The Mike Hosking Breakfast

The Warriors’ abysmal decision making wasn’t the only cock up on display Friday night.
The fact Chad Townsend didn’t know the score, tried for a field goal, which let’s be honest has never been a Warriors strong point, is not something that can be easily forgiven.
Field and game awareness I would have thought is a given at that level.
Anyway, what of course stood out apart from the fact they took a win and blew it, was the fact we were reliving the dark old days of early Covid – no crowds.
And why was that? Because Australia, like us and indeed the Warriors, have taken an advantage and blown it.
Australia’s story is slightly different if they hadn’t panicked about AstraZeneca, they would be out the other side now given their CSL business in Melbourne would have produced millions of doses.
Morrison finally worked that out last week when he lined up young people and told them to ring their doctor and get on with it, and they did.
But like the Warriors, New Zealand and Australia opened well, locked the border, but instead of going on with it, got complacent and lazy, forgot the score, forgot the big picture, lost urgency and here we are in July treading water.
The sport I watch these days has crowds: F1, Wimbledon, the NBA playoffs, the Stanley Cup, the Tour de France, the golf, the euros. Sport globally is back in front of crowds.
The exceptions are the Olympics – why? Because Japan has failed, like us, to roll out vaccines.
What was once a massive advantage i.e. we didn’t get over whelmed by cases, is now slipping away in front of our eyes  as every man and his dog has taken the obvious steps around vaccination and got on with it.
We want to get on with it, don’t we? But because of a combination of complacency ineptitude and ideology, we have blown it.
Never forget it was us who used to smugly run headlines about having the biggest crowds in the world. Well look at us now: empty stadia, lockdowns, level adjustments.
Is it July 2021 or July 2020? How far have we really come when a year on? We have gone next to nowhere, and the world is looking in their rear view mirror at us

Is it time we look at paid parental leave rules for men?
It's been revealed only one percent of fathers take parental leave, which means the maternity leave has been transferred by the mother.
This month marks two decades since paid parental leave was introduced and yet fathers still only get two weeks unpaid leave - and New Zealand is one of only four OECD countries that offer no parental leave specifically for men.
Field worker with Kidz Need Dadz Allan Harvey joined Mike Hosking to discuss.
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Should we see a return of the All Blacks vs Māori All Blacks tour?
The question comes after the All Blacks thrashed Tonga 102-0 over the weekend, but as a curtain raiser the Māori All Blacks played Samoa, beating them in a tougher contest. 
Former All Blacks captain Buck Shelford told Mike Hosking that he would happily see the series - which hasn't been seen for decades - return. 
One concern that could prevent it's return is the possibility that the Māori side might win. 
"It's a bit of a slap in the face if they did lose. Some of the Māori All Blacks are actually All Blacks as well."
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Text by Frank Chung
Barnaby Joyce has claimed that the PM’s “four-phase” plan to end lockdowns, which did not include any thresholds or targets, actually does have a key number.
The Deputy Prime Minister appeared on Seven’s Sunrise on Monday morning to defend Scott Morrison’s plan announced on Friday, which drew criticism for lacking concrete metrics 18 months into the pandemic, and failing to set out clear timelines on when the country’s international borders can reopen.
The plan notably failed to address Australia’s vaccine shortage, despite wide-scale vaccination a requirement to move past “phase one”.
“It’s not much of a plan, is it?” Labor backbencher Joel Fitzgibbon told the program.
“You don’t get steps two, three and four before you have completed step one. You can’t return to any form of normality, we can’t get over these ridiculous lockdowns, can’t get the economy pumping again, until you get broad-scale vaccination.”
Sunrise host Natalie Barr asked Mr Joyce why there were “no numbers, no dates” in the plan.
“The numbers are there in what we’re doing,” the Deputy PM replied.
“The numbers are in excess of eight million … by the end of this week we will be well over nine million, and that is the metric you work for,” he continued, referring to the number of vaccine doses administered.
Mr Joyce said the vaccine rollout was accelerating with the AstraZeneca shot now being offered to younger Australians as well, despite concerns over rare blood clots.
“More and more people have had one shot and are heading towards getting the second shot,” he said.
“You see it in your own community and your workplace, so many people had a shot now, it is rolling out.”
Mr Joyce said the issue was there was “not enough” Pfizer to go around.
“We’re not the only country in the world having to deal with this, other countries such as Canada and Mexico are having to draw on the Pfizer vaccine as well, so this idea that the Pfizer vaccine issue is a unique problem is not correct,” he said.
“There is supply of AstraZeneca vaccine, as I said, we’re trying to grab Pfizer just like Canada and Mexico.”

Rushcutters Bay Park on Sunday during lockdown. Photo / Getty Images
Pressed on why the government had not included targets in the four-phase plan, the Deputy PM said he “can’t speak into the mind of other people as to why”.
“But I would suggest I wouldn’t do it because what you want to make sure is you work to a plan that says we are going to have to live with this virus, we are not going to be getting rid of it,” he said.
“Even if everybody is vaccinated or you get 90 per cent vaccination, you will still have the virus in the community. So you have got to make sure that you condition people to the idea that our job is to keep you alive, and to stop you from getting sick, we’re not going to be able to eradicate Covid-19, it’s just not going to happen.”
Mr Joyce said Australia had to learn to live with the virus like the flu or measles and mumps.
“We don’t want them but we don’t close down the economy because of them,” he said.
“And that’s precisely what we’re doing and I think the states are now coming on board with that idea. That sets the nation up in a much stronger place.”
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Monday morning's Commentary Box was a little different this morning. 
Newstalk ZB's Mike Hosking and Guy Heveldt had a bet on whether the Tokyo Olympics would go ahead. 
Hosking was convinced they would be cancelled but Heveldt wasn't so sure. And the bet was some homemade cooking. 
And even though it looks like Hosking is going to lose the bet, Heveldt decided to surprise the ZB host with a lovingly homemade Bacon and Leek Tart. 
So what did Hosking make of it? 
WATCH THE FULL VIDEO ABOVE

A suggestion empty MIQ rooms could be put to better use.
Almost 2000 rooms are empty each day, because 900 are kept aside for "contingency plans".
A further 1100 are either unavailable because of maintenance, or the facility has changed to a group intake system.
Association of Consulting Engineers Chief Executive Helen Davidson told Mike Hosking it's disappointing to see, given the construction sector's experiencing a skills shortage.
“We're asking the government for targeted skills-based approach to immigration and MIQ for the construction sector.”
Davidson says there's concerms over the ability to deliver projects in a timely manner because of a lack of skilled personnel.
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Text by Hollie Silverman, Melissa Alonso and Dakin Andone
Search and rescue operations at the site of a partial building collapse in Surfside, Florida, remained paused Sunday as authorities prepare for the likely demolition of what's left of the Champlain Towers South condo building.
"As soon as the preparation is ready, the site is secured and the team is ready to go, we will begin the demolition," Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said in a news conference Sunday morning. She said the "top priority is that the building come down as soon as possible ... and as safely as possible."
Search efforts paused Saturday around 4 p.m. so engineers could secure the site and prepare for the demolition, which officials have said is crucial to allowing authorities to continue to look for survivors safely, eliminating the threat posed by the part of the structure that's still standing.
The demolition team continued preparations Sunday morning, racing against Tropical Storm Elsa, which is tracking toward South Florida with heavy rain and sustained winds of 60 mph.
Officials did not provide a timeline for the demolition in a news conference Sunday morning -- the 11th day since approximately 55 of the building's 136 units collapsed early June 24, killing at least 24 people. As of Sunday, 121 people were still unaccounted for.
Those who died include 4- and 10-year-old sisters, an elderly couple and the daughter of a firefighter.
Nicole Mejias told CNN on Saturday that five of her family members were in the Champlain Towers South building when it collapsed, including 7-year-old Stella Cattarossi, the daughter of the Miami firefighter. Cattarossi's body was found Thursday night.
"We just miss them so much already, we wish this tragedy didn't happen, and will always remember them," Mejias said.
Appearing on Sunday's "Face the Nation" on CBS, Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett underscored that authorities are still working with the mindset that this remains a rescue effort.
"It is absolutely not a recovery effort," Burkett said, later adding, "There is nobody in charge really talking about stopping this rescue effort. And this rescue effort, as far as I'm concerned, will go on until everybody is pulled out of that debris."
Demolition plans and a race against the storm
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency for 15 counties Saturday -- including Miami-Dade County -- because of Tropical Storm Elsa.
"We're preparing for the risk of isolated tornadoes, storm surge, heavy rainfall and flash flooding," DeSantis said, adding the state has "begun executing contingency plans for the Tropical Storm Elsa and Surfside co-response."
A tropical storm warning has been issued for the Florida Keys and a tropical storm watch is in effect for parts of southwest Florida.
Elsa was a Category 1 hurricane Friday and early Saturday, but weakened to a tropical storm as it took aim at the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Forecasters say the storm's center will not directly impact Surfside, though the city could be affected by its outer bands, with wind gusts and rain starting in the area as early as Monday morning.
The potential for weather-related issues at the collapse site is influencing authorities' decisions on the ground. "We're still very hopeful that we can do the demolition before the storm," Levine Cava said Saturday night. "We are proceeding as quickly as we possibly can."
Plans to demolish the remaining portion of the building were announced late in the week as rescuers continued to scour the debris for victims.
Search and rescue operations were briefly suspended Thursday after engineers noted shifting on the debris pile that posed a danger to the rescue crews, officials said. After operations resumed later that day, authorities confirmed a demolition would likely be necessary to keep rescue crews and the collapse site safe for further searches.

Provincial New Zealand has a big problem on its hands.
The Herald has obtained two years of wastewater results police have used to monitor consumption of illegal drugs, since late 2018.
The results show smaller towns such as Kaitaia, Opotiki and Wairoa are consuming sometimes up to four times the national average of methamphetamine.
Detective Inspector Blair MacDonald told Mike Hosking the communities showing the highest readings are often struggling with a number of things.
"Whether it be food depravation, lack of employment opportunities, and of course if you can't feed your tamariki, and there's not a lot going on in your life, a hit of methamphetamine is going to make that go away for a moment."
MacDonald says police are taking a strong prevention apporach and work with a range of agencies to help people kick their addictions.
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It's still not clear just how much of an impact an international cyber attack has had on New Zealand.
Hackers recently targeted Florida IT company Kaseya triggering a supply chain attack, meaning any companies using their software, are also targeted.
St Peter's School in Cambridge has confirmed its network has been exposed, while the Ministry of Education says 11 schools may have been affected.
IT security expert Daniel Ayers told Mike Hosking the full extent of the damage is still being realised.
"What we don't know is whether there are infections beyond those schools and that's something that we will be looking for over the next day or so."
Globally, Ayers said about 30 managed service providers and over 1000 end customers have been compromised.
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At the end of each week, Mike Hosking takes you through the big-ticket items and lets you know what he makes of it all.
 
Singapore's Approach to Covid: 8/10
"Living with Covid, no quarantine, no daily numbers, they can tame it, and not eliminate it.
They say it's sort of like flu.
Welcome to the real world."
 
Britain's Approach to Covid: 7/10
"As July 19 gets closer, no compulsory QR scanning and no isolation if you’ve been jabbed.
Welcome to the real world."
 
New Zealand's Approach to Covid: 3/10
"Looking at compulsory QR scanning, no changes for the vaccinated, no vaccine, and still 122nd in the world."
 
The 2022 ASB Classic Cancelled: 2/10
"Another reminder that being a hermit kingdom comes at a very high price.
As Wimbledon begins in front of crowds, we cancel our event for the second year in a row."
 
Chris Finlayson's Criticism of National: 6/10
"A bit off-piste bagging your old workplace.
But he did have a point."
 
The Wellington Kayakers: 8/10
"God bless the adventurer.
And long may they blow wind up the skirts of the scared and frightened."
 
Matt Hancock's Affair and Resignation: 0/10
"Dick of the week."
 
All Blacks: 7/10
"First game of the season.
Not exactly a blockbuster opener, but local, and with the promise of an almost normal season."
 
Clarkson's Farm: 9/10
"A highlight of the week,
An ode and love letter to the farmer told, as always, brilliantly.
In a world of scant good telly, watch it. It's uplifting."
 
LISTEN ABOVE FOR MIKE HOSKING'S FULL WEEK IN REVIEW