Spying

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Key called again on bullying tactics

Written By: - Date published: 5:14 pm, August 9th, 2013 - 43 comments

John Key is a bully who uses the powers of his office inappropriately. Every now and then someone calls him on it – Mike Joy, Jon Stephenson, Andrea Vance and Bradley Ambrose being examples. Now it is the turn of Law Society member Rodney Harrison QC to stand up.

Hypocrisy in the House: GCSB Bill

Written By: - Date published: 10:11 am, August 7th, 2013 - 46 comments

The debates during last night’s filibuster if the GCSB amendment Bill exposed the hypocrisy of John Key, and hangers on Peter Dunne and John Banks: as seen in  the videos of the speeches by Goff, Cunliffe and Peters.

Chorus of opposition to Key-Dunne spying Bill continues

Written By: - Date published: 9:45 am, August 7th, 2013 - 15 comments

Yesterday Opposition parties filibustered, and successfully delayed the passage of the Key-Dunne spying Bill. This buys more time to protest, and to put pressure on MPs.

We have never before seen in New Zealand such a broad and ongoing chorus of opposition to government legislation as we are seeing with this Bill. Just yesterday alone…

Law Society – GCSB Bill still flawed

Written By: - Date published: 6:13 pm, August 6th, 2013 - 23 comments

A timely press release from the Law Society. The revisions to the GCSB Bill “do not address the fundamental flaws in the bill and the legislation should not proceed”. Peter Dunne, your last fig-leaf is ripped away. Please do not vote for this travesty.

Spying on another journalist – what did Key have to hide?

Written By: - Date published: 7:18 am, August 6th, 2013 - 78 comments

Now we learn that another Key enquiry spied on “teapot tape” reporter Bradley Ambrose. This government under John Key does not use its spying powers competently or appropriately. There is no guarantee that some future government will not be even worse. The Key-Dunne spying Bill should be rejected pending a proper enquiry and proper safeguards. Peter Dunne, please take note.

The brighter future

Written By: - Date published: 7:20 am, August 5th, 2013 - 151 comments

Welcome to John Key’s “Brighter Future”. Here are some headlines: “Violation speaks ill of our democracy”, “Chilling attacks on freedom”, “Govt betrayal on a monumental scale”, and many more…

Spying scandal forensics

Written By: - Date published: 10:46 am, August 4th, 2013 - 49 comments

National’s Friday afternoon document dump of emails between the Henry enquiry and Parliamentary Services is a trove of information. John Armstrong describes the whole mess as “Govt betrayal on a monumental scale”. For an initial forensic analysis of the evidence trail, check out Pete George.

Friday document dump

Written By: - Date published: 5:33 pm, August 2nd, 2013 - 63 comments

The government has tried a good old fashioned Friday Document Dump, releasing the email correspondence relating to Henry Inquiry. More incompetence and or lies are revealed, and Peter Dunne is pissed. No doubt we can expect the same levels of honesty and competence when the Key-Dunne spying bill extends the potential for spying to us all.

NRT: Look! More terrorists!

Written By: - Date published: 2:57 pm, August 2nd, 2013 - 14 comments

I/S at No Right Turn questions the legal status of Key’s “warrants”.

John Key’s big movie love

Written By: - Date published: 12:44 pm, August 2nd, 2013 - 10 comments

A recent  report claims there is little economic benefit from tax payer funding for big overseas movies. Key’s damaging love of big Hollywood corporates is seen in the complex of Hobbit laws, intellectual copyright, secret TPP negotiations, & the Kim Dotcom-GCSB-Vance saga.

Key shows how much he really cares about security

Written By: - Date published: 9:24 am, August 2nd, 2013 - 89 comments

John Key claims there are Al Qaeda-linked Kiwis in the country and in Yemen. That raises several questions: 1) why haven’t they been arrested? 2) why do you need additional spy powers, if you already have these people 3) why is the PM breaching security and jeopardising the spying on these people? 4) isn’t that an extraordinary thing to do for the sake of political point scoring?

88 flavours of bullshit

Written By: - Date published: 7:16 am, August 2nd, 2013 - 31 comments

Presumably there is some tiny but “real” risk of terrorist action in NZ. But it doesn’t justify the broad powers of the Key-Dunne spying Bill. Recent experience and the government’s own protocols show that these spying powers will be used on activists and journalists that the government of the day doesn’t like. The 88 who have been illegally spied on already call bullshit.

Spy scandals – today’s required reading

Written By: - Date published: 11:24 am, August 1st, 2013 - 72 comments

Here’s today’s required reading (so far) in the ongoing spy scandals that are swirling around John Key and his fiasco of a government. Hey Peter Dunne, are you really going to vote for more GCSB spying? Really?

Waking up the fourth estate

Written By: - Date published: 7:05 am, August 1st, 2013 - 39 comments

Is this what it takes to wake up the fourth estate so they truly fulfill their role to speak truth to power?  Andrea Vance is mad as hell about the “hacking” of her phone records.  Press freedom and all our democratic rights are in danger.  Stop the GCSB Bill!

This is Key’s scandal

Written By: - Date published: 12:49 pm, July 31st, 2013 - 64 comments

Key’s loyal retainers are trying to keep him out of the Vance spying scandal. Major players are straight-out lying. Sadly for Key, the evidence of the timeline is clear. This is his scandal, start to finish.

Idiot tweet of the day – Collins

Written By: - Date published: 11:27 am, July 30th, 2013 - 44 comments

idiot-collins

Anonymous NZ hacks National websites

Written By: - Date published: 6:50 am, July 30th, 2013 - 73 comments

Anonymous NZ protests John Key’s spying Bill by hacking various National MP websites.

Key explains the need to spy on us all

Written By: - Date published: 10:32 am, July 29th, 2013 - 28 comments

One of the many criticisms of John Key’s spying Bill is that it isn’t needed. Well rest easy citizens consumers, because PM Key has laid those fears to rest. Here he is, in his own words, explaining why this violation of our basic human rights is absolutely necessary.

Politically aligned or misinformed

Written By: - Date published: 8:03 am, July 29th, 2013 - 14 comments

On Thursday last week hundreds attended a public meeting in Mt Albert, and on Saturday thousands of people marched in 11 centers all round NZ to protest against John Key’s spying Bill. Key’s response? They are either “politically aligned” or “misinformed”. Like the Law Society and the Human Rights Commission, no doubt.

Journos need to get serious on spy Bill

Written By: - Date published: 6:43 am, July 29th, 2013 - 64 comments

Key’s new spying law will mean our own spooks can legally spy Kiwi journos. Experience shows it will happen. Time for that ‘democracy under attack’ Herald campaign. Time for journos to start taking this seriously. In a democracy, we don’t give the State powers that it doesn’t need and/or that are open to abuse. We don’t create a turn-key totalitarian state just because it’s ‘convenient for the spies’.

Nothing to hide, nothing to fear?

Written By: - Date published: 8:01 am, July 28th, 2013 - 64 comments

Nicky Hager’s investigative journalism explains why the government uses state surveillance against investigative journalists, academics and political activists.  Jane Kelsey explains why spying is used to prevent legal activities, democratic processes and NZers speaking truth to power.

Dotcom developments

Written By: - Date published: 7:31 am, July 26th, 2013 - 104 comments

The public trusts Kim Dotcom more than John Key (no surprise), and Journalist Selwyn Manning describes “some breaking news from Dotcom” on what Key knew, and when…

A king is born: Long Live Inequality!

Written By: - Date published: 10:54 am, July 25th, 2013 - 87 comments

UK children born on the same day as the new prince will get a silver penny: but their lives will be vastly different.  Left foot Forward spells out the inequalities between these new born.  John Key gushes over the new prince, while his government slashes, burns and fuels inequalities.

GCSB protest – Auckland tonight

Written By: - Date published: 9:35 am, July 24th, 2013 - 145 comments

To say that the GCSB law changes are misguided is the kindest possible interpretation, but many people including myself tend to view them as being quite malevolent. They aren’t going to provide any more security for citizens and residents here. But they are going to provide more security for incompetents in the security and police forces from both public and legal scrutiny. There are series of protests planned, and one in Auckland tomorrow. Updated – packed.

So what was Dunne’s price?

Written By: - Date published: 7:11 am, July 24th, 2013 - 112 comments

Peter Dunne said that the GCSB should not spy on New Zealanders “under any circumstances”, but he will now vote to let that happen. He has made himself a liar and a hypocrite. Why? 3 News and others speculate on what Dunne might have got in return. What was his price?

Turing – so much more …

Written By: - Date published: 4:26 pm, July 23rd, 2013 - 52 comments

Alan Turing may get a pardon from the UK government.  Turing made major contributions to the development of computing and maths, but was also subjected to damaging surveillance, suspicion and dehumanisation because of his sexuality.  Nothing to hide, nothing to fear?  How to promote digital democracy?

Dunne caves on GCSB spying

Written By: - Date published: 4:11 pm, July 22nd, 2013 - 62 comments

Predictably, Peter Dunne has caved. Vance and Small with the details.

Don’t let them be sidelined: Surveillance Bills

Written By: - Date published: 9:03 am, July 22nd, 2013 - 38 comments

Let’s not sideline the GCSB and related surveillance Bills.  It’s about democracy, and against further consolidation of the power of the international, “neoliberal” corporate elites.  Nation wide demos this Saturday; public meeting in Auckland this Thursday evening. Phil Goff resists, but bends a little too far. [Update]  Protest poster

Defending democracy – then and now

Written By: - Date published: 8:32 am, July 15th, 2013 - 17 comments

There have been strong and compelling criticisms of the Nats’ spying Bill, similar to the situation that occurred under the previous government with electoral finance. But the responses of the two governments are very different – and very revealing. Where Labour revised its errant Bill to address the criticisms, John Key has threatened the HRC with funding cuts. Predictably, the response of The Herald to the two cases has been very different too…

Informal GCSB poll

Written By: - Date published: 11:20 am, July 14th, 2013 - 42 comments

gcsb-poll

Traitor or whistleblower?

Written By: - Date published: 8:01 am, July 13th, 2013 - 149 comments

Edward Snowden, now applying for temporary asylum in Russia, has been labeled both as traitor and as whistleblower. Is it a breach of trust to expose state use of surveillance to spy on citizens, especially if it is on behalf of powerful multinational corporations?