Carmel Sepuloni – bring it on
Carmel Sepuloni’s speech to the 2023 Labour Party Congress.
Social issues
uncategorized
Really Small States in Really Big Conflicts
In case we just missed it, New Zealand really has picked a side. Prime Minister Hipkins will head to the NATO summit in Lithuania together with Australia, Japan and South Korean leaders. Also Vladimir Zelinskyy is intending to go as well.
Yes, A Constitution
We are mature enough to have our own leader. Own our own shit.
Where Is New Zealand Extremism Going?
I’ve worked my way through two books recently, both on extremist sects, one about New Zealand groups and one about those in the United States of America. It’s startling.
Greens: Three waters rebrand insufficient
Today the Government adopted a long held Green Party position to increase the number of water entities to ensure a closer connection with communities they serve. However, despite the rebrand, significant concerns remain.
What is UK Labour doing?
In the United Kingdom Keir Starmer’s faction are exerting their control by moving to the centre and adopting policy positions very similar to the Conservatives. And by refusing to allow Jeremy Corbyn to stand as a Labour candidate in the next election.
Jacinda’s Valedictory Speech
Video of Jacinda Ardern’s Valedictory speech given today in Parliament.
We should have a chat about Artificial Intelligence
As we adjust to the advent of civilisation threatening climate change there is a new threat that is emerging, the unregulated development of artificial intelligence.
Debating with nazis
So Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull aka Posie Parker is coming to Aotearoa New Zealand and intends to spread her message. Wikipedia describes her as someone […]
Submit!
What sort of city do you want to live in? If you do not wish to live in a city that is going backwards environmentally, artistically and socially then please submit on Auckland Council’s Draft Annual Budget.
Luxon slumps in latest Colmar Brunton poll
The latest One News Kantar Poll result has been released and it is a doozie.
Helen White wins Mount Albert selection
In breaking news Helen White has won the selection for the Mt Albert seat over Camilla Belich. This is something of an upset as Belich was rumoured to have head office support.
But How Do You Pay For It?
To pay for recent flood damage Grant Robertson has to decide on what proportion of this will be paid by new debt, what proportion by reallocation of expenditure, and what proportion by special tax levies. Is an Australian style levy under consideration?
What Chat GPT thinks of the Standard
I thought that I would get Chat GPT to write 500 words on the Standard and this is what it came up with.
Greenpeace calls on government to cut Big Dairy climate pollution
Join our call on the government to take real action to cut climate pollution from NZ’s biggest polluter: industrial dairying.
Is it too early to talk about climate change?
Two unprecedented summertime storms in Auckland suggest that the threats posed by climate change are not in our future but are here now.
Waitangi Day reading
“It’s a road we are travelling together” – Sharon Murdoch
Luxon blunders again
Chris Luxon has provided another example of his ineptness by suggesting in an MMP environment that a vote in a Maori Seat is worth more than a vote in an European seat.
There is no misogyny in New Zealand *
* sung to the famous tune from Blam Blam Blam.
It will be Chippy for PM
Chris Hipkins is now set to become prime minister. I rather expected that would be the likely outcome. Helps the election campaign as it will mute the revolting misogynist arsehole conservatives of the right and some on the left. I’m really tired of listening to them, and I suspect that way more than half of the countries population are as well.
Caption contest
Keep it seemly.
Push Back Against Tyranny and Win
Australia is showing New Zealand how to resist the authoritarian Xi Jinping’s pressure and stay prosperous at the same time.
Much ado about nothing
The big news this week was Jacinda Ardern describing David Seymour in an unparliamentary phrase on an open mike in Parliament. But the matter was resolved in a way that can only happen in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Dog whistles and South Auckland garages
Chris Luxon has doubled down on a dog whistle attack on South Auckland garages by apologising if anyone was offended, thereby ignoring most of South Auckland who were definitely offended.
Stop the gentailers bribing investors with borrowed capital.
Brian Easton at Pundit provides a clear overview on what is happening in out large generator / retailer market at present. Their implicit collusion on excessive pricing is profiteering and even using future capital to pay off investors rather than improve the cost of and efficiency usage of power.
Labour and National and Industry Intervention
Minister Mahuta’s water reforms are by some measure the most consequential industry intervention of this Labour government, and likely to be the most successful in over a decade.
Three strikes law is not the answer
National is proposing a return of the Three Strikes legislation, despite the Supreme Court ruling that the law went well beyond excessive punishment and would shock the conscience of properly informed New Zealanders, and was so disproportionately severe as to breach the Bill of Rights. And despite there being no evidence that it would actually work.
Prime Minister Ardern and Premier Xi
New Zealand has the most adroit and high profile international leader in a generation with Prime Minister Ardern, but she has weakened New Zealand against China.
Surviving the apocalypse of the Great Twit
The Great Twit at Twitter has been cauterising off staff in excess. I suspect that the platform is going to go down the toilet for that (amongst other reasons). My concern here has been to preserve the embedded tweets in posts and comments on this site if the idiot engineer manages to destroy the platform through simple stupidity.
The power companies are rorting us
FIRST Union, NZCTU, and 350 Aotearoa have just released a joint report suggesting that the privatisation of our power companies by National were not only disastrous for the country’s finances but also disastrous for the planet.
Equality for the Black Ferns
After the epic Women’s World Cup result from last night’s final the question has to be asked, why aren’t the Black Ferns and the All Blacks paid the same amount?
The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse Pause With Map In Hand and Scratch Their Heads
If 2020 was the worst year in my lifetime how does 2022 compare?
The Year Skiing Died
Climate change has ensured that this is the winter that broke skiing.
Why Is Labour Such a Hard Sell Now?
So why is Labour and Ardern struggling when the economy is so strong?
Comrade Chris and the politics of the warm inner glow
Left wing contrarian Chris Trotter has made some outlandish claims about Jacinda Ardern’s recent conference speech.
What happens if Twitter dies?
It seems strange to type this but Twitter may be terminal. The social media site that has become the go to for many years for journalists, politicians and any one interested in news especially breaking news may be on its death bed.