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The Nats' youth rate wages ("for when the 'minimum' wage just isn't low enough") come in to effect next month. Some of the big youth employers are making their intentions known. I am both surprised and impressed with how many of them are choosing not…
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Yesterday I posted on how the international consortium of investigative journalists have exposed the global money maze that enable the wealthy to hide their wealth in trusts and tax havens. Today Nicky Hager's article explains how Kiwis are at the centre. Lawyers, helped by accountants,…
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Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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As covered by marty mars, Councillor Bruce Wilson from the fine city of Palmerston North decided to crack "a joke" about sterilising Maaori women smokers so they wouldn't be able to smoke in front of their kids. Every single statement since then from him has…
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Congratulations to Duncan Campbell, Nicky Hager, et al involved in the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists for doing such a great job on the Gobal Offshore Money Maze. It began with an opportunity, as Duncan Campbell explains: The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists’exploration of the secretive…
accountability capitalism Ethics International news overseas investment telecommunications
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As is now well known, Key has had a wee tanty at the media: John Key calls media 'Knuckleheads' Prime Minister John Key has gone on the offensive, calling the media "knuckleheads" for their reporting on the appointment of GCSB head Ian Fletcher ... Speaking…
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In the current series of posts we're looking at the Office of the Children's Commissioner (OCCC) 2012 report "Child Poverty in New Zealand evidence for action". Continuing from last week... 1.6 The impact of poverty on children The reports we've been covering recently are all…
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Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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Interesting John Key interview / backrub on RadioLive this afternoon (ht idelgus in comments). No transcript or other reporting that I know of, but you can find it at the RadioLive audio section for today, segments starting 12:15 (especially 8 min in and 11 min)…
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Weekend social is for non political chat. What's on for the weekend, gigs, film or book reviews, sports, or whatever. No politics, no aggro, why can't we all just get along?
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Yesterday, Iain Rennie as reported by Brent Edwards on RNZ responded to criticisms of Ian Fletcher's appointment as head of the GCSB. RNZ report. Later on Campbell Live Rennie did a very good job in damping down criticism of Key's intervention in the appointment. Rennie shifted the focus…
accountability australian politics corruption john key Spying
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Why else would he say: that he is particularly concerned by the trend for the complex nature of science to be ignored or misunderstood in societal debates, leading to the argument that you can find a scientist to support any given position. This, he says,…
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The Wellington City Council's special meeting to address the planned outsourcing of council services brought a mixed bag of results yesterday. Celia Wade-Brown, Wellington's Green Mayor, cast her vote for the first stage of outsourcing to continue with the result that the street cleaning and…
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So, the trend in the Roy Morgans continues, ever so painfully slowly to move in the Left's favour. Since Labour recovered from its election disaster level to 30+, the Left's support has risen at a bit under 0.2% per month, the Right vice versa. Lab+Green…
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Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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Damn this is bad news. What is it with authors I like? They write too slowly for my OTT reading speed* and they seem to die too damn fast. Iain M Banks is one of only three authors whose books managed to survive my move into…
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The story keeps shifting from hour to hour, as questions are raised (see Eddie's post on Vance's questions), and Key's obfuscation is increasingly commented on. Now State Security Commissioner Iain Rennie, following ex GCSB chief Sir Bruce Ferguson's interview on Campbell Live (see Bomber's review), has…
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John Key needs some cover for his being caught out lying / incompetent / omitting stuff (/ insert your interpretation), so today the government is making sure it is Doing Something. More importantly Doing Something about Bad People. In this case, cyber-bullies. Fair enough, there's…
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Sales of our power companies, as many already knew, will mean bigger power prices for Kiwis, and higher paid for the top brass in the power companies. This has been confirmed by today's announcement by the government, that Might River Power top brass will be…
accountability capitalism class war national/act government Privatisation russel norman
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Scott at Imperator Fish has kindly given us permission to syndicate posts from his blog – the original of this post is here. The Environment was today arrested by police, after frustrating business groups for a number of years. Police moved against The Environment following a tip-off…
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I/S at No Right Turn on the undermining of the Resource Management Act... The PCE on RMA "reform" Back in February the government announced plans to remove democracy from the RMA so that its cronies could dig, bulldoze and build whatever they liked, whereever they liked. But…
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Key's adopted what Andrea Vance labels his "so what demeanour" as he tries to shrug off his highly irregular and inappropriate role in the selection of Ian Fletcher to head the GCSB. But whether or not Key was too involved in getting his mate a…
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Hard to believe, but despite having a Green Party mayor the Wellington City Council is about to outsource work currently done by council staff. We all know what that means – redundancies, longer hours, poorer safety standards and ultimately lower pay for workers as contractors…
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Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...
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What was it about the short listed candidates for GCSB boss that was lacking? And what was it about Ian Fletcher that made him a more suitable candidate? The cronyist element of Key's role in his appointment is very concerning, as Eddie shows. This suggests…
accountability capitalism iraq john key slippery uk politics
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Drones have been all over the news these last few years, and America's indiscriminate use of drones is both a hallmark of and an indictment of Obama's presidency. I guess it's no surprise to find that they have flown in NZ airspace: The United States…
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Causing the predictable annual flutter in the news, recent figures show that (with some caveats) we have falling crime rates in NZ. (Or falling rates of reported crime at least.) There was the usual round of editorials, posturing from the current Police Minister, silly chatter…
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Analysts are apparently 'not worried' about the impact of the increasingly likely-looking closure of Tiwai Point on the price of electricity and, hence, on the value of the assets National is trying to hock. A 12% reduction is all one analyst sees in Mighty River's…
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You know, when it came out that Key was good mates with his new GCSB spy boss, Ian Fletcher, (a man who was appointed despite lack of experience in spying or the NZ public service), I kind of thought 'so what'? People know each other.…
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Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike...