John Key vs the truth
Trying to dodge the fallout from the Gwyn report Key simply lies and refuses to accept the facts. He can’t get away with it. Can he?
Open mike 26/11/2014
Open mike is your post. The Standard is not a conspiracy – just a welcome outlet for the expression of views. Leaders that command respect will not be undermined by this. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
Key: I’m Lazy, Incompetent
Q&A with our fearless leader on his many reports.
NRT: Abuse of power: The OIA / public records dimension
Jason Ede deleted his personal emails. Some of those emails concerned ministerial business and should therefore are public records. There is a fine of $5000 per email destroyed. Similarly the SIS was illegally refusing media requests that are OIAs. All as dodgy as hell. Time to charge some people violating public information acts?
Chisholm enquiry whitewash
Calls for Key to resign
Calls for Key to resign, so far from Goff, Norman, and Plunket.
Gwyn report
The Gwyn report finds that the SIS failed to maintain political neutrality.
What did Key know and when did he know it?
Key will apologise to Slater but not Billingsley or Vance
John Key has apologised to Cameron Slater for releasing an email which details a campaign against a senior Public Servant.
Open mike 25/11/2014
Open mike is your post. The Standard is not a conspiracy – just a welcome outlet for the expression of views. Leaders that command respect will not be undermined by this. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
Gwyn Report to confirm dirty politics
What did Key know and when did he know it?
Polity: New Labour lineup: 8/10
Rob Salmond has a look at the new Labour lineup. “…a consistent display of clarity and unity and being on New Zealanders’ side is what is needed from Labour right now”. Gives it an 8 out of 10
Little announces Labour’s new front bench
Andrew Little has announced Labour’s new lineup.
National identity
A recent report from the Waitangi Tribunal questions the “constitutional” foundation of NZ and challenges the received wisdom of our history.
Open mike 24/11/2014
Open mike is your post. The Standard is not a conspiracy – just a welcome outlet for the expression of views. Leaders that command respect will not be undermined by this. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
Oh dear – National’s “white elephant” is still growing?
Public transport traffic in Auckland keeps growing by large 7.7% per year. Car traffic despite all of the motorway and roading improvements grew by just 2.3% in the whole period of 2006 and 2013 amongst commuters. But our current idiotic National transport minister wants more roads? And won’t let Aucklanders decide what they should do despite them voting with their AT Hop cards.
Tip of the iceberg
Looks like exploiting petrol station workers by docking their pay for circumstances beyond their control was just the tip of the iceberg of this kind of behaviour.
Open mike 23/11/2014
Open mike is your post. The Standard is not a conspiracy – just a welcome outlet for the expression of views. Leaders that command respect will not be undermined by this. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
Key in for the long term?
John Key’s election as chair of the International Democratic Union is significant. Key succeeds John Howard who has led the IDU for the past 12 years. Key’s acceptance signals that like four-time winner Howard, Key plans a long career as Prime Minister of New Zealand. This news should be a wake-up call for the Labour Party’s review of its election organisation and party structure.
End of the Internet Party?
Laila Harre has quit – end of the line for the Internet Party?
’81: knowing your position
Andrea Vance has written an informative article about Andrew Little. In it, among other things, we learn that Little remembers exactly which side he was on during the 1981 Springbok rugby tour.
Open mike 22/11/2014
Open mike is your post. The Standard is not a conspiracy – just a welcome outlet for the expression of views. Leaders that command respect will not be undermined by this. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
Clarke and Dawe: G20 Growth
The excellent Clarke and Dawe on the G20 and growth.
Weekend social 21/11/2014
Weekend social is for non political chat. What’s on for the weekend, gigs, film or book reviews, sports, or whatever. No politics, no […]
Polity: Income mobility
David Farrar seldom seems to actually read the reports fully before he starts inventing meaningless canards. A theoretical equality of opportunity is irrelevant when your parent’s lack of disposable income is the major determinant of your own education and opportunities. We waste the opportunities from peoples abilities because of income inequalities.
Children’s Plea
We all know that Child Poverty is one of New Zealand’s major problems. In an attempt to finally get a response from the […]
Who needs $4.8 billion anyway
Yesterday a report from the NZ Super Fund (the Cullen fund) provided further evidence of National’s economic “genius”. We could have used the $4.8 billion that they just chucked away.
Open mike 21/11/2014
Open mike is your post. The Standard is not a conspiracy – just a welcome outlet for the expression of views. Leaders that command respect will not be undermined by this. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
Interwebbing
I was just having a look through the connections between this site and others (and contemplating how to increase it). I thought others might also be interested.
NRT: Policy of fear
Community groups have a vital role in New Zealand. They speak on social problems such as poverty, mental illness and addiction. They also often have a direct role in fixing them via government funding. The tension between those two roles is one that National is ruthlessly exploiting to stifle dissent.
#JohnKeyHistory
Apparently the New Zealand Wars were just another Rugby analogy to John Key.
One law for the rich
And, as ever, one for the poor.
Andrew Little should…
All the usual suspects are lining up to give advice to new Labor leader Andrew Little. Why shouldn’t we have a go?
Open mike 20/11/2014
Open mike is your post. The Standard is not a conspiracy – just a welcome outlet for the expression of views. Leaders that command respect will not be undermined by this. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy) Step up to the mike …
Hot Topic: CROWDFUNDING THIN ICE: THE FINAL PUSH
The Kickstarter campaign to get climate documentary Thin Ice shown on public TV in the USA is closing in on its target … with 4 days to go.
Updated: Now within $2000 of the target having raised more than $4000 since yesterday afternoon. Help them get over the line.
Roger Sutton needs the book thrown at him
I have no real opinion about the details of the complaint against Roger Sutton, there simply isn’t enough information in the context. That would require seeing the report. However I do have strong opinion about someone who breaks the confidentiality clauses of any agreement. Throw the book at them
Labour and the unions
In which I ponder my 2c on the leadership race, and the path ahead for Labour and the unions…