Author Archive

Power to the people

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 5:35 am, May 22nd, 2009 - 53 comments

This just in – the electricity market isn’t working. Well, plenty of people were saying that would happen back in the 1990s when National insisted on giving it a go. They split up the ECNZ into four bite size pieces to compete against each other. They planned to sell them all and create a totally private electricity […]

Starting early

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 10:00 am, May 21st, 2009 - 68 comments

I’m starting to feel a little sorry for Melissa Lee given the punching bag she’s become. True, she’s brought it on herself, but even I felt a little queasy watching the events at Auckland University yesterday. But for anyone who looked behind the “rising star” brand National was trying to sell us the warning signs […]

‘Punch in the face’ dad guilty

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 8:25 am, May 20th, 2009 - 90 comments

What’s wrong with The Herald? Their articles Jimmy Mason on the father who punched his child in the face – and pulled him by the ear, and picked him and his brother up on their bikes and slammed them down – has described him as the ‘ear-flick’ father. The headline today is ‘Ear flick father […]

Why Lee is banned from interviews

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 7:23 pm, May 19th, 2009 - 122 comments

Rumour has it Melissa has been banned from giving formal interviews by National’s leadership but what’s the harm in answering a few questions from a reporter? Let’s see: Garner tries to tempt her into repeating her motorway comments but she doesn’t need the help. She is totally self-centred. Notice how all her stories are about […]

Cyclewatch

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 11:09 am, May 19th, 2009 - 32 comments

Time: 54 days Jobs created: 0 Built (km): 0 out of 1500 Cost thus far: $50m (Budget 2009) Govt estimated cost (English): ‘Not $50m this year, next year, or the year after’ Country status: In recession Eddie wonders aloud: “Who’s more deluded, John Key for thinking his cycleway spin would make people forget about unemployment, […]

The ‘Rankin Effect’

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 7:39 am, May 19th, 2009 - 11 comments

Why is the National government delaying its announcement of the Supercity transitional agency? The Rankin Effect. That’s the flinch you get when your rampant arrogance becomes a bit too obvious. But despite the Rankin Effect, it looks like most of Rodney Hide’s picks for the new board will pass Key’s test. Who wants to take […]

Transition Agency knocked back

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 2:13 pm, May 18th, 2009 - 24 comments

Stuff is reporting that cabinet has failed to approve the make up of the Auckland Supercity transition agency. In case you’re out of the loop, that’s the unlected oligarchy that will now effectively govern Auckland without any democratic accountability, running roughshod over the results of the 2007 local body elections. The prediction had been that […]

No credible argument against referendum

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 11:15 am, May 18th, 2009 - 32 comments

This morning Radio NZ ran a report on the increasing grassroots opposition to the Government’s supercity plans. In the interview that followed it Rodney Hide was asked why the Government won’t let Aucklanders have the final say on the proposal through a referendum. His answer? The tired, discredited old line that it’s “not just a […]

The Maori Party’s commitment to democracy

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 12:46 pm, May 16th, 2009 - 60 comments

In an epic last-ditch defence of Aucklanders’ right to be consulted on the removal of their democracy, Labour and the Greens are currently filibustering the government’s enabling legislation in Parliament by forcing a vote on thousands of new amendments. Their objective is simple, they want to get the bill off to a select committee and […]

The Green New Deal

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 12:58 pm, May 15th, 2009 - 12 comments

The Greens have released their Green New Deal (PDF), which they hope the Government will pick up in part or in whole. It looks like a comprehensive plan to boost employment and the economy in the short-term and, just as importantly, build a green economy for the future. It leaves everything we’ve seen from this lazy do-nothing […]

The real apology

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 9:44 am, May 15th, 2009 - 34 comments

The PM’s office Melissa Lee has released an apology for her ‘crims on the motorway’ comments. Well, not a genuine apology – ‘it was a heated debate’ is the line, which TUMEKE! exposes as a lie and not an excuse anyway. On Red Alert, Trevor Mallard (who is taking to blogging like, um, a duck to […]

Few sandwiches short of a picnic

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 8:42 pm, May 14th, 2009 - 20 comments

This, I swear, is a complete and unedited press release from Roger Douglas. A Recipe To Grow The Economic Cake -Hon Sir Roger Douglas Thursday, May 14 2009 Yield: An equitable serving for all Ingredients 2½ cup Productivity 1½ cup Fiscal Responsibility 1 cup Sound Infrastructure Investment 6 eggs Full of Savings 3/4 cup Free […]

Cycleway gets the cash

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 3:31 pm, May 14th, 2009 - 23 comments

John Key has overruled Bill English and got the money for his beloved cycleway (now a group of “Great Rides”), $50 million spread over three years. I won’t waste too much time on the substance.The argument’s the same as it always was. Cycle tracks are neat but spending $50 million on them over three years […]

Ravi back in the running?

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 12:00 pm, May 14th, 2009 - 68 comments

Over at Red Alert, the Labour MPs’ blog, Trevor Mallard points out that nominations for the Mt Albert by-election don’t close until next week. If John Key, as Mallard puts it, “has the balls” he can tell Melissa Lee to stand down and the National selection can be held again. Poor old Ravi Musuku might […]

Lee implodes

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 7:30 am, May 14th, 2009 - 73 comments

And the ticking timebomb goes off. From Not PC on last night’s Mt Albert candidates’ debate: Most of what every mainstream candidate had to say on the night was both instantly forgettable and intended only for short-term political advantage. But there was one thing one candidate said that is now going to dog her through the […]

Fyfe’s model for the future

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 10:23 am, May 13th, 2009 - 9 comments

Despite four days of strike action and growing public outrage over Air New Zealand’s treatment of its Zeal320 flight attendants, CEO Rob Fyfe is still refusing to even start closing the glaring pay gap between these workers and those employed directly by AirNZ. Why is Fyfe willing to force these workers into even more strike […]

Worth the while?

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 12:26 pm, May 12th, 2009 - 17 comments

We got a guest post a fortnight ago that we keep meaning to put up with the title “Worth fails to cock-up for a week, apologises to PM”. Lucky we didn’t speak too soon. The background is this. Chris Hipkins, like any good MP does, has been asking written questions to the minister for his […]

Have your say, make them listen

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 5:03 am, May 12th, 2009 - 14 comments

The government has announced its legislative plan for the supercity in a press release from John Carter, rather than Rodney Hide whose arrogant mishandling of the issue is privately blamed by National for the growing unrest in Auckland. The press release says: Now that the Government has announced our position on the Royal Commission’s Report into […]

Disconnect

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 10:43 pm, May 10th, 2009 - 47 comments

As Labour learned to its cost last year you can’t keep on insisting that something is true if the public’s opinion has hardened against it. Once the disconnect is in place, not only do you fail to bring people to your point of view, your efforts make you look aloof or unlistening, hurting your popularity. […]

When more is less

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 3:31 pm, May 8th, 2009 - 2 comments

Colin Espiner writes: “Another thing that’s being clearly signalled is that Labour’s previous spending promises in health and education won’t be honoured in the Budget. That $3.4 billion of spending Labour planned for 2009/2010… At the same time, Key and English are at pains to say that health and education spending will increase – and […]

From the picket line

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 2:52 pm, May 8th, 2009 - 19 comments

A Zeal worker on the picket line in Wellington explains why she and her workmates are taking strike action at Air New Zealand: There’s also a report from the picket line at The Hand Mirror, photos from the pickets here and a timetable of when pickets are happening around the country here for those who […]

Hide on his way to Privileges Committee?

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 5:32 am, May 8th, 2009 - 44 comments

Has Rodney Hide breached privilege by seriously misleading the House? This is one for you legal types out there but from a layperson’s perspective it looks like it. Here’s what happened (the full transcripts are below): On Wednesday, Phil Twyford (or Twif-ford as Hide insists on calling him) asked Hide whether “he has costed the super-city proposal outlined […]

CycleWatch

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 8:33 pm, May 7th, 2009 - 4 comments

Time: 42 days Jobs created: 0 Built (km): 0 out of 1500 Cost thus far: $0 Govt estimated cost (English): “less than the $50m estimate originally put forward by Mr Key” Country status: In recession

Dogwhistlin’

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 1:30 pm, May 7th, 2009 - 53 comments

Interesting article in the Herald today. It concentrates on a conversation between Melissa Lee and an old racist pharmacist from Mt Albert who won’t vote for her because she’s Asian. It turns out that the Herald has interviewed many reasonable people (most of whom supported Shearer) for this piece. So why spend half the article on what some […]

Zeal320 strike underway

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 12:51 pm, May 7th, 2009 - 26 comments

Zeal320 workers are on strike for four days from today. Ads in every major newspaper explain what they are fighting for – the same pay for doing the same work as other fligh attendants on Air NZ flights. Check out ZealGirl for stories of how management has tried to break the Zeal320 workers’ resolve and […]

Act creates Wanganui fashion police

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 10:33 am, May 7th, 2009 - 54 comments

Last night, Chester Burrows’ bill allowing the council of Wanganui to ban people from wearing the insignia or symbols of any organisation they decide to call a gang was passed. No-one seriously believes banning patches will hurt gangs so we’ve just given a council tremendous unchecked power for no good reason. As Idiot Savant puts it: […]

Herald cracks down on free speech

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 12:04 pm, May 6th, 2009 - 41 comments

Sick of the Herald? Try Editing the Herald instead. With intelligence and wit, James lays out the daily journalistic disgraces of our beloved Granny and makes you laugh. Granny doesn’t like it either. Can’t have people mocking you and pointing out your flaws on the internet! So they threatened him with legal action for using […]

See no evil

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 9:38 am, May 6th, 2009 - 12 comments

The Fire at Will law has been in place for two months. It’s still very early days but how is it going? Are workers being forced into 90-Day periods against their will? Are people being fired for no good reason? The government can’t tell us because it isn’t bothering to monitor its implementation and effects. No […]

Key decked over supercity

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 8:46 pm, May 5th, 2009 - 40 comments

A much better performance from Goff today in the House today. Finally, after weeks of fluffing, he managed to score a direct hit on Key. Goff’s questions on the Auckland supercity had Key denying the obvious, that the people of Auckland do not like his government’s supercity and do not believe they have been adequately […]

National carrier? National disgrace more like

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 10:30 am, May 5th, 2009 - 37 comments

It’s a few days late but last Saturday’s Herald story about Air New Zealand preparing strikebreakers for the Zeal 320 strike this weekend depressed the hell out of me. What exactly is our national carrier, which is more than 80% publicly owned, doing boasting about how it can break its own workers? Let me be […]

The super-con

Written By: Eddie - Date published: 10:00 am, May 4th, 2009 - 15 comments

Rodney Hide would have us believe that a supercity is the way of the future. He says “Auckland cannot become a world-class city without change”. Funny, because it’s already the 4th best city in the world, along with Vancouver which is also not a supercity. Look down the list, there’s Wellington and Sydney also not […]