The Standard

Author Archive

Key knows best about everything

Written By: - Date published: 11:13 am, August 25th, 2012 - 26 comments

Key’s claim that illegal euthanasia is happening in NZ has sparked outraged denials from medical professionals. But Key, of course, is not backing down. Once he’s opened his mouth he knows that he knows best.

Good work by Parker

Written By: - Date published: 9:34 am, August 25th, 2012 - 25 comments

David Parker got stuck in to the Nats last week, with a 30 page report that laid bare National’s appalling economic record, and presented an outline of Labour’s alternatives.  Good work from Parker – everyone should read it.

National’s achievement: Highest ever inequality

Written By: - Date published: 12:55 pm, August 23rd, 2012 - 50 comments

The exodus to Australia is at record levels. Falling wages have seen social inequality rise to record levels. Good job National.

Key owes the families an explanation

Written By: - Date published: 10:33 am, August 23rd, 2012 - 53 comments

Key owes it to the families to provide them with an explanation as to what purpose remaining in Afghanistan serves.

On decile ratings of schools

Written By: - Date published: 11:50 am, August 21st, 2012 - 20 comments

Decile ratings of schools are to be dropped from ERO reports because they are “confusing” and “unfair” and lead to “white flight”. Unlike, say, ropey national standards data. Uh huh.

Structural discrimination

Written By: - Date published: 9:58 am, August 20th, 2012 - 9 comments

Structural discrimination is alive and well in NZ. It makes nonsense of all the right-wing “one law for all” and beneficiary bashing rhetoric.

NZ vs Ecuador

Written By: - Date published: 10:41 am, August 19th, 2012 - 183 comments

Ecuador is giving us lessons in sovereign independence.

Advice to Labour: Fair, inclusive, positive

Written By: - Date published: 10:09 am, August 18th, 2012 - 69 comments

Hey Labour – here’s three words for you. Fair, inclusive, positive. You’ll win the next election, and the two after that.

Zero tolerance for privacy breaches

Written By: - Date published: 9:04 am, August 17th, 2012 - 22 comments

Collins can’t credibly call for zero tolerance on privacy breaches while working alongside a Minister who has not only breached privacy, but is unrepentant, and boasting that she might do it again.  Bennett has breached the Privacy Act – what is she doing still in cabinet? The Nats have no credibility while she remains.

Nats lied – power prices to rise

Written By: - Date published: 9:08 am, August 15th, 2012 - 36 comments

Minister after Minister denied it, but it turns out that common sense is right. Private power companies charge more. Privatisation surely means that prices will rise. Is it even news when this government lies these days?

Interesting week

Written By: - Date published: 12:46 pm, August 12th, 2012 - 163 comments

It has been an interesting week for the leaders of the two main parties – one I think that they would both rather forget.

Nats’ education plans make sense after all

Written By: - Date published: 9:16 am, August 11th, 2012 - 33 comments

How to explain National’s blatant inconsistency in not requiring national standards for charter schools? After further reflection, I think it makes sense after all…

3 News polls mums and dads

Written By: - Date published: 12:15 pm, August 10th, 2012 - 43 comments

Turns out that not many “mums and dads” are planning to buy shares in their own assets.

Why I’m In – a response to the disillusioned

Written By: - Date published: 7:39 am, August 10th, 2012 - 143 comments

A somewhat meandering and personal response to the disillusioned, prompted by Scott Yorke’s recent “Why I’m Out”.

Unemployment worse than it looks

Written By: - Date published: 3:30 pm, August 9th, 2012 - 67 comments

Unemployment is up, and the real situation is worse than the figures suggest. Just how many more years of the Nats’ economic “genius” do you want NZ?

Libor and the rotten heart of capitalism

Written By: - Date published: 11:09 am, August 8th, 2012 - 30 comments

The Libor banking scandal has grown into a full fledged international crisis. Just another example of the rot at the heart of capitalism.

Nats don’t believe their own education policy

Written By: - Date published: 12:26 pm, August 7th, 2012 - 28 comments

As usual it is the kids who will suffer.

Curiosity – 5:30pm

Written By: - Date published: 3:40 pm, August 6th, 2012 - 106 comments

At around 5:30pm this evening Curiosity will either touch down safely on Mars, or make (another) expensive smudge on the surface. Various links below – tune in. Good luck Curiosity…

Postcards from the “brighter” future

Written By: - Date published: 9:36 am, August 6th, 2012 - 11 comments

Hey John – where’s our “Brighter Future”? Hey National voters – was this what you voted for?

Education and poverty

Written By: - Date published: 11:32 am, August 5th, 2012 - 45 comments

No one can fix the tail of educational underachievement without fixing poverty.

The illusion of consultation

Written By: - Date published: 9:40 am, August 4th, 2012 - 22 comments

For some reason the Nats are in a hurry to complete their privatisation programme within two years.  Anyone in any doubt as to how the process of consultation with Maori will play out might be informed by some recent history.

Incoherent education policy

Written By: - Date published: 8:22 am, August 3rd, 2012 - 215 comments

The right hand of National’s education policy doesn’t know what the far-right hand is up to…

The luxury of an ethical opposition

Written By: - Date published: 11:05 am, August 2nd, 2012 - 38 comments

Although Key’s privatisation programme has hit plenty of problems with Maori water rights, his job is made a whole lot easier by the luxury of an ethical main opposition party.

The bill arrives for the “supercity”

Written By: - Date published: 1:52 pm, August 1st, 2012 - 37 comments

The bill for the Nats’ Auckland “supercity” is arriving in ratepayers’ letterboxes. Some are in for a nasty shock…

Climate skeptic wakes up

Written By: - Date published: 9:51 am, August 1st, 2012 - 83 comments

There aren’t many climate skeptics whose opinions can be affected by mere evidence, so hats off to Richard Muller.

Coincidence?

Written By: - Date published: 8:37 am, July 30th, 2012 - 90 comments

Yet more evidence that women are the smarter sex.

McCarten on Banks

Written By: - Date published: 11:41 am, July 29th, 2012 - 56 comments

Matt McCarten doesn’t pull any punches, comparing Banks to both Phillip Field and Winston Peters.

Gay marriage

Written By: - Date published: 9:17 am, July 28th, 2012 - 181 comments

What possible reason is there to deny a couple marriage? With luck the only dissenting voices will be isolated extremists like Colin Craig.

Arming the police

Written By: - Date published: 12:14 pm, July 27th, 2012 - 49 comments

Regular as clockwork the suggestion that police should be armed keeps coming back.

Truck strike imminent!!!

Written By: - Date published: 1:58 pm, July 26th, 2012 - 38 comments

Remember all the fuss in 2008 when the Labour government tried to make a 1% increase charges affecting truckies? What kind of catastrophic response will increases of up to 20% provoke?

Austerity in Britain

Written By: - Date published: 10:59 am, July 26th, 2012 - 45 comments

Gosh, isn’t government austerity working well in Britain. Thank goodness we’re following in their footsteps.