The Sick Phoque Club's newest inductee is...

The Iranian Revolution, of course! The effects of this are still being felt 40 years later. I suggest you do your own research if you want to know more about this.

Guess who thinks we can do better?

New Zealand has received advice from a wide range of countries on how to improve its human rights, including from Venezuela, Russia, Syria, and Myanmar. The advice is included in the United Nations Human Rights Council draft report on New Zealand. Justice Minister Andrew Little led a delegation of 14 to Geneva in January to report on advances in New Zealand human rights and discuss where improvements could be made. Areas of concern included disparities for Maori in employment and life expectancy, imprisonment rates, discrimination on the basis of gender identity, the gender pay gap, and family violence.

The council selected Brazil, Saudi Arabia, and Slovakia from its 47 members to run the review of New Zealand, and various countries have made specific recommendations for New Zealand to consider which are listed in the draft report:

1. Russia wants New Zealand to consider not only a written constitution but wants to see the Treaty of Waitangi enshrined in law.
2. Venezuela wants the Bill of Rights Act to be given a constitutional status and it wants to see women and girls guaranteed a life free from violence.
3. Iran wants New Zealand to improve anti-discrimination legislation to ensure the protection of rights of ethnic minorities.
4. Belarus wants to see less over-crowding in prisons and better access of prisoners to quality medical services.
5. Myanmar wants New Zealand to close the pay gap in the public service.
6. Syria wants immediate steps taken to combat solitary confinement in medical facilities holding juveniles, people with intellectual or psychosocial disabilities, pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers in prisons, and in all healthcare institutions.
7. China wants to see effective measures to combat human trafficking and to protect the rights of migrant workers.
8. Oman wants New Zealand to strengthen measures in the area of women's empowerment and the promotion of equal opportunities for women.

Closer friends also made specific recommendations for New Zealand to consider:

1. Australia wants New Zealand to amend the Human Rights Act 1993 to explicitly prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender identity and intersex status.
2. Britain wants New Zealand to consider introducing legislation requiring businesses to report publicly on transparency in supply chains, and to eliminate practices of modern slavery in New Zealand and beyond its borders.
3. And the United States wants New Zealand to take action to ensure the provision of physical and mental health services for those in detention facilities, as well as to reduce overcrowding in prisons.

New Zealand will provide responses to these before the next session of the Human Rights Council which runs from June 24 to July 12. And I think they should take some of that advice on board.

Manchester United 0-0 Liverpool

Come on guys, this isn’t good enough if you want the silverware. The good points come in threes, not ones.

Divisions in Rock

WHERE DOES OUR MONEY COME FROM, I REALLY WANT TO KNOW

It’s not from our own government, or taxes then would go.

It’s not from you or me, my friend, or we would be in jail.

It’s not from the big companies, or shares they would not sell.

It’s not from the small businesses, or who would need to borrow?

It all must come from bankers, who trade on others’ sorrow.

Every dollar taken, as taxes you think good,

Do far more damage to our lives, than you might think they would.

‘Cause every dollar taken must be borrowed from the banks;

If taxes cause our growing debt, I don’t agree, “No, thanks”.

The interest on our growing debt is what creates inflation.

While growing the economy is what creates deflation.

Deflation causes problems, too; it’s never good for trade;

It’s caused by economic growth, from profits we just made.

Don’t worry ‘cause there is a cure that fixes what’s gone wrong.

Just let our leaders print more cash with interest not along.

We have to start from somewhere, let’s drop that income tax;

And as our people create wealth, the others we can axe.

It’s worth a try to take away the taxes that destroy.

A man is worth his labour so his skills he can employ.

If everyone is given chance to find some work they like,

We’ll all be happier each day, and, long into the night.

The UBI will work, I believe, in ending all our fears;

Allowing each to choose their work and build their own careers.

The rich can profit as they do, but interest rates must fall;

With lower interest rates, I believe, there will be homes for all.

There’s many problems in our land, all for lack of cash;

Caused by debt and taxes; it really must soon crash.

They steal from us until we’re dead, we really have no choice;

Until we have real government that gives us back our voice.

Before the days of blue and black versus white and gold, we had this

How about not having sex with the doorbell in future?

But the 1% are a minority

If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys

He ain’t getting any

Providing is love

Kittywise the Dancing Meow

 

The 5-second rule in action

It's all in the aurora

XP desktop on a Mac

What the Sydney Opera House could have looked like

OK so that posting rule didn’t quite go to plan

A change to the posting times

Future posts will be up here during the morning (NZ time).

Fulham game full of win

Manchester United won their game against Fulham 3-0 courtesy of a Pogba brace and a goal by Martial. But one win will not be enough to recover the silverware. This late in the season, the best we can hope for is to just keep winning and hope like hell those above us will lose enough games for the right team to ascend to the top of the table.

Hazel's Sideways Adventure

The Way of the Soixante

100 years since this true American hero first came to this world

Desmond T. Doss, the only conscientious objector to win the Medal of Honor.

Foxing out the lies

Filter not a big fan of Borat

Rashford topples Leicester

Manchester United are back to winning ways after Rashford scored the only goal in their match against Leicester City.

Pigtails on fleek

Blue is the Ice-Creamiest Colour

Does this poem I found online seem transphobic to you?

You're a man.

Your breasts are made of silicone 

Your vagina goes nowhere 

And we can tell the difference 

Even when you are not there

Your hormones are synthetic 

And lets just cross this bridge 

What you have you stupid man 

Is male privilege.

You’re a man, you’re a man 

We can say it, yes we can 

That you’ll never be a woman 

Even if that is your plan

Every cell is coded male 

From your birth until the grave 

You are simply a man 

Neither stunning nor brave

Your penis isn’t womanly 

Your wig is poorly made 

Your idea of womanhood 

Just doesn’t make the grade

You think we are just caricatures 

Or porn tropes for your use 

You pretend that you can be us 

But it’s merely more abuse

Your great big hands and manly head 

Are difficult to hide 

A hand in front of Adam’s fruit 

Proof does not provide

That you have changed your actual sex 

Because your brain is pink 

It’s laughable to those of us 

Who can actually think.