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beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
@beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
380 followers 900 following 1.3K posts
Reader, dreamer, gardener. Glad to be retired. Based in Tāmaki Makaurau. Strongly opposed to our current coalition government / ship of fools.
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beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
Have seen the first* comment blaming Ardern for the NZPolice debacle. I am not surprised.
*first I’ve seen. I’m sure it’s not the actual first. #nzpol
November 14, 2025 at 12:05 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
Back from inaugural meeting of #WaitematāLocalBoard of #AucklandCouncil. Inspiring and well-crafted speech from new chair #AlexandraBonham. Pity one member chose to do some self promotion / electioneering before taking the oath of office. Hope that behaviour doesn’t continue.
#nzpol #CityVision
November 5, 2025 at 5:56 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
Just back from a great introduction to Atarau - a gallery at #AucklandMuseum telling stories of the New Zealand Wars.
There’s an excellent accompanying collection of essays which show the intellectual vapidity of the press release from #DavidSeymour about the gutting of the history curriculum
October 28, 2025 at 7:20 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
So disappointing to realise that #AucklandCouncil has no official events to mark the day of commemoration of the New Zealand Wars - or if they do the information is so hidden I haven’t been able to find it. Compare this to Anzac Day events.
October 27, 2025 at 11:39 PM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
Have just finished reading The Covid Response by @hendysh.bsky.social. Moving, compelling, and yet worrying - the latter because it’s hard to see evidence we are learning lessons or making preparations.
October 20, 2025 at 10:06 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
Another positive in Auckland - Wayne B did not get his preferred candidates for councillors from the Manukau ward.
October 11, 2025 at 3:02 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
Best news out of Auckland local body elections is that only one ACT Local candidate seems to have got any traction. The one exception is in Orakei (I’m so surprised). Hope that resounding failure is repeated across the country and is a positive sign for 2026. #nzpol
October 11, 2025 at 2:15 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
Ignorance is the mother of fear and the grandmother of hate

Kate Shugak / #DanaStabenow
September 24, 2025 at 12:04 PM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
Just back from candidates meeting for Waitemata Local Board and Waitemata and Gulf councillor. The obsession with character and heritage housing - even though many of those houses have only retained their original structure on the street facing facade - gets pretty monotonous. #nzpol
September 9, 2025 at 7:42 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
Lovely to see plants going in along Great North Road in Grey Lynn. And then I think of the images of trees planted in Paris and I really resent having to be grateful for the meagre number and size of the trees allowed by #AT. #nzpol
August 21, 2025 at 12:26 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
Reading article about claims Northland police are racist. I am so tired of the “this is not who we are” defence used so often. When things happen (racist email in this example) it is showing clearly that THIS IS who at least some of us are. Admit it. Get on with fixing it. #nzpol
August 20, 2025 at 2:07 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
Lots of commentary about #Willis or #Bishop as [terrible] replacements for #Luxon. Did any one else notice the 1/4 page article/advert in #NZHerald about Mark Mitchell and all the damage to his health from his dedication to public service? Couldn’t help but think “he’s running” #nzpol
August 19, 2025 at 10:40 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
So #DavidSeymour thinks churches should “stay in their lane”. What a strange view he has of religion if he thinks they have no intetest interest in social justice
August 18, 2025 at 1:54 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
#nzherald says Luxon “sees education as one of his passions in politics”. So that explains the public funding of early childhood education, quality meals in schools, better resourcing of teachers and support staff, more investment in tertiary education, etc., etc.
August 4, 2025 at 1:33 AM
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marksuttonbike.bsky.social
Every community needs one of these
derek.bike derek van vliet @derek.bike · Jul 30
good morning
July 30, 2025 at 3:40 PM
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dianecoyle1859.bsky.social
Can we have weight-based car taxes too please? These are loathsome vehicles and they’re mushrooming all over London
awalkerinla.bsky.social Alissa Walker @awalkerinla.bsky.social · Jun 26
Two years ago I interviewed a 31-year-old NY state assemblymember about a 7-year-old girl killed by an SUV driver in his district. I hung up the phone, astonished that I'd talked to a legislator who so thoughtfully articulated what actually needs to change on our streets.

He'll make a great mayor
In February, 7-year-old Dolma Naadhun was crossing the intersection of Newtown Road and 45th Street in Astoria with her mother and sister when the driver of a 2021 Ford Explorer blew through a stop sign, striking and killing Dolma. One month later, New York City Department of Transportation commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez visited the crash site with other officials, met with community members demanding a traffic signal be installed, and promised to make changes to the street - including "daylighting" the intersection using curb extensions and plastic bollards. State assemblymember Zohran Mamdani also visited the scene that day and realized that something else needed to change. "When you take a step back and think about traffic violence in New York City," he said, "you start to understand that this is a systemic issue that is incentivized by the policies that we have in place with regard to the design of our streets and what kind of vehicles we allow to be on our roads." Whether a driver runs a stop sign or a red light, statistically, certain cars - namely, bigger SUVs and trucks - are more likely to kill a 7-year-old. This is why Mamdani is co- introducing legislation for a weight-based vehicle-registration fee intended to discourage people from purchasing heavier vehicles. "The car industry is pushing the sale of heavier and larger vehicles," he says. "The state has to make it clear that these types of vehicles come with a certain kind of cost." soar above adult shoulders. But there may be another way to disincentivize the purchases of such vehicles, says Edwards. "One other potential idea would be for someone, maybe a city's DOT, to start keeping a list of the different makes and models of vehicles that are killing pedestrians and cyclists, or kids specifically, and post that publicly," he says. "That could bring awareness to which cars are more dangerous and also potentially affect insurance rates, which would possibly convince people not to buy certain cars." There's a bit of accountability in New York's bill, which would require the State DOT to track all fatal crashes by vehicle weight. But the other encouraging aspect of the proposal is that the collected fees stay local, by county, and, after the annual dedications to highway, bridge, and transit trust funds are met, a full 75 percent of the funds raised will go toward safety improvements like bike lanes, bollards, road diets, pedestrianization of streets, and raised crosswalks. This means the neighborhoods most impacted by large vehicles are likely to see the biggest changes. And that might be the most important part of the legislation, says Mamdani. "This is an initiative to make our streets safer for our children," he says. "And we are making sure a significant portion of this funding goes toward creating the very streetscapes that we know will save their lives."
June 26, 2025 at 5:40 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
This cause is close to my heart - please sign: our.actionstation.org.nz/petitions/lu...
Luxon: Uphold Codes of Conduct - Hold your Government to Account
Responsible leaders welcome advice from experts and when they are creating laws and policies. They know good decision making means planning for the long term, considering diverse points of view and ma...
our.actionstation.org.nz
June 25, 2025 at 2:59 AM
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dejanajuk.bsky.social
I really appreciated Ardern withdrawing from Hosking’s show. Don’t support the indefensible, if you sit down to talk with bad faith actors who are racists and bigots you’re not giving them a new perspective your legitimising their platform.
June 12, 2025 at 7:57 PM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
This cause is close to my heart - please sign: our.actionstation.org.nz/petitions/cl...
Clean Air in Schools
Covid can have a substantial impact on peoples’ health. Although Covid initially enters the body through the respiratory system, it can affect virtually every bodily system and organ. There are no adv...
our.actionstation.org.nz
April 28, 2025 at 2:28 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
Mmm. Hot cross bun warmed through and with blue vein cheese. Yummy.
April 16, 2025 at 4:42 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
“This bill has been absolutely annihilated” Hanalei-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke #nzpol
April 10, 2025 at 4:05 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
Have just finished reading the delightful Nights out at home by @jayrayner1.bsky.social I am now extremely hungry and have a long shopping list - as well as lots of ideas for using the readymade pastry I already have.
March 26, 2025 at 7:01 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
Very glad it’s raining here in Tāmaki Makaurau. It’s a bit too cold though.
March 19, 2025 at 3:16 AM
beverlyfletcher.bsky.social
Damn it you insects. The wine is for me, not for thee!!
March 11, 2025 at 5:55 AM
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joncooper-us.bsky.social
Pass it on.
#StandWithUkraine
February 28, 2025 at 8:44 PM