Walt

I talk to a lot of people from one month to the next Brodie and I can say the points you raise are ones I hear repeated often by fairly typical kiwi folk across the board. None of them could be deemed racist, just New Zealanders expressing their concerns. The resentment is growing. If hugely significant words are going to change then do it respectfully. Have a referendum at the next election. Don't force feed people something they have never agreed to. It's becoming a divisive issue and it didn't need to be. The word starting with "A" being used more and more to describe our country is seen as an insult to a percentage of kiwis. It's not the word they have ever used to describe the country they love or their fathers / Uncles / Grandfathers / Great Grandfathers etc fought and died for. There are lots of reasons Labour will likely lose the October election. This is definitely one of them.

Special Agent, When you combine a company like Pfizer and Politicians should we expect anything other than a dubious result? I do feel there is still a place for vulnerable elderly or the health compromised folk to wear face masks while out in public but they do stand out like dogs balls now which I think is a good thing. It actually looks like they have a nappy on their face. I had a melanoma scare in late 2021. I had several lesions removed surgically. Two were invasive. All clear now fingers crossed. Two lesions were on my face. Wearing a mask became impractical as it would inflame one side of my face. I obtained an exemption not to wear it. I went into an automotive accessories retailer and went straight for the area I knew the product I was after was stored. Nek minute some eggplant behind the counter yelled out to me "have you got a mask?"...I walked the 50 feet over to him and said no, I have an exemption. His response was that they had an exemption not to serve people that have an exemption. A heated discussion followed. I'd been going to that outlet for decades and had spent many thousands. I gave the shitheel on a power trip my valued customer card and told him to ram it up his arse and how he'd likely enjoy that type of activity. Over the next few months I was contacted by numerous people who'd heard about what unfolded and how disgraceful my treatment had been and how that employee had pulled the same shit on dozens of other people. Once Covid fearmongering settled down I received several emails and phone calls from that company apologizing for that employees conduct who no longer worked for them and asked what they could do to help move forward together. I said a great place to start was by them stopping contacting me. Can you imagine how things unfold if / when we have another pandemic? One thing for sure, they won't have the same level of compliance they had this time around and politicians only have themselves to blame for that.

A very good example Chief. It's one many of us have witnessed one way or another. It seems to be a tool some carry in their back pocket ready to use when a discussion is not going their way. Those using that tool are not stupid. It's most unlikely they would resort to it if they hadn't had success with it previously. Attempting to better one's position via the forced defensiveness / guilt of others who have done nothing wrong should never be the way forward yet it's become common practice.

The way we have evolved in this world previously is by embracing what works and making it better and by binning things that don't work. That has worked beautifully for centuries. Without that you end up with planes having three engines on one wing and only one engine on the other wing.....or 11 wheeled motorcycles etc etc. Now we are not allowed to talk about things even Blind Freddy can see don't work.....ie a pedo man identifying as a female getting changed in the girls changing rooms etc etc etc. If we talk about it we are described as transphobic dinosaurs and targeted for cancelation. The word "racist" has been weaponized. If you want to shut down any perspective different to your own then just call them "racist". Nobody likes being called that so the topic ends and the person just tries to defend the accusation of them being racist. Let me declare my hand that I despise genuine racists. They are little more than divisive ignoramuses but one size certainly does not fit all. Shutting down healthy robust discussion you disagree with is the opposite to evolving. Why bother having elections? Political Parties have hugely different policies. You vote for the one you agree with in broad terms. It's called democracy. I'm convinced "hate speech" legislation is very dangerous as it cements into law the absurd dynamic we have now. What will be the outcome of that? The fact Labour has postponed this BS legislation until after the election is something all New Zealanders not suffering mental health issues should be extremely concerned about. We must be able in a democratic country speak out about things we disagree with. At present only one side of that discussion can do so. Being hurt or offended by something absolutely does not mean the person is right. ...but it seemingly does now. Victimizing your self has become a well worn method of pushing forward your agenda. Bud Light everyone. Watch this space. It's more important than some realize. On a personal note. I was temporarily banned on Facebook for 28 days. There was a court case deliberating in the United States over a nut job who had gone off the deep end with an automatic rife. He killed multiple people and badly wounded many others. The question on the thread was Execution or Life Imprisonment?. My answer was "Have him put down as you would with a dog that had attacked and killed multiple innocent people". I was banned on Facebook for breaching community standards. Ok, maybe I should have just said "execution" but it's a highly emotive topic and I was justifying my answer. If people don't want an answer, then don't ask the question. I hope Jason is able to continue speaking his mind but without making it personal and gifting certain people the ability to say bla bla bla was hurt by his perspective.

I can see your logic Gammalite and you may have been right but I could see another potential outcome of Kango handing up. The Chief (I far king hate that ridiculous name) had belief he could defy the All Stars by beating Self Assured fair and square at his previous start. I spoke about Musical Chairs by the All Stars in elite races over recent seasons. It's been all about controlling the race. They have routinely assisted each other dozens of times in what are clearly choregraphed moves. Rivals in races well back in the field know they have to get handy to be a winning chance but when they move forward, the All Stars park them and their chance at glory is gone. The All Stars on the other hand gently hand up to stablemates sometimes without even looking over to see who is taking the top.....because seemingly they already know. Not only do the best horses and best drivers then have lead, trail and complete control of the feature race, their rivals are working while they are smoking their pipes. I could easily have seen a scenario in the Auckland Cup where Self Assured took the top and then potentially handed up softly to Akuta. They then have complete control and Kango is three back on the inside (all dressed up with nowhere to go @ the ribbon of light...grrrr) and effectively race over. In saying that, I feel Akuta is a serious horse and won on his merits. What frustrated me about the race were the tactics of the Green stable. Imagine Copy That and The Big Lebowski were All Stars runners. What odds would you have given on The Big Lebowski sitting on his hands doing zero in last place when stablemate Copy That went around and sat parked? I think 500-1. The Big Lebowski would have followed Copy That and then took the chair. He's a big boy with a good cruising speed so sitting parked at that point would have been a good option for him. Copy That would be on his back smiling. All of a sudden the Green stable have control of the race. Instead you have Copy That parked with the All Stars smoking their pipes and The Big Lebowski having his first start against top liners at the back of the field behind a stable that you just can't do that with. I was excited about there finally being a stable with multiple runners that were winning chances going up against the All Stars multiple runners in a sought after elite race. Sadly, it never happened. There was nothing that unfolded in that race that even faintly suggested The Big Lebowski and Copy That were stablemates.

Just harping back to a contentious discussion on Covid vaccines and mandates etc. I wish to share context and my updated perspective. When the first of my children were born I read a lot of literature about vaccines. At that point I had never even heard of the term "anti-vax". I decided not to vaccinate my children based on what I read which I learned years later was mostly total bullshit. My wife has run HPV and Meningococcal vaccination campaigns including cold chains. I heard first hand about hundreds of examples of incidents that invariably stated "as a result of the vaccine" etc etc. Further investigation revealed if a person died a year after being vaccinated in a totally unrelated incident such as a car wreck, it was still signed off as "potentially" vaccine related. If a vaccinated person had a huge hole in their heart and died as a result a year after being vaccinated, it was signed off as "potentially" vaccine related. The circumstances of the death were seldom known by the public but the "potentially" vaccine related aspect was often widely aired. It's difficult not to become cynical. During Covid there was a shit ton of misinformation out there. Some was clearly disinformation. I can say I was never comfortable with Pfizer who I trust about as far as I can throw an elephant. It's always easy to be wise after the event but during the pandemic I believe there was enough evidence out there to believe the vaccine was the best tool in the Covid toolbox. There was however evidence available along the way that added weight to the contention that only the elderly or health compromised should be vaccinated. Having Jacinda Ardern telling people 150 times a day to "get vaccinated" did more harm than good. I know of numerous people in our democratic country that lost their job due to not wanting to be vaccinated. That is despite there being ample opportunity available for them to work virtually at the time. Court cases resulting from this will follow. I've seen compelling evidence that previous vaccines that had x number of adverse events were immediately removed and withdrawn. The Covid vaccines way exceeded those numbers yet was still being forced onto people as if it was mothers milk. In short, I'm still very much pro vaccine but that no longer applies to the Covid vaccine that continues to cause serious life threatening problems to big numbers of people who had no previous health issues.

I feel for Jason and like the guy. He's got a backbone, a long history in the game and a platform to share his perspective both good and not so good. The context for me is the sanitized "Trackside' where only people prepared to paint a very rosy picture of the game are wanted. A presenter could view a situation that is bad for punters and industry participants but they must not comment on it. I think after years of that BS he's grown tired of it especially when it impacts on him, on Megan and on an industry he's obviously passionate about. Frustration got the better of him. He's human. Somebody pulling him to one side and having a respectful chat would have achieved the same result here me thinks. I don't know about others but I enjoy a bit of colour especially when it's coming from people that understand which end of the horse it's tail is at. I will take that over the cue card reading vanilla robots any day of the week.

Enjoy your posts Gammalite. I remember Locarno very well. Robin Butt had a beauty who could flash past the best of them. Camelot was pretty good for him as well. As for Auckland Cups. My interest in the Cup started in 1969 when DG won it with Leading Light. I have personal reasons for being extra fond of that result. He beat Holy Hal and Stella Frost and paid a handsome $23. Peter Wolfenden won the Rowe Cup later on the card with Single Cash.

What I heard from Kieran McAnulty sounded a hell of a lot like very contentious decisions have been made but they won't be confirmed until later. One is that kiwis will be banned from wagering offshore because those platforms are not Governed by NZ law. Haha. This will be sold to punters as the Government "following advice" What it actually is to my eye is improving Entain's revenue as promised and the Governments by legally introducing what is effectively anti-competitive legislation. All kiwi punters will be forced to wager with the NZ TAB with all that entails. It's a massive step backwards. The TAB being gifted 5 million dollars to install facial technology in all TAB's under the guise of "Harm minimization" is a complete charade and all NZ punters should see straight through it. The TAB are laughing. It's all about maximizing the profit the TAB can make and minimizing what good punters can win. Harm minimization is a myth. They couldn't possibly care less. Entain has also well and truly proven that and who trusts Politicians, especially the ones in Government now? They will make it sound fluffy by talking about supporting NZ Sport etc bla bla bla but that's little more than a Public Relations campaign. Facial recognition technology at the TAB is all about quickly and efficiently stopping winning punters from hurting the TAB's profit take. Nothing more, nothing less.

I'm loath to critique the great AGH. We all know how awesome he's been over decades. Having said that, I'd be interested to hear his take on Auckland Cup night, especially the Cup it's self. I was left scratching my head. The Big Lebowski as we know is huge horse with a very good cruising speed. He has what it takes to lead and dominate most races or at least take luck out of the equation and sit parked. He did neither, in fact he did absolutely nothing. Was his first race drive on the big boy being in a G1 a factor? Was he mesmerized by some of the other big names in the race? Did he grossly underestimate the ability of The Big Lebowski? The fact Kango beat Self Assured last start would of given the connections confidence to lead and enhanced his reputation. Self Assured had a serious dig for the top but it wasn't there. I was a bit surprised to see Copy That go and sit parked and allow the All Stars to have a softer run behind him and finish over the top. I felt The Big Lebowski would follow Copy That when he moved and then give his stablemate cover from the parked out spot. Stable driving perhaps but how many times have we seen that? I sincerely believe The Big Lebowski would still have been a live chance from the chair. One thing for certain it would have been helpful to Copy That. When T.B.L finally moved the race was almost done and then Tony perplexingly drove him for luck in the straight......right into a wall. Not often you see a horse finishing unlucky full of running in a G1 two mile race. I think a lot of learning and debriefing will come from that race. I'd still happily put my money on almost anything AGH drives but that drive will remain a mystery to me until I hear otherwise. Hats off to the All Stars.....again. Akuta is the real deal and we've all seen that from the get go. I heard an interview with Mark Purdon recently that confirmed Akuta was in the zone and he couldn't split his two charges despite Akuta paying twice the price of Self Assured. My question to come out of the race is this. If they had a rerun of the race next Friday night with all circumstances the same, would The Big Lebowski be driven differently? If the answer is no, I sincerely apologize to AGH. Can't wait for the NZ Cup.....when is the Easter Cup as it wasn't at Easter.

Every New Years Eve I'd take my wife and children to the Auckland Cup meeting. The timing was perfect about six weeks after the NZ Cup meeting. It was invariably a warm balmy night. There was live music and the night ended with a fireworks display. There was always a very positive feel about things as one year ended and people were looking forward to the new year about to arrive. It was the only meeting my kids attended each year and they loved their $5 wagers. I don't understand why the change? Some traditions should be retained. While on the subject, what's happened to the Easter Cup @ Addington...@ Easter. I remember old Bill "Hands Down" winning the Easter Cup three times in the early 80's for DG. His last victory was when he got up late to beat Hilarious Guest. Fantastic! I looked forward to this years edition of the Easter Cup being at Easter but I am a bit old fashioned.

Hey Brodie, Good to see you still doing your thing I have dropped in from time to time and read your perspectives along with a few others. The Big Lebowski fascinated me the moment he appeared on a race track. He's a huge animal that will be suited to two mile racing more than most and was always going to get better with age. Two horseman based in the lower half of the South Island underlined him to me when he was a four year old despite him not winning any of his 9 runs. As a five year old he won 3 times and was placed twice from a dozen runs. As a six year old he's had 8 starts for three wins and two placings. His progress tells it's own story. He's getting better and better. He may not have beaten a great field at Invercargill on the 23rd of April but it's the way he did it. Nothing was going to take the top from him and he left them standing turning for home. Not often you see that rate of acceleration with such a big horse in the home straight. The easy first up run in Auckland got peoples attention who hadn't already put him in their black book but was no surprise to many. The state of the track and the horses he beat may have lessened the merit of the win but not many win their first start at Auckland by 11 lengths. Personally, I think it may be a few months too soon to beat the stablemate and of course the All Stars who've had a mortgage on this race for some years. In saying that if he can grab the top it's going to put the cat among the pigeons big time. At this point, I think it's the only way he can win tonight's Cup. If I were Ray Green that's exactly where I'd send him. If Self Assured takes the top from the draw, one of the All Stars will win. If The Big Lebowski takes the front he or his stablemate Copy That will win as The All Stars will need one of their two attacking the leader to assist the other and I feel that makes the blue team vulnerable. I'm excited to see two top horses from two top stables all going after a sought after G1. The All Stars are great trainers and superb drivers but now we see the playing field finally being leveled, at least numerically and tactically. One stable dominating so many of the big races is not good for the game especially if G1's just become musical chairs as many have been in recent seasons. It's Tough beating the All Stars in the Welcome Stakes was fantastic. It reminded me of exactly why I love this game. Well done Katie, Ray and the team. If I could get a bet on for Novembers NZ Cup, I'd be very interested to see what odds I'd get on The Big Lebowski. That race has his name on it for me but who knows what will happen between now and then. May end up starting favourite in the NZ Cup. The glorious uncertainty of sport.

Hey Gammalite, I've seen blatant examples of team driving over the years. The 1988 Great Northern Derby springs straight to mind. Dillon Dean (Maurice McKendry) looked the winner on paper and Roy and Barry knew it. They had multiple runners including Godfrey and Duel Fuel. Dillon Dean led as expected and Godfrey secured the trail. Duel Fuel attacked Dillon Dean for the front despite knowing the lead was never there. Dillon Dean couldn't hand up with no passing lane etc as it would be race over for him. Duel Fuel was absolutely stuffed turning in and ran a distant last. Nothing said. Stablemate Godfrey nailed Dillon Dean on the post. Don Dwyer now a successful gallops trainer in Australia. Would Duel Fuel have been driven differently had he been the sole stable runner in the race? Absolutely. The Bru Czar and Franco Ice were both subjected to exactly the same tactics when multiple horses from Roy and Barry's team were in the field. They dominated open class races in that era. I acknowledge the All Stars used their numerical advantage against Copy That two years ago in the Auckland Cup but in a different way. Spankem ran sectionals that made it impossible for Copy That to secure the top but Spanken ran on it's merits and only just went under very much unlike Duel Fuel in 1988. I felt part of the problem was the driving of MM on Copy That. He was fearful of not getting a crack so got off early. That gamble absolutely did not pay off. The front was not there so he knew he'd be sitting parked against the All Stars for the rest of the two mile feature. Is there any horse in NZ than can do that against the All Stars in a G1 feature and still beat them? MM tried to tuck in for a breather turning in but stayed there for just seconds. I'm not sure what he could have done better but he looked to be stuck in betwix and between. The moment he didn't have a dip for the top was the same moment he settled for a placing. The lead was never there so I understand his predicament.

ffs mate. You're like a terrier humping away at your leg and convinced you couldn't possibly be wrong on anything. It's tiresome and far king boring. You will have seen my previous post saying I've said my last on the subject yet you throw more passive aggressive insults to continue a pointless debate that will just go round and round. I thought this site was a welcome relief from the other mental midget site but it's not. You have some good contributors here but when the captain steering the ship believes he's the Master of the Universe, the site is doomed. Well done. I won't return. You win.

surprised he's got time to mention the horses

not to forget The Iceman, The Wizard and The Magic Man. .... and how could we forget The Chief all dressed up and nowhere to go ffs and occasionally even The Postman shows up. .....yawn

Mate, if you dislike the subject matter, don't put up blogs seeking "a free for all forum". I've said my last on the subject but it is an important and contentious topic with ongoing implications so well worthy of colourful debate. I'll buy into your subject change. Serena Williams. I disagree with you. She's 40 years old ffs and has won an incredible 23 Grand Slam titles. She also has a 4 year old son. What does she have left to prove? She's repeatedly reached the Mt Everest summit in sport again and again but is still lining up for more despite risking humiliation etc. She only went down in a 3rd set tie breaker. I admire high achievers in sport....even the mouthy ones. Yes, I enjoyed John McEnroe also.

My posts are plenty long enough as it is without adding known scientific evidence to them. It's my contention that for every piece of evidence pointing to alleged facts on one side there is an equal amount or more on the other side. It's been my experience that all it achieves to keep tabling them is to go round and round and not advance the contentious debate one iota. That is the main reason I don't routinely present any. I also don't buy in to the logic of others one direction or another to form my own conclusions. This is an aspect I have in common with science. I'm unsure what your medical or scientific background is Chief. Mine is virtually nil apart from having an open mind, an avid reader and being fascinated by both medicine and science. What I have noticed in the recent years is an astonishing situation that has arisen where big numbers of people with no scientific or medical background whatsoever are absolutely convinced they know more about the subject matter than the professionals that have devoted decades of their career to. These people are referred to as "expert-novices". You'll note they are invariably absolutely certain they couldn't possibly be wrong. A & E Departments at Hospitals have more than their fair share of patients that self diagnose courtesy of Google and actually advise the experts how to treat them. They even argue with the medical staff when their diagnosis / prognosis is different to theirs. It's farcical but welcome to 2022. Re boosters etc. I agree it's not a good look when you need to keep going back for another jab but a big part of the problem here has been how the vaccine has been sold to you by politicians and the bullshit words used. Almost every vaccine given will drop in efficacy as time passes. Descriptions such as "fully vaccinated" are very misleading. It should read "fully vaccinated for now". This is especially so when you are dealing with a rabidly evolving virus. If we lived in a permanent state of Winter, we'd need flu boosters several times a year. It's highly probable that in 5 years time we will be up to booster number 20 being required to increase your protection. Despite me being pro vaccination, I'm very much against boosters being mandated. Context in this fascinating discussion is always important. Decisions must be made at the time given the evidence presented. Those making the big calls don't have the luxury of being retrospective. Very easy making those calls akin to tipping out yesterdays winners tomorrow. Chief, I feel confident you've read or heard the quote from Teddy Roosevelt called "The Man In The Arena"... “It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”

Brodie, I enjoy your input even when I disagree with it. Same with The Galah. We can share our differing perspectives but remain respectful. I've read many posts online about all types of issues and one universal truth you can't escape from is that most people say things online they wouldn't have the bottle to repeat offline. You and Galah seem authentic to me which I value. With that being said, I don't believe Ardern deserves abuse. She does however deserve to be voted out. Not because of the pandemic management but because she has an outstanding record ....of not getting the job done. Where do we start there? The list of epic fails is enormous. If we settle for that, we deserve everything that follows. Her "cabinet team" are collectively and individually without doubt the worst we have ever seen. I think Chris Hipkins and Ayesha Verrall are the only exceptions. The rest are far king hopeless. The major concern is the alternative. National are total shit at this time led by a man I trust less that a $2 Shop Gold Rolex Watch. I'm in favour of better health outcomes for Maori but context and perspective has been lost there. Here's two examples. Due to poor health outcomes in the area of breast cancer, they have lifted Maori who were at the lower end of the waiting list to the top end. They were at the lower end due to the time they sought care. Zero to do with the system disadvantaging Maori. The problem this has created is non Maori (the majority) in need of urgent treatment are now been shunted down the waiting list with all the implications there for no other reason than the fact they are not Maori. How and why is that acceptable? Earlier in the pandemic my folks in their 80's so a higher risk of death from / with Covid went to their local semi-rural pharmacy to receive their vaccination jabs. They were pleased to see nobody waiting in line but the pharmacist very regrettably declined them. My parents were told they were under instruction to only prioritize Maori at that time. Can you imagine the shitstorm if an elderly Maori couple were declined and told it was due to them not being white? Any system that allows / encourages this is a broken system. The names of our cities are changing from the names we have always known to Maori names. Even the name of our country is being hijacked. We are being brainwashed into not using the all important word "family". This is being done like it or not and at rocket speed. If only they had put as much priority on health and housing that have fallen through the floor under their watch. It has a certain feel about it. This Government know their days on the top floor are numbered so they are attempting to urgently create a new New Zealand where the minorities rule. If you dislike it, you're a racist dinosaur. This type of action is the opposite of what they intended. It's divisive not inclusive. The changes unfolding could have been achieved over decades without guilt trips and with buy-in had they cared more about our country and all it's people than they do about their fast tracked agenda. Here's my VERY confident prediction. The all favoured minorities will not get Labour over the line in 2023. We are going to see a year of this clueless lot trying to win over the majority. They will especially work on housing and health pumping billions into both portfolio's. Not because they give a flying toss about you but simply because of self preservation. They will be desperate to retain power in 2023 and cause more damage with their agenda's. They just can't get over the line with the status quo and they know it. They turn their back on you......until they need you. Is there any wonder why so many of us are cynical.

I'm not your enemy fella. I'm also not an Ardern supporter, in fact, I recoil when I see or hear her but I put forward a perspective that is balanced and generally respectful. The lady is obviously a smart cookie but if you feel total contempt for her you won't see that under any circumstances. When that occurs you are a real contender for being misogynistic. As a father of three daughters I far king hate that. I'm an intelligent university educated articulate man and can critique Ardern without butchering her name or ridiculing her appearance. Yes, she has prominent teeth but referring to her relentlessly in equine terms says more about the person than it does Ardern. She was ridiculed as a lowlife who would use the death of her grandmother three days before the 2017 election to gain sympathy votes. Really? Is that what we've come to in NZ? What about the possibility she loved her grandmother and was distressed at her passing? Ardern's pet cat was run over and killed outside here Auckland home. Many of us have experienced this pain. I was staggered at the amount of abuse and ridicule directed at her when that unfolded. Ardern is so contemptable she apparently deserves this. Really? I don't think so. That's not the NZ I grew up in. I first became interested in politics when Norman Kirk was the PM. We lived in Nelson and I met up with Bill Rowling at the Nelson races numerous times. Nice man but totally ineffective PM. When we moved to Auckland we lived at Hatfields Beach just north of Orewa. I met Rob Muldoon many times along with his wife. A lot of people hated the man but one on one I found him charming and even humourous. I've never seen the level of hatred and contempt directed at any politician in my life time that has been directed at Ardern. Much of my disapproval of Ardern is more toward her utterly useless colleagues. In recent times I have a growing loathing of the hijacking of our language. It's very deliberate. It's happening at rocket speed without full buy in. The agenda in full swing at this time is turning a percentage of the population cold. It's divisive, guilt ridden and disrespectful. When we look at how Ardern came to power we need to look further than Winston Peters. National sold the myth that we had a "rock star economy". Yes, some were doing very nicely but a growing number were not. The gap between rich and poor reached record levels and National couldn't possibly care less. Just pretend it doesn't exist. Pretend there is no housing crisis and keep the immigration floodgates from China wide open. I can barely recognize the Auckland I live in now. We needed to talk about that sudden change without being labeled racist or xenophobic. The groundwork inviting an Ardern type Government was laid by the previous National Government. When your country move's forward you must take as many people with you as possible.....not just those that voted for you. National failed at this and so have Labour. As a result our country is now more divided than ever in my lifetime. You quote Swine Flu. NZ was pretty much spared the impact of Swine Flu in 2009. Less than 300,000 people died from it world wide. I recall numerous cases of the disease at the school my children attended Rangitoto College. Students returning from Mexico had contracted the disease. Schools were temporarily closed but we weren't subjected to the severe restrictions and lockdowns like we have been since 2020 hence my comment about current batch of Kiwi's not experiencing a pandemic previously. We can be wise after the event re lockdowns. There was compelling evidence that short sharp lockdowns can be effective. The 110 day extended Auckland lockdown was ridiculous. Bloomfield called the shots there for tag team partner Ardern to follow. They got it badly wrong. I could highlight the catalog of blunders Bloomfield made. The fact he is seen by many in almost saintly terms highlights what so many kiwis didn't know. To say we dodged bullets would be a massive understatement. Discussing the vaccine is time consuming and pointless. You can quote concerning stats. I could quote stats that highlight how important the vaccine was in the battle against Covid. We can go round and round and achieve zero. I agree with you about the origins of Covid but disagree on how predictable viruses "can" be. What has unfolded with this novel corona virus has not been easy to predict. The seasonal flu virus is far more predictable in fact every season's flu vaccine is created on predictions of what strain they anticipate this winter. I believe politicians should stay out of pandemic management but that is partly naivety. Enormous decisions need to be made and they must come from the top. The PM is that top. A leader has a responsibility to keep the population safe and alive. I'm unsure why you question that. To do anything but would be a gross abdication of reasonability and duty. I far king despise how Masters of the Universe accuse anyone who doesn't share their perspective of having been drinking Ardern Kool Aid. I don't drink anyone's Kool Aid in any area of my life. Re viral loads. The data has been changing since the start of this pandemic. One week we are repeatedly told by Bloomfield the efficacy of face masks was highly dubious. The next week he is mandating the wearing of them. One month we are told only symptomatic patients can spread the virus. The following month the science around the globe stated asymptomatic patients carry a much higher viral load and were responsible for over 70% of Covid spread. Is that bollocks? We had super spreader events in NZ where the source of Covid was asymptomatic. That person was shocked to learn they were the spreader and other guests stated nobody was coughing or displaying flu like symptoms. Bloomfield instructed labs to only test the samples of symptomatic people. The goalposts have been moving and evolving so what is factual one week may be deemed otherwise at a later point. Ignorance is not bliss. The vaccine has been the most effective weapon to this point in the Covid battle. Anyone who disagrees with that has their head firmly up a dark orifice. Over time numbers have leveled off for different reasons but that does not change the fact Vaccines have largely been effective. I say effective, not a guarantee of life or avoiding serious illness. As with any virus, the vaccine efficacy changes as the virus evolves. That aside, the most pointless discussions I've had with people in my adult life have been about vaccines. To suggest vaccines have had zero effect on serious illness and death during this pandemic highlights a staggering level of ignorance and bias. You attempting to pass that off as factual does not reflect well. I also have anecdotal evidence of people that are fully vaccinated but still copped Covid. So? Are they still alive? The Vaccine does not necessarily stop people from contracting Covid. My understanding is it triggers your immune systems response so if you do contract the disease, you are far less likely to get the worst version of Covid and die. Has that worked? Absolutely yes. Has it been a complete victory? Absolutely not. Describing the vaccine as "useless" pretty much negates everything you say after that. Yes, people are still refusing the vaccine. Attempts are made to have them work elsewhere in the system but often that is just not possible. Looking at this ongoing issue with a patch over one eye and quoting cheery picked data does not advance the debate. My wife is a senior health professional and has had to terminate the employment of numerous nurses who refused the vaccine. A heartbreaking situation as many are not only colleagues, they are friends and still are. That aside you just can't have nurses passing on a potentially deadly virus to vulnerable patients. Do you advocate anarchy as that could so easily be the result? My perspective on Ardern's intellect comes from successfully completing multiple post graduate degrees. I know how challenging it is to have several going at the same time. Ardern copped the leadership of Labour nine weeks before the 2017 election. All the banners etc had the name and image of Andrew Little on them ffs. Labour were dead in the water going up against the very well oiled National Party machine desperate to retain power. Ardern not only took on that epic challenge but she did so carrying a bunch of no hopers. If not for Steven Joyce's dead cat on the table, Labour would likely not have needed Winston Peters. I compare that to successfully completing 12 Post Graduate degrees in a shortened time frame. Very few New Zealanders could achieve this. Anyone who can has the required intellect to be PM. Reaching into her young teenage years to ridicule her part time employment as your "evidence" is bottom of the barrel stuff. I have a growing disdain for Ardern's "inclusive and kind" politics. What that appears to mean is she will force through any and all agenda's she has and you just be "kind" and accept it. Buy in not required. That does not change how I see her intelligence quotient. As for her communication skills. She made Bill English look like the most boring wallpaper you could ever find. She ran rings around him. She's terrific in a crisis and that's been proven time and again. Trouble arrives is when it's all rehearsed in front of a mirror. Hands waving everywhere and with the obligatory faux smiles and concerned looks. It's truly nauseating.

I have a different take on the Vaccine mandates and Ardern working in a takeaway. First off the mandate. None of us have been involved in a pandemic previously. Viruses evolve making matters tricky and potentially more dangerous as we don't know what will happen next. A leader has a responsibility to do everything possible to keep the population alive and safe. Regardless if you agree or disagree with vaccines, the scientific evidence strongly indicated the best weapon against Covid was the vaccine. What we also learned was the viral load of an unvaccinated person with Covid was higher than that of a vaccinated person. As a result, unvaccinated people were a greater risk to others including the vaccinated. In order to keep as many people safe as possible we needed to have a high percentage of the country vaccinated. To do this they needed incentives / deterrents hence the mandates. For context we need to remember it only recently became illegal to smoke cigarettes inside your vehicle with other passengers on board. The needs of the many exceed the needs of the few. Ardern did the right thing at the time for the greater good. She led the country. Mandates are BS now but her calls are not made retrospectively. My regret is many people refused to get vaccinated for valid reasons and concerns and lost their jobs. Some of those jobs could have been done virtually. One size fits all is never the right thing to do.....but what was confronting NZ needed action devoid of ambiguity. Context is very important. As for Ardern's role in a takeaway. It's important we see the bigger picture here or we are at risk of being misogynistic or appearing so. Did John Key have a paper run or similar as a boy? If he did would that be seen as a refection of what sort of PM he'd make many years later? Walt Disney was a writer for a Kansas newspaper but was fired for not having enough imagination....ffs. History is full of examples where people were rubbished for their abilities to sing or act etc etc only to then become a big name in their chosen field. Ardern grew up in a rural community where jobs were likely not plentiful. As a young teenage girl she took a job in a takeaway. No sitting around looking for handouts. Not exactly an easy job either. There are a lot of things we can be highly critical of Ardern over. What she did for a few quid as a teenage girl in a rural town is not one of them.....in my opinion. My perspective may be clouded by having three daughters who all worked in the local fruit and vegie shop as teenage girls. They have all gone on to be successful including my middle daughter who is a bank manager in Sydney.

A big part of the problem we have now Brodie is the alternative. Labour are the quintessential chocolate teapot. Even if the PM is a sharp cookie who cares about people, she is surrounded by people I'd be nervous about leaving in charge of a pet hamster. Then we have National. They are now a shadow of what they once were. I have zero trust in Chris Luxon who is light years away from being authentic. He's doing a great job at the moment........of hiding who and what he is and how big religion is to him. We'd be jumping from one divisive agenda to another. We need much better options than what we have now. I don't know what the answer is but I do know what it isn't. Jacinda Ardern or Chris Luxon.

What a tragic and horrifying incident in Christchurch. Poor victim couldn't even walk home safely after her day at work. https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/129086343/womans-alleged-killer-was-in-the-care-of-mental-health-services-in-christchurch The only two aspects we could predict was that the "alleged" offender was yet another Mental Health patient (ticking time bomb) in the community just like the Murray's Bay nutjob last week who stabbed multiple people...............and that the utterly useless Andrew Little would as he always does, duck for cover and not be available for comment allegedly because the incident is under investigation. Far koff. I believe that is outrageous and totally unacceptable. This tragedy will be under investigation long into the future. It will also be before the court and then appeal court for years to come gifting Andrew Little yet more escapes from accountability. Well past time he was shown the door. How ironic that the Government believe this man is one of their biggest hitters. Mind you, they believe the same with Megan Woods who was also refusing to answer difficult questions on housing.

The aim is to obviously increase turnover but they miss the mark at every call. Average age of a Trackside viewer ? I would hazard a guess and say 50 years. Average length of time a Trackside viewer has been punting? I'd say 30 years. Punters have their own method of finding winners. I for example place a high value on the following. Known ability, form which includes trials. Form of horses that beat your selection or it beat recently (franking). Form of the stable on raceday and recent racedays. Form of the driver / jockey on raceday and recent racedays. Previous times and sectionals, draws, track and distance record, meaningful betting movements (money talks). Breeding and record on the grit or grass surface. I also factor in what I believe the management plan of my intended wager is. What the horses prelim looks like. I pay close attention to hard prelims and multiple practice standing starts etc etc. The very last thing I need is to see some wet behind the ears recent school leaver who's favourite word is "absolutely" telling me which runner to wager on. Just point out which race is coming up and what race will follow if you must......then STFU. I'm not remotely interested in a word of your inane twaddle. The M for mute on my TV remote has already disappeared. When you go to the track and you're getting ready to make your wager, do you have an earpiece in listening to wagering instruction / suggestion or do you rely on your own experience and perspective? Why should that be any different at home? It also annoys the #%&@#!! out of me when they yabber on over the top of a judges call. STFU. Not sure how others view The Whale but I feel he's some years past his use by date. I respect his knowledge but even several years ago when Trackside had a panel on Cup Day, I'd listen to Mick Guerin / Adam Hamilton and then mute Craig Thompson. He is so boring but covers every race at every NZ meeting. In Australia they have form comments and previews before the meeting starts from different respected analysts from that state. They invariably have their finger on the pulse and can share any late mail you almost always cop when you're nearby. It seems we are stuck between inexperienced school leaver type presenters and boring yes sir no sir dinosaurs. Are there no other options or is it just to difficult to have this following combination? Experienced respected presenters with a personality that are happy to be a Trackside lacky and robot? Why is so much priority gifted to the 1 dollar each way punters and so little on long term experienced punters / viewers? Factor in the little old ladies but not at the expense of all others. That's my Saturday morning whinge