We should have a chat about Artificial Intelligence
As we adjust to the advent of civilisation threatening climate change there is a new threat that is emerging, the unregulated development of artificial intelligence.
Economy
Posts on the economy, work, business, income, and labour
The Drums of War – Again
On 20 March 2003 the US invaded Iraq, on the basis that it had and could use weapons of mass destruction. That was a lie. Australia joined President Bush ‘coalition of the willing’, New Zealand did not. The drums of war beat strong then, they are doing so again now. This time China is the target.
Wailing and Nashing of teeth
It is pretty clear to me that leaders acting tough and beating up on members of their team leads to political advantage. I […]
The Greens backing teachers’ demands
The Government needs to come to the table and ensure teacher pay keeps pace with the rising cost of putting food on the table, paying the rent, and keeping the house warm.
But, it’s important to remember that this is not just about pay. There are serious issues around funding and understaffing, ratios and sick leave.
Teanau Tuiono
Making s%*t up
Is it just me or is Mike Hosking becoming more unbalanced? The recent misrepresentation of a speech from Deborah Russell would suggest that he is getting worse.
Chloe Swarbrick: We don’t live in a game of Monopoly
The case for redistribution of wealth in New Zealand.
National’s childcare announcement
National’s proposed child care subsidy policy is essentially an increase to existing grants that will fuel inflation and costs increases in the child care sector.
But How Do You Pay For It?
To pay for recent flood damage Grant Robertson has to decide on what proportion of this will be paid by new debt, what proportion by reallocation of expenditure, and what proportion by special tax levies. Is an Australian style levy under consideration?
Greens: Tax the banks
Instead of creating an appeal fund and one-off lotto draw, the Labour Government could tax the billions of dollars banks have made in unearned, excess profits and use the money to support people.
Where is the Free Speech Union when you need it?
Rob Campbell is under some pressure from National and Act for calling out publicly the right’s dog whistle attacks on co governance. But so far self appointed protector of the right to freedom of speech, the Free Speech Union, has been very quiet. Why is this?
National’s three waters policy
National has announced its alternative to the Three Waters Policy with the standout feature being greater central control of asset management and investment plans than offered by Three Waters and even greater loss of local control.
Windfall tax on bank super-profits needed to help fund repair
The repair bill for the recent cyclones will be similar to the direct cost to government of the Canterbury earthquakes, in the $13 billion region. Banks are currently making obscene profits. The time is right to impose a one-off banking windfall tax. If a conservative Margaret Thatcher can do it, it is pretty hard to argue why a Labour government can’t.
Towards National Recovery
Just over seven months from the election the Labour government has been granted as great a political momentum as that leading into the 2020 election.
What Chat GPT thinks of the Standard
I thought that I would get Chat GPT to write 500 words on the Standard and this is what it came up with.
The great reset
Chris Hipkins has announced the great policy reset and there are no surprises.
National is showing its class prejudice
National Deputy Leader Nicola Willis said yesterday that it was a great shame that the minimum wage had increased by so much because it means the Government can’t do it now to help low-income Kiwis make ends meet without stoking inflation.
CTU – Put the cost of fixing inflation on those who caused it, not on working people
Given the real causes of high inflation, the idea that the answer to inflation is to cut wages, cut employment, and cut public services is ridiculous. It’s more than ridiculous. It’s immoral.
Your Mindset and Your Money
Mega property owning entrepreneur Graeme Fowler thinks we can all be rich if we just changed our attitude.
The curious case of Liz Truss
The truth is, the throwing caution to the wind approach of slashing taxes, removing restrictions on banker bonuses, and slashing other regulations such as IR35 were all consistent with what he and Truss had argued in Britannia Unchained a decade earlier. And these ideas found favour with the Conservative Party membership – with the idealised view of Thatcher’s vision of small government, deregulation and low taxation. For the general public, this was not so much ‘Britannia Unchained’ as ‘Libertarians Unhinged.
The Occupy Movement and the response to the 2008 financial crisis
As the world currently goes through a post-pandemic and Russian invasion of Ukraine fuelled economic crisis, it is interesting to reflect on the economic crisis of over a decade ago and how the public responded at that time.
The end of the post war boom
Throughout my time being active in politics, people have discussed the rise of Neo-Liberalism and the free market that occurred throughout much of the world from the late 1970s onwards. Yet few seem to really understand the reasons for this significant shift in economic policy at that time, which continues to shape our society today.
New Zealand is in a terrible state *
* or is it?
Trump’s tax returns
One of the mysteries of the ages has now been resolved. One of the great mysteries along with who killed JFK and is there life on Mars is how wealthy is the orange one. And now we know. And it appears that he is not as wealthy as he made out to be.
The smartest guys in the room
Vector has received a warning letter from the Commerce Commission for attempting to artificially boost the value of assets so that price increases for power could be imposed.
Federated Farmers – climate change “probably” exists
Federated Farmers leader Andrew Hoggard thinks that climate change is probably happening but we will have to wait 50 to 100 years to see the effects.
Be afraid, be very afraid …
David Seymour is feeling his oats and has claimed that past National Governments never changes anything. A brief review of history would suggest otherwise.
Celebrating 50th Anniversary of PRC recognition
“When Joe met Chou, we have opened the door and said hello” captions the photo of the Beijing meeting between Joe Walding and Chou EnLai in March 1973. It followed New Zealand’s recognition of the People’s Republic of China on December 22, 1972, an anniversary definitely worth celebrating.
Why selling Auckland Airport shares is a silly thing to do
Wayne Brown is proposing the sale of Auckland Council’s Airport shares to plug a budget hole. He thinks it is a simple decision and a rational way to take care of the deficit. I beg to differ.
India and Free Trade – finally someone turned the lights on
After nearly 20 years of frustrating ‘Free Trade’ talks between India and New Zealand, the chair of the India New Zealand Business Council (INZBC), Earl Rattray, has acknowledged that “a different approach to the traditional Free Trade Agreements which have served us well in many markets will be needed for India.” Whew. About time.
Push Back Against Tyranny and Win
Australia is showing New Zealand how to resist the authoritarian Xi Jinping’s pressure and stay prosperous at the same time.
Richard Heinberg: The Final Doubling
Can humans decouple resource overuse from economic growth?
Labour’s big reset
New Zealand politics is at an interesting stage. With announcements about Ministerial futures pending and with a review of all current projects to occur over Christmas Jadinda Ardern is planning to repurpose Labour to have its best chance in the election next year.
Sustainability Sunday
So many good initiatives that demonstrate that sustainability and community resiliency are intertwined. The sheer numbers of people involved now is heartening at a time when we are inundated with what is going wrong.
We’ve never had so much choice in what we can do to effect good change. We know the problems, now is the time to put our attention to the solutions, what is already working. and then get on with it.
Luxon’s first year
Chris Luxon marked the anniversary of his becoming National leader this week by showing that he is that out of touch he had no idea what the single rate of superannuation is.
What Is Labour’s Purpose This Term?
It is time to set out succinctly and without recourse to abstract nouns exactly what this Labour government has intended, is doing, and how it seeks to alter the country.
Overblown rhetoric and Laura Norder
This week has seen some extreme rhetoric from various quarters about who to blame for a recent senseless killing. But news that the person arrested had recently been extradited from Australia has shown the rhetoric to be entirely misplaced.