politicans

Categories under politicans

Qanon is here

Written By: advantage - Date published: 7:37 am, September 14th, 2020 - 132 comments

While a few in the media leapt at the opportunity to vilify a small evangelical community at the latest COVID 19 spread, the really big COVID 19-conspiracy story landed by the thousand this weekend. It’s overdue we woke up to QAnon here.

Labour’s social welfare policy

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 12:20 pm, September 13th, 2020 - 62 comments

Labour has announced that if elected they will significantly increase abatement levels for beneficiaries and reinstitute the Training Incentive Allowance Scheme, the policy that Paula Bennett famously had the benefit of but then cancelled once she was Minister.

The Greens sticking to their guns (and their values)

Written By: weka - Date published: 10:57 am, September 11th, 2020 - 157 comments

The Greens just boldly stepped up their election campaign.

Covid, the US President and the Evangelical churches

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:30 am, September 10th, 2020 - 123 comments

There has been disturbing local news that some members of a local evangelical church, influenced by American equivalents, refused to accept the threat posed by the virus. And in America a new book from Bob Woodward suggests strongly that Donald Trump knew how big a threat Covid would be but chose for political reasons to downplay the risk.

How has Conservation Fared Under This Government?

Written By: advantage - Date published: 7:00 am, September 10th, 2020 - 39 comments

I’m going to give this government just 5 out of 10 on the conservation front.

What did Brownlee know about Southern Response’s misleading and deceptive conduct?

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 4:37 pm, September 8th, 2020 - 27 comments

The Court of Appeal has ruled that Southern Response has engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct and has potentially short changed thousands of Cantabrians hundreds of millions of dollars.

Will NZ First make it back into Parliament?

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 10:07 am, September 8th, 2020 - 43 comments

One of the most interesting questions about the current election campaign is will New Zealand First make it back into Parliament after the election, with polling and a slew of not dissimilar parties on the right suggesting that Winston’s time may be up.

Covid – New Zealand has similar levels of freedom to Sweden

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 1:41 pm, September 6th, 2020 - 83 comments

Simon Thornley is claiming that New Zealand’s covid response is a failure and we should be more like Sweden. But it appears that in more recent times Sweden has toughened its stringency tests so that they are similar to New Zealand’s.

Labour’s two tier welfare plans

Written By: weka - Date published: 11:17 am, September 5th, 2020 - 74 comments

As the covid crisis deepens Labour appear to be committed to entrenching the underclass and giving a helping hand to the middle class.

Will Jacinda Ardern meet her promise to transform?

Written By: Simon Louisson - Date published: 6:53 am, September 4th, 2020 - 62 comments

Neoliberalism has run its course and displayed its profound inability to address inequality issues. It makes the poor get ever poorer while the affluent top 10% ticks of society get bloated and increasingly insufferable on untaxed capital gains. In 2017 Jacinda Ardern set a goal of bringing all children out of poverty within six years. So how is that going? And what are the next steps?

How Trump Has Changed New Zealand’s future

Written By: advantage - Date published: 7:00 am, September 2nd, 2020 - 28 comments

Post Trump how is the world order looking?

Left wing twitter is the worst *

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 7:42 am, September 1st, 2020 - 69 comments

* but you should see what Judith Collins’ husband has been posting.

Labour’s Hefty Carrot-And-Stick For Water

Written By: advantage - Date published: 8:37 am, August 31st, 2020 - 16 comments

New Zealand’s local and regional councils have been given until August 31 2020 to sign up to a ginormous fund that would help them improve their water, wastewater, and stormwater systems. The implications for them doing this are significant and could see the end of Council control of the supply of water.

Kia kaha Greens

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 9:06 am, August 29th, 2020 - 304 comments

The Green Party is facing major push back from members relating to a decision to give shovel ready funding to a private school involved in education about the environment.

If National wins the hope for clean water and swimmable rivers will be gone by lunchtime

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:03 am, August 27th, 2020 - 40 comments

National has promised that if it gains power rules designed to improve water quality in our streams and rivers will be “gone by lunchtime.

National’s latest deception

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:45 am, August 26th, 2020 - 98 comments

National’s social media team has published an edited version of a response to a written question by Chris Hipkins to suggest that returning kiwis in quarantine were not subject to compulsory testing, when the reality is anyone refusing a test can be held for up to 26 days following the fortnight stay.

US v China: new Cold War or new Opium War?

Written By: Mike Smith - Date published: 10:27 am, August 25th, 2020 - 23 comments

The Trump administration has declared war on China, and there is much speculation in the punditry as to whether or not this is a new Cold War similar to that waged post World War 2 against Russia. In my opinion, the 19th century Opium Wars may offer a more appropriate analogy, albeit with a likely different outcome.

Is New Zealand or the United States the Covid cot case?

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 9:39 am, August 22nd, 2020 - 28 comments

This week Donald Trump has defended the US’s abysmal handling of Covid 19 by claiming that the disease is out of control in New Zealand. And National’s rhetoric continues to match what he is saying.

Here comes the vaccine

Written By: advantage - Date published: 7:00 am, August 21st, 2020 - 46 comments

Australian Prime Minister Scott Malcom has indicated he’s getting close to the deal of a lifetime for Australians with a letter of intent from Astra Zenica, who are in third stage clinical trials. Will New Zealand benefit?

The Covid Court Case

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:18 am, August 20th, 2020 - 30 comments

The High Court has ruled that for technical reasons during the first nine days of the lockdown statements that New Zealanders were legally required to remain at home were incorrect.

What Might A Democratic Party-Dominated U.S. Foreign Policy Do?

Written By: advantage - Date published: 1:02 pm, August 19th, 2020 - 24 comments

Inasmuch as tiny, distant New Zealand need worry about the foreign policy of the United States, it’s worth a drill into what a Democratic Party dominated United States foreign policy might look like.

What does Judith do about Gerry?

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 9:32 am, August 19th, 2020 - 113 comments

Gerry Brownlee has chosen to not only repeat his conspiracy theories involving Ashley Bloomfield but also claim that the media is against National. Both claims have no factual foundation.

Blogs and election fatigue

Written By: lprent - Date published: 10:00 am, August 18th, 2020 - 28 comments

One of the characteristics of a political blog in New Zealand is the way that our operations reflect the political cycle. Coming into an election after mid-year, we have a steadily increasing level of traffic, posts, and comments. Moderators, commenters and even authors start showing a more cranky disposition. Now we have a extra month of the campaign. Be kind. Because there tends to be a problem when the system operator gets cranky.

What Now Phil Goff?

Written By: advantage - Date published: 1:19 pm, August 17th, 2020 - 36 comments

The Chief Executive of Watercare Raveen Jaduram has resigned. With Auckland Council’s recent Council Controlled Organisation review having been concluded and the recommendations released is this the opportunity to require meaningful change of Watercare?

Extend advance voting

Written By: lprent - Date published: 9:15 am, August 17th, 2020 - 11 comments

One thing that Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern should look at asking the Electoral Commission to do would be to extend the period of Advance voting. This was more than a third of the votes in 2017, and is ideal for pandemic voting. It allows to the pressure on polling places to reduce to something similar to queuing for the supermarket.

Why we need to get on with the election

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:23 am, August 17th, 2020 - 114 comments

A coalition of losers has appeared demanding that the election is be delayed. Update: Ardern has announced a short deferral of election day to October 17.

What is wrong with postal voting?

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 11:48 am, August 16th, 2020 - 73 comments

Judith Collins’s and National’s ridiculing the proposition that New Zealand could safely hold an election using postal voting has some disturbing similarities with Donald Trump’s approach in America.

Joe Biden’s Four Surprising Vectors for Success

Written By: advantage - Date published: 7:00 am, August 14th, 2020 - 15 comments

He’s old, boring, uninspiring, and offends no-one: surely he’ll fail miserably as President? But he has a stronger chance than any Democrat President since LBJ of getting very strong domestic reforms done.

TheY aRe onlY aSKing qUestiOns

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:32 am, August 13th, 2020 - 112 comments

Yesterday National suggested a wide based and interesting conspiracy theory involving the Government and the Ministry of Health and all of the Health Boards suppressing news of community spread of Covid 19 for political advantage while at the same time complaining that the Government should be consulting with them on decisions.