It seems that we are in for a good old piece of race baiting to distract us from other issues. The Herald kicked things off yesterday by claiming that Andrew Little supported Maori having increased powers. The headline to this Herald Article suggested that Andrew Little…
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From a letter to the editor of a newspaper in the United Kingdom. "Are you confused by what is going on in the Middle East? Let me explain. We support the Iraqi government in the fight against Islamic State. We don't like IS but IS is…
It seems the noose is tightening. TV3 last night effectively confirmed that the Police complied with the no surprises policy and told the Government about Mike Sabin's difficulties. According to TV3: The country's top cop says police did not drop the ball when it came to…
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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?
A guest post by David Meech republished from the Jafacentral blogsite. Nearly time for Waitangi Day again. Some say we need to simply celebrate the day the way the Aussies do. Fire up the barbies, shake out the picnic blankets and crack open a really good…
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Churchill had many famous quotes, but in one he put it that it was "better to jaw jaw than to war war". John Key meanwhile thinks there is no options between ignoring things and war. He's accused "the left" (that hideous amorphous beast, that I'm…
There was a piece written in The Guardian last year by Paul Verhaeghe about the way that Neoliberalism has shaped current behaviours, titled Neoliberalism has brought out the worst in us. It touched on something I have been thinking a lot about lately: how the…
The Productivity Commission has a new report out which looks at changes in the labour income share, or LIS, from 1978 to 2010. The labour income share is described in the report's summary as: The labour income share (LIS) measures the split of national income…
Has it really been 11 years since Brash's infamous Orewa speech? Yesterday Gareth Morgan gave a very different kind of speech there... The views that propelled the National Party close to government a decade ago were "harsh and intolerant," philanthropist Dr Gareth Morgan told a…
Darien Fenton at Jobs That Count brings us the details of the fight for decent pay and conditions at Talley's meat processing plants Ask anyone in the Union movement about “Talley’s” and they’ll recall the 84-day lockout of workers in Talley’s-owned AFFCO North Island meat…
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The Labour Local Government Council ran a hui last Friday in Wellington. I went along for the day and it was one of the better Labour events I have been to in a long time - good community organisers sharing and discussing what works and…
Our thoughts are with Christchurch as a huge fire rages to the west of the city. According to early reports, some houses have already been destroyed, some areas evacuated. Firefighters will once again be putting themselves in harm's way. The Press has images up. Good…
John Key wanted to be in the Five Eyes "club", but I guess that didn't focus group well, so now we're being fed a new line - "family". Britain's visiting Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond was all over the telly last night: "Frankly we've got used…
Unemployment is up again. So to is the number in work, it's a complex picture: NZ unemployment rises to 5.7 per cent, jobs also rise New Zealand unemployment jumped to 5.7 per cent in the December quarter from 5.4 per cent in the September quarter,…
If you ever needed to see the difference between Labour and National then Labour's handling of the issues surrounding Mike Sabin provides a perfect example. One of the issues of significance is when did John Key learn about Mike Sabin's difficulties. If he knew before the…
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John Key's and National's handling of the Sabin issue is textbook Crosby Textor stuff. Keep repeating the same phrase, stick to the same line, appear helpful but give as little information out as possible. His skill is that he sounds so up front and reassuring.…
The election of Tony Abbot as Australian PM was always a mystery to me, but it seems that Australians at least come to their senses quicker than we in NZ. Abbot is in deep trouble: Australian PM Tony Abbott moves to head off critics Tony…
Following on from yesterday's discussion of the future for Labour - what next for the Greens? I wouldn't worry too much about their slight fall in the latest poll. It's usual, post-election, for support to drift back to the two main parties. In my opinion…
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From stuff: Prime Minister John Key has confirmed he knew of former National MP Mike Sabin's personal matters last year, but he had confidence in the MP for Northland up until his resignation. Key rejected any suggestion he knew of the issues plaguing Sabin before…
Labour have bounced back well from the disastrous election result. Key ended last year floundering in the swamp of his own lies, while Little's "cut the crap" summed up the public mood. Little's ratings are now the "best since Clark", and Labour is up in…
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