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Will Key go to Copenhagen? Or rather, why wouldn't he want to go? According to TVNZ tonight: At least 90 world leaders are now expected to attend next month's global climate change talks in Copenhagen but New Zealand's prime minister still says he will not…
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In opposition, National claimed that Labour wasn't really getting people off benefits, it was just moving them from unemployment benefit and 'hiding' them on the sickness and invalid's benefits - Paula Bennett repeated the claim just this week in the House. But the facts prove…
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Among the breathless reporting of who John Key is having a meeting with ('he's talking to the Queen!' 'he's going to talk to India's PM), as if a meeting itself is an outcome, an achievement, I've seen one very interesting comment on CHOGM. On her…
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The delectable Mr Stephen Fry doesn't like the people who comment on blogs, and says so in his usual forthright, erudite and whimsical way: "I don't know about you but whenever I read a blog I do not let my eye drop below half the…
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Topics of interest, announcements, general discussion. The usual rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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Minister of Education Anne Tolley is obviously feeling the heat of the reaction to her inexplicably daft decision to read a moralising children's story book* to the PPTA Executive. Minister defends reading kid's book to PPTA ...The council says it was left somewhat bemused and…
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Below Omar of Socialist Aotearoa gives his impressions of Phil Goff at Drinking Liberally in Auckland earlier this week. On an unrelated note, isn't it funny (in a non-'ha, ha' way) how 4,000 pro-smackers gets lots of coverage but a blind eye is turned when the…
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Reading Fran O'Sullivan is always interesting because she provides an insight into the thinking of the business elite who fund National, and who expect it to govern for them. A lot of her article today is devoted to calling for radical reforms that obviously aren't politically viable…
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Lockwood Smith seems to be losing the plot. He's now issuing open threats to the Press Gallery of all things: Parliament's Speaker, Lockwood Smith, has warned the media that the coverage of MPs' expenses borders on lobbying, and if it continues he will treat journalists…
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French President Nicolas Sarkozy and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon have called on world leaders to attend the Copenhagen talks on the new climate change treaty. President Obama will be attending as will the leaders of most major countries. Yet John Key still says he almost…
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Topics of interest, announcements, general discussion. The usual rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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The Police have announced they will not be laying any charges against Richard Worth over the incident involving him and a Korean woman in a hotel room. That's not an exoneration from wrongdoing, of course, but it puts to rest the criminal case. Now,…
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Bomber over at Tumeke has a good post up on Goff's speech. Pointing out the Maori Party has Stockholm Syndrome is not race baiting That to me sums up Goff's speech, far more eloquently than I could. He referred to Eddies earlier post.... ..ouch, did…
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Phil Goff's speech on 'nationhood' was always going to be seen as an attempt to pull a Brash, regardless of what it actually said. The narrative was set from the start, and it's fair to suspect that Goff's people knew that and thought they'd take…
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Another instalment of "John Key's" video diary from talented impersonator PlumedeKiwi; this time taking a comedic stab at the PM's refusal to attend the UN climate talks in Copenhagen. Key has come under an increasing amount of pressure in recent weeks over the summit, widely…
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Gerry Brownlee is talking of digging up Coromandel to extract a few tens of millions of dollars worth of gold. Naturally, the company that owns the Waihi mine is all for it. The local community gets little benefit from mining. According to the 2006 census,…
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Just a reminder, thousands of hospital support staff, school support staff and other low-paid public sector workers are rallying in 27 centres nationwide today to tell the government to lift the freeze on low pay. The rallies are taking place from 12.30-1.30. If you can,…
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Much ado about nothing in the last few days, with the release of materials related to climate change and warming on both the international and local scales. First the international event - "Climategate" (sigh) - the now well known theft and publication of data from…
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Why is it that whenever you see discussion of introducing capital gains tax, land tax etc, the assumption is always that the money will be used to cut the top tax rates? That seems completely misguided to me. Why should tax reform be all about…
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Topics of interest, announcements, general discussion. The usual rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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Never in the history of New Zealand politics has so much taxpayers' money been hurled into the chasm with such contempt for the poor citizens who will pay billions out of their own dwindling pockets forever while rich polluters wreck the earth with impunity and…
class war climate change maori party national/act government
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Jenni McManus reports in The Independent [offline]: The first report from the 2025 Taskforce is due on Monday and the word is its recommendations are likely to be toxic to the Government. Taskforce chairman Don Brash this week refused to reveal what it contains but…
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In case you're just waking up to it, this government is a disaster zone. If it's not one or the other of the support parties falling apart, it's a corrupt minister. If it's not either of those, it's a minister behaving bizarrely or a shambolic…
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How long can the Maori Party survive before it collapses under the weight of its own contradictions? The idea of a single party to represent all Maori has always been a fallacy. When the Maori Party first appeared, I wished it well as a left-wing…
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Maori Party policy on the environment: We aspire to work together to make the economy great but not at the expense of our environment. Climate change affects us all and the biggest emitters must take responsibility to change the way they do business. Any cost…
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Topics of interest, announcements, general discussion. The usual rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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So, the National / Maori ETS is now law. Waiho mÄ te WhakamÄ e Patu. Shame on those who supported this appalling legislation and the anti-democratic process used to ram it in to law.
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The New Zealand Political Studies Association is holding its Annual Conference from Nov 30 - 1 Dec in Auckland, hosted by the University of Auckland Political Studies Department. The conference will run five simultaneous streams presenting papers in the fields of: Political Theory, New Zealand…
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The recession, combined with the long-term shift to internet-based media struck a king-hit to US newspapers over the last year. Circulation fell 10.9%. There is now just one newspaper produced per day for every ten Americans (produced, not sold, many are given away). In the…
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Via Newsroom [offline], Pita Sharples has confirmed reports of an internal revolt within the Maori Party over its support for National's ETS. The Maori Party will honour its deal to back National's emissions trading scheme despite many in the party being opposed to much of…