Wave goodbye to higher taxes. Not your loved ones.
Choose a Brighter Future. Derp de derp.
This is what John Key was promising last election – before he came to power, raised GST, and record numbers of kiwis left New Zealand permanently for a brighter future in Australia.
Labour’s David Cunliffe put out a press release judging National’s proposed asset sales programme by the 5 tests that Key laid down in an effort to reassure us that sales would only go ahead if they made sense and were good for the country. Cunliffe’s analysis shows asset sales clearly fail the Nats’ own tests. The only reason to go ahead is blind ideology.
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Economist Dr Rhema Vaithianathan from Auckland University will discuss Privatisation New Zealand Style, looking at the economic logic and evidence on privatisation of utilities and ask whether it will alleviate New Zealand’s current economic problems. St John’s Church, cnr Willis and Dixon, Wellington, Monday 14th Nov 5:30pm. All welcome. Register at Fabian Society www.fabians.org.nz.
In the old days soldiers marched onto the floor of parliament with fixed bayonets to replace governments and frustrate the popular will.
Now it is being done differently
So, John Key and John Banks have a meeting in a cafe, full of members of the public. They get the photo-op, then usher the media out. A HoS cameraman accidentally leaves his audio recorder. Key and Banks talk. In public. Anyone in the cafe could hear. The recorder gets the conversation. Key bullies the HoS into not printing it. The HoS caves. Disgraceful.
The Nats admit that they’ve failed to close the gap between rich and poor. In fact, of course, it’s getting worse. Bill English says they’ve “created opportunities”, which is Tory speak for doing nothing at all.
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
In 2005 Labour wrote to State House tenants with a warning “Don’t let National sell your house.” We were criticised for scaring people. Now Tamaki residents have got the real letters. And the boot. Same old National.
Brent Sheather assesses the case for asset sales in today’s Herald. He cuts through the crap and concludes “selling the SOEs doesn’t look all that clever, particularly from the perspective of young people and those other sectors of society who won’t be able to participate in the offers in any material way. This is likely to be at least half the population.” He looks at who really benefits, and it’s the fortunate few once again.
Well, that was a let down. The much-hyped ‘cup of tea’ climaxed in Key saying that he would be voting for Goldsmith but he “wouldn’t be unhappy” if other Epsom voters back Banks. A double negative? Hardly a ringing endorsement. I think it’s too little, too late, for a man and a party that are too unpopular. All Key has done is tie his brand to extremists.
David Farrar is encouraging his readers to put themselves in harm’s way by authorising and distributing a misleading election advertisement he’s created.
Of course he won’t take the risk himself – instead he’s hiding behind “personal opinion”.
Brand Key is now tied to John Banks. Interesting decision, could backfire – most of us don’t want Banks, Brash, or ACT back. Here’s a sample of why…
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So the meeting has taken place, and Epsom has been asked to hold its nose and vote for failed Nat retread John Banks, and with him on his coat tails failed Nat retread Don Brash. Nice one. In other news, Winston Peters is riding a boost in the polls all the way to the televised minor parties leaders’ debate. The Nats will be spitting.
Weekend social is for non political chat. What’s on for the weekend, gigs, film or book reviews, sports, or whatever. No politics, no […]
When people say ‘there’s no difference between the two big parties’ or ‘where are the policies’, it’s shorthand for ‘I haven’t been paying attention’. We had a great example of the contrast yesterday. National would subsidise expansion of dairy by selling our assets; Labour would get modern equipment to poor schoolkids by cutting sports subsidies to rich schools.
Eleven seconds after this goes up, it will be 11:11.11 11/11/11. Arbitrary but still pretty cool I guess. Once in a century event, having all the same numeral. Interesting to reflect on how much has changed since 11:11.11 11/11/1911. And how little. Wonder what it will be like at 11:11.11 11/11/2111. Better – is all we can hope.
Labour want to raise the minimum wage to $15. The Nats say that will cost jobs (they want to lower the minimum wage instead). Documents obtained by 3 News show that Treasury think the Nats are wrong. A vote for increasing the minimum wage will not cost jobs.
Labour is down in two recent polls (albeit margin of error), but over all the news is good!
John Key’s promising new capital spending projects left, right, and centre that would be funded by asset sales. But, with the European debt crisis spreading, the odds of getting $5-$7 billion for slices of our energy companies and Air NZ are worsening. So what’s the plan when they need more money for Key’s promises? What do you think?
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Emmerson in the Herald has a good take on John Key’s campaign style. As he continues to fail to front up to debate on actual policy.
Charges have been laid over the Pike River tragedy.
IEA: World is hurtling toward irreversible climate change
Government shifts to ETS go-slow
Discuss…
Oh hell. My worst fears have been realized. John Key is a wereperson. He is morphing into an incantation of the countries biggest ever political disaster. And talking of other story lines from True Blood. John Banks has been wandering around with the decapitated head of Don Brash.
John Banks says the brand he is campaigning for in Epsom is ‘Brand Key’, not ACT. Epsomites don’t want three-time loser Don Brash but it’s unavoidably true that a vote for Banks is a vote for Brash. This is leading to a further unattractive debacle as Banks tries to distance himself from his leader, who he’s trying to get into parliament.
Why did Key keep talking through a minute’s silence for Christchurch quake victims?
How many children is 200,000 in the context of New Zealand’s population? Statistics New Zealand says between June 2008-2011 around 62-64,000 children were born each year. So 200,000 amounts to every single child born in this country since National came to power three years ago, plus another 10,000 or so.
National would get the books back into the black with a $1.5b surplus 2014/15. It’s on their ads, it’s in the PREFU. So, it’s gotta be true, eh? Well, we already know they’ve cooked the books by claiming both that they would have the revenue from asset sales and the dividends from those sold assets. Now, their ETS changes have opened a second great big hole in their budget.
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
