Hard News: Weekend Compendium
32 Responses
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As an employee of PFR, commenting on kiwifruit stories is fraught. What I can say is many of my colleagues worked ridiculous hours during the early stages of the outbreak. The optimism shown at the end of the 4th part of that story is mixed with pesimism about the difficulties of breeding a new cultivar. Whether folks here are optimistic or pesimistic depends on the day of the week. We don't really know how this will turn out for the kiwifruit industry. All we can do as scientists is do the best job possible to find a solution.
From a media perspective it was a very good story. Lots of important information delivered really clearly.
From the perspective of wanting heads to roll ... it's all very well demanding heads to roll at MAF/MPI but that doesn't take into account the tremendous pressure that the businesses involved put on MAF/MPI. Every time MAF tries to make sensible decisions about biosecurity they are faced with political pressure to make business easier. I have no doubt the decision to allow pollen importation was much more complicated than simply trying to decide if it was safe.
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Anyone having probs with PSA video links being unavailable? Have I missed something?
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Russell Brown, in reply to
From the perspective of wanting heads to roll … it’s all very well demanding heads to roll at MAF/MPI but that doesn’t take into account the tremendous pressure that the businesses involved put on MAF/MPI.
Fair enough, and thanks for the perspective. I wasn't really demanding that heads roll, so much as noting the difference between responses to the Work & Income and ACC stories, and that around MAF and kiwifruit.
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Russell Brown, in reply to
Anyone having probs with PSA video links being unavailable? Have I missed something?
Nope. Working perfectly for me. What are you seeing?
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Sacha, in reply to
it's all very well demanding heads to roll at MAF/MPI
Isn't that more about a lack of straightness in responses?
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love your weekend photolog, Russell :-)
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PSA Independent Report is here.
Re video. I might be being blocked by something......... -
Shocking shocker: Joss Whedon endorses Mitt Romney.
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Bart Janssen, in reply to
Isn’t that more about a lack of straightness in responses?
But none of the science people in MAF/MPI will be allowed to respond at all. I'd bet all responses will have to go through MAF's media team and be approved by management.
Given the value of the industry affected and the possibility of legal liability you can't blame them for being cautious. Anyone who stands up and says "yeah we f'd up" is really going to lose their job and not many people are willing to do that.
The thing not being talked about is that the risk has been known for over 30 years. Green kiwifruit is all ONE genotype, they are all clones. Gold is also a second single genotype, again all clones. There was simply a huge risk to banking a billion dollar a year in export earnings on a single genotype. That's why the scientists have tried so hard to develop some genetic diversity in kiwifruit. But doing that takes time and funding and it's hard to get funding for basic breeding programs. Limiting research to exclude GM kiwifruit makes that work harder as well.
This disease MAY have been preventable but eventually something was going to get kiwifruit so long as we relied on a limited gene pool. If we had had more funding for science and innovation maybe we'd have more varieties to try now ... maybe.
It's worth noting that the kiwifruit industry has been pretty good about funding research from their grower levies, they probably have done as much as they could be asked to do.
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Lilith __, in reply to
Joss Whedon endorses Mitt Romney.
<3 Joss <3
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Sacha, in reply to
I'd bet all responses will have to go through MAF's media team and be approved by management
Yep. Never thought it was the scientists.
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Robert Scott also joined the Snakeskin Suitcase line up as a 'late entry' on Saturday night at the Lucha Lounge to perform a short set of solo tunes (on Reb Fountain's guitar – his was ‘buzzing’). He was joined by the wonderful Tiny Ruins (Hollie Fullbrook) on backing vocals for a couple of songs.
Later, Adam McGrath of the Eastern closed proceedings, playing an enthusiastic and intimate set from the dance floor, joined by Reb for 2-3 tracks on backing vocals. Those 20 or so of us who remained at the close got a real treat - worth the price of admission alone!
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Joss Whedon remains one of my heroes…
on another issue…
Re the debacle with PSA and the resulting story – surely there’s a story on Govt. Depts’ media management which seems to be predicated on obfuscation and denial until caught out that would be perfect for Media3?Last week I brought to light a fairly major screw up with the old Dept of Building and Housing over Licensed Builders. Their initial reaction to my first enquiry was to ignore it. After John Gray, from the Homeowners and Buyers Assoc went direct to the top, an answer came which completely sidestepped the issues I raised.
After going to Radio NZ on Thursday afternoon and being interviewed on the Panel, the DBH spokesperson then came on the next day, said I was completely overstating the case and then proceeded to once more gloss over the issues. However, some digging by Cushla Manning at RNZ news finally got them to admit that there were, in fact, issues with the scheme.
This seems to be a part of active management of media by Govt, Depts in trying to hide issues – witness the red herrings brought up at MSD around hackers after Keith’s uncovering of the fiasco and Auckland Harbour co and MSD release of personal information around the protesters against their actions.
This goes back to when I had my radio show and trying to pin down Ministers and assorted Govt dept types was terrible, through to refusals by Govt Ministers to appear on Radio NZ…etc…
People should be held to account for their actions and decisions and it's getting harder...
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Sacha, in reply to
MSD release of personal information around the protesters against their actions.
That was the Minister, not the department wasn't it? - even worse dereliction, completely unpunished.
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stool life...
...the medium of cow manure
on window glass...Surely this sort of thing should
be on your FaeceBook page? -
Bart Janssen, in reply to
This seems to be a part of active management of media by Govt, Depts in trying to hide issues
The thing I see internally and externally is the extreme unwillingess to be wrong.
Everyone makes mistakes, everyone. So why is it not possible for people to simply stand up and say I/we made a mistake?
I think part of the problem is we seem to live in society that is terribly punishing of failure. Given everyone makes mistakes, why to we react by demanding the heads of anyone who fails?
But another part of the problem is people who refuse to get help to check their work in case they made a mistake, getting their work checked would imply they could make a mistake.
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Talking of computer techno science thingies, the gamma correction on the Media 3 Extra segments is off. It makes them look all washed out compared to the broadcast segments.
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Lilith __, in reply to
Name droppings
Surely this sort of thing should
be on your FaeceBook page?Perhaps in a scat-o-graph?
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Sacha, in reply to
Everyone makes mistakes, everyone. So why is it not possible for people to simply stand up and say I/we made a mistake?
Weak ego underpins our widespread lack of competent leadership/governance.
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Russell Brown, in reply to
But none of the science people in MAF/MPI will be allowed to respond at all. I’d bet all responses will have to go through MAF’s media team and be approved by management.
Does that underline the value of having the likes Russell Poulter there in the universities, beholden to no one?
I'm not sure if you recall, but Poulter was also the one prepared to stick his head up and say that the evidence in Nicky Hager's Seeds of Distrust didn't make Corngate a slamdunk. He copped some unwarranted slights on his independence for his trouble.
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JacksonP, in reply to
stool life…
Are you being a stool pigeon?
Ha-cha-cha-cha…
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Russell Brown, in reply to
love your weekend photolog, Russell :-)
Thank you! I like the way that riding keeps me close to the ground ...
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Henderson Park was a great little location for an outdoor event. My first time there. Hopefully the food trucks will stock up a bit better next year, but otherwise it was pretty good. Shame I couldn't stay for more.
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Bart Janssen, in reply to
Does that underline the value of having the likes Russell Poulter there in the universities, beholden to no one?
Yes. But ... they aren't really beholden to no one, because New Zealand is such a small science community and universities are as full of political bureaucracy as the CRIs and MAF.
My caution about commenting on kiwifruit is an example of the tangled threads, PFR is independent of MAF but dependent on government funding and industry support. I don't work much directly on kiwifruit but if my comments upset the kiwifruit industry it might affect my colleagues, also MAF inspects us for compliance so if I piss off MAF ... it all gets messy very fast.
But yes Poulter did a good job except on a pessimistic day I wouldn't agree with him about planting in Te Puke ... on an optimistic day maybe, it's all a bit uncertain as yet :).
That's probably the best thing about the SMC ... it can provide links to "independent" scientific comment for the media. It doesn't replace journalism but it helps.
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Islander, in reply to
O gawd, the wee - nope, wonderfully crappy- puns will probably skid on forever-
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