Author Archive

Re-imagining Danyl’s special theory of Key

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 9:37 am, February 19th, 2011 - 45 comments

Over at Dimpost, Danyl wrote an interesting piece after seeing the video of John Key in the House saying that if Kiwi families find themselves needing to go to foodbanks it is their fault. That nasty moment, Danyl thought, explained the disconnect between how the political Left and the general public perceives Key. Actually, it’s just the surface.

Davey’s dodgy polling

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 10:59 am, February 17th, 2011 - 24 comments

There’s long been doubt over the quality of David Farrar’s Curia polling company. Now, Tim Watkin has produced a first-hand report of Curia’s questioning. The tone of the questions is biased, which is really dumb if you’re trying to get useful data. It’s not really push polling, it’s Farrar delivering what the Nats want to hear to maintain his standing in the party.

Key: poverty is your fault

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 9:30 am, February 17th, 2011 - 125 comments

John Key says if you’re having trouble getting by on your income it’s due to your ‘lifestyle choices‘. Key has given himself at least $23,000 in tax cuts and had a $7,500 rise with our borrowed money. He has the worst economic record of any PM in 80 years: 86,000 more jobless Kiwis, falling incomes. And this bastard blames Kiwi families for their poverty.

S&P says no need for cuts, asset sales

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 12:00 pm, February 16th, 2011 - 27 comments

As you know, National has been trying to justify selling off our assets and cutting our public services to pay for tax cuts for the rich by saying that debt is at dangerous levels and we risk a credit downgrade. Numerous commentators have shown that’s false. Now, the final nail in the coffin has come from credit ratings agency Standard & Poor’s.

Greens right on Gillard

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 10:00 am, February 15th, 2011 - 147 comments

It seems odd at first, blocking our closest friend’s leader from speaking in our Parliament, but the Greens were right to look at the higher principle. The debating chamber is where our sovereign assembly meets, it is not a place for foreigners to come, at the government of the day’s invitation, and lecture our elected representatives. I think the NBR put it best..

Key, Beck & the end of empire

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 11:50 am, February 14th, 2011 - 29 comments

John Key’s support for Mubarak arose from the American far-right’s fear of Egyptian democracy. We laugh at Glenn Beck’s crazy conspiracy theories and the hypocrites who invaded Iraq to ‘spread democracy’ yet oppose free elections in Egypt because of who might get elected but there’s a deeper story here: the end of the American Empire.

Mubarak gone

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 10:12 am, February 12th, 2011 - 58 comments

Great news from Egypt: Hosni Mubarak has resigned. Could we be witnessing a wave of democratisation like the one that swept Eastern Europe after the fall of the Berlin Wall? Lets hope so. The army is now in charge and it was the army that overthrew the monarchy and created the dictatorship in the first place. Democracy may not be their goal.

Power: saving money too expensive

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 8:08 am, February 12th, 2011 - 7 comments

The government is pleading poverty thanks to the tax cuts for the rich (and even though government debt is under control). This is their excuse for welfare and spending cuts and asset sales. This is shown to be pure spin by the fact that they’re passing over the opportunity to save the economy $75 million because they won’t spend $28 million.

Govt is not there to make your life better – Bennett

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 12:14 pm, February 11th, 2011 - 56 comments

The nice thing about David Bennett is he says what other Nats are smart enough to keep quiet. Remember his rant against the minimum wage? But he out did himself with his speech defending the appalling record of the National government. It turns out the brighter future Key promised was a lie – the National government “is not there to make your life better”.

The opening exchanges

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 12:08 pm, February 9th, 2011 - 50 comments

In this post, I’ve embedded the speeches from John Key, Phil Goff, and Metiria Turei during yesterday’s first day of Parliament. Key presents no new vision, just an agenda of cuts and false statistics couple with sheer delusion about his government’s record. Goff tears him apart. And Turei’s speech is simply breath-taking – incredibly moving.

You can’t mix oil and water

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 12:14 pm, February 8th, 2011 - 46 comments

Every new party faces an inevitable conflict between the ‘realos’ and the ‘fundis’ over how much principle can be compromised to make some gains through coalitions. The Maori Party made it far worse by supporting a party that is anathema to everything it stands for. That big mistake is at the root of collapse we’re now witnessing.

No Aroha for Key

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 12:00 pm, February 7th, 2011 - 27 comments

Tomorrow is the first day of Parliament for the year, so I’m picking we’ll see John Key’s annual passing mention of the ‘underclass’. You remember Key’s promise to make lifting the underclass his priority, eh? Well, Key doesn’t. He has abandoned Aroha Nathan after using her for PR and now says he can’t do anything for the poor.

Key’s priorities laid-bare

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 9:00 am, February 7th, 2011 - 24 comments

When a millionaire director and a foreign corporate wanted millions in tax breaks, Key jumped to it. When SCF collapsed the investors got an average of $60K, no questions asked. But when it comes to helping the ordinary families of Christchurch and the West Coast, the Nats are nowhere to be seen once the cameras are gone.

Needed like a hole in the head

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 12:20 pm, February 1st, 2011 - 63 comments

Judith Collins is an utter failure. She calls herself ‘Crusher’ but hasn’t crushed a single car two years after promising to. Crime has gone up under her watch and police deaths have increased despite her claim that the Taser would make them safer. So, there’s plenty of good ways to criticise her without dumb shit like this.

Key: Mubarak’s last supporter?

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 10:53 pm, January 31st, 2011 - 82 comments

Like many of you, I stopped watching Breakfast after Paul Henry left* but an alert reader sent me this interview with John Key on the show yesterday. Before he makes his weak excuses for not Mondayising public holidays but he says something truly amazing: he thinks Mubarak should stay in power in Egypt just because he recognises Israel.

Be honest on holidays, John

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 1:22 pm, January 31st, 2011 - 44 comments

John Key says he needs ‘advice’ on Mondayising ANZAC Day and Waitangi Day. The fact is the move would be right and popular but his business mates are too cheap to pay an extra 4 days every 7 years. Key’s just playing for time.

Time for the Goffice to step up to the plate

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 11:36 am, January 29th, 2011 - 137 comments

We face a stark choice this year: a Labour-led government, which will create fairer tax and invest in jobs and innovation, or National-led government, which will govern for the kleptocracy, giving them tax cuts, then selling our assets and slashing our public services to pay for them. So why is the Goffice doing such a bad job making the case?

Food/oil crisis sparking revolutions

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 9:47 am, January 29th, 2011 - 17 comments

Food and oil prices have sparked unrest across North Africa. The Tunisian Government has fallen. Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak has declared martial law. In Cairo, thousands of protesters shook hands with the soldiers, and chanted: “The army and the people are united” and “The revolution has come.”* Yup. Mubarak’s screwed.

Stupid but dangerous

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 11:10 am, January 28th, 2011 - 25 comments

The Republican Party may be entering its death throes. In an unprecedented move, there were two competing Republican response speeches to President Obama’s State of the Union address. One from Paul Ryan, the powerful Chair of the House Budget Committee. The other from a Teabagger who looked into the wrong camera the whole time.

Pride cometh

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 7:41 am, January 27th, 2011 - 17 comments

Senior Maori Party staffers have been deserting the party in droves in recent months, including chief of staff Harry Walker, repulsed by the leadership selling out to National. It’s gotten so bad that they’ve had to out-source their spin doctoring to the Tories. You think I’m joking? I wish. This illuminates Hone Harawira’s fight with the leadership.

Don’t abandon Pike River recovery

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 10:44 am, January 26th, 2011 - 21 comments

Good news for families of the Pike River miners. The Police have shown them video proving their mens bodies are still intact. It raises questions about the government’s actions. Why was this footage previously withheld? Why were the Nats spinning that there was nothing left to recover? And why was the recovery really abandoned so hastily?

Why are Turia & Sharples cuddling up to Key?

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 9:53 am, January 25th, 2011 - 22 comments

At this stage in the electoral cycle, government support parties are usually looking to try to differentiate themselves from the main governing party. They need to do this to show they still hold true to their own values and have a separate identity that is worth voting for. The Maori Party is doing to opposite.

Key’s solution for Maori problems: prison

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 6:22 am, January 25th, 2011 - 101 comments

John Key on Radiolive yesterday: “There are a lot of factors at play sometimes socio-economic, so there are a lot of negative statistics for the want of a better description that that Maori dominate and we need to make changes there whether it’s prison, incarceration or whatever”. Key thinks all Maori are crims. Welcome to your brighter future: it’s behind bars.

Ministers put public land in private hands

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 9:28 am, January 24th, 2011 - 28 comments

You’ll remember the disgraceful Schmuck scandal when Minister John Carter had clauses inserted into legislation specifically to legalise Doug Schmuck’s annexation of a public reserve. John Key took no action. Now, Kate Wilkinson and David Carter got in on the act – forcing DoC to sign over more public land for private use.

Hoots overshoots

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 7:07 pm, January 22nd, 2011 - 54 comments

I see the NBR lost another 6% of its circulation last year, so I thought it was worth giving Matthew Hooton’s latest rant in that publication a wider audience. Hoots has a go at us and Clare Curran for criticising the violent rhetoric of Sarah Palin and the Tea Party. Apparently, holding people accountable for what they say is restricting free speech.

Caption contest

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 2:30 pm, January 21st, 2011 - 45 comments

Minister for Unemployment and Associate Minister for Overseas Holidays Paula Bennett.

She really seems to be enjoying herself and not posing at all in this picture by Herald photographer Brett Phibbs.

Hone’s motives grow murkier

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 10:37 am, January 21st, 2011 - 17 comments

Why did Hone Harawira pick a fight if he wasn’t prepared to see it out? One News last night had him saying he wants to stay with the Maori Party. Patrick Gower reckons Hone’s assault on the leadership is all about building cred to take over next year but Hone’s saying he would support Te Ururoa Flavell for male co-leader. Curiouser and curiouser.

Pike river facts needed

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 11:58 am, January 20th, 2011 - 27 comments

The dearth of solid information on the Pike River situation and the contradictory statements from the government have naturally led to suspicion that we’re not being told the whole story. The government has been caught flat-footed by the blowback. Now, finally, the Police are going to release their technical information, allowing independent assessments.

Hone the victim or the playmaker?

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 8:44 am, January 20th, 2011 - 106 comments

Hone Harawira is many things but stupid isn’t one of them. He has cleverly created a situation where Tariana Turia and her lackeys have had to attack him for daring to speak truth to power. It’s Hone who has been the protagonist. It’s he who has fronted to the media while Turia has hidden. He’s been planning this and he knows how it will play out.

Maori Party MPs turn on Hone

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 9:56 am, January 19th, 2011 - 101 comments

On Sunday and Monday, Hone Harawira gave very cogent and candid assessments of where the Maori Party has gone wrong by losing connection with its ideals and base. By the standards of mainstream parties it was extraordinarly blunt and appeared to be a challenge to Tariana Turia. But the Maori Party can be and should be different, eh? Seems not. Hone’s four fellow MPs have laid a complaint against him.

Giffords shooting fall-out

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 7:20 am, January 19th, 2011 - 17 comments

Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords survived the assassination attempt but the political fall-out has just begun. In the US’s strange post-modern politics, Obama’s speech is the most popular thing he’s done, while Sarah Palin screwed up badly. Meanwhile, guns like the one used are flying off the shelves and Arizona is relaxing gun laws further.