Author Archive

Food Bank Charity

Written By: - Date published: 4:45 pm, October 30th, 2015 - 97 comments

Guest post from Kōrero Pono on the politics and ethics of food banks.

Guest post: Auckland’s transport towards next year

Written By: - Date published: 1:00 pm, October 1st, 2015 - 18 comments

Ad discusses Auckland transport projects likely to be introduced over the next 12 months.

English: it’s all the planners’ fault

Written By: - Date published: 8:00 am, September 30th, 2015 - 23 comments

A guest post from Ad analysing Bill English’s speech where he blames planners for Auckland’s housing woes.

Green Politics

Written By: - Date published: 5:19 pm, September 25th, 2015 - 205 comments

Think the Green Party have just sold out and will do a deal with National next election? Think again…

Guest Post – Hawkes Bay is GE free

Written By: - Date published: 9:41 am, September 14th, 2015 - 26 comments

A guest post by Ad on the Hawkes Bay’s decision to prohibit under its District Plan the release or the conducting of field trials of GM crops and animals.

Serco – the company that fails at providing public services

Written By: - Date published: 11:55 am, August 30th, 2015 - 34 comments

They were, until a few months ago, the biggest company you’d never heard of.  They failed in the UK, they failed in Australia and they’ve failed here in our prisons. But they are still making good profits here. They’re a company dedicated, it seems, to making a profit while failing to deliver lots of different public services. We don’t need or want them here.

No, National shouldn’t have balanced the books.

Written By: - Date published: 9:30 am, August 28th, 2015 - 34 comments

Simon Louisson recently made a post about National’s profligacy, and all of the debt they have racked up. Guest poster Michael disagrees with Simon and says that “Yes, National was profligate.” and “No, National should not have balanced the books.”

Guest post: How the left should respond to financial crises

Written By: - Date published: 8:00 am, August 27th, 2015 - 136 comments

In a guest post Ad suggests that in this time of crisis the left should set out a plan for handling the crisis, rather than hoping that a new order will emerge.

In face of share market meltdown, Govt’s options limited

Written By: - Date published: 7:15 am, August 26th, 2015 - 55 comments

John Key says New Zealand has options in the face of a share market meltdown and is not like Greece (well that’s a relief). Simon Louisson asks how real are John Key’s options? Thanks to this Government’s profligate past spending, including irresponsible tax cuts, our options have narrowed drastically.

Like Solid Energy, hubris behind Landcorp’s predicament

Written By: - Date published: 2:22 pm, August 22nd, 2015 - 55 comments

Solid Energy was this month placed in Voluntary Administration following its financial collapse. Landcorp may not be in quite the same pit as the coal miner, but negative cash-flow and rising debt likely mean it has breached banking covenants. It may be forced to sell good assets at the bottom of the market. Simon Louisson questions why?

Radicals, Reformists or Revolutionaries? Ideologies of the Left.

Written By: - Date published: 7:19 am, August 14th, 2015 - 62 comments

James Gluck is doing an academic study of the ideologies that exist on the left. He is asking for those interested to participate in a anonymous online survey.

Labour did it too

Written By: - Date published: 3:00 pm, August 12th, 2015 - 13 comments

Tautoko Mangō Mata has discovered the words to a mystery song buried deep in a Crosby Textor staff manual.

Guest post: The flag – a change is gonna come

Written By: - Date published: 8:30 am, August 4th, 2015 - 170 comments

A guest post by Enzo Giordani about why progressives should support a change in the flag and showing his proposal for a new flag.

Deborah McMillan’s story

Written By: - Date published: 7:30 am, August 3rd, 2015 - 36 comments

Deborah McMillan’s husband and Skyla McMillan’s dad Shane was killed in a workplace accident five years ago.  They are part of a campaign to strengthen the currently weakened health and safety legislation.

Guest Post: Sneaky and sudden Government move on genetic engineering

Written By: - Date published: 8:31 am, July 31st, 2015 - 166 comments

A guest post on a Government attempt to change the Resource Management Act to prevent local councils from restricting the planting of genetically engineered trees.

Guest Post – What is Little’s vision for New Zealand?

Written By: - Date published: 10:00 am, July 3rd, 2015 - 111 comments

A guest post from Ad following up from Mandy Hager’s recent post on Andrew Little exploring the question on what should be Labour’s, the Green’s and New Zealand First’s vision for New Zealand’s future.

The Responsibilities of Government

Written By: - Date published: 9:00 am, June 14th, 2015 - 45 comments

The death of Emma-Lita Bourne is not just a personal tragedy for the family: it is an event that should make New Zealand angry with the powerful people in our society who control the purse strings. They are responsible for condemning thousands of children to life-threatening conditions. And they are doing it in our name!

Housing Bubble

Written By: - Date published: 11:11 am, June 13th, 2015 - 94 comments

There is always a need for rental properties and the idea that there is not enough supply again comes from the inability for people to purchase housing themselves.  This swells the demand above and beyond. So should the Government try to stop people becoming landlords?  Of course not. But to raise the standard of living that a landlord must provide will slow demand and give better housing

Dunedin climate consultation meeting

Written By: - Date published: 9:54 am, May 22nd, 2015 - 78 comments

“It was an emotional meeting and I felt in turns angry, frustrated, helpless, very sad, and disillusioned. I also felt privileged to be in the company of so many knowledgeable, passionate people.”

Deborah Russell: Preliminary thoughts on the Government’s new tax

Written By: - Date published: 9:15 am, May 18th, 2015 - 48 comments

Deborah Russell is a senior lecturer in taxation at Massey University and was Labour’s candidate in Rangitīkei in the 2014 general election.  In this post she sets out her preliminary views on National’s new tax.

Campbell Live – Day of Action

Written By: - Date published: 6:11 am, April 24th, 2015 - 12 comments

Protests in support of Campbell Live, today (Friday) in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin. Marvelous!

Deborah Russell: does New Zealand actually have a capital gains tax?

Written By: - Date published: 2:00 pm, April 17th, 2015 - 65 comments

A guest post by Deborah Russell responding to Government claims that we already have a capital gains tax  on the sale of land.

Our Iraq war policy explained

Written By: - Date published: 10:52 am, April 16th, 2015 - 32 comments

The government is doing a poor job at explaining our Iraq war policy, but never fear, we have the answers.

Megan Woods: Democracy isn’t “risky”, Minister

Written By: - Date published: 9:00 am, March 22nd, 2015 - 60 comments

Nick Smith’s latest pronouncements on ECan are an insult to Cantabrians – and a chilling precedent for any other regional councils who step out of line.

Mike Sabin has a prominent chin – A poem for Northland

Written By: - Date published: 9:31 am, March 21st, 2015 - 32 comments

sabin-key

Mission Accomplished

Written By: - Date published: 7:19 am, February 14th, 2015 - 55 comments

“You gotta hand it to John Key: the timing is perfect. On a slow-news Friday at a time when the media is falling over itself to hype the cricket world cup, the last veil drops to reveal al Jaafari and his request for assistance.”

Guest Post – Waitangi Day, build a bridge and get over it

Written By: - Date published: 8:48 am, February 6th, 2015 - 30 comments

A Guest Post by David Meech presenting an irreverent view of Waitangi day, and New Zealand history and culture.

Orewa – 11 years on

Written By: - Date published: 9:48 am, February 5th, 2015 - 51 comments

Has it really been 11 years since Brash’s infamous Orewa speech? Yesterday Gareth Morgan gave a very different kind of speech there…

Guest Post: from a Fairy Godmother

Written By: - Date published: 6:50 pm, December 29th, 2014 - 36 comments

How can young unemployed people get help in finding a job, when they have been trying to get one for some time?

New Zealand Betrayed – Again

Written By: - Date published: 3:05 pm, December 10th, 2014 - 95 comments

A guest post from BLiP on Labour’s support for the “terrorism” legislation.

SISters are doin’ it for themselves

Written By: - Date published: 2:02 pm, December 1st, 2014 - 1 comment

Got me smiling about no laughing matter!

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