Time for an OIA
I’m hoping that someone (a fellow Standard author perhaps?) puts in an OIA over the South Canterbury Finance bailout. And here’s what I’d […]
Aid shift – security not poverty the objective
The latest Guardian Weekly had two interesting and seemingly unconnected stories about major shifts in aid priorities on both sides of the world […]
‘Bureaucrat’ bites back
A hell of a lot of those ‘back office bureaucrats’ that the Nats love to attack have been working their arses off on the Christchurch earthquake. You would think they’d get some respect from their political bosses. You would think wrong.
John Armstrong on the politics of ChCh’s quake
John Armstrong provides an insightful analysis of the politics around the aftermath of Christchurch’s earthquake, saying “The chaos and destruction wreaked on Christchurch by Saturday’s earthquake leaves no room for playing party politics….The politicians are already playing politics, however, though not too flagrantly. Saying you are not going to play politics – as Goff effectively did – is itself a political statement. As was John Key’s decision to cancel his trip to Britain and France.”
Willimson’s racist jokes OK by Key?
Days before accusing us of being racist for not wanting more of New Zealand’s land to fall under foreign control, Maurice Williamson was making racist jokes. Is it OK in John Key’s government for ministers to get pissed and tell racist jokes in public?
Mystery rant
Here’s an interesting rant. I’m not going to link to it, because I want you to spend a moment trying to work out who (which raving leftie blogger?) is the author. So read it, and make your guess, then Google for the answer…
Wage subsidy a half-hearted gesture
The unions, business, and Phil Goff have all gritted their teeth and called the Nats’ $15 million wage subsidy scheme for small quaked-affected businesses ‘a start’. The problem is, it’s likely to be the end. This scheme will leave workers and employers severely out of pocket, killing businesses and jobs.
Govt exploiting CHCH to sneak through abuses?
As our msm persist with their increasingly banal fixation on Christchurch’s troubles, I’m reminded of a story that appeared in 2001 not long […]
Open mike 08/09/2010
Open mike is your post. It’s open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes […]
Caption Competition
Yesterday Mr Key said he would leave for London to visit the Queen, only if he “could be confident Christchurch’s recovery was on […]
It’s Gillard
Independent MP Tony Windsor has decided to support the Labor Party into government, with fellow independent Rob Oakeschott expected to follow suit. The country independents say the best bet for rural regions is to remain independent and stick up for themselves – lessons for NZ?
The economics of the Christchurch earthquake
There’s been some frankly bizarre talk about the earthquake being an economic boon for the country. I guess the Right is just desperate for anything to improve the economy under National. So, I thought it would be worthwhile going through the economic ramifications of the earthquake from the immediate effects to long term.
It’s now or never – Te Ururoa
It’s a little disturbing to hear Te Ururoa Flavell saying that the Maori Party isn’t really satisfied with National’s new foreshore and seabed bill but will vote for it for now and will re-negotiate a new deal in the future. He’s dreaming. Both major parties have every incentive to consider the issue closed. With the Maori Party supporting the law, it will be seen as a full and final settlement.
Fabian seminar – why not fix child poverty?
The next Fabian seminar will be held in Wellington on Monday 13th September at Connolly Hall in Guildford Street at 5:30pm. Titled “Why […]
Tell Liz you can’t make it, John
I didn’t want to be the first to say it. Since John Armstrong now has, I will ask the question too: why the hell is the John Key planning to go for a holiday weekend with the Queen and a chat with his carbon-copy David Cameron when our second-largest city is a disaster zone? It seems he doesn’t appreciate the responsibilities of his job and just wants to be Minister for Overseas Holidays.
An economic plan for Christchurch
Christchurch needs a more ambitious rescue package than has been announced. Relying on EQC and insurance payouts is not enough. I would cancel the top bracket tax cuts due to come into force in a month saving half a billion dollars for a real economic revival plan The first step would be to grant emergency bridging funding to businesses closed by the quake so that they can continue to pay their workers
Open mike 07/09/2010
Open mike is your post. It’s open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes […]
Paula’s forever blowing bubbles
It’s been nearly two years now of Paula Bennett declaring that the unemployment crisis is over. Yesterday, she put out a press release titled ‘More than 6,000 beneficiaries find jobs in August‘. Wow, 6,000 in a month, pretty good. But Bennett must have been hoping we wouldn’t read beyond the title. The fact is that 900 more people went on the dole than came off it. The total number of beneficiaries just keeps climbing.
Christchurch workers
Unite Union’s Christchurch office has been flooded with phone calls and text messages from worried workers in post-earthquake Christchurch.
Crown ownership by any other name would smell as bad
Unnoticed amongst all the earthquake coverage was a small article in the Weekend Dompost on the foreshore and seabed deal. Apparently, ‘public domain’ will no longer appear in the new legislation. Instead, we’ll have a new name, possibly ‘takutaimoana’, Te Reo for ‘seabed’. That sound you can hear Winston Peters is rubbing his hands with glee.
Yes it will
As far as I know I am the only Standard author to have been right in the middle of the Darfield / Christchurch earthquake. To all commenters and readers in the region – greetings, and keep safe.
Right tastelessly tries to deify Parker
It’s the stomach-churning way that some on the Right have decided to try to use the earthquake for political advantage by deifying Bob Parker. Even Parker himself looked sick when Paul Henry compared him to Rudi Giuliani. Update: Farrar, Whaleoil, Henry, and Matthew Hooton are trying to spread a lie that Anderton said only an earthquake could stop him winning the election. Danyl has the truth.
Open mike 06/09/2010
Open mike is your post. It’s open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes […]
Broken principles and broken windows
Rich investor and you put your money in a dodgy finance company? Did the company collapse? You get your money back. No questions. Lost your job thanks to this endless recession? Couldn’t afford insurance? Property damaged in the quake? Key says you can get stuffed. It’s called class war. Also, Key thinks the clean-up will be an economic stimulus. Someone tell this money-man about the broken windows fallacy.
Public service deserves praise for earthquake response
After every emergency come the media articles that accuse the civil defence system of failing. This time the well-known emergency relief experts at the Herald were criticising within a day. Well, the Herald can go f*ck itself. I take my hat off to all the public servants who did their jobs with skill and dedication. The public services responded swiftly to get the situation under control and get people the help and information they needed.
Youz iz racists. Nah, only jokez!
John Key says Maurice Williamson was just joking when he called us racists for not wanting to sell more of our country into foreign ownership.
Does he really expect us to believe that? Why compound an insult with a lie?
And since when would it be OK for Williamson to jokingly call us racists?
McCarten not going down without a fight
Almost as an aside, Matt McCarten has announced that he has the “killing kind of cancer” in his column today. Matt is one of the lions of the Left. His union, Unite, has defied the skeptics to become a real success story. Temp and low-paid workers have found an avenue for collective action, and learnt they can win. Matt makes it clear he’ll never flinch from fighting for the workers. Good on ya, mate, we’re with you.
Open mike 05/09/2010
Open mike is your post. It’s open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes […]
The silence of the lambs
Where are the Greens and Labour on the South Canterbury Finance issue? Just looking at the sheer politics of the situation, this is something they should be all over. There is enormous public anger at the way National was willing to magic up $1.7 billion of taxpayer cash for its rich mates while services are being cut. This should be the tipping point, when the Left seizes the public mood for its economic vision but where’s the leadership?
What happened..
New Zealand is one of the oddest places geologically (Japan is similar) in the world because of our position between two plates and because we are at the twist where the plates change how they interact with each other. But the position of the Christchurch earthquake is a long way from the plate boundaries. Highly Allochthonous has a look at the mechanism of the quake.
Thank the regulators
The Christchurch earthquake was a shallow high magnitude earthquake close to a urban population centre. That is the disaster scenario for planners. It is a disaster, but not a major disaster. The enforcement of building regulations ensured that the city took damage, but survived largely intact.
Open mike 04/09/2010
Open mike is your post. It’s open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes […]
It’s outrageous
Whatever flimsy and tattered remains of Labour-lite which National used to disguise itself at the 2008 election has well and truly disappeared. Thank […]
Priorities
Important issues:
jobs, wages, public service cuts, Supercity & ECAN, national savings, climate change
Not important issues:
how we get a figurehead Head of State
Democratic Social Economy Part 1
Due to the discrepancies in the spread of knowledge the free-market is irrational but there is no doubt that we, collectively, have the needed information to make more rational decisions. The problem that occurs is that neither the knowledge nor the tools to help make rational decisions on that information are readily available. Is there a tech solution?
On the edge of a second recession, Greens have a plan, Nats don’t
20,000 more Kiwis’ jobs are at risk as commercial building construction grinds to a halt. The Greens have a plan to divert money from low-quality spending on motorways to high benefit to cost spending on housing that will save those jobs and give Kiwi families a better standard of living. That’s the kind of visionary economic leadership we need. We’re not going to get it from National.