TED is coming to town
TEDx will be in Auckland in October. We can get a limited number of tickets to it for those who want go.
Social issues
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Strategy and opinion
Thanks to Rob Salmond and Josie Pagani it is now clear that Labour’s pitch to the centre is an intentional strategy. That is helpful as now perhaps we can have a reasonable discussion about how well it’s working, and what else might work better.
Frankly Speaking: “John Banks: condition deteriorating”
Frank Macskasy over at Frankly Speaking writes some very long posts that are often full of interesting information. This one does a good analysis of the recommendations from the Electoral Commission and various party positions on it. On the way through he has a good swipe at John Banks, who it would be safe to say, he considers to be political cabbage.
The wrong conversation
There has been a lot of discussion on the direction Labour is heading and the direction it should go. There have been some […]
Base lies
So, Key’s over in Maine watching his kid play baseball (and, shush, taking the rest of the week off for another overseas holiday). Whatever. The thing that gets me is that he can’t help but lie to tell people what they want to hear. He’s told Maine media that the little leaguers getting to the world tournament is big news here. No, it’s not. It’s just news that our PM has gone to watch.
Bad behaviour puts Labour activists off
I have spent the better part of 17 years – eight of those as a paid organiser for the Labour Party – practicing […]
Interesting week
It has been an interesting week for the leaders of the two main parties – one I think that they would both rather forget.
Race-baiting works, a little
Meh. National has race-baited over water rights to win back some of its wavering lower-middle class Pakeha support. It’s won some of that support back. For now. The thing about turning tides is that not every wave, or even every set of waves for some time, reaches less far up the beach than the one lowest before. Within each cycle there are dips and spikes due to events. Doesn’t change the cycle.
Open mike 06/08/2012
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Open mike 05/08/2012
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Open mike 04/08/2012
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
By the book
“At all times, Ministers are expected to act lawfully and to behave in a way that upholds, and is seen to uphold, the highest ethical standards. Ultimately, Ministers are accountable to the Prime Minister for their behaviour.” – The Cabinet Manual. John Banks lied to reporters, and the public, while a minister. That’s not upholding the highest ethical standards. When will John Key hold him to account?
The donkey and the ass
Key says the local elections law is an ass. Presumably, he knows what that phrase means: it delivers unjust results. Key thinks its unjust that Banks has escaped justice for his anonymous donation rort. Well, John you’re not helpless. Banks lied to media. He lied to you. He said he hadn’t solicited the donations. Didn’t know about them. He did. He lied to you and New Zealand. Sack him.
McCarten on Banks
Matt McCarten doesn’t pull any punches, comparing Banks to both Phillip Field and Winston Peters.
Banks lied while a minister
Sure enough, this isn’t over for John Banks. He has now been caught out in a direct lie told while he was a minister. On April 27, when asked about Mr Dotcom’s donations, Mr Banks told the Herald: “I kept the finances of the campaign [at] arm’s length. Others were involved in collecting money and talking to people.” But the Police investigation shows that’s a lie.
Equal before the law?
Police will not lay charges over the so-called banks.com saga. Assistant Police Commissioner Malcolm Burgess held a press conference this afternoon at Police National Headquarters in Wellington. Minister John Banks would be issued with a warning over the matter, Burgess said. While he only received a warning, Banks’ actions were illegal and future occurrences were likely to be prosecuted.
Banks gets off…
Police were unable to establish that Mr Banks had the necessary knowledge that the donation had been recorded as anonymous in the return before he signed and submitted it. As No Right Turn puts it: “So basically they’re letting him off because he didn’t read the thing he signed and was legally responsible for. Its one law for finance company directors, and another for corrupt politicians.”
Another looters’ bonus
John Key’s grasp of his own asset sales policy is being revealed to be shakier by the day. He doesn’t know how it would hurt the government books. He flips his position on water rights each day. He doesn’t know how much a looters’ bonus of free shares would cost. And, yesterday, he didn’t even realise that $56m is budgeted to cover sharebrokers’ fees for the looters.
Paula Benefit Distractions
Today’s big announcement from Paula Bennett at the National Party Conference was that those on the run from police will have their benefits stopped. But the question needs to be asked: how many people on the run are collecting the benefit?
Open mike 21/07/2012
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
An Auckland view on Labour’s changes
Here’s a guest post from an Auckland Labour Party member with a different take on the constitutional changes. It’s interesting and challenging. Good […]
Labour’s review – a good job well done
I’ve just got my summary report on Labour’s organisational review, emailed to me as a member from President Moira Coatsworth, with a link to the website – things have certainly got better since my day! On a quick first look, it seems to be a very good job, and a real contrast to National.
“Electricity prices, asset values, and regulation: the Mighty River Power sell-off in context”.
Monday 9 July at 5:30pm in St John’s Church Hall, Wellington, Dr Geoff Bertram will discuss how corporatisation of the electricity SoEs has been bad for domestic consumers. Part-privatisation now may lock in prices that could never have been sustainable under proper regulation, and close off options to tackle energy poverty. Proper regulation may still be an answer.
Open mike 06/07/2012
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Banks case to Police lawyers
The Police have concluded their investigation into John Banks’ donations to his 2010 mayoral campaign. The Police legal section will now decide whether or not to prosecute. There are two tests; the evidential test and the public interest test. There is no question that if the evidence is sufficient, prosecution is in the public interest. It comes down to credibility – best decided in court.
Open mike 01/07/2012
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Target practice
Just before the parliamentary recess National released its latest set of Laura Naude targets. They will join all the others – catching up with Australia, jobs from the cycleway, government surplus by 2014, yadda yadda yadda. I can’t think of a single target National has actually met. These targets aren’t real; they are just there to provide fodder for uncritical media.
Knee-benders
You’ll really want to know this – the queen has just updated the curtsy order. “Blood princesses” come first, so if William isn’t there Kate has to curtsy to Anne, Alexandra, and even Beatrice and Eugenie!!! Will be interesting to see how low Bronagh goes when Charles and Camilla come to spend our money later this year.
David Craig on Inequality in NZ – Winner takes all
This free Fabian Society seminar is on tomorrow Tuesday in Wellington at Connolly Hall in Guilford Street, starting at 5:30pm All welcome; you can register here. Will be interesting.
About that mandate
The Right would have us believe that the election was a referendum on asset sales and nothing else. Well, let’s take a closer look at the results of that ‘referendum’. Yeah, there’s no mandate there.
Muddling through with “intelligent austerity”
It’s our official policy according to Treasury’s Chief Economist at a seminar yesterday. A questioner asked “What’s intelligent about it?”, citing anti-tradables bias and income inequality as examples. There is a more intelligent approach says Krugman citing IMF research. We could use it here.
The art of the possible
The Nats’ latest defence of asset sales is ‘if Labour doesn’t say they’ll buy them back,then they secretly agree with the sales’. Well, we would all like Labour to be able to make that commitment but, in the real world, that would be irresponsible . The incoming government is going to have to know how the bad a states the Nats leave the books in first.
Open mike 20/06/2012
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Know when to fold ’em
Key’s ditched the surplus target that was so important a month ago – yet another casualty on the way to the brighter future. The Queen may have asked him why he didn’t see European contagion coming. Shearer is right – Europe is an excuse for a government that has run out of ideas. Labour does have a fresh approach – we need to hear more.
Know when to walk away
Tony Ryall wanted to be very clear on Q+A today that asset sales were not necessarily a done deal. Could this be the first sign that Farrar’s polling is telling National, as it did with teacher numbers, that MOM is a turkey and if they go ahead National is toast?
Peters smacks down Key
John Key started preparing the ground to work with NZF, looking to forge a “Save Super” platform for 2014. But Winston Peters smacked him down hard.