Explore the archive

Search · humour · Page 6

Find articles and conversations by date, subject or search expression.

search syntax

Search syntax

Type words or a Sphinx search expression in the query box. The plugin uses this expression for full-text matching through SphinxQL.

Start with a few words, then narrow the search using these examples, inspired by recent posts on The Standard.

All words
unemployment statistics

Find both words, anywhere in the indexed text. A space means AND; unemployment & statistics also works.

A phrase
"data centres"

Find these words next to each other, in this order. Use straight double quotes, as shown.

Either word
Labour | National

Find either word. Use the vertical bar for OR.

Leave a word out
election -Trump

Find election while excluding Trump. election !Trump also works. Include a positive search word; -Trump on its own is not a valid search.

Group alternatives
(Labour | National) unemployment

Find unemployment together with either Labour or National. Parentheses make combinations easier to read.

Words near each other
"coalition government"~5

Find these words close together, in either order, allowing fewer than five intervening words.

In a title
@title "data centres"

Find the phrase in a post or page title. Comments have no indexed title; select Posts for articles only.

In the body
@body "tactical voting"

Find the phrase in the text of a post, page or comment.

By an author
@author lprent @body search

Find search in the body of items whose indexed author name contains lprent. Use the displayed author or commenter name, which may differ from a login name.

In a category
@category politics

Match words in indexed category names. Use the Categories checkboxes to select a specific category and its descendants.

In a tag
@tags election

Match words in indexed tag names. Use the Tags checkboxes to select a specific tag. Comments inherit their parent post’s categories and tags.

Combine fields
@title election @body (Labour | National)

Require election in the title and either Labour or National in the body. A field applies to following words until another field or the end of its parenthesized group. @* switches back to all fields.

Which fields work with @?

The current index supports @title, @body, @author, @author_full, @category and @tags. @author_full lprent searches the same author text as @author lprent; it uses the same word-matching rules.

The date columns published_utc, calendar_day and date_added are numeric attributes used for filtering, date counts or ordering. They cannot be searched with @: expressions such as @published_utc 2026 or @calendar_day 20261107 produce a query error. Use the From and To (inclusive) controls for dates.

Likewise, use Content for posts, pages or comments, and the Categories and Tags checkboxes for specific terms. Their numeric IDs and content-type attributes cannot be searched with @.

For example, enter @title election, select Posts, set From to 2026-01-01 and To (inclusive) to 2026-11-07, then press Search. This combines the title search with an inclusive date range in the site’s time zone.

Find recent posts

Select Posts only and Newest first. In Text Search or Archive Explorer, set From to one year ago and To (inclusive) to today, then press Search. The sidebar opens Text Search, where you can add these dates. For comments, the date range uses the comment’s own date.

Try @title election, @title "data centres" or unemployment statistics. Recent starting points:

If the results surprise you

Check Content and the date, category and tag filters. English word endings may match the same stem, so quotes fix word order rather than spelling. Wildcard searches such as elect* require index settings that the plugin’s default configuration does not enable.

Enter the expression itself in the box; choose dates and ordering with the controls. For example, use Labour | National for alternatives.

Background: Search upgraded (yet again).

Content
Date range
Browse dates
Categories

Names open category archives. Check boxes to combine filters, including subcategories.

Browse all category archives

Tags

Popular tags and your selections. Names open tag archives; check boxes to combine filters.

john key
no right turn
national
climate change
cameron slater
lies
dirty politics
housing
GCSB
labour
nick smith
TPPA

Browse all tag archives

Clear all

Searching: posts Sorted by: newest Results: 151–180 of 1,031

Post

John Oliver returns – calls Trump ‘a pathological liar’

· notices and features

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xecEV4dSAXE See the Guardian's: John Oliver on Trump and the truth: 'a pathological liar'. Also well worth watching on current US affairs: Full Frontal with Samantha Bee The Late Show with Stephen Colbert The Daily Show with Trevor Noah Real Time with Bill Maher Add…

humour us politics

Post

New Zealand Second?

· notices and features

You gotta laugh right? The Netherlands started the trend with their video response to Trump, The Netherlands Second. (Very funny, it's huge, your gonna love it.) All sorts of other countries started getting in on the act. The New Zealand version (via Jono & Ben)…

humour us politics video

Post

The Standard is offering to the National Party leadership contenders guest post slots

· notices and features

Here at the Standard during previous Labour leadership campaigns the contenders have been offered guest post slots.  These have been warmly received and well read and arguably have had a significant effect on the outcome of the two contests conducted under Labour's democratic leadership contest rules.…

bill english Judith Collins national national/act government paula bennett Satire The Standard

Post

Trump physically slams WWE billionaire McMahon to the ground, mercilessly mutilates him

· Colonial Viper

It is inconceiveable that Americans would consider voting for a violent sociopath like Donald J Trump as President of the United States. The sheer physical violence that Trump exhibits in this clip where he, totally unprovoked, attacks an unsuspecting and defenceless bystander, his willingness to…

Abuse of power flip-flop health and safety law and "order" parody political alternatives Revolution scoundrels sexism

Post

National party to be banned from future budget lockups

· Natwatch

Well Oops - https://twitter.com/TheNBR/status/737118709081354241 Note that the wifi network and password to access budget resources are visible on the monitor and this was posted during the strict embargo period. Brilliant! Given recent events, Bernard Hickey was moved to observe - https://twitter.com/bernardchickey/status/737126634684174336 But It's OK because…

accountability budget 2016 humour national you couldn't make this shit up

Post

Housing crisis solved!

· Anthony R0bins

Good news everyone - the housing crisis is solved! As reported in The Herald: Home truths: 'Ditch the Sky and start saving' Many house hunters who say they can't afford to buy a home in Auckland need to give up their Sky TV or expensive…

housing Satire

Post

Tacks evasion

· notices and features

No, not our line, John Key Must Go on Twitter.

humour

Post

Revealed – Standard bloggers paid by Labour

· notices and features

There has been some media focus this week on the matter of "highly paid political operatives". In the interests of transparency and click-farming, we the writers of The Standard have decided to come clean on how much we are paid by Labour. It is our…

Satire The Standard