Society

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They pressured me to have children, and I had two. Now they won't lift a finger. 

Help Me Hera: My parents won’t help out with my kids

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A big lipped, dark eyed, slimy limp fish. A juicy, elongated orb with 16 little legs, four bouncing from its topside and a mouth pouting with stubby tentacles. A pale, ghost-like squid with maroon markings. Many new friends for you.

Introducing some of our 100 new sea friends

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This common respiratory virus hospitalises hundreds of New Zealand babies a year, but preventative drugs used overseas aren't funded here.

Why aren’t vulnerable babies being protected from RSV in Aotearoa?

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My most expensive clothing purchase in the last year? A $22 pack of Kmart undies.

The cost of being: A skint student waiting anxiously to start a new job

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Uncovering the strange and knotty past – and inadequate present – of a grassy hill that sits above Wellington CBD.

A flagpole, a failed space, and a confused history of white fragility

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Remakes are never as good as the originals, and that goes for plates too.

Briscoes’ new ‘retro’ collection looks awfully familiar

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Shortsightedness in kids is skyrocketing overseas. Is New Zealand next?

Staring down the ‘silent epidemic’ of myopia in children

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The legal and moral debate around New Zealand's best unofficial road rule.

Flashing your lights to warn other drivers of a speed camera – is it legal?

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For some people, I sound too Malaysian. For others, not Malaysian enough. 

The Sunday Essay: On code switching and finding my voice

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A commentator recently suggested laid-off public servants should move into frontline work. My response: I can't.

No, I can’t just get a frontline job

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Their relationship strikes me as unhealthy and it's making me angry. What should I do?

Help Me Hera: I set up two of my closest friends and bitterly regret it

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People in Gaza have been reusing single-use pads and using scraps of tent fabric as period products. Soon, 5,000 will receive a pack of period undies, a washing bag and drying bag.

A shipment of 20,000 period undies is heading to Gaza thanks to NZ enterprise

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Eyebrow wigs, oil spills, or Facebook Marketplace: where your cut hair ends up is anyone's guess. 

Do you know where your hair goes after it’s cut?

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Last week, Gymnastics New Zealand announced an overhaul of their competition attire rules. Now, let's make shorts the universal uniform.

Let everyone wear shorts for sports

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'I feel tight with everything at the moment, every dollar feels scrutinised. So boring.'

The cost of being: A single parent with dreams of building generational wealth

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It's been 50 years since ACC was founded, and thousands of disabled people are still waiting for the coverage they were promised.

Happy birthday, ACC. Now can we all join the party?

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Calculating the true cost of public transport with half-price fares ending this month.

Will tax cuts make up for the end of cheap public transport?

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I watch the surface of the Hauraki Gulf swarm with signs of life, but a struggle for survival is taking place underneath.

The Sunday Essay: Piercing the living waters

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Do yoga. Call your friend. Put turmeric in your food. Do not get sucked into a jet engine. 

How to cure depression 

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The government has announced plans to encourage international products into the New Zealand construction industry. An optimistically cautious approach is recommended.

We can’t afford another leaky homes crisis

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A new novel set in Wellington is a narrative of grief, and an ode to beautiful food writing. 

A love letter to Wellington: when i open the shop by romesh dissanayake, reviewed

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The government has made it well known it expects departments to cut roles. We break down the numbers as they currently stand.

An updated tally of the public sector job cuts

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Of course I wind down my window at the lights to profess my love to the strangers in the black De Tomaso Pantera. And of course they accommodate me with amused grins.

Confessions of an unlikely petrolhead

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Job cut proposals from the Ministry of Education and Oranga Tamariki added another 1000 roles to the public service job loss tally.

Over 3,000 public service jobs now proposed to go

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Mild headache? School. Severe headache? Home. Don't know how to read your kid's mind? That's your problem.

How to tell if your child is well enough to go to school or is in fact sick

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When the Crown is the self-appointed ultimate authority over a process to deal with Crown misconduct, we run into big issues.

We’re asking the wrong questions about treaty settlements

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Is New Zealand's trumpeted independent foreign policy in peril?<br />


Gone By Lunchtime: Aukus ruckus reveals division on foreign policy direction

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The bookseller confessional uncovers the best bookshop in Ireland, what it's like having a panic attack in front of Sally Rooney and more.

‘Coffee table books or Dune’: Secrets from the bookshop floor

With the events of last week bringing out the best in New Zealanders as we help, and are helped by, our neighbours, here’s a quiz on who exactly makes up our great country.

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With the events of last week bringing out the best in New Zealanders as we help, and are helped by, our neighbours, here's a quiz on who exactly makes up our great country.

The Spinoff

SocietyNovember 18, 2016

The Figure-Friday quiz: finding out about our helpful neighbours

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SocietyNovember 18, 2016

The Figure-Friday quiz: finding out about our helpful neighbours

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