Tag: New Zealand

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49 Dead In Anti-Muslim Shooting In New Zealand

New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern

From the New York Times:

Forty-nine people were killed in shootings at two mosques in central Christchurch, New Zealand, on Friday, in a terrorist attack that Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern described as “an extraordinary and unprecedented act of violence.”

• Officials said that one man in his late 20s had been charged with murder, and that two explosive devices were found attached to a vehicle that they had stopped.

• A Muslim leader in New Zealand said the attack was especially shocking as it took place around Friday Prayer. The police urged people to stay away from the mosques until further notice.

• A gunman streamed a live video of the attack on Facebook, and he appeared to have posted a manifesto online.

More at the NY Times here.

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Same-Sex Marriage Proposal At Police Graduation

Constable Erik Meechan proposes moments after graduating from police college
Constable Erik Meechan proposes moments after graduating from police college

There are important moments you remember all your life like graduating from college or proposing marriage.

New police college grad Constable Erik Meechan experienced both on the same day.

At the graduation ceremony of Wing 315 in Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand, the class of 78 new police officers marked the end of their initial training with a rousing haka.

But there was one more task for Meechan. He asked if his boyfriend of five years, Matty Judd, would please step forward.

As Judd emerged from the audience, the constable dropped to one knee and asked Judd to marry him.

The happy news is Judd said ‘yes’ and the crowd roared their approval.

Meechan later told the New Zealand Herald he had mulled over the proposal for a month but didn’t decide to pop the question for sure until just days before.

“I wasn’t 100 per cent sure until a couple days out. We actually got his ring customised and that arrived the day before so it was cutting it pretty fine,” he said.

Meechan, who was also honored with the Commissioner’s Award for Leadership, says he chose to propose at the graduation ceremony because, “I just wanted it to be a bit special, a bit different.”

Being on the receiving end of the marriage proposal, Judd said, “I think he wanted to do something extravagant that I would appreciate. And I did.”

“It was a really good time and place, and also it’s quite rare to get all our family together in the same place, so it was good to get them all together,” he added.

Commissioner Mike Bush, who attended the ceremony, was one of the first to congratulate the happy couple. He also expressed pride at how his police department has embraced the diversity of modern New Zealand.

“It was just awesome,” he says. “The fact that Erik felt so safe and supported in that environment was a fantastic demonstration of what our core value of valuing diversity is all about.”

“I wish Eric and Matty all the very best for the future,” he added.

Watch the happy moment below.

(h/t JoeMyGod)

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News Round-Up: May 25, 2018

Hot, handsome, woofy guy
(image via kenneth-in-the-212)

Some news items you might have missed: • I don’t know who this guy is, but Kenneth-in-the-212 found him and I just had to look at him some more… 😉 • Even with the recent announcement that the NFL will fine players who take a knee during the national anthem, New York Jets owner Christopher Johnson says he’ll pay any fine levied against his players. • Out country artist Ty Herndon talks about the upcoming Concert for Love & Acceptance. • LGBTQ people are leaving hostile countries in Asia for the more accepting lands of New Zealand. • George Takei says he bears no ill will towards his accuser who has now walked back his accusation that Takei sexually assaulted him almost 40 years ago. • On the UK series Celebrity Juice, TV personality Mark Wright and comedian Joel Dommett complete an obstacle course while passing a banana between their mouths because…?

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New Zealand TV Host Trolls Australia’s “No” Vote Campaign

Jesse Mulligan, host of New Zealand’s The Project, has some bitingly satirical “advice” for Australia as the deadline for the current “vote by mail” survey on same-sex marriage grows near.

#GoKiwis

#VoteYes

(h/t JoeMyGod)

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New Zealand Farmers Have A Hilarious Way To Explain What “Gay” Means

Check out the way cute video from Rainbow Youth, a non-profit supporting LGBT young people in New Zealand, which takes on the tiresome practice of calling anything weak, frustrating or disappointing “gay.”

When one of the farmers in the video accidentally drops his meat pie in the dirt, he proclaims the situation “gay.”

But his buddy steps in to explain that “gay” is not a substitution for something bad.

“Actually, Nigel, that’s not gay at all,” he says. “It’s deeply disappointing, but it’s not gay.”

The video was posted with this message: “We’re SUPER stoked to finally share with you our very first national ad campaign! We chose to address something small that contributes to much larger issues – homophobia, biphobia, and transphobia.”

Watch the clip below.

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New Zealand: MP Moves Parliament By Sharing Her Uncle Killed A Gay Man

A powerful and moving speech by Green MP Marama Davidson at the New Zealand Parliament, which is considering legislation that would pardon gay men convicted of homosexual behavior.

Davidson shares an emotional, personal example of the impact on her family of homophobia, remembering a young gay man who was killed by Davidson’s uncle in the 1980s.

From the New Zealand Herald:

Her voice breaking, Marama spoke of the man during Parliament’s formal apology to the men convicted for consensual acts at a time homosexuality was illegal.

“I want to acknowledge in particular a young man who was murdered for being gay when I was a young girl … I think about what he lost in his life.

“Maybe he might have chosen to be a father with a lover, with a husband. Maybe he might have been an amazing uncle. Maybe he might have been a grandfather. Who knows, because he lost his life.

“I send my love to his family because the person who stole his life was my family.”

Davidson later explained that in the 80s, her uncle had reacted violently when propositioned by a gay man. Her uncle punched the man, who ended up in the water on Wellington’s waterfront and drowned.

The uncle was convicted of manslaughter and was killed in prison himself.

The bill of apology passed unanimously in New Zealand’s Parliament. The legislation would allow about 1,000 men with convictions for homosexuality to apply for pardons. The families of men who have passed away would be able to apply on their behalf.

Watch MP Davidson speak below. She references her personal connection to the legislation at the 1:30 mark.

(h/t JoeMyGod)

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News Round-Up: December 15, 2016

Some news items you may have missed:

• “Cause we need a little Christmas, right this very minute…” via Randy Report fave, Alexander Abramov.

• Could New Zealand approve same-sex marriage before super-gay Australia? Maybe.

• Interesting article from the Indy Star on the closings of gay bars across the country. The writer points to the popularity of gay dating apps as well as the growth in tolerance for LGBTs as causes for the decline of gay watering holes.

• Russian President Vladimir Putin denies he had anything to do with cyber-hacking the DNC during the U.S. presidential race. What a surprise.

• A Louisiana judge has struck down Governor John Bel Edwards’ executive order protecting LGBTQ state workers and contractors from discrimination.

• After 8 years of forward movement for LGBT rights in the U.S., leaders of the movement are preparing to shift back to a defensive stance with the incoming Trump administration.

• Just hours after Vanity Fair gave the Trump Grill a bad review, Donald Trump tweeted an attack on the magazine and it’s editor. This is really how it’s going to be for the next four years?

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New Zealand Anti-Phone Ad Might Be Creepy But It Works

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Posted by Omg Lmfao Lol Wtf Videos on Wednesday, March 30, 2016

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Over The Top Air Safety Video Featuring Rugby’s Hunky All Blacks

Now you know we’re all about hunky rugby players here at The Randy Report 🙂

From the clip description:

At Air New Zealand, we’re #CrazyAboutRugby. So for our latest inflight safety video, we called upon some very special Men In Black to brief our passengers.

Created in partnership with Sony Pictures, the All Blacks take on a new challenge. Buckle up as our boys in black take you through the ins and outs of safety with the help of Stan Walker, Rip Torn and Frank the Pug. Plus, keep an eye out for some inter-galactic rugby cameos from David Campese, Martin Johnson and Agustin Pichot.

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Viral Video: New Zealand Students Perform Haka Dance At Teacher’s Funeral

Ok, this is awesome. Imminently watchable. The passion these students have is undeniable.

Mashable has the details:

At least 1,700 boys at Palmerston North Boys’ High School on New Zealand’s North Island participated in the epic performance for their physical education and maths teacher, Dawson Tamatea.

Tamatea, 55, died in his sleep on July 20, according to TVNZ. He had been a teacher at the school for almost 30 years.

“This was a very emotional and powerful performance,” the school wrote on its YouTube channel. “We are extremely proud of our boys’ performance and we know that Mr Tamatea would be too.”

The haka has become renowned internationally due to its prominence in rugby union football, where it is performed as a war cry before matches played by New Zealand’s teams.

(h/t JMG)