Local Opinion

Call for independent scrutiny

When I previously wrote about the Environmental Protection Authority’s Annual Report on 1080 poison (The News January 25, 2024), I commented on an incident involving dead bees and stated that 1080 may be contaminating honey….

Fancy a weekend in the cells?

Great news to start, the vehicle responsible for the burnouts on Shakespeare Street by Kingsley Street that I mentioned in a recent column, has been identified, located and impounded last week. Investigations continue into the…

Nothing wrong with us? Not so …..

As a volcanologist I work hard on local and international research projects and I thrive spending long physically demanding days on volcanoes. I am also in pain almost every single day. May is Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome…

Welcome home, sort of ….

In 1969, when the successful moon landing astronauts landed back in the Atlantic Ocean, they clearly came off a high of world appreciation and folded themselves back into society – albeit with a long public…

The dilemma of Israel ……

Similar in size from Warkworth to Cape Reinga, a tiny nation features daily in worldwide news. It’s been that way since May 14, 1948 when Israel declared its sovereignty following a UN remit. One day…

Online crooks prey on residents

I have been back on deck this week after four successful days last week delivering the Loves Me Not programme to Cambridge High School year 11 and 12 students. Thank you to all parents who…

Anticipating eruptions

I was recently asked how reliable our technology is for giving us warnings about eruptions. The answer is complex. It’s a mix of our technology, the people we have monitoring our volcanoes, how well we…

I believe in miracles ….

Our culture seems to have elevated science and reason over ‘faith’. Making a god of analytical thinking and intellect restricts our comprehension of how much more there is, infinitely beyond what can be seen, touched,…

Third world stories, here

My 14 March column was titled ‘what is wrong with NZ?’ I had been surprised and even shocked by the number of stories appearing that I would have expected to refer to third-world  countries I…

Public transport: the way to go

Public transport, the Te Huia railway connection between Auckland and Hamilton and cycleways continue to make headlines in the Waikato. Senior writer Mary Anne Gill spent time in the United Kingdom and Europe recently and…

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