The Greens and Labour are planning a joint announcement on their policies on power prices. Both parties want to bring down costs of electricity. The policies of the two parties will also have some differences. How will it mesh with Green Party policies on sustainability?
Key has announced changes to the GCSB roles that will include assisting business and the police in spying against Kiwis. it is anti-democratic, and will increase lack of accountability of the intelligence and crime fighting services.
Dotcom has promised some significant revelations from this week’s court proceedings. This morning his lawyer focused on Grant Wormald, the role of the police Special Tactics Group, and the truth. Is the GCSB is off the hook? Meanwhile, Key has been claiming he is “honest and upfront”. [Update – Key’s announced changes to the GCSB outrageous & undemocratic]
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
I live in Wellington and like it. I’ve just visited Auckland for a party, and it was fun for a day and a half. Separately, I met some Aucklanders unusually riled up about the Government, and then read Matt McCarten in today’s Herald re Gerry Brownlee and Nick Smith on Auckland’s gridlock! One does feel sorry for the northeners. Good billboard too.
The Court Martial of Flight Lieutenant Dan Pezaro by the NZ Defence Force is making me uneasy. The internal Court of Inquiry into […]
John Key is into networking and schmoozing with the wealthy & influential. He’s given special attention to the entertainment industries, GCSB, intellectual property & commerce. He crossed paths with Warner’s people the year before the Hobbit dispute, but never played golf with Dotcom.
Stand up for kids is “a campaign for parents, families, teachers and other educators who all want the best for our children”. They are holding street marches in centers all round NZ today.
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
John Key’s government has been gradually dismantling NZ’s democratic processes. Various activities this week are a major part of a frightening shift: a Bill enabling mining conservation land; punitive social security Act; Key’s control over NZ’s “intelligence community”.
The PM, Fletcher, the GCSB – questions need answering: why, when, where, who? It’s all about intellectual property, global commerce and international networks. From London to Aus 2009, to NZ 2010, then down the rabbit hole to Dotcom, Hobbits & uncertain links with complex global money mazes.
Before the soft-headed repetition of the Nats’ line goes on too long, here’s an analogy. The GCSB’s justification for their illegal spying, that they knew they weren’t allowed to spy on New Zealanders but thought it was OK if they were acting on behalf of another agency that could, is like you not having a driver’s licence but saying it’s OK for you to drive if someone with a licence asks you to.
Nixon famously said: “When the president does it, that means that it is not illegal”. John Key would have you believe the same thing, that when his agency, the GCSB, has been breaking the law, the problem lies with the law. No – the problem lies with the GCSB and its oversight. Watergate here we come…
Yesterday more planks in the NAct raft amounting to major changes, were before the House. These undermine democracy, fairness, the security and rights of individuals, and increase hardship for those on low incomes. Ardern on Social Security. Cunliffe on child support, privacy breaches & trust.
So, the GCSB has been systemically breaking its own law by assisting the SIS and Police to spy on New Zealanders – a clear violation of the GCSB Act and, potentially, the Crimes Act. Key leaked the report revealing this while he was overseas so it would be ‘old news’ by the time he gets back. Now, he’s offered his ‘solution’ – make GCSB’s illegal actions legal, make it legal for the GCSB to spy on you.
Recent ignorance of Maori custom and Kiwi culture, both at home and abroad, invited a response from newly minted Race Relations Commissioner Susan Devoy. So far – nothing…
Any day now the Government will announce more changes to the Employment Relations Act. These changes will drive down wages and undermine the […]
North Korea is playing nuclear brinksmanship at the moment. Its leadership probably doesn’t want war but the constant threat of war is how it get concessions from the West, gains mana, and keeps its people in line. The West is trying to defuse this situation by talking down the prospects of war, while showing its readiness. Into this delicate, high stakes game stumbled John Key.
Councillor Bruce Wilson thinks it’s a “joke” to say we should sterilise Maaori women who smoke. If you don’t think he should resign for his racism, let’s consider if he should resign for being too ignorant to function.
Congratulations to Duncan Campbell, Nicky Hager, et al involved in the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists for doing such a great job on the Gobal Offshore Money Maze. The maze includes NZ & Aussie. The investigation used sophisticated digital technologies.
Why else would he say “that he is particularly concerned by the trend for the complex nature of science to be ignored or misunderstood in societal debates, leading to the argument that you can find a scientist to support any given position. This, he says, totally misinterprets the way that scientific consensus is achieved and can engender serious mistrust in the scientific enterprise.”
Rennie now says it was ultimately Key’s decision to scrap the original shortlist for head of the GCSB. Has Key misled the House and the country, or has he successfully employed the science of obfuscation?
Key & Rennie say Ian Fletcher was the most suitable candidate to head the GCSB? His CV includes working on intellectual property, globalisation and free trade, & was private secretary to the Blair minister who fudged the legal advice on attacking Iraq.
News today that American military drones have passed through our airspace. Along with our own military and police drone projects, looks like our skies are going to be getting crowded.
Falling crime is good news – but the reasons are probably not the ones that occupy most of the politicians and the commentary.
Sometimes, I wonder where Granny Herald gets her crack from. It’s clearly strong stuff. Like when she runs an editorial soundly condemning an opposition MP for doing something that the same editorial admits is justified. Today, Cunliffe gets an earful for daring to suggest that IT multi-nationals are ripping us off.
A raft of Tory policies have been dismantling the British welfare state: bedroom tax, privatising the NHS: NZ’s NAct government is following the same pattern of slyly changing small things, adding up to major changes that are ultimately socially & economically destructive.
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Significant International Affairs files, relating to dodgy Pokies’ trusts, going missing, SkyCity convention centre deals made through flawed government processes. No corruption in NZ, just governance through sloppy processes? Cui bono?
John Key often lives in a different world than us – and not just in that he doesn’t mix with us. Over Sky City and Anzac Day he is very much in his own bubble.
Opposition MPs (e.g. Ardern & Mathers) and Sue Bradford highlight that the Social Security (Benefit Categories and Work Focus) Amendment Bill destroys lives, furthers NAct’s elitist agenda, & is more propaganda than social security or job creation.
Paula Bennett has found one group of beneficiaries who she doesn’t think are bludging scum! Surely this is a feelgood story, and not a workaround tactic to bash other beneficiaries, right? Bueller?
The Green Party held a public meeting in West Auckland, on their Home for Life, Affordable Housing policy – it prioritises children in poverty. It was informative, questions were raised. Mindsets need to change to achieve a good quality of life & strong communities for all.
National, the party of beneficiary bashing that has lead a crusade against parents on the DBP, appears to have triggered a surge of new births to DPB parents.
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Today we again have the Herald’s resident ignoramus Damien Grant sounds off about something he knows nothing about. As usual just looking at […]
