Archive for August, 2014
National Response
Written By: - Date published: 10:18 am, August 14th, 2014 - 155 comments
National’s standard response is to ridicule – other political parties, Jon Stephenson, scientists etc have all had it. It slots nicely with Cameron Slater’s style. Now they’re ridiculing Nicky Hager, but they need to be taken up on each allegation.
Polity: Dirty politics: My 2c
Written By: - Date published: 7:48 am, August 14th, 2014 - 104 comments
The use of clandestine SIS files as a weapon of partisan politics is needs to be investigated. John Key or his office discovered classified SIS files that were embarrassing to Phil Goff, got them declassified, then immediately told a right-wing blogger to seek those same newly-declassified files under the OIA, all as a means of smearing a political opponent.
Dirty Politics: The Brestapo
Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, August 14th, 2014 - 88 comments
I have foolishly never taken Cameron Slater very seriously except when his attacks have been obviously for the benefit of the National Party. I actually believed that the misinformed and bigoted viewpoints that prevail in his posts were his genuine opinions. It fits his character to drone on about “The Breastapo” “Sucking on the Taxpayers’ Tit”. To discover that such posts were actually written and paid for on behalf of Fonterra actually shocked me.
Open mike 14/08/2014
Written By: - Date published: 6:41 am, August 14th, 2014 - 298 comments
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
Random tweets on Dirty Politics
Written By: - Date published: 10:57 pm, August 13th, 2014 - 12 comments
In no particular order, some tweets from those in Wellington with the book. Or those who have read something more than I have.
“Dirty Politics” in tweets
Written By: - Date published: 10:51 pm, August 13th, 2014 - 10 comments
There’s obviously a few people reading “Dirty Politics” tonight. One of the biggies, looks to be evidence of Slater’s collusion with Ports of Auckland. Other tweets show Slater in a very bad light.
Just made for Winston
Written By: - Date published: 9:59 pm, August 13th, 2014 - 26 comments
I think I know someone who 5 weeks out from an election who thinks he has just had a few percent tacked on to his parties votes. After all remember the “cup of tea” in Epsom last election. And he may have read some parts of the book?
Dirty Politics: The preface
Written By: - Date published: 9:17 pm, August 13th, 2014 - 57 comments
I do so want to read this book right now. I can hardly wait. The preface is online… http://dirtypoliticsnz.com Nicky Hager is way way more of a gentleperson than I am. Explaining the material that is not in the book – “The fact that Slater and his associates have made a career of exposing the very private details of other people’s lives does not make it right to do that to them.”
Cameron Slater dirties John Key (or vice versa?)
Written By: - Date published: 7:11 pm, August 13th, 2014 - 138 comments
I haven’t read the Nicky Hager’s book “Dirty Politics” yet. But I’m not surprised that Cameron Slater is up to his neck in dirt provided by John Key’s dirt merchant Jason Ede. That he has been given information sourced from the SIS is extremely surprising. I had not thought that John Key was quite that stupid.
Hager’s “Dirty Politics”
Written By: - Date published: 5:30 pm, August 13th, 2014 - 189 comments
So the book is an expose of the Slater-Ede-Key Dirty Politics machine, based on data acquired and leaked to Hager. Will Update: Update: Hager to be on Campbell Live tonight.
Guest post – Democracy and debate in the suburbs
Written By: - Date published: 1:00 pm, August 13th, 2014 - 25 comments
A guest post by Old Irascible on recent local experience when a Labour candidate tried to reach out to his local Rotary Club.
Bracing for the book
Written By: - Date published: 10:40 am, August 13th, 2014 - 104 comments
Nicky Hager has certainly got the attention of political circles in NZ, by announcing his (untitled) book launch today at 5.15pm. J[update: 3 news Livestream of book launch] Update: Title “Dirty Politics” – on attack politics – implicates John key & Slater]
Local Bodies: Greens Riding Above Stormy Seas
Written By: - Date published: 9:41 am, August 13th, 2014 - 10 comments
Dave Kennedy (bsprout) looks at the increasingly parlous current state of the smaller parties. He is also looking forward to the Green party campaign launch this weekend in Auckland. Updated with Green campaign launch details.
Foolishly banning satire
Written By: - Date published: 7:33 am, August 13th, 2014 - 86 comments
What the hell? This isn’t an election advertisement. This is someone expressing their views in music and video. This judgement by the Electoral Commission doesn’t appear to have any real basis behind it. Quite simply they are wrong.
Open mike 13/08/2014
Written By: - Date published: 6:34 am, August 13th, 2014 - 118 comments
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
Naming the game
Written By: - Date published: 6:34 pm, August 12th, 2014 - 78 comments
It’s been interesting to watch the nats and their busy little helpers working away at branding the election campaign as a nasty one.
It’s been disappointing to watch the media falling for it so hard.
Hager, fear & the surveillance state
Written By: - Date published: 12:55 pm, August 12th, 2014 - 82 comments
Nicky Hager’s latest book will be unveiled tomorrow. I look at his research interests, & his approach to investigative journalism; plus Hager’s speech on the GCSB Bill, & opposition party policies on state surveillance services.
Typical misrepresentation from Farrar
Written By: - Date published: 12:21 pm, August 12th, 2014 - 97 comments
Sociologist Dr Jarrod Gilbert takes everybody’s favourite right-wing spinster to task for misrepresentation and spin on gangs.
The right’s lack of diversity
Written By: - Date published: 12:00 pm, August 12th, 2014 - 46 comments
On the right there’s one big party who have the lion’s share of the vote, and a smattering of odd little parties at the kids’ table fighting for scraps and key electorates. It’s one of the reasons National continues to poll so highly: if you’re a rightwing voter, you don’t have any other viable options.
Roads ‘n’ rules
Written By: - Date published: 10:18 am, August 12th, 2014 - 20 comments
The Kumeu candidates debate last night covered topics ranging from the very local, to the global: local roads and round-a-bouts, through the internet, poverty, health, jobs and education, to climate change, the TPPA, and the GCSB. Roads and rules were a recurring theme. [updated: stuff video; links to Green Party speeches]
ACT goes weird
Written By: - Date published: 8:05 am, August 12th, 2014 - 43 comments
ACT Epsom candidate David Seymour is complaining that left voters in the seat may vote tactically.
Open mike 12/08/2014
Written By: - Date published: 6:45 am, August 12th, 2014 - 333 comments
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
New book from Nicky Hager
Written By: - Date published: 12:43 pm, August 11th, 2014 - 32 comments
For those who haven’t heard, Nicky Hager has a new book coming out this week. It will be launched in Wellington on Wednesday. As usual it is likely to be of political interest especially being launched to close to an election.
Polity: Mr Angry tries to reheat 2011 campaign
Written By: - Date published: 12:31 pm, August 11th, 2014 - 13 comments
Steven Joyce is asking about how Labour can afford their policies. Half of the money is what National is planning to spend unwisely. The rest is from documented increases in revenue in a fiscal plan. Unlike National’s mythic surplus, these are solid values. They will produce a solid surplus to pay down National’s debt.
The bottomless Labour-Green divide
Written By: - Date published: 12:00 pm, August 11th, 2014 - 82 comments
It seems like every time Labour (or the Greens) announce a policy the first question (after “what does John Key think about this?”) is “But the Greens (or Labour) have a different policy to the one you just announced! How can you possibly work together in government?”
Get out the vote!
Written By: - Date published: 10:24 am, August 11th, 2014 - 3 comments
11,000+ voters enrolled in the last week – great work, more to be done. For democracy & NZ’s sake, now and in the future, enroll, vote, vote left!
Jamie Whyte officially loses it
Written By: - Date published: 9:52 am, August 11th, 2014 - 54 comments
Not content with seeking support from the Randian loving Maori bashing incest supporting part of the electorate Jamie Whyte is now targeting those against alcohol by suggesting that Race Relations Commissioner Susan Devoy has a drinking problem.
How Labour and the Greens win it from here
Written By: - Date published: 9:20 am, August 11th, 2014 - 81 comments
A great campaign launch from Labour on the weekend, a couple of bad weeks for National and suddenly there is a chance that David Cunliffe may be our next Prime Minister. But how does he succeed and what can progressives do to help?
Open mike 11/08/2014
Written By: - Date published: 6:50 am, August 11th, 2014 - 254 comments
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …
Labour – “Ready to Win”
Written By: - Date published: 3:10 pm, August 10th, 2014 - 135 comments
David Cunliffe’s campaign launch speech.
Added a video of the speech.
Campaign launch – live stream
Written By: - Date published: 1:08 pm, August 10th, 2014 - 61 comments
For those of you who aren’t going to be at the campaign launch today. Here is the link to where the live stream will be.. It is going to be fun to see what happens this afternoon. But I’ll be there so if I have elbow room, I might write something.
Updated with reaction links.
- ‘She believed in people’ – Tributes from across political parties for Dame Tariana...
A stern but loving auntie, a woman of unshakeable principle, the very definition of a wāhine toa - those are just a few of the tributes flooding in for Dame Tariana Turia. ...1 week ago - A year in The House: Law and order, deregulation and repeal
In its first year this Parliament has passed 46 new laws, with another 37 underway. We outline some of the government's major changes. ...1 week ago
- ‘Crime against journalism’: Gaza journalists slam PA’s Al Jazeera ban
By Maram Humaid in Deir el-Balah, Gaza Journalists gathered at Gaza’s Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Hospital expressed outrage and confusion about the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) decision to shut down Al Jazeera’s office in the occupied West Bank. “Shutting down a major outlet like Al Jazeera is a crime against journalism,” said freelance ...1 week ago - Katrina Mitchell-Kouttab: The Palestine tragedy – why it should matter to you and our world
Report by Dr David Robie – Café Pacific. – COMMENTARY: By Katrina Mitchell-Kouttab As 2024 came to a close and we have stepped into a new year overshadowed by ongoing atrocities, have you stopped to consider how these events are reshaping your world? Did you notice how your future ...1 week ago
- Cook Islands ‘not qualified’ for UN membership, says prime minister
By Talaia Mika of the Cook Islands News The Cook Islands will not pursue membership in the United Nations and the Commonwealth due to its inability to meet the criteria for UN membership and existing relationship with New Zealand, which fulfils Commonwealth membership requirements. Prime Minister Mark Brown has clarified ...1 week ago
- Obit: Dame Tariana Turia has died
The former Labour Party MP and Te Pāti Māori co-founder was recognised for her commitment to Māori. ...1 week ago
- Division, abuse and rates pain: Local politics year in review
A rising tide of abuse, escalating costs and the clash between central and local government - Marika Hill looks back at local politics in 2024. ...1 week ago
- Dame Tariana Turia has died
The former politician suffered a stroke earlier this week. ...1 week ago
- ‘One of the most important species for science’: how the humble fruit fly transformed 4 fields o...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ary Hoffmann, Professor, School of BioSciences and Bio21 Institute, The University of Melbourne Drosophila melanogaster. Deep Scope/Shutterstock The common fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster), more correctly called the vinegar fly, is a frequent visitor to ripe fruit in households around the world, where ...1 week ago
- Genius or charlatan? The strange tale of a 19th-century polymath who left a trail of controversy acr...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexandra Ludewig, Professor and Head of the School of Humanities, The University of Western Australia The Burra Burra Mine, 1847. Samuel Thomas Gill / State Library of NSW About 20 minutes’ drive north of Geraldton, on Australia’s west coast, lies a hill ...1 week ago
- Summer holidays haven’t changed much since ancient Greece and Rome (except maybe the sand wrestlin...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Konstantine Panegyres, McKenzie Postdoctoral Fellow, researching Greco-Roman antiquity, The University of Melbourne Imagine a summer holiday at a seaside resort, with days spent sunbathing, reading books, exploring nature and chatting with friends. Sounds like it could be anywhere in Australia or ...1 week ago
- The elimination of cervical cancer in NZ is within reach in our lifetime – but not without funding...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Francesca Storey, Deputy Director Te Tātai Hauora o Hine – National Centre for Women’s Health Research Aotearoa, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington After committing to a global plan to eliminate cervical cancer, New Zealand is lagging behind Australia and ...1 week ago
- Why do some people’s hair and nails grow quicker than mine?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Moscova, Adjunct Associate Professor, Anatomy, UNSW Sydney Jari Lobo/Pexels Throughout recorded history, our hair and nails played an important role in signifying who we are and our social status. You could say, they separate the caveman from businessman. It ...1 week ago
- Monarch butterflies are in decline in NZ and Australia – they need your help to track where they g...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Myron Zalucki, Professor in Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland Kathy Reid, CC BY-SA Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) appear to be declining not just in North America but also in Australiasia. Could this be a consequence of global change, including ...1 week ago
- Australia needs better ways of storing renewable electricity for later. That’s where ‘flow batte...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Maria Skyllas-Kazacos, Professor Emeritus, School of Chemical Engineering, UNSW Sydney As more and more solar and wind energy enters Australia’s grid, we will need ways to store it for later. We can store electricity in several different ways, from pumped hydroelectric ...1 week ago
- Unlocking the past: how NZ’s first jail tells a complex story of colonial identity
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christine McCarthy, Senior Lecturer in Interior Architecture, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington View of Kororāreka in the Bay of Islands, 1845, by George Thomas Clayton. via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY New Zealand’s first jail was a simple affair, just ...1 week ago
- Is it important to read the explanatory labels next to artworks? We asked 5 experts
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Noor Gillani, Digital Culture Editor Shutterstock You’re standing at the centre of an expansive art gallery, overwhelmed by what’s in front of you: panel after panel of stupendous works – densely-written labels affixed next to each piece. These labels may offer ...1 week ago
- Te Pāti Māori co-founder Dame Tariana Turia dies
Dame Tariana Turia has died aged 80 in Whangaehu overnight.The founder and former co-leader of Te Pāti Māori suffered a stroke earlier this week and was said not to have long left.A press release from Te Ranga Tupua said she had died in the early hours of Friday morning. “A mother ...1 week ago - DoC’s big donation drive gets mixed reviews
An $80 million subantarctic pest eradication project is being backed by a high-profile conservation charity targeting wealthy individuals.Since it was established in 2000, NZ Nature Fund has raised $5 million for project-specific conservation work, including $1.2 million over the past year. Projects, often managed by the Department of Conservation (DoC), ...1 week ago
- Rust Belt vs the beltway: Vance’s memoir more relevant than ever
Opinion: When it was first published in 2016, JD Vance’s Hillbilly Elegy was hailed by Britain’s Sunday Times as “the political book of the year”. The Independent described it as “an insight into Trump and Brexit”.Hillbilly Elegy is an autobiographical account of Vance’s life, growing up in a poor, white ...1 week ago
- Positive sports fandom: netball fans show the way
Sport is a place where ‘real’ fans are often assumed to be men. Global research tells us that female fans of live men’s sport often face misogynistic and homophobic environments that include swearing, drunkenness and yelling negative comments and abuse at opponents and referees. In men’s sport, a quick skim through ...1 week ago
- Page-turning rural gothic: Ash by Louise Wallace, reviewed
Summer reissue: Books editor Claire Mabey reviews poet Louise Wallace’s debut novel. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up to be a member today. A famous poet once said to ...1 week ago - A brief history of New Zealand’s weirdest mystery food dumps
Summer reissue: Alex Casey talks a stroll through headlines detailing hundreds of beached kiwifruit, dozens of mailbox sausages and one giant mystery ham. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up ...1 week ago
- My Greatest Trip: My awkward high-school exchange to Germany
Summer reissue: Hera Lindsay Bird on her Bildungsroman. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up to be a member today. I would never have gone to Germany if it wasn’t ...1 week ago
- Following the Swiss wolf, who walked 2,000 kilometres for love
Summer reissue: When we insert ourselves into the lives of animals, we become complicit in their fates. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up to be a member today. Before ...1 week ago
- Prison or nothing: The ‘self-perpetuating downward spiral’ in New Zealand’s mental health syst...
Summer reissue: With specialist mental health services in ‘chaos’, people who need help end up in destructive cycles and prison. Experts say there are solutions, but is political will and leadership lacking? The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of ...1 week ago
- Daily crossword, Friday 3 January
The post Daily crossword, Friday 3 January appeared first on Newsroom. ...1 week ago
- Newsroom daily quiz, Friday 3 January
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp');Got a good quiz question? Send Newsroom your questions. .wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles article .entry-title { font-size: 1.2em; } .wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles .entry-meta { display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; align-items: center; margin-top: 0.5em; } .wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles article .entry-meta { font-size: 0.8em; } .wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles article .avatar { height: 25px; width: ...1 week ago
- Pryde ‘may have to wait’ over tribunal report, says Fiji President’s office
By Cheerieann Wilson in Suva Fiji’s Office of the President has confirmed that the Tribunal’s report on allegations of misconduct against suspended Director of Public Prosecutions Christopher Pryde does not need to be made public at this stage. The tribunal, chaired by Justice Anare Tuilevuka with Justices Chaitanya Lakshman and ...1 week ago
- Virgin Australia confirms ‘serious security incident’ with crew in Fiji
By Anish Chand in Suva Virgin Australia has confirmed a “serious security incident” with its flight crew members who were in Fiji on New Year’s Day. Virgin Australia’s chief operating officer Stuart Aggs said the incident took place on Tuesday night – New Year’s Eve The crew members were in ...1 week ago
- CPJ condemns ban on Al Jazeera – network decries bid to ‘hide the truth’
Pacific Media Watch The New York-based global media watchdog Committee to Protect Journalists has condemned a decision by the Palestinian Authority to suspend Al Jazeera’s operations in the West Bank and called for it to be reversed “immediately”. “Governments resort to censoring news outlets when they have something to hide,” ...1 week ago
- New Caledonia political crisis costs one third of multi-million French package
By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk An emergency 231 million euro (NZ$428 million) French aid package for New Caledonia has been reduced by one third because of the French Pacific territory’s current political crisis. The initial French package was endorsed in early December 2024, in an 11th-hour ...1 week ago
- Isidore of Seville: the patron saint of the internet who shaped knowledge for generations
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Darius von Guttner Sporzynski, Researcher, Historian, Australian Catholic University Stone statue of Saint Isidore of Seville at the National Library of Spain. WH_Pics/Shutterstock In a world where information flows freely, it’s easy to forget that, for centuries, knowledge was much harder to ...1 week ago
- Why your spin bike has become a clothes rack – and what you can do about it, according to behaviou...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Swee-Hoon Chuah, Professor of Behavioural Economics, Tasmanian Behavioural Lab, University of Tasmania Shutterstock Chances are that the end of the year has made you assess some of your 2024 New Year’s resolutions. Perhaps you, like us, bought a home spin bike ...1 week ago
- Most adults will gain half a kilo this year – and every year. Here’s how to stop ‘weight creep...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nick Fuller, Clinical Trials Director, Department of Endocrinology, RPA Hospital, University of Sydney Allgo/Unsplash As we enter a new year armed with resolutions to improve our lives, there’s a good chance we’ll also be carrying something less helpful: extra kilos. At ...1 week ago
- Ka tuku te rākau: Handing over the baton of protest to a new generation
Summer reissue: As tens of thousands showed their support for the hīkoi to parliament, the organisers were busy behind the scenes ensuring things run smoothly. For many, this was their first time leading a kaupapa of this scale – and it wasn’t all easy. The Spinoff needs to double the ...1 week ago
- A drink with Lucinda Light, the greatest MAFS participant of all time
Summer reissue: Married at First Sight superfan Tara Ward charges down the aisle to meet this season’s brightest star. It is a Thursday afternoon, and I am staring deep into Lucinda Light’s eyes. It feels like my own personal version of the eye gazing task on Married At First Sight ...1 week ago
- Dame Tariana Turia suffers a stroke, surrounded by family
The former politician is surrounded by her whānau after suffering a stroke earlier this week. ...1 week ago
- ‘If we can do a wedding in 5 days, we can do anything we set our minds to’
Comment: Some people make long lists of things they want to do. When my partner Solly and I decided we wanted to get married, just five days before I flew out on tour with the Black Ferns and he flew out to play for Biarritz, I said, ‘well, how many ...1 week ago
- To belong should never be beyond hope
Opinion: I recently had a wonderful meal with Bariz Shah and his wife Saba, together with their two pre-school children. I had to admit that I hadn’t read Bariz’s book Beyond Hope yet, but after talking about their life over dinner, I knew I had to read it.Imagine arriving in Auckland ...1 week ago
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