The Failed Estate: Kabuki Economics
Jim Parker dissects the Australian customs around the presentation of the Budget with comments that are just as applicable to New Zealand’s system.
International
australian politics
Australia and New Zealand budget days
Isn’t it time we at least synchronized the New Zealand budget with the Australian budget?
The Australian banking system review
The review into Australia’s banking system really matters to New Zealand and is doing New Zealand an almighty good service.
Evidence-based foreign policy
In the second stage of a false flag attack, facts go out the window and the sole issue becomes “are you for us or against us.” Our media and National Party politicians are well into this stage in the Skripal affair. But as questions mount and skeptics proliferate from all sides, Jacinda Ardern and Winston Peters may well be wiser than media advisers by not following blindly the western herd. 26 countries is not the whole world. Update: Porton Down unable to establish Novichok of Russian origin.
Joyce stands down as National struggles to find new leader *
* in Australia.
Beetrooted
Australian Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce’s future in politics is on the line as he responds to allegations of infidelity, hypocrisy and misuse of Government resources.
Two Labour Governments, two coal mines
The New Zealand Government has rejected the OIO’s proposal to allow Bathurst to purchase DOC land for coal mining purposes. And in Australia the Queensland Labor Government is working out how it can back out of an agreement to permit the Adani coal mine to proceed.
Waitangi Day and Australia Day
Australia Day (January 26th), like Waitangi Day (February 6th) often divides our countries as much in its silence as anything else.
Shock horror right wing think tank thinks NZ not very democratic
National’s cheerleaders are pushing an international report which suggests that New Zealand’s democratic system is only slightly better than average in world terms. But the organisation behind the report and the methodology used need some checking.
Racist dog whistling
We may think that we now live in more enlightened times where the scourge of racism is finally being dealt to and is no longer considered acceptable but recent events in Australia and the United States suggests that this is not the case.
The Froth Comes off The Beer
Auckland appears to be following the trend set by Melbourne and Sydney of a softening in expected prices for selling houses.
What will 2018 bring for Donald Trump?
The New York Times has broken a astory suggesting that Australian Ambassador to the UK Alexander Downer informed the FBI that the Trump camp knew about the Russian hacking of Hillary Clinton’s emails four months before the 2016 Presidential election.
The Failed Estate: Us and Them
In Australia the Murdoch press has chosen the Christmas down period to try and whip up some anti beneficiary hysteria. Jim Parker from the blog Failed Estate calmly dissects the figures and concludes there is no reason for concern.
Why Malcolm Turnbull is nearly right
Malcolm Turnbull is proposing law changes in Australia to try and minimise the effect that China is having on Australia’s democratic system. He may not be wrong in doing so.
Australian Parliament votes to accept New Zealand’s Manus Island offer
The Australian Parliament voted yesterday, against the Government’s wishes, to accept New Zealand’s offer to take refugees from Manus Island. At least for a short time.
Friggit!
Frigate. Send one. Now.
Queensland State Election and Coal
The Queensland election is turning into one of those rare and weird ones in which a large-scale environment-versus-economy fight looms largest.
National on the Manus Island crisis
Gerry Brownlee has surfaced on Radio New Zealand to criticise Labour’s handling of the Manus Island refugee issue. But he seems to have forgotten that the proposal offered by Labour is the proposal originally offered by National.
Ardern’s Manus Island offer
The Australian Government has this week been attempting to undermine Jacinda Ardern’s humanitarian request that the refugees on Nauru Island should be treated humanely.
Tampa, Ardern and positioning small countries
There are major similarities between Helen Clark’s decision to accept into New Zealand refugees from the Tampa boat and Jacinda Ardern’s pushing for New Zealand to accept refugees based on Manus Island.
The Yellow Peril?
What’s with the academic panic epidemic about China? Two in our media in the same week, referencing each other with vague warnings about the Chinese bogey. It’s not quite Lionel Terry in Haining Street again; more likely in my view a case of singing to someones else’s geopolitical tune. No prizes for guessing whose.
Australia supports same sex marriage
Australian electors have voted overwhelmingly in favour of allowing same sex marriages.
Ardern has words for Trump and Turnbull
Jacinda Ardern has publicly criticised Donald Trump for idiot treating and Malcolm Turnbull for unacceptable handling of the Manus crisis.
Australia, you’re being a dick
Australia has refused New Zealand’s very generous offer to take 150 Manus Island refugees.
We have an obligation to act on Manus Island
Jacinda Ardern faces a test of her claim she can handle Australia better than the last two Prime Ministers. How will she react?
Strewth, Aussie Government loses majority
Kiwi of the year nominee and Australian Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce has been ruled ineligible to hold his seat and the Liberal National Government has lost its majority.
The Great Australian Bight honest Government ad
The Australian Government just released this ad about the Great Australian Bight and it’s surprisingly honest and informative. 
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Strewth Cobbah
Over the ditch the Australian Government has accused New Zealand Labour of using Parliament to undermine Barnaby Joyce. But an analysis of the claim suggests that anyone claiming this should be regarded as being a whacka because the media was onto the claim two days before the questions were asked.
The Newstralian Parliament
Policy idea for any party: Can we please keep making Aussie govt MPs citizens until they give NZ citizens in Oz the rights to education, health & social security they should get under CER? Oh, and a vote. Best blackmail EVER.
The Failed Estate – Flake News
Mr Denmore of the failed estate explores the increasing irrelevance that Rupert Murdoch’s tabloids are having on Australian politics.
The Good the Bad and the Ugly
Ad asks is the world more secure than a year ago? Is the danger of serious economic crisis higher or lower? Are the institutional arrangements and norms that resolve conflicts and enhance the prospects for international cooperation more or less robust than they were in July 2016.
Manus Island operator seeking to buy and manage Housing Corporation Homes
The Government is seeking to sell 2,500 Christchurch Housing Corporation homes. The shortlist of potential purchasers includes an Australian company recently successfully sued for human rights breaches of refugees on Manus Island.
Hager Hit & Run and NZ’s Asian wars
Nicky Hager will talk about his book Hit and Run, and the issues it raises about New Zealand’s values and role in the world at 5:30pm on Wednesday 7th June at Connolly Hall, Guildford Terrace, Wellington. The book is about important events and the incoherence of New Zealand fighting it’s longest ever war in Central Asia. This talk is particularly timely in view of this week’s visit of the American Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson.
When a wannabe politician’s social media goes wrong
Over in Australia a One Nation candidate has withdrawn his candidacy after a merciless twitter attack and a photo of him in front of a swasticker mowed into a lawn and giving a nazi salute appeared.
Where to now for the left?
With the right in ascendancy throughout the Western World what does the left do to change this?
Australia’s war
Surprising no one: “A newly declassified report obtained by Fairfax Media reveals Australia’s role in the 2003 invasion of Iraq was undertaken solely to enhance our alliance with the US.”