The recently formed group, Friends of the Waikanae Town Centre, says the results of a comprehensive survey the group has conducted confirms its belief that KCDC and NZTA have ignored the Waikanae community’s sentiment in the plans announced for the Main Road as part of the State Highway 1 revocation process.

The survey, which started on 24 April and ran for 17 days, came about after the group noted a straw poll conducted on the Kapiti Coast Facebook page showed about 90% were opposed to the changes. Friends of the Waikanae Town Centre decided that a more comprehensive survey was needed and with financial support from the Waikanae Community Board it was quickly up and running.

The survey was conducted in both on-line form using Survey Monkey and in paper form with copies of the same questions distributed via local shops, supermarkets and other community venues. 1,152 people had their say with 785 responses…

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A proposal to prohibit abortions in Pennsylvania when the sole reason is that the fetus has or may have Down syndrome is advancing in the Republican-controlled state Senate.

The bill won passage in the Senate Judiciary Committee on a party line basis Wednesday. It passed the Republican-majority House in April by a comfortable margin, 139 to 56, but Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf opposes it.

Supporters say it would protect a vulnerable population. Opponents respond that it would violate the right of women to make their own decisions about abortion and caution against forcing parents to raise children with the genetic chromosomal disorder.

Pennsylvania law allows abortions up to 24 weeks of pregnancy for any reason except to choose the gender.

As is clear to most followers of the local political scene, and was demonstrated particularly with the experiences of the Osbornes of Waikanae last year, the KCDC management and councilors hate their critics; and they have no qualms about indulging in whatever retaliatory harassment and intimidation they feel they can get away with.

One of the people near the top of the KCDC’s Hit List for harassment is Kerry Bolton, see earlier posts.

He tells us that he was arrested last Friday night and held for three hours. Reason? He mentioned the name of Dougherty/Guru/Power’s Accomplice in the David Scott affair on a radio talkback show following the trial in May.  It’s certain that Ms Accomplice complained to the police about it.

Technically, he should not have done so, as in sexual assault prosecutions there is automatic name suppression for a complainant once the police have laid a charge, unless the…

Survivor groups have reacted with anger after a leaked draft of a report into the Grenfell Tower fire revealed the blaze would have had little opportunity to spread beyond the flat it started in, had the building not been renovated with combustible material.

The 210-page draft report, which was prepared as part of the Metropolitan Police investigation, concludes that the fire would not have spread beyond the fourth floor flat where it originated if the original facade of the building had not been re-clad.

The draft document, leaked to the Evening Standard, was authored by fire investigation experts BRE Global Ltd (aka the Building Research Establishment – formerly a UK government national laboratory privatised in 1997). Following privatisation BRE has continued to provide research, advice, training, testing, certification and standards for both public and private sector organisations in the UK and abroad.

The leaked report revealed that, in addition to…

From daily News Line in Britain:

Friday, 15 June 2018

GRENFELL ANNIVERSARY

‘WE WANT the nation to keep Grenfell in their consciousness, member of the Justice4Grenfell campaign group Yvette Williams said on the anniversary of the tragic fire which claimed the lives of so many men, women and children.

Masses of people gathered at the base of Grenfell Tower yesterday morning to unveil a mosaic, and next to the mosaic was a board on which people wrote tributes to all of those who had died. Why are we allowed to build high-rise buildings with a single staircase? It is sheer madness. It is not allowed anywhere else in the world except for Great Britain’, Arnold Tarling, Fire Safety Expert said on the first anniversary of the Grenfell Fire.

He continued: ‘The stay-put policy in that property, had there not been the changes made to it, replacement of the cladding

Common threads persist throughout definitions of terrorism: violence, injury or death, intimidation, intentionality, multiple targets and political motivation. Big pharma, big oil and big banks meet them all.

By Paul Buchheit

Source: Mint Press News

Various definitions of terrorism have been proposed in recent years, by organizations such as the FBI, the State Department, Homeland Security, and the ACLU. Some common threads persist throughout the definitions: violence, injury or death, intimidation, intentionality, multiple targets, political motivation. All the criteria are met by pharmaceutical and oil and financial companies. They have all injured and intimidated the American public, and caused people to die, with intentionality shown by their refusal to acknowledge evidence of their misdeeds, and political motives clear in their lobbying efforts, where among all U.S. industries Big Pharma is #1, Big Oil is #5, and Securities/Investment #8.

The terror inflicted on Americans is real, and is documented…

This is one of the items on the agenda for the Additional Council Meeting this Thursday, 14th.  The regular meeting is on the 28th.

Although the item doesn’t specifically state that it is to consider a subsidy to some small operator, that is the clear inference from the fact that it is getting “hush, hush, top secret” treatment.

No-one would object to the council giving such an operator moral and even practical support, but it’s another matter completely with a subsidy which would be taking money from ratepayers and giving it to a private business — a ‘no-no.’

The council should not be involved in subsidizing businesses at all.  If it’s not economically viable for a company to do something from their shareholders funds — then end of story.

Air NZ was supposed to be making money from its Kapiti to Auckland service.  A smaller operator would likely have smaller…

Leaked emails from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency confirms that formaldehyde, a key ingredient in vaccines, is the number one cause of leukemia. 

The EPA, under pressure from the chemical industry, was forced to delay the release of a groundbreaking study confirming the cancer risks from formaldehyde, according to confidential emails seen by Reuters.

Reuters.com reports: Top EPA officials have declined to review the study or be briefed by its experts on the findings, the internal communications showed.

The EPA already lists formaldehyde, used in building materials like plywood and foam insulation, as a probable carcinogen. The new report is expected for the first time to detail its links to leukemia.

The report, an update of the EPA’s existing human health assessment of the widely used chemical, was completed by scientists from the agency’s Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) late last year and must go through a months-long internal review process before…