Posts on government and governence at national and local level, political parties,politicians, and political participation
Yesterday, a piece by Stuff Circuit questioned whether an activist by the name of Laurie Moore was in fact a spy for the New Zealand Police or Thompson & Clark back in 2003. New Zealand is a really small place, and we figure that someone must be able to identify this man. Please share these photos far and wide and appeal to all your networks to identify this man.
Does an understanding of class politics define being left? And if we’re not reading books by Marx and Lenin any more, will the revolution be digitalised?
Amnesty International is calling for an inquiry into the actions of Thompson and Clark to be expanded to include their involvement in police activities.
Simon Bridges has caused jaws to drop everywhere by comparing Jacinda Ardern to Donald Trump.
Text of Jacinda Ardern’s major speech delivered today.
Kirsty Johnston has produced an in-depth analysis of the current rate of young people from poor backgrounds entering professional ranks. And the news is not good.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is due to give a big speech today. I’m hoping for something that gives some kind of plan, common purpose, and sense of direction.
It seems that for some, trashing out the lives of ordinary people is fine, because “Russia bad”. It’s not fine…
Oh dear. The Winston Peters led governing coalition has completely collapsed and thank God Simon Bridges is there to pick up the pieces. I warned you this would happen! And look! Over there … the sky is falling. Falling, I tells ya!
Gerry Brownlee has been accused of ringing a young lawyer involved in a potential class action concerning steal used in the Christchurch rebuild and making her feel intimidated and harassed. Update: National has admitted “[s]o he just kind of unleashed, you know how Gerry is”.
Business NZ has admitted that a poll that it ran was fundamentally flawed but has threatened to go to the ILO about Labour’s rather modest proposed changes to Industrial Relations law. And Radio New Zealand has reported on an industrial dispute involving Sistema plastics where union workers are working 60 hour working weeks without overtime pay on not much more than the minimum wage.
Green MP Golriz Ghahraman has talked to the New Zealand Herald about the online treatment she has received and described the nature of the attacks and the absurdity of the allegations made against her.
It is Maori Language week. And National has come out with the unusual situation of requiring primary and intermediate schools to teach a compulsory second language. But the language may not necessarily be te Reo Māori. And Simon Bridges opposes it being taught compulsorily.
The Donald found a real one!
There is something very wrong with “our” media when it takes a stand-up comedian to alert people to important stuff. But anyway…
In Politik’s 7 September issue we are told that Western diplomats in Wellington are surprised that Winston Peters has not accused Russia of the Skripal poisoning or joined some other countries in taking reprisals. Editor Richard Harman quotes a source to tell us that the British in particular were “pissed” at Peters’ response. Well dearie me. I’m with Winston, a wise old owl.
I stumbled across two protests in Dunedin today. They offered up a few telling contrasts.
America gets ready to rumble in the November mid terms, as Barack Obama enters the ring. At stake is control of both houses and the fate of the Trump presidency.
Leighton Smith is living for the day when it is proved that climate change is nothing more than a lefty hoax. I hope he is right.
The latest right wing beat up is that Jacinda told a porkie this morning to Chris Lynch on Newstalk ZB. A closer inspection reveals that nothing of the sort happened.
In breaking news Clare Curran has resigned as a Minister.
Donald Trump thinks that the anonymous opinion writer in the New York times may have committed an act of treason. Others think that this is an act of loyalty to the country.
For a country the size of Melbourne, we have a ridiculously complex state, and this layer of accountablility is largely a complete waste of our taxpayer money and degrades our agency as citizens. Can we do better?
UK Police have named the two Russian spies accused of the Novichok poisonings. But what can Britain do about it?
Elements of the media are criticising Jacinda Ardern for juggling her personal responsibilities with her working life, something that most of us do every day.
UK Labour adopted the IRHA definition of antisemitism in full, and…
Winston has suggested that New Zealand First may not agree to an increase in the number of refugees New Zealand accepts. Even though the infrastructure needed for the increase is paid for.
This new government is almost perfectly replicating the burn cycle of a startup business.
Jeremy Corbyn has a problem. His supporters are struggling to seperate anti-Zionism from anti-racism and the Tories can’t believe their luck. UK Labour desperately need to turn around the narrative that they’re tolerant of bigotry. And in just two days, a definition is going to define Corbyn.
White South African farm murders.
Simon Bridges has announced the formation of a working group to prepare a policy discussion document.
David Farrar has posted a guest post by climate change denialist Bryan Leland where he has criticised the Royal Society of New Zealand for accepting that climate change is an actual phenomenon.
Simon Bridges has justified his claim that the three strikes law is working by releasing an Italian study that has not been peer reviewed on the effects on white collar criminals of a pardon system.
Repbulican Ron Desantis has released what may be the worst campaign video ever.
It should be a qualification of being a Labour Member of Parliament that they treat their worked in an exemplary manner.
Lately the news has been all doom and gloom about business confidence. But what is the reality? And should we worry what an Australian Bank is telling us?
