democracy under attack
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Guest Post: Dancing to the Neo-Liberal Songbook
Written By: - Date published: 10:19 am, May 23rd, 2016 - 25 comments
In a guest post, regular commenter Tony Veitch takes some learnings from Noam Chomsky’s latest documentary Requiem for the American Dream. The neo-liberal plan has been in place for over thirty years. How come we’re only just starting to understand it?
What the TTIP teaches us about the TPP
Written By: - Date published: 9:40 am, May 13th, 2016 - 11 comments
TTIP, TTPA, same game around the globe, a take-over by American corporations, with the rights of the public held in no regard whatsoever.
Fairfax and NZME and merger talks on
Written By: - Date published: 9:57 am, May 11th, 2016 - 13 comments
As previously discussed here, bad for the media, bad for democracy.
APN Fairfax NZ merger?
Written By: - Date published: 9:31 am, May 10th, 2016 - 20 comments
A healthy democracy requires a healthy media, and in NZ both are getting sicker.
Key attends secret lunch to raise cash for flag change campaign
Written By: - Date published: 10:36 am, April 9th, 2016 - 102 comments
The Herald has reported that John Key helped with fundraising for the flag referendum by attending a private lunch with six wealthy donors.
Oliver Stone backs Sanders; attacks pro-war Clinton
Written By: - Date published: 9:19 pm, April 1st, 2016 - 84 comments
Oliver Stone says that the fascism and corruption of big money has poisoned US politics. And Hilary Clinton has embraced it.
Local democracy just got screwed
Written By: - Date published: 7:01 am, March 15th, 2016 - 31 comments
If the RMA Amendment Bill goes through, then community groups all over the country are going to become intimately acquainted with just how badly they have been shafted by Mr Smith and his accomplices.
Someone wants to crush Bain’s compensation claim
Written By: - Date published: 7:34 am, February 18th, 2016 - 142 comments
Leaks to the Herald about details from the report investigating the compensation claim by David Bain suggests that the Government is moving to refuse the claim.
Shock Horror media bias exists in New Zealand
Written By: - Date published: 8:31 am, February 15th, 2016 - 85 comments
Claire Robinson has analysed press use of photos during the 2014 general election campaign and has concluded that the major newspapers exhibited substantial bias in favour of Prime Minister John Key.
Establishment appointed Council protects Establishment
Written By: - Date published: 5:21 pm, February 11th, 2016 - 39 comments
So National’s appointed ECan (undermining democracy since 2010) has decided that leading business man Hugh Fletcher & Chief Justice Sian Elias shouldn’t be fined for their cows sh!ting in a lake. National were accused of taking voting rights so they could favour dairy over Christchurch, and this seems a good example. Canterbury has suffered enough – it needs democracy back.
Northland Fishing Competition
Written By: - Date published: 2:25 pm, February 11th, 2016 - 35 comments
Winston Peters has stitched John Key up again, this time hook, line and sinker. When Key lied in Parliament about the Northland MP’s supposedly leisurely lifestyle, Peters offered a challenge: provide some evidence or donate $100k to charity. Will cowardly Key take the bait?
Key’s sham “consultation” an insult to Māori
Written By: - Date published: 10:19 am, February 11th, 2016 - 17 comments
Last week 95bFM tweeted some audio from a Key media session, which shows his “consultation” with Māori over the TPP to be a condescending sham.
Leave Josie Butler alone
Written By: - Date published: 3:56 pm, February 10th, 2016 - 83 comments
Stuff is asking the employer of Josie Butler, thrower of the fake sex toy at Steven Joyce, if it will take disciplinary action against her for protest activity taken while she was not at work.
Garner’s TPP rant rejected by the silent majority
Written By: - Date published: 10:15 am, February 2nd, 2016 - 81 comments
Jane Kelsey on TPPA
Written By: - Date published: 7:58 am, January 25th, 2016 - 43 comments
Jane Kelsey on why the TPPA is a bad deal and why we should keep fighting it. Movies courtesy of Bryan Bruce. And don’t forget the public meetings scheduled this week where Jane Kelsey and Lori Wallach will speak.
Sustainability Council: TPPA lets investors sue over climate change policies
Written By: - Date published: 7:30 am, January 22nd, 2016 - 98 comments
The Sustainability Council has reported that passing the TPPA may result in corporate claims for compensation against sovereign states that adopt policies to address climate change. And details how references to climate change were washed out of the text of the TPPA during the negotiation process.
Little: Labour to Defy TPPA
Written By: - Date published: 8:58 am, January 8th, 2016 - 717 comments
Labour Leader Andrew Little has announced that the next Labour led Government will defy the TPPA’s attack on our sovereignty. Good on Labour – that’s the leadership we need.
What was National’s role in the police raid on Nicky Hager?
Written By: - Date published: 8:35 am, December 18th, 2015 - 130 comments
Justice Clifford’s decision that the police raid of Nicky Hager’s home was illegal raises serious questions about what political pressure was applied on the police.
Protection of National Security Information
Written By: - Date published: 8:48 am, December 15th, 2015 - 10 comments
At the heart of the project is the tension between national interests and individual rights. Questions about how to balance these interests are not new, but they have been brought into sharp focus by recent international events.
Jarrod Gilbert 1 – Windmills 0
Written By: - Date published: 7:09 am, November 29th, 2015 - 22 comments
About time the Police got around to becoming a “very evidence based” service. Building great relationships with academia is a sensible way to start.
Towards banana republic status
Written By: - Date published: 9:30 am, November 19th, 2015 - 43 comments
National has passed legislation with retrospective effect under urgency to change previous legislation also passed under urgency so that the law says what it thinks the law should have said, despite the existing law being abundantly clear.
Death throes of journalism at TV3
Written By: - Date published: 12:15 pm, November 16th, 2015 - 56 comments
Spinoff has the story.
A Government of spin redux
Written By: - Date published: 10:40 am, November 16th, 2015 - 26 comments
The Herald has withdrawn a story that reported on Government pressure on the ERO to rewrite a report after what appears to be pressure from the Government to do so.
Scoop’s second Hager document release
Written By: - Date published: 10:25 am, November 15th, 2015 - 98 comments
Scoop has released a second collection of documents from the Hager v Attorney General case. Among them is comment by a former Police Commissioner expressing surprise at the amount of resources put into the case and the involvement of a senior member of the Police Executive.
TPPA national day of action
Written By: - Date published: 8:00 am, November 13th, 2015 - 26 comments
Saturday November 14 is a national day of action against the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement. Details of all protests are set out in the post.
EPA to be gutted – for doing its job
Written By: - Date published: 10:40 am, November 12th, 2015 - 24 comments
Looks like National is planning to take over the Environmental Protection Agency.
There is Hope.
Written By: - Date published: 9:00 am, November 10th, 2015 - 65 comments
Anarchism, past and present.
Portugal
Written By: - Date published: 12:15 pm, October 27th, 2015 - 38 comments
This is going to end well…
NRT: Dictatorship in Canterbury, dictatorship in Parliament
Written By: - Date published: 9:21 am, October 14th, 2015 - 9 comments
I/S at No Right Turn writes on the continued suspension of democracy in Canterbury.
Congratulations Jane Kelsey
Written By: - Date published: 12:39 pm, October 13th, 2015 - 61 comments
The High Court has upheld Jane Kelsey’s application for a declaration that the Government and Tim Groser improperly considered her application for information concerning the TPPA negotiations.
Bugger the Truth – Getting elected means fooling the poeple
Written By: - Date published: 1:15 pm, September 19th, 2015 - 34 comments
So, its is not that the voters are idiots, as some suggest the Left are claiming, it is that the Right deliberately lie and mislead to get a vote, on false pretenses. It is the Right who constantly treats voters as gullible idiots, And a media, strangled by shrinking budgets and reduced personnel with less and less time to research rather than regurgitate. Couple that with an increase in non-journalists hogging the space set aside for reporting and elucidating news events… what chance the voter?
- What to know about firework sales, bans and pets this Guy Fawkes
Explainer - When do fireworks go on sale? Where are they banned? And how do I protect my stressed-out pets? Here's what you need to know. ...6 days ago - Hurricane Unpreparedness in the Caribbean, Disaster by Imperial Design
Source: Council on Hemispheric Affairs – Analysis-Reportage St. Lucia during and post Hurricane Beryl by Tamanisha J. John Toronto, Ontario Whenever a hurricane hits in the Caribbean, people rush to point out that it is an indicator of “disaster capitalism” and/or that “disaster capitalism” will surely come. While ...6 days ago - Not too big, not too small: why modern humans are the ideal size for speed
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christofer Clemente, Assistant Professor in Evolutionary Biomechanics, University of the Sunshine Coast The fastest animal on land is the cheetah, capable of reaching top speeds of 104 kilometres per hour. In the water, the fastest animals are yellowfin tuna and wahoo, which ...6 days ago
- Collisions between planes and birds follow seasonal patterns and overlap with breeding and migration...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tirth Vaishnav, PhD Candidate in Ecology and Biodiversity, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington Getty Images Bird strikes with aircraft pose a serious threat to human safety. The problem dates back to the early days of aviation, with the ...6 days ago
- How light can shift your mood and mental health
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jacob Crouse, Research Fellow in Youth Mental Health, Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney llaszlo/Shutterstock This is the next article in our ‘Light and health’ series, where we look at how light affects our physical and mental health in sometimes ...6 days ago
- The UN warns famine is likely in Gaza. What do malnutrition and hunger do to the body?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Dix, Lecturer In Nutrition & Dietetics, University of the Sunshine Coast Anas-Mohammed/Shutterstock The risk of famine looms in Gaza. International monitors warn more than 90% of the population face acute food insecurity, meaning their inability to eat enough food puts ...6 days ago
- 215 million hectares of forest – an area bigger than Mexico – could grow back by itself, if we c...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brooke Williams, Research Fellow, School of Biology & Environmental Science, Queensland University of Technology Gustavo Frazao/Shutterstock About 215 million hectares of land – an area bigger than Mexico – could be reforested naturally and without costly manual planting, our new research ...6 days ago
- Earth’s climate will keep changing long after humanity hits net-zero emissions. Our research shows...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew King, Senior Lecturer in Climate Science, The University of Melbourne Shutterstock The world is striving to reach net-zero emissions as we try to ward off dangerous global warming. But will getting to net-zero actually avert climate instability, as many assume? ...6 days ago
- State of the Climate 2024: Australia is enduring harsher fire seasons, more ocean heatwaves and sea-...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Neil Sims, Senior Research Scientist, CSIRO ArliftAtoz2205, Shutterstock Worldwide, greenhouse gas emissions are still increasing, and temperatures are rising across land and sea. But what is climate change doing to Australia, the driest inhabited continent? The latest CSIRO and Bureau of ...6 days ago
- How do children learn good manners?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sophia Waters, Senior Lecturer in Writing, University of New England Pexels/Anna Shvets Ensuring kids have manners is a perennial preoccupation for parents and caregivers. How, then, do you teach good manners to children? Modelling good manners around the home and in ...6 days ago
- What are Veblen and Giffen goods?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By María Yanotti, Lecturer of Economics and Finance Tasmanian School of Business & Economics, University of Tasmania photo-lime/Shutterstock This article is part of The Conversation’s “Business Basics” series where we ask experts to discuss key concepts in business, economics and finance. ...6 days ago
- US election live: Joe Biden lands Kamala Harris in hot water
Corin Dann is in the swing state of Arizona and he's driven from Phoenix down to the border town of Nogales. ...6 days ago
- Help me Hera: I’m a lesbian(?) with a crush on a cis het man
Why I can’t just accept that my sexuality and gender identity are fluid? Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nz Dear Hera, I came out (by dating a girl for the first time) at 13 years old. I personally only came out as dating a girl, but people around me decided that ...6 days ago - The Moogai could have been a powerful Indigenous horror film – but gets flattened by its own weigh...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ali Alizadeh, Senior Lecturer in Literary Studies and Creative Writing, Monash University Elise Lockwood Isn’t raising one’s child supposed to be full of joy and laughter? Apparently not, according to the horror genre. Consider Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (1818), one of the ...6 days ago
- Suspected suicide numbers are still high. Can a new action plan turn it around?
The number of suspected suicides rose from 566 in the year to June 2023 up to 617, writes Stewart Sowman-Lund in an extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...6 days ago
- Higher traffic fines still stuck in the slow lane
Higher traffic fines are still being considered by the government, three years after work began on raising the penalties. ...6 days ago
- Entire secondary school exams team replaced over past year
Just a week before exams start, the Qualifications Authority has admitted that nearly the entire team that supports its secondary school exams has left and been replaced over the past year. ...6 days ago
- Psychological Bias Could Play Role In Civilian Casualties
Warzone bystanders are often mistaken for enemies and ‘acceptable collateral damage’, which could explain the high rate of civilian casualties according to new international research. ...6 days ago - Why abuse survivors want the Solicitor-General gone
Una Jagose was involved in throwing everything at legal efforts to stop victims of state abuse winning their cases. Now some prominent victims don't trust her to lead the government's legal response. ...6 days ago
- Benefit forecasts highlight need for tougher sanctions, government says
The government says the latest figures forecasting how long beneficiaries stay on welfare underscore the need for tougher sanctions. ...6 days ago
- Kiwi CEO of billion dollar supplements firm quits amid criminal scrutiny
The New Zealand founder of a world-leading supplement company has resigned amid a podcast investigation into his criminal history, and unpaid fines and reparations by his now-defunct firms.Former Auckland police officer ‘Chris the Kiwi’ Ashenden has won business acclaim in the United States for building his company AG1 into a ...6 days ago - The true story behind New Zealand’s emporium empire
Before $2 shops and Temu, there were Arthur’s, Geoff’s and Pete’s Emporiums – and that was only the beginning. As these local institutions mark their biggest day of the year, Gabi Lardies delves into their shared history. There are buttons in tubes arranged by colour and to be sold one-by-one ...6 days ago
- The bleak reality of working in mental health when you don’t have Mike King’s funding
While the I Am Hope foundation accepts $24m in government funding, the Counselling Centre in Marton has some tough decisions to make about its future. Centre manager Anna Sophia share her experience and views on life in rural mental health. On a side street lined with abandoned historical buildings in ...6 days ago
- Daily crossword, Thursday 31 October
The post Daily crossword, Thursday 31 October appeared first on Newsroom. ...6 days ago
- Prepare for the worst if Trump wins
Opinion: World needs to focus on what it may mean for international affairs, trade and commerce The post Prepare for the worst if Trump wins appeared first on Newsroom. ...6 days ago
- Why restricting jury trial access will set us back
Opinion: Lofty language is often used when discussing the virtues of trial by jury, with one English judge famously referring to it as “the lamp that shows that freedom lives”.The impact of delay in the court system is also frequently described in emotive terms: the phrase “justice delayed is justice ...6 days ago
- Age barriers fall to Pahlyss’ prodigious talent
Pahlyss Hokianga has swapped one Bay in Aotearoa for another, at the same time as her basketball journey explores new frontiers around the world.The 17-year-old youth grades basketball star grew up in the Hawkes Bay towns of Bridge Pā and Flaxmere in a family steeped in rugby and rugby league.But ...6 days ago
- Vegetable growers fight for survival
Vegetables NZ says at least 60% of outdoor vegetable growing is under threat in Pukekohe and Levin The post Vegetable growers fight for survival appeared first on Newsroom. ...6 days ago
- Book of the Week: Kāwai, turgidly
I have been a long-time admirer of Monty Soutar and his military histories tracing Māori involvement in two World Wars through his books Whiti Whiti Whiti E! and Nga Tama Toa: The Price of Citizenship: C Company 28th (Māori ) Battalion, so I looked forward to reading his entry into the world ...6 days ago
- Give power to powerless in health and safety review
Opinion: A Pike River mother warns the Govt against putting profit before lives in health and safety review The post Give power to powerless in health and safety review appeared first on Newsroom. ...6 days ago
- Injustice in flashing lights – why abuse victims want the Solicitor-General’s head
They don’t speak with one voice.But the Abuse in Care survivors, those whose cases have been trawled though by the Royal Commission of Inquiry, are after the head of the Solicitor-General, Una Jagose.“They want her to go,” says Laura Walters, political editor of Newsroom.“Lots of different people have different ideas ...6 days ago
- Health ministry employs no one for Long Covid
Despite hundreds debilitated by Long Covid, the ministry has dedicated one tenth of a full-time equivalent employee to the condition The post Health ministry employs no one for Long Covid appeared first on Newsroom. ...6 days ago
- Newsroom daily quiz, Thursday 31 October
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A,DIV,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: ...6 days ago
- How the world’s favourite green powder blew up, big
Some stories grow from a green shoot; some explode in ways we don’t expect. Our new podcast investigates the super-star endorsements, the science and the health impact of the controversial supplements industry.We’ll follow the ... 6 days ago - Changes to customary marine title ‘deeply reckless’ – law expert
Changes to the Marine and Coastal Area Act - which would make it harder for Māori to make customary claims on coastlines - are before the justice select committee. ...6 days ago
- Lake Alice survivors: Relief, annoyance over Crown move on legal fees
One survivor says he is disappointed the reimbursements are not being adjusted for inflation. ...6 days ago
- US elections: Editorial writers at LA Times, Washington Post resign after billionaire owners block K...
Democracy Now! This is Democracy Now!, “War, Peace and the Presidency.” I am Amy Goodman, with Juan González: The Los Angeles Times and The Washington Post newspapers are facing mounting backlash after the papers’ publishers announced no presidential endorsements would be made this year. The LA Times is owned by ...6 days ago
- DIA restructure finds more job cuts, despite protests from staff, union
The Department of Internal Affairs plans more jobs cuts too, but critics say staff are now overloaded and it will affect the Crown's relationship with Māori. ...6 days ago
- Global Privacy Authorities Issue Follow-up Joint Statement On Data Scraping After Industry Engagemen...
The discussions between industry representatives and data protection authorities enabled all parties to further examine issues related to data scraping. ...6 days ago
- In failing to probe Robodebt, Australia’s anti-corruption body fell at the first hurdle. It now ha...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By William Partlett, Associate Professor of Public Law, The University of Melbourne The inspector of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) has released her long-awaited report on the failure of the commission to investigate the Robodebt scandal. The report finds the commissioner of ...6 days ago
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