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Back in April, my work horse Chev pickup blew the transmission so my daily driver for just on three weeks was my 1929 Ford Model A tudor. In an era where we are now been forced into electric cars, watch emissions and climate change, it truly was a case of turning back time as I used the old Model A each day. Car enthusiasts in particular always have a hankering for the past and…

The Prime Minister’s recent visit to Washington, during which she seemed to have signed New Zealand up as a strongly pro-US outpost in the South Pacific – and her forthcoming (at time of writing) attendance at a major NATO meeting in Europe in the next few weeks – should prompt some serious thought about our long-term interests. After all, it was the US which unceremoniously…

26 July 1865: Parliament sits in Wellington for the first time After the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, Governor Hobson set his mind to finding a more permanent capital for the new colony. Okiato, Bay of Islands, was initially regarded as the capital but in 1841 Hobson sent a party further south to survey the Whangarei, Mahurangi and Waitematā Harbours for a more central…

Jacinda Ardern, who has escaped the continuing restrictions in New Zealand to visit Europe and speak at NATO, has met with her counterparts in France and Spain to suggest a global alliance to combat disinformation. Ardern spoke to them about the New Zealand capital grounds riot and played to her gullible audience by suggesting the threat to social cohesion and public health in…

The signs of weakness are clear - as the downturn is becoming more widespread. 486 suburbs across NZ recorded a fall in prices over the last three months which is double the number of suburbs of the preceding three months. But What we are seeing in the market since its peak in November last year is a slow retreat not a stampede and that fall is not a dramatic as everyone would…

Welcome We pleased to welcome The Dart Depot (East St) to the community, and we have a new key cutting service based at Mobile Smart, 77 O’Shannessey St. In addition, Sustainable Papakura has moved into new premises at 47 O’Shannessey St. Magical Matariki The stars will be aligned as we celebrate Matariki with everything from colorful flags flying in our town center to…

I’m writing this at 1.30am in the waiting area of Middlemore Hospital’s accident and emergency department. We are here because since contracting Covid on May 1, my 18-year-old has endured a cacophony of painful symptoms that are just not resolving. They are not respiratory but are preventing her from returning to work and life in general. We got there at 4pm, in part because…

The first reading of the Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) (Definition of Significant Criminal Activity) Amendment Bill was recently read and rejected in Parliament. This is what National’s Simon O’Connor had to say about the bill and its ramifications for New Zealander’s. The full bill can be found here. …

The National Party's policy to ban gang insignia and criminalise the posting of gang-related content online defies the very essence of free speech, and is certain to make the issue of gang violence and harm worse, not better, says Dane Giraud, spokesperson for the Free Speech Union “The National Party should have greater respect for the fundamental freedoms of Kiwi citizens, even…

In a little under four months, the team at Ebbett Pukekohe will move into their brand new purpose built facility that will give all their clients a one stop shop when it comes to everything automotive. Whether you need a new car, a part for an existing one, an annual service or just a car wash the place to go will be the Ebbett Autovillage on Svendsen Road, Pukekohe. It will…

Saturday afternoons at Papakura Central Old School are a hive of energy, filled with laughter and smiles as Glass Ceiling Arts Collective (GCAC) in association with StageAntics run a weekly performance class where rangatahi (the younger generation) develop their theatrical passion. Glass Ceiling Arts Collective (GCAC), the brain child of Charlotte Owens-Pring and Mike Eaglesome,…

The pressures of materials shortages are mounting up on builders. Headlines such as “Builders taking stress leave as ‘toxic mix of pressures’ plagues the industry” and “Owner of new build sleeping in tiny home on site after Gib shortage delays” are becoming far too common. The shortage of plasterboard has got to the point where builders are having to resort to paying way over…

Lego® has come a long way since it originated in the Danish workshop of Ole Kirk Christiansen, who began making wooden toys in 1932.The first plastic brick was produced in 1949 before the world-famous signature brick with interlocking studs on the top and tubes on the bottom was patented in 1958. Since then, kids of all ages (LEGO even has a specific range just for adults!) have…

Should New Zealand invest in a proper public transport network that covers not only main centres, but the regions as well? It is a question that needs an answer promptly. Public transport in New Zealand has mainly played second fiddle to private motorists needs since the 1950’s. However, with fuel prices and the costs of constructing new or additional motorway lanes or widening…

Mid May was the third attempt (due to Covid restrictions) that the Hot Rods and Horsepower Show at the Indian Hall went ahead and to say it was a success would be an understatement. Hosted by the Pukekohe Hot Rod Club and Napa Auto Parts Dragway, the show boasted an incredible array of diverse vehicles and the public loved it. Saturday also featured a swap meet outside and the…

In recent weeks, more and more commentators are suggesting that house prices in New Zealand have started to fall, and are expected to fall further. For many homeowners, especially those who have bought within the last year or two, this news will be terrifying, and for them I have a great deal of sympathy. They were sold the lie that house prices would always and everywhere rise…

10 June - The Eruption of Mt Tarawera Just to the south-east of Rotorua, Mount Tarawera could be described as an unusual looking mountain, with several large domes and a broad, flat top. It was shaped by volcanic activity hundreds of years ago. The Māori inhabitants of the area, and the Europeans who arrived in the 19th century, did not know that Tarawera was an active volcano…

An article in the UK Daily Telegraph last week illustrated a dilemma we all face. Scientists have admitted that the AstraZeneca vaccine increases the risk of the serious neurological condition Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS)—just one of the many post-vaccination adverse effects. Scientists identified the jab’s genetically engineered Trojan horse adenovirus delivery system as…

It is worth pointing out that the recent (2021) study of inequality in New Zealand undertaken by Max Rashbrooke relies, by Rashbrooke’s admission, upon Piketty’s “Capital” or Capital in the Twenty First century (2014) which examines economic global growth (what might be considered as GDP) and the (global) return on capital assets for a millennia or so. The difference, as Piketty…

The decline in the market that has been predicted following the rise in the rate of inflation and mortgage interest rates has finally shown up in sales figures. The median and average sales prices in April fell back when compared to those in March, and those for the previous three months, but remained well ahead of the prices of property 12 months ago with the monthly median…