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There used to be a webcam in the Beehive Theatrette run by R2 that broadcast the PM's Post-Cabinet press conference. Anyone who wanted to could go to the site and watch the press conference live and uncut. It was direct access for the public, the…
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They've already been dubbed NZ's David and Ed Milliband. Brothers David and Ben Clark will both be standing for Labour in the 2011 general election. David is standing for the safe Dunedin North seat, while Ben will be taking on Wayne Mapp on the North…
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You may have seen ads on the site recently for a comedy play called Gagarin Way, which opens in Auckland this Wednesday. As part of the Scoop ad cartel, we have four pairs of tickets to give away. Here's the game: best - ie most…
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Wikileaks' latest coup is the release of a database of more than 250,000 diplomatic cables between American embassies, up to and including the highest security level "Top Secret". The material was first released to selected newspapers, The Guardian, Der Spiegel, Le Monde, El País, and…
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In the annual Trans-Tasman 'roll-call', amongst the normal love-struck schoolboy prose that we expect from the Trans-Tasman when referring to any National leader, is this judgment on the PM: "Key needs an agenda, not just the consensus he is building around personal trust." In other…
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Open mike is your post. It's open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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A couple of comments by one of the commentators on the Standard stuck in my mind. Jenny drew attention to the fact that the Commissioner for the Environment had pulled the "Lignite and Climate Change: The High Cost of Low Grade Coal" report that was…
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So, I was going to do a post about Don Brash's latest Orewa blurt. Looking round at the headlines it has all the right ingredients for a nice juicy post: Brash attacks Maori - again Brash takes aim at Key in race speech Don Brash’s…
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Matt McCarten is doing the dance of the seven veils on the issue of a new Left Party. He and the other players have been denying they have anything planned but, at the same time, have spoken of the need for such a party, as…
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It's dismaying to see a few rightwing commentators using the Pike River disaster to attack restrictions on mining in national parks. The claims are baseless and crassly opportunistic. One expects the like of Matthew Hooton, Whaleoil, and Paul Holmes to try to score political points off…
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After the shallowness of the MSM this week, I noticed an important issue being raised by Brian Gaynor. The question of "Crisis of accounting's double standards". This is a problem that has both an immediate and long-term concern for the confidence of investors in New…
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I was immensely disappointed by David Cunliffe's recent announcement that Labour is considering private public partnerships. Not only because PPPs essentially involve privatising business gains and socialising the losses, or because they've been an abject failure almost everywhere they've been tried, but because one of…
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Open mike is your post. It's open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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Wong briefly came out of hiding to answer questions from Parliamentary Services on her abuse of flight perks. Back in hiding now. Key's still telling her not to talk. But surely she can tell journos what she told the invesigators. Will the report on her corruption be…
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Agriculture Minister David Carter has been exposed abusing his ministerial powers to protect the trade interests of his private investments. Earlier this year, Carter banned Jewish religious slaughtering practices because of perceived risks to the meat trade with Muslim nations after being briefed by companies…
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Open mike is your post. It's open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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One of my favorite Bruce Springsteen tracks from when I was somewhat younger is "Tougher than the rest"*. As heresy I'd have to say that I like the version by Everything But The Girl somewhat better. It has been coming up a lot on my…
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As the public and private mourning for the Pike River 29 continues, focus will begin to shift to how this event occurred with no less than five inquires soon to begin. John Armstrong has a very good article on the issues that will be in…
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I've been meaning to write about the unrest in the UK for some time - but here's a great summary from I/S. -- r0b The UK government is currently trying to balance its budget by shifting costs onto the young, through a trebling of university…
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The 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference -- the Copenhagen Summit -- was one year ago. Great things were expected. There was a sustained media build up, including a carefully timed and completely spurious attack on climate science. There was debate and activism. World leaders…
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Open mike is your post. It's open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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One week on from the Pike River disaster: LATEST: Pike River chief executive Peter Whittall has called on the country to mark one week since the West Coast mine exploded with a moment's silence at 3.44pm today, in remembrance of the 29 men who died.
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Feel like some Friday fun? Do you know a haycorn from a heffalump? If you answered "yes" to both questions then I think you're going to appreciate this piece of genius from Lyndon Hood: One day the Bear and his friend, the Small Pig, were…
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The new deal is nothing like what the Maori Party was set up to win. The sell-out faction says its good enough for now and they'll try to to better later on. The Harawira faction knows that if they cave now then this will become…
act foreshore and seabed Maori Issues maori party national national/act government racism
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It's a special breed of people who can deny workers a cost of living pay increase while pocketing a hundred thousand dollar a week pay cheque. It's a special breed who can take people's livelihoods or risk their health and safety to add a few…
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It's pretty bloody late in his tenure to be saying it, but Police Commissioner Howard Broad has joined with every expert in telling politicians that their braindead, populist policy of increasing the number of crimes and ramping up prison sentences has to stop. It's not…
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Open mike is your post. It's open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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The Fabians' Resilient Economy series run through this year has been stressing the looming problem with New Zealand's private debt and the need to focus more on exports. Now everyone has noticed the problem, including the Reserve Bank, the Treasury and Standard and Poors. Financial…
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I'm not going to waste a lot of time on the Welfare Working Group's report. It follows the Brash-esque formula of mis-representing the issue as some massive problem and then presenting 'solutions' that have failed overseas. Like the Brash reports, it will be used by…
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Labour revealed yesterday that Pansy Wong traveled abroad an astonishing eleven times as Minister for Women's Affairs and Ethnic Affairs, spending $147,000 in two years (her ministries' departments were less than $10 million a year) making her one of the highest spending ministers. Six of…