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@Rapido said in Potential Positives to Look forward to:
I think a lesson coming out, is that an NZ government SOE/agency should be created that produces generic drugs and maybe some basic medical equipment.
E.g. China temporarily stopping exports of chemicals to India used for manufacture of generic drugs, then India stopping export of it's generic drugs due to lack of supply of raw ingredients.
(Plus EU's restrictions on masks, respirator exports).Just needs top be on a small scale, knowing it can't compete on price, so probably loss making, but accepted as loss making. Selling a same price as the imported generics. With potential to ramp up in a crisis.
So the "positive" is possible domestic employment for a handful of scientists, chemical engineers, line mechanics etc.
However, like glass-steagal. After 70 years it will probably be decided as not needed, when the crisis was 80 years in the coming.
How much are you prepared to give in additional tax revenue to do that? Serious question because what you're suggesting is not a trivial undertaking. Better I'd suggest to attempt an increased stockpile, but even then you can't predict what you're going to need...
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@antipodean said in Potential Positives to Look forward to:
@Rapido said in Potential Positives to Look forward to:
I think a lesson coming out, is that an NZ government SOE/agency should be created that produces generic drugs and maybe some basic medical equipment.
E.g. China temporarily stopping exports of chemicals to India used for manufacture of generic drugs, then India stopping export of it's generic drugs due to lack of supply of raw ingredients.
(Plus EU's restrictions on masks, respirator exports).Just needs top be on a small scale, knowing it can't compete on price, so probably loss making, but accepted as loss making. Selling a same price as the imported generics. With potential to ramp up in a crisis.
So the "positive" is possible domestic employment for a handful of scientists, chemical engineers, line mechanics etc.
However, like glass-steagal. After 70 years it will probably be decided as not needed, when the crisis was 80 years in the coming.
How much are you prepared to give in additional tax revenue to do that? Serious question because what you're suggesting is not a trivial undertaking. Better I'd suggest to attempt an increased stockpile, but even then you can't predict what you're going to need...
Or rather than putting all eggs into the China / India baskets, we spread the risk and diversify the source of medical supplies and medicines. Is Indonesia, Nigeria, Brazil etc. going to be that much more cost-prohibitive than China / India?
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@Siam said in Potential Positives to Look forward to:
In response to the thread...AFL ???🤫
I don't see how that's sustainable. The match day squads and staff would be huge.
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@junior said in Potential Positives to Look forward to:
@antipodean said in Potential Positives to Look forward to:
@Rapido said in Potential Positives to Look forward to:
I think a lesson coming out, is that an NZ government SOE/agency should be created that produces generic drugs and maybe some basic medical equipment.
E.g. China temporarily stopping exports of chemicals to India used for manufacture of generic drugs, then India stopping export of it's generic drugs due to lack of supply of raw ingredients.
(Plus EU's restrictions on masks, respirator exports).Just needs top be on a small scale, knowing it can't compete on price, so probably loss making, but accepted as loss making. Selling a same price as the imported generics. With potential to ramp up in a crisis.
So the "positive" is possible domestic employment for a handful of scientists, chemical engineers, line mechanics etc.
However, like glass-steagal. After 70 years it will probably be decided as not needed, when the crisis was 80 years in the coming.
How much are you prepared to give in additional tax revenue to do that? Serious question because what you're suggesting is not a trivial undertaking. Better I'd suggest to attempt an increased stockpile, but even then you can't predict what you're going to need...
Or rather than putting all eggs into the China / India baskets, we spread the risk and diversify the source of medical supplies and medicines. Is Indonesia, Nigeria, Brazil etc. going to be that much more cost-prohibitive than China / India?
No doubt pharma companies are looking at their BCP thinking that anyway.
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@antipodean absolutely mate. It makes no sense...but it's fucken corker to have some sport.
Good luck to them, a quintessentially Aussie thing to do in the face of calamity!😁
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Government superannuation wage bill falls
Housing crisis averted as houses vacated by pensioners and no-one has any jobs or money to afford them anyway
Pilots don't strike during busy holiday periods
Freedom camping by overseas visitors becomes a distant memory
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This post is deleted!
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I think I'll do the Tongariro Crossing this year.
Last did it about 30 years ago, and I reckon that we'll be back to 1990 levels of crowding.
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@Rapido said in Potential Positives to Look forward to:
I think I'll do the Tongariro Crossing this year.
Last did it about 30 years ago, and I reckon the we'll be back to 1990 levels of crowding.
Yeah, some of the walks that are usually overcrowded with tourists could be a good plan. Abel Ta$man is like a highway nowadays but could be quiet.
I've mentioned it before but if you have the gear look at doing the TC at night. Easter can be a good time as it is at on or near a full moon. Time your leaving to be either at top of walk or top of Tongariro at sunrise. If you are lucky you get to see the sun coming up on the coast.
I see that this year there is a supermoon on 8/4 with easter weekend starting 10/4
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@nzzp said in Potential Positives to Look forward to:
@Crucial far out that sounds amazing. Well worth it (although transport is a bit of a pig isn't it?)
It does help if you take a non walking driver with you to drop off at Mangetepopo and collect you in the morning.
You could drive yourself to the start and see if any of the shuttle operations will do a pickup and drop you back there. It is against the usual flow but they may be happy for the business.
Go very well prepared though. That changeable weather is bad enough daytime, let alone when dark. Be prepared to stop and hunker down for a little while if necessary. Obviously don't start if weather doesn't look good.
The bonus if the weather is clear is that you get the feeling of really being up there alone and the moon lights the way making it look like another planet. -
RE: supply chain redundancy, I was interested if the concentration of hard drive factories in Thailand (and there flooding) would be an interesting case study. Perhaps not.
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My employer (a large government department) has switched to half the office in at a time. My days are Monday and Tuesday plus every second Wednesday, and the other schedule is Thursday and Friday plus every other Wednesday. People who can work from home, do.
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@antipodean I might write a piece about supply chain redundancy for an engineering publication. Any good case studies? I'm guessing most examples are from military procurement?
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@Tim said in Potential Positives to Look forward to:
@antipodean I might write a piece about supply chain redundancy for an engineering publication. Any good case studies? I'm guessing most examples are from military procurement?
From what I can recall, there's almost no genuine redundancy in Defence procurement. Tenders are generally awarded to one winning bid who divide the deliverables amongst the parties. What they do tend to do is procure meaningful amounts and store them. Thankfully most of the equipment has a good shelf life.
I think even ration pack production comes from numerous companies responsible for certain elements unless someone knows better.
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saw an article on Stuff earlier where our MOH claimed they were confident we still hadnt had any community spread yet...not sure how they can be that confident though!
INteresting chat with an Islander in the past couple of days, we were talking covid and got onto Kiwisaver and when I mentioned loads of people losing money, he thought it was because the Govt. was taking the money to pay for things in this crisis...I thought wow, really...
turns out, he aint the only one
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/120439056/the-government-isnt-stealing-from-your-kiwisaver-account
Potential Positives to Look forward to