Explore the archive
Find articles and conversations by date, subject or search expression.
Searching: posts Sorted by: newest Results: 511–540 of 2,431
Post
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...
Post
Parliament has published a research paper called The Next Oil Shock. It's a pretty sober look at the difficulties the world is facing in producing enough oil to meet demand. The conclusions are inescapable: we can't produce enough oil and a cycle of oil-driven recessions…
Post
Nat 49.5%, Lab 36.5%, Gre 8%, NZF 2.5%, MAO 2.5% ACT 0.5% Highest Labour vote since Helen Clark was PM. Lowest ACT vote in many many years. Key's still holding the Nats up high.
Post
Congratulations to Celia Wade-Brown, Wellington's new Green mayor. Apart from the understandable exception of Christchurch, we've seen a Leftwing landslide across the main centres and in many of the provincial councils too. The people have voted for community, democracy, and sustainability, and against corporate cronyism.…
Post
In recent days, David Garrett has been spotted hanging around Parliament. Now, The Standard has acquired a picture of ACT's new MP, 'Hilary Calvert', arriving at Parliament. It raises further identity theft questions within the party. Some evidence suggests that the real Calvert was brain-dead…
Post
Whilst I realise I'm a little late on blogging on this, the latest ideological burp to come out of the right-wing think-tank that is our nation's Treasury still needs examining. Of course Treasury submitting to the Welfare Working Group is more a meeting of like-minds…
Post
Yesterday, the New Zealand Principals' Federation, joining the education union NZEI, launched their campaign opposing the Government's National Standards. The current status of the Standards controversy is this. The Government considers that the design phase of the Standards is over and done with. They are…
Post
According to Kerry Prendergast, STV may cost her election as mayor of Wellington, and therefore it is undemocratic. Good doublethink there Kerry. STV's other name is "Instant Run-off" - what it gives is the answer if there had been an election just between Celia Wade-Brown…
Post
If you resign from your job today will your boss give you half a year's pay as a parting gift? No? Funny because that, apparently, is standard practice for high-paid stars. It is being reported that Paul Henry received up to $150,000 from TVNZ when…
Post
It was a year ago that Paula Bennett first declared victory over rising unemployment. Since then, John Key has been working his economic strategy hard: high-fiving every schoolgirl he can find, playing with spiders, announcing and re-annoucing literally tens of kilometres of cycleway, smiling and…
Post
So after all that hoo-ha I did have to think for a while what it means to look and sound like a New Zealander. My personal opinion is that for a lot of us there isn't a particular look, but there probably is a sound.…
Post
John Key is a PM, but it is now clear that he isn't a leader. John Key can smile and wave, but it is now clear that he doesn't stand for anything. Consider two recent events on the international stage. First, India. A leader would…
Post
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...
Post
RNZ's Kathryn Ryan talks to Mike Williams and Chris Trotter about Chris Carter's expulsion. Update: asx in link above. mp3 below. [audio:http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/ntn/ntn-20101012-0909-Chris_Carters_expulsion_from_Labour-048.mp3]
Post
The following article published in Canada's Globe and Mail details how big business and the establishment "killed" the social democratic government of Ontario in 1990. It's short and worth reading its entirety. The article summarises the lengths to which the right will go to subvert…
Post
When the 2009 'streamlining and simplifying' amendment to the RMA was rushed through parliament last year, many concerns were raised about new abilities for the Minister for the Environment to use National Environmental Standards (NES) to override local government regulations, and how these could be…
Post
The CTU has just released its Alternative Economic Strategy. Well, they call it 'alternative' but it's not like the Nats have one beyond Key smiling and waving. Anyway, the CTU's Economic Strategy is an extremely impressive document. It goes through the current problems and suggests…
Post
Don't need to add much to these Herald headlines: 'Tight-fisted Key deals blow to Brown's rail plan'. Do Nothing strikes again. '30 homes on offer in flagship Govt scheme'. Thinking big. Genuine commitment. 'CV error made by 'somebody else''. For Nats, it's always someone else's…
Post
The Labour Party council has decided to expel Chris Carter from the party. While party members should be free to criticise the leadership, Carter went too far. He has repeatedly embarrassed and damaged the party. In doing so, he disrespected every member of the Labour…
Post
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...
Post
Chris Carter faces a disciplinary hearing at labour HQ this evening. Already evicted from caucus, this meeting could result in sanctions from the Party including revoking his membership. But I don't think it will come to that, and I don't think it should for both…
Post
Post
Well this is a bit sad. Rodney Hide is now publicly begging for his political life: National needs us, Hide tells supporters Act leader Rodney Hide has sent a message to the National Party, saying it could lose power if it fails to give him…
Post
John Key has claimed that he doesn't turn down many interview requests - but he turned down another one from Morning Report this morning. In fact you can count on one hand the number of times he has appeared on Morning Report in each of…
Post
Last time I saw Breakfast I saw: Paul Henry trying desperately to offend someone. Spent most of the time talking about what to do when you have a bad tenant. Some blonde who smiled and looked pretty while Henry talked. Another blonde (Australian). Some old…
Post
Eddie: David Clark is the Labour Party's new candidate for Dunedin North. With any luck he'll be sending us the odd guest post -- until he moves in due course to Red Alert! Welcome David. It's all right here! About 100 metres from where I…
Post
Here's John Key this morning on Breakfast, talking about Paul Henry's resignation. Naturally he's eager to downplay the influence of Kiwi-Indian business and diplomatic interests, and to deny any government involvement in the decision. The most revealing part of the interview is when Key stammers:…
accountability brand key john key leadership Media national racism tv
Post
Let's think back to some of the ministerial scandals of this Key Government. It's a surprisingly long list for an administration that's less than two years old. Bill "Double Dipton" English's accommodation rort. Phil Heatley's credit card rort Rodney Hides' travel expenses rort Rodney Hide's…
Post
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...
Post
TVNZ have announced the resignation of Paul Henry. John Key's going to have a LOT of angry rednecks on his case over this one. First Andy Haden, now Paul Henry. And then of course there are all the civilized people already on Key's back about his…