Rob Salmond at Polity has a look at why National surprisingly announced the election date yesterday. It is hard to avoid the conclusion that it was a deflection from something. Rob thinks that National was worried about where a look at donations to National’s campaign would lead. He may be right, as in the past National has had some legally and morally dubious donation regimes
Just at present I’m particularly interested in adding union sites with RSS feeds to our feeds. But it is somewhat irritating. Many of the sites don’t have a RSS feed. They should have one. Unions are an inherent part of the labour movement that we like to think that we’re helping and a part of. It’d be nice if they did their bit to help us help them.
NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden gave evidence to the European Parliament last week about the NSA and mass-surveillance. The most interesting revelation? The NSA’s use of lawyers to subvert other countries limits on surveillance – including our own. So what did GCSB receive “legal guidance” on? What about the careful loopholes in the new Act
[satire] It’s early morning at a greasy spoon cafe set in a back street off K Road. Rene (Cameron Slater) is scrubbing the grease off the table where he and John Key sat last night. His wife Edith (Judith Collins) is trying to get a fresh milk stain off her jacket.
Spot the difference?
Update: The referendum on the flag will be after the election.
Three years ago National announced a full term election date and ruled out going into coalition with NZ First. Fast forward to now and we are having an early election and Key is not ruling out going into coalition with Peters. Get the sense that National is becoming desperate?
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BREAKING: And we’re off – the Election Date is September 20.
That thing about truth and war…
Labour has announced its intention to enact a digital Bill of Rights which will protect basic rights such as the right to access to the Internet, protection from unwarranted mass surveillance, protection from having your personal information onsold and the prevention of hate speech.
Gower’s one-dimensional, distorted, gotcha reporting, highlights the failings of TV3 news & The Nation. Corin Dann and Qu &A are less one-dimensional, but speak within the B-Hive-Media Loop, that speaks for the comfortable middle & Business classes, & manufactured a “problem” week for Cunliffe.
Sheila Holt, in the UK, is in a coma for 2 months. She has also just been invited to “intensive job-focused activity” by the Dept of Work & Pensions.
My brother has posted across at Red Alert on Steven Joyce’s bungling oversight of AgResearch’s current $100 million restructure. The Crown Research Institute […]
A guest post on the enigma that is David Cunliffe by David Craig.
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 …
The attacks on David Cunliffe have got a bit silly, with the latest from the Herald being to pretty much charge him with the crime of having a wealthy friend.
The reason we know about John Key’s Antoine’s dinner donations was that they were grouped into a single donation that had to be declared.
But what about all the other dinners where each seat is considered a separate donation?
On the odd occasion when the media has picked up on the magnitude of a big issue, eg GCSB, Key was under the spotlight and he was sweating…
Our export-led economy is a rock-star according to those on the right. Australia kept us going, and now, despite the EU still spluttering, we can fly because China will buy all our milk powder. But there’s a potential flaw in putting all your eggs in one China basket, as a number of BBC stories have been revealing.
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This National led Government has seriously mismanaged things and is desperate to hide the true effects of its governance over the last five years. I half suspect many of the retiring National MPs are jumping ship because they don’t want to be around when the proverbial hits the fan. National have carefully constructed showy facades that hide flimsy realities
John Key has taken at least $165,000 in anonymous donations through secret dinner donations.
Will he follow David Cunliffe’s example and either name names or pay the money back? Or is Key too tricky for that?
The government has imposed mandatory minimum pass rates of tertiary education. If Universities (and Polytechs, Waananga, and others) do not meet a government-imposed minimum pass rate (which ratchet up every year, and may go as high as 85%), then the institution risks losing some of its government funding. That is crazy town.
A bit tardy this time, but better late than never – weekend social; our thread for non-political chat and info etc
The official theme of International Women’s Day this year is “Inspiring Change”. It’s a little vague, a little aspirational, not too confrontational – […]
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Not to be outdone by the Greens Colin Craig is now seeking donations to help him defend the allegation that he thinks a woman’s place is in the kitchen …
Mai Chen argues that the current review of Auckland Council CCOs will put them on a tighter leash. Tony Holman argues against the whole CCO set up: it’s a trojan horse, 2 step towards privatisation of Auckland assets. Aucklanders need to have their say. Vote out Team Key to prevent such sales.
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Radio New Zealand has reported that John Key is refusing to release the advice he claims clears Judith Collins over her conflict of interest. And is now claiming that the Cabinet rules are ” just a guideline anyway”
One of the most effective political videos that I have seen from a country that is coming to specialise in them. I’m unsurprised that it went completely viral. It was a great description of all of the ways that Tony Abbott is beholden to the interests of those made insane by idiotic greed – and welcoming him to Western Australia. All expressed in a polite quiet voice enumerating exactly how much of a arsehole Abbott is. He even makes John Key look sort of rational – in a traditional junior partner kind of way
We passed 700 thousand comments sometime today. Not bad over our last 6 and a half years. I was going to have a whole pile of statistics ready for the occasion. However a dose of flu caught me. But we’re tracking towards our long predicted million comments in 2015. Congratulations to the commenters who make this a raucous and entertaining blog to write for and to moderate
For anyone who’s had enough of the media being footloose and fancy free with their reporting.
In need of public service media. TV3 News is a neoliberal propaganda vehicle. I’ve stopped watching it. However, today Martyn Bradbury posted a transcription of last night’s highly distorted report by Patrick Gower, with a critical analysis of just how much the report misrepresents.
A photo/video documentary project in March Metro Magazine shows Glen Innes as a war zone. The National Government’s war on the poor continues with the sales and removal of state housing. Protest this evening at Glen Innes.
