Author Archive

Housing selloff – obsessive secrecy and power

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 8:35 am, August 19th, 2015 - 21 comments

National’s selloff of our state houses is yet another example of its two main obsessions, secrecy and unaccountable power.

TPP and the Pharmac reality

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 11:37 am, August 18th, 2015 - 34 comments

Key glibly says that the government will meet increased costs for medicine under the TPPP, but the reality for Pharmac is that its budget is already squeezed. If the TPP goes ahead Key’s promise will quickly be “forgotten”.

MSD household incomes report

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 9:34 am, August 18th, 2015 - 7 comments

While we devote acres of pixels to flag distractions and “celebrity” nonsense, the health of the nation goes largely unremarked. Was there any MSM coverage of the latest Ministry of Social Development report – Household Incomes in New Zealand: trends in indicators of inequality and hardship 1982 to 2014?

Earth overshoot day

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 11:20 am, August 17th, 2015 - 22 comments

August 13th was Earth Overshoot Day. We have already consumed what the Earth can sustainably produce in a year, for the rest of this year we are consuming “ecological capital”. This can’t go on. But it is a problem that our current political and economic systems cannot solve.

Labour is the party of economic competence

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 7:10 am, August 17th, 2015 - 147 comments

The old myth that National are good managers of the economy should now be well dead and buried. For a recent case study see Robertson vs Joyce on dairy prices…

Obama’s climate initiative – too little too late

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 11:39 am, August 5th, 2015 - 48 comments

Far too late in his presidency Obama is taking important action on climate change. But it isn’t enough, not nearly enough, as new research shows that we need to achieve “negative emissions” (i.e. carbon capture).

American oligarchy

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 10:14 am, August 5th, 2015 - 37 comments

american-oligarchy

Colin Craig is serious

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 7:02 am, August 4th, 2015 - 84 comments

Colin Craig is serious about suing Williams, Stringer and Slater. His pamphlet is appearing in letter boxes (as far south as Dunedin). He’s putting dirty politics back in the spotlight, reminding NZ what a sleazy and amoral government this is, and the tactics and tools to which it will stoop. Updated with the soap-opera latest developments.

Weekend reading for the Nats

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 9:02 am, August 3rd, 2015 - 14 comments

There were some good opinion pieces published over the weekend. Not comfortable reading for the Nats.

Helen Clark in the news

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 11:30 am, August 2nd, 2015 - 20 comments

A couple of good pieces on Helen Clark recently, on global challenges and on UN leadership.

Shut up and take your medicine

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 7:30 am, July 31st, 2015 - 26 comments

As commentators and dairy industry insiders warn of TPP disaster, the Nats’ message to we the people is shut up and take our medicine – oh and by the way the price just went up.

What’s a charter school gotta do?

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 9:23 am, July 30th, 2015 - 7 comments

What exactly does a charter school have to do in order to be held accountable?

We’re going to sign a rubbish deal

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 8:58 am, July 30th, 2015 - 106 comments

We’re not making progress on dairy in the TPP negotiations, but the smart money reckons we’re going to sign anyway.

Update: Read what a real journalist has to say on the current state of negotiations.

Giving away the shop for nothing

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 9:29 am, July 29th, 2015 - 144 comments

We are giving away the shop and we don’t know what if anything we will get in terms of dairy access yet. Our negotiators have signaled that they are weak. And even if we get what we want it is probably worth bugger all anyway.

What will National give away?

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 9:14 am, July 28th, 2015 - 108 comments

Labour has set out its bottom lines for supporting the TPP. My question to National and its supporters – which of Labour’s bottom lines are you prepared to give away, and why?

Update: We can cross off point 1, Key sells out Pharmac.

Internal polling apparently good

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 6:57 am, July 28th, 2015 - 233 comments

It’s not a good idea in general to comment on internal polling. But since they were discussed on other blogs yesterday – Labour’s current numbers are looking good.

National’s lightweight conference

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 6:30 am, July 27th, 2015 - 25 comments

National had a conference in the weekend. They used it to re-announce some Labour policy, but otherwise if you noticed it was probably because of the protest outside.

Admitting failure on private prisons

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 8:45 am, July 25th, 2015 - 32 comments

The Nats have been forced to call in the good old-fashioned state to clear up Serco’s mess.

National’s law ruled a violation of human rights

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 7:48 am, July 25th, 2015 - 16 comments

The High Court has ruled that a law passed by National in 2010 is a violation of the Bill of Rights Act. This is a first for NZ, and another “proud” item to add to National’s legacy.

John Key explains

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 7:01 am, July 24th, 2015 - 87 comments

John Key on the death at a Serco run prison. Words fail me.

Key out of touch

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 12:33 pm, July 23rd, 2015 - 115 comments

The “rags to riches” narrative is changing to “out of touch”.

So much for the competitive market

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 7:02 am, July 23rd, 2015 - 18 comments

I love how right-wing ideology is just some thing that can be switched on and off at will. Case in point, ownership of state houses…

More charter school fiascos

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 11:48 am, July 22nd, 2015 - 15 comments

Charter schools continue to hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons. Right-wingers continue to back them for all the wrong reasons.

Saying one thing and doing the other

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 9:16 am, July 22nd, 2015 - 40 comments

Both Key and English now on record as being “concerned” about rising inequality. So why are they acting to increase it?

Benefit numbers falling – through the cracks

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 12:04 pm, July 21st, 2015 - 40 comments

As the Nats celebrate “falling” benefit numbers it turns out that almost half who leave the benefit are not going in to work. So what happens to them?

National doesn’t know what it’s doing on foreign buyers

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 11:41 am, July 20th, 2015 - 158 comments

National on a foreign buyers register: Smith says no, English says yes, Collins says maybe, Key says – bad Labour!

Dear John Roughan

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 8:04 am, July 19th, 2015 - 41 comments

Dear John Roughan – I don’t think you’re a stupid person, but sometimes you use your platform in The Herald to say stupid things.

Labour on fire at will

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 7:37 am, July 18th, 2015 - 195 comments

It was reported yesterday that “Labour would retain 90-day trial periods, but make them fairer”. Despite last minute claims to the contrary on Twitter, I think that this is probably correct.