Open mike 22/01/2024
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Which side are you on?
The Act Party is seeking to undermine te Tiriti o Waitangi and ferment racial hatred and division while nominally seeking unity. And National clearly has no idea what to do about the situation.
Open mike 21/01/2024
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Labour and the Democrats
Both the US Democrats and NZ Labour need to take hard looks at themselves. Failure is not inevitable. But there is now only one English-speaking centre-left democracy left in the world: that is the state of where we are now.
Open mike 20/01/2024
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The best Electoral System that money can buy
The Independent Electoral Review Panel has recommended changes to the electoral system including the banning of any donations unless made by enrolled voters, a cap on the size of those donations and a requirement that third parties disclose all large donations that they receive.
Open mike 19/01/2024
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Mood of the smokoroom – fearful
The Council of Trade Unions has completed its annual survey of workers and the mood is grim.
Open mike 18/01/2024
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Why does National hate EVs?
At a time when we need cool heads and leaders who understand the enormity of the problem that is climate change and the consequences of getting our response right we are getting this retrograde culture war from people who should know better.
We need a better class of right wing troll
Newbies, moderation, the purpose of the Standard, how things work here.
Open mike 17/01/2024
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NZ First does not want National to have good relations with Kiingi Tuuheitia
The day after Christopher Luxon made the pilgrimage to meet with Kiingi Tuuheitia and try and calm feelings ahead of the Weekend’s hui at Ngaruwahia to discuss the Government’s attacks on Te Tiriti and Te Reo Shane Jones went onto Morning Report and applied the blowtorch to Luxon’s attempt to keep matters calm.
Ghahraman goes
Green MP Golriz Ghahrahman has resigned from Parliament.
Open mike 16/01/2024
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Open mike 15/01/2024
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What If Trump Wins Again?
New Zealand has gained prosperity over 40 years within a free flow of trade under peacetime supported by minor attacks to shipping and planes, low international trade costs such as tariffs, and confidence that international trade disputes will be settled by law rather than by might is at risk: all of that required a United States President prepared to support that.
Open mike 14/01/2024
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Not all Americans are Neocons
But the ones that run US foreign policy are. Matthew Hooton in a typical smear wants to label Helen Clark as anti-American because she warned that involving us in attacking Houthis was a ”slippery slope.” She’s not and he’s wrong.
The Coming Oil Crisis
An expanding Middle East war that puts the Red Sea and Suez tanker route at risk is a major risk to us because it could hit the global price of oil.
Open mike 13/01/2024
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Open mike 12/01/2024
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Dirty Politics 2024?
Some of the usual suspects… how would we know what is really going on?
Our Resistance
There are still groups of people in New Zealand who can and do organise to resist the damage of the right.
Open mike 11/01/2024
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Open mike 10/01/2024
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Open mike 09/01/2024
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Open mike 08/01/2024
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Genocide in Gaza
South Africa has taken a case that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza to the International Court of Justice. A group of prominent New Zealand lawyers have asked the New Zealand Government to join South Africa in support of their application. I think we should.
Atlas smirked
A George Monbiot article in the Guardian made me wonder what effect the Atlas Network is having on New Zealand politics through the Taxpayer’s Union. Publicly available information suggests considerable funding is being made available and that the current Government’s priorities are precisely those that the Atlas Network would approve of.
Open mike 07/01/2024
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Open mike 06/01/2024
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Darkness Towards Peace
Can Israel lose a moral battle in Gaza and yet still win?
Open mike 05/01/2024
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Open mike 04/01/2024
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Corbyn was right about Palestine
In the United Kingdom Keir Starmer’s refusal to call for a cease fire in Gaza and his claim that holding back food and water for Gaza was justified has put him increasingly at odds with Labour members and MPs. Meanwhile Jeremy Corbyn’s expulsion as a Labour MP is puzzling, particularly given that his stance on Palestine is increasingly justified.