Free Republic

New Zealand is to hold a binding referendum in 2016 on whether to change the national flag. The announcement by Prime Minister John Key of the referendum came after his government last month won a third term in a general election. A panel of "respected New Zealanders" will lead the public discussion on potential designs for a new flag. Mr Key has previously said he would like to see a new flag featuring a silver fern, on a black background. That would be similar to the banner already used by many New Zealand teams such as the All Blacks national...

New Iraqi defense minister Khaled al-Obeidi has delivered his first official speech, insisting that the Kurdistan Region must hand back terrorists that have been living in the KRI. Al-Obeidi is a Sunni, was approved as the new Iraqi defense minister along with Mohammed Salem al-Ghabban, a Shia, who was appointed interior minister. “The Kurdistan Region should hand back criminals who have been charged with terrorist acts to the federal government, so they can face justice,” said Al-Obeidi. “The Kurdistan Region security forces and Iraqi police should arrest all those criminals, as they are threats to the security and stability of...

Explanation: To some, it may look like a portal into the distant universe. To others, it may appear as the eye of a giant. Given poetic license, both are correct. Pictured above is a standard fisheye view of the sky -- but with an unusual projection. The view is from a perch in New Zealand called Te Mata Peak, a name that translates from the Maori language as "Sleeping Giant". The wondrous panorama shows the band of our Milky Way Galaxy right down the center of the sky, with the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds visible to the right. The...

No, this isn't an April Fool's joke or some sort of wacky car commercial. It's the SPCA Auckland (located in New Zealand) coming up with an innovative way of proving that it's possible to teach a rescue animal new tricks. Monty, Porter and Ginny are all dogs rescued by the SPCA Auckland, and each was taught the ability to drive a Mini Countryman around a track. After being strapped into the driver's seat, the dogs are able to use their paws to start the car, steer it and work the gas and brake, which have been modified similar to a car setup...

Ninety-nine years ago today, April 25, in the very early hours before dawn, some 1200 kilometers from Jerusalem, members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps – or ANZACs – landed on the western shore of the Gallipoli Peninsula, in modern-day Turkey, at a place we now call Anzac Cove. At roughly the same time, British forces landed at the southern tip of the Gallipoli Peninsula, at Cape Helles, whilst French forces went ashore at Kum Kale, on the Turkish mainland just opposite Cape Helles. Indian and Canadian troops later joined the campaign. This multinational invasion force was to...

Explanation: No, radio dishes cannot broadcast galaxies. Although they can detect them, the above image features a photogenic superposition during a dark night in New Zealand about two weeks ago. As pictured above, the central part of our Milky Way Galaxy is seen rising to the east on the image left and arching high overhead. Beneath the Galactic arc and just above the horizon are the two brightest satellite galaxies of our Milky Way, with the Small Magellanic Cloud to the left and the Large Magellanic Cloud on the right. The radio dish is the Warkworth Satellite Station located just...

 Dr David Kear Climate Depot reports on a New Zealand geoscientist who has worked at the highest levels and has just released a detailed statement about why the threat of rising sea-levels has been blown out of all proportions, and “An ‘innocent gas, CO2, has been demonized and criminalized’”. “The widespread obsession with Global-Warming-Climate-Change, in opposition to all factual evidence, is quite incredible.” Kear laments the ‘Astronomical Cost of Major Measures to Combat a Non-Existent Threat’.His scientific caliber: “Dr David Kear has a background in geology and engineering, becoming the Director General of the DSIR (Department of Scientific and Industrial...

Media outlets in Australia and New Zealand today reported that two Australian nationals, including one who was a New Zealand citizen as well, were killed in a US predator drone strike in Yemen on Nov. 19. Last year's airstrike took place in Yemen's eastern Hadramout province, a known jihadist haven, and targeted al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) fighters driving in the Ghayl Bawazir area near Mukallah, the provincial capital. The two Australian nationals killed in the airstrike were identified as Christopher Harvard of Townsville, Australia, and Muslim bin John, a New Zealand dual citizen who reportedly changed his...

In the walk-up to Easter this weekend, New Zealand pizza chain Hell Pizza, known for its saucy marketing campaigns, has put up a billboard that has stirred controversy among animal rights activists because it is covered in rabbit pelts. Boasting the tagline “Made from real rabbit. Like this billboard,” the sign advertises a new pie with “smoked wild NZ rabbit, toasted pine nuts, beetroot & horopito relish, cream cheese, rosemary & garnished with fresh spring onions.”

In a recent interview, Richard Armitage revealed that he was quite emotional about the completion of the trilogy. The 42-year-old actor spoke with BANG Showbiz about finally wrapping the trilogy and how now that the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogy was completed, he was very moved. "It will be 15 years of Peter Jackson's work, there'll be six movies to watch, but it could be the final time. There's something moving about that," he said.

Remains of a typical Scottish/Celtic homestead. (from 12th Century New Zealand?) A modern native NZ Scottish/Celt surveys the ruins. Drystone walls have been pushed out and over. The typical hearthstone, the rock for the family's patron saint, the rock on which the dwellings protective God would have sat, and others are all still in traditional and recogniseable positions. Other such remains abound. This site is now difficult to reach by sea and little known. The original boat access is much changed and boat access is best achieved from an adjacent bay. It is also in the vicinity of a...

A plane has spotted objects in the Indian Ocean of the first day of searching a new location for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, but officials say it will take until tomorrow to determine whether they are related to the lost plane. The search area moved 680 miles to the north east earlier today, and a New Zealand military plane, one of nine aircraft involved in the hunt, found the objects, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said on Twitter. Amsa said the find needs to be confirmed by a ship which is expected to arrive in the area tomorrow. The search...

New Zealanders are to vote on whether to change their national flag, with many including the country's prime minister wanting to see it replaced with the silver fern symbol used by the All Blacks rugby team. Prime Minister John Key today announced plans to hold a referendum within three years, receiving the backing of his political opponents who said they would follow through with plans even if they oust Key in this year's national elections. The current flag depicts the Southern Cross star constellation and includes Britain's Union Jack in the top left corner.

Explanation: Sometimes the more you look at an image, the more you see. Such may be the case for this beautiful nighttime panorama taken last week in New Zealand. Visible right off, on the far left, are common clouds, slightly altered by the digital fusion of combining 11 separate 20-second exposures. More striking, perhaps, is the broad pink aurora that dominates the right part of the image, a less common auroral color that is likely tinted by excited oxygen atoms high in Earth's atmosphere. Keep looking and you might notice a bright light just beyond the mountain on the left....

Politicians don’t typically deign to respond to wild claims and accusations. But New Zealand’s Prime Minister John Key has publicly responded to an Open Information Act request for “any evidence to disprove the theory that Mr John Key is in fact a David Icke style shapeshifting reptilian alien ushering humanity towards enslavement.” “Having been asked that question directly, I’ve taken the unusual step of not only seeing a doctor, but a vet, and both have confirmed that, no, I’m not a reptile,” Key told reporters with a smile. The prime minister continued: “I’m certainly not an alien. I’ve never been...

WHAKATANE, New Zealand (PIX11)— New Zealand trucker Steven McCormack is either the luckiest or unluckiest person in the world, depending on one’s perspective. McCormack was working on his tractor trailer at a gas station in Whakatane, on the North Island’s east coast, when he slipped and fell, landing on a broken high pressure air valve.

John Key: 'I'm not a reptile' He's been to a doctor and a vet just to make sure, but Prime Minister John Key is adamant he's not a shapeshifting reptilian alien. Mr Key was unusually forced to deny any previously non-declared extraterrestrial connections to reporters after an Auckland man put in an Official Information Act (OIA) request asking for proof he might be one. "To the best of my knowledge, no. Having been asked that question directly, I've taken the unusual step of not only seeing a doctor but a vet, and both have confirmed I'm not a reptile," a...

Lost Danish tourist ‘gang-raped’ in Delhi: police January 16, 2014 NEW DELHI: Indian police rounded up a group of homeless men on Wednesday over the alleged gang-rape of a 51-year-old Danish tourist who lost her way near the main backpacker’s area of the capital, officers said. The woman approached the suspects for directions early on Tuesday evening while trying to return to her hotel in the bustling Paharganj district of New Delhi, reportedly after visiting a city museum. Up to six “youngsters” allegedly assaulted and robbed the victim, who was travelling alone and had been in New Delhi since Monday...

This Safe Driving Ad From New Zealand Will Give You The Chills video only

A PC push by British politicians is threatening to downplay the role of Aussie diggers in WW1 in favour of developing nations. The ANZAC whitewash comes despite the 62,000 Australians who died in the Great War fighting for the British Empire and another 156,000 wounded, with no 100-year anniversary events planned by Britain recognising the sacrifice. ..... British government sources have confirmed internal briefings on WWI commemorations have not mentioned Australia or New Zealand once, instead staff from departments and cabinet offices have been briefed to concentrate on other British Empire contributions by soldiers from countries such as Nigeria and...