Open mike 03/09/2011
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
How to make a more decent capitalism
Professor Robert Wade of the London School of Economics and author of the acclaimed Governing the Market will speak on this topic at LHT2, Rutherford House, Bunny Street, Wellington at 6pm on Thursday 22nd September. All are welcome to attend this free lecture; if you wish to come please register here as places may be limited. Click through to see abstract.
Weekend social 02/09/2011
Weekend social is for non political chat. What’s on for the weekend, gigs, film or book reviews, sports, or whatever. No politics, no […]
NZ must introduce a capital gains tax, sooner or later
The wealthy elite in Europe are now joining Warren Buffett in these calls for higher taxes for the rich (including CGT), why? Maybe it’s because they know the truth, they know that the world is likely to enter another global recession, and they know the risk this will bring to social cohesion, which they rely on for maintaining the lifestyle they enjoy.
Nats’ economic policy billboard revealed
Heatley to resign (again) over eviction debacle?
National promised to get tough ‘undeserving’ state house tenants. (always someone to get tough on when maintaining the privileges of the elite) The first targets were 3 women and their kids, judged guilty by association with their partners who were charged with burglary (the charges were dropped). 2 years and $1m wasted and the government has given up.
1 in 5 Canty Uni jobs cut
The Tertiary Education Union has revealed that 350 jobs are for the chop at Canterbury University – 18% of the workforce. The Uni, hardly reassuringly, says its 100 to 500. The Nats blame the quake. That’s rubbish. These kind of cuts will permanently gut the Uni, leaving it in no position to be part of the recovery. National: the anti-education government.
Hager: Other People’s Wars
With echoes of 2002, Nicky Hager has delivered a potentially explosive book in the run up to a general election.
Open mike 02/09/2011
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Earning or learning
This afternoon Labour released a substantial policy package targeting youth unemployment. Once again the public is being offered a choice between Labour’s realistic response to a significant problem, and more do-nothing smile and wave.
Worlds apart
Spotted in an English pub. Check out the artist’s name.
Dimpost: Galtian overlord watch
Paul Reynolds is leaving Telecom having pocketed tens of millions and seen the value of the company halve. He follows in the footsteps of Theresa ‘Goldeneye’ Gattung who lost Telecom shareholders billions and has put the millions she was paid in gold. Isn’t something broken when bad CEOs paid so much? Danyl notes that’s not the exception, it’s the rule.
Wrong government for the times
Fran O’Sullivan calls on the government to act on Christchurch. Good luck with that. This is not a government of action. It is the wrong government for these challenging times.
Open mike 01/09/2011
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Who to believe?
NRT: Some “strategy”
National’s Energy Strategy has been roundly criticised. The promises of more renewables and energy efficiency are more ‘aspirational’ fluff with no plan to actually get there. And, worse, the heart of the strategy works against sustainability and environmental responsibility – it’s all about drilling up and burning more oil. I/S at NoRightTurn explains.
Australia bound?
Some advice if you are planning on joining the many kiwi’s that have left the country to go to Australia since National made it their aspiration to do something about that migration trend. They certainly have massively increased the outflow – one of their few success stories. But where to go to in aussie?
Nats plan to sell $2b+ assets overseas
The Nats say their ‘expectation’ is 30% of the assets they want privatise would go straight to foreigners. That’s just their lowside guess. More would be sold offshore by Kiwi buyers. Get $2b cash now from foreigners now. Lose $300m in returns year after year after year forever. And lose control of our future. Doesn’t add up.
Turning Green
Tracy Watkins admits today’s Fairfax poll is pretty out of whack but there’s no denying the trend has turned against Labour in the past few months. People back the policy. That’s not the problem. Labour will still be hoping to close up 5% or so in the campaign. On the positive side: what a result for the Greens!
Welcome to Finland
Where National Standards is only the answer to “what keeps other countries from catching our education system?”
Open mike 31/08/2011
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Human face of public service cuts
Good human interest story in the DomPost today about the human costs of public service jobs cuts. A Wellington woman has written a […]
Quake costs blowout
The estimate of the liability for costs of the Christchurch quakes has just been more than doubled. Thank goodness or the foresight of the first Labour government who set up the EQC in 1947.
Free trade suckers
Free trade is meant to be about opening up markets for our exports so that we can improve our trade balance and, ultimately, become less indebted as a nation. Yet the opposite seems to be happening. Darkhorse shows that this is the experience of all countries that lower their trade barriers in a still largely protectionist world.
The new political battleground
Rijab looks at how social media can be a useful tool for political parties but how it also needs to be used carefully, lest it come back to hurt you. Red Alert and Frogblog are very free, with MPs writing what they want and relatively loose moderation, whereas NationalMPs is insipid and tightly controlled – who has taken the smarter course?
Irene sounds yet another warning
Irene is yet another example of the significant increase in extreme weather that we’re seeing all around the globe. But this warning will be ignored like all the rest.
Open mike 30/08/2011
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Not the ACT party list
I was going to do a post on the ACT party list. But then I realised that I just don’t care.
Ocean Acidification
We know that our carbon pollution is damaging the climate – making the atmosphere warmer and less stable – but it also makes the sea more acidic. Ocean Acidification means the aquaculture industry could be in big trouble by the middle of the century, not to mention the rest of the fishing industry. But the government blithely ignores the problem.
Assets going cheap
With the world’s markets in turmoil (again) how are the Nats going to hock off those assets? Fire-sale time!
Jackel: NBR’s hack job on Hone lambasted
The establishment elite know Hone Harawira is their greatest foe. That’s why they try to besmirch him again and again, including by claiming he called Osama Bin Laden a freedom fighter and mourned his death? Now, the Press Council has ruled that the NBR’s Bin Laden article purposely misrepresented and maligned Hone.
In praise of collective bargaining
One of the lies at the heart of the Nats’ approach to industrial relations is that negotiating directly with the employer “empowers” the individual worker and allows them to get better wages and conditions. The facts prove otherwise.
Open mike 29/08/2011
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to […]
Gaynor on vampire neoliberalism
Brian Gaynor notes vampire economics of neoliberalism means nearly all the largest listed companies are either privatised former public assets and/or monopolies thanks to government regulation. The capitalist elite has failed to generate wealth and stripped previously privatised assets. Now, their party, the Nats, plans to suck out more of our public wealth.
The New Zealand age of aging in charts
Like many countries worldwide, New Zealand has an aging problem. Digging around the available charts it isn’t hard to see why. But New Zealand has less of a problem than many developed countries because of the demographics of our Maori and Pacifica populations plus the continuing immigration. It is still pretty bad.
Revolution and hunger
What provokes a populace to take to the streets in violent uprising? Is it the inexorable power of a demand for justice and democracy? Or is it something much simpler than that…