Posts by Rosemary McDonald
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Access: Some aspects of New Zealand’s…, in reply to Hilary Stace,
Bear with me a minute....
Lots of talk at the moment about Bridges and the bridges and the Cabinet Manual.
Dr Kim McGregor's shot accross the bows about the 2009 threat to reduce funding if she and Louise kept on talking about rape and sexual violence....sent me back to this....http://www.victoria.ac.nz/sacs/pdf-files/Fears-constraints-and-contracts-Grey-and-Sedgwick-2014.pdfand this particular paragraph....
"It may be appropriate to consult outside interest groups when developing policy. This should be discussed with the Minister's office beforehand. In some circumstances, this consultation may be more appropriate after the policy has been considered by Cabinet."
and especially this next bit...
"Some Acts prescribe the consultation a Minister must undertake before making certain statutory decisions. The Minister and department should ensure that in such cases, adequate consultation has taken place in accordance with the Act. (Cabinet Office, 2011, para.6)"
I have downloaded the Fault lines report Ezekiel linked to(thanks)....but a part of me can hardly bear reading yet another piece of work describing how things are supposed to be, how things actually are and how to change the system to make it how it should be.
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Access: Some aspects of New Zealand’s…, in reply to Sacha,
What does "coherent, smart NZ disability activism " look like Sacha?
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Access: Some aspects of New Zealand’s…, in reply to Kay,
One doesn't want to ever find themselves at the mercy of the state in NZ. So don't get chronically sick or disabled, especially if it's not covered by ACC. Don't ever have to find yourself reliant on a benefit for the rest of your life. And never take it for granted that it won't happen to you.Thanks for your articles Hilary, they've been really interesting reading
Thanks Kay....saved me a whole lot of typing.
NZ has a LONG way to go.
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"It grieves me when I see parents still facing some of the same bullshit we did, the more so given that most of them don't even have access to the same level of support that we did 20 years ago."
Well said, and bugger me if they didn't go and actually measure just how much less support parents of disabled children get today.
http://www.cpag.org.nz/assets/150317ChildDisability.pdf
"The inconsistent support for disabled children is evidenced by the dramatic decrease in the number
of Child Disability Allowances (CDA) granted by Work and Income since 2008.
......In 2008 about 11,000 CDAs were granted. This had fallen to 6,500 in 2013, during
which time the number of disabled children increased from 92,000 in 2001 to 95,000 in 2013."Thank you, Russell, for acknowledging that despite all the happy clappy bullshit we hear from the Gummint and its various partners in crime, things are much tougher now than back in the day.
Ah! Brave new world.
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Envirologue: The Power of N – Nutrient…, in reply to Ian Dalziel,
Funny you bring up mussels....
Last year, mussel farmers in the Far North were reporting sea temperatures of 23 degrees C around the farms.
Large snapper caught in the Far North recently have been found to be almost inedible due to the flesh being 'slabby', gelatinous and white.
Almost as if it had already been cooked.
And back to dairy....
There are thousands of acres of dairy farms in the North. Much on formerly marginal land...swamp....only productive by intensive draining and fertilising. Of course the excellent drains, drain right into the harbours.
Locals who have lived in the area all their lives tell of sandy beaches where now is thick gluggy mud and ever increasing mangroves.
For now, bird and fishlife are abundant....but these old timers who have fished these harbours all their lives see subtle changes in the environment that portend dire decline.
The last dairy farm North is at Pukenui. There are a few drystock farms and lots and lots of horticulture...avocados, melon, squash etc.
The creeks up towards the Cape are nearly crystal clear. ( Yet, strangely, few overseas travellers swim in them because they have been told that ALL freshwater here is unsafe to swim in.)
A commercial fisherman unloading at Pukenui the other day was saying how the Houhora Harbour has changed over the past few years.
He is having to replace the sacrificial anode on the hull of his boat with much more frequency.
Perhaps a physicist/chemist could tell me why?
Finally....coaxed a German tourist into conversation the other morning...he was reluctant to chat as he did not want to cause offence by being critical of our clean green country.
He wanted to know....
Why are we paying more for NZ milk, butter, cheese, lamb, kiwifruit here than we pay at home? (Germany)
Why have we not been able to swim in the rivers and lakes?
Why is everything so expensive?
How come there are so many obviously poor (and angry) people in NZ?
I suggested he write to our Minister for Tourism.
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Access: Right to die?, in reply to Hilary Stace,
I have sat with a number of people as they have died.
Three of them had chosen to die, that day, as they had reached the end of their ability to bear much more pain.
All three of them literally died.
No drugs or other paraphernalia of suicide....they simply made up their minds to cease living....and got on with dying.
All were women, one with MND, one with cancer and one eighty year old who had lived with severe rheumatoid arthritis for over 40 years.
They went peacefully, easily....without struggle or drama.
They willed themselves to die....or did they simply, and happily, let go of life?
I'm not sure....but none of these women were the sort to place a moral burden on another person by asking them to help them on their way.
All of them had had full, active and fulfilling lives...
And graceful, dignified deaths.
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Access: Family Carers Case – Five Years On, in reply to Russell Brown,
kind of insane thing you would only do if you really, really wanted the scheme to fail. Bastards.
https://gazette.govt.nz/notice/id/2013-go6248
Read this and weep...written by someome who REALLY hates disabled people and their family carers.
My favourite bit is (still) this footnote....
"11 Good faith generally means to discuss with each other any matter which affects the delivery of the disability support services in an open way so that all matters are "on the table", to be active and constructive in establishing and maintaining a good relationship, being responsive, providing information, and not doing anything that might mislead or deceive each other."
Oh! The irony.
Bastards.
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Access: Family Carers Case – Five Years On, in reply to Sacha,
Oh dear!
The terminal cynic in me asks..."why is NZ First bringing this up now?"
However...Barbara Stewart attended the pre election disability bash in Hamilton and actually came across as quite well informed.
NZ First were also very vocal as the House was 'debating' the PHDAct(2) and emphatically voted against it.
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Access: Right to die?, in reply to Sacha,
and his experience. that's really important.
Of course.
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Access: Right to die?, in reply to Sacha,
please go back and read what Moz wrote. Not theoretical but experience-based.
I did, and I acknowledged Moz's right to his opinion.
I did not intend to misinterpret/misrepresent what he was saying.
I still hold the veiw (based on experience) that disabled people will be at risk if legislation is passed to allow doctor assisted suicide, voluntary euthanasia...call it what you will.
A C5 tetraplegic goes to hospital with a severe pulmonary infection.
He struggles to breathe.
The admitting doctor decides that a sixty year old tetraplegic has little quality of life and that dying of pnuemonia is 'par for the course'.
The doctor chooses not to order any treatment..... "nurse for comfort".
The tetraplegic's wife sits at her husband's bedside as he continues his battle for air.Another doctor comes on duty and, after further examination and discussion, performs an emergency tracheostomy and personally 'negotiates' for a bed in ICU...to give the man a chance of life.
Six years later the man still lives...and enjoys life.
There is a very thin line between refusing treatment and actively speeding a person's demise....
Imagine doctor no.1 standing at the foot of your sickbed clutching the consent form for the 'blue juice'.
Not offering any hope, any alternative.
Doesn't bear thinking about.