Key / Peters 2014
John “power at any cost” Key isn’t ruling out a deal with Peters in 2014. Peters isn’t ruling it out either. Deputy PM Peters anyone?
Social issues
Ethics
A fish rots from the head down
Key has failed to uphold high ethical standards for himself, his Ministers, or his government. The GCSB illegal spying fiasco is just the latest example.
Banks must now submit correct return
John Key is wrong, John Banks has broken the law. He just did not get prosecuted. The return of donations he signed and submitted in 2010 is false, as the Police have stated. He should now correct it, or he is still in breach of the law.
Marriage equality – how they voted
How they voted, some wise words on the range of christian belief, and credit to John Key.
Key knows best about everything
Key’s claim that illegal euthanasia is happening in NZ has sparked outraged denials from medical professionals. But Key, of course, is not backing down. Once he’s opened his mouth he knows that he knows best.
15 Ethical “Fails” Under National!
Reprinted with permission from Dave Kennedy (bsprout) at Local Bodies – a very depressing list.
Zero tolerance for privacy breaches
Collins can’t credibly call for zero tolerance on privacy breaches while working alongside a Minister who has not only breached privacy, but is unrepentant, and boasting that she might do it again. Bennett has breached the Privacy Act – what is she doing still in cabinet? The Nats have no credibility while she remains.
Human Rights Commission concludes that Bennett breached privacy
The Human Rights Commission has concluded that Paula Bennett breached the privacy of a private citizen. Apart from releasing an agreed statement, the HRC is not proposing action. John Key won’t propose any either.
McCarten on Banks
Matt McCarten doesn’t pull any punches, comparing Banks to both Phillip Field and Winston Peters.
Rorts
One law for the rich, another for the poor.
Jones affair – politics not always simple
The media (and the braying right-wing blogs of course) have been bleeding plenty of ink over Shane Jones’ actions in the citizenship case. Jones hasn’t really put his side of the story – until last night.
Contraception debate
The Government is planning to offer free long-term contraception for beneficiaries and their daughters. At one level its a sensible idea. But it comes with too much baggage attached. The Nats have already made such a mess of it that they can’t make this proposal with any credibility.
Euthanasia bill
Maryan Street’s “End of Life Choice Bill” has triggered another round of debate. A recent poll shows public support for legalising voluntary euthanasia at an all time high. It’s a question of “when” not “if”.
Rhetoric and reality: Key’s principles
In 2008 John Key was loudly telling us about his high standards and principles. The Banks case is yet more proof that it was all a prattle of empty rhetoric.
Firewalls up in smoke
David Cameron’s defence of embattled Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt has been called a “firewall” that’s failing to hold.
Cameron needs Hunt to stay or else Cameron is the next to go. It is the same for John Key.
As the stench of corruption around John Banks grows, he desperately needs him to stay or else all he loses legitimacy for asset sales and potentially his majority on the issue as well.
Advice on pokies
“Prime Minister John Key says hundreds of extra pokies at Sky City Casino will not increase gambling addiction”. Key is lying and he knows it. That’s why the Nats won’t release the official advice they have received on this topic…
Taking out the trash
Michael Laws has been calling for listeners to shoot journalists. He’s a disturbed individual who should never be on the air again. Wouldn’t be nice to take the trash out of political commentary?
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…
The politics of greed
In response to Labour’s tax proposals the Right is trotting out their favourite mindless catch phrase – “the politics of envy”. Should the Left fight fire with fire, and get stuck in to “the politics of greed”?
The refugees
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.
Blown up in National’s faces
National’s raid on Labour donor data was a grubby, amoral little operation, with no point except to intimidate innocent individuals.
Unfortunately for the Nats it has blown up in their faces.
Thank you donors!
At 9am today Slater is probably going to publish a list of some of the donors to the Labour Party. A big thank you to every person on that list! To anyone who is angry at being named, please don’t blame some hapless web admin working for Labour. Please blame the people who took this information and illegally made it public.
Genuine progress
This story didn’t get any big headlines. This story slipped by almost completely under the radar. But it’s a very important story. Much more important for New Zealand’s development than the smoke and mirrors of the do-nothing budget.
Herald promotes Anzac scam?
“Fallen soldier records free to access over Easter” is the headline in a Herald story today promoting a special free access to a […]
Informed consent
Owners of businesses in the red zone CBD want brief access to their premises to retrieve items and data that are vital to whatever remaining chance they have of keeping their enterprises alive. The government is refusing access on the grounds of safety. There’s right on both sides of the issue, but whatever happened to informed consent?
The role of the media
Some of the journalists covering Pike River have resorted to extreme measures (even posing as victim support workers) to try and contact grieving families. This is an example of all that is wrong with the media taken to the very worst of its extremes. I can see the problem, but I can’t see the solution. Are the light and dark sides of the media simply inseparable?
Nats’ golden handshake to disgraced judge
When Justice Bill Wilson was accused of serious misconduct, Attorney-General Chris Finlayson didn’t want to investigate telling fellow National MP Colin King “Justice Wilson is a mate of mine and there’s no way I am pursuing this any further”. Now, Wilson’s got a $885,000 golden handshake from the government to make the issue go away.
Paul Henry: Gone
TVNZ have announced the resignation of Paul Henry. John Key’s going to have a LOT of angry rednecks on his case over this […]
Paul Henry’s jokes about women, deaf people and infant deaths, proudly brought to you by TVNZ
Here’s a compilation from TV7’s Russell Brown from April this year, highlighting the value for money taxpayers get from paying Breakfast Bigot Paul […]
Fire Paul Henry activism update, Boycott TVNZ Advertisers campaign gearing up
India’s External Affairs Minister SM Krishna has summoned the New Zealand High Commissioner in New Delhi to please explain Paul Henry’s ultra-racist outburt […]
Yet more of Paul Henry’s racism, proudly brought to you by TVNZ
More anti-Indian racism from Paul Henry… and Paul Henry being racist about hispanics (you can tune out through the middle, but listen to […]
NZ’s new racist international image, proudly brought to you by TVNZ
Here’s some of the international coverage of New Zealand that Paul Henry’s racist outburst against our Governor General Anand Satyanand has sparked. In […]
Paul Henry: we all pay for his unending bigotry
New Zealand’s most infamous anti-Ambassador Paul Henry has shamed us all once again. On TVNZ’s Breakfast this morning, Henry asked John Key (at […]
