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Search · 2013-09-02 to 2013-09-08
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Sunday Reading
My semi-regular Sunday piece of interesting, longer, deeper stories I found during the week. It’s also a chance for you to share what you found this week too. Those stimulating links you wanted to share, but just didn’t fit in anywhere (no linkwhoring). This week: 7 links.…
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Does Shane Jones understand preferential voting?
Shane Jones has called on Grant Robertson supporters to back him after a surprise poll result had him in second place behind David Cunliffe. Of course the poll wasn't of Labour members or leadership voters, so is somewhat tangential to what the actual result might…
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Australia – Labor’s unwinnable election
Australia heads to the polling booths today. The polls suggest that a change in Government is not only inevitable but that many Labor MPs may lose their seats. There is even the suggestion that Kevin Rudd may not make it back into Parliament. Late polls suggests…
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Grant Robertson
First off, I’d like to thank the Standard for the opportunity to communicate directly to the many members of our movement who read this blog. You play an important role in providing a platform and forum for the left in New Zealand. I will lead…
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Labour Leadership Campaign – Weekend Edition
The Labour Leadership Tour is entering the home straight. There are two meetings scheduled today for Nelson and Wellington, then one in Dunedin on Sunday. Two more meetings after that and the public meeting marathon will be finished. TV3 released a poll last night suggesting…
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Open mike 07/09/2013
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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Cunliffe passes my campaign litmus test
I’ve just spent the last week on the road with David Cunliffe and his wife Karen. Campaigns are a handy litmus test to see people as they really are when under pressure and performing to grueling schedules. As a general rule I’m prepared to like…
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Weekend social 06/09/2013
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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Wrap of the Week
The Big thing this week that wasn't widely covered was the 3rd anniversary of the first Christchurch earthquake. 3 years on, and John Key's still mucking people around, and thousands still have unsettled major insurance claims. That's thousands of lives on hold while the government…
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Friday Funny
From the Herald:
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It’s about jobs … and social security?
The need for more jobs and improvements in pay and workers' rights have got a lot of airing in the current Labour leadership contest. There has been a lesser focus on the need to end the latest Key government rounds of beneficiary bashing. Only pressure…
accountability activism benefits class war david cunliffe democratic participation grant robertson jobs labour unemployment Unions workers' rights
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The invisible man
From the start of the Labour leadership contest, Cunliffe has been the man to beat. In the one scientific poll, he was favoured to lead by 30% of the population, Jones by 11%, Robertson by 10%. He's been seen as having the strongest member and…
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Open mike 06/09/2013
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... (sorry about our patchy record getting these up since r0b took a…
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On the affiliate vote
There's been some recent speculation on the affiliate vote. Some of it's trolling some of it's just plain misinformed. That said, it's an interesting issue, and one that I've a few thoughts on myself. As far as I can tell the EPMU is probably likely…
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UBI. (Universal Basic Income).
The concept of UBI has a long history in New Zealand. Of course, we already have a UBI for those over 65. Which has been extremely successful at eliminating poverty amongst the elderly, at a very moderate cost by international standards. "In fact super has…
benefits capitalism child welfare class war climate change cost of living economy Economy employment equality families global warming heritage human rights jobs minimum wage monetary policy poverty socialism superannuation sustainability tax uncategorized welfare workers' rights
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TVNZ / Skycity deal is an asset dump
Yesterday morning at about 09:20, within minutes of each other, I saw two press releases from TVNZ corporate. One lauding the "transformation opportunity" from selling the land on Hobson street to Skycity for $10.6 million. The other was lauding their "only just" achievement of their…
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Labour Leadership Campaign – days six and seven
The candidates are half way through their whirlwind tour of the country. They have a meeting in Hamilton tonight and then tomorrow they will have what I am sure will be a welcome day off before they move to Wellington and the South. Last night…
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Open mike 5/09/2013
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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David Cunliffe
I’d like to thank Lynn and the authors of the Standard for this opportunity to contribute a post here, where Labour members and the broader left come together online. The Standard is certainly one of the most respected political blogs and I am a regular…
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Labour leadership campaign – day five
Day five and the campaign heads off to Tauranga, Simon Bridges company. The Radio New Zealand report of last night's meeting in Napier says there were 250 in attendance. This is a good result in an area which used to be solidly Labour but which…
david cunliffe grant robertson labour Shane Jones uncategorized
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The Jones surpremacy
The poor gallery journos. They've got to turnout copy each and every day on the Labour leadership race but, well, not that much actually happens. The contenders have laid out their pitches and, now, they're going around repeating it to members. So, there's a lot…
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National’s asset sales cost $124m + $2.3m per week
National says that $9m is too expensive for you to have your democratic say on asset sales (that's less than the budget for Pike River re-entry, which everyone supports even though it's unlikely to recover bodies). What National doesn't want to you now is that…
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Open mike 04/09/2013
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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Intervention. Now!
300 tonnes of highly contaminated water leaked from a tank at Fukishima Daiichi last week. There are now about 1000 such tanks on site and two or three new tanks are being constructed every week to store heavily contaminated water that has been used to…
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21st Century Leadership Election
As part of the Labour Leadership Election there is to be a 'virtual hustings' - an online forum for Q&A organised by Labour. Scoop have agreed to facilitate, and are now harvesting the questions. Only those who are eligible to vote in the leadership election (Labour…
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Labour leadership campaign – day four
Day four and the campaign is off to the Hawkes Bay. The campaign trail is starting to get its own momentum. I have seen three of the meetings and the candidates are honing and refining their skills and presentations. Last night they met in Shane…
david cunliffe grant robertson labour leadership Shane Jones
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Spendthrift Key objects to cost of democracy
Key's big whine today is that the referendum on asset sales, which over 10% of Kiwis have requested as required by law, will be 'extremely costly' at $9m. This guy's joking, right? Mr '2-billion-of-tax-cuts-in-the-middle-of-a-recession' is whining about $9m on democracy? The Mighty River ads alone…
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Open mike 03/09/2013
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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Sarin
So it's being reported that the US admin has conclusive evidence that the Syrian regime used sarin against the Syrian populace. How they reach that conclusion is somewhat mysterious. The UN inspection team has not released its results, and besides, they were mandated only to…