Max Keiser and Stacey Herbert have just done a great episode of the Keiser Report with Dr Guy Standing of the international Basic Income Earth Network. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBJlU4xIxBk They cover: - How a globalised plutocracy has constantly shifted income share to capital and away from labour.…
A couple of good pieces on Helen Clark recently. One on global challenges: Helen Clark discusses the global challenges facing humanity The planet is under pressure like never before. With a ballooning population consuming ever-more of its resources, the profligate way in which humanity operates…
It must be the pressure is getting to him and he is getting bored as his stint as Prime Minister of New Zealand. Because John Key is doing some pretty stupid stuff. The latest is his insulting a young 16 year old woman who asked…
An excellent piece by Graham Adams - well worth reading the whole thing in Metro, but here are some extracts: How bizarre Is New Zealand becoming the Absurdistan of the South Pacific? Graham Adams reflects on the slow unravelling of a small democracy. Absurdistan was…
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
Hopefully the TPPA is sinking again. The much heralded final conference has apparently been delayed by many hours. Trade ministers and officials had set a goal to reach an agreement by today and a press conference on the decision was due to be held at…
So the news on Labour's first paper from its "Future of Work" Commission revolves around "ex-Labour member" Phil Quin noticing some missing quote marks and National making gleeful diversions from it. At least Phil Quin isn't attacking the party while being quoted as "Labour insider"…
Well blow me down. I thought Cameron Slater's and Jason Ede's investigation of a clearly crippled Labour server was as clear an example of hacking as you could imagine. But the Police has decided that nothing untoward has occurred and are refusing to charge them.…
I'm not that impressed with the assumptions that Labour's Future of Work Commission appears to be making: a shiny high tech world where NZ businesses invest in advanced automation and information technologies to make large portions of today's workforce redundant. It seems driven by memes…
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I see mickysavage is writing a more considered post, but I just have to express my astonishment with the release late on a Friday afternoon (dump time!) that the police will not be pursuing any action against Slater/Ede for hacking Labour's website. Given a whole…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5aN6eDGEc0U In celebration of what would have been Bob Marley's 70th birthday ... Daily review is also your post. This provides Standardistas the opportunity to review events of the day. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Don’t forget to be kind…
Looks like (ht Danyl Mclauchlan) Malaysia is smarter than us: Malaysia will not sign any TPP pact in Hawaii As pivotal negotiations in the making or breaking of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) enter the final stretch, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (Miti) has…
From Amnesty International's website: "On 8 July 2014, Israel launched a military offensive against the Gaza Strip for the third time in less than six years. Over 50 days, both Israeli forces and Palestinian armed groups committed war crimes and other serious breaches of international…
As is being widely reported: All frontline police to carry Tasers All frontline police staff will now routinely carry Tasers while on duty, in a major change to the organisation's operational policy. ... Police Association president Greg O'Connor has backed the move, saying it will…
The National Business Review has released its annual list of the richest New Zealanders. These are the people National and their franchises govern for; the one percent who will continue to benefit from growing inequality, who are in the queue to make more millions from…
Everyone who has opposed the introduction of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) into their districts needs to be alarmed at a sneaky Government move to over-ride local council regulations about this matter. This applies particularly to Auckland, Bay of Plenty, and Northland council districts. The Government…
It's pretty clear that we're not going to get anything like what the Nats promised us from the TPP. Gordon Campbell yesterday got an international perspective on the state of negotiations and his conclusion is frank: "New Zealand and Canada are being hung out to…
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
Daily review is also your post. This provides Standardistas the opportunity to review events of the day. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Don’t forget to be kind to each other
One of the most annoying things about John Key is the soothing disingenuous way that he treats issues. He is always relaxed about issues, the effects of dramatic changes are downplayed and everyone else is wrong and he always sounds utterly convincing. Pharmac's future under…
Last night the 291 crosses representing workers who have died since Pike River came to Wellington: Watered down health and safety proposals will cost lives, family members of those killed in the Pike River disaster say. "I never, ever want another mother to go through…
What exactly does a charter school have to do in order to be held accountable? Yesterday: No investigation over school's cash withdrawals Staff who withdrew $4000 in cash from a school's account and failed to explain what they spent it on will not be investigated,…
On RNZ this morning: TPP deal is precarious - NZ envoy New Zealand's special agricultural trade envoy at the TPP talks in Hawaii has cast doubt on whether the trade deal is going to be acceptable to New Zealand. Mike Petersen said more concessions on…
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
Daily review is also your post. This provides Standardistas the opportunity to review events of the day. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Don’t forget to be kind to each other.
At his 2 pm press conference today former Conservative Leader Colin Craig announced that he is suing Jordan Williams, Cameron Slater and former Conservative leader John Stringer in defamation. From Television New Zealand: Embattled former Conservative Party leader Colin Craig claims he has been the subject…
The Blairite Right Wing of the UK Labour Party is up in arms (and no doubt plotting) as the latest internal polls show that self-described socialist Jeremy Corbyn has taken a commanding 22 point lead against closest rival Yvette Cooper in the UK Labour leadership…
Tim Grosser: "We need adults to do this, not breathless children to run off at the mouth when the deal is not actually finished." Sean Plunket gets a teeny bit tetchy at that. https://twitter.com/RadioLIVENZ/status/626162141012357120 https://twitter.com/toby_etc/status/626185636064722945
