Never argue immorality with a Tory *
*they will drag you down to their level and beat you through experience.
Social issues
We must welcome Kiwis home
With a new Immigration Minister this week, could we please get some reality to bringing our people home?
What is the best way for a political party to handle a sex scandal?
Judith Collins appears to be living by her motto, giving back double, and has made public allegations that a Labour Minister has engaged in inappropriate behaviour. But is this the best way to handle a sex scandal?
Unthinkable Things
With the government clearly watching the unravelling of Australia’s Covid-19 response and putting in place $14 billion in preparation for a second infection wave, we are clearly now in a history-in-making territory of the highest instability outside a world war.
Caption contest
Keep it seemly.
Raymond Huo resigning at election
Raymond Huo has announced he will no longer contest the 2020 election.
Tourism: Death and Revival
New Zealand’s tourism economy has essentially collapsed, and it is part of a global tourism industry collapse that is so big that it may be permanently smaller. But does it have to be?
Trump’s not so bad: the disappearing hospital data during a pandemic edition
An occasional series
Will the last remaining National MP please not forget to turn off the caucus room lights
The Herald is reporting that Nikki Kaye will announce her retirement from politics today.
Collins crushes caucus vote
Twitter confirms that Judith Collins is now National leader. She is the perfect candidate if your goal is to stem the bleeding of support. She is not the candidate if you want to win the election …
Muller goes, bring back Simon?
In breaking news Todd Muller has resigned for “health reasons”, effective immediately.
Time to bring back Simon?
Updated with some breaking links.
The Christian Right and the 2020 election
A variety of Christian parties have attempted to gain a place in Parliament. What are the chances in 2020 of a conservative Christian Party succeeding in gaining seats?
Requiem for a smelter
New Zealand was always a odd place to have a aluminium smelter. Untapped hydroelectricity capacity at the bottom of the world. But thousands of kilometers from raw material sources. Tens of thousands of kilometers from the major markets. Now our ever rising electricity prices show that we really need that 13% of power in our electricity market rather than making aluminium.
Some Random impertinent questions about Michelle Boag’s access to confidential medical information
Westpac Helicopter Trust’s claim that it had not breached privacy rights of Covid sufferers raises some serious questions about why Michelle Boag was provided with sensitive information. And who she has provided it to.
Trashing the country’s Covid response for political advantage
As details emerge about Hamish Walker’s leaking of confidential information of Covid sufferers for political advantage, questions are being asked about Todd Muller’s leadership and if National is actually committed to assisting the country’s response to Covid 19.
National’s dilemma – business as usual is failing them.
Audrey Young’s take in Granny Herald was interesting. “No ordinary Labour speech by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern”. That is because the political ‘business as usual’ approach by the business orientation of National campaigning using the politics of fear and envy doesn’t work well in times of crisis. Business simply has too short a viewpoint to be acceptable in government at present – or increasingly in our uncertain future.
Does National actually have any policy?
National has recently been upping the campaign rhetoric but there is a disturbing lack of policy detail.
Jacinda’s address to the Labour Congress
The text of Jacinda’s address delivered to the Labour Congress this afternoon.
National’s “intelligence unit” kicks into gear
A month ago a leak from National’s caucus said that they had set up an intelligence unit designed to dig up dirt on opponents. Yesterday Newshub ran a story based on a candidate’s seven year old tweets. It looks like the intelligence unit has been busy.
Caption contest
Keep it seemly.
Re-open New Zealand
It is great to see former Prime Minister Helen Clark join the debate about re-opening New Zealand’s borders. We need it. There is no better time for New Zealand to re-launch itself to the world.
National wants to open up our borders, unless you are Indian, Pakistani or Korean
National Backbench MP Hamish Walker has claimed that Queenstown is to be invaded by people from India, Pakistan and Korea when the reality is the Government is considering using empty Hotels for quarantining returning kiwis.
Minister Clark resigns
David Clark has announced his resignation as Health Minister.
The many and varied Covid reckons of Mike Hosking
A review of recent opinion pieces by Mike Hosking shows that he has adopted a series of contradictory positions with the one common feature that they are critical of the Government’s actions.
Bye bye Paula
Paula Bennett has announced that she is standing down from politics and will not seek re-election on National’s list at this year’s election.
Paora Goldsmith in fake news scandal
Paora Goldsmith has shown either that he is lacking in basic numeracy and literacy skills or that he is prepared to tell porkies for political advantage.
Green Party rocks their new Guaranteed Minimum Income policy
The Greens’ audacious new social security policy, the Poverty Action Plan, places manaakitangi and compassion at the centre. It includes guaranteed income across the board for those in need, reorientating ACC to include illness and prioritise care, support for children and single and double parented families, and it pays for it all by taxing some of the assets and income of the wealthy.
The new successful revolution we are seeing
A really successful and very modern revolution has already started in just the last few weeks. It’s not the revolution we expected.
Colmar Brunton poll – Labour can still form majority Government
The latest Colmar Brunton poll results have been released and Labour is still remarkably in a position to rule on its own.
The light rail delay is good
There is a solid silver lining to the delay in the Auckland light rail to the airport project.
New Zealand for the win!
$100,000 a year in capital gains.
We don’t know how lucky we are
Looking at the rises in covid-19 infections worldwide is just damn depressing. Looking at the media and Nat supporters, the world, and covid-19 -ll I can say is thank you for the internet. And the kiwis who aren’t listening to the whining about here because they can see the slow disaster unfolding elsewhere with incompetent governments.
Humans – doing it to themselves
About the only thing that surprised me was that it took so long for a pandemic to really break out into the modern world. Because our evolutionary and recorded history is mainly punctuated and constrained by disease and environmental change. We invented large cities many times in the past and lost them to plague or drought. It looks like we’re going through that phase again – just at a larger level.
In defence of Ashley Bloomfield
National and elements of the media have gone full on attack on the Government’s and Ashley Bloomfield’s Covid 19 performance. Which is unusual given that there is still no examples of community transmission and all recent infections have been picked up through the quarantine system.
Aroha Ardern Poster Banned?
A piece of street art has got the right’s knickers in a twist. But Love conquers all.
Protesters, Anarchists, Agitators and Lowlifes
Donald Trump has planned to hold a political rally on the day used to celebrate the abolition of slavery at a place where one of the worst examples of white brutality on black people using advertising material containing nazi symbols. All in the middle of a global pandemic.