In America the Republican party has become a complete and utter circus. Trump and Cruz (and/or their "independent" PACs) had already hit new lows by sniping at each other's wives. In a new development last night (NZ time, ht Thurston in comments) news broke of…
National's only idea this term has just been shot down by the public. Meanwhile Labour has been thinking about the future and the issues that confront NZ. Part of this process has been the recently completed Future of Work conference. From this process has emerged…
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
At the formation of Fonterra in 2001 it was thought New Zealand could essentially monopolize the world price of milk. From here, OMG, and what folly that appears now. Now, it is New Zealand's largest economic liability, apart from real estate. Why hasn't Fonterra worked?…
Here are some reckons, for what they're worth. (1) It was all about Key The instant media reaction last night was telling. It wasn't reflections on nationhood, history, identity, vexillology, the mood of the nation or whatever. It was all about protecting Key. From the…
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
... same as the old flag. I'm a couple of hours early with this - the results aren't out yet. But if the Nats' pet pollster (who you can bet is well informed) has called it for the current flag (and disappeared like Key for…
https://twitter.com/ONENewsBreaking/status/712779577701978112 https://twitter.com/NewshubPolitics/status/712787101884940288 From the video this doesn't look like a deliberate attempt to injure, but it does look like dangerous and aggressive driving. Not the first time this sort of thing has happened. I/S at No Right turn discusses the potential consequences. Update: I hope…
Tautoko Murray Edmonds' comment yesterday on this Michael Hudson interview This is an absolutely brilliant discussion of what contemporary economic theory SHOULD be all about, and why it is not (the main reason being that classical economic theory of the type that Key believes in,…
The preliminary results of the flag referendum / distraction are out around 8pm this evening (possibly here). "Turnout" has been reasonably high. Bragging rights I guess to whomever best predicts the outcome. I thought some salient points were made by Geoff Neal in this Stuff…
Recent treatment of Labour's raising the possibility of a Universal Basic Income neatly shows the problem that the progressive movement in New Zealand has with the media. It also shows how captured the media is and how manipulated it is by the right. As…
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
Daily review is also your post. This provides Standardistas the opportunity to review events of the day. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Don’t forget to be kind to each other …
Labour's Future of Work Conference is under way. There is a page with information and live stream here. The PSA has a great interview with Grant Robertson on the Future of Work: Why did Labour make this such a big project? We can see the…
Key has swallowed a dead rat in the settlement with Bradley Ambrose. He wanted to use taxpayer money to pay his settlement to Ambrose, but the public outcry drew attention to the rules and he didn't get away with it. Somewhat lost in the coverage…
Isis has claimed responsibility for the horrific attacks in Brussels that left 34 dead. The Guardian's ongoing coverage is here. This piece covers reaction from US presidential candidates. Naturally Trump calls for ‘more than waterboarding’ - because that will help.
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
Daily review is also your post. This provides Standardistas the opportunity to review events of the day. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Don’t forget to be kind to each other …
Otago Regional Council bought some houses some years back under some compulsory purchasing order. My understanding was that this was because of flood risk. They then rented out these houses at market rates. A friend and her daughter moved in to one of those houses…
Key has appointed a new Governor General, Dame Patsy Reddy: Who is Dame Patsy Reddy, and what will she do as Governor-General? Prime Minister John Key has announced that lawyer and Crown negotiator Dame Patsy Reddy will be New Zealand's next Governor-General. ... Reddy is…
The focus group results are in. John Key is backing down from trying to get Parliamentary Services from paying the agreed damages to Bradley Ambrose. From the Herald: Prime Minister John Key will not pay his "teapot tapes" settlement with public money, his office confirmed…
Looks like Key's backdown and payout to Bradley Ambrose over the "teapot tapes" is going to run for a while in the media. This TVNZ piece is a typical summary: John Key paying for teapot tape saga out of taxpayer's pocket. See also: Why John…
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
The thing about not having great sight is that sometimes you don’t really see things coming. That was partly why, a year late, I took myself away for an eye check up. The glasses I have are over two years old now and one set…
Daily review is also your post. This provides Standardistas the opportunity to review events of the day. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Don’t forget to be kind to each other …
It seems inconceivable so soon after the leaky buildings debacle that we are slithering down a similar slippery pipe thanks to this government’s neo-liberal deregulation ideology that states just about anything goes in the building industry and buyer beware. The leaky homes fiasco cost the…
This is bad news: Huntly coal, gas plants could live on The odds are growing that two fossil fuel power plants at Huntly will have their life expectancy extended. The 500-megawatt units were scheduled for closure in 2018 in an announcement made last year. But…
The John Batchelor show regularly interviews Stephen Cohen, one of the United States' most accomplished Russia experts and a contributing editor at The Nation magazine. In this excellent radio interview, Cohen and Batchelor tease out the background details of this latest important event in Syria.…