Is this the next GFC?
The Minister of Finance says that we are facing the worst of any of the scenarios that they had been preparing for. In response the government’s rescue package is bigger than anything New Zealand has ever seen.
Social issues
health
Covid-19: Back home again
As a programmer, I’ve had a lot of experience with working from home for work, last time was about 13 years ago. Yesterday we got shifted to working from home. The toolkit has changed a lot even in the last few years. What is going to be interesting for me is to see how companies disperse their employees out in the same way over this pandemic – that will be a real test of productivity.
The right become socialists as Covid-19 bites
The right, elements of which have thought the best thing to do to the state is weaken it that badly that they could then drown it in a bathtub, are rethinking and now realise that a well resourced, active and engaged State is actually a life saver.
Different responses to the Covid virus pandemic
It has been disclosed that Donald Trump has attempted to buy exclusive rights to a German vaccine in development. But only for the use of the American people. Meanwhile in New Zealand there is agreat anticipation about the Government’s announced package due to be released tomorrow.
Covid-19 and a digital democracy
Government has for the last decade been pushing for as many government services as possible to be primarily accessed digitally rather than face-to face. Funnily enough, the one public service they forgot to push to digital is themselves. Now’s the time Trevor.
Covid-19 – a political problem
Juice Media on the essential facts about the spread of Covid-19. It concentrates on the United States, where personally I’m picking the US, by the end of the year, as being the biggest medico-political screw up world wide after Iran. Early wishful thinking and a lack of transparency cost lives. Pathetic bullshitting simply doesn’t help.
Coronavirus and the State
A few weeks ago I slagged off the Chinese government for its response to the Corona virus and presumed that authoritarian states could never be as good as democratic states in responding to a pandemic. I want to revisit my opinion.
The politics of hand washing
Simon Bridges thinks that getting people to wash their hands and removing unemployment stand down periods is tinkering but that National’s still unreleased economic policy will solve the crisis.
The Herald creates a panic and Trump says Coronavirus is a hoax
If a society ever wanted to set out how to handle a pandemic the Herald’s media response and Donald Trump’s handling of the situation provide perfect examples of what not to do.
Chinese New Year
With China’s New Year arriving, and a terrible flu virus struggling to be contained within it at the same time, it’s time to reflect again on China’s future and impact for New Zealand.
Guest Post – What is wrong with the left?
Guest post from old maaaaate cans about recent Stuff guest columns attacking the left for not civilised enough and wondering if it is because of right wing insecurity.
Crash ‘n Burn
A chuttering PM and…well, I guess being left speechless.
ACC are bankrolling the climate crisis
Why is ACC dragging the chain on fossil fuel divestment, and why is Labour letting them?
Common-wealth Government
Advantage is testing an idea out. What will a common accountability framework for the government look like?
Simon – only good at the bottom of a cliff
The interview between Jack Tame and Simon Bridges was revealing. Circumlocutions and the wheedling of a conniving prosecutor around the National party hypocrisy over cancer drugs. Making a token amount towards funding super-expensive cancer drugs – but don’t want to deal with root causes or prevention of cancer? It beggars belief that this fool is a politician.
National’s cynical cancer policy announcement
National has announced a new Cancer Agency to replace the agency it closed four years ago to be funded from within already overstretched Health budgets.
Support Tax Fairness Reform
The Tax Justice Network has started a campaign to gain support for taxing capital as income to support and improve our public services. If you would like to support the campaign, you can sign the petition here or donate here. All funds donated will go to the campaign advertising.
Spare a thought for our poor impoverished landlords
Spare a thought for poor landlords who are aghast at the thought that they should have to share capital gains on properties they have purchased with no intent of making a capital gain.
The Big Operation
A life changing operation is a big decision and there are no easy answers.
Ross taunts Bridges about mental health system
Jami-Lee Ross has implied that Simon Bridges is being hypocritical in criticising a Government review into mental health.
The Meathead tax
National’s claim that the Government wants to impose a meat tax suffers from the reality that the Government has done no such thing and the proposal comes from an International collective of academics.
TERFed Out: UPDATED
Labour MP Louisa Wall has written an opinion piece in response to Herald columnist Rachel Stewart’s attack earlier in the week on the trans community and their LGBTIQ+ allies. It’s very good.
UPDATE: Rachel Stewart, as predicted, has blocked me on twitter. But not before going full on racist.
KiwiBuild doesn’t fly.
More than that, it needs to be torn down before it makes a serious bid at flight.
Bigot’s Billboard
Anti-Vaxxers are targeting South Auckland families in their latest bid to spread the virus of ignorance. You can help needle the pricks. The Standard shows you how.
UPDATE: The billboard is coming down!
How Patriarchy Works; A Newshub Special Investigation
A schoolgirl correctly identified exactly what caused the stink at Carterton South school. Why wasn’t she listened to?
Period. End. Done.
The Scottish government has just taken a massive step to eradicate period poverty. Why not here?
Nurses.
There’s a sickness affecting our health system.
Nurses deserve our support
Perhaps the Labour-led coalition might choose to reflect on it priorities – the sufficient funding of essential public services or buying billion-dollar war machines from the Donald Trump regime.
Shouty Simon’s strange budget claim
National’s claims about Labour’s health spend suffer from the not insignificant problem that they do not make any sense when analysed.
Dunedin Hospital
Yes, Dunedin needs a new hospital, but…
We did not know it would be this bad
Marama Davidson’s question to Jacinda Ardern in Parliament yesterday allowed Jacinda to outline the enormous mess the last National Government has left the country in.
The hidden infrastructure fiscal crisis gets real
Steven Joyce’s $11.7 billion fiscal hole is becoming more and more of a reality although it is in hidden infrastructure costs that National had suppressed in search of the elusive surplus.
Doofus of the week Easter 2018 edition
This week the award goes to a Fairfax reporter for writing as fawning a review of a political career as you can imagine.
The manufacturing of a narrative
The past week has seen the Herald focus on issues concerning Clare Curran to the almost exclusion of anything else, including the perilous state of our Health system and Kim Dotcom’s successful appeal against the last Government’s breach of his rights of privacy.
Joyce may have been right about the Fiscal hole
Steven Joyce’s prediction of a $11.7 billion deficit in the Government’s finances may be true. But this is because the last Government has underfunded health and hidden problems.
Tell the Health Committee: Make our cannabis law fair for those in pain
“The Health Select Committee is about to consider the government’s changes to medicinal cannabis law. This is your chance to tell politicians they have not gone far enough.”
The Greens have a handy online submission form that you can send as is or add your own thoughts. Submissions close on Wednesday.