australian politics

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RIP Malcolm Fraser

Written By: - Date published: 8:32 am, March 21st, 2015 - 8 comments

malcolm-fraser

Aussies & US mount opposition to TPPA – but in NZ we just keep nodding

Written By: - Date published: 2:56 pm, February 14th, 2015 - 47 comments

So much to sell, so little time… When this Government is finished selling, we will have sold our right to make laws for ourselves too. Be under no doubt, if the effect of bringing in a law for the health and well being of Kiwis will cost a corporate millions of dollars, part of their lobbying after the TPP, will be threatening to  sue the taxpayers of NZ and watch such a Bill slip into obscurity. And those corporates wielding that power? Most will never pay a cent of tax into the coffers of NZ taxpayers.

 

 

Captain’s Call

Written By: - Date published: 7:32 pm, February 9th, 2015 - 53 comments

Leaving Mike Sabin in charge of the Law and Order Select Committee was certainly a captain’s call by John Key. Just like Tony Abbott’s award of  a knighthood to the Duke (as if he needed more fruit salad), this was a judgment call. And it does call Key’s judgment into question. It’s not about when he knew what he knew, it’s about what he did when he knew.

Is Tony’s tenure terminal?

Written By: - Date published: 2:41 pm, February 8th, 2015 - 47 comments

Over in Australia a spill motion scheduled for tomorrow may end Tony Abbott’s reign. Former PM Julia Gillard who famously lectured Abbott on his misogyny must be grinning from ear to ear. Update: Abbott has survived with the vote reported to be 61-39 against a spill. I suspect the left will be pleased …

Abbot in trouble

Written By: - Date published: 9:11 am, February 3rd, 2015 - 22 comments

Seems like Australian PM Tony Abbot might be facing a leadership challenge.

The Queensland State Election

Written By: - Date published: 6:53 pm, January 31st, 2015 - 74 comments

The Queensland State election is on today. At the last election Labor was reduced to 7 out of 89 seats as punishment for its privatisation program. But the current Government has been that bad that the Premier may lose his seat and a resurgence by Labor looks likely. Update remarkably a change of government is on the cards …

Only in Queensland

Written By: - Date published: 7:22 pm, January 25th, 2015 - 13 comments

Queensland Liberal Country Party Premier Campbell Newman has claimed that the Queensland Labor Party is funded by gangs because some people have told him so.  Yet he refuses to acknowledge the urgency of climate change even though pretty well every climate change scientist in the world is telling him it is real and we need to act now.  Can you detect the scent of hypocrisy?

Exploiting the Charlie Hebdo attack

Written By: - Date published: 7:21 am, January 15th, 2015 - 52 comments

How many governments are using the Paris / Charlie Hebdo attack as an excuse to increase surveillance or otherwise remove civil protections? The UK and Australia for starters…

Australian activist arrested for wearing “I’m with Stupid” t-shirt

Written By: - Date published: 4:46 pm, January 8th, 2015 - 56 comments

While the west of the world mourns the murders of the journalists associated with Charlie Hebdo and protests attacks on freedom of speech in Australia the police have arrested a man for wearing a t-shirt that says “I’m with Stupid”.

The Failed Estate: Body of the Host

Written By: - Date published: 1:00 pm, January 2nd, 2015 - 11 comments

The failed estate is a blogsite run by veteran Australian Journalist Jim Parker.  He writes occasional but perceptive posts primarily on media issues.  This current post, reprinted with permission, provides a damning critique of main stream media coverage of the Sydney Siege.

Lone nutters and suicide by cop

Written By: - Date published: 8:27 am, December 16th, 2014 - 89 comments

As anticipated, the Sydney cafe siege was caused by a lone nutter with a dubious history. He committed suicide by cop apparently after killing a hostage. Meanwhile we have had opportunistic jerkoffs like National MP Mark Mitchell displaying their paranoid fantasies (probably as urine dribbles down their leg) to justify recent poorly written and rushed legislation.

The Sydney siege finishes

Written By: - Date published: 8:11 am, December 16th, 2014 - 84 comments

The Sydney siege has now finished.  Three people including the gunman are dead.  And it is clear that the siege was caused by a lone person rather than a terrorist group.

Siege in Sydney

Written By: - Date published: 1:39 pm, December 15th, 2014 - 246 comments

Up to 20 civilian hostages are being held in a Sydney chocolate shop in a developing hostage situation.

Update: The siege is over, reports suggest two dead and three injured.

Organising to win

Written By: - Date published: 7:31 pm, December 9th, 2014 - 13 comments

Labor’s win in the recent Victorian state election was historic – the first time a one-term government had been turned out for more than 60 years. It was also a fantastic example of how organisation can win elections. Labor leader Daniel Andrews’  focus was on having  5500 active volunteers behind him.

Polity: Bonza

Written By: - Date published: 11:56 am, November 17th, 2014 - 39 comments

Poor old Tony Abbott. Thrust into the limelight of hosting the world’s biggest economic meeting, and his true colours come out for everyone to see. Not a happy weekend for Tony Abbott and, by extension, for Australia. Perhaps “bumpkin” would be a better title

Why does the right control the English speaking world?

Written By: - Date published: 9:31 am, November 16th, 2014 - 116 comments

Jason Wilson in the Guardian has asked a very relevant question.  Why is the right currently dominant in the English speaking Western World and what does the left have to do to change this?

Surveillance in Australia

Written By: - Date published: 8:35 am, September 28th, 2014 - 51 comments

Latest developments in Australia are relevant in the context of the recent focus on surveillance in NZ. What are the odds that the Nats will pass similar laws here during their current term?

President Abbott goes viral

Written By: - Date published: 12:19 pm, June 6th, 2014 - 7 comments

Meet Australia’s President of the United States, Prime Minister Tony Abbott, the instigator of a wink-related scandal. He sometimes puts his foot in his mouth and other times chooses to say nothing at all. 665,777 page views.

Compulsory voting and an explicit “none of the above”

Written By: - Date published: 10:31 am, May 25th, 2014 - 171 comments

I was listening to Wallace Chapman interviewing Professor David Farrell, from University College, Dublin this morning on Radio New Zealand on compulsory voting which he was strongly in favour of. At one point the discussion veered on to the issue of “none of the above”. I think that this is the key to compulsory voting. Add “none of the above” and “I don’t know”

NRT: A disease the world over

Written By: - Date published: 10:08 am, May 9th, 2014 - 30 comments

New Zealand isn’t the only place currently seeing a cash-for-access scandal. In Australia, the federal Treasurer has a similar arrangement to the National Party, selling access to a donors by membership of a “club”. And in the UK, the co-treasurer of the Conservative Party has said publicly that £250,000 gets you a private dinner with the Prime Minister.

A bunch of 14 year olds show up Tony Abbott

Written By: - Date published: 8:11 am, March 23rd, 2014 - 17 comments

Recently Australian PM Tony Abbott decided to speak to a group of 14 year olds who were visiting Parliament. Unluckily for him this particular group of 14 year olds were very sophisticated and asked him a series of questions which neatly skewered four of his main policy positions.

Tony Abbott is an idiot

Written By: - Date published: 9:22 am, March 16th, 2014 - 90 comments

Tony Abbott’s Liberal Government has acted to undermine New Zealand’s push for a United Nations declaration that it is in the interest of humanity that nuclear weapons never be used again under any circumstances.  Having the option of killing millions of human beings and devastating major urban centres either by way of a first strike or a retaliatory strike is obviously something he thinks should be preserved.

So smart. Green senator Ludlam ‘welcomes’ Abbott to WA

Written By: - Date published: 10:27 pm, March 6th, 2014 - 30 comments

One of the most effective political videos that I have seen from a country that is coming to specialise in them. I’m unsurprised that it went completely viral. It was a great description of all of the ways that Tony Abbott is beholden to the interests of those made insane by idiotic greed – and welcoming him to Western Australia. All expressed in a polite quiet voice enumerating exactly how much of a arsehole Abbott is. He even makes John Key look sort of rational – in a traditional junior partner kind of way

Play it again John

Written By: - Date published: 9:00 am, February 8th, 2014 - 39 comments

John Key has welcomed Tony Abbott’s confirmation that Australia would extend access to students under the Higher Education Loan Program to long-term New Zealand residents in Australia.  But this policy was announced eight months ago.

APEC, TPP, Crosby-Textor, Philip Morris & John Key

Written By: - Date published: 10:33 am, October 8th, 2013 - 76 comments

John Key’s role as Obama surrogate in chairing TPP discussions at APEC just reinforce how much Key is deeply involved in crony capitalist, Big Corporate serving networks of influence: ones that link him with anti-democratic Big Tobacco, Big Oil, and climate change denial propaganda.

The silver lining of the Australian Election

Written By: - Date published: 12:23 pm, September 14th, 2013 - 11 comments

Cathy McgowanDespite an overall swing to the Liberal National coalition in the recent Australian election there is potentially one exceptional result where a Liberal front bencher with a 16,000 majority may lose to a community independent in a historically conservative area. No matter what happens this campaign will provide progressives with good learning on the use of social media and how to run a campaign in a conservative area.

Australia – Labor’s unwinnable election

Written By: - Date published: 7:25 pm, September 7th, 2013 - 73 comments

Tony Abbott billboardAustralia goes to the polls today and if things go the way that the pollsters are predicting there will be a new Government elected.  The way I see it Kevin Rudd has failed to inspire but Tony Abbott is terrifying.  If only Rudd had shown some principle things could have been different.

The least popular weasel wins

Written By: - Date published: 9:55 am, August 27th, 2013 - 36 comments

In the odd moments that I have to view and write about politics outside NZ at present, I happened upon a Wall Street Journal article this morning about the election contest in aussie that got me thinking. Australia is leaning toward electing its first conservative government in six years, to be led by a man considered […]

The Daily Show on Oz election

Written By: - Date published: 11:03 am, August 15th, 2013 - 9 comments

Jon Stewart is on leave, but John Oliver is doing a great job filling in on The Daily Show. Here he is enjoying some of the nonsense coming out of the current Australian election campaign.

The Failed Estate – An Australian Blog to follow

Written By: - Date published: 8:57 am, August 12th, 2013 - 10 comments

Rupert murdoch puppet masterWith Australian elections just around the corner quality Australian political blogs will be in demand.  If you want to read a refreshingly progressive and sophisticated analysis of Australian Politics I recommend Jim Parker’s blog Failed Estate.  He writes with precision on issues such as the state of Australia’s media, the undermining of Julia Gillard, and the festering sore that is the boat people issue.

Australia to the polls

Written By: - Date published: 8:00 am, August 5th, 2013 - 36 comments

As widely reported, Australia is off to the polls on Sept 7th. It will be an amazing come-back for Rudd if he wins.