3sa.png/1472430790814.jpg | en | null | International media slam All Blacks 'cloak of invisibility' over Owen Franks incident | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | International media slam All Blacks 'cloak of invisibility' over Owen Franks incident
GETTY IMAGES Owen Franks has been cleared of eye-gouging, but international media are less than pleased.
If you ask the international media, the All Blacks may own one of the Deathly Hallows.
When Owen Franks was cleared of allegations of eye gouging by Sanzaar, the world reacted with shock and anger.
One of those to fire at the decision was Welsh writer Stephen Jones, claiming New Zealand had a "cloak of invisibility" when it comes to foul play incidents.
Test of the NZ cloak of invisibility. TV picks up seemingly horrible gouge by Owen Franks, far worse that two incidents in UK last season — Stephen Jones (@stephenjones9) August 27, 2016
In his report of the match, Jones said Franks' actions were the only blot on the All Blacks match.
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"The only blot on their copybook was Owen Franks, the New Zealand tight-head prop, who was seen to clearly and repeatedly make contact with his fingers with the eyes of a Wallaby," Jones said in his Sunday Times piece.
"It is unthinkable that this will not be the subject of a citing and a suspension."
Unthinkable, you say. Hence the backlash when Franks wasn't cited, and his asking if World Rugby would intervene, given they had done in the past.
Citing not final judgement. Just a call that there is case to answer. Franks with fingers in eyes of Wallaby -no case to answer? Despicable — Stephen Jones (@stephenjones9) August 28, 2016 Last season @WorldRugby intervened when Home Unions made hash of Marler case. Will they take official look at Franks incident? — Stephen Jones (@stephenjones9) August 28, 2016 Some dangerous half-wit Down Under says this incident is not a potential citing. Potential blindness but not citing https://t.co/BzUbM63oaq — Stephen Jones (@stephenjones9) August 28, 2016
Jones was also quick to side with Irish legend Brian O'Driscoll when he called the decision not to cite Franks an "absolute sham".
O'Driscoll said the decision makes a mockery of citing in the professional game.
This is an absolute sham @WorldRugby ???! Makes a mockery of citing. If nothing comes of this it's a farce. https://t.co/sDr92ggzcU — Brian O'Driscoll (@BrianODriscoll) August 28, 2016
Jones agreed, quoting the tweet and saying: "A previous victim of unpunished All Black savagery writes".
They weren't the only ones to stick the boot in, gobsmacked that the All Blacks prop hadn't been punished.
Quelle surprise. Another refusal to accept responsibility by NZ. From global standard bearers not good enough. https://t.co/oLIDhXHenW — Brian Moore (@brianmoore666) August 28, 2016 Disgraceful non citing of Owen Franks proof positive that ABs play under an entirely different set of laws to rest of the rugby community — Brendan gallagher (@gallagherbren) August 28, 2016 This is now officially ok, ABs free to rake opponents eyes & face anytime they fancy!A Pumas wd get 3 months minimum https://t.co/d8tmDAWQpV — Brendan gallagher (@gallagherbren) August 28, 2016 Shocking that Owen Franks isn't even being cited re alleged gouging incident. Match commissioners must review NZ matches like this... 🙈🙉. — Chris Foy (@FoyChris) August 28, 2016
Needless to say, the fine folks in the Northern hemisphere are less than pleased with Sanzaar's decision in the Franks case.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/all-blacks/83659114/International-media-slam-All-Blacks-cloak-of-invisibility-over-Owen-Franks-incident | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/77021d49cdda0bb520b884b1cbc020c6bc29e370ebaec3bb1cd391d2dbf040f9.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T18:52:22 | null | 2016-08-30T17:05:02 | FBI plans to hand over some notes from its interview with Hillary Clinton regarding her use of private email. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Famericas%2F83740604%2FUS-FBI-to-give-media-some-Hillary-Clinton-notes-over-email-use-CNN.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/o/2/v/5/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1duunw.png/1472576702437.jpg | en | null | US FBI to give media some Hillary Clinton notes over email use - CNN | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | US FBI to give media some Hillary Clinton notes over email use - CNN
REUTERS Hillary Clinton's campaign, which had expressed concern about selective leaks, welcomed the release of FBI notes from investigations into her personal email use.
The FBI plans to hand over some of its notes from its interview with US Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton regarding her use of private email while secretary of state to news outlets that requested them, CNN reported on Tuesday (Wednesday NZ Time).
However, the Federal Bureau of Investigation will not yet release other notes from the law enforcement agency's interviews with Clinton aides or turn over other investigative material, CNN said, citing unnamed sources.
The materials could be released as soon as Wednesday (Thursday NZT) to media companies that formally sought them under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), according to CNN.
FBI representatives declined to confirm the report to Reuters.
READ MORE: What could a future Trump TV venture look like?
In addition to the notes, CNN said the FBI will give the news outlets the roughly 30-page report it sent to the US Department of Justice last month when it recommended against pursuing criminal charges against Clinton, who is vying for the White House in the November 8 US election.
The Clinton campaign, which had expressed concern about selective leaks from the notes, welcomed the release.
"This is something that we wanted to have happen," campaign spokeswoman Kristina Schake told CNN in an interview.
Several media outlets, including Reuters, have made FOIA requests for a summary of the interview. Such requests are often returned with sensitive information redacted.
FBI Director James Comey told Congress that the interview was not recorded, so the agency would only be able to provide a summary.
- Reuters | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/americas/83740604/US-FBI-to-give-media-some-Hillary-Clinton-notes-over-email-use-CNN | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/e4b11afa4994cd499f6bf2e3beb780e3c9b01549632b89130e26a6226f6cf11a.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T04:52:37 | null | 2016-08-31T04:21:23 | New Zealand para-swimmers Jesse Reynolds and Nikita Howarth have high hopes for the Rio Paralympics. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Fother-sports%2F83396977%2FRio-Paralympics-2016-Jesse-Reynolds-and-Nikita-Howarth-dream-of-swimming-for-gold.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/v/f/v/o/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dnhip.png/1472617283653.jpg | en | null | Rio Paralympics 2016: Jesse Reynolds and Nikita Howarth dream of swimming for gold | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Rio Paralympics 2016: Jesse Reynolds and Nikita Howarth dream of swimming for gold
DAVID WHITE/FAIRFAX NZ NZ Paralympians talk about their hopes and dreams for the up coming Paralympics in Rio.
Jesse Reynolds just wants to hear God Defend New Zealand in Rio.
It would be an emotional moment for the 19-year-old para-swimmer from Hamilton, because it's a vision he's been dreaming of for some time.
So once Reynolds removes the water from ears, he's envisaged New Zealand's national anthem echoing around Rio's Aquatic Stadium, with a gold medal around his neck.
Hannah Peters New Zealand's para-swimming team for Rio (Jesse Reynolds far left, Nikita Howarth second from far right)
But just to stand on the podium at the Paralympics, which start on September 8 (NZ time), would be an amazing achievement for Reynolds.
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It's not something out of his stroke either.
Hannah Peters Reynolds finished fifth in the Men's 400m freestyle in last year's world championships.
Reynolds, who's now based in Auckland, was ranked in the world's top 10 for the Men's 400m freestyle and 100m backstroke as of August 1, and he's achieved fourth and fifth placed finishes in international events in 2014 and 2015.
"I've always looked at the Paralympic games as being an amazing achievement for anyone," said Reynolds, who narrowly missed out on qualifying for the Paralympics in London in 2012.
"Our classification is very competitive and there's only been a second between first and last place in finals before.
LAWRENCE SMITH/Stuff.co.nz Paralympics New Zealand announces the swimmers who will compete in the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games.
"I'm going to be giving everything I have and I'll be aiming for a medal, for sure.
"I've dreamed about the day I stand up on the podium for a long time.
"It would be very emotional for me, especially if I can get through to gold and have the national anthem playing. I'm sure there'll be tears rolling down my face."
Hannah Peters New Zealand's para-swimmers were unveiled in Auckland in May.
Reynolds competes in his best event, the 400m freestyle, as well as the 100m backstroke, 100m butterfly and 100m freestyle.
He was born with proximal femoral focal deficiency, which is an absence of the shin bone, and he's had his right foot amputated.
"It doesn't affect me anymore," said Reynolds. "I've got a prosthetic leg which is great. I don't really see it impacting me anymore."
WORLD CHAMPION, WORLD RECORD HOLDER
Hagen Hopkins Howarth was inspired by 2004 Olympic champion, Sarah Ulmer.
17-year-old Nikita Howarth is one of New Zealand's golden prospects for Rio.
She's the world No 1 in the women's 50m butterfly S7 and women's 200m individual medley SM7, after winning gold medals at last year's world championships.
In June, the Cambridge para-swimmer set the world record time in the women's 100m butterfly S7.
MARK TAYLOR \ FAIRFAX NZ Cambridge teenager Nikita Howarth has her sights set on starring in the pool at next year's Rio Paralympics. Howarth, who represented New Zealand at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow
So, after becoming New Zealand's youngest ever Paralympian at 13 in London four years ago, Howarth has become one of the world's best in her classification.
Her inspiration for success may be down to a school visit from Olympic champion Sarah Ulmer, who won a track cycling gold medal in the individual pursuit in Athens in 2004.
"I got into swimming when I was really young. Sarah Ulmer came to my school with a gold medal, which was pretty cool. It was awesome and I thought 'I want to be like her'," said Howarth, who was born with bilateral double upper limb deficiency, which means she has no hands.
"I wanted to be a cyclist but I was leading into swimming anyway. I started it and I liked it and continued on from there," she said.
"I enjoy it most of the time. Not training, though, but I've won gold three years in a row."
Howarth's strongest event is the 200m Individual Medley SM7, which has brought her gold medals in the last two world championships, in 2015 and 2013, as well as a gold in the Pan Pacific Para-Swimming Championships in 2014.
AT A GLANCE:
Name: Jesse Reynolds
Age: 19
Event: Swimming
Classification: S9, SB9, SM9
Disability: Single limb deficiency
Record: 5th - Men's 400m freestyle S9 in last year's IPC Swimming World Championships.
Personal: Part-time barista who studies at Auckland's University of Technology.
AT A GLANCE:
Name: Nikita Howarth
Age: 17
Event: Swimming
Classification: S7, SB8, SM7
Disability: Double limb deficiency
Record: Won gold in the women's 50m butterfly S7 and 200m individual medley SM7 in last year's IPC World Championships.
Personal: Became New Zealand's youngest ever Paralympian at London 2012, aged 13.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/other-sports/83396977/Rio-Paralympics-2016-Jesse-Reynolds-and-Nikita-Howarth-dream-of-swimming-for-gold | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/93b2f61485f2e5e6d1ea16dffc716dde6c2461003336fe239e4a79dffa6fff43.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T16:51:02 | null | 2016-08-28T14:50:03 | Renault driver Kevin Magnussen escapes serious injury after smashing into a wall at high-speed. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Fmotorsport%2F83651476%2FRenaults-Kevin-Magnussen-taken-to-hospital-after-dramatic-crash-at-Belgian-F1.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/x/y/h/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsxw4.png/1472396090239.jpg | en | null | Renault's Kevin Magnussen taken to hospital after dramatic crash at Belgian F1 | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Renault's Kevin Magnussen taken to hospital after dramatic crash at Belgian F1
F1/SCREENSHOT Renault driver Kevin Magnussen's car after the crash.
Renault driver Kevin Magnussen was taken to hospital for precautionary checks after suffering a cut to his left ankle in a high-speed crash at the Belgian Formula One Grand Prix on Sunday, his team said.
The Dane lost control of his car as he crested the fast uphill sweep of the Eau Rouge corner and slammed violently into the barriers.
Magnussen, who had started 12th, got out of the car on his own but was limping slightly. He underwent checks at the medical centre before being taken to hospital.
Video of Magnussen crash pic.twitter.com/xTGsHcijhq — L&T Motorsport (@LTMsport) August 28, 2016
"He is fully conscious and responsive," Renault said in a statement.
READ MORE:
* Rosberg wins Belgian GP
* Rosberg on pole for Belgian GP
* Verstappen fastest in Belgium practice
DAN ISITENE/GETTY IMAGES The Dane suffered a cut to his ankle but escaped serious injury.
"He has a small cut to the left ankle and has been escorted to a nearby hospital for further routine checks."
Magnussen's crash prompted a temporary halt to the race as marshals worked to repair tyre barriers damaged in the impact.
Mercedes' Nico Rosberg won the GP.
CHARLES COATES/GETTY IMAGES Renault's Kevin Magnussen (front) during final practice for the Belgian GP.
- Reuters | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/motorsport/83651476/Renaults-Kevin-Magnussen-taken-to-hospital-after-dramatic-crash-at-Belgian-F1 | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/8aeff217d0aa7aea59080b58e79e67a34b30ef2f303f26e81de195e73cf19b88.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T16:51:09 | null | 2016-08-28T16:40:26 | Two United Airlines pilots nabbed in Scotland for allegedly drinking before flight to the US. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Ftravel%2Ftravel-troubles%2F83651773%2FUnited-Airlines-pilots-arrested-for-alleged-intoxication-shortly-before-flight.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/k/d/5/j/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsy4d.png/1472402426864.jpg | en | null | United Airlines pilots arrested for alleged intoxication shortly before flight | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | United Airlines pilots arrested for alleged intoxication shortly before flight
SUPPLIED The pilots were accused of exceeding an alcohol limit.
Two United Airlines pilots were arrested on suspicion of being under the influence of alcohol in Scotland on Saturday as they were about to fly to the United States, police and the airline said.
Police Scotland said the two men, aged 35 and 45 years, were detained under a section of the Railways and Transport Safety Act which covers carrying out pilot function or activity whilst exceeding the prescribed limit of alcohol.
The men are expected to appear in court in Paisley, near Glasgow, on Monday.
The flight from Glasgow to Newark Airport, New Jersey, carrying 141 passengers, eventually took off nearly 10 hours late on Saturday evening with a new crew, the airline said.
READ MORE:
* Plane's engine 'explodes' in mid-air
* Secrets of a VIP flight attendant
* Huge opposition to airport runway extension
United said two pilots had been removed from service and their flying duties.
"We're collaborating with the authorities and will conduct our own investigation," said spokeswoman Erin Benson.
"The safety of our customers is our highest priority."
The pilots were arrested in the cockpit shortly before the 0800 GMT (8pm NZ Time) flight to the New Jersey airport was due to depart, the BBC reported.
- Reuters | http://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/travel-troubles/83651773/United-Airlines-pilots-arrested-for-alleged-intoxication-shortly-before-flight | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/f1ae8be325c4fc9071e0b67863666b8faf70ab2d84eb086a15d596b7e16657b7.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T20:52:13 | null | 2016-08-30T19:42:37 | Old teeth, chicken vertebrae and pukeko skulls are all seen as art waiting to happen to Loux McLellan. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Ftaranaki-daily-news%2Fnews%2F83723324%2FArt-gives-dead-animals-a-new-life-a-the-hand-of-New-Plymouth-artist.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/u/l/v/m/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1duhbw.png/1472586157729.jpg | en | null | Art gives dead animals a new life a the hand of New Plymouth artist | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Art gives dead animals a new life a the hand of New Plymouth artist
SIMON O'CONNOR\Stuff.co.nz Loux McLellan is creating art and jewellery out of dead animals.
Most people wouldn't be too happy to find two dead chickens left on their doorstep, but for Loux McLellan they were a welcome present.
The 26-year-old has developed her own style of art, using the bones, feathers and other parts of dead animals and birds to create jewellery.
McLellan admitted her work was a little different and usually elicited a mixture of responses, but she said death was an everyday event that people interacted with more than they realised.
SIMON O'CONNOR/Fairfax NZ The 26-year-old is currently studying art.
"Everything that I have was going to be discarded anyway," she said.
READ MORE:
* Lancaster's critters: Dead animals turned to art
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"Dead birds and kids' baby teeth - no-one's going to be disappointed that stuff that nobody really cares about is being made into something really cool."
SIMON O'CONNOR/Fairfax NZ Loux McLellan creates art from bones and feathers of dead animals she finds or is given.
Her collection includes a skull mounted on a top hat, earrings made from chicken vertebrae and a matching chicken foot necklace.
"Beauty doesn't stop at death," she said.
McLellan, who is studying art at the Western Institute of Technology, said she had been interested in dead things ever since she was a little girl, when she would pick up dead waxeyes for show and tell at kindergarten.
SIMON O'CONNOR/Fairfax NZ Her hat ornament is made from sparrow wings and a ducks head.
Her interest was renewed in 2013, when her graphics design tutor in Wellington offered her two mummified rats he had found while helping to renovate a house.
"It's the most amazing thing in the world," she said.
She said she relied on "pretty much the kindness of strangers" for the animals, and had never killed anything for the sake of art.
While she was keen to accept small animals and birds, she wasn't ready to deal with bigger animals such as pigs or goats.
The chickens left on the doorstep were a gift from a neighbour, who also gave her a pig's head.
A kingfisher given to her flew into a friend's window while the duck or pukeko skull was shot during duck hunting season.
"I lived in a flat where the cats were very good hunters and every week there would be a rat or a bird on the lawn and I'd cut the wings off and preserve the feet and put the skulls in water to macerate, which is bacterial rotting," she said.
While she would one day like to one day start selling her creations she said she needed to improve her skills and her confidence.
"I kind of doubt my abilities," she said.
"Because this is cool but I'm in world-wide bone hunting groups where people make mind blowing things and I'm like. 'I glued some feathers to a piece of leather'. It's a bit lame but one day I'd like to have a little oddities cafe."
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/news/83723324/Art-gives-dead-animals-a-new-life-a-the-hand-of-New-Plymouth-artist | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/ef7d143fb5ab31b54dd5cbd24c3ac9e75b4615acbe7678a36ae342ff907812d4.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T02:51:08 | null | 2016-08-28T02:44:41 | The innocent hickey has killed a Mexican teen, years after a NZ woman had a lovebite-induced stroke. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Famericas%2F83642736%2FMexican-teen-dies-after-lovebite.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/2/c/p/l/2/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsr5c.png/1472352281280.jpg | en | null | Mexican teen dies after lovebite | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Mexican teen dies after lovebite
A teenager died after being given a hickey by his girlfriend.
A Mexican teenager has reportedly died after he was given a lovebite on his neck by his girlfriend.
Julio Macias Gonzalez, 17, suffered bruising to his neck after the lovebite was given to him by the 24-year-old woman, according to The Daily Mail.
He was at home with his family in Iztapalapa borough when he started having strong convulsions.
His family called emergency services, but paramedics were unable to save him.
READ MORE: Love bite partially paralyses woman
The bruise had apparently caused a blood clot to form, which travelled to his brain, causing a stroke.
In 2010, an Auckland woman was left partially paralysed by a lovebite from her partner.
Dr Teddy Wu, who worked at the neurology department at Christchurch hospital, said at the time he believed it was the first time someone had been hospitalised by a "hickey".
The 44-year-old woman was admitted to the emergency department at Middlemore Hospital after experiencing loss of movement in her left arm.
The only visible injury was a faint lovebite on the right of her neck near an artery.
Wu said the suction of the hickey caused physical trauma and caused bruising inside the blood vessel.
The clot had gone into the woman's heart and caused a minor stroke that led to the loss of movement, he said.
She was treated with an anticoagulant, and the clot disappeared within a week.
"We looked around the medical literature and that example of having a lovebite causing something like that hasn't been described before," said Wu.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/americas/83642736/Mexican-teen-dies-after-lovebite | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/f4c7ec42ef3f19d24251919523a19ef836d6f11168a7dca7a9e8f0785831656b.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T06:51:39 | null | 2016-08-29T06:08:01 | Taranaki's smallest council has refused to play ball with popular online auction site Trade Me. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fbusiness%2F83584117%2FTrade-Me-won-t-get-Stratford-property-data-but-it-already-has-New-Plymouth-and-Haweras.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/t/r/e/9/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1drhx1.png/1472450881090.jpg | en | null | Trade Me won't get Stratford property data, but it already has New Plymouth and Hawera's | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Trade Me won't get Stratford property data, but it already has New Plymouth and Hawera's
David Burroughs/FAIRFAX NZ Trade Me has been denied access to property data in the Stratford District Council.
The privacy of home owners has been cited as the reason for a tiny council refusing to provide data to New Zealand's most popular website.
Trade Me and PropertyNZ had asked to buy the data on Stratford District Council's valuation roll, which includes the rateable value and sales history of all houses in the district.
The only information the proposed deal wouldn't include would be an owner's name and their alternative postal address, if they had one.
The sale of the information has already been approved by 61 other councils around New Zealand, including the New Plymouth District Council and South Taranaki District Council.
READ MORE:
* Couple's $48,000 debt listed on TradeMe
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Stratford is Taranaki's smallest district, with a population of 8991.
In a report presented to the Stratford District Council's (SDC) policy and services meeting, council staff said they were uncomfortable with the housing data being made public.
The information would be used by Trade Me as an extension of its property website, where it would show the sales from the last 10 years for a property.
It would also show the rateable value of houses surrounding a house listed for sale.
"It is this aspect that officers are uncomfortable with and do not believe that it is appropriate for council staff to authorise that the historic sales data be released in a public environment," Mark Weidenbohm, director of corporate services, said in the report.
He said it was appropriate that councillors made the ethical decision whether to release the data to Trade Me.
"Should council decide to release sales data to external parties then a mail out to ratepayers will ask if they want their information classified as confidential," his report said.
On Tuesday the councillors voted nine to one against selling the information to Trade Me, with Graham Kelly voting to sell it.
Stratford mayor Neil Volzke said he voted against it because he didn't think it was anyone else's business what he had paid for his house and he didn't need to know what anyone else had paid for theirs.
"As far as I'm concerned that is a private matter between the buyer and the seller," he said.
Trade Me spokesman Paul Ford said they were surprised and a bit disappointed at the move.
"We think that providing New Zealanders with transparent, easy, and open access to property data is a good thing," he said.
"We are obviously prepared to pay for access to the data, but we will be providing it on site for free."
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/83584117/Trade-Me-won-t-get-Stratford-property-data-but-it-already-has-New-Plymouth-and-Haweras | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/ebf48b5f49719564f8bb71d48e4ea59f799146892faf11f691a8bafca1cdcdb5.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T22:52:11 | null | 2016-08-30T22:17:16 | Opinion: Pussies and dust ups - that's the reality of partying with the Real Housewives of Auckland. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fentertainment%2Ftv-radio%2F83711737%2FReal-Housewives-of-Auckland-Another-night-out-another-cat-fight.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/u/w/t/b/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1du8e1.png/1472595436489.jpg | en | null | Real Housewives of Auckland: Another night out, another cat fight | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Real Housewives of Auckland: Another night out, another cat fight
SUPPLIED The Real Housewives of Auckland will hit Kiwi screens on August 22.
OPINION: The claws came out again last night on The Real Housewives of Auckland. We were all invited to Anne's Pussy Galore party, an annual fundraiser she puts on to support her charity, The New Zealand Cat Foundation.
Now, cats are wonderful animals. But I don't do cats. I'm asthmatic and I'm also not great at remembering my inhaler. Of course, I didn't have it when I went in to visit Anne before the party. Forget those cats being scared of me. I was terrified I was going to have to leave Huapai by ambulance – not a good look!
I really wasn't keen on checking out Anne's 'pussy palace'. Believe me, the smell takes some getting used to. But, bless her, Anne keeps it quite wonderful. Let's face it, these pussies aren't going to be picked out by some adoring family. Some are missing ears because of cancer and others are blind and lame. Plus, they are nearly all pensioners.
Michelle Blanchard: "I don't do cats."
But, thanks to Anne, these cats get a great home in the middle of an olive grove. They all have little fleecy blankets and toys, and the two bowls of food I put out looked alright.
READ MORE:
* Recap: Real Housewives of Auckland, Episode 3 - 'the best Pussy Galore party ever'
* Recap: Real Housewives of Auckland, episode 2 - 'This is Gilda's town'
* Real Housewives of Auckland: Episode 1 recap - 'Sweetie, get over it!'
* Real Housewives of Auckland's Gilda Kirkpatrick on dogs, gossip and Reality life
* Real Housewives of Auckland's Angela Stone responds to 'plus-size' jibe
Cat shrine.
So good on, Anne. You know what, if you love cats, I think that her charity is something you should support. She is doing an amazing thing. It's all about de-sexing them — so I'm all for that. Fewer cats. I'm not into cats running around, bringing you gifts like dead things.
I do love her fur coats though!
Back to the bash. Anne's house is something is special. Julia and I had a bit of laugh about some of the memorabilia; but mostly that was Julia stirring the pot. Watching the episode, I thought it was actually quite fair that she got it in the neck from Anne and Julia during that weird 'vampire' treatment.
Julia and Michelle: "Anne's style is 'old world'."
Goose Creek is filled with wonderful memories for Anne, which I appreciate. It really reminded me of my aunt's house in England.
She had swans and lamps and trinkets everywhere like that. I'm just glad Anne didn't have the plastic covering the chairs! She didn't do that – so she did it with class. I love Anne, I love that she does her own thing and doesn't give a damn what anyone else thinks. Post-modern style can go to hell as far as she's concerned.
The two cat suits. It was pretty funny that Julia and Angela in the same costume. I don't know why they both wore the same.
supplied Sweetie: Pull your tummy in.
Did they not call each other before they turned up? It was a bit hard for me not to say anything. Joan Rivers just took over. Bitch stole my look. I couldn't help being the fashion police and having a bit of fun with it … and saying who wore it better.
Of course, we couldn't go the night without a few catfights. I stepped in when I thought it was getting too heated with Gilda and Louise. You've got to stand up for your mates.
You can't call Gilda what Louise called her and not expect some fallout. I was also in Gilda's corner when Angela called her a little runt. Seriously, an upper cut would have crossed my mind too.
Michelle Blanchard: allergic to cats. And some Housewives.
Pussies and punch ups – all just a normal night with the Real Housewives.
Things turned to cat wees for The Real Housewives of Auckland at Anne's Pussy Galore party.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/tv-radio/83711737/Real-Housewives-of-Auckland-Another-night-out-another-cat-fight | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/230291905b088aa1ce948926aa6e70491584e92fdc49534af74aa76f825a6aee.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T10:51:37 | null | 2016-08-29T07:24:09 | UK lotto winners divorce after husband discovers wife is having an affair with one of Britain's richest men. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Feurope%2F83692324%2FUK-lottery-curse-strikes-as-wife-leaves-husband-after-affair-with-tycoon.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/t/t/d/j/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dttes.png/1472462930815.jpg | en | null | UK lottery curse strikes as wife leaves husband after affair with tycoon | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | UK lottery curse strikes as wife leaves husband after affair with tycoon
DAVID MOIR A growing number of married couples split after winning the lottery, nick-named the "lottery curse".
A married couple who won £2 million (NZ$3.62million) on the UK's National Lottery in 2004, have now divorced after the wife began a relationship with one of Britain's wealthiest men, Mike Clare.
David and Victoria Jones scooped the jackpot, after having been married for only a month, when Victoria Jones spent her last pound on purchasing the winning ticket.
Twelve years on, the pair both wish they had never won, claiming the lottery win "ruined their lives", according to the Mail Online.
MikeGClare/TWITTER Mike Clare sold his bed business Dreams for £222 million in 2008 and is still married to his wife.
Victoria Jones told the paper: "The stress it gives you in life and even 12 years down the line, I'm still classed as a lottery winner and it's horrible. It ruins your life. People treat you differently – it's just not a nice thing."
READ MORE:
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Victoria announced on Boxing Day in 2015 that she was leaving David. But despite this the pair decided to try and re-kindle the romance on a trip to Cape Verde. It's here that David discovered the affair after reading a text message on his wife's phone.
Despite originally denying a romance with Victoria, Clare later confirmed it and told The Sun, "I am seeing Victoria Jones. She didn't leave her husband for me."
Clare sold his bed business Dreams for £222 million in 2008 and is still married to his wife.
The Jones' add their names to the growing list of married couples who split after winning the lottery, nick-named the "lottery curse".
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/83692324/UK-lottery-curse-strikes-as-wife-leaves-husband-after-affair-with-tycoon | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/3de059486583cf2c28f530f8c76188706287dad53bb8afaaba8992fdd0699024.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T12:59:04 | null | 2016-08-26T09:51:34 | Steven Luatua crossed twice as Auckland battled to victory over Northland in dreadful conditions at Eden Park. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Frugby%2Fprovincial%2F83624458%2FAuckland-bounce-back-from-Canterbury-humbling-with-tough-win-over-Northland-in-NPC.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/d/p/9/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsd1m.png/1472205094856.jpg | en | null | Auckland bounce back from Canterbury humbling with tough win over Northland in NPC | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Auckland bounce back from Canterbury humbling with tough win over Northland in NPC
Simon Watts Auckland players celebrate Pryor Collier's opening try at Eden Park.
Auckland bounced back from last week's Canterbury hiding with an ugly 37-15 win over Northland at Eden Park on Friday night.
Last year's runners-up were made to battle hard as they secured a bonus-point victory with Vince Aso's late try, with their championship opponents pushing them all way in dreadful conditions in Auckland.
A strong finish did the trick, though, as Northland's resistance wilted in the driving wind and rain, with Auckland's ruthless streak in attack turning the tide in their favour.
Steven Luatua was a strong presence for Auckland at No 8 and he went over twice either side of the hour to take them out to an unassailable lead.
READ MORE:
* Recap: Auckland v Northland
* Black penalty secures Manawatu win
* Todd back to boost champions
* Uhila: "Experience I'll never forget"
* Kainga quick to learn from coach's criticism
* First-half blitz propels Otago
Northland's lineout left a lot to be desired, and needs fixing up quickly, with the visitors only winning 3 from 10 from their own throw.
And Auckland capitalised on that time and time again, but the premiership side have plenty to do based on their first hour if they're to be challengers once more, after last week's 43-3 loss to champions Canterbury.
Northland lost three forwards in the first half, with Mike Faleafa, Dan Pryor and Joshua Goodhue all suffering injuries.
Replacement hooker Ross Wright had to replace Goodhue in the second row, to epitomise their wretched luck. Their bench was cleared after 65 minutes.
The loss of Highlanders loose forward Pryor is a massive blow, as Northland's search for an elusive victory - their first since 2014 - stretches another week, after their 34-27 loss to Manawatu in round one last Friday night.
The blustery conditions were apparent from the start, but Peter Breen's early 40-metre penalty made light work of the brutal breeze sweeping across Eden Park, to edge Northland 3-0 in front.
Auckland levelled the scores a minute later, though, as Simon Hickey nudged one between the sticks.
It was perhaps inevitable that the game's first try came from a high bomb, launched by Hickey, that bounced into Melani Nanai's hands.
The Blues fullback's lovely one-handed offload then sent Pryor Collier clear to score after 13 minutes.
With the wind in their favour, Northland had opportunities and openings, but their awful lineout retention was costing them dearly.
Their night was made worse, as Pryor hobbled off with injury in the 25th minute, just before Kurt Eklund crashed over from a powerful rolling maul on the next play.
Ironically it was Pryor's replacement, Josh Larsen, who dragged Northland back into the contest with a try just before half-time to make it 15-8.
Hickey's second penalty opened the scoring in the second half, before Luatua's double gave Auckland a 30-8 lead.
Crusaders winger Jone Macilai scored a late consolation try, before Aso secured Auckland's bonus point win by chasing down a kick to the corner.
Auckland 37 (Pryor Collier, Kert Eklund, Steven Luatua 2, Vince Aso tries; Simon Hickey 3 cons, 2 pens) 15 Northland (Josh Larsen, Jone Macilai tries; Malcolm MacLeod con; Peter Breen pen). HT: 15-8
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/provincial/83624458/Auckland-bounce-back-from-Canterbury-humbling-with-tough-win-over-Northland-in-NPC | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/6652541ff7eaa7b2666be70e538d7aee523bb47aff99437cbd56d59794ce6170.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T18:52:13 | null | 2016-08-30T17:41:09 | England pile- up highest ODI total against Pakistan as Alex Hales and Jos Buttler run riot. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Fcricket%2F83740690%2FEngland-plunder-world-record-total-in-third-ODI-against-Pakistan.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/u/u/q/z/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1duuqa.png/1472578869886.jpg | en | null | England plunder world record total in third ODI against Pakistan | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | England plunder world record total in third ODI against Pakistan
PAUL CHILDS/REUTERS England's Alex Hales flayed four sixes and 22 fours in his 122-ball knock to surpass Robin Smith's 167 not out against Australia in Birmingham in 1993.
England piled up a world record one-day international total of 444-3 against Pakistan after Alex Hales and Jos Buttler ran riot at a sun-kissed Trent Bridge on Tuesday (Wednesday NZ Time).
Buttler struck the last ball of the innings for four to take Eoin Morgan's men past Sri Lanka's 443-9 against Netherlands in July 2006.
Hales plundered 171, the highest individual limited-overs score by an England batsman, before Buttler reached his fifty off 22 deliveries, also an England record.
PAUL CHILDS/REUTERS Alex Hales celebrates his century during his innings of 171, a new England ODI record, as the hosts put up 444-3 at Trent Bridge.
The hosts passed their previous highest total of 408-9, made against New Zealand last year, while captain Morgan got to his half-century off 24 deliveries as he and Buttler shared an unbroken fourth-wicket partnership of 161.
READ MORE: Root leads England to easy win in second ODI
Hales flayed four sixes and 22 fours in his 122-ball knock to surpass Robin Smith's 167 not out against Australia in Birmingham in 1993.
Caught off a no-ball on 72 and dropped on 114, the 27-year-old right-hander passed Smith's score by pulling Hasan Ali to the mid-wicket boundary.
The bowler trapped him lbw with the next delivery to end a second-wicket stand of 248 with Joe Root, who fell soon after for 85, but the pain was far from over for the Pakistan bowlers.
Buttler hammered six sixes and three fours to get to his half-century and finished 90 not out off 51 balls while Morgan ended unbeaten on 57.
Hales and Root's partnership was also England's third-highest in one-day internationals.
HIGHEST ODI TOTALS
444-3 England vs. Pakistan, Nottingham, 2016
443-9 Sri Lanka vs. Netherlands, Amstelveen, 2006
439-2 South Africa vs. West Indies, Johannesburg, 2015
438-4 South Africa vs. India, Mumbai, 2015
438-9 South Africa vs. Australia, Johannesburg, 2006
434-4 Australia vs. South Africa, Johannesburg, 2006
418-5 South Africa vs. Zimbabwe, Potchefstroom, 2006
418-5 India vs. West Indies, Indore, 2011
417-6 Australia vs. Afghanistan, Perth, 2015
414-7 India vs. Sri Lanka, Rajkot, 2009
- Reuters | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/cricket/83740690/England-plunder-world-record-total-in-third-ODI-against-Pakistan | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/493c844aafd7528dfdacb672697dadd014a1c2bbbd939c2ce3f703585db97b82.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T06:50:24 | null | 2016-08-27T06:00:00 | Blustery winds finally set to die down. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fauckland%2F78754769%2FAuckland-weather-tomorrow.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/j/x/u/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1avzkh.png/1472274617397.jpg | en | null | Auckland weather tomorrow | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Auckland weather tomorrow
FAIRFAX NZ Aucklanders can look forward to an easy, breezy Sunday.
Good news for Auckland - the blustery winds that have plagued the region are finally forecast to die down.
A light southwesterly breeze will blow at about 10kmh all Sunday, easing in the evening.
But it's not all good news - light, scattered showers are also expected throughout the day.
Winter morning, Sunnynook Park, Auckland, New Zealand (parallel stereo). pic.twitter.com/PPefLpQH2F — TwoMoonsNZ (@TwoMoonsNZ) August 27, 2016
The temperature is set to hit a high of 16 degrees Celsius and a low of 8, while humidity will sit at about 73 per cent.
This weather briefing is updated daily.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/78754769/Auckland-weather-tomorrow | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/63e7c085fba282ea30153a17db7073cca3ec52376de9292faf54e257e90007ce.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T04:51:19 | null | 2016-08-29T04:31:56 | The first son of Asgard has been given the What We Do In The Shadows treatment by Kiwi director Taika Waititi. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fentertainment%2Ffilm%2F83684288%2FTaika-Waititi-directed-clip-uncovers-the-truth-about-Thor.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/t/n/l/n/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dtn7k.png/1472445117519.jpg | en | null | Taika Waititi directed clip uncovers the truth about Thor | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Taika Waititi directed clip uncovers the truth about Thor
Marvel Studios twitter Taika Waititi-directed Thor parody documentary draws laughs from Comic Con crowd
Every wondered what Thor gets up to when he's not saving the planet? Well, your questions have been answered in this "documentary glimpse beneath the cape", directed by Kiwi Taika Waititi.
A teaser clip, originally only shown to Marvel film fans at San Diego Comic Con in July, has finally been shared by the studio. It lifts the lid on what Thor was up to while the rest of the avengers were off battling each other in Captain America: Civil War.
The clip has a lot in common with Waititi's What We Do In The Shadows, the mockumentary that showed the "domestic life of Wellington's little known vampire community".
Marvel/TWITTER Thor (aka Chris Hemsworth) welcomes the cameras in to his "flat" during his "me time" break from saving the galaxy.
See what Thor was up to during #CaptainAmericaCivilWar! Get this & other bonus on Dig HD 9/2 https://t.co/tWbG2IIs9h pic.twitter.com/M97y6CM1Mg — Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) August 28, 2016
In the San Diego clip, Thor - played by Australian actor Chris Hemsworth - says he needed some "me time", so he moved to Australia and started flatting with a bloke called Daryl.
READ MORE:
* Taika Waititi-directed Thor parody documentary draws laughs from Comic Con crowd
* Chris Hemsworth pushed to get Taika Waititi into the director's chair for Thor
* Marvellous Thor: Ragnarok cast are enjoying goofing around
* Taika Waititi and Chris Hemsworth share first snaps from Thor: Ragnarok
* Mark Ruffalo goofs around with giant Hulk hands on Thor: Ragnarok set
In one classic Waititi style scene, Thor has Daryl - an ordinary office worker - help him write a letter to Captain America and Iron Man.
"There seems to be something very intense going on between them and I want to offer my help and my services," Thor tells the camera. "Because I'm not doing much right now..."
He then proceeds to dictate a tone deaf letter to Tony Stark about his "relationship problems" with Steve Rogers aka Captain America.
Hulk's human alter-ego Bruce Banner (Matk Ruffalo) also makes an appearance complaining about how he always winds up in cut-offs after hulking out, no matter what he's wearing beforehand.
The comedy clip hints at a much lighter tone for the forthcoming Thor: Ragnarok, which Hemsworth, Ruffalo and Waititi are currently shooting on the Gold Coast in Australia.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/film/83684288/Taika-Waititi-directed-clip-uncovers-the-truth-about-Thor | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/a6e06d825e1f429b7c38279bab58f5ca1544823e29d21c5d6909329b69a5a4ca.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T08:51:53 | null | 2016-08-30T08:13:55 | The first payment in a decades-long battle for radiation poisoning compensation may come within a month. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fnational%2Fhealth%2F83713428%2FACC-accepts-affidavit-from-co-worker-in-radiation-compensation-bid.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/4/a/v/f/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1du9p0.png/1472544835702.jpg | en | null | ACC accepts affidavit from co-worker in radiation compensation bid | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | ACC accepts affidavit from co-worker in radiation compensation bid
WARWICK SMITH/FAIRFAX NZ Bryon O'Regan is a big step closer to receiving compensation for radiation poisoning. He is with his son Paul O'Regan.
A man who has struggled for decades with the crippling effects of radiation poisoning has made a major breakthrough in his bid for compensation.
Bryon O'Regan, who has suffered for years after getting radiation poisoning from a surgery in 1979, may start to see the first of his compensation payments within a month thanks to a former colleague coming to his aid.
O'Regan has struggled with debilitating episodes of nausea and diarrhoea since 1981.
ACC accepted he would be entitled to recompense, and he has a court ruling on his side, but an ACC requirement for proof that he was working prior to the poisoning has stymied advancement of his case - until now.
READ MORE:
* ACC radiation compo requirements 'too hardline'
* Radiation poisoning sufferer told to find proof of income from 1981
* Co-workers come forward offering affidavits in compensation battle
* More hurdles to overcome in ACC battle for radiation compensation
Publicity of O'Regan's plight has unearthed colleagues at his former workplace - Ace Bags in Palmerston North - willing to back up his work history.
Last week, ACC accepted a letter from former Ace Bags sewing machine mechanic Tim Lovett, who can prove he was working at the company at the time O'Regan was.
Lovett's letter is a crucial step forward for O'Regan, as Inland Revenue's income tax records only go back a decade and Ace Bags has long ceased to exist.
Lovett has a work reference from one of the company's managers dated 1982, proving he was working at Ace Bags from 1976.
O'Regan has now been classed as an "earner" and can be paid his compensation for the periods he can prove he was working.
O'Regan said he was likely to get compensation going back as far as 2005 or 2007.
Compensation dating back to 1979 would have to be negotiated because he did not have records.
"We are going to have to come to some arrangement."
O'Regan had a meeting with his ACC case manager on Tuesday and was told his compensation would be handled in sections.
"It went well. [The manager] seemed to think it should be sorted within a month.
"I think I achieved more in a couple of hours than I have in eight years."
He was unsure how much he would be entitled to, but hoped he might be able to buy a house outside of Auckland.
He was pleased to have made some progress.
"It just helps me so much."
O'Regan had not spoken with Lovett, but told Stuff he remembered him and thanked him for his support.
In his letter to ACC, Lovett confirmed O'Regan was working at the company at the same time he was.
"[O'Regan] was responsible for the running, setting up and maintenance of the paper bag making machine called a 'tuber' and was foreman/leading hand of his department and had three to four men working under him."
ACC spokeswoman Stephanie Melville said ACC was able to confirm O'Regan's earner status for 1979 as a result of the letter.
"We can now see if Bryon is able to receive weekly compensation for any periods off work that were as a direct result of the covered injury."
Melville said ACC was pleased for O'Regan that a former colleague had heard about the circumstance and was able to support his working status, "especially given the time that has passed".
"It's an excellent result," she said.
Melville has said previously that it was a legal requirement for a compensation claimant to provide proof of earnings.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/83713428/ACC-accepts-affidavit-from-co-worker-in-radiation-compensation-bid | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/2baa6a61c82c847d950707a408b07d3c03f6614221b7faba9a3bb4d6b798b78c.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T16:51:58 | null | 2016-08-30T16:38:46 | More than two dozen coffins were laid out ahead of a state funeral for victims of Italian quake. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Feurope%2F83740558%2FItaly-to-hold-mass-funeral-for-earthquake-victims-as-search-for-bodies-continues.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/u/u/n/2/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1duumm.png/1472575126914.jpg | en | null | Italy to hold mass funeral for earthquake victims as search for bodies continues | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Italy to hold mass funeral for earthquake victims as search for bodies continues
EMILIANO GRILLOTTI/REUTERS A mourner pays her respects prior to a funeral service for victims of the earthquake that levelled the town in Amatrice, central Italy.
More than two dozen coffins were laid out in a marquee on Tuesday (Wednesday NZ Time) ahead of a state funeral for some of the victims of an earthquake which levelled communities in central Italy last week, killing at least 292 people.
Relatives and friends gathered around the caskets, including those of two small children, which were carried into the tent in pouring rain after a summer storm broke over Amatrice, the worst-hit town from the August 24 quake.
Builders worked through the night hurriedly preparing the funeral site after furious locals warned they would boycott the event when they found out that the authorities planned to hold it in the city of Rieti, more than 60 km away.
The bodies were originally taken to Rieti and officials said it would be easier to hold a mass funeral there rather than in the devastated Amatrice, but Prime Minister Matteo Renzi ordered a change of plan in the face of the local anger.
READ MORE:
* Italy probe whether negligence played role in quake toll
* Bodies discovered in Italian hotel as quake toll nears 300
* Italian earthquake victim Rinaldo's hug saved little sister
* Italy grieves as state funeral held for earthquake victims
In the centre of Amatrice, which was voted last year one Italy's most beautiful, crews continued to dig for bodies under mounds of rubble left by the 6.2 magnitude quake.
Speaking before the funeral of the 28 victims, Father Luigi Aquilini, an 84-year-old retired priest from Amatrice, said he helped identify some of the dead.
"Most of them were crushed. You couldn't recognise their faces, so we had to understand who they were from their rings, their tattoos," Aquilini said. "Buildings can be rebuilt, but the community? Families were shattered ... so many children died."
Of the 292 confirmed dead, 231 were found in Amatrice. In all, 21 children died. A number of foreigners were among the dead, including 11 Romanians and three Britons.
Renzi, Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Romanian Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos were expected to attend the funeral, which was set to start at 6pm (4am NZT), the Civil Protection Agency said.
Many of those who died in Amatrice were not residents and their funerals are being held in their hometowns. Tuesday's (Wednesday NZT) ceremony had been expected to involve 38 victims, but at the last minute the number was reduced without any explanation.
A fireman used a rope to hoist a wooden statue of Christ borrowed from a nearby church above a makeshift altar for Tuesday's service. Hours before the ceremony, relatives placed bouquets of flowers and pictures of their loved ones on the simple wooden coffins.
CONTROVERSY
In the town centre, emergency workers used mechanical diggers and bulldozers to search for bodies, with up to 10 people still believed to be missing under the debris.
It rained on Tuesday (Wednesday NZT) for the first time since the quake, complicating the search efforts and setting an even more sombre mood.
It is the second state-sponsored funeral in three days. On Saturday (Sunday NZT) rites were held for victims of the quake from the adjoining Marche region. Amatrice is in the region of Lazio.
Controversy has grown over poor construction techniques, which may have been responsible for some of the deaths.
Investigators are looking into work done on the bell tower in Accumoli, which was recently restored but collapsed during the quake onto the home of a family of four, killing them all.
A court sequestered the half-demolished school building in Amatrice, which had recently been remodelled in part to help it withstand earthquakes.
Italy sits on two seismic faultlines. Many of its buildings are hundreds of years old and susceptible to earthquake damage.
Almost 30 people died in earthquakes in northern Italy in 2012 and more than 300 in the city of L'Aquila in 2009.
- Reuters | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/83740558/Italy-to-hold-mass-funeral-for-earthquake-victims-as-search-for-bodies-continues | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/8eb42756e1278a182829c9cb0c861ffca6a6ef4d4112b32494ed5b1a89d5dd29.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T20:50:13 | null | 2016-08-26T20:18:19 | The | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fbusiness%2F83588489%2FOne-of-Wairarapas-best-ever-buildings-put-on-the-market.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/r/m/t/j/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1drlah.png/1472242699404.jpg | en | null | One of Wairarapa's 'best ever' buildings put on the market | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | One of Wairarapa's 'best ever' buildings put on the market
SUPPLIED The site of the former Greytown Four Square store and adjoining land, which was developed into new retail spot, is on the market.
A new development in the "Ponsonby of Wellington" is up for sale and is expected to fetch more than $5 million.
The property - known as The Hub - is being described at the "most sophisticated retail property ever built in the Wairarapa".
The building was developed by Westwood Commercial on the site of the former Greytown Four Square store and adjoining land.
LANGFORD FAMILY The original building at 74 Main St, Greytown, in a photo believed to be from 1948.
The Hub, which includes 30 car parks, is fully leased with 10 retailers, a office suite and a dental surgery.
READ MORE:
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Westwood Commercial director Steve Pilbrow said they were "thrilled" with public and tenant reaction to The Hub and its immediate trading success stories.
"Greytown residents know we had initial consent challenges, but we set out wanting to built a complex that would really lift Greytown and cement it as the Ponsonby or Merrivale of the Wellington region. That meant creating an environment and a real feature, not just a row of shops.
"Now seeing groups of people using the public space exactly as we intended and the smiles on our tenant's faces, the challenges are soon forgotten."
One of the original Hub tenants, DeLuxe - an exclusive label and up-market gift and accessories retailer - soon committed to the adjoining tenancy in order to double the size of their shop.
Lease negotiations are being concluded for the last tenancy available - and again there is a link with an original tenant having seen the opportunity to take advantage of the Hub's immediate success.
Gollins Commercial principal Chris Gollins, who is marketing the property said: "Greytown's terrific. It's a gem in the region and just keeps getting better."
"Some compare it to Arrowtown but I also see it as having the potential of Ponsonby and a bit of Merrivale," he said.
"From a property perspective, it's very tightly held, which makes for good investment sense.
"It's exactly as described, the hub of the town and the most sophisticated retail complex in the Wairarapa.
"But with clever ideas like the hardwood poles, Wellington designer Daniel Casas has achieved something that makes a bold statement.
"This has to be the best ever offered over here", he said.
Reinforcing the claim of Greytown being reflective of an area like Ponsonby, is Hub retailer Siddhi Smith, who owns fashion recycle store Encore.
She still owns her original store on Auckland's Ponsonby Rd, but in March Smith moved to Greytown. She operates both businesses from there.
"The majority of Greytown customers are older than those in Ponsonby. That's the way it is there.
"But more younger people come at weekends. It'll be great if that trade grows. I love it here though and a great thing is how welcoming and enthusiastic the other retailers are."
Pilbrow said an investor could further develop the property, if they chose to do so.
"We've always seen more potential in the almost 2000-square-metre site.
"There's a definite non-retail addition that would again add something to further strengthen Greytown and we'll happily highlight that to a prospective purchaser."
The complex is expected to sell for about $5 million.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/83588489/One-of-Wairarapas-best-ever-buildings-put-on-the-market | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/8a22aae5a4a24bf0f47948b55f4aa38851e6b4d6d1c2a9401fe3bfc385ee98f8.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T00:52:26 | null | 2016-08-30T23:43:56 | DOC and Hawke's Bay council's plan to trade land for the $300m dam ruled illegal. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fbusiness%2Ffarming%2F83749609%2FCourt-decision-puts-question-mark-over-controversial-Ruataniwha-dam.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/8/k/l/h/f/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dv1m1.png/1472603579477.jpg | en | null | Court decision puts question mark over controversial Ruataniwha dam | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Court decision puts question mark over controversial Ruataniwha dam
A screenshot from an animated video of the Ruataniwha Dam.
The future of the proposed Ruataniwha water storage scheme is uncertain after the Court of Appeal found the Director-General of Conservation was not entitled to revoke the special conservation status of Ruahine Forest Park land.
Forest and Bird had taken the appeal following a decision by the High Court which the environmental organisation said amounted to bartering with "irreplaceable" protected areas.
It said the decision, which would pave the way for a $300 million irrigation dam, was illegal and would set a precedent for all protected areas in New Zealand.
The Department of Conservation (DOC) and the council-owned Hawke's Bay Regional Investment Company had agreed to exchange 22 hectares of Ruahine Forest Park land for 170 ha of nearby farmland known as the Smedley block.
In order to create a reservoir behind the dam, the flooding of the 22 hectares of the DOC land was required.
Forest and Bird lawyer Sally Gepp said she was "ecstatic" over the decision because it had confirmed the fundamental tenet of the Conservation Act to safeguard specially protected areas.
"Pieces of land cannot be carved off or traded away for other lands. It's a precedent-setting decision which confirms exchanges can be made only for stewardship land," Gepp said.
The Court of Appeal made its decision in a 2:1 split, with Justices Rhys Harrison and Helen Winklemann in favour, while Justice Ellen France would have dismissed the appeal.
The Court said the land was part of a conservation park held for recreational purposes under the Conservation Act.
"The majority of the Court found that under the Act the Director-General would have had to be convinced in his assessment that the intrinsic values of the land in question were no longer worth permanent protection as envisaged by the Act.
"He was not entitled, as the High Court had ruled, to base his decision on a broad assessment of the merits of the proposed land swap for the conservation estate as a whole," the Court said.
Its decision overturned the funding by Justice Matthew Palmer earlier this year in which he declined Forest and Bird's application for judicial review on the basis that the Director-General acted lawfully by reference to "broad conservation purposes".
The Court of Appeal said that central to the case was identifying the purpose or purposes for which the Act had conferred the powers to declare and revoke special protection.
In deciding to revoke the status of a specially protected area, the Director-General had to ask whether the land was no longer required for conservation purposes.
"In the case of conservation parks, account must be taken of the purpose of special protection — to permanently maintain its intrinsic values, provide for its appreciation and recreational enjoyment by the public, and safeguard the options of future generations — as well as the emphasis on recreation which distinguishes conservation parks from other specially protected areas," the Court said.
"A proposal to exchange specially protected land will only be relevant to the revocation inquiry if the Director-General is first satisfied that the specially protected area no longer merits its particular designation — in this case, a conservation park held for park purposes — and should be reclassified as a stewardship area.
"Because the Director-General did not exercise his discretion to revoke by focussing on the land's intrinsic values, but rather took into account the objective of exchanging the land and the net gain to the conservation estate, the decision was unlawful," the Court said.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/83749609/Court-decision-puts-question-mark-over-controversial-Ruataniwha-dam | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/f4d133bd6442bcfa62a0527a76789d4d2ff5c443286179e1867a68dbfd321e66.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T20:51:27 | null | 2016-08-28T20:48:03 | Jacob Lillyman says the last thing the Warriors need to do is change their coach. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Fleague%2F83654154%2FDon-t-sack-Warriors-coach-Andrew-McFadden-pleads-Jacob-Lillyman.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/z/y/v/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dszyi.png/1472417283833.jpg | en | null | Don't sack Warriors coach Andrew McFadden pleads Jacob Lillyman | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Don't sack Warriors coach Andrew McFadden pleads Jacob Lillyman
Photosport A dejected Jacob Lillyman reflects on a game that slipped away after the Tigers loss on Sunday.
Warriors prop Jacob Lillyman has urged club management not to axe Andrew McFadden as coach despite a failed season.
The 36-24 loss to Wests Tigers at Mt Smart Stadium on Sunday meant that for the fifth year in a row the Warriors have failed to make it to the finals.
It is McFadden's third year as head coach and questions will no doubt be asked whether it's time for a new face to take charge of the under performing club, but Lillyman says they should keep faith with McFadden.
DAVID LONG/STUFF.CO.NZ Warriors coach Andrew McFadden and captain Ryan Hoffman lament what could have been as they critique their effort against the Tigers.
"The last thing we need is another coach," Lillyman said.
READ MORE
* We threw it away - McFadden
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"It's been a tough year but Cappy (McFadden) has been tremendous through thick and thin.
DAVID LONG/STUFF.CO.NZ Thomas Leuluai struggles to cope with Tigers loss.
"As players we've let him down and it's a shame his credentials are questioned, because I have no doubt in my mind that he's the right man to take this club forward to a successful period."
All the players looked shell shocked when they walked out of their changing shed after the loss to the Tigers.
It wasn't just because they'd lost another game, but had done so after the Panthers had defeated the Titans the previous night, which kept their finals hopes alive.
DAVID LONG/STUFF.CO.NZ Tigers coach says Warriors need to learn rules.
"To see that result and know we were still in the race was massive for us," Lillyman said.
"We had everything to play for and we had it, we just needed to close it out and we came up short.
"Our season was on the line and it was our chance to sneak into the eight.
"We were in control there and they got those late tries and it all went up in dust."
The Warriors were leading 24-18 with nine minutes to go and at that point the crowd of 14,020 thought the team would be able to control the game and keep their season alive for another week.
But as is so often the case with the Warriors, errors led to attacking opportunities for the Tigers and they scored three tries in quick succession.
"That 40/20, that was a big play for them," Lillyman said of the kick by Luke Brooks which changed the game's momentum.
"We needed to defend our line and hang tough, but they got that try and we still felt we could win it, but we lacked a bit of composure there when we went wide with David Fusitu'a, if we had our time again we probably wouldn't have gone with the big play, but it's all history now."
The Warriors have to regroup to play Eels at Mt Smart Stadium on Sunday night, a game that's meaningless for both teams.
"It's going to be tough but we owe it to everyone who turns up here week in, week out," Lillyman said.
"We need to salvage a bit of pride, try to salvage something because it's really disappointing and hopefully we can give our fans something to hold onto."
But the post mortem on what went wrong this season is likely to begin before the final game of the campaign.
It was a year where they got off to another terrible start, losing their first three games, had to battle through a huge off field crisis, where six players admitted to mixing energy drinks with prescription drugs on a night out, then suffered another end of season melt down.
"It's very disappointing, it just feels like a tough year, the start and whatever happened through the middle of the year," Lillyman said.
"We managed to regroup and play some decent footy there and there was a period where we hung tough, but the last couple of weeks hurt us and obviously this [loss] hurt us."
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/league/83654154/Don-t-sack-Warriors-coach-Andrew-McFadden-pleads-Jacob-Lillyman | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/47b3bda67c6914e4546da63919c135c9490704302e26f72574fed00eefe57ed4.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T20:52:16 | null | 2016-08-30T19:57:54 | Why does the EU care if Ireland doesn't tax Apple, and is NZ$20b a big sum for the company? | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fbusiness%2Fworld%2F83740530%2FQ-A-Why-the-EU-says-Apple-must-pay-Ireland-NZ-20-billion-in-tax.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/f/9/o/z/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1duulu.png/1472589021944.jpg | en | null | Q&A-Why the EU says Apple must pay Ireland NZ$20 billion in tax | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Q&A-Why the EU says Apple must pay Ireland NZ$20 billion in tax
Reuters The EU is not happy that Apple hasn't paid billions of dollars in taxes to Ireland.
The European Commission (EC) ordered Apple to pay Ireland unpaid taxes of up to €13 billion (NZ$20 billion) on Tuesday as it ruled the firm had received illegal state aid.
What is the EC alleging?
The European Union's (EU) executive arm has ruled that Ireland made a deal with Apple that had no basis in tax law. The Commission said this involved cutting Apple's tax bill to almost zero, in return for Apple building factories in Ireland.
RNZ The world's most profitable company Apple has been ordered to pay 20 billion New Zealand dollars in unpaid taxes to Ireland.
The EC says that is unfair and that Apple must pay Ireland the tax it would have paid if normal tax rules were applied.
READ MORE: Apple must pay up to NZ$20 billion in back taxes in Ireland
Why does the EU care if Ireland does not tax Apple?
The EU believes sweetheart tax deals help divert investment and jobs away from countries where it would normally go. Also, the tens of billions of dollars in profits which Apple enjoys tax free in Ireland each year are generated almost exclusively outside Ireland. Hence, Ireland's deal deprives other EU countries of tax revenue they might otherwise earn.
Is Ireland about to land a windfall?
Not anytime soon. Ireland's finance minister said he plans to appeal the ruling in Europe's highest court. That will likely take two years or more and Apple may make legal challenges and is also likely to be able to fight any demands from Ireland's Revenue Commissioners in Irish courts, tax lawyers say.
Might Apple settle?
It can certainly afford to, with more than US$200b in cash or readily marketable securities. But since €13b is not a major sum for Apple, investors won't be too worried about the uncertainty it faces and consequently it won't be under pressure from shareholders to settle. The company has been aggressive in defended its tax practices, with CEO Tim Cook testifying to Congress on the issue.
What does the US government think?
The US Treasury and lawmakers have criticised the EU approach of using competition law to challenge tax rulings. They say the approach is targeting US companies, deviates from accepted international practice and threatens US investment in Europe.
A US Treasury Department White Paper last week said "it continues to consider potential responses should the commission continue its present course". USlaw allows the President to double taxes on citizens and companies from countries which apply "discriminatory or extraterritorial taxes" on US firms.
If the EC prevails, does this means that multinationals won't be able to avoid tax in the EU?
No. The commission's case against Ireland was helped by its ability to secure access to documents in which Irish officials were unusually frank about the agreement they made with Apple.
EU states wanting to secure investment by helping companies avoid tax will in future be more careful about leaving a paper trail which could suggest a tax ruling is a sweetheart deal.
The EU's principal legal adviser on tax, Richard Lyal, wrote in a legal journal last year that "It is likely to be only in extreme cases that one can with confidence say that a particular decision reflects a misapplication of the chosen method".
Without evidence of an "extreme" deviance from accepted norms, the commission would likely be reluctant to initiate a tax case.
* Audio courtesy of RNZ
- Reuters | http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/world/83740530/Q-A-Why-the-EU-says-Apple-must-pay-Ireland-NZ-20-billion-in-tax | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/129d48098dc107bcc2d1c80cc6aeeac2be38f0289b4133f8da7a5a12dc5340e9.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T12:58:41 | null | 2016-08-26T04:30:57 | Cheap holiday to Vietnam turned into an experience from hell for two Wellington women. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Ftravel%2Ftravel-troubles%2F83612067%2FKiwi-holidaymakers-recount-horrific-Jetstar-experience-on-trip-to-Vietnam.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/6/4/m/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1ds3hf.png/1472206348545.jpg | en | null | Kiwi holidaymakers recount 'horrific' Jetstar experience on trip to Vietnam | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Kiwi holidaymakers recount 'horrific' Jetstar experience on trip to Vietnam
SUPPLIED Charlotte McCorkindale (left) and Leah Sikorski had a 'horrific' experience with Jetstar on a recent trip to Vietnam.
Two Kiwi holidaymakers have described their "horrific" experience flying internationally with Jetstar which saw two of their flights cancelled.
The experience has left them wondering if Jetstar has been cancelling flights whenever they are unable to fill them.
Wellington social workers Leah Sikorski and Charlotte McCorkindale had taken advantage of a deal the airline was offering in January for return flights to Vietnam.
Your weirdest world travel stories Share your stories, photos and videos.
The pair were set to depart from Auckland on the morning of July 31, and arranged to fly up the previous night and stay in a hotel.
At 11pm, they received a text message from Jetstar which said the first leg of their flight, to Melbourne, had been cancelled.
READ MORE:
* Jetstar refuses to let transgender woman board plane
* Jetstar says sorry after asking passenger if she is pregnant
* Pet fish in tupperware container kicked off Jetstar flight from Wellington
* Jetstar apologises after telling mum pumping breast milk on flight to 'cover up'
SUPPLIED The pair received a message at 11pm the night before their flight to say it had been cancelled.
NO FLIGHTS FOR THREE DAYS
Sikorski said she rang the number provided in the text, and was told the next possible flight was on August 3.
When she asked if they could be transferred to a flight with another airline, or at least be refunded so she could book with another airline, she was told this was not possible as they had booked the flights as a "bundle".
Sikorski contacted her travel insurance provider, who said she could either pay for three extra nights in a hotel or book a flight with a different airline, and submit a claim to be reimbursed upon her return.
She rang Jetstar again to ensure the other legs of the flight were still going ahead, and was told this was the case.
So they booked $200 flights to Melbourne with Air New Zealand, intending to meet up with Jetstar's connecting flight to Singapore, and then on to Ho Chi Minh City.
NEW FLIGHT WITH NO NOTICE
But when they arrived at the airport at 4.30am, they double-checked their Jetstar app and discovered the entire flight booking had changed, and the connecting flight was now departing from Brisbane.
It turned out Jetstar had re-routed the original passengers using Qantas, despite telling Sikorski another flight would not be possible until August 3.
Sikorski said they were not notified of the change, and would have been stuck in Melbourne if they hadn't checked the app.
The pair abandoned their Air New Zealand flights, and took the Qantas flight to Brisbane. They arrived in Ho Chi Minh City as planned.
ANOTHER CANCELLATION
Two weeks later, as they were checking in at the airport to make the return journey, they were shocked to discover Jetstar had cancelled another one of their flights - this time from Singapore to Melbourne.
"When we got to the counter and they told us it had been cancelled again, we just looked at each other and burst into laughter," McCorkindale said. "We thought, this cannot be the case."
Sikorski said they were told they would be put on another flight when they arrived in Singapore, and they should go to the Jetstar counter.
But when they got to the counter, a Jetstar staff member couldn't find them on the system, and told them they were in the wrong line as they had been re-booked with Emirates.
McCorkindale said the customer service was like "talking to a brick wall".
FINAL STRAW
Sikorski said to make matters worse, a month before the trip they had been advised that their return flight from Auckland to Wellington had also been cancelled. They asked for a refund, but their request was declined, so they were forced to take a later flight, which caused some inconvenience.
Sikorski described the whole experience as "horrific", and an "epic fail".
Since she posted a complaint on the Jetstar Facebook page, their response was "the first thing we heard from them that was even slightly apologetic", she said.
"You know you're going to get a budget airline in terms of service and all of the amenities, which is fine, but you expect some basic respect and communication."
McCorkindale said they had talked to other passengers in the same situation on the journey, and one said they had been told by a Jetstar staff member that the reason flights kept being cancelled was because they couldn't fill them.
JETSTAR RESPONDS
But a Jetstar spokesman said the two international flights were cancelled due to engineering issues.
"We sincerely apologise for the disruptions and the communication issues the customer experienced," he said.
"In these circumstances we aim to get customers to their destination as quickly as possible on alternative flights, which may include flying on partner airlines."
Jetstar said it would be contacting Sikorski to discuss her concerns.
Comments on this story are now closed.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/travel-troubles/83612067/Kiwi-holidaymakers-recount-horrific-Jetstar-experience-on-trip-to-Vietnam | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/939ff1f9e73b8617ef39ff77d819ac7ce79ef567282ac9174b71c0640d0590f7.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T22:51:12 | null | 2016-08-27T22:04:41 | Thames police are appealing for sightings of a man considered armed and dangerous. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fnational%2Fcrime%2F83637538%2FPolice-seek-Thames-man-Rameka-Wikaira.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/n/5/m/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsn4y.png/1472335481713.jpg | en | null | Police seek Thames man Rameka Wikaira | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Police seek Thames man Rameka Wikaira
SUPPLIED Police are seeking the whereabouts of Rameka Wikaira.
A man wanted in connection with a string of burglaries in Thames could be armed, police warn.
Thames police have appealed for sightings of 26-year-old Rameka Wikaira, saying he's wanted in relation to burglaries and breaching his prison release conditions.
A string of recent thefts and burglaries led police officers to a Currie Street address in Thames on Saturday that was linked to Wikaira.
Armed Offenders Squad members were involved in the search.
Wikaira is described as 171 centimetres tall and of thin to medium build.
In a statement, Thames police Sergeant Russell Richards said Wikaira is considered armed and dangerous.
"As he may have stolen firearms on him, the Armed Offenders Squad attended the scene during the search yesterday afternoon," Richards said.
"We would like to make clear to friends and associates of his, there may be charges for anyone caught assisting him with avoiding police."
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/83637538/Police-seek-Thames-man-Rameka-Wikaira | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/a984a1148014096ce2b3e9d0a0f90ac52d42aa3ff415a68ec493eeacf7f4555d.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T18:52:18 | null | 2016-08-30T18:26:50 | More than 15,000 people killed by Isis are buried in 72 mass graves - and more are likely to be found. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Fmiddle-east%2F83738040%2FIsis-buried-thousands-in-72-mass-graves.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/u/s/s/o/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dusoo.png/1472583054738.jpg | en | null | Isis buried thousands in 72 mass graves | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Isis buried thousands in 72 mass graves
This image released by the the Mass Graves Directorate of the Kurdish Regional Government shows a human skull in a mass grave containing Yazidis killed by Islamic State militants in the Sinjar region of northern Iraq in May, 2015.
Surrounded by smoke and flames, the sound of gunshots echoing around him, the young man crouched in the creek for hours, listening to the men in his family die.
On the other side of the mountain, another survivor peered through binoculars as the handcuffed men of neighbouring villages were shot and then buried by a waiting bulldozer. For six days he watched as the extremists filled one grave after another with his friends and relatives.
Between them, the two scenes of horror on Sinjar mountain contain six burial sites and the bodies of more than 100 people, just a small fraction of the mass graves Islamic State extremists have scattered across Iraq and Syria.
STRINGER/IRAQ A bone, suspected to belong to a member of Iraq's Yazidi community, is seen in a mass grave on the outskirts of the town of Sinjar, November 30, 2015. K
The Associated Press has documented and mapped 72 of the mass graves, the most comprehensive survey so far, with many more expected to be uncovered as the Islamic State group's territory shrinks.
In Syria, AP has obtained locations for 17 mass graves, including one with the bodies of hundreds of members of a single tribe all but exterminated when Isis extremists took over their region.
READ MORE:
* 500 Yazidis slaughtered by Islamic State
* Kurdish forces launch battle to retake Iraq's Sinjar
* Iraqi Kurds uncover mass graves in Isis-held Sinjar
For at least 16 of the Iraqi graves, most in territory too dangerous to excavate, officials do not even guess the number of dead.
In others, the estimates are based on memories of traumatised survivors, Islamic State propaganda and what can be gleaned from a cursory look at the earth. Still, even the known victims buried are staggering - from 5200 to more than 15,000.
Sinjar mountain is dotted with mass graves, some in territory clawed back from Isis after the group's onslaught against the Yazidi minority in August 2014; others in the deadly no man's land that has yet to be secured.
REUTERS Kurdish peshmerga forces look at bones in a mass grave on the outskirts of the town of Sinjar, February, 2015.
The bodies of Talal Murat's father, uncles and cousins lie beneath the rubble of the family farm, awaiting a time when it is safe for surviving relatives to return to the place where the men were gunned down.
On Sinjar's other flank, Rasho Qassim drives daily past the graves holding the bodies of his two sons.
The road is in territory long since seized back, but the five sites are untouched, roped off and awaiting the money or the political will for excavation, as the evidence they contain is scoured away by the wind and baked by the sun.
RODI SAID/REUTERS Displaced people from the minority Yazidi sect, fleeing violence from forces loyal to the Islamic State in Sinjar town, walk towards the Syrian border in 2014/
"We want to take them out of here. There are only bones left. But they said 'No, they have to stay there, a committee will come and exhume them later,''' said Qassim, standing at the edge of the flimsy fence surrounding one site, where his two sons are buried.
"It has been two years but nobody has come.''
Isis made no attempt to hide its atrocities. In fact it boasted of them. But proving what United Nations officials and others have described as an ongoing genocide, and prosecuting those behind it, will be complicated as the graves deteriorate.
STRINGER/IRAQ Bones, suspected to belong to Iraq's Yazidi community, are seen in a mass grave on the outskirts of the town of Sinjar, November 30, 2015
"We see clear evidence of the intent to destroy the Yazidi people,'' said Naomi Kikoler, who recently visited the region for the Holocaust Museum in Washington, DC.
"There's been virtually no effort to systematically document the crimes perpetrated, to preserve the evidence, and to ensure that mass graves are identified and protected.''
Then there are the graves still out of reach. The Islamic State group's atrocities extend well outside the Yazidi region in northern Iraq.
Satellites offer the clearest look at massacres such as the one at Badoush Prison in June 2014 that left 600 male inmates dead.
A patch of scraped earth and tire tracks show the likely killing site, according to exclusive photos obtained by the imagery intelligence firm AllSource Analysis.
Of the 72 mass graves documented by AP, the smallest contains three bodies; the largest is believed to hold thousands, but no one knows for sure.
ALL THEY COULD DO WAS WATCH THE SLAUGHTER
On the northern flank of Sinjar mountain, five grave sites ring a desert crossroads. It is here that the young men of Hardan village are buried, under thistles and piles of cracked earth. They were killed in the bloody IS offensive of August 2014.
Through his binoculars, Arkan Qassem watched it all. His village, Gurmiz, is just up the slope from Hardan, giving a clear view over the plain below. When the jihadis swept over the area, everyone in Gurmiz fled up the mountaintop for refuge. Then Arkan and nine other men returned to their village with light weapons to try to defend their homes.
Instead, all they could do was watch the slaughter below. Arkan witnessed the militants set up checkpoints, preventing residents from leaving. Women and children were taken away.
Then the killings began. The first night, Arkan saw the militants line up a group of handcuffed men in the headlights of a bulldozer at an intersection, less than a kilometre down the slope from Gurmiz. They gunned the men down, then the bulldozer ploughed the earth over their bodies.
Over six days, Arkan and his comrades watched helplessly as the fighters brought out three more groups of men - several dozen each, usually with hands bound - to the crossroads and killed them. He didn't always see what they did with the bodies. One time, he saw them lighting a bonfire, but he couldn't see why.
Finally, the jihadis brought in artillery and prepared to make an assault on Gurmiz. Arkan and his comrades fled up the mountain to where their families had taken refuge.
Now, since Isis fighters were driven out of the area, the 32-year-old has returned to his home. But he's haunted by the site. As documented by the aid group Yazda, which has mapped the Sinjar sites, the graves are in a rough pentagon flanking the crossroads, largely unprotected. Around one of them is a mesh fence and a wind-battered sign. As Arkan spoke at the site, a shepherd herded his flock nearby.
"I have lots of people I know there. Mostly friends and neighbours,'' he said. "It's very difficult to look at them every day.''
"THIS BODY IS WEARING MY FATHER'S CLOTHES''
As Isis fighters swarmed into the Sinjar area in early August 2014, Talal fled his town along with his father, mother, four sisters and younger brother. They and dozens of other men, women and children from his extended clan converged on an uncle's farm outside the town of Tel Azer. They prayed it was remote enough to escape the killings that were already engulfing so many Yazidis.
It wasn't.
The jihadis fired at the house from a distance. Then they rolled up in their vehicles and shot one man in the head as they stood in the yard. They surrounded the farmhouse, ordered everyone outside and demanded the impossible: Convert.
The Yazidi faith, one of the region's oldest, has elements of Christianity and Islam but is distinct. Yazidis worship the Peacock Angel, fallen and forgiven by God under their tradition, and their shrines feature carved images of the birds and references to the sun. Muslim extremists condemned them as "devil worshippers'' and over the centuries have subjected them to multiple massacres - 72, by the Yazidis' count.
In its own propaganda, the Islamic State group made clear its intention to wipe out the Yazidi community. In an issue of its online English-language magazine Dabiq, it scolded Muslims for allowing the Yazidis to continue existing, calling their ancient religion a form of paganism. It quoted Quranic verses to justify killing the Yazidis unless they become Muslim.
Thwarted in their halfhearted attempt at conversions, the fighters separated about 35 teenage girls and young women from the rest, crammed them into a few cars and drove away. The militants herded the older women and young children into the farmhouse and locked the door.
Then they lined the men and teenaged boys against the wall of the stables - about 40 in all, including Talal.
There were too many of them, too bunched up, to efficiently mow down, so the fighters then ordered them to lie on the ground in a row, Talal said. That was when his uncle told him to make a run for it. Talal bolted into his uncle's hayfield, as did several other men. The militants fired at them, and the bullets ignited the hay, dry from the summer sun. The fire covered Talal's escape, and he took shelter in a nearby creek.
There he hid, listening as the gunmen shot his family to death. He eventually fled toward the mountain, joined by three others who had survived the massacre. Four out of 40.
Back at the farm, the gunmen eventually left and the women and children emerged, looking around with growing horror.
Nouri Murat, Talal's mother, found her husband. His body was untouched, but his head was shattered. Her daughters, she said, were confused at first. "This is strange, this body is wearing my father's clothes,'' one of them said. As Nouri frantically searched around the property for any surviving menfolk, her 9-year-old daughter Rukhan lay down beside her father's corpse.
Finally, other women persuaded the family to head to the mountain before the Islamic State fighters returned.
As they began the long walk north, Nouri noticed Rukhan's bloody fist. Fearing her daughter was wounded, she pried open the girl's clenched fingers. Inside were a handful of her father's teeth.
"THEY DON'T EVEN TRY TO HIDE THEIR CRIMES''
Nearly every area freed from Isis control has unmasked new mass graves, like one found by the sports stadium in the Iraqi city of Ramadi. Many of the graves themselves are easy enough to find, most covered with just a thin coating of earth.
"They don't even try to hide their crimes,'' said Sirwan Jalal, the director of Iraqi Kurdistan's agency in charge of mass graves. "They are beheading them, shooting them, running them over in cars, all kinds of killing techniques, and they don't even try to hide it.''
No one outside Isis has seen the Iraqi ravine where hundreds of Shiite prison inmates were killed point blank and then torched. Satellite images of scraped dirt along the river point to its location, according to Steve Wood of AllSource. His analysts triangulated survivors' accounts and began to systematically search the desert according to their descriptions of that day, June 10, 2014.
The inmates were separated out by religion, and Shiites were loaded onto trucks, driven for a few kilometres (miles) and forced to line up and count off, according to accounts by 15 survivors gathered by Human Rights Watch. Then they knelt along the edge of the crescent-shaped ravine, according to a report cited by AllSource.
"I was number 43. I heard them say '615,' and then one Isis guy said, 'We're going to eat well tonight.' A man behind us asked, 'Are you ready?' Another person answered `Yes,' and began shooting at us with a machine-gun. Then they all started to shoot us from behind, going down the row,'' according to the Human Rights Watch account of a survivor identified only as A.S.
The men survived by pretending to be dead.
Using their accounts and others, AllSource examined an image from July 17, 2014, that appeared to show the location as described, between a main road and the railway outside Mosul. The bodies are believed to be packed tightly together, side by side in a space approximately the length of two football fields end to end, in what the AllSource analysis described as a "sardine trench.'' Tire tracks lead to and from the site.
"There's actually earth that has been pushed over and actually moved to cover parts of the ravine. As we look across the entire ravine we only see that in this one location,'' said Wood. "Ultimately there are many, many more sites across Iraq and Syria that have yet to be either forensically exhumed or be able to be detailed and there's quite a bit more research that needs to take place.''
The key, Wood said, is having photos to indicate a grave's location taken soon after its creation.
Justice has been done in at least one Isis mass killing - that of about 1700 Iraqi soldiers who were forced to lie face-down in a ditch and then machine-gunned at Camp Speicher. On August 21, 36 men convicted in those killings were hanged at Iraq's Nasiriyah prison.
But justice is likely to be elusive in areas still firmly under Isis control, even though the extremists have filmed themselves committing the atrocities. That's the case for a deep natural sinkhole outside Mosul that is now a pit of corpses. In Syria's Raqqa province, thousands of bodies are believed to have been thrown into the giant al-Houta crevasse.
Conditions in much of Syria remain a mystery. Activists believe there are hundreds of mass graves in Isis-controlled areas that can only be explored when fighting stops. By that time, they fear any effort to document the massacres, exhume and identify the remains will become infinitely more complicated.
Working behind Isis lines, local residents have informally documented some mass graves, even partially digging some up. Some of the worst have been found in the eastern province of Deir el-Zour. There, 400 members of the Shueitat tribe were found in one grave, just some of the up to 1000 members of the tribe believed to have been massacred by Isis when the militants took over the area, said Ziad Awad, the editor of an online publication on Deir el-Zour called The Eye of the City who is trying to document the graves.
In Raqqa province, the bodies of 160 Syrian soldiers, killed when Isis overran their base, were found in seven large pits.
So far, at least 17 mass graves are known, though largely unreachable, in a list put together from AP interviews with activists from Syrian provinces still under Isis rule as well as fighters and residents in former IS strongholds.
"This is a drop in an ocean of mass graves expected to be discovered in the future in Syria,'' said Awad.
- AP | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/middle-east/83738040/Isis-buried-thousands-in-72-mass-graves | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/70f83ac01e8766c9956e060daa1fac05e4e49ecc3ae7227cf41ca064482880a9.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T02:51:30 | null | 2016-08-29T02:14:19 | Think sticky date pudding with a topcoat of deck stain. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Flife-style%2Fbeauty%2F83530336%2FMakeup-artist-Stephanie-Lange-applies-100-layers-of-fake-tan.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/q/9/p/t/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dqcf4.png/1472436859231.png | en | null | Makeup artist Stephanie Lange applies 100 layers of fake tan | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Makeup artist Stephanie Lange applies 100 layers of fake tan
YOUTUBE/STEPHANIELANGE Lange decided not to put her face through the ordeal.
It was only a matter of time before someone gave this challenge a go and we are glad Stephanie Lange was brave enough to.
On her YouTube channel, Lange put herself through the arduous, and somewhat stinky, task of applying 100 layers of fake tan to her whole body.
And the results are exactly what you would expect 100 layers of fake tan would look like. Did someone say Oompa Loompa?
YOUTUBE/STEPHANIELANGE Before Lange stared the two-hour tanning session.
READ MORE:
*Beauty vlogger applies 100 layers of foundation to her face
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Lange's complexion quickly changes from creamy white to a shade that resembles stained wood. Lange opted to leave her face out of the challenge to make way for her weekend plans.
YOUTUBE/STEPHANIELANGE What is normally a job that's over within minutes turned into a longer affair.
YOUTUBE/STEPHANIELANGE 100 coats later and Lange felt and looked like a sticky date pudding.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/beauty/83530336/Makeup-artist-Stephanie-Lange-applies-100-layers-of-fake-tan | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/1a7a60dac9e1e5bed7f3447b1cd1a68308fc44d35eaf2fa4ac5ca50502f9ff9b.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T14:50:09 | null | 2016-08-26T13:06:05 | Manawatu take on Southland in Palmerston North in round 2 of the NPC. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Frugby%2Fprovincial%2F83611113%2FRecap-Manawatu-v-Southland-national-provincial-championship-round-two.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/1/b/l/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1ds2qx.png/1472216765769.jpg | en | null | Recap: Manawatu v Southland - national provincial championship round two | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Recap: Manawatu v Southland - national provincial championship round two
WARWICK SMITH/FAIRFAX NZ Turbos training at Arena Manawatu ahead of match with Southland - Jake ilnicki.
Manawatu take on Southland in Palmerston North in round 2 of the NPC.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/provincial/83611113/Recap-Manawatu-v-Southland-national-provincial-championship-round-two | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/c7bfd0f2d81a5db73297336fc39f4f354f79b80afbc29384f848001fd66a5bff.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T02:51:55 | null | 2016-08-30T02:47:02 | Gene Wilder was terrific when he was calm and collected. But when he lost it, he was transcendent. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fentertainment%2Ffilm%2F83715511%2FGene-Wilders-most-memorable-madcap-roles.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/t/w/f/s/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dubav.png/1472525226694.jpg | en | null | Gene Wilder's most memorable madcap roles | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Gene Wilder's most memorable madcap roles
Gene Wilder, star of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and various Mel Brooks films, has died aged 83.
Gene Wilder was terrific when he was calm and collected. But when he lost it, he was transcendent.
Often playing opposite enormous, big performers like Zero Mostel and Richard Pryor, Wilder was a straight man who often wound up in a straight jacket. His enormous range was everything in between: from a quiet sweetness to a madcap lunacy.
Wilder died Sunday in Stamford, Connecticut, from complications of Alzheimer's disease at age 83.
Spl Gene Wilder in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.
With wild, Harpo-like hair, a melancholy face and a mad glint in his eye, Wilder was an earthquake of neuroses that tremoured with blinks and sweat before cracking and quivering in hysteria.
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"I can't stop! I'm hysterical!'' he screamed as Leo Bloom in The Producers when the well-planned flop refused to flop. His partner (Mostel) tries to calm him by throwing a glass of water in his face. A beat. "I'm wet! I'm wet! I'm hysterical and I'm wet!''
Goodbye, Gene Wilder. You were one of the great screen comedians. Original and surprising every time. — Steve Martin (@SteveMartinToGo) 29 August 2016
Born Jerome Silberman in Milwaukee, Wilder first began performing for his mother, who was badly marred by a heart attack when Wilder was six, as a way to entertain and cheer her up. He would later be schooled by Lee Strasberg at the Actor's Studio, but that early aura - of laughter with darkness around - never left Wilder.
"Come with me and you'll be in a world of pure imagination,'' he sang in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. His Wonka was at once iconic and impossible to pin down. His combination of charm and whimsy, darkness and strangeness breathed life into Roald Dahl's tale. His Wonka was too much for initial audiences (the film was a box-office disappointment) but grew to be adored for its off-kilter complexity.
Farewell #GeneWilder, comic genius. Thank you for all those happy happy hours. pic.twitter.com/O6oHS9TQqX — Stephen Fry (@stephenfry) 29 August 2016
"I'm an actor not a clown,'' Wilder was fond of saying.
Wilder's early big-screen roles were feats of lunacy: the kidnapped undertaker of Bonnie and Clyde, the doctor who falls for a sheep named Daisy in Woody Allen's Everything You Wanted to Know About Sex.
"My quiet exterior used to be a mask for hysteria,'' he told Time magazine in 1970. "After seven years of analysis, it just became a habit.''
Wilder's bug-eyed knack for neurotic extremes, though, was only so winning because of his underlying tenderness. Fully embodying his characters, Wilder was utterly unpredictable, moment to moment.
I saw Blazing Saddles 7 times at the cinema with my school friends . George St. Cows outside.
Gene Wilder you were a genius. Rest in Peace. — Russell Crowe (@russellcrowe) 29 August 2016
In Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein, in which he plays Dr. Frankenstein, might be his greatest performance: a mad scientist with his own demons and an acute sensitivity to the pronunciation of Frankenstein.''
He and the monster, in tuxes, singing and dancing to Putting on the Ritz might sum up Wilder, in all his bizarre glory, more than any other scene.
The title of his 2005 memoir, Kiss Me Like a Stranger, came from his then-late third wife, Gilda Radner, whom he met while filming 1982's Hanky Panky. It was a phrase Radner would say to him, its meaning mysterious to Wilder. He acted rarely after her death in 1989.
Wilder was much more than a comic actor, too. He was a screenwriter (he co-wrote Young Frankenstein with Mel Brooks), a director of four films, a novelist and a stage actor. He met Brooks through Anne Bancroft, with whom he starred in the Brecht play Mother Courage.
Gene Wilder-One of the truly great talents of our time. He blessed every film we did with his magic & he blessed me with his friendship. — Mel Brooks (@MelBrooks) 29 August 2016
Their collaboration together, Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein, The Producers, constitutes one of the great pairings in comedy. Wilder and Pryor, too, were an exceptional duo, albeit with more mixed results: Stir Crazy and Silver Streak as well as the lesser See No Evil, Hear No Evil and Another You.
Gene Wilder & Peter Ostrum behind the scenes in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971) pic.twitter.com/cKpK4Ruort — Dexshirts (@dexshirts) 30 July 2016
Wilder, who shied away from interviews, remained delightfully enigmatic through his many decades in show business. We knew his characters better than him.
"Time is a precious thing. Never waste it,'' he told Veruca Salt in Wonka, before tossing a clock into bubbling tub.
RIP Gene Wilder pic.twitter.com/hI5pq67oOP — Best Vines (@TheFunnyVine) 30 August 2016
For Kiwi fans of Wilder's most famous roles, SKY TV will air a special movie marathon from 7.00pm Tuesday night, via the Gene Wilder pop-up channel on 035.
SKY will screen back-to-back films, including The Producers (7pm), Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory (8.30pm) and Blazing Sadles (10.10pm).
- AP | http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/film/83715511/Gene-Wilders-most-memorable-madcap-roles | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/c05afc08de496e68f00cef7881142af7bdd61daf12f24c1f2b1a063bc6600a13.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T12:50:56 | null | 2016-08-28T11:02:51 | Auckland's red-hot property market that's showing no signs of slowing down has claimed its latest | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fnational%2F83651272%2FProperty-crisis-in-tourist-haven-Taupo-forcing-some-into-the-streets.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/x/r/2/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsxqg.png/1472382171681.jpg | en | null | Property crisis in tourist haven Taupo forcing some into the streets | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Property crisis in tourist haven Taupo forcing some into the streets
ONE NEWS A rental shortage in the tourist haven is forcing people into hotels, cars and even on to the streets.
Auckland's red-hot property market that's showing no signs of slowing down has claimed its latest "victim" - Taupo.
The tourist haven is suffering from rental shortage, creating a homeless situation for many residents and in extreme cases forcing some to live in hotels, cars and even on the streets.
Taupo volunteer worker Renee Grey first noticed social media chatter about the rising case of homelessness early this year and decided to help.
A Facebook page set up to address homelessness in Taupo.
Grey decided to offer her help by arranging temporary accommodation, clothes, blankets and other necessities as and when anyone needs it.
READ MORE:
* Competitive Taupo housing market forcing one family towards homelessness
* The rental crisis creating Taupo's homeless community
Taupo Mayor David Trewavas said that Taupo has seen an influx of Aucklanders buying here to escape the skyrocketing Auckland prices. According to the mayor, this has resulted in housing prices doubling up and shortage in rental properties.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/83651272/Property-crisis-in-tourist-haven-Taupo-forcing-some-into-the-streets | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/8cd7569482dfe4f1863b1969cccccbe7ee9fca9b8a7623501e7d585db3f0140c.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T04:52:28 | null | 2016-08-31T04:34:58 | New Zealand tops another list showing our homes are even less affordable compared to other countries. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fbusiness%2Fmoney%2F83750475%2FNZ-tops-IMFs-housing-unaffordability-list.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/u/y/r/l/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dv2a3.png/1472618098677.jpg | en | null | NZ tops IMF's housing unaffordability list | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | NZ tops IMF's housing unaffordability list
PETER MEECHAM/FAIRFAX NZ New housing developments like Stonefields in Auckland have not yet helped bring down the amount households are spending on housing.
New Zealand's housing unaffordability has reached another international high, in relation to how much we earn.
The International Monetary Fund's quarterly global housing watch report shows that New Zealand outpaced 30 other of the world's richest countries when house prices were compared with income during the first quarter of this year.
New Zealand hit nearly 130 points, topping an index which uses the year 2010 as its middle point.
It eclipsed Austria and Sweden, and Australia, which came 11th.
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* Shamubeel Eaqub: It's time to include house prices in inflation calculations
* New Zealand house price rises outpace all but one country
* Auckland's rising house prices simply catching up to other global cities
Labour's housing spokesman Phil Twyford said New Zealand's house prices were now replacing Lord of the Rings for international headlines.
He accused the Government of letting housing get out of hand.
"John Key and his ministers now appear to be the only people in the world who don't believe there's a housing crisis in New Zealand."
Housing Minister Nick Smith said he did not have time to look at the report and declined to comment.
Also in the report, New Zealand nearly topped a list of 64 countries for house price growth in the last year.
Kiwi house prices rose 11 per cent, second only to Sweden's 14 per cent. Australia's grew 6.4 per cent. although price growth was no doubt higher in its biggest cities.
Concerns about high house prices to incomes were raised by Forbes magazine in 2013, when it warned that interest rates were so low, they were masking how affordable houses really were.
When wage rises failed to keep pace with house prices, it only took a rise in interest rates to create homes that were too expensive for the typical median wage.
ANZ chief economist Cameron Bagrie said New Zealand wasn't at that point yet because there was no pressure internationally to raise interest rates.
"You've got to look at the bigger picture. Debt to income has very clearly deteriorated, but if I look at debt servicing to income, that's actually okay, because we've got record low interest rates."
Nevertheless if the situation changed, and if mortgage rates lifted from 4.5 to 5.5 per cent, "that's a 20 per cent lift in people's borrowing costs".
Bagrie said he used a three-pronged test for a housing bust: excessive house values, structural indicators such as falling savings rates and an excess of houses on the market.
House prices were clearly out of touch, and some of the structural indicators were showing signs of stress, but a shortage of housing and strong migration in certain cities were keeping house prices high.
"The warning lights are starting to flash ... so I think at the moment we're on what's called 'amber alert' rather than red alert."
The IMF report also looks at the gap between rents and house prices, which showed house prices growing faster than rents in about half the countries surveyed.
New Zealand had a very wide gap, coming fifth highest with a house price-to-rent ratio of 124 points, behind Turkey on 145 points, Sweden, Germany and Israel.
Auckland versus the world
House prices and incomes, as of 3Q 2015
Hong Kong, Household income HK$293,000 (NZ$52,130), median house price HK$5,561,000 (NZ$989,579)
Sydney, A$84,600 (NZ$87,826), A$1,032,000 (NZ$1,071362)
Vancouver, C$69,700 (NZ$72,513), C$756,200 (NZ$797,574)
Auckland, NZ$77,500, NZ$748,700
Melbourne, A$75,600 (NZ$78,481), A$730,000 (NZ$757,822 )
San Jose, US$99,800 (NZ$118,848), US$965,000 (NZ$1,332,000)
Source: Demographia
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/money/83750475/NZ-tops-IMFs-housing-unaffordability-list | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/92e458799573439de26cb38b5b2085a8b4c88382b4612f1d25baf894d925fc55.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T20:51:17 | null | 2016-08-28T19:59:35 | A strange thing happens to fatal car crash numbers when the economy tanks, a new study has found. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fmotoring%2Fnews%2F83652804%2FOne-curious-effect-of-a-recession-may-bolster-the-case-for-driverless-cars.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/z/4/6/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsyx0.png/1472414375325.jpg | en | null | One curious effect of a recession may bolster the case for driverless cars | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | One curious effect of a recession may bolster the case for driverless cars
ERIC THAYER/REUTERS Every 1 per cent increase in unemployment in the United States is linked to a decrease in traffic fatalities by about 5000 annual deaths, the study found.
Two US researchers say they've discovered a curious relationship between deadly car crashes and the jobless rate - and the finding may have important implications for next-generation vehicle technologies like self-driving cars.
Fewer people die in car crashes, it turns out, when the economy is hurting. That's the report from Clifford Winston, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, and Vikram Maheshri, an assistant professor of economics at the University of Houston.
Writing in the Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, Winston and Maheshri claim that every 1 per cent increase in unemployment in the United States is linked to a decrease in traffic fatalities by about 5000 annual deaths.
This seems like a momentous statistic by itself. But even more important is the reason behind it: It's because America's least-safe drivers stay off the roads during economic downturns, according to the researchers.
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How do they know that? We'll get to the specifics of the study in a second. But the connection to driverless cars is clear: If partially or fully automated vehicles can help risky drivers drive better, we may be able to achieve the same reductions in traffic fatalities the researchers observed during the recession without, you know, actually having to go through a recession.
Winston and Maheshri's study probably wouldn't have been possible without some advanced technologies that are just becoming mainstream.
They relied on data from State Farm, the insurance company, some of whose customers had opted in to being tracked (probably in hopes of receiving a discount on their premiums).
This individual-level data give us valuable demographic and behavioral insights that we don't get from a national-level accounting of vehicle miles travelled, a fuzzy and imprecise metric.
Understanding which drivers are over 60 years old, own older cars that may not be as safe, have recently experienced a crash or who don't live with a family - all risk factors - allowed the researchers to compare those groups' driving behaviour against statistically safer demographics. And what they found was that the riskier drivers drove less, as measured by their own number of vehicle miles travelled.
The State Farm data may be skewed by the fact that it comes from drivers who opted into the company's tracking programme, and these people may already be safer than the norm to begin with. And it's also drawn from a single state, Ohio, which may not be nationally representative.
The study also can't explain why the recession may have these effects: It's possible that middle-aged people respond to the recession by needing to work more, and therefore need to drive more to perform said work.
Or that drivers who are statistically more likely to crash then drive less because they perceive a heightened state of risk during unstable situations (like recessions).
Still, the researchers say, the findings at least highlight how different groups might benefit from driver-assist technologies, and provide a relative sense of how massively driverless car technology could cut down on traffic deaths.
Vehicle automation could effectively take risky drivers "off the road," substituting for the unemployment effects Winston and Maheshri looked at in their study.
The technology could also enable those drivers to keep participating in economic lives they would have otherwise avoided.
But that's a subject for another time.
- The Washington Post | http://www.stuff.co.nz/motoring/news/83652804/One-curious-effect-of-a-recession-may-bolster-the-case-for-driverless-cars | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/e881ffb290203b132583924c03962ff89de1989629f066ba73eeced2464b4120.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T02:50:15 | null | 2016-08-27T02:36:19 | The couple are prepared to go to prison to fight their cause. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fbusiness%2Ffarming%2F83629666%2FKiwi-couple-say-they-would-rather-go-to-prison-than-be-deported-from-UK.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/h/r/w/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsh2a.png/1472265389756.png | en | null | Kiwi couple say they would rather go to prison than be deported from UK | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Kiwi couple say they would rather go to prison than be deported from UK
cuttingthecurd.co.uk Louise Talbot says her fight with immigration authorities in the UK has been "an utter nightmare, so cruel".
A New Zealand farming couple living in Britain who failed to renew their visas on time are prepared to go to prison to stop being deported.
John and Louise Talbot have lived in Dorset England for the past six years helping their sons to establish a cattle farm.
Louise Talbot, 52, who also teaches cheese making, said they have been ordered by the Home Office to leave the country after they missed a deadline to file their immigration application.
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An immigration judge said there is no reason they cannot stay and backed their case, The Daily Mail reported.
The Talbots have appealed to Immigration Minister Robert Goodwill to stop their deportation.
"I would serve a prison sentence to sort this out," Louise Talbot told the Daily Mail.
"It has been an utter nightmare, so cruel," she said.
"It was one simple mistake. It was just a slip, an unintentional error.
"We were not trying to bend the rules. We are utterly distraught at the thought of our lives being devastated because of a technicality.
"This is our home. I would serve a prison sentence to sort this out."
She said the decision by immigration staff to rejected the application because it was out of time was "criminal".
The Talbot moved to Dorset in 2010 after visiting the county for 30 years.
Louise Talbot's grandmother was born in the UK and her family members fought and died for Britain in World War 1 and World War 2.
Their two sons were enrolled in agricultural schools in the UK.
The couple knew the visa's expired in May 2015 and intended to apply for indefinite leave to remain 28 days before the expiry date.
Both passed a "Life in the UK" test and other criteria in the application but one of their sons Charles failed to meet the deadline due to university exams.
Their passports were seized and right of appeal has been denied.
They must leave the UK voluntarily, or be liable for enforced removal.
Immigration judge Justice Jay said there was no reason why the application should be refused if the applicants met all the requirements, such as ancestry and passing the application test.
- The Marlborough Express | http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/83629666/Kiwi-couple-say-they-would-rather-go-to-prison-than-be-deported-from-UK | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/8134e63422480ae170dbfb7772e7933896f21bf3060f01945b70632ad8cf8ff0.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T02:52:25 | null | 2016-08-31T02:48:00 | Newshub journalist Karen Rutherford still in hospital 11 days after a car crashed into her and her horse. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fentertainment%2Ftv-radio%2F83752556%2FJournalist-Karen-Rutherford-still-in-hospital-after-crash-which-killed-her-horse.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/v/6/q/0/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dv3vw.png/1472611686250.jpg | en | null | Journalist Karen Rutherford still in hospital after crash which killed her horse | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Journalist Karen Rutherford still in hospital after crash which killed her horse
Newshub Newshub journalist Karen Rutherford in hospital after being hit by a car while riding her horse.
Still in hospital 11 days after a car crashed into her and her horse, Newshub journalist Karen Rutherford says she is "in a bit of a bad way" and awaits another possible operation.
Rutherford, the Newshub chief of staff, was hit by a driver as she rode her daughter's horse, George, along a rural road in Dairy Flat, north Auckland, on August 20th. The force of the impact threw her against the car's windscreen, and killed George the horse.
Rutherford's daughter Ella, 13, was riding another horse ahead of her mother, and dodged the oncoming car by centimetres.
"I'm in a bit of a bad way, my leg has almost been degloved and I have a lot of other injuries which I kept on the down-low as my in-laws are travelling and I don't want them to be worried and fly home," Rutherford told Stuff from hospital.
READ MORE:
* Journalist Karen Rutherford injured after car hits her horse in Auckland
* Crash data shows danger level of foreign drivers
She said she feels lucky to be alive, "but wish I could say the same for beautiful George who basically died in Ella's 13-year-old arms."
The horse's leg was ripped "half off" on impact with the car, which sped unwaveringly towards the riders, Rutherford said.
In a tearful video posted on her private Facebook page Rutherford explained how she flew through the air and hit the car's windscreen with "almighty force" before landing in the dirt on the side of the road.
"But when I opened my eyes in that ditch, I just thought, wow, I'm alive, this is cool, I'm okay. And then the panic set in about [daughter] Ella and George [the horse] who didn't survive. But, you know what, that can be dealt with.
"I won't be wearing mini-skirts for a very long time. It's not pretty, but I have a leg, and you've got to be thankful for that."
In an earlier Facebook post she said she and Ella "went through hell and back, all because of the senseless actions of someone clearly not used to rural roads."
Rutherford said police had confirmed the driver that hit her was "a Chinese national on a student visa who just arrived in this country a few weeks ago."
Auckland police are still investigating the case and said it would take some time due to "the number of witnesses we have to interview and the fact one of them is seriously injured in hospital".
Rutherford has expressed concern about the number of crashes involving Asian drivers in New Zealand.
"It's in their hands now, we did nothing wrong and justice will be done, I hope," she said.
Official figures from the Ministry of Transport show foreign drivers caused 19 deaths last year, 113 serious injuries and 616 minor injuries - it is not reported how many of these are Asian drivers specifically.
A petition on www.ipetitions.com is calling for legislation requiring foreign drivers to pass a New Zealand drivers license before hitting our roads.
To date it has 3208 signatures and 1227 comments.
In her video Rutherford thanked her numerous well wishers.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/tv-radio/83752556/Journalist-Karen-Rutherford-still-in-hospital-after-crash-which-killed-her-horse | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/b55855e15cfc48ba0d6c3d8c6c333238406515ceaba9e43b271ffd9b189fbb85.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T00:52:30 | null | 2016-08-31T00:11:31 | OPINION: The Cantabrian's reign as Wallabies coach is being put into context by the struggles of first Ewen McKenzie and now Michael Cheika, writes Paul Cully. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Frugby%2Fopinion%2F83728260%2FHistory-is-painting-Robbie-Deans-Wallabies-reign-in-a-fairer-light.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/v/1/5/b/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dul50.png/1472602291556.jpg | en | null | History is painting Robbie Deans' Wallabies reign in a fairer light | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | History is painting Robbie Deans' Wallabies reign in a fairer light
Mark Kolbe Israel Folau and Robbie Deans share a laugh after a Wallabies press conference in Sydney in 2013.
OPINION: Ewen McKenzie, 50 per cent. Michael Cheika, 52 per cent. Robbie Deans 59 per cent. Those are the winning percentages of the past three Wallabies coaches.
Average scores against the All Blacks? 26-17 under Deans. 34-23 under McKenzie (with no wins) and 33-15 under Cheika. Perhaps now, three years after he was sacked, an ounce of sense can be restored to the debate surrounding Deans' qualities as a coach, a debate that descended into lunacy in Australia during his last two years in charge. But those close to Deans in Australia, such as ex Wallaby and Fairfax columnist Peter FitzSimons, had always insisted time would judge Deans in a kinder light. They are being proven correct.
There were valid reasons, lest we forget, for Deans to be let go. He had been in charge of the Wallabies for six years and with that length of tenure comes the possibility of fatigue - not from the coach himself, but certainly among the rugby Australian community. Issues with Deans' communication skills with some Wallabies players weren't made up from thin air - they existed. And the series loss against the British and Irish Lions in 2013 was always going to test the patience of the Australian Rugby Union
But do not buy into the theory that Deans was punted because of that loss to the British and Irish Lions.
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The chronology of events is important here. Deans' card was marked before that 41-13 capitulation in the third and deciding Sydney test. In the hours after that match at ANZ Stadium, I was told by an ARU official 'to keep Tuesday free'. As it turns out, that was the day McKenzie was unveiled as his successor. But things were moving behind the scenes far earlier than that. At the turn of 2013 there were those in Queensland whispering in Quade Cooper's ear to sign a new contract with the ARU because Deans would get the chop. Welcome to the world of Australian rugby politics.
What really hurt Deans was a sustained period of criticism after the 2011 World Cup. Some of it was justified, some of it was not. The discussion reached a nadir when it was suggested by former Wallaby Greg Martin that he was a trojan horse sent from New Zealand to wreck Australian rugby, but while that is too laughably ridiculous to take seriously, there were plenty of other theories that were give far too much credence.
Primary among them was the argument that Cooper would rescue Australian rugby if only Deans would get out of the way and let him express himself. That was level of debate and thanks to the echo chamber of the internet, it became lodged in many people's minds.
Never mind that the Super Rugby franchises and the Wallabies weren't even on the same page.
Events after his departure have told their own story. Deans moved to Japan to coach Panasonic Wild Knights, where he has won three titles on the trot. But Japanese rugby is rubbish isn't it? Well, ask the All Blacks sevens team or the Springboks about that.
Will Deans ever coach at test level again? It's the All Blacks job he covets of course, but unless the current regime implodes he has more chance of flying to the moon in his jet boat. However, there might be a few northern nations post-2019 who look at his profile - experienced, technically strong, excellent career win rate - and wonder if he could do a turnaround job in the manner that Eddie Jones has.
"If ever a biography was required to lift the lid and present the real picture of an identity, then this is it," wrote David Pocock in a foreword to Deans' biography. Pocock, the standout Wallaby given his start by Deans, got it about right.
- Stuff.co.nz | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/opinion/83728260/History-is-painting-Robbie-Deans-Wallabies-reign-in-a-fairer-light | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/bb818c7096fad94be0da557a9beef49998cf102c5a3b0fc5e1e65edb360869c6.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T22:51:01 | null | 2016-08-27T22:03:58 | Lion cubs, brass bands and $1000 salads are among the bizarre phenomena aboard private jets. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Ftravel%2Fthemes%2Fluxury%2F83637684%2FFlight-attendant-Emilia-George-reveals-the-secrets-of-a-VIP-journey.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/a/g/q/q/s/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsn90.png/1472335438395.jpg | en | null | Flight attendant Emilia George reveals the secrets of a VIP journey | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Flight attendant Emilia George reveals the secrets of a VIP journey
123RF Economy class is a foreign concept for a select group of VIP flyers.
Lion cubs, brass bands and US$700 ($966) salads are among the bizarre phenomena aboard private jets, according to a VIP fight attendant.
Emilia George told The Telegraph she "learned to expect the unexpected" during her time in service to the rich and famous.
She said: "From a £1 million dinner service to a $700 bag of salad, money is no object when you can afford your own private jet.... Rather than having to see each other, a divorced couple who had shared custody of their dog would send the pampered pooch back and forth on their plane."
An airplane with the best food, service and seats in the world? The writers from Traveller.com.au name what their dream plane would feature.
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Unsurprisingly, George says VIP jets are pretty fancy.
"There's been on-board gyms, disco rooms featuring poles for girls to dance on and even a solid gold throne. In many cases it costs more to furbish the plane than it does to buy one in the first place."
She likened some experiences to being on reality tv show The Apprentice, including paying a £500 taxi fare "just to get a tin of caviar", and "desperately trying to source a 200-piece brass band to welcome your client upon arrival".
She advises against mile-high encounters with clients, though she has had to destroy evidence of extra-marital affairs.
"Some people, however, don't want the hassle and just bring their wife and lover on the same flight."
Among the perks, tips of £3,000 cash per crew member, Rolex watches and Hermès bags have been reported among VIP flight attendants.
Perhaps it's warranted when some of their clients' culinary demands have included "salmon that's had classical music played to it all its life" and consuming only desserts covered in gold leaf.
As for hand luggage, the items George has stowed away have included :an enormous box full to the brim with Tiffany's jewels", "an extensive collection of guns", falcons, lion cubs and "a monkey dressed in Burberry".
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/themes/luxury/83637684/Flight-attendant-Emilia-George-reveals-the-secrets-of-a-VIP-journey | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/ac65433930aefd2348f38134b6822dd889ec8116f259fa87b3b9f4cd1c2a912b.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T12:50:29 | null | 2016-08-27T12:27:34 | Wallabies expect All Blacks prop to face judicial hearing for incident with Australia's Kane Douglas. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Frugby%2Fall-blacks%2F83636109%2FAll-Blacks-prop-Owen-Franks-under-scrutiny-from-Wallabies-for-incident.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/n/h/u/k/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsm19.png/1472301503152.jpg | en | null | All Blacks prop Owen Franks under scrutiny from Wallabies for incident | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | All Blacks prop Owen Franks under scrutiny from Wallabies for incident
Phil Walter All Blacks tighthead prop Owen Franks might be in some strife.
The Wallabies expect All Blacks prop Owen Franks to face a judicial hearing, in the wake of Saturday night's Bledisloe Cup match in Wellington.
New Zealand beat Australia 29-9 at Westpac Stadium, to heap more misery on the visitors and retain the coveted trophy.
But Wallabies coach Michael Cheika changed the narrative from the pressure that's mounting on him, attempting to transfer it to Franks and the All Blacks. Franks certainly appeared to have his left hand on the face of Australia lock Kane Douglas, during the first half of Saturday's match, with Cheika asked afterwards for an opinion of what occurred.
GETTY IMAGES Wallabies head coach Michael Cheika did his best to obscure the result of Saturday's clash with the All Blacks.
"We saw it at the time but I'm sure the match review will pick it up," Cheika said.
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"They couldn't miss it, it was pretty in the open. It'd be pretty hard for the match review to miss."
The media contingent at the match hadn't seen the incident live and footage only emerged after All Blacks head coach Steve Hansen had done his post-match press conference.
Hansen is due up again on Sunday morning, where Franks' hand and its movements will no doubt be on the agenda, as well an apparent Australian Rugby Union (ARU) complaint about a meeting with referee Romain Poite.
It's alleged Hansen and Poite met before the match in Wellington, with Cheika not informed at the time. Reports have since surfaced that the ARU have made a formal complaint to World Rugby about the meeting.
Cheika doesn't give the impression he believes that he and the team and captain Stephen Moore get the rub of the green from officials and made comments after the match that could make his own immediate future a little precarious.
He entered a referees' room at halftime, while coaching the Waratahs in Super Rugby last year and was basically on probation.
That didn't appear to water-down his post-match comments on Saturday about Poite's performance.
"I was bitterly disappointed to be honest," said Cheika, among other things.
"I'm on record with the referees boss Alain Rolland about the treatment to our captain and our players by Romain Poite. There was a time there in the game where in a break in play, when the national captain of Australia was asking the referee when might be an opportunity for me to talk to you and he absolutely ignored him."
- Dominion Post | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/all-blacks/83636109/All-Blacks-prop-Owen-Franks-under-scrutiny-from-Wallabies-for-incident | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/134062654ffe7d074e7954890ad1994c66f8675c0baa536cab2543f114fb8a97.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T00:52:10 | null | 2016-08-31T00:49:28 | The under fire Warriors coach says he will fight to keep his job next year at the club. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Fleague%2F83755757%2FAndrew-McFadden-believes-he-has-more-to-offer-Warriors.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/v/6/i/v/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dv6ct.png/1472604568088.jpg | en | null | Andrew McFadden believes he has more to offer Warriors | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Andrew McFadden believes he has more to offer Warriors
Photosport. Andrew McFadden says he's always been willing to make the tough calls as Warriors coach.
Under siege Warriors coach Andrew McFadden is prepared to fight to save his job.
McFadden has been under increasing public and media pressure to retain his position after the Warriors' 36-24 loss to Wests Tigers on Sunday.
It meant that once again the Warriors won't finish the season in the top eight and the knives could be out for McFadden, who has one year left on his contract.
But McFadden said on Wednesday he wants to continue in his job and believes he's the man to turn around the Warriors' fortunes.
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"At this stage I still feel like I can contribute a lot to this club," McFadden said.
"I know I've got support of the players and I know there will be questions asked at the end of the year.
"I'll deal with them in due time, but at the moment I've got to prepare for this game," he said of Sunday's clash with the Eels.
Warriors managing director Jim Doyle has ducked requests from the media for interviews over the club's season and McFadden's future, saying he will only comment once a review of the season has been completed.
So with Doyle off limits, it has been left to McFadden to deal with the tough questions on why the season turned out like it did.
McFadden admits he's made mistakes this year, but says that's all part of the learning process of being a coach and added that he's never been afraid to make the tough calls.
"You don't learn in this game if you don't make mistakes," he said.
"I'm sure I'll be able to sit back and say I've made a few.
"But I've made made a lot of good decisions as well and I'm very proud about, I haven't compromised, there hasn't been any self preservation in this.
"I've always made decisions in what I believe is in the best interest of the club and I'll continue to do that."
McFadden says he is constantly trying to think of ways the team can improve and although it could be argued the players have let him down badly, he admits the buck should stop with him.
"I think very deeply about this team and what we need to do to make it click, we have done a lot of good things this year, but the results tell us that we've still fallen short.
"At the end of the year I need to step back and have a look at everything and then those questions can be answered in due time.
"You've got to have a lot of self reflection," he added, when asked if he ever questions himself.
"At the end of the day, I've got to take full responsibility for the results on the field.
"So I'll be certainly looking at everything."
One of the things that will be looked at is the other coaches at the club.
It has been reported assistant coach Andrew Webster is leaving to head to the Tigers, while it's understood Under 20s coach Kelvin Wright and Duane Mann, the academy and pathways head coach are both leaving.
"I'll be looking at all of our staff and reviewing all operations in the organisations and we'll be making the changes if we need to," McFadden said of possible staff changes.
Before other plans for 2017 can be made, there is the small matter of Sunday's game against the Eels at Mt Smart Stadium.
It's a game with nothing riding on it and McFadden said it's been tough to lift the players' spirits after last weekend's defeat.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/league/83755757/Andrew-McFadden-believes-he-has-more-to-offer-Warriors | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/f8ff7730a68e7141ec02c70b942bb0d5a8e147f3c5bb2b6afbf47ecfba588c0a.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T20:52:05 | null | 2016-08-30T19:16:12 | More people are lending money to cash-strapped parents, but it can lead to trouble if not done right. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fbusiness%2Fmoney%2F83500128%2FFamily-loans-keep-the-banks-at-a-distance.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/p/u/k/3/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dpp40.png/1472584573236.jpg | en | null | Family loans keep the banks at a distance | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Family loans keep the banks at a distance
SUPPLIED Paul Frampton and Paul Gadd from Family Loans.
Asset rich, cash poor.
It's a financial predicament many older people face, living in a valuable house, but struggling to make ends meet.
Some resort to high interest reverse mortgage loans which puts money in their pocket, but erodes their equity.
WAVEBREAK MEDIA/123RF Handshake on a loan from one generation to another. These days it may well be the daughter lending money to mum and dad.
Two former partners from tax and accounting firm Deloitte think there's a better way; helping professional people lend their cash-strapped parents the money.
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Paul Frampton and Paul Gadd's Family Loans business helps families arrange properly-documented inter-generational loans enabling families to keep interest-hungry banks out of the loop.
ZERBOR/123RF Deciding how much interest to charge on a family loan is tough.
Family loan types
It is common for different generations within a family to help each other.
Parents sometimes guarantee a portion of their children's home loans to help them avoid low-deposit levies and inflated interest rates.
Gifting, or lending, the children a house deposit seems the only way parents can be assured their young ones don't miss out on owning a property.
Money can go sideways too with sibling lending to sibling, sometimes to help in an emergency.
We're so long-lived these days, loan flows can even skip generations, with grandparents lending money to grandchildren.
But increasingly, Frampton says, people are lending money to their cash-strapped parents, to be paid back from their estates after their deaths.
Family Loans' focus is on helping families arrange this kind of loan.
Familial lending is a phenomenon most know little about.
It is roughly how many loans between family and friends are being made, but not the quantities of money being lent, or what the money is for. The chances are that most loans are small.
A 2014 report on financial inclusion paid for by National Australian Bank (the parent bank of BNZ) indicated about 5 per cent of Kiwis at any one time have a loan from a family member or a friend.
Internationally, that's quite low. It was 25 per cent in the Netherlands and 12 per cent in Australia.
How to make family loans
People making loans informally to other family members can lead to trouble, Frampton says.
Family Loans offers loan contracts families can use when one family member lends a substantial sum to another, and has set up a digital loans register, and developed a software program, which allow lenders and borrowers to manage their loans.
The idea for Family Loans came from a chat with Frampton's family lawyer, who had been preparing a loan contract for an inter-generational family loan for another client.
That suggests at least some family loans are being documented by lawyers, though it is likely to only be for the larger ones.
"One of the major issues that arises within families is the potential disruption to family harmony through loans that are not properly recorded or even known by other family members," Frampton says.
Frampton helped develop the business case for the creation of state-owned Kiwibank.
Gadd says: "We provide peace of mind to the lenders, borrowers and other family members and loan terms can be anything agreed between the family members."
"It doesn't matter whether it's a loan from parents to children or vice versa. A key point is that children who lend to parents are protected as the home is security for the advance and parents retain life-time occupancy of the home.
"In fact, although we see the major application is between family members, the registry system can just as easily work between friends," Gadd says
Fees and interest
Whether to charge interest when making a loan to a family member can be a vexed question.
The system developed by Family Loans allows notional interest to be "recognised" and recorded.
"Only when the loan is eventually repaid will the notional interest be recognised as actual interest and paid to the lender," Frampton says.
"At that time, resident withholding tax provisions will be triggered."
By contrast to loans from banks and finance companies, interest charged on family loans is likely to be low, often just enough to preserve the value of a lender's money.
Indeed, family loans may be entered into in a bid to avoid family wealth leaking away to bank and finance company shareholders.
Interest on commercial reverse mortgages compounds can add up to large sums.
Heartland's current floating interest rate is 7.6 per cent. On a $50,000 loan, in 10 years over $56,000 of interest would accrue, if the rate remained unchanged.
That may be acceptable if house prices continue to grow, but if they don't then equity can be eroded.
"One of the only alternatives available to them (asset rich, cash poor older people) is to take a reverse equity mortgage, which can result in crippling charges that decimate the eventual inheritance for children, Frampton says.
THINGS TO CONSIDER
It's worth exploring the options before opting for a family loan, however.
Commercial lending may be expensive, but it keeps family members' finances separate, which limits the scope for family strife.
And there may be other options, such as a householder downsizing, renting rooms on Airbnb, or taking in a lodger.
Some councils run reasonably-priced rates deferment schemes for older ratepayers. This allows householders to pay their rates by borrowing the money from the council.
Interest on the debt accrues and is paid back when the householder dies, or when they sell their home. Auckland Council, for example, was charging an interest rate of just 3.5 per cent in April.
Commercial lenders charge fees. Fees can be hard to avoid on larger family loans too.
Whether you pay a family lawyer to draft a contract, or Family Loans, there is professional work to be paid for.
The cost for the Family Loans service is $2000 establishment fee, and then a $300 annual fee.
What if something goes wrong?
In any financial transaction things can go wrong.
If someone who loans money has a sudden need for it back, what would happen? What would happen if the lender go bankrupt?
These are questions the lender, and the borrower need to be clear on before going ahead.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/money/83500128/Family-loans-keep-the-banks-at-a-distance | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/3cd3a7e97f9ae4a8bacc136659065f0aca6d3b06d5099d1f72caef8d16cceb87.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T20:51:37 | null | 2016-08-29T20:46:18 | Kiwi veteran Benji Marshall will get his farewell match for the Dragons. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Fleague%2F83696845%2FDragons-coach-Paul-McGregor-confirms-Benji-Marshall-NRL-recall.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/t/x/2/6/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dtwwd.png/1472503592704.jpg | en | null | Dragons coach Paul McGregor confirms Benji Marshall NRL recall | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Dragons coach Paul McGregor confirms Benji Marshall NRL recall
BRENDON THORNE/GETTY IMAGES Benji Marshall will get a farewell game for the Dragons on Saturday against the Newcastle Knights.
St George Illawarra coach Paul McGregor has confirmed rookie Drew Hutchison will go back to reserve grade and veteran Benji Marshall will be granted a farewell on Saturday.
A controversial call-up to the NRL following the axing of Marshall last week, Hutchison was solid in a try-scoring season debut in Monday's loss to Parramatta.
McGregor was keen to see how his 21-year-old project would handle the step-up in competition, however his highlights reel will show plenty of his touches came behind a badly beaten forward pack.
And while Hutchison put his 95-kilogram frame to good use with a powerful individual try from close range in the first half, McGregor believes he learnt how much more improvement is required.
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"It was good for Drewy to get a game. He knows how hard it is and how much work he needs to do, and he's got plenty of time to do that before next season," McGregor said.
"He's a bit tired in the shed there, as expected. He played 80 minutes and hasn't played it for quite some time.
"He's only young. He'll work hard in the pre-season and get plenty of opportunity going forward."
Dragons captain Gareth Widdop liked what he saw from his possible future halves partner, especially given they had planned to give him the lion's share of the general play kicking.
"You want to back his ability and he's a great kicker of the football," Widdop said.
"I think we saw tonight a few good kicks from Drew. And we like to use people's strengths. You've got to back yourself and he did that."
Former Kangaroos and NSW State of Origin No 7 Andrew Johns said it was too early to tell whether Hutchison had what it takes to become an established halfback.
"He's a steady player. To me he doesn't look like a halfback. He looks like a back-rower. He's done some nice things, but moving forward it's up to him how hard he works," Johns told Triple M.
The Dragons play their final game of the regular season against Newcastle on Saturday.
- AAP | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/league/83696845/Dragons-coach-Paul-McGregor-confirms-Benji-Marshall-NRL-recall | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/3162efd8d02e423702291ff4fad5d8c8fdac02db9374902c97f8cb075c77ee00.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T20:50:24 | null | 2016-08-26T20:20:54 | Billionaire Richard Branson survives nasty bike crash that saw him smack head first into the road. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Famericas%2F83626438%2FBillionaire-Richard-Branson-survives-bike-crash.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/e/m/u/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsekm.png/1472242854484.jpg | en | null | Billionaire Richard Branson survives bike crash | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Billionaire Richard Branson survives bike crash
@richardbaranson/TWITTER "I'm alive!" Richard Branson has tweeted a picture of his injuries.
Billionaire entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson has has a near-death experience after flying head first off his bicycle and into the road, in the British Virgin Islands.
The Virgin Group boss hit a hump in the road on Virgin Gorda, one of the islands in the Caribbean, catapulting him into the road. The 66-year-old posted pictures of his bloodied face on social media on Friday, showing the gruesome injuries that included a cracked cheek, torn ligaments and severe cuts.
"My life was literally flashing before my eyes," he wrote. "I really thought I was going to die. I went flying head-first towards the concrete road, but fortunately my shoulder and cheek took the brunt of the impact, and I was wearing a helmet that saved my life.''
Forget my injuries (cracked cheek, torn ligaments) – I'm having to drink tea out of a straw! https://t.co/aEh6TsDQz4 pic.twitter.com/t8g8HdHFqN — Richard Branson (@richardbranson) August 26, 2016
Branson travelled to Miami to receive medical treatment. He said he was really lucky to have not suffered more serious injuries.
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"My biggest hardship is having to drink tea out of a straw,'' he said.
Forget my injuries (cracked cheek, torn ligaments) – I'm having to drink tea out of a straw! https://t.co/aEh6TsDQz4 pic.twitter.com/t8g8HdHFqN — Richard Branson (@richardbranson) August 26, 2016
Branson was training for September's Virgin Strive Challenge, an event in which participants hike, cycle, swim and run from the base of the Matterhorn in the Alps to the summit of Mount Etna in Sicily.
Branson still hopes to take part in the charity event.
"My attitude has always been, if you fall flat on your face, at least you're moving forward,'' he said.
My life flashed before my eyes – fell headfirst over my bike handlebars https://t.co/aEh6TsDQz4 pic.twitter.com/U9fWDGVWhO — Richard Branson (@richardbranson) August 26, 2016
- AP | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/americas/83626438/Billionaire-Richard-Branson-survives-bike-crash | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/6f1f55b1beaafa22e96aa8a0292fc5aeee2217ae5e108acb92949401b59910eb.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T02:51:01 | null | 2016-08-28T02:18:45 | It's part caravan, part boutique... and it's on a rooftop in Melbourne. Need we say more? | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Ftravel%2Fdestinations%2Faustralia%2F83643234%2FNotel-Australias-newest-hipster-rooftop-hotel-thats-part-trailer-park-part-boutique.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/r/j/w/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsrj6.png/1472350725436.jpg | en | null | Notel: Australia's newest hipster rooftop hotel that's part trailer park, part boutique | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Notel: Australia's newest hipster rooftop hotel that's part trailer park, part boutique
Notel's airstream.
Melbourne's rooftops have seen some quirky developments in recent years, but perhaps none as unique as Notel.
Part boutique hotel, part caravan park, it's the invention of Melbourne-born entrepreneur, James Fry, who wanted to do something fun with the top floor of his multi-storey car park on fashionable Flinders Lane.
An intrepid traveller, he considered a few options – including a tram installation, but after research, he, like many, fell in love with the 1930s-designed Airstream caravan, an American classic that today is more popular and hip than ever. Fry settled on the idea of his trailer park hotel.
Andrew Curtis The 'bedroom' is compact.
Each van has its own little terrace constructed out of palettes and is plumbed, with ensuite.
With interiors designed by architects Edwards Moore, they pay homage to the 50s golden age of caravanning in their pinky tones, but are modern interpretations of the small space movement.
They sit in an environment of pinks and reds with a backdrop by artist, Ash Keating.
Andrew Curtis The living space in Notel.
There's no concierge, room service nor reception – of the live kind, anyway. You use your smartphone to book and access your van and there's an iPad in the van offering suggestions of great things to do, places to go, and things to eat and drink in the vicinity.
Notel costs $395 for Airstream Rooms for up to two people and $440 for the Airstream with Benefits, one van with a private deck and its own outdoor spa overlooking Finders Lane.
See notelmelbourne.com.au
Andrew Curtis It will also be used as an outdoor venue | http://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/destinations/australia/83643234/Notel-Australias-newest-hipster-rooftop-hotel-thats-part-trailer-park-part-boutique | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/5ab18eb916c6799e16cb52b840679f8ed149fadb48f25ea7b54a4e5598d3ba6e.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T04:50:38 | null | 2016-08-27T04:45:13 | Are these the future stars of Taranaki kapahaka? | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fnational%2F83627448%2FHometown-performers-take-regional-kapahaka-title-in-Hawera.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/f/e/c/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsfco.png/1472273115902.jpg | en | null | Hometown performers take regional kapahaka title in Hawera | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Hometown performers take regional kapahaka title in Hawera
ANDY JACKSON/Fairfax NZ ANDY JACKSON/Fairfax NZ ANDY JACKSON/Fairfax NZ ANDY JACKSON/Fairfax NZ ANDY JACKSON/Fairfax NZ ANDY JACKSON/Fairfax NZ ANDY JACKSON/Fairfax NZ ANDY JACKSON/Fairfax NZ ANDY JACKSON/Fairfax NZ ANDY JACKSON/Fairfax NZ ANDY JACKSON/Fairfax NZ ANDY JACKSON/Fairfax NZ Jericho Nuku in action with Te Oranga Pai from Marfell School in New Plymouth. Russell Hockley was onstage with Te Ra o Te Uru (Ngati Ruanui & Ngaruahine) from Hawera. Mia Rose was part of Te Ra o Te Uru (Ngati Ruanui & Ngaruahine) from Hawera. Piki Weston-Jacobson of Te Ra o Te Uru (Ngati Ruanui & Ngaruahine) sings her heart out. Te Ra o Te Uru (Ngati Ruanui & Ngaruahine) from Hawera perform. Te Ra o Te Uru (Ngati Ruanui & Ngaruahine) from Hawera perform. Constantine Nuku from Te Oranga Pai from Marfell School in New Plymouth. The large crowd watches the performances. Liam Ngatai in action with Te Ra o Te Uru (Ngati Ruanui & Ngaruahine) from Hawera. Hapai Cameron (tongue out) was onstage with Te Ra o Te Uru (Ngati Ruanui & Ngaruahine) from Hawera. Piki Weston-Jacobson with Te Ra o Te Uru (Ngati Ruanui & Ngaruahine) from Hawera. Te Oranga Pai from Marfell School in New Plymouth perform. 1 of 12 « Previous « Previous Next » Next »
A rousing performance won a Taranaki group a chance to contest the national kapahaka championships in 2017.
Te Ra o Te Uru (a combined group from Ngati Ruanui and Ngaruahinerangi) was one of 29 groups who took part in Te Huihuinga O Nga Tatarakihi O Taranaki, a Taranaki kapahaka competition for primary schools.
Seven groups were vying for three places at the national contest in Gisborne. Second placed were Te Kura o Waitara Rawhiti, from Waitara East and third placed Te Kura Takawaenga o Manukorihi, from Manukorihi Intermediate School.
ANDY JACKSON/Fairfax NZ Mia Rose performs with Te Ra o Te Uru (Ngati Ruanui & Ngaruahine) from Hawera during the Te Huihuinga O Nga Tatarakihi O Taranaki kapahaka competition held at the TSB Hub in Hawera.
Festival chairman John NIwa said he was impressed with the standard of the performances, held at Hawera's TSB Hub.
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ANDY JACKSON/Fairfax NZ Russell Hockley gives his all with Te Ra o Te Uru (Ngati Ruanui & Ngaruahine) from Hawera performance at Te Huihuinga O Nga Tatarakihi O Taranaki kapahaka competition held at the TSB Hub in Hawera.
It was the 26th time the competition had been held, eight judges marked each school's performance on elements including their waiata, poi, haka, uniform and use of Taranaki reo. There were 800 children involved, along with supporters and their tutors.
"One outstanding feature to me was the tutors and their commitment to supporting te reo Maori in the region. You could see the respect the children have for them," Niwa said.
As one of the original founders of the competition, Niwa said it had been a long but worthwhile journey. The first time the event was held at Hawera, performers were outside on a stage constructed from pallets.
This year, the team of dedicated supporters remained the backbone of the event, but conditions were far better, with the performers on an internationally-sized stage for the first time.
He said the competition was originally started to encourage the schools to share what they were doing, and after a while the standard improved until a competitive section was needed.
"The next step is to get schools to start writing their own songs, about their lives, whats happening with their kids, the changes that are occurring in their lives, that's maybe the next step to keep it rolling along, keep our kids interested and give them something to think about."
He said the winning groups would spend the next year working on their programme for the national event.
"It's like the Olympics, you are immediately starting again."
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/83627448/Hometown-performers-take-regional-kapahaka-title-in-Hawera | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/7b0ee924432325d7df40bf2a703ae070cc05b67682046b76059eb38a7b957436.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T04:52:30 | null | 2016-08-31T03:38:29 | A man who cheated the benefit system out of $91,000 was caught out after being dobbed in. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Ftaranaki-daily-news%2Fnews%2F83748905%2F91-000-benefit-fraud-debt-will-take-Taranaki-man-350-years-to-pay-back.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/c/b/y/z/t/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dv12h.png/1472614710132.jpg | en | null | $91,000 benefit fraud debt will take Taranaki man 350 years to pay back | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | $91,000 benefit fraud debt will take Taranaki man 350 years to pay back
Robert Charles/Fairfax NZ A man will serve a 10 month home detention sentence in South Taranaki after pleading guilty to benefit fraud charges.
It will take a Taranaki benefit fraudster about 350 years to pay back his $91,000 debt.
At sentencing it was revealed that Grant Eric Charles Lawrence will pay $5 a week back to the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) towards an overpayment he received over a number of years through his dishonesty.
The 58-year-old previously pleaded guilty to one charge of obtains by deception and five counts of using a document.
The summary of facts outlined that on February 27, 2008, Lawrence was granted an invalids benefit. In signing up for assistance, the defendant agreed to tell MSD if his circumstances changed, including if he was in a relationship.
READ MORE:
* Woman convicted of benefit fraud totalling $92,000
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* South Taranaki man ordered to repay $12,000 in fraudulent benefit payments
* A Taranaki couple lived together while the woman claimed $49,000 in benefits, court hears
But an investigation by MSD began after it received a tip-off and found that Lawrence had been living in New Plymouth with a woman from June 2011 to February 2015.
During this period, Lawrence was also staying in a Housing New Zealand property and had been granted a subsidy where MSD would pay a portion of his rent to off-set the defendant's low income.
Between 2012-2014, Lawrence wrote on five different forms related to the income-related rent that he was single.
The summary said when the defendant was interviewed in December 2014, he denied he was in a relationship and that the woman was just a friend who stayed with him on weekdays while she worked in the city.
"The defendant added he was never asked by the Ministry or Housing New Zealand if he had anyone else living at the address," the summary said.
All up, Lawrence was paid $91,257.16 in benefits to which he was not eligible.
On Wednesday, Judge Chris Sygrove sentenced the defendant to 10 months' home detention, which he will serve at a Normanby address.
Along with that penalty, he will also have to attend budgeting advice sessions.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/news/83748905/91-000-benefit-fraud-debt-will-take-Taranaki-man-350-years-to-pay-back | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/dc9e8c994473ea48ba36b43e8ac947eee44c51ab17bb213e9e59adab919a18c2.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T20:50:10 | null | 2016-08-26T20:38:17 | Town in Australia sees tourism boom after a 4.1kg gold nugget was unearthed. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Faustralia%2F83626525%2FTourists-in-Australia-flock-to-goldfields-in-wake-of-lucky-find.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/e/q/q/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsen1.png/1472243897976.jpg | en | null | Tourists in Australia flock to goldfields in wake of lucky find | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Tourists in Australia flock to goldfields in wake of lucky find
The area in Victoria, Australia, where a 4kg gold nugget was found has seen a tourism boom.
When news spread that an Australian hobby miner had found a 4.1kg golden nugget beneath the soil of Victoria's goldfields, tourists and prospectors flocked to Sovereign Hill.
The area was already a popular destination among tourists, but more so after this week's find.
Jayson Morgan, the customer service officer at Ballarat's Grapes Hotel, reported that a bus carrying dozens of tourists which had been destined for Warrnambool made a beeline for Golden Point.
One of the oldest pubs in town, the Grapes is already enjoying about a 20-per-cent boost in customer numbers compared to its usual intake, Morgan said.
When a prospector has a lucky find in the Golden Triangle, the good fortune reverberates, as hotels, restaurants and hardware stores (which sell detectors) become inundated with punters.
"Everyone responds the same way," said Morgan, who has been at the pub for 10 years.
"They run into Bunnings to buy metal detectors so they can find their own pot of gold.
"It takes one inspirational story to inspire a whole lot of people. Everyone wishes everyone luck but everyone wants it for themselves ... but then, they're always happy to help you lift out yours, if you find it."
Morgan is a Ballarat boy, who panned for gold with his grandfather when he was a child – a family tradition he said goes back generations.
Customers eager to hear his family secrets have offered generous "finder's fees" but he shares his secret spots for free.
Morgan knows the best information comes from the band of regulars who have frequented the Grapes Hotel for decades.
They each have their own story, a hidden spot, and a gem at home passed down from their ancestors.
"They're always taking at the Grapes about how their great great grandfather worked here, in the goldfields, one was a locksmith, another was someone who made shoes for horses ... there's a lot of history.
"That's where I get my information from, listening to the older men in the community who drink at Grapes, they know a lot of history about where is good to go."
Gary Crawley, the owner of the Wedderburn Hotel about 153 kilometres north, recalls when Mick Brown came into his hotel after finding an 87-ounce, or 2.7 kilogram golden nugget.
He said he noticed a small increase in customers after news spread on the "bush telegraph" of the find.
He said many of his 12 customers who found nuggets in the past year, responded with numbing shock, rather than a round of beer.
"People are more interested in hanging on to it, feeling what it feels like to hold in their hands, than they are shouting beers and throwing a party.
"It's quite daunting when you grab a nugget that size – [the value] is like two four wheel drives in your hands."
- Sydney Morning Herald | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/australia/83626525/Tourists-in-Australia-flock-to-goldfields-in-wake-of-lucky-find | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/8ed31f72d4c81f84eb0795ca12d211a35e0e74ea3304af6c4d53f00ac03bd5de.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T00:50:20 | null | 2016-08-26T23:45:23 | The woman who died in a house fire in Feilding is understood to be a respected school counsellor and the mother of rapper PNC. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fnational%2F83543755%2FRapper-PNCs-mother-killed-in-Feilding-house-fire.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/q/m/2/n/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dqmrv.png/1472255123328.jpg | en | null | Rapper PNC's mother killed in Feilding house fire | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Rapper PNC's mother killed in Feilding house fire
Kathy Hansen, pictured in 2009, died in a house fire in Feilding.
The woman who died in a house fire in Feilding is understood to be a respected school counsellor and the mother of rapper PNC.
The Coroner's office has confirmed it is investigating the death of Kathy Hansen whose Fitzroy St home was destroyed by fire on Wednesday night.
Six fire trucks and 30 firefighters were called in to battle the blaze about 8pm but were unable to enter the house due to the intensity of the flames.
Rapper, PNC.
Hansen worked as a counsellor at Queen Elizabeth College but was perhaps best known for being the mother of award-winning rapper Sam Hansen, who performs under the moniker PNC.
READ MORE:
* Woman dead after fire in Feilding
* The Questionnaire: PNC
* Palmerston North Rapper PNC is back with the basics
Queen Elizabeth College principal Mike Houghton sent out a letter to the college community stating that it understood Kathy Hansen passed away in a house fire on Wednesday night.
The letter stated the school was awaiting formal confirmation while investigations by police and fire services were completed.
In it, Hansen was described as a valued colleague and member of the college community who would be missed.
The fire is not being treated as suspicious.
Attempts to contact the Auckland-based rapper and his management were unsuccessful but he has since cancelled an appearance at a show in Christchurch.
His replacement for the show posted on Facebook that PNC could no longer attend due to "the passing of a family member".
PNC dedicated a song to his mother on his latest recording, The Luke Valima EP, which was released at the end of July.
In a recent interview with Stuff, Hansen said his mother was one of the people he most admired in the world.
He said he always appreciated her honesty.
"She'll always tell anyone her opinion, and she cares deeply about social justice and other people's lives. She works as a school guidance counsellor, and is completely passionate and transparent on her thoughts about all the things she thinks are important in life.
"She taught me that, and I try to implement that in my own life."
In a previous interview with Stuff, Kathy Hansen said she was proud of her son's achievements.
She spoke to a reporter from inside her work office, which was covered in photos of her son.
"He doesn't like being treated like a star, really, he finds it slightly embarrassing. He's not into that thing at all, so I think he's got his head together when it comes to that sort of stuff, " she said.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/83543755/Rapper-PNCs-mother-killed-in-Feilding-house-fire | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/7e55730a06f073b5e21f4abffe174283027e8ddce9f7b7d96e99a513c26aeec7.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T00:50:43 | null | 2016-08-27T00:31:26 | Recently-convicted Jehovah's Witness elder back working with children at his family church. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Faustralia%2F83629108%2FPaedophile-back-working-with-kids-in-Australian-church.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/g/m/d/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsgms.png/1472257886064.jpg | en | null | Paedophile back working with kids in Australian church | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Paedophile back working with kids in Australian church
Paul Jeffers Melissa Buchanan was shocked to discover her abuser was working with children.
A former Jehovah's Witness elder in Australia, recently convicted of child-sex offences, is back working with children from a Melbourne parish run by his father-in-law.
Richard Hill was found guilty last year of the offences against his six-year-old female cousin, who was also in the religion. He was put on the sex offenders' list and fined. The offences happened in 1981 when he was 20.
Hill, a roofing plumber of Doreen with an office in Brunswick, this week maintained his innocence and confirmed he was working with children while doorknocking as part of the Jehovah's Witnesses religious practice called "proselytising".
His wife's father, Ken Hall, is the senior elder at the Plenty Kingdom Hall in outer Melbourne, where Hill now worships. "I am allowed to attend under strict conditions," Hill said. "The police know about that."
Hill appealed his conviction but then dropped the appeal.
"I pleaded not guilty to all charges but we decided not to keep going because of mental stress on my family and the costs – I spent over A$100,000 ($104,500) defending myself in the courts. You get to a point where you turn the other cheek and walk away. I am definitely not guilty. It comes down to one man's opinion over another person's opinion."
However he apologised to his victim, Melissa Buchanan, on social media, as she was preparing to tell police what had happened to her as a little girl. "I'm truly sorry Melissa," he told her in a Facebook message. "I know you must be hurt and I'm so sorry for that. Trust is very hard to earn but easy to destroy."
Buchanan, 41, who is no longer in the sect, told police Hill was living in her family home in the northern suburbs in the 1980's and one night after a shower he came into her bedroom dressed only in a small yellow towel and after making her sit on his lap sexually abused her while telling her to be quiet.
Her family, she says, all staunch Jehovah's Witnesses, hushed it up to save face and the church's reputation, and Hill later became an elder.
"He could very easily do to others what he did to me," she says. "I don't know how they can have a convicted paedophile knocking on doors speaking about religion. I just want him to know that I will never forget."
Late last year the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses To Child Sexual Abuse heard shocking revelations about the Jehovah's Witnesses in Australia, including that 1006 allegations of child sexual abuse had been lodged with church hierarchy since 1950 but none had been reported to police.
It also heard the organisation still receives three to four complaints a month.
The religion's Australian lawyer – and core member – Vincent Toole did not respond to questions from Fairfax Media this week. Victorian Jehovah's Witnesses – estimated at about 10,000 from 66,000 Australia-wide – began gathering at the isolated Melton Assembly Hall on Friday for their annual convention. Two elderly directors of the Australian governing body – the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of Australia – recently stepped down. One is aged 93, the other 89.
Jehovah's Witnesses believe they have God's messages from certain sections of the Bible to themselves and that only they will survive the apocalypse. They have predicted the end of the world five times. They also believe Satan has ruled the earth since 1914.
The sect has a policy of "shunning" members who left or wanted to leave by cutting them off from family members who remained.
- theage.com.au | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/australia/83629108/Paedophile-back-working-with-kids-in-Australian-church | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/9d7d827b497677d3f8f87eb2419f978374f759203612c33e59482cfd3368d80f.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T16:50:30 | null | 2016-08-27T15:10:05 | Holiday chaos near London after too-tall truck hit an overpass, taking down a bridge onto a busy highway. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fworld%2Feurope%2F83636275%2FTraffic-chaos-near-London-as-too-tall-truck-hits-overpass-takes-down-a-bridge.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/m/5/x/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dsm5v.png/1472310605525.jpg | en | null | Traffic chaos near London as too-tall truck hits overpass, takes down a bridge | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Traffic chaos near London as too-tall truck hits overpass, takes down a bridge
TWITTER The truck's roof was shorn off in the collision.
Witnesses and British emergency services say a truck has struck an overpass and collapsed a pedestrian bridge onto one of England's busiest highways, injuring one person.
Witnesses say a truck hauling construction vehicles appeared to clip the bridge Saturday on the London-bound M20 highway 48 kilometres southeast of the British capital.
At least one person has been injured after a pedestrian bridge collapsed on the M20 in Kent https://t.co/tN7UgJRqkY — Sky News (@SkyNews) August 27, 2016
Ambulance officials say the injured man was a motorcyclist who came off his bike as the bridge started to collapse in front of him, but his injuries were not life-threatening.
The M20, one of two motorways that link London with the cross-Channel port of Dover and the nearby Eurotunnel terminal, was closed in both directions.
The shutdown caused massive traffic jams on what was already an exceptionally busy three-day weekend for vacationers heading to and from France.
M20 update: One person was injured when a bridge was hit by a lorry and collapsed onto the M20 near West Malling. pic.twitter.com/pt8FFtRkLQ — Kent 999s (@Kent_999s) August 27, 2016
- AP | http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/83636275/Traffic-chaos-near-London-as-too-tall-truck-hits-overpass-takes-down-a-bridge | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/114fdaef60b60f01bbfcf1f8265bf3131a63155feae1ebb1f2ff5eca12c55715.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T12:49:01 | null | 2016-08-26T09:01:40 | The MCC may now stand for | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Fcricket%2F83619651%2FCorkers-not-yorkers-put-cricketers-in-danger-at-Lords-warns-MCC-newsletter.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/d/3/8/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1ds9c3.png/1472202100450.jpg | en | null | Corkers - not yorkers - put cricketers in danger at Lord's, warns MCC newsletter | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Corkers - not yorkers - put cricketers in danger at Lord's, warns MCC newsletter
REUTERS An array of empty bottles left by spectators at Lord's at the end of a day's play in the recent test between England and Pakistan in London.
Boundary fieldsmen to wear helmets maybe?
The latest injury danger to cricketers at the home of the game is flying champagne corks.
The UK media has reported that spectators at Lord's in London have been warned about the injury potential of corks popped from a bottle while watching the cricket.
REUTERS Lord's spectators have been warned over launching their champagne corks onto the field.
The Telegraph reported that a newsletter from the Marylebone Cricket Club read: "In recent times the practice of some Members and other spectators opening bottles of champagne in such a way as to allow corks to be projected on to the outfield has been criticised.
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"Any items which are aimed at the playing area may cause a potential hazard to fieldsmen, and this point has been made formally to the Club."
So it may be a more of a case of twisted ankles by treading on a stray cork, rather than catching one in full flight in the eye.
"Lord's is now the only ground into which Members and ticket holders are allowed to bring alcohol, and in order for this arrangement to continue it is important that all Members, their guests and other spectators refrain from the practice that has been described," the newsletter said.
A spokesman for the MCC said: "We're the only ground in world cricket that allows members and spectators to bring in their own drink and we very much want to retain that.
"It's part of what makes Lord's, Lord's.
"But the problem of flying corks distracting fielders and posing a potential hazard has been mentioned by visiting teams and so we are politely asking members to desist from popping champagne bottles in the stands in the direction of the outfield," the Daily Mail reported.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/cricket/83619651/Corkers-not-yorkers-put-cricketers-in-danger-at-Lords-warns-MCC-newsletter | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/d43fe0c97ac3aac894f3952aaaafbf408387db052ce02510eaa1196f28f79ea1.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T13:03:02 | null | 2016-08-26T07:37:13 | A simple winter's trek in NZ would leave Pavlina Pizova's partner dead, and her waiting a month to be rescued. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fnational%2F83605785%2FTramper-Pavlina-Pizovas-grief-stricken-stay-in-remote-Fiordland-hut.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/r/y/h/r/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1drymx.png/1472197036085.jpg | en | null | Tramper Pavlina Pizova's grief-stricken stay in remote Fiordland hut | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Tramper Pavlina Pizova's grief-stricken stay in remote Fiordland hut
STUFF.CO.NZ One month alone, Pavlina Pizova’s survival story.
Pavlina Pizova was polite, almost apologetic, as she recounted her nightmare.
"Good day," she began.
In broken English, the Czech tramper described an ordeal that started a month ago, when she and partner Ondrej Petr set off to walk the Routeburn Track in Fiordland.
IAIN MCGREGOR/Stuff.co.nz Czech tramper Pavlina Pizova talks about her experience during press conference.
Two days later he would be dead. Pizova, cold and injured, endured two nights of snow, fog and wind. When she finally found shelter in a remote hut, it would take nearly four weeks for her to be rescued. Nobody knew she was there.
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Iain McGregor An emotional Pavlina Pizova describes her month-long ordeal after the death of her partner on the Routeburn Track.
Clutching a written statement, Pizova told a press conference at Queenstown Police Station on Friday of the conflict she faced: so desperate to get out she fashioned snow shoes out of vegetable baskets in attempt to walk through metre-deep drifts; so determined to live that she forced herself to stay.
"At the hut, considering my physical health, the deep snow conditions, knowing there were avalanche paths ahead of me, I knew it was best to stay in the safe place."
Only once did she stray off script, after she thanked the search and rescue, police and Department of Conservation (DOC) staff who found her.
NZ POLICE / SUPPLIED Pavlina Pizova and Ondrej Petr.
"That is very, very important," she said.
Then she broke down.
Pizova was saved only because consul for the Czech Republic Vladka Kennett, who lives in Glenorchy, near Queenstown, spotted "a random Facebook post" from concerned relatives back in Europe. She passed Pizova and Petr's details to searchers and she was found.
RADIO NEW ZEALAND A traumatic ordeal for a young Czech tourist stranded in the middle of winter on the Routeburn finally comes to an end.
"If the message didn't come through she would still be there," Kennett said.
WARNINGS FROM DOC
Pizova and Petr, both from tiny Czech towns, embarked on the Routeburn Track from the Glenorchy end on July 26, despite warnings from DOC staff. According to Kennett, they had no tent or locator beacon and told no-one of their plans.
SUPPLIED/FACEBOOK Pavlina Pizova spent a month in a remote Fiordland hut after her partner died on the Routeburn track.
After spending one night at the Falls Hut, the pair got caught in bad weather and became disoriented.
They spent the night out in the open, trying to shelter from the wind and snow. The next day, still disoriented by heavy fog and strong winds and with snow still falling, the pair slipped five to seven metres down a steep slope through bush. Petr fell further and became trapped between branches and rocks. Pizova was able to reach him but could not free him. She heard his last gasps of breath before he died.
"She tried everything she could but she was totally exhausted," Kennett said.
SUPPLIED/NZ POLICE Police have released this image of the Mackenzie warden's hut, where Pavlina Pizova sheltered after the loss of her partner on the Routeburn track.
"It was impossible [to free him]."
Unable to move her partner, Pizova spent two more nights sleeping in sub-zero conditions – at least one of them against a "vertical rock", her mostly wet possessions stuffed into her sleeping bag for warmth.
"She probably didn't even sleep she was just trying to move [her] fingers and toes to somehow keep warm," Kennett said.
SUPPLIED/FACEBOOK Pavlina Pizova was rescued after being stranded in a Fiordland hut for about a month.
"It was freezing. She was there in the worst part of the winter.
"She still can't feel her fingers . . . [they're] totally numb."
Pizova was finally able to reach the Lake Mackenzie Hut campsite, where she broke into the DOC warden's hut through a window. She only just made it.
Stuff.co.nz Czech tramper Pavlina Pizova talks about her experience during press conference.
"During this time I got extremely cold, exhausted and my feet were frozen," she said.
"The recent heavy snows meant I was walking through waist-deep snow and because all track markers were covered, I had to find my own way."
The hut had food, gas and firewood. Pizova's numbed fingers had turned white and her feet swelled drastically when she removed her boots. It was days before she could put them on again. Unable to walk far and with "numerous" avalanches around the hut, she stayed put. Trying to get her strength back, she exercised outside the hut with a heavy pack.
SUPPLIED/FACEBOOK Czech tramper Ondrej Petr died after falling on the Routeburn track.
Later, Pizova tried to walk out with her improvised snow shoes. Too hard. She used ashes from a fire to write "H" [for help] in the snow, hoping a rescuer would see it. No-one did. The hut had a working radio, but the English operating instructions were indecipherable to her. There was no choice but to wait.
"Nobody can prepare you for this," she later told police.
Kennett saw the Facebook post on Sunday and provided photos and car registration details to searchers, who tracked the couple's Toyota to the Routeburn car park at Glenorchy. She got the information from Petr's mother, she said, who was "reasonably panicky" but trying to comfort herself that her son and his partner had just lost their cellphone.
IAIN MCGREGOR/FAIRFAX NZ Lake McKenzie Hut and surrounding area on the Routeburn track near Queenstown where a woman was living for weeks after her partner died.
"Nobody knew – that's why it took so long," Kennett said.
"If they'd left any intentions with anybody ... there would have been some kind of panic."
On Friday, Pizova, in her early 30s, admitted she and Petr, 27, made "a few mistakes" in their preparations.
IAIN MCGREGOR/FAIRFAX NZ The woman decided to stay put because of the injuries and the snow.
"Not leaving our intentions with somebody, not carrying a [personal locator beacon] and underestimating the winter conditions on the track.
"I would like to use this opportunity to pass a strong message on to anyone intending to travel in the New Zealand mountains to seek very good information and mainly respect the winter conditions and quickly changing weather."
Otago Lakes central area commander Olaf Jensen said Pizova was "relieved" to see the helicopter crew that picked her up.
SUPPLIED The warden's hut at Lake Mackenzie on the Routeburn Track.
She was taken to hospital as a precaution and was understandably upset, but otherwise in good health, he said.
Despite poor weather, a recovery team was able to recover Petr's body on Friday morning.
Now, Pizova wanted to go home.
"The last month was very harrowing for me and my and my partner's families," she said.
"Especially I'd like to thank Vladka and Richard Kennett for their help and assistance on the personal basis and helping our families to get through all this.
"They are heroes for me."
TIMELINE:
February – Pavlina Pizova and Ondrej Petr arrive in New Zealand for a working holiday.
July 26 – Pizova and Petr enter the Routeburn Track from Glenorchy, despite warnings not so from DOC staff. They stay the night at Falls Hut.
July 27 – Facing "extreme" weather, including heavy snow and low cloud, the couple cannot reach Mackenzie Hut and are forced to sleep out in the open.
July 28 – The pair fall down a steep slope in more poor weather. Trapped, Petr dies. Pizova spends another night in the elements.
July 29-30 – Pizova, cold and injured, tries in vain to reach Mackenzie Hut campsite, finally succeeding after a third night in the open.
August 24 – Pizova is found in a hut by rescuers after family at home in the Czech Republic raise concerns. The couple's car was traced to Glenorchy.
August 26 – Petr's body is recovered. Pizova speaks of her "harrowing" experience – "I am aware we made a few mistakes".
- Audio courtesy of RNZ
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/83605785/Tramper-Pavlina-Pizovas-grief-stricken-stay-in-remote-Fiordland-hut | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/e902f5c3f3c72ac94519e3ae8ccdd1c156be98285df1e997ea908fa62da0af0b.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T02:50:18 | null | 2016-08-27T02:39:02 | Community fury at sex offenders living in their street is understandable - but we can't allow mob justice to take over. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fnational%2Fcrime%2F83587373%2FDuncan-Garner-A-public-child-sex-offender-register-would-only-encourage-vigilantes.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/b/a/m/8/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1drkfh.png/1472265543090.jpg | en | null | Duncan Garner: A public child sex offender register would only encourage vigilantes | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Duncan Garner: A public child sex offender register would only encourage vigilantes
PHOTO: JARED NICOLL/FAIRFAX NZ Placing a sex offender near Maungaraki School proves Corrections needs a total overhaul of how they handle these cases.
OPINION: Is there any more emotive subject than a sex offender living among us?
Apparently not, based on the righteous fury emanating from the Hutt Valley community of Maungaraki, complete with all the local MPs and mayors piling in.
Nobody wants to hear about monitoring and rehabilitation when these issues flare up.
Naturally sex offenders are the lowest of the low, the scum of the earth etc - so reviled they have to be housed in protection in prison from the other inmates.
READ MORE:
* Corrections shifts child-sex offender from Lower Hutt to Christchurch prison grounds
* A Lower Hutt community wants a sex offender gone - but where will he go?
* Lower Hutt Mayor will ask Corrections to move Maungaraki child-sex offender
* Residents petitioning government to rid communities of high-risk offenders
* Residents demand to know more about offender
* Family flees as child-sex offender moves in next door
The problem is these people have to be freed one day, whether they've completed any rehabilitation at all. And being released means they have to live somewhere.
But, and here's the big but, I just can't bring myself to support a public child sex offender register - sitting on a website, open to everyone, outlining who they are, what they've done and where they live.
Imagine it. These offenders would have a target on their forehead - shoot me here and shoot me now. It would only encourage the vigilantes to go after them and who knows how far that could go. Maybe murder.
A grown-up and responsible functioning society can't allow that to happen.Yes we need a register and indeed one is coming - but it's going to be private and shared among the agencies tasked with managing these people once they're out.
Even that has risk if someone was to leak it and that may yet happen.
Earlier this week National and Labour blocked the chance for the child sex offender register to be made public.
Both parties spoke in support of the rights of offenders as a justification for not making the register public. That will frustrate plenty of people.
None of this, of course, means that we as concerned parents in our communities should operate in a vacuum or without knowledge of these heinous individuals.
We saw that this week in Maungaraki as locals protested against a child sex offender being placed in their street.
Corrections has completely stuffed up this case - and please don't bother blaming the third-party service provider - you must take responsibility for it. No wonder we have little confidence in Corrections.
They broke their own rules by placing the offender next to a family and just 600 metres down the road from a school.
Never mind that this guy hasn't offended in 10 years - the court still considers him a threat in its most recent judgment.
Clearly Corrections need a total overhaul of how, and where, they place these people.
Once again they completely failed in this instance. The only thing that saved them this time was they had told a few important people. They got that right. And they must continue to do this.
Local mayor Ray Wallace, National MP Chris Bishop and Labour's Trevor Mallard knew about the offender's placement and they all made a real public fuss on behalf of their voters.
It didn't require a public register of child sex offenders to see him relocated back to a house on the grounds of Christchurch Men's Prison - all it took was community knowledge (and a mini uprising).
Communities must know and we must be told when a child sex offender is placed not far from us.
We need to be able to assess the risks to our families. It is our right.
We must always be told who has moved in and what their background is.
The rights of law-abiding citizens and their families in my view outweigh the privacy of the child sex offender. But we don't need a name-and-shame website to make this happen.
There is another answer of course. And perhaps Corrections needs more options when it comes to placing these people.
It's pretty clear we lack adequate housing for these people once they come to the end of their sentence. No-one wants them in their backyard. I get that.
So here's my solution: Relocate a bunch of empty state houses on to prison grounds and put all these people together so they can be monitored.
We can't keep them inside forever. But the quiet suburban street obviously isn't the place for these people. It's potentially not safe for anyone. If we don't want them living next to us - we must find and support another solution.
More stand-alone houses behind the wire looks good to me - so let's get on with it.
Comments have been closed on this story.
- The Dominion Post | http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/83587373/Duncan-Garner-A-public-child-sex-offender-register-would-only-encourage-vigilantes | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/39c4b81b073229f5f1abf003aaffec77daea9a678398c686eb5755a6fa57e15f.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T02:51:24 | null | 2016-08-29T02:30:14 | Some Spark customers are set to pay more for their broadband, as the company adjusts to a demand for more data. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fbusiness%2F83670002%2FCustomers-want-simpler-broadband-plans-Spark-says.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/a/u/v/7/9/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dtc6q.png/1472437814900.jpg | en | null | Customers want simpler broadband plans, Spark says | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Customers want simpler broadband plans, Spark says
STACY SQUIRES/FAIRFAX NZ More customers are switching to unlimited data plans.
Some Spark customers are set to pay more for their broadband, as the company adjusts to a demand for more data.
Chief executive of Spark home mobile and business Jason Paris said average data use on Spark's broadband networks had grown 37 per cent in 2014 and 67 per cent in 2015.
"From streaming their favourite shows, to video-calling their families, there's a clear trend for increased data usage across the board. We're therefore changing our plans to include data allowances that reflect their changing needs at a competitive price."
He said customers had said it was hard to understand all the options available.
READ MORE: Shopping around might give you a cheaper, faster internet connection
Spark will now charge the same whether people have a fibre or a copper connection.
ZIZI SPARKS/FAIRFAX NZ Households are using increasing amounts of data.
That would make it easier for customers to compare and select the best connection, he said.
He said as more customers used more data – and more customers moved to unlimited plans – the cost to provide broadband services had increased.
The wholesale charges that ISPs pay lines companies on connections were growing, he said. Spark had also been investing in increased local and international data capacity.
"Plan simplification and future proofing of our costs mean that Spark will be raising prices on some of our home fibre and wireless broadband plans by $5 per month – and on some of our business wireless broadband bundles by $3 per month. However, we won't pass these costs on to home customers until September 2017 and business customers until September 2018: although they will see the new price on their bill, they will also see a credit covering the increased price."
Most of the people who will get a bigger bill will also get more data.
Home customers on a 40GB plan will receive a data increase to 60GB and those on an 80GB plan will get an increase to 120GB, across ADSL, VDSL, fibre and wireless broadband.
Business customers on 30GB bundles will receive a data increase to 50GB and those on 80GB plans will get an increase to 120GB.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/83670002/Customers-want-simpler-broadband-plans-Spark-says | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/235dfe0ab2018fbb28122bf2b8f84a6153ac920d180ee2ecbf9e178d73205c79.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T08:51:55 | null | 2016-08-30T07:16:48 | One Wellington mayoral candidate thinks so, but others have scoffed at the suggestion. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fnational%2Feducation%2F83713699%2FWellingtons-mayoral-candidates-reveal-where-they-stand-on-Karori-campus-sale.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/b/a/1/w/g/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1du9wj.png/1472542616477.jpg | en | null | Wellington's mayoral candidates reveal where they stand on Karori campus sale | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Wellington's mayoral candidates reveal where they stand on Karori campus sale
CAMERON BURNELL/FAIRFAX NZ Victoria University's Karori Campus could be worth $20m today, but should Wellington ratepayers buy it?
Wellington city councillor Jo Coughlan wants ratepayers to stump up for Victoria University's vacant Karori campus - but she is the only mayoral candidates who feels that way.
If elected mayor in October, Coughlan said she would urge city councillors to consider purchasing the land as a strategic asset for the community and the city
"If we have the asset in the city's control, then we create options for what Wellington may wish to do with this site."
CAMERON BURNELL/FAIRFAX NZ The 3.7 hectare site has tennis courts, pools, a hall, music suites, a gymnasium and classrooms.
But Wellington's other mayoral candidates had mixed views on what to do with the complex, which was transferred to the university from the Government for $10 in 2014, and is now estimated to be worth more than $20 million.
READ MORE:
* Victoria University to sell Karori campus, possibly bringing $20 million windfall
* Victoria University reviewing the future of its Karori campus and may sell
* Dave Armstrong: Victoria's Teachers' College site a good place for a school
The campus is home to 20 buildings, six netball and tennis courts, cricket nets, a gymnasium, a marae, a dance studio, a field and a 400-seat hall.
AMY JACKMAN/FAIRFAX NZ Options mooted for the Karori campus site include establishing a secondary school or developing residential or social housing.
All of the mayoral candidates agreed the sporting facilities should be retained for community use, but Coughlan was the only one who said the council should buy the land.
Nick Leggett said the only way the council should be involved was through a public-private partnership to secure the sports and community facilities, then look at some sort of residential development for the rest.
"The council has a role to play in preserving those facilities valued by the community, but the idea the council could write a cheque for $20m, if that is what it's worth, isn't realistic."
CAMERON BURNELL/FAIRFAX NZ Wellington's mayoral candidates have mixed views on what should happen to Victoria University's vacant Karori campus.
Nicola Young said she did not care who bought the complex or what it was used for. But it would be "fiscally irresponsible" for council to purchase it.
Justin Lester said the council could not afford to buy the complex. He supported consideration of having a co-educational school at the site.
"We need accurate demographic projections so we can ascertain whether an additional school will be needed in the next 15 to 20 years."
Andy Foster agreed, saying population growth among secondary school-aged children was projected to grow by 60 per cent over the next 30 years.
He said the council could buy some of the site, but not all of it.
Keith Johnson scoffed at the idea of building a secondary school, saying Karori's population growth would result in more elderly people, not more school-aged residents.
"Let Victoria University sell it, but they should give back part of their yield to the city, because they got it so cheap," he said.
"I'd like to see the site reserved for housing, particularly for young people and first home buyers, and perhaps some reserved for social housing."
Helene Ritchie said building a secondary school in Karori made sense, but using the site for housing was her preference.
Johnny Overton could not be reached for comment.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/83713699/Wellingtons-mayoral-candidates-reveal-where-they-stand-on-Karori-campus-sale | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/c6a926a96dbc4b389deb06c6dc10c53fe31b7938dd6a4e110fe345a2b50e313b.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T22:52:17 | null | 2016-08-30T21:55:56 | Irish legend Brian O'Driscoll takes a crack at the whole of NZ as the Owen Franks ''eye-gouge'' row rumbles on. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Frugby%2Fall-blacks%2F83743845%2FIreland-rugby-great-Brian-O-Driscoll-takes-aim-at-New-Zealand.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/u/x/9/b/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dux5x.png/1472595627693.jpg | en | null | Ireland rugby great Brian O'Driscoll takes aim at New Zealand | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Ireland rugby great Brian O'Driscoll takes aim at New Zealand
STU FORSTER/GETTY IMAGES Brain O'Driscoll's tweet about New Zealand, which was quickly deleted, was captured by another Twitter user.
Forget about the All Blacks, Irish rugby legend Brian O'Driscoll has taken a crack at the whole of New Zealand as the fallout from Owen Franks' alleged eye-gouge on Wallabies lock Kane Douglas continues.
O'Driscoll was one of a host of former players to take aim at Sanzaar's decision not to cite the Franks following Saturday's Bledisloe Cup test in Wellington, which the All Blacks won 29-9.
This is an absolute sham @WorldRugby ???! Makes a mockery of citing. If nothing comes of this it's a farce. https://t.co/sDr92ggzcU — Brian O'Driscoll (@BrianODriscoll) August 28, 2016
All Blacks prop Owen Franks was under scrutiny from Wallabies for the alleged eye-gouging incident.
"This is an absolute sham @WorldRugby ???! Makes a mockery of citing. If nothing comes of this it's a farce," O'Driscoll tweeted.
That didn't sit well with many All Blacks fans and O'Driscoll found himself going back and forth with several users.
SUPPLIED Television footage presented at a press conference by Sir Clive Woodward to back up his claims Keven Mealamu and Tana Umaga spear tackled Brian O'Driscoll during the All Blacks' 21-3 win in the first test mach at against the British and Irish Lions at Jade Stadium.
READ MORE:
* Franks is in the clear
* Kafer: Refs biased against Wallabies
* Are the ABs ruining world rugby?
But after sarcastically suggesting the All Blacks were never guilty of foul play, O'Driscoll widened his target to the entire country.
"You lot are so blinded by your beloved team. It bangs of not having a whole lot else."
Let's all have another look at what Brian O'Driscoll really thinks of New Zealand, and the tweet that he deleted pic.twitter.com/IyVEcm4cIS — Paul (@rugga13) August 30, 2016
To be fair, O'Driscoll is probably still holding a grudge from the 2005 British Lions tour, when he was badly hurt after being on the receiving end of a nasty spear tackle from Tana Umaga and Keven Mealamu.
The tweet was quickly deleted, but not before it was captured in a screen-shot by one user and posted on Twitter.
It didn't deter O'Driscoll, though, who continued the debate on Wednesday morning (NZ time).
"Agree with this wholeheartedly. No special treatment *AB fans that feel scrutinised."
Agree with this wholeheartedly. No special treatment *AB fans that feel scrutinized https://t.co/6Hhk4DB6vn — Brian O'Driscoll (@BrianODriscoll) August 30, 2016
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/all-blacks/83743845/Ireland-rugby-great-Brian-O-Driscoll-takes-aim-at-New-Zealand | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/1a1171eeb096359350545fcafb098f9e1772db69b710599d35f58c591350182f.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T08:52:04 | null | 2016-08-30T06:52:26 | Cancer sucks. With these styling tips, though, you might feel a bit more positive. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Flife-style%2Fbeauty%2F83730691%2FWigs-scarves-and-eyebrows-Styling-tips-for-women-with-cancer.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/u/n/n/b/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dun0j.png/1472539947000.jpg | en | null | Wigs, scarves and eyebrows: Styling tips for women with cancer | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Wigs, scarves and eyebrows: Styling tips for women with cancer
GHD/SUPPLIED Hairdresser Zoe Irwin offers tips for women in cancer treatment and recovery on how to get the most of their wigs.
Cancer is hard enough without the toll it takes on a person's appearance and confidence.
Many women say that losing their hair is one of the hardest parts of undergoing treatment, and it can be difficult to know where to go for help.
First off, of course, we'd recommend Look Good Feel Better, but now ghd are getting in on things too.
SUPPLIED Ghd are selling limited edition blowdryers ($250) and platinum straighteners ($360).
The hair-styling brand have launched a section of their website devoted to resources for women with cancer. From tips on how to style a wig, to advice on head scarves and eyebrow powder, there's a wealth of knowledge on hand.
READ MORE:
* Look Good Feel Better workshops for women with cancer
* Kiwi woman launches Nice Nips temporary tattoos for mastectomy survivors
* Liposuction surgery offers hope for cancer survivors with lymphoedema
Ghd have worked with women who have cancer, as well as with hair and makeup experts. Their message is "you are not defined by your hair."
Hairdresser and ghd ambassador Zoe Irwin worked with Helen Weller to demonstrate how to make a synthetic wig look great.
"Often the hair that we lust after like Beyonce's new curl or Jessie J's crop cut is all wigs, so don't be scared of wigs," she says.
"However, you need to get rid of the synthetic reflection and shine; use some dry shampoo or eye shadow to give a natural looking root and around the hairline."
Lily Russo, fashion editor at Grazia, says a linen or cotton scarf can be a fantastic style element.
"Take inspiration from fashion icons like Bianca Jagger and Talitha Getty," she says.
Russo also recommends a statement lip colour to complete the look.
Ghd have raised over $18,000,000 for breast cancer research worldwide, with $600,000 of that going to the New Zealand National Breast Cancer Foundation in the last 10 years.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/beauty/83730691/Wigs-scarves-and-eyebrows-Styling-tips-for-women-with-cancer | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/4b1d09a0f60e484bbcb8b9572751e9e3821a38263ef69b0669cc09392726b172.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T20:52:20 | null | 2016-08-30T19:43:05 | null | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Fcricket%2F83741550%2FBlack-Caps-skipper-Kane-Williamson-defends-decision-to-bowl-first-after-heavy-defeat-to-South-Africa.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/u/v/e/v/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1duve6.png/1472586185777.jpg | en | null | Black Caps skipper Kane Williamson defends decision to bowl first after heavy defeat to South Africa | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Black Caps skipper Kane Williamson defends decision to bowl first after heavy defeat to South Africa
GALLO IMAGES South Africa's Vernon Philander celebrates the wicket of Black Caps captain Kane Williamson on day four in Centurion.
Kane Williamson wasn't so much ruing his decision to bowl first as much as his side's performance in the field during the first innings as the Black Caps succumbed to a heavy defeat in the series-deciding test against South Africa.
The Proteas secured a 204-run victory with a day to spare in Centurion after the tourists folded for 195 in the second innings, Henry Nicholls the only batsman to offer any major resistance with 76.
The spotlight was squarely on Williamson's decision to bowl first in the post-match press conference as South Africa went on to make 481 in the first innings, which the Black Caps were never able to recover from.
With little history of how the pitch would perform in the early-season conditions, the Kiwi skipper admitted "it was a very good toss to lose".
READ MORE:
* Anatomy of a Black Caps disaster
* Scorecard: Black Caps v South Africa
* England plunder world record
However, he defended his decision to send them in.
"To lose is never nice, particularly by 200 hundred runs but I still think it is a fine line," Williamson said.
"Naturally when they're 130 without loss it crosses your mind. But a lot of the information we got, although there wasn't much at this time of the year, the wicket was soft, the wicket was green.
"There was enough in the wicket, I believe, to have restricted them to a below-par total but credit does go to the way they applied themselves with the bat. History shows that wickets fall in clumps and we weren't able to do that."
Williamson believed his bowlers were too short on the first day but praised the South African batsmen for laying the foundation for the result.
Although, he did have some criticism of the pitch after watching it deteriorate early in the match.
"It was probably from day two where that started to happen and that is something you don't see very often.
"It makes the toss, not that anyone knew at the time, quite important."
Much of the blame for the defeat, though, must lay at the feet of the batsmen after two disappointing efforts.
Once again they failed to cope with the Proteas' dual pace threat of Dale Steyn and Vernon Philander, the former the chief destroyer on day four with 5-33.
Williamson himself was in the wars after being struck on the finger by Philander, although he played down the injury in the post-match press conference.
Their job wasn't made any easier in the first innings when opener Tom Latham received a shocking decision from third umpire Richard Illingworth to give him out caught behind despite the ball appearing to brush his trouser pocket.
But Williamson wasn't using that as an excuse.
"It's nice if things go your way a little bit, but it's the way it goes," he added.
"At the end of the day the better team won. It would be great to play another game or another two because the guys have learned so much out of this series."
The Black Caps will now look to apply those lessons in India, where they play three tests and and five one-dayers from September 22.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/cricket/83741550/Black-Caps-skipper-Kane-Williamson-defends-decision-to-bowl-first-after-heavy-defeat-to-South-Africa | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/557828ec506c0f436736790379810051de102361f706bdb11d6d54301b489486.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T02:52:15 | null | 2016-08-31T02:40:08 | Brian O'Driscoll's inflammatory tweets highlight the need for All Blacks to keep a clean record. Everyone is watching. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Frugby%2Fall-blacks%2F83760640%2FO-Driscoll-twitter-war-puts-onus-on-All-Blacks-to-keep-clean-following-saga-involving-Owen-Franks.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/v/a/p/1/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dva4g.png/1472611209049.jpg | en | null | O'Driscoll twitter war puts onus on All Blacks to keep clean following saga involving Owen Franks | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | O'Driscoll twitter war puts onus on All Blacks to keep clean following saga involving Owen Franks
Julian Finney "Different rules for some!" said Brian O'Driscoll (pictured) after All Blacks tighthead prop Owen Franks wasn't cited for putting his fingers across the face of Kane Douglas during the test against the Wallabies last weekend.
Lock up your little ones and valuables, because the All Blacks will soon be storming a city near you.
What's more, the unruly bunch will get away with their lawless antics. We know this must be true because Brian O'Driscoll says so.
First things first. O'Driscoll has every right to have an opinion, especially in regards to rugby. The former British and Irish Lions and Ireland midfielder was one of the greats, playing almost 150 tests in a career that spanned 16 years.
So when he learned Owen Franks hadn't been cited for running his fingers across the face of Wallabies lock Kane Douglas he let fly: "Different rules for some!" he tweeted.
READ MORE:
* Brian O'Driscoll v New Zealand
* Franks is in the clear
* Kafer: Refs biased against Wallabies
* Are the ABs ruining world rugby?
The inference from O'Driscoll, and a number of other ex-internationals, media hacks and fans, seems to be that whenever the All Blacks go rogue they always get away with it, that even the officials are too frightened to respond.
Maybe O'Driscoll is still carrying baggage from being spear tackled by Tana Umaga and Keven Mealamu in the first test between the All Blacks and Lions in Christchurch in 2005.
If he is, then so be it. That tip-tackle was nasty. Umaga and Mealamu may have protested their innocence, but they still should have been cited and punished. It was an injustice. O'Driscoll, meanwhile, was forced out of the tour.
For the record, the footage of Franks' grappling with Douglas's face didn't look great. But it was fleeting, he wasn't looking at his target and we are told other camera angles, which we are not privy to, reinforce the belief he didn't do it deliberately. Some of Franks' closest allies admit it was clumsy, but are adamant it wasn't intentional.
Franks isn't a saint, but he also isn't the sort who takes pleasure from maiming players.
Last year he was banned for two games for using his forearm to remind Highlanders prop Josh Hohneck what side of a ruck to sunbathe on. Earlier in his career Franks was happy to have a crack at someone if he felt they deserved a slap, but was told to rub that rubbish out of his game.
Because Sanzaar didn't cite him for the Douglas incident, O'Driscoll hit the roof. He wasn't alone. And it wasn't long before the responses got personal, some of them not terribly clever.
O'Driscoll's decision to immediately delete a tweet stating New Zealanders are so blinded by their "beloved team" that it bangs of us "not having a whole lot else to go on" won't be appreciated by some folks in Aotearoa.
But then again, they may be the same people who argue until their eyes are rolling around in their heads that Umaga and Mealamu did nothing wrong when burying O'Driscoll's head into the Lancaster Park turf in 2005.
So do the All Blacks get away with antics that other teams don't? They aren't perfect, but you would be hard pressed to prove they are a band of renegades who frighten officials into submission.
There have been isolated incidents. Probably the worst in recent seasons was the way Andrew Hore needlessly knocked Welshman Bradley Davies senseless in Cardiff in 2012 and was lucky to only be banned for five weeks.
Their detractors say they have just become more adept at converting their skullduggery into breaking the rules in other ways.
Yes, the All Blacks' defensive line is extremely fast, often giving the perception they are launching too early and they do everything they can to slow their opponents' ball down. Sometimes they get caught, probably not enough. For the record, the penalty count in last weekend's test in Wellington favoured the Aussies 15-12. So it seems referee Romain Poite was prepared to show some backbone.
The All Blacks aren't perfect. There were some blatant acts of thuggery in the amateur era, but those terrible deeds were by men who retired many years ago.
O'Driscoll was accused by Welshman Gavin Henson of eye-gouging him in a Six Nations match in 2005, just months before they were team-mates on the Lions tour. Henson said the Irishman also gave him a gobful, having deliberately poked him in the eye.
If you wanted to keep banging-on about that allegation, the argument O'Driscoll was a grub could gain some traction. Perception can quickly become reality in this business.
That could be biggest lesson for the All Blacks in this storm around the Franks-Douglas incident. Everyone is watching the world champions, waiting for their next indiscretion. Now the onus is up to them to stay clean. Otherwise they will truly reap what they sow.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/all-blacks/83760640/O-Driscoll-twitter-war-puts-onus-on-All-Blacks-to-keep-clean-following-saga-involving-Owen-Franks | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/dc7f1031a82f2744537f85e41e74834ce02f4ee03b2ac682468c8db71a86cf30.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T10:50:27 | null | 2016-08-27T10:34:31 | Black Caps rue decision to bowl first as South Africa post century stand | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fsport%2Fcricket%2F83634765%2FSAvNZ-South-Africa-make-steady-progress-after-Black-Caps-bowl-first.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/l/l/z/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dskzx.png/1472294071395.jpg | en | null | #SAvNZ: South Africa make steady progress after Black Caps bowl first | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | #SAvNZ: South Africa make steady progress after Black Caps bowl first
GALLO IMAGES Quinton de Kock made a successful transition to opening in test cricket as South Africa's wicketkeeper posted a century stand with Stephen Cook.
Kane Williamson's decision to insert South Africa under clear skies threatened to burn the Black Caps' skipper as the Proteas belatedly constructed a productive opening stand to seize the initiative in the second and deciding test at Centurion.
Williamson's call to bowl first on SuperSport Park on Saturday is immediately under scrutiny as makeshift opener Quinton de Kock and a resolute Stephen Cook combined to post South Africa's first century stand in 34 innings since late 2013 against India in Johannesburg.
The pair brought up three figures in the last over before lunch having earlier constructed only South Africa's third opening partnership of 50 or more since captain Graeme Smith retired in 2014.
LEE WARREN/GALLO IMAGES Unfinished business: Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor will have a big part to play if the Black Caps are to win their first test series against South Africa.
Trent Boult and Tim Southee did have their moments during an opening session that saw the Proteas advance to 100-0 at lunch, but although they occasionally tested Cook and de Kock with swing and movement off the seam, Williamson's counterpart Faf du Plessis will be content to have lost the toss.
De Kock, opening for the first time in his 10-test career after Dean Elgar was ruled out with an ankle injury suffered during training on Friday, replicated his aggressive style to be unbeaten on 58 from 79 balls.
READ MORE:
* Live: South Africa v Black Caps Second Test
* Series decider no lottery says Williamson
* Black Caps aiming for history
* Black Caps ready to strike
* Off to Lord's? Stick a cork in it
* Jayawardene digs into Smith
MUZI NTOMBELA/PHOTOSPORT South African opener Dean Elgar has been ruled out of the second and final test against the Black Caps with an ankle injury.
The 23-year-old wicketkeeper has fashioned a strike rate of 90.40 from 63 ODIs - often as an opener - registered his third test half century with the 10th of his 11 boundaries, a sumptuous square drive from Boult's second spell.
De Kock, who insisted on opening when Elgar withdrew, only had one anxious moment in the 28 overs before lunch when counterpart BJ Watling could not glove a tough chance via an inside edge when he was on 42.
Doug Bracewell was the unlucky bowler, while Neil Wagner was denied the wicket of Cook 36 runs into his 40 when English umpire Ian Gould turned down an lbw appeal that replays showed was justified.
PHOTOSPORT South African pace bowler Dale Steyn took 10-91 when New Zealand first played a test at Centurion in 2006.
Wagner's delivery was going to clip leg stump but Williamson declined to review the decision, and was perhaps influenced by wasting a review in the fourth over when Cook was on one.
Paul Reiffel turned down a confident lbw by Boult but the Australian, who had an error prone two-test series between the Black Caps and Zimbabwe earlier on the tour, correctly detected an inside edge.
Cook, who scored 115 on debut at Centurion against England in January, was never totally at ease but the late-blooming 33-year-old also produced some classy strokes as he studded his 89-ball knock with seven boundaries.
Williamson used five bowlers in a forlorn attempt to vindicate his decision to bowl despite fine batting conditions.
Southee and Boult conceded 26 and 25 respectively from their eight overs; Bracewell had 0-26 from six while offspinner Mitchell Santner was spelled after two overs conceded nine.
Wagner, back on his home ground, was the most economical with a dozen runs taken from his four overs.
The Black Caps named an unchanged line-up from the side frustrated by a weather-affected draw in Durban while Stiaan van Zyl replaced Elgar and will slot into the middle order.
Van Zyl made an unbeaten 101 on debut against the West Indies at Centurion in December 2014 though only has a modest test average of 27.30 from 11 tests after he was promoted up the order.
The Centurion pitch ready for action! Second Test starts soon #savnz ^CE pic.twitter.com/roYOYhsu0w
The Black Caps are seeking to secure their first series win over South Africa after at a ground where they have lost heavily on their previous two tests in 2006 and 2007.
South Africa has only lost two - and won 16 - of 21 tests staged at SuperSport Park since its debut as a test venue in 1995.
South Africa: Stephen Cook, Quinton de Kock, Hashim Amla, JP Duminy, Faf du Plessis [captain], Temba Bavuma, Stiaan van Zyl, Vernon Philander, Kagiso Rabada, Dale Steyn, Dane Piedt.
New Zealand: Martin Guptill, Tom Latham, Kane Williamson [captain], Ross Taylor, Henry Nicholls, BJ Watling, Mitchell Santner, Doug Bracewell, Neil Wagner, Tim Southee, Trent Boult.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/cricket/83634765/SAvNZ-South-Africa-make-steady-progress-after-Black-Caps-bowl-first | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/7c173af244a136d7c5cdd1ec208d8880e8755066f5216e658483b19fa9542965.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T10:51:29 | null | 2016-08-29T09:13:01 | Here's why your insurer won't pay out what you paid for your car, if you write it off. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fbusiness%2F83693517%2FWhy-you-won-t-get-your-cars-purchase-price-from-your-insurer.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/b/l/c/v/w/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dtubx.png/1472462384191.jpg | en | null | Why you won't get your car's purchase price from your insurer | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Why you won't get your car's purchase price from your insurer
123RF If you are not happy with the amount that your vehicle is covered for, you can take it up with your insurer.
If you write off your car in an accident and expect your insurance company to pay out the price you paid for it, you may be in for a shock.
The Insurance and Financial Services Ombudsman fields regular complaints from New Zealanders who are upset to find that when it comes time to claim, their insurer will only pay what the car was worth at the time – not what it cost to purchase it.
There are two main types of vehicle insurance cover. The first are agreed value policies, in which the insurer and the owner agree on the value of the car. This is usually adjusted down each year as the car gets older.
The second, and most common, type are market value policies, where the insurer will pay the market value of the car at the time of the accident or damage. But the premiums paid by the owner are often still based on the value of the car when the policy was taken out.
CHRISTEL YARDLEY/FAIRFAX NZ If a serious crash writes off your car, you could be left with less cash in the hand than you expect.
READ MORE:
* 'Challenger' insurer plans assault on house and car insurance markets
* Shop around for insurance, chop the cost
Insurers usually determine "market value" with independent valuations from specialist valuers, who take into account the car's condition and any modifications made to it. But these valuations are often disputed by car owners.
In one case heard this year by the Ombudsman, a couple took out a policy with an agreed value of $15,000 in 2011.
Five years later, they claimed when their car was a total write-off due to flood damage and were paid out $9300.
They argued that they should get the full original amount because letters telling them that it had dropped each year had not been sent to the right address. They were eventually given an extra $1300.
In another case, a man took out a policy for his motorbike, which he and the insurer agreed at the time was worth $24,000.
When he wrote it off four years later, the insurer offered $15,516. The owner argued that the insurer had represented the policy as an agreed value policy and said he was entitled to $24,000.
But he could not provide any documentation to back up his argument and his complaint to the Ombudsman was not upheld.
"With car insurance, it's important to understand what type of policy you're signing up to and what level of cover you will have if your car is damaged or written off. Read your policy carefully. If you are in doubt about the amount your vehicle is insured for, on an agreed value or market value basis, discuss this with your insurer," Ombudsman Karen Stevens said.
"At each renewal, you should review the amount your car is insured for. The insurer may adjust the sum insured or agreed value on the policy each year. However, if it doesn't happen automatically, you may find if you make a claim that the car isn't worth as much as you thought it was and you have been paying more in premiums than you should have," she said.
"If your car is written off and your claim is accepted, most policies will pay you the 'market value' of your car - or what the car is worth if you tried to sell it immediately before the damage - which is likely to be less than the amount you originally insured your car for. If you disagree with this amount, and the valuations obtained by the insurer, consider contacting a registered vehicle valuer to get an independent valuation at your own cost."
John Lucas, of the Insurance Council, agreed market value policies were the norm.
"Check your vehicle's market value and make sure that it corresponds to the sum insured shown on your insurance policy renewal."
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/83693517/Why-you-won-t-get-your-cars-purchase-price-from-your-insurer | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/81c7132e71c89be14b41cbcbd3dc700c46f6e8ab4d2b02e403959c7a0d1288c5.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T22:51:24 | null | 2016-08-28T22:41:29 | Join our resident music video aficionado, Jack Van Beynen for a blow by blow account of the VMAs at 11am. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fentertainment%2Fmusic%2F83659876%2FLive-The-MTV-Video-Music-Awards-2016.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/0/8/5/u/q/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dt4dg.png/1472424089769.jpg | en | null | Live: The MTV Video Music Awards 2016 | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Live: The MTV Video Music Awards 2016
Getty Images Blue Ivy, Jay Z and Beyonce together at the MTV VMAs.
What will be the spectacle at the MTV Video Music Awards this year? A long rant from Kanye West? A surprise appearance from Beyonce? It's all possible, and likely.
Join Jack Van Beynen and the great the good and the badly behaved of the music world gather to celebrate the art to the video. Follow along with out live blog, which kicks off at 11am, and leave your comments below.
READ MORE:
* MTV VMAs to feature Kanye West, Rihanna, Britney Spears
* Top 5 MTV Music Award shockers
* Rihanna to perform, receive top honour at MTV Video Music Awards
Taylor Swift at the 2014 VMAs.
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/music/83659876/Live-The-MTV-Video-Music-Awards-2016 | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/db489cab57453865dd86e35f13533c715d85371c528bae0a1ab72b329a7d098b.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T22:50:30 | null | 2016-08-26T21:57:57 | Air NZ is | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Fbusiness%2F83571079%2FAir-New-Zealands-record-profit-great-for-travellers-but-not-necessarily-fares.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/r/z/3/v/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dr7uv.png/1472249306075.jpg | en | null | Air New Zealand's record profit great for travellers, but not necessarily fares | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Air New Zealand's record profit great for travellers, but not necessarily fares
ONE News The airline's profit is up 40 per cent as it benefits from increased tourist numbers.
Air New Zealand's record profit probably won't mean your next flight is cheaper, but the airline's boss still reckons it is a great time to be a traveller here.
That is because of new market launches, increasing competition bringing more options for travellers, and money being ploughed back into upgrading or buying new aircraft, lounges and technology, chief executive Christopher Luxon said.
And with the number of people signed up to the Airpoints loyalty programme jumping by nearly a fifth to 2.2 million last year, customers seem interested.
JOHN ANTHONY/FAIRFAX NZ Air NZ chief executive Christopher Luxon says strong competition is a good thing for the local traveller.
Air NZ said on Friday it had made a record after tax profit of $463m for the year ended June 30, the most in its 76-year history.
READ MORE:
* Air New Zealand investigating after inappropriate images of staff leaked
* Air NZ boss Christopher Luxon says misbehaving staff 'let us down'
* Air New Zealand to invest $100m in fleet upgrade
* Air New Zealand wins international and domestic airline of the year
This led to a $2500 bonus for a big portion of its staff, as well as a $260m dividend for the Government, which owns just over half of the company.
BUSINESS NEWS/Radio New Zealand Booming passenger numbers and cheaper fuel have powered Air New Zealand to a record annual profit. CEO Christopher Luxon says a 40 per cent fall in fuel costs certainly helped but did the attraction of New Zealand.
But while Luxon would not say the 42 per cent profit increase would result in airfares being slashed, he suggested the takeaway from the company's best ever result was that it was "a great time to be a traveller in New Zealand".
"You've got so much competition coming into the marketplace, you've got Air NZ growing very strongly with big international markets and big growth domestically," Luxon said.
Growth in tourism had been a big driver of the nation carrier's performance, as Air New Zealand and its partner airlines, including United Airlines, Cathay Pacific and Singapore Airlines, bring about 45 per cent of visitors to the country.
New, more efficient aircraft, like the Boeing 787-9, also increased fuel efficiency, which for a company which spends nearly $1billion a year on it, helped keep costs down as revenue rose.
To illustrate this point, Luxon said a flight to Los Angeles 35 years ago cost about $1000, but now you could travel for just under that.
But he also warned this year would not produce another record, as the level of competition soared.
The confidence remained, however, because of three to four years of taking profits and "ploughing them straight back in the company," Luxon said.
Air NZ launched services to Buenos Aires, Houston, and Ho Chi Minh city in the second half of last year, which had gone much better than expected.
Flights to the Philippines were announced and then put on ice, where they remained because of concerns about security and difficulty getting approval from the Philippines government.
Luxon said the airline still saw plenty of opportunity for new routes, but had nothing to announce just yet.
"There's still millions of consumers or potential visitors we've got to reach out to and build the proposition with.
"But every quarter we're looking at new markets or emerging or potential new markets, in Asia, the Americas and Australasia, and that's something that's ongoing."
The tourism boom was expected to continue, and Air NZ was adding more premium economy and business class seats to some aircraft in response to demand from higher value customers.
Regionally, Luxon said it had done well after adding seats to the domestic market, and despite competitor Jetstar cracking one million passengers in the first half this year.
Air NZ has spent $600m on new aircraft which added seats on regional routes, and lowered prices, he said.
An investigation into inappropriate images of staff was ongoing, although two of the three involved had left the company.
Luxon said it was a disappointing situation because it undermined the great work of more than 11,000 others at the company.
Otherwise, there would be a lot of new innovations unveiled this year, but again, nothing to talk about yet.
"The profit is a good news story for our customers because of the investment we just talked about, and it's good news for our staff because for 8200 unionised workers who don't get a bonus, we're giving them one."
*comments are closed
- Stuff | http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/83571079/Air-New-Zealands-record-profit-great-for-travellers-but-not-necessarily-fares | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/f1bc195cc70c3ac56ee5b2cda1d8549ea2b8db0aa52d8e2a2b56b4de5f8a9212.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T04:51:07 | null | 2016-08-28T03:54:07 | It's not about being righteous, it's just about tapping into a bigger market. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuff.co.nz%2Flife-style%2Ffood-wine%2F83645419%2FWhy-vegetarian-dining-is-on-the-rise.json | http://www.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/d/s/t/b/5/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByNine.620x349.1dst7v.png/1472356447565.jpg | en | null | Why vegetarian dining is on the rise | null | null | www.stuff.co.nz | Why vegetarian dining is on the rise
Edwina Pickles Piero Pignatti Morano owns Two Chaps.
Two Chaps is an Australian cafe that doesn't hype the fact that it's a meat-free venue.
"We're not righteous about it." says owner Piero Pignatti Morano. "It's not an anti-meat thing, it's a pro-veg thing."
The majority of Two Chaps' diners aren't vegetarians or vegans. And his head chef, Kim Douglas, previously worked at Rockpool Bar & Grill, which had its own butcher. For Pignatti Morano, Two Chaps' focus is great food, not diet.
Edwina Pickles Two Chaps head chef Kim Douglas used to work at a grill restaurant.
"Kim made 10 million wagyu burgers at Rockpool Bar and Grill, so she knows how to make a killer burger. The fact that there's no meat in [our charcoal burger], whatever – don't get hung up on it. It's a good burger."
Read more:
* 'I'm sorry you can't be vegan'
* Tofu spin on NZ's best vegetarian brekkie
* This mum is raising a healthy vegan boy
Soul Burger is one of several Sydney eateries that recently turned vegan.
Two Chaps' wide appeal means that since opening last January, the eatery has become increasingly popular, with expanded dinner services and a nearby spin-off venue called El Chapel.
And even though Two Chaps in Marrickville isn't explicit in spruiking its vego-friendly status, it seems that Meat Free Monday is taking over the week, with more people adopting vegetarian diets.
Online booking service Dimmi has recorded a 76 per cent increase in searches for vegan and vegetarian restaurant options from 2015-2016.
Christopher Pearce Yellow adopted an all-vegetarian dinner menu earlier this year, serving inventive dishes such as this course of golden beetroot, malt and capers.
"There is clearly a movement towards a more health-conscious and planet-conscious diet," says Dimmi CEO, Stevan Premutico.
"You can find vegan options everywhere, from fast-food chains to chef-hat award-winning restaurants," says PETA Australia's associate director Ashley Fruno
Yellow, a hatted Potts Point restaurant, switched to a vegetarian dinner menu in February and is busier than ever. "Our old regulars have commented that they 'don't even miss the meat'," says executive chef Brent Savage.
Like Newtown's Gigi pizzeria, Randwick's Soul Burger went vegan last year – with positive results. "Our sales have almost doubled," says owner Amit Tewari.
Two Chaps' Pignatti Morano disputes the idea that meat-free dining is restrictive – or a bad business move.
"The most egalitarian thing you can cook is a vegan thing," he says. "Everybody can eat it. Surely that makes my market bigger than the next person's."
- goodfood.com.au | http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/food-wine/83645419/Why-vegetarian-dining-is-on-the-rise | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.stuff.co.nz/93aff5957dd4ccf0d730ea220a544fc96c96fafaaf9dba246af564deb95e8955.json |
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