National split on super?
Foss has effectively challenged the PM’s stance on ruling out changes to the age of eligibility for NZ Super. A minor rebellion? A faint flickering of independent and rational thought form within the National caucus?
Open mike 19/10/2012
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
ImperatorFish: A Day In The Life Of Paula Bennett
Shearer: Jobs that work for you
This afternoon David Shearer gave a speech about jobs at the Hornby Workingman’s Club. It’s exactly the kind of speech I want to hear from the Labour leader, with plenty of substance to add weight to rhetoric.
Children of Men: money or our lives
Paid Parental Leave, Charter schools, compulsory early childhood education for beneficiaries: for NAct it’s all about money, and they use ‘shonky’ figures to justify their ‘shonkey’ policies and vetos. This is ostrich and patriarchal behaviour, ignoring the evidence of the wider benefits to communities and society of good quality child care, education and Paid Parental Leave.
The ‘there’s no class war in New Zealand’ monitor
There’s no class war in New Zealand. It’s not class war when the company that is laying off workers boosts its directors’ pay by 28%. It’s not class war when rich Tories who have given themselves massive tax cuts deny people on benefits are in poverty. It’s not class war when a rich Tory makes up numbers to oppose extending paid parental leave.
Key’s mantra
Not even trying any more
Key’s just straight up lying to the media now on easily verifiable facts. A 3news poll shows 57% said Parliament got it wrong keeping the drinking age at 18%. Key says: “That’s one of the reasons I voted for it to go to 20 – in line with what the public thought – but Parliament didn’t vote that one.” In reality, he voted split age and, then, to keep it 18.
Open mike 18/10/2012
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
A trip down faulty memory lane
One of the fishy elements of the GCSB-Dotcom-Key saga is Key’s suddenly very faulty memory. It’s unbelievable what he’s forgotten about such a major issue. Here’s a partial list of things Key can’t recall, isn’t sure about, or doesn’t know – just from his answers in the House and just the last 3 days of questions. Update: got to tip my hat to Te Reo Putake’s name for the PM: ‘DunnoKeyo’
Obama v Romney 2
Against (almost) all precedent, the presidential debates seem to matter this time round. Obama v Romney, the second debate, is in progress. Check out live coverage at The Guardian.
None so blind
Yesterday, John Key told Parliament in endless detail exactly what the GCSB did trying to check if there is any video of him talking about Dotcom. He knew all of that front to back. But, when it came to a simple question: ‘when did the GCSB realise they had broken the law in spying on Dotcom’. He had no idea. It’s incredible that he hasn’t bothered to learn such a basic fact.
Pike River: New video footage proves Key made the promise he denies
Key denied promising the Pike River families that the bodies of their loved ones would be retrieved. Now that his faulty account has been corrected by new video evidence, he owes it more than ever to the families to do the right thing. Key made the promise – he should honour it.
Fran’s fracas
Well, Fran Mold has done it now. She’s got Shearer to go large (it is alleged) based on her man’s claim that there is a tape of Key talking to the GCSB in February about Dotcom. But no proof’s emerged. All Fran’s foul-up has done is give Key a breather and put Shearer on the ropes.You don’t get a bigger fuck-up than that as a spin doctor. I can’t imagine she’ll be around much longer.
Another revenge leaking from Nats
Paula Bennett’s MSD ignored not one, but two warnings last year that its public kiosks were insecure. When a third warning came from Ira Bailey, Bennett (or her staff) appear to have leaked his name to the media. Bennett has a history of leaking private details to the media – by taking no action Key is giving his tacit consent.
Banks suppressed Police statement
Remember how Banks’ Police report came out and the statement he gave to the Police was blanked out? And remember how Banks said it was the Police’s choice, not his? Yeah, well that was a lie. Even on the most generous reading of Banks’ words, he was trying to mislead the media. What’s Key’s rule? “A Minister who lies or misleads about his actions would lose his confidence”
Open mike 17/10/2012
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Local Bodies: Our Vulnerable Less Safe Under National
Dave Kennedy (bsprout) at Local Bodies writes on crime statistics and the vulnerable in our society.
“Privacy assured!” Politics, the police & surveillance
Public trust in the police is at a new low. But what of the trust in our government? How much collusion is there between the police, government, spy agencies and foreign governments? However, citizens are also using the technologies of the surveillance society to hold the government and state authorities to account.
Treasury’s spin fail on electricity numbers
Treasury is trying to tell us that private power companies don’t charge more than SOEs to justify privatisation. Of course, a moment’s thought tells you that private owners, with higher costs of capital, need larger profits than public ones. And private owners always complain the SOEs don’t charge enough. Moreover, Treasury’s spin is a complete fail.
Inflexible national standards labels kids failures
Did you know that national standards must be completed in written form and there is no provision for extra time or oral answers from students (oops, sorry, ‘learners’ in Parata-speak) with disabilities? At high school and uni, if you have the need, you get these things. National’s stupid national standards have no such flexibility. Instead, they label you a failure.
No accountability in National Government
I watched Paula Bennett and her MSD CEO make excuses and say sorry yesterday as they revealed that they had let the personal data of hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders sit in the open at WINZ kiosks – and it’s all still open to anyone working at MSD. I didn’t hear either of them offer their resignations. What do they think we pay them for?
Open mike 16/10/2012
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Asset sales grind on
Amidst all the current scandal and chaos, the Nats’ privatisation agenda grinds on.
Lies, damn lies, and rigged polling questions
In 2010 the largest protest for a generation in NZ marched down Queen St to oppose mining. But by squinting sideways at some rigged polling questions, industry advocates (aided and abetted by dumb headline writers) would have you believe that we the people support mining…
NRT: Imperial over-reach
Should have reposted this last week – NRT on a bizarre and scary US legal opinion. Thoughtcrime will be next…
Granny hugs the corpse of neoliberalism
Here’s Granny Herald’s genius plan for economic development: if Meridian can get more money for its power elsewhere, it should let Tiwai Point close. 3,000 jobs would be lost. Invercargill and Bluff would effectively be killed. But, hey, market forces! Problem is, if Meridian only considers its narrow commercial interests, it ignores the cost to the country as a whole.
This is going to be big
Keith Ng has uncovered a truly massive breach in MSD’s computer security.
Open mike 15/10/2012
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
US Justice and Dotcom’s birthday
Judith Collins is going to the US and isn’t going to raise the Dotcom case we are told. I’ll bet the US Justice Department is though. They knew for a year Dotcom was going to be arrested on his birthday.
Time for Labour to end the Jones ego show
Shane Jones doesn’t have any portfolios – he’s been relieved of them, for a second time. So, what the hell is he doing […]
Oversight
There are only 2 people protecting us from illegal spying: the Inspector-General with his staff of 1, and the Prime Minister. Therefore it is vital that the Prime Minister knows the law they are meant to be enforcing. They can’t know what they aren’t told, but when the GCSB tells him they were spying on a famous NZ resident, the PM should know that that’s illegal and act on it. Not wait to be briefed on the affair 7 months later.
‘What crisis?’ Rudderless ship, stormy seas
There is ample evidence of a deep and lasting crisis, but in the delusional world of Planet Key it doesn’t exist. The EPMU Job Crisis Summit opened a much needed conversation. Russel Norman likened the New Zealand economy to a rudderless sailing ship In Stormy Seas. Will the summit be the start of a sea change for NZ?
Open mike 14/10/2012
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
A sincere question about CE pay
Seriously, people, what on Earth can David Smol, CE of MoBIE, possibly do to earn $590k a year?
Shearer Says
David Shearer’s weekly e-newsletter, this week on Tiwai, jobs, and the manufacturing sector
We’re happy to post similar newsletters from other opposition leaders – our email is on our contact page.