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Open mike is your post. It's open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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New instalment from John Key impersonater "Plumedekiwi", in which the PM gets his linguistic knickers in a twist over national standards.... If you haven't seen the other vids by Plumedekiwi, check him out here
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We've been talking for a long time about how the Maori Party keeps getting screwed over by National and meekly accepting it. But maybe that's too simple an analysis. Look at the instances where the Maori Party got shafted: seats on the supercity, 3 strikes,…
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Paul Quinn's Electoral (Disqualification of Convicted Prisoners) Amendment Bill appears to be unjustifiably inconsistent with the electoral rights affirmed by s 12 of the Bill of Rights Act. The effect would be a blanket disenfranchisement of convicted persons detained in prisons on election day. People…
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With the Government wildly slashing its way through the support pillars of the public service, Geoff Robertson on Morning Report interviewed the PPTA's Kate Gainsford and the Nurses' Geoff Annals . Their message was clear: they are 'front-line' workers but they were opposing cuts to…
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Open mike is your post. It's open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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Demeter has already covered the Kaikoura Star article in which John Key says commercial whaling "might be acceptable if it was acceptable to others". You gotta love the leadership there: 'These are my principles and if you don't like them, I have others'. But you've…
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Lefter writes: I went to a fascinating discussion the other day, run by the newly resurgent NZ Fabian Society. The talk was presented by Ganesh Nana (Wellington-based economist with BERL Forecasts), Selwyn Pellett (wealthy entrepreneur), John Walley (CEO of the Manufacturers and Exporters Association) and…
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I got a call from a friend today, thanks to National his rent is going up. I'll call him Ned. He's retired and rents a two bedroom home for $310 a week. He recently received a letter from his landlord advising him of a rent…
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In this article, in which a Kaikoura Whale Watch spokesman states the bloody obvious (that if New Zealand turns pro-whaling his industry will suffer), our harpoon-wielding Prime Minister displays his usual lemming tendancies, saying commercial whaling "might be acceptable if it was acceptable to others'.…
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The not guilty verdicts in the Waihopai spy base case is a victory for the peace movement and proof of the value of the jury system. Now, dear righties, don't go fretting that this case creates open season for activists to damage property. Jury decisions…
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There's a danger in being a government that does nothing except pay off its rich mates, and that's losing faith with the conservative base. They aren't rich enough to win from the pay-offs and they expect fairness and decent public services. Garth George is the…
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As you'll be aware, I've been pretty flabbergasted by the way day after day Bill English is getting up in the House and telling out and out lies about Labour's record on the economy only for Labour to sit there and take it. Well, I've…
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Which minister will be next to go? Rodney Hide or Anne Tolley? If competence was a condition of keeping their job, both would be long gone. But doing a good minister has never been a job requirement in John Key's government. It comes down to…
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Open mike is your post. It's open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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David Farrar is not stupid. Like everyone with a brain, he knows that climate change is a real and dangerous threat caused by human greenhouse gases emissions. Yet he persists in making denialist dog-whistles to his readers, always being careful never to outright deny climate…
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In a letter to the Herald today, responding to Mike Lee's op-ed of yesterday, Steven Joyce says: "Contrary to what Mike Lee says, the Auckland Council will be able to appoint or dismiss any member of the Auckland Transport Board at any time." Problem is,…
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Suddenly John Key is all over the place complaining about "hysterical" media coverage of National's plans to turn large chunks of our National Parks into smouldering slag. I know Key isn't exactly used to critical coverage of his government, but hearing his claims of "hysteria"…
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I tried to write a satire of John Armstrong's column today along the lines of the 'Beloved Key' one I did the other day. But I've had to give it away. It's beyond parody. So, I guess I'll do some serious analysis instead. Armstrong's piece…
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Did you miss the talks by Richard Dawkins and want to hear what the fuss was about? You can read about it in the Press: "It's an astonishing stroke of luck that we are here." That was the evolutionary message of author, biologist and atheist…
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The New Zealand Herald has never been shy of attacking blogs for their lack of journalistic standards and editorial rigour, but given some of the paper's recent work you've got to wonder who they think they're kidding. Take today's piece by Dita De Boni pontificating…
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Oh for crying out loud would the media please stop fawning over Steven Joyce. So far everything he's touched has turned to pus with roading projects that fail cost/benefit analysis, the gold card fiasco, the PR fiasco over Radio NZ cuts and now the really…
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Just a quick question: Why is John Key giving $300,000 to the All Whites' World Cup campaign when they're already making a $6 million profit from the $10 million they get for qualifying? I like a bit of football but that doesn't mean I blindly…
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During Question Time yesterday, Metiria Turei exposed National's plan to subsidise mineral exploration by foreign companies in the most important parts of our national parks. John Key refused to confirm Turei's information but couldn't deny it. Clearly, the Nats had been planning to slip it…
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Bill's at it again. He can't defend his own pathetic record on the economy - 2.2% fall in GDP, still rising unemployment, falling wages, GDP per capita still falling and not expected to return to pre-recession levels until 2012 according to NZIER and Treasury -…
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Open mike is your post. It's open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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We're used to Key and his ministers hiding from their duties. Now one of them has taken it to a new level. Journos wanted to ask Pacific Affairs Minister Georgina Te Heuheu about the rumours her ministry is getting the chop. At the sight of…
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The recent recession represented a spectacular failure of unfettered capitalism. We never felt the full force and completeness of that failure because the worst was averted (or more probably just delayed) by vast injections of Government bailout money. Capitalism was rescued by good old fashioned…
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Stuff.co.nz's decision to turn an anonymous, politically-motivated smear from an ACT Party activist into a front page tabloid screamer is gutter journalism for sure, but it's only the latest example of a worrying trend. The story is here. I'm not going to dignify it with…
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Anne Tolley put out an odd media statement on Friday. She reckons Trevor Mallard, opposition spokesperson for Education, dominated two public meetings in Auckland on her Government's unpopular national standards policy. Which begs the question, was she actually all there at either meeting? At the Onehunga meeting…