Category Archives: Uncategorized

Peace for Ukraine and Russia requires mana restoration as well as lines on maps (and two Cossack songs we invite Vladimir Putin to listen to with us) With Russia and Ukraine on war’s edge some reach for prayers and others … Continue reading →

In an opinion piece We must speak out against racism   the Race Relations Commissioner Meng Foon stated that “Measures such as the 1907 Tohunga Suppression Act were introduced, undermining Māori culture and wellbeing, and enabling disharmony and inequity to persist … Continue reading →

Much folklore surrounds cuckoo birds in many cultures.  They welcome in the first day of spring – which in New Zealand is 1 September. The cuckoo is a pretty bird is a very old English song, brought to life in … Continue reading →

Indigenous peoples created one of the most effective technologies to counter global warming, and yet the industrialised world still largely ignores it. What has gone wrong with how we understand, value and apply technology? In the late 19th century, European … Continue reading →

He Puapua proposes constitutional, institutional and public policy changes, notionally to respond to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).  However, careful analysis shows that it is a flawed political advocacy document, and if its recommendations were … Continue reading →

The draft school History Curriculum omits the tumultuous events leading up to the Treaty (Tiriti), what motivated the signatories, and how this shaped today. As chronicled in Ron Crosby’s book The Forgotten Wars, from 1807 until the early 1840s iwi … Continue reading →

New Zealand’s housing shortages reflect regulatory barriers to making land available, and lack of supporting infrastructure for new housing.  Despite high housing demand, supply is inelastic.  As a result, high demand inflates fixed housing stock prices without inducing more supply.  … Continue reading →

Māori MPs are giving good leadership to their communities through the coronavirus challenges, however it is reported that some are reluctant to tell Māori they should get vaccinated.  This supposedly reflects longstanding distrust of the Crown. Pushback against mask wearing … Continue reading →

Rawiri Waititi is right to support commercial trout farming, and he has economic and cultural history behind him. In pre-European times freshwater fisheries were important Maori food sources.  A staple species was the upokororo (Prototroctes oxyrhynchus), which early settlers called … Continue reading →