CAN THE ALL BLACKS RESTORE NZ
If the All Blacks win the Rugby World Cup later this year it may just be the impetus to trigger the revival of NZ in general to lead us out of the desert into the promise land or return us to the balmy days when we at or near the top in so many international surveys - from happiness to economic prowess, from education to least corrupt.
I fear we are in a hole that is getting bigger - like that of those potholes in Ward Street, Upper Hutt.
Ardern resigned as PM and left the Labour-Green Government with a major reason perhaps being that she felt she lacked the skilled and professional competen support among her colleagues. Ardern to me needed propping up to be the great leader she showed and was capable of but the problem was, the props were on the earthquake fault line. And since her departure the Government at a cabinet, parliamentary and political levels has only gotten worse. It is virtually in disarray.
So we look to the opposition. Without an iota of a doubt in my mind, there will be a National-ACT government before the end of the year. And do I find that they will be sufficiently engaged at a higher level than what we have now. No.
Maybe the Football Ferns in July and August at the Women's FIFA World Cup will set a platform that will provide a boost to NZ that the All Blacks can finish off come October. Don't hold your breath.
⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️
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Kia ora neighbours. We give away free copies to readers whose recipes are used in our magazine. We're still on the hunt for tomato recipes, so send your family's favourite way to use up your homegrown harvest, to: mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz. If we use it in the mag, you will receive a free copy of the mag