Run Brian Run
Brian Tamaki is set to announce the launch of a new political party today.
Politics
democracy under attack
Death tax fake news
Social media was responsible for the repeated broadcasting of the claim that Labor in Australia intended to bring in a death tax. What should happen when claims that are clearly wrong are made?
Will the Christian Conservatives rise again?
Simon Bridges has conceded that his claim that talk about Alfred Ngaro setting up a conservative party was “rumour and speculation” was not actually true. And Ngaro has gone on the offensive describing abortion as an unholy holocaust.
Is National thinking of a conservative puppet party?
The Herald has reported that National is considering allowing Alfred Ngaro to form another break away party this time with a definite christian conservative bent and also to take over the Botany electorate.
Should white supremacists be preferred over ISIS?
According to media sources in the United States Twitter won’t autoban white supremacists because too many GOP Politicians would be banned.
Confirmation bias
The internet neatly divides us into separate isolated tribes with polarised views of what are the issues and what is reality. How do we engage in a civilised discussion to educate each other and reach a consensus of what we should be doing?
The Mueller report
Robert Mueller’s report has now been released and questions are being asked at the benign spin that the White House has been allowed to engage in to describe it before its release.
National’s culture review shambles redux
Simon Bridges has given a train wreck of an interview this morning on Radio New Zealand’s morning report about National’s culture review. It appears that National is keeping the report secret because of fears that the report may be leaked.
Reflections on Free Speech and Public Discourse
Silencing dissonant voices only leads to more and stronger dissonant voices and further radicalisation.
Trump’s tax returns and the Mueller investigation
Donald Trump and his supporters have been celebrating Mueller’s finding as interpreted by William Barr. But with Congress formally requesting his tax records and with the Mueller report not being yet released the celebration could be premature.
Reform of the SIS
Following the Christchurch Mosque murders there are strong calls for an inquiry into the SIS. But should it be given more power or should it be reformed to remove a pretty clear blind spot.
DPF does the right thing
Kiwiblog comments have been turned off as David Farrar grapples with how to handle a crisis concerning hate speech.
Magicked-Up Weapons
I’m glad Anne-Marie Brady will get the chance to present her “Magic Weapons” paper to the select committee examining the last election. At long last it might get given some proper critical examination, of its content as well as it provenance. In my opinion it reads like a long list of the blindingly obvious, mixed with a large dose of conspiracy theory. It certainly doesn’t show much sign of the sort of critical thinking one might expect from an academic.
Landlord advocates threatening rent increases if Labour wins next election
A landlord has advocated that all landlords should threaten to increase tenant’s rentals if Labour wins the next election.
Venezuela, China and Russia
In the new world order of robber barons in which most states are collectively so weak that they no longer effective resistance against large corporations, we should start to view states as diplomatic fronts for corporations.
The Green’s electoral law reform petition
The Green Party’s launching of a petition to seek changes to the electoral system has met with some Trumpian style rhetoric from the right.
About that $100,000 National Party donation
Fran O’Sullivan has correctly stated that the investigation of the $100,000 donation made to the National Party that was partitioned to hide it should be of much greater concern to the New Zealand Police than Sarah Dowie’s texts.
D Day for US shutdown
Donald Trump is to make an announcement today concerning the shut down. And Buzzfeed has suggested that the Mueller Investigation has uncovered evidence suggesting that Trump instructed his lawyer Michael Cohen to lie to Congress.
National shafted us with the MOM privatisation
Five years on how are the benefits from the Mixed Ownership Model privatisation process the last Government engaged in working out?
National has lots of questions
National asked 40,000 questions of Ministers last year. This seems excessive.
Brexit: Tories Lose Control of the House and the Process
Another day, another humiliating defeat for Theresa May. Surprisingly, the news is no better for Jeremy Corbyn.
The Taxpayers’ Union* responds to the Clark and Thompson spying fiasco
* not a real union.
Review into Thompson and Clark finds widespread breaches of Citizens’ rights of privacy
A State Services Commission investigation review has released a damning report into the use of private investigator Thompson and Clark’s services by a number of Government agencies.
China, Huawei and us
It’s high time this government woke up to the intelligence gathering capacity and ambition of China in New Zealand.
All that is wrong with America’s democracy
In Georgia, despite the Repbublican candidate who oversaw the election process engaging in the mass disenfranchisement of Democrat voters, the removal of voting machines to make voting in Democrat areas more difficult and baseless smearing of the Democrat candidate, the result is on a knife edge and a second vote is a possibility.
An Ineffectual Opposition Is Bad News
An ineffectual Opposition creates a vacuum that will be filled by the Mainstream and Social Media as they will assume the role of unelected and non-representative opposition in effectuo.
Ross saga quiescent, but donations scandal needs addressing
The Jami-Lee Ross scandal may have quietened down but issues raised by his explosive tape recording of Simon Bridges still need addressing. Does the $100k Zhang Yikun donation suggest we are going down the US track and, if so, what needs to be done about that
Jami-Lee Ross: But Wait, There’s More!
Jami-Lee Ross has twisted the knife a little further into Simon Bridge’s back this arvo, releasing a second tape and announcing he won’t be quitting Parliament. Turns out he may need the income to fund a divorce.
National’s firearms forums – what could go wrong?
National has launched a series of public meetings to discuss a major issue. Not child poverty or climate change or how badly wrong Steven Joyce’s $11.5 billion hole claim was, but guns.
Second Kremlin Killer Unmasked, Putin Untroubled
We know the real names of the Russian spies who bungled the Salisbury novichok poisoning. Will it make a difference to the Kremlin’s plans?
Modern Technology Is Eroding Our Society
People are losing their people skills rapidly and it is having an effect on society.
Failed Estate – the ABC of Trust
In Australia this week the Liberal Government has become embroiled in a scandal relating to political pressure being brought to sack the head of the ABC and one of its most senior reporters. Failed estate has the details.
And the antisemites are…?
UK Labour adopted the IRHA definition of antisemitism in full, and…
Censorship
It seems that if you’re the right person, harbour the correct thoughts, have the right connections, and you don’t like whatever the political opinion, news or information that’s floating about is, then you can get it banned.
The end of ACT
With his proposal to reduce the effectiveness of Parliament David Seymour is clearly looking for relevance.
About freedom of speech
Simon Wilson in the Herald neatly skewers suggestions that Donald Brash is a free speech warrior and raises important issues about the interplay between free speech and attacks on “political correctness” also known as tolerance and respect.