Parker withdrawing

David Parker has withdrawn from the leadership race of the Labour party according to Stuff. Predictably Kiwiblog, Stuff, and probably the other right-wing […]

Victim tales of the right

Nationals yapping poodles here were doing it during the election by calling Labour “nasty” in violation of any level of common sense. John Key and teabags. In the US similar supporters are calling Obama nasty for pointing out a lying political ad by Mitt Romney.

Don’t ya know the right are always the poor victims… I just tend to find them to be whining dickheads. But I am actually trying to be nasty.

Farrar: Ironically being political and shallow

Reading the political spin from David Farrar (channeling Bill English) over the weekend, I have to keep reminding myself that he really has very little idea about the practicalities of business. Where he is concerned about political costs, I find from a perspective of an exporter that I’m far more concerned about reliability of services.

In search of a justification

Farrar and others of the Right push for ever lower taxes, but their arguments are laughably flimsy.  Tax cuts don’t raise revenue.  Tax cuts don’t cause growth.  In search of their  “superior moral justification for selfishness” the Right are going to have to do a lot better than that…

Yet more dodgy Nat numbers

If you’re a blogosphere regular, you’ll have noticed that recently every monkey with a copy of the Fountainhead and a crush on John Key has been spouting the line that the top 10% of taxpayers pay 71% of net tax. Sounds incredible, eh? That’s because it’s not credible. It’s more cheap tricks from the Nats.

Distasteful

DPF thinks that comparing Lockwood Smith to a KKK member is “a pretty disgusting smear”.  Could this be the same DPF who ran a billboard campaign comparing Labour government politicians to brutal dictators?

Scaremongering on credit cards

The Nats’ blogging poodles are still trying to spread disinformation about credit card details (we have the proof).  Are they just stupid, or do they know they’re spreading lies?  Either way it amounts to the same thing, they are deliberately trying to upset innocent members of the public.  The usual scummy tactics.

The silence of the poodles

National’s first dirty tricks operation of the 2011 election campaign has ended in an embarrassing own goal.  But they’ll be back with more of the same.  Because the last thing National wants is an election campaign focused on the issues.

Blame Goff?

There are far more similarities than differences in the Hughes / Goff and Worth / Key affairs, but that doesn’t stop the Right trying to rewrite history and blame Goff!

How close is too close?

How close should corporate interests be allowed to cuddle up to the government?  When is a gift not a gift?  If it isn’t influence what is it?
The Greens have raised important questions surrounding Westpac and the Nats.

What is important to voters?

DPF reckons “that issues of policy are less important to voters than issues of competence”.  What an impoverished view of democracy!  Perhaps he should look a little deeper than last week’s poll…

Elitist Nats divorced from everyday Kiwis

National pollster David Farrar reckons that its sweet for the elite to spend $100 a head on meals at the taxpayer’s expense. Same time as he’s sneering at a woman struggling to get by feeding four people on $200 a week. This is National’s New Zealand. The best for the elite. Cat food for the rest.

Some free advice for National

Hey National – stop lying and inventing dodgy stats to try  and prove that we’re all better off.  The tax cut received by most people was derisory, and the cost of living is shooting up fast.  Even the Kiwiblog heartland isn’t buying the lies.  If you can’t convince them, you can’t convince anyone…

Farrar fluffs food figures

I thought that with a devastating earthquake, a record oil/food price spike, an unemployment tsunami, and a double-dip recession that the Nats’ apologists might have realised it was time for honest discussion of the issues and solutions. Instead, they’re still trying to bury our heads in the sand.

Farrar illustrates WfF folly

John Key has tidied up the confusion he caused yesterday and says that the quakes will cost the government $5 billion in rebuilding and $5 billion in lost revenue over the next 4 years. Big bikkies but easily covered by an emergency levy and canning the white elephant motorways. So, why are the Nats obsessed with tinkering with Working for Families?

Davey’s dodgy polling

There’s long been doubt over the quality of David Farrar’s Curia polling company. Now, Tim Watkin has produced a first-hand report of Curia’s questioning. The tone of the questions is biased, which is really dumb if you’re trying to get useful data. It’s not really push polling, it’s Farrar delivering what the Nats want to hear to maintain his standing in the party.

Farrar joins call for SOE reform

Say you run a large company. Say the manager of a division in your company chose do a deal that improves the division’s own profitability instead of one that would have made the division less profitable but the company as a whole more profitable. You would be angry. So why are the people who run our SOEs required to act like that?

Government Spending Ideology

The Right always advocates for less government spending as a percentage of GDP. Those with ideological blinkers cannot see the high correlation between being a free and stable country and paying for it. The most successful nations are willing to invest in quality public services. Government spending is low in poor, unequal, and unstable countries.

Guest post: Beware Food Police!

To arms! To arms! The Food Police are coming! Remember how I led you in the battle to get junk food back into schools? It was a near-run thing. If we hadn’t acted, the days of the 12 year-old who can’t climb a flight of stairs without wheezing and going red in the face might have been numbered. Now, National has hypocritically betrayed us.

Flip flopping on the beach

The usual suspects are accusing Labour of “flip flopping” on its position on the foreshore and seabed.  You have to admire their bare-faced gall eh?

Meet the new EFA same as the old EFA

In developing their replacement for the EFA the Nats have decided to limit what lobby groups can spend on election campaigning — despite strongly objecting to limits in 2008.  Interesting how the responsibilities of government mean that the Nats have to repudiate so much of their irresponsible opposition rhetoric!  But some of their spinsters are still stuck in the past…

Climategate anniversary

It has been a year since the CRU emails were stolen and the “climategate” “scandal” broke.  There’s an interesting summary at the ClimateSight blog.  Meanwhile the record temperatures keep rolling in, the ice keeps melting all over the world, and The Guardian asks “Is climate science disinformation a crime against humanity?”.

Evidence vs. hysteria

The international evidence is all against national standards.  The government’s own expert advisor wants to scrap the system and is warning of disaster.  Other  experts agree, citing the probable harm to children.  Against the evidence and the experts there is only the fanaticism (Tolley) and propaganda (DPF) of those who are quite happy to damage children for political ends.  With the welfare of our children at stake, who do you really believe?

Children bigger than politics

Shame on those who put politics above the well-being of children. Pity those who wallow so intensively in the mud of politics that they are unable to see any issue in other than political terms. Shame and pity on those, like National’s pet blogger DPF, who are prepared to advocate a system likely to damage children because all they can see is politics.  They can’t see the evidence.  They can’t see the children.  Only the game.

Game over Tolley

Anne Tolley has lost the debate on national standards.  The boycott looks set to gather strength, and even The Herald has come out against them.  The empirical evidence, academic consensus and weight of professional opinion has always been against standards.  The only ones still defending them are hacks and shills pushing a political agenda.

Simon Canute and the blogs

Simon Power is ‘consulting’ on regulating the on-line communities to prevent violations of normal societal and legal standards. Clare Curran asks ‘hopefully’ that this isn’t simply a reaction to the idiocy of ex-National party member Whaleoil in how he chases readership. But I suspect that is why this foolishness has come back on the agenda again. Plus National would prefer that there wasn’t so much criticism of their wimpy leader.

“John Key’s smile only goes so far”

National Party pollster David Farrar must have seen bad numbers on the Mana by-election, he’s already making excuses. Apparently, Hekia Parata is a top candidate but it’s the voters’ fault – they’ll be confused by having two elections close together. It’s Farrar’s comment about Key, though, that is most revealing.

Phil Goff – Evil SuperGenius?

Is Phil Goff an Evil SuperGenius?  Is Labour still secretly running the country, controlling MPs, cabinet ministers and government departments?  Political sleuth David P Farrar makes a pretty strong case!  Or does he…

Auckland electoral fraud case

The alleged electoral roll fraud in Auckland has plenty of angles and dimensions for political junkies.  But the underlying issue is simple.  Electoral fraud of any kind is not OK, perpetrators should be found and prosecuted.  We have one of the most robust and respected democracies in the world.  Let’s keep it that way.