Archive for September, 2014

The last five days

Written By: - Date published: 5:53 pm, September 25th, 2014 - 63 comments

An accident… Then an odd thing starts to happen. Instead of helping the survivors and securing the scene, the rescue crew start fighting amongst themselves. How did the crash happen? Was it was the driver’s fault? What was the main cause of the accident?

Facebook censoring pages critical of John Key?

Written By: - Date published: 9:02 am, September 25th, 2014 - 137 comments

A facebook group called “John Key has let down New Zealand” has just been closed for violations of the user agreement. This group had 16.000 members and was one of the most active political facebook pages in NZ.

Health service funding

Written By: - Date published: 7:44 am, September 25th, 2014 - 62 comments

The Nats are steadily cutting funding (in real terms) to health (and other sectors). Today, yet another doctor broke. Welcome to the brighter future.

Open mike 25/09/2014

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, September 25th, 2014 - 289 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 …

Kumbaya

Written By: - Date published: 10:01 pm, September 24th, 2014 - 88 comments

Musings from Captain Obvious

NRT: Will Key act on child poverty?

Written By: - Date published: 6:38 pm, September 24th, 2014 - 17 comments

While the left lost the election, it looks like we’ve won another battle in the war of ideas, with John Key being forced to at least pretend he wants to do something about child poverty. Ideas long recommended from the Children’s Commissioner may finally be implemented.

Labour’s Choice

Written By: - Date published: 2:48 pm, September 24th, 2014 - 140 comments

Labours choice.

WANTED: new ideas on child poverty

Written By: - Date published: 1:00 pm, September 24th, 2014 - 88 comments

It’s great to see John Key taking a sudden interest in addressing child poverty in New Zealand. But why the change of heart?

Some brief musings on unity

Written By: - Date published: 11:21 am, September 24th, 2014 - 287 comments

It’s up to all of us.

Open mike 24/09/2014

Written By: - Date published: 6:30 am, September 24th, 2014 - 252 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 …

No rush to judgment

Written By: - Date published: 10:31 pm, September 23rd, 2014 - 146 comments

It would appear that the Labour caucus has decided to take its time to fully consider all implications of what was a massive defeat before proceeding to decide questions of leadership. I think that is wise – we have to get the Labour horse in proper shape for the next race before we worry about the jockey.

Time to say thanks

Written By: - Date published: 8:24 pm, September 23rd, 2014 - 14 comments

A word of thanks to our departing Members of Parliament – Hon Maryan Street, Moana Mackey, Raymond Huo and Carol Beaumont. All those who put themselves forward to serve our cause in Parliament deserve our sincerest and most heartfelt thanks. Their life  becomes an open book, their time is  no longer their own, and the verdict of the electorate can be cruel for those on the list. Thanks to all for your commitment and contribution to Labour.

For all our futures

Written By: - Date published: 7:13 pm, September 23rd, 2014 - 16 comments

With massive demonstrations across the world urging the UN & governments to do very much more to counter climate change, Al Jazeera’s Inside Story covers the demos and examines the issues.

The Election That Left One Third of Us Behind

Written By: - Date published: 5:32 pm, September 23rd, 2014 - 171 comments

No one should begrudge John Key and the National party the right to celebrate an impressive election victory. It is little consolation to those who opposed them that the win is very much a personal triumph for the Prime Minister rather than for the party and government he leads. As the tumult and the shouting […]

Where’s the Whip?

Written By: - Date published: 1:23 pm, September 23rd, 2014 - 146 comments

Our Labour MPs seem to be in disarray.  Somehow the party that teaches solidarity keeps on being fractured, while the party that teaches individualism is a strong union.

Why are they talking to each other through the media instead of picking up the phone?

Labour’s leadership

Written By: - Date published: 10:24 am, September 23rd, 2014 - 216 comments

David Cunliffe has just announced that he will seek to continue as leader of the Labour Party and will let the party decide.  A contest for the leadership is almost inevitable.

Clean it up

Written By: - Date published: 10:00 am, September 23rd, 2014 - 70 comments

Action Station has a full page ad in today’s NZ Herald, asking to clean up dirty politics. Dirty Politics is not any isolated attack politics or criticism of those in power.  It is a relentless two track strategy, an orchestrated smear machine, aimed at moving politics rightwards & disengaging (left wing) voters. Update: Hager comments on the election.

Our children in Wellington

Written By: - Date published: 9:06 am, September 23rd, 2014 - 282 comments

I’m pretty sure that David Cunliffe would win a members and affiliates vote. So suck it up MPs, stop playing your silly caucus games and do some frigging work this term rather than the self-indulgent posturing you wasted time with last term. We have to start building campaigning machinery as soon as possible. You are getting in the way.

Open mike 23/09/2014

Written By: - Date published: 6:30 am, September 23rd, 2014 - 234 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 …

Idiots, Cowards and Bastards.

Written By: - Date published: 4:18 pm, September 22nd, 2014 - 47 comments

When they write about it at all, the media tends to produce a lot of smash on the issue of global warming, and I’ve had enough of the crap. I apologise for both the length of this post and the number of data chewing links (pdfs and video). I’m hoping to write a number of posts looking at global warming from a variety of perspectives, and hopefully, it’ll be possible to keep others somewhat briefer than this one.

NRT: MMP, electorates, and misaligned incentives

Written By: - Date published: 3:18 pm, September 22nd, 2014 - 165 comments

No Right Turn points out the underlying truth of voting in an MMP environment. For the party electorate seats don’t matter much. Running electorate only campaigns are not productive. He is wrong in ascribing them no value. They provide a base for campaigning.

National’s promises to you. #1.

Written By: - Date published: 1:57 pm, September 22nd, 2014 - 31 comments

Nationals promises to you. #1.

The lurch to the right begins

Written By: - Date published: 9:20 am, September 22nd, 2014 - 129 comments

Expect to see a lot of drastic rightwing policies this term as John Key redefines the term “centre ground.”

Lessons

Written By: - Date published: 7:02 am, September 22nd, 2014 - 482 comments

Greetings from the sanity of Dunedin North. Every pundit and their dog is opining on the lessons of Saturday, so I might as well have a go too.

Open mike 22/09/2014

Written By: - Date published: 6:45 am, September 22nd, 2014 - 311 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 …

Psephology-o-rama: Hangover nerdery edition

Written By: - Date published: 1:51 pm, September 21st, 2014 - 23 comments

Now that the battle for election night ratings is over for another three years, here is a table for your entrail-reading pleasure showing the three biggest parties’ vote shares in a few different geographic / demographic segments.

Looking Ahead

Written By: - Date published: 12:26 pm, September 21st, 2014 - 145 comments

Win or lose, there are never any final battles in politics. A defeat simply means the firing of the starting gun for the next round in a never-ending struggle. And, especially for the left, it is the struggle that matters. Without that struggle and the effort that has gone into it, the values of fairness, […]

Media don’t believe their own polls

Written By: - Date published: 11:14 am, September 21st, 2014 - 62 comments

What strikes me now is the media commentators saying it was “a surprising result”. Well, if we were to believe all the polls, then this result is not a surprise. This tells us that the media don’t believe their own polls.

Another 3 years of work (first notes)

Written By: - Date published: 10:36 am, September 21st, 2014 - 126 comments

My first notes on the election results. Labour has to maintain stability internally and start campaigning now. Obviously the dirty politics is the current leverage but the tanking economy is an issue as well. Some of National puppet parties are really looking like gutted husks..

My morning thoughts on the night before

Written By: - Date published: 9:20 am, September 21st, 2014 - 34 comments

It will take a flax roots, bottom-up, community-based movement to rebuild democracy and a fair, caring and sustainable society.

Three more years

Written By: - Date published: 9:00 am, September 21st, 2014 - 141 comments

This election result is not the end of the world for me – because I am very, very lucky.