Author Archive
Another politician caught in taping sting
Written By: - Date published: 4:00 pm, November 5th, 2008 - 6 comments
US election thread
Written By: - Date published: 3:26 pm, November 5th, 2008 - 72 comments
Ok, so all the action can be followed on the US sites but I’ll set up this post for comments you might like to make and any updates any of the Standardistas want to add. Like this just to hand: ‘Key rules out cabinet post for Obama – too many morals, hands too big, says […]
Democracy under attack
Written By: - Date published: 1:44 pm, November 5th, 2008 - 67 comments
From Both Eyes Open: National Party candidate Stephen Franks’ campaign team has been systematically tearing down political posters put up by his opponents despite Franks recently describing people defacing his election hoardings as ‘political thugs who don’t like free speech or opinions different from their own’. The group Both Eyes Open which has been distributing posters, […]
Where are the polls?
Written By: - Date published: 10:31 am, November 5th, 2008 - 36 comments
I know, they’re inaccurate and out of date. And it’s only three days until the only poll that counts. But I’m curious! It’s now been ten days since the last public poll, which strikes me as a bizarre gap at the high of the electoral campaign. I guess they’re all saving up their final poll […]
Pork barrelling from the Nats
Written By: - Date published: 9:26 am, November 5th, 2008 - 26 comments
One of the virtues of New Zealand government has long been that we avoid US-style pork barrel politics. The Government sets the direction of policy and priorities but doesn’t interfere with specific projects. The principle is that the experts, not the elected officials, should decide the details of specific projects. For instance, the Government might […]
Key, still telling lies
Written By: - Date published: 7:59 am, November 5th, 2008 - 34 comments
Ahead of the final leaders’ debate tonight, 08wire has produced a video on John Key’s lies in the second debate. What strikes me about these lies is how they are, for the most part, of the ‘New Zealand sucks’ ilk and that they are quite petty. I guess telling lots of smaller lies lessens the […]
Vote smart: Winnie cleared but too late
Written By: - Date published: 5:39 pm, November 4th, 2008 - 33 comments
New Zealand First has now been cleared by the Police or any illegal behaviour. That’s three from three but too late. I’ve never had a lot of love for Peters. Yes, economically NZF is left-wing and they were an important bulwark against the neoliberal revolution. Yes, he’s a cheeky bugger and often hilarious, and its […]
Last days to get active
Written By: - Date published: 4:22 pm, November 4th, 2008 - 10 comments
It’s great to see people still downloading materials from the Campaign Hub. With just over three days of campaigning to go, you’re running out of time to communicate the issues you care about and make sure people vote Left. So, be sure to take the opportunity. On the same note, Both Eyes Open has released […]
Another Nat secret agenda tape
Written By: - Date published: 3:19 pm, November 4th, 2008 - 121 comments
The Herald campaign updates reports that Clark has just had a private interview with TV3, appearently getting her response to the latest secret agenda tape. Guess that means it will be on TV3 tonight. According to the Herald, a reporter at the conference asked the PM if she thinks the public is sick of having […]
Fresh ideas
Written By: - Date published: 2:34 pm, November 4th, 2008 - 10 comments
Part 3 in the CTU’s series of election vids. The best yet You can see the other two here
Economy healthier than expected
Written By: - Date published: 11:42 am, November 4th, 2008 - 34 comments
The latest government accounts show the economy is in better condition than was expected. Tax take was $500 million higher than expected due to higher-than-expected income tax revenue. That means more money was being earned from wages and salaries than Treasury had forecast; in other words, unemployment is not rising as fast as Treasury had […]
More vids from the campaign trail
Written By: - Date published: 10:42 am, November 4th, 2008 - 43 comments
We’ve just received these. The first is from Hollowman productions, who brought us the famous Porirua markets video. The second is a video a reader took when he was stopped by a plain-clothes cop after asking a leftwing question to John Key at a campaign event. The question he asked is here
Mythbusting: Largest party must govern
Written By: - Date published: 9:58 am, November 4th, 2008 - 46 comments
Because the polls are showing a Labour, Greens, Progressives, Maori alliance could govern, National is crying that the largest party has some kind of ‘moral mandate’ to govern. Much as the cricket team which has the highest individual run scorer has the moral mandate to win the game, I guess. Back in the real world, […]
Clark takes round 2
Written By: - Date published: 8:36 pm, November 3rd, 2008 - 149 comments
A much better performance from Clark saw her best Key in tonight’s debate. As well as being on top of all the issues, as always, she took the fight to Key, calling him up on his lies. After not doing as well as she had expected in the first debate, Clark had adapted. Key was […]
Fact checkin’ round 2
Written By: - Date published: 7:27 pm, November 3rd, 2008 - 44 comments
It’s really good to see Clark taking Key to task on his lies this time: Key: productivity has halved under Labour. Lie. The same lie he made last time Key: interest rates have doubled under Labour. Lie. Which he also said last time, and Clark called him on it this time. Key is also relying […]
Wages still growing strongly
Written By: - Date published: 1:48 pm, November 3rd, 2008 - 31 comments
Despite the recession, wages have continued to grow at a record rate and, crucially, faster than inflation. The average hourly rate was up 5.5% over the past year. The percentage of the economy that goes to workers (rather than to the capital owners) continues to increase. This is the outcome of running a low unemployment […]
Nats will only cut Kiwisaver by 44-49% -cries ASA
Written By: - Date published: 1:16 pm, November 3rd, 2008 - 17 comments
The Advertising Standards Authority’s decision that Labour’s Kiwisaver ad is inaccurate is ridiculous. 08wire’s vid shows why. The ASA admits in its decision that is has no power over TV, radio, or Youtube ads so what gives them the right to cast judgment on an ad that only appeared in those media? In fact, it […]
Advertising, getting it right and getting it wrong
Written By: - Date published: 10:56 am, November 3rd, 2008 - 62 comments
Labour’s new ad is one of the best political ads I’ve seen. It’s just a really well written script: acknowledging the success of the Right’s ‘time for a change’ meme and undercutting it, getting in some positive points on Labour that are forward-looking, and getting in the sting on Key. ‘Mary’ is what National calls […]
Dunne’s deal?
Written By: - Date published: 9:58 am, November 3rd, 2008 - 37 comments
The revelations in today’s Dompost that Peter Dunne’s United party took a donation from the Vela family shows again what a messy business donations can be. The Vela family opposed New Zealand following a new UN fishing agreement. Ross Meurant, acting for the Velas met with Dunne, days later he issued a press release opposing […]
Closing arguments
Written By: - Date published: 4:07 pm, November 2nd, 2008 - 58 comments
Six days to go. Here are the five big issues that I am finding can turn swing voters to the Left. There are others as well (see our Standard line series) but these have been effective points in my experience. Over the next few days, you’re bound to find yourself talking to people who are […]
Vote smart: The Maori seats
Written By: - Date published: 2:26 pm, November 2nd, 2008 - 33 comments
Each of the Maori seats presents an opportunity for tactical voting for a left-wing voter. If you favour the Maori Party candidate in your seat, and you think you can trust them to support working with a Labour-led government, then go ahead and vote for them. But give your party vote to the Greens or […]
Vote smart: The micro parties
Written By: - Date published: 11:58 am, November 1st, 2008 - 101 comments
Last election, 7,000 people gave their votes to very small left-wing parties that never had any chance of winning a seat in Parliament. That’s 0.3% of the vote; a small but not insignificant amount. If those votes to the Alliance and Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis had gone to the Greens instead (who, after all, have 99% […]
What a rag
Written By: - Date published: 10:27 am, November 1st, 2008 - 56 comments
A week out from the election, Granny Herald has still yet to do any proper coverage of the effects on individuals and the economy of National’s four flagship policies: privatising ACC, gutting Kiwisaver, reducing work rights, and weakening the RMA and ETS. Yet, they can find the space to tell us which politicians would make the […]
Granny Herald yearns for good old days but democracy alive and well
Written By: - Date published: 2:59 pm, October 31st, 2008 - 16 comments
The Herald is once again trying to convince us that everyone is so scared of the EFA that there is no poltiical participation going on. Once again, they cite some rich right-wing organisations that don’t want to have to identify themselves when advertising, and so haven’t advertised at all. It seems the Right’s view is […]
The Standard Week: 24-31 October
Written By: - Date published: 2:35 pm, October 31st, 2008 - 10 comments
Two more examples of senior Nats hiding their conflicts of interest, in violation of Parliament’s rules, were revealed on The Standard this week. This time, however, the Nats were smart enough to have the issue fronted by chief spin-doctor Kevin Taylor and Gerry Brownlee, who knew that a robust response was the way to satisfy […]
Tories’ crack at socialism a poor substitute
Written By: - Date published: 1:39 pm, October 31st, 2008 - 5 comments
National’s redundancy package would effectively continue Working for Families payments for some people who would otherwise lose them after redunancy. Only people who have been in the same job for six months would get it, cutting out labourers, temps, and contract workers. For about the same cost, it would deliver more money to fewer people […]
Whose record is better?
Written By: - Date published: 11:19 am, October 31st, 2008 - 6 comments
I found it weird that National’s attack ad is a series of newspaper headlines. Everyone knows newspaper headlines are sensationalist and everyone knows that things were much worse under National in the 1990s, as this new youtube vid illustrates: Meanwhile, the upbeat jokers at 08wire have a positive reponse to the Nat attack ad:
The Standard line: Nanny State
Written By: - Date published: 10:11 am, October 31st, 2008 - 32 comments
So, you’re talking with someone about politics and they say something really dumb and wrong and you know it’s wrong but you don’t have the arguments and facts at your fingertips to make a decisive point. That’s where our election series, The Standard line, comes in. The info you need in bite-size form. Today: Nanny State […]
Not exactly Jon Stewart
Written By: - Date published: 9:38 am, October 31st, 2008 - 38 comments
A new facebook group has started up called “I am killing a kitten for every person who votes for the Green Party” (*) This group is to encourage New Zealander’s to join the fight against hippies and social engineering by killing a kitten for every vote they receive this election, if we run out of […]
The Standard line: Tax cuts
Written By: - Date published: 12:21 pm, October 30th, 2008 - 23 comments
[update: download this (tax-and-kiwisaver-calculator) simple excel table that will calculate tax cut and Kiwisaver losses under Labour and National, and the difference, for you and your family. No other calculator has included Kiwisaver losses] So, you’re talking with someone about politics and they say something really dumb and wrong and you know it’s wrong but you don’t […]
Ripping the stuffing out
Written By: - Date published: 11:40 am, October 30th, 2008 - 1 comment
The CTU has released a second great youtube vid. Well worth a watch and emailing around.
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