Archive for August, 2010

Open mike 18/08/2010

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, August 18th, 2010 - 36 comments

Open mike is your post. It’s open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike…

The Standard turned three

Written By: - Date published: 9:57 pm, August 17th, 2010 - 49 comments

We managed to miss The Standard’s third birthday a few days ago despite some earlier avowed intentions to make a fuss over it. The site started on August 15th 2007 and has grown into a massive community project of the left since then. Long may it continue….

How to be a lazy politician

Written By: - Date published: 3:00 pm, August 17th, 2010 - 9 comments

When John Steinbeck said “No one wants advice – only corroboration” he could well have been describing the numerous working groups the Government has established in many areas of significant economic and social policy. Too lazy to spend its nine years in opposition developing a detailed policy prescription, National now picks groups to tell it what it wants to hear.

Boscawen new ACT deputy

Written By: - Date published: 1:55 pm, August 17th, 2010 - 38 comments

Clad in traditional climate change denier headwear, John Boscawen today assumed the role of ACT Deputy Leader, vowing to use his new powers to launch a crusade against NIWA. Standing beside him, Rodney Hide told reporters “Don’t give me that look. At least he’s not David Garrett”

Jobless, Homeless, Clueless

Written By: - Date published: 1:40 pm, August 17th, 2010 - 25 comments

In the last seven days a triple-conjunction of political portents has publicly demonstrated just how bankrupt of imagination and policy this current government truly is. The lack of direction and paucity of creative ideas is breath-taking. A “caretaker-government” would be a polite euphemism in this context.

Child murder or protecting gangs?

Written By: - Date published: 12:15 pm, August 17th, 2010 - 46 comments

The legacy of the Maori Party should not be waving the seabed and foreshore legislation in the air like Neville Chamberlain and rejoicing at the sop given by the Machiavellian elite – not while another child lies dying of a brain injury. The Minister for Maori Affairs should not be working to save illegal buildings on a gang HQ when Maori children are being abused at a sickening rate.

Here Be the Braindead: NZCSC Tries Science by Court, Instead of Actually Doing Science

Written By: - Date published: 11:04 am, August 17th, 2010 - 11 comments

Believing that a law suit will make climate change disappear is up there with believing the king can turn back the tides (which poor, maligned Canute was trying to disprove, btw). Nonetheless, the New Zealand Climate Science Coalition, which appears to know little about the climate and less about science, is giving it a go. Nick S takes a more detailed look at the issue.

Dunne: 80% of families will pay for income splitting & get nothing

Written By: - Date published: 9:28 am, August 17th, 2010 - 41 comments

Peter Dunne admits that income splitting will be available to only 310,000 families. The other 1.3 million will get nothing and be left to pick up the bill. Even of the lucky 19%, only a fraction will get big tax cuts. Most will get squat but a few families with big disparities between the partners’ incomes win big. Key has voted himself $22K of tax cuts so far, this would be another $9K. Will he be tempted?

Final ACT for Roy?

Written By: - Date published: 7:19 am, August 17th, 2010 - 35 comments

Infighting within ACT seems to have come to a head, and pundits are predicting that Heather Roy will be sacked today, with John Boscawen to replace her as deputy. Will Roy split off and form a new party of the right? Fight ACT for that 1.5% of the vote?

Open mike 17/08/2010

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, August 17th, 2010 - 37 comments

Open mike is your post. It’s open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike…

Sacked. No reason given

Written By: - Date published: 6:37 pm, August 16th, 2010 - 68 comments

Key said put up or shut up.

The CTU and some gutsy workers are putting up.

Will Key have the guts to answer them?

PR301: Edwards and Ralston on Lhaws

Written By: - Date published: 1:50 pm, August 16th, 2010 - 27 comments

Brian Edwards and Bill Ralston give contrasting accounts of Michael Laws’ PR handling of his latest relationship issues. Edwards thinks Laws dealt with it well (and reduced the ‘story’ to a molehill), Ralston thinks Laws cocked-up by preempting any other media coverage and giving more away than necessary. On Ralston’s blog there’s a nicely caustic exchange […]

Attacking NIWA

Written By: - Date published: 11:57 am, August 16th, 2010 - 98 comments

What do you do when you find science inconvenient to your ideology? Why, you strike it down! Burn the heretics! Or in the modern equivalent, you set the lawyers on them, and try and have the facts declared illegal.

Compulsory super savings welcome but…

Written By: - Date published: 10:07 am, August 16th, 2010 - 18 comments

Odd to see in the Sunday-Star Times that the Government is looking at introducing compulsory superannuation savings. After all, this is the same government that gutted Kiwisaver and the Cullen Fund just a year ago. Hmm, have they seen the light? Somehow I doubt it. The Nats see compulsory super savings as a replacement for the universal superannuation we have now.

SAS collecting Afghanis for torture

Written By: - Date published: 8:50 am, August 16th, 2010 - 12 comments

Wayne Mapp has confirmed that the SAS has been involved in handing prisoners over to the NDS – a Afghan government body that tortures prisoners. Mapp indicated he didn’t give a damn what happens to the prisoners, calling them an “Afghan responsibility”. Sorry, Mapp, but you’ve got to take responsibility. Handing someone over to people you can reasonably expect will torture them is illegal.

Open mike 16/08/2010

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, August 16th, 2010 - 22 comments

Open mike is your post. It’s open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike…

Incarceration Insanity

Written By: - Date published: 1:07 pm, August 15th, 2010 - 42 comments

Prison doesn’t work. It keeps people off the streets, but, as psychiatrist James Gilligan says:

The most effective way to turn a non-violent person into a violent one is to send him to prison.1

Coalitions and Movements and Democracy

Written By: - Date published: 11:21 am, August 15th, 2010 - 22 comments

More often than not we discuss politics and the economy only within the boundaries of current political structures.

But these structures can only offer limited democratic participation.

Perhaps the answer for the left is to embrace movement politics.

Up for the challenge

Written By: - Date published: 11:05 am, August 15th, 2010 - 57 comments

The Herald is carrying this piece by Phil Goff – I’m sure Phil won’t mind if we reproduce it here. If you have any constructive suggestions or comments for Phil, make them below. I’ll collate them and email them to him on our behalf.

Open mike 15/08/2010

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, August 15th, 2010 - 22 comments

Open mike is your post. It’s open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike…

Commentators waking up

Written By: - Date published: 2:23 pm, August 14th, 2010 - 38 comments

Some within Labour believe that the tide of popularity is beginning to go out on the National government. Commentators seem to be waking up too. John Armstrong takes the Nats to task for their scare-mongering on benefits. And Fran O’Sullivan, cuts to the chase – it’s the economy stupid.

Britain’s Sickness Benefit Injustice

Written By: - Date published: 12:03 pm, August 14th, 2010 - 21 comments

Britain’s turfing 75% of people off their long-term sickness benefit on an arbitrary test. Let’s hope the Welfare Working Group doesn’t get ideas.

More tax cuts for the elite coming

Written By: - Date published: 10:13 am, August 14th, 2010 - 42 comments

The Government is set to announce income splitting. Effectively, it allows a taxpayer to assign part of their income for taxation purposes to their partner on a lower income, the transferred income will be taxed at a lower rate. This will benefit a select group: wealthy nuclear families, especially those with a stay at home parent. An unaffordable, unfair, unnecessary policy.

Nat’s lacking serious economic plan

Written By: - Date published: 8:47 am, August 14th, 2010 - 55 comments

In his ‘Key Notes’ this week, John Key claims that sending a handful of the business elite overseas to get MBAs will boost the economy. Seriously, 350,000 jobless Kiwis and the plan Key is bragging about is a million dollars worth of subsidies for the business elite as the solution to our woes? What a sick joke this government is. And it’s being played by the rich on the rest of us.

Open mike 14/08/2010

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, August 14th, 2010 - 35 comments

Open mike is your post. It’s open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike…

Corrections boss not sure about private prisons

Written By: - Date published: 4:42 pm, August 13th, 2010 - 17 comments

We’ve already seen criticism of the move by National to introduce private prisons (eg. NZ Herald editorial). Now the soon-to-depart prison boss, Barry Matthews has indicated that he too has his doubts.

The dire probabilities of unusual weather

Written By: - Date published: 1:45 pm, August 13th, 2010 - 32 comments

In Morning Report yesterday there was a clear question and statement on the difference between weather events and climate. This is a question that always seems to confuse our CCD’s (climate change deniers and skeptics). So it is worth examining it a bit in the view of some of the unusual weather that has been happening recently. A increased frequency of such events is going to be the main effect of climate change over time, leading eventually to famines.

The age of recession sharpens class war

Written By: - Date published: 12:00 pm, August 13th, 2010 - 23 comments

So, it looks like we’re heading back into recession. We’re going to have to get used to the idea that we can’t depend on perpetual economic growth to deliver rising living standards to all. We could make nearly everyone wealthier with a fairer distribution of wealth but the opposite is happening. This is simply class war; a battle over shares of a diminishing prize. And we’re letting the rich win.

The new food crisis

Written By: - Date published: 9:57 am, August 13th, 2010 - 21 comments

Climate change, peak oil, resource exhaustion, and over-population are combing to cause a new food crisis. Grains supply half the calories we consume directly and feed much of our live-stock. The prices of those are skyrocketing because supply can’t match demand. Starting with Russia, major exporters are limiting the amount they send abroad to keep what they have for their own people.

Unions launch name and shame

Written By: - Date published: 7:09 am, August 13th, 2010 - 144 comments

John Key challenged the unions to “put up or shut up”. So they’re going to put up. The CTU has launched a campaign to name and shame businesses that are abusing the fire at will (90 day probation) bill. It’s a campaign based around personal stories. Heather Smith tells the first of many…

Open mike 13/08/2010

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, August 13th, 2010 - 21 comments

Open mike is your post. It’s open for discussing topics of interest, making announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. Comment on whatever takes your fancy. The usual good behaviour rules apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike…