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Just another typical week in US politics
Written By: - Date published: 9:50 am, November 17th, 2019 - 38 comments
The last week in US politics has seen the Trump Impeachment Hearing go public, Trump confidant Roger Stone convicted of lying to Congress, Alex Jones ask for the Presidential pardon to be used to free him, and details revealed of multiple meetings between Trump and Igor Fruman and Lev Parnas who are charged with campaign rule violations. Trump says he does not know them. Just another week in the Trump Presidency …
Macron speech – The end of Western hegemony
Written By: - Date published: 2:09 am, September 19th, 2019 - 21 comments
France President Macron’s remarkable and wide-ranging speech to French ambassadors after France hosted the recent G7 conference in Biarritz is well worth a read. He lays it all out – so much better than Trump’s tweets or BoJo’s bluster.
Legitimate target, daft war
Written By: - Date published: 10:04 am, September 16th, 2019 - 30 comments
The war that Saudi Arabia and its allies has been waging against the Houthi side in the civil war in Yemen took a interesting turn yesterday. Houthi claimed an attack on Saudi oil processing facilities using drone strikes. It is likely to significantly reduce the output of the Saudi exports for a while as the […]
Trump sacks Bolton – oil price nosedives!
Written By: - Date published: 7:01 am, September 11th, 2019 - 26 comments
This has been rumoured for some time now. It’s good news – peace now has a chance, as Trump has woken up to the fact that a shooting war would not be good for his re-election. Also Bolton’s hard-line strategy was failing everywhere.
Missile test shows US bad faith on INF Treaty
Written By: - Date published: 4:43 pm, August 27th, 2019 - 9 comments
US’s recent test of an intermediate range missile shows that the reasons given for its withdrawal from the INF treaty were spurious. It also shows up the gullibility of our MFAT, who voted against a Russian proposal for dialogue late last year in the UN on the grounds that it was a “sidestep.”
Peters, Pence, Pompeo and the Rapture
Written By: - Date published: 2:57 am, July 21st, 2019 - 25 comments
Hamish Rutherfurd writes that Winston Peters’ trip to the US to secure a trade deal is far-fetched and a waste of time. I agree. But if Peters has his agenda, so will Mike Pompeo, Mike Pence, John Bolton and Dan Coats have theirs. He was scheduled to meet them all. No wonder the 9th floor are worried.
FiveEyes on our elections
Written By: - Date published: 3:56 am, June 12th, 2019 - 94 comments
Andrew Little’s letter to the Select Committee on election interference puzzled me – it seemed to be out of the blue and not particularly relevant to our system. Then I read about a meeting on the Gold Coast last year and it became clear as to why – FiveEyes pressure.
Government under FiveEyes
Written By: - Date published: 9:48 pm, June 7th, 2019 - 11 comments
Australian Federal Police chief Neil Gaughan told media after raiding the ABC that “if police did not investigate the leaking of classified information, Australia would no longer be entrusted by FiveEyes partners with intelligence that saves lives.” FiveEyes didn’t save Muslim lives in Christchurch.
The Brady Papers
Written By: - Date published: 3:03 pm, May 10th, 2019 - 54 comments
Anne-Marie Brady submitted to yesterday’s Select Committee Inquiry into foreign interference in our elections, making copious reference to her “Magic Weapons” paper of 2017. She didn’t mention another paper which casts a much different light on her independence and purpose
Trump: Nyet Collusion!
Written By: - Date published: 10:15 am, March 25th, 2019 - 138 comments
The Mueller report apparently clears Donald Trump of collusion. However, charges of obstruction of justice against his team remain possible.
Trump restarts Nuclear Arms race
Written By: - Date published: 7:55 am, February 8th, 2019 - 58 comments
Donald Trump has announced that the US will be withdrawing from the Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces Treaty and Russia has also given notice. Stand by as the nuclear arms race restarts.
Trump’s brilliant strategy to dismantle US dollar hegemony
Written By: - Date published: 5:05 pm, February 3rd, 2019 - 56 comments
Polymath economist Professor Michael Hudson’s latest article is a geopolitical panoramic masterpiece, sparked by outrage at a series of concurrent events on January 31 which he predicts means that 2019 will be the “year of global fracture.” Definitely worth a read.
The SPOTY’s 2018
Written By: - Date published: 1:10 pm, December 15th, 2018 - 39 comments
Here’s your chance to vote in the Standard’s Politician of The Year awards. The SPOTY’s are recognised worldwide as the leading indicator of political success in NZ and have been awarded annually for over two hundred years.
Now it’s your turn to prick the Thorndon Bubble, dear reader. Who’s your Politician of the Year?
Media Thriving on its Own Shit.
Written By: - Date published: 1:25 pm, October 29th, 2018 - 24 comments
When purveyors of propaganda come to believe their own spin and start entertaining really quite idiotic conspiracy theories and abandoning any pretense of being in possession of rational thought, then we’ve got a problem.
Second Kremlin Killer Unmasked, Putin Untroubled
Written By: - Date published: 12:57 pm, October 9th, 2018 - 185 comments
We know the real names of the Russian spies who bungled the Salisbury novichok poisoning. Will it make a difference to the Kremlin’s plans?
Quite a day or two then!
Written By: - Date published: 6:17 pm, September 18th, 2018 - 83 comments
A quick smorgasbord of reported news from Syria, to China and Sweden, to antisemitism and (hidden behind the links) an interview with (hopefully) the first woman who will serve as President of the USA.
Updated
Paranoia, Bullshit and Ordinary Lives.
Written By: - Date published: 11:40 am, September 14th, 2018 - 125 comments
It seems that for some, trashing out the lives of ordinary people is fine, because “Russia bad”. It’s not fine…
Is Politik a propaganda mouthpiece for the UK Embassy?
Written By: - Date published: 8:46 pm, September 8th, 2018 - 29 comments
In Politik’s 7 September issue we are told that Western diplomats in Wellington are surprised that Winston Peters has not accused Russia of the Skripal poisoning or joined some other countries in taking reprisals. Editor Richard Harman quotes a source to tell us that the British in particular were “pissed” at Peters’ response. Well dearie me. I’m with Winston, a wise old owl.
Kremlin Killers?
Written By: - Date published: 7:25 am, September 6th, 2018 - 272 comments
UK Police have named the two Russian spies accused of the Novichok poisonings. But what can Britain do about it?
United Sanctions of America
Written By: - Date published: 9:46 am, August 10th, 2018 - 99 comments
The US State department has announced sanctions on Russia for the use of Novichok nerve agent. The ruble has plunged, the Russians are furious and Donald Trump is saying … nothing.
Wanna know why?
The Pied Piper
Written By: - Date published: 11:55 am, August 6th, 2018 - 32 comments
If we’re living in a global village, is the name of the village Hamelin?
Glenn Greenwald on…
Written By: - Date published: 11:53 am, July 19th, 2018 - 113 comments
Excerpts from Glenn Greenwald speaking on Democracy Now! (h/t Adrian Thornton)
Trumputin
Written By: - Date published: 8:10 am, July 17th, 2018 - 206 comments
Donald Trump has directly contradicted the collective decision of the United States Security agencies by denying that there was Russian involvement in the last US general election.
Trump meets Putin
Written By: - Date published: 9:03 am, July 16th, 2018 - 116 comments
Some things that President Trump won’t do as when meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki.
Petrol is going up, and up
Written By: - Date published: 8:30 am, June 30th, 2018 - 57 comments
Not all the current government’s fault, but the arrival of the fuel tax this weekend heralds a number of very sharp rises in what we have to pay in order to run a car.
Full retreat
Written By: - Date published: 11:22 am, June 27th, 2018 - 13 comments
The United States Supreme Court decision to upheld Trump’s travel ban is but the latest example of bad news for international human rights we have had over recent times.
Yulia wants to go home.
Written By: - Date published: 10:55 am, May 25th, 2018 - 59 comments
Oops. Was this desire meant to be in the script?
Trump was right … and then …
Written By: - Date published: 7:53 am, May 17th, 2018 - 17 comments
Donald Trump has had a few months of being lucky with some luck Foreign Affairs wins and good economic news. But his wreckage-trail of his consequences is becoming longer and clearer.
Sound news judgment?
Written By: - Date published: 8:37 am, May 15th, 2018 - 48 comments
The BBC thinks that depicting Jeremy Corbyn as a Russian stooge is sound news judgment.
No Iran Israeli War.
Written By: - Date published: 10:58 am, May 12th, 2018 - 11 comments
In spite of all the sharp intakes of breathe going on across media outlets, there will be no war between Iran and Israel. Here’s why.
- Worming Through Dangerous Times
2 weeks ago - Why is the Govt so afraid of borrowing?
Mōrena. Long stories shortest: Professional investors who are paid a lot of money to be careful about lending to the New Zealand Government think it is wonderful place to put their money. Yet the Government itself is so afraid of borrowing more that it is happy to kill its own ...2 weeks ago - The future of the Combined Space Operations initiative
As space becomes more contested, Australia should play a key role with its partners in the Combined Space Operations (CSpO) initiative to safeguard the space domain. Australia, Britain, Canada and the United States signed the ...2 weeks ago - Dave’s Cats
Ooh you're a cool catComing on strong with all the chit chatOoh you're alrightHanging out and stealing all the limelightOoh messing with the beat of my heart yeah!Songwriters: Freddie Mercury / John Deacon.It would be a tad ironic; I can see it now. “Yeah, I didn’t unsubscribe when he said ...2 weeks ago - Friday 21 March
The PSA are calling the Prime Minister a hypocrite for committing to increase defence spending while hundreds of more civilian New Zealand Defence Force jobs are set to be cut as part of a major restructure. The number of companies being investigated for people trafficking in New Zealand has skyrocketed ...2 weeks ago - Weekly Roundup 21-March-2025
Another Friday, hope everyone’s enjoyed their week as we head toward the autumn equinox. Here’s another roundup of stories that caught our eye on the subject of cities and what makes them even better. This week in Greater Auckland On Monday, Connor took a look at how Auckland ...2 weeks ago - A special Hoon with Michael Wolff, author of four books on Donald Trump
The podcast above of the weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers on Thursday night features co-hosts & talking with special guest author Michael Wolff, who has just published his fourth book about Donald Trump: ‘All or Nothing’.Here’s Peter’s writeup of the interview. Hoon: Trumpism ...2 weeks ago - Hoon: Trumpism dies with Trump says Wolff
2 weeks ago
- The ADF reserve system is obsolete. We need a dramatically expanded force
Australia needs to radically reorganise its reserves system to create a latent military force that is much larger, better trained and equipped and deployable within days—not decades. Our current reserve system is not fit for ...2 weeks ago
- Pick ‘n’ Mix at 6am on Friday, March 21
Here’s my selection1 of scoops, breaking news, news, analyses, deep-dives, features, interviews, Op-Eds, editorials and cartoons from around Aotearoa’s political economy on housing, climate and poverty from RNZ, 1News, The Post-$2, The Press−$, Newsroom/$3, NZ Herald/$, Stuff, BusinessDesk/$, Politik-$, NBR-$, Reuters, FT/$, WSJ/$, Bloomberg/$, New York Times/$, Washington Post/$, Wired/$, ...2 weeks ago - Against All Reason: William Blake and the Private Fantasy Mythology
I have argued before that one ought to be careful in retrospectively allocating texts into genres. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (1818) only looks like science-fiction because a science-fiction genre subsequently developed. Without H.G. Wells, would Frankenstein be considered science-fiction? No, it probably wouldn’t. Viewed in the context of its time, Frankenstein ...2 weeks ago - Skeptical Science New Research for Week #12 2025
Open access notables The severe 2020 coral bleaching event in the tropical Atlantic linked to marine heatwaves, Rodrigues et al., Communications Earth & Environment: Marine heatwaves can amplify the vulnerabilities of regional marine ecosystems and jeopardise local economies and food resources. Here, we show that marine heatwaves in the tropical ...2 weeks ago - Elbridge Colby’s vision: blocking China
Elbridge Colby’s senate confirmation hearing in early March holds more important implications for US partners than most observers in Canberra, Wellington or Suva realise. As President Donald Trump’s nominee for under secretary of defence for ...2 weeks ago
- China’s military spending rises should prompt regional budget responses
China’s defence budget is rising heftily yet again. The 2025 rise will be 7.2 percent, the same as in 2024, the government said on 5 March. But the allocation, officially US$245 billion, is just the ...2 weeks ago
- Pressure grows for commonsense correction on safe local speeds
Concern is growing about wide-ranging local repercussions of the new Setting of Speed Limits rule, rewritten in 2024 by former transport minister Simeon Brown. In particular, there’s growing fears about what this means for children in particular. A key paradox of the new rule is that NZTA-controlled roads have the ...2 weeks ago
- Luxon’s Guests.
Speilmeister: Christopher Luxon’s prime-ministerial pitches notwithstanding, are institutions with billions of dollars at their disposal really going to invest them in a country so obviously in a deep funk?HAVING WOOED THE WORLD’s investors, what, if anything, has New Zealand won? Did Christopher Luxon’s guests board their private jets fizzing with enthusiasm for ...2 weeks ago - S&P downgrades 18 councils, blaming Govt
Christchurch City Council is one of 18 councils and three council-controlled organisations (CCOs) downgraded by ratings agency S&P. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMōrena. Long stories shortest: Standard & Poor’s has cut the credit ratings of 18 councils, blaming the new Government’s abrupt reversal of 3 Waters, cuts to capital ...2 weeks ago - Recession ends – Economic challenges remain
Figures released by Statistics New Zealand today showed that the economy grew by 0.7% ending the very deep recession seen over the past year, said NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi Economist Craig Renney. “Even though GDP grew in the three months to December, our economy is still 1.1% smaller than it ...2 weeks ago
- Maybe there’s a connection?
What is going on with the price of butter?, RNZ, 19 march 2025: If you have bought butter recently you might have noticed something - it is a lot more expensive. Stats NZ said last week that the price of butter was up 60 percent in February compared to ...2 weeks ago - I, too, got a few things wrong
I agree with Will Leben, who wrote in The Strategist about his mistakes, that an important element of being a commentator is being accountable and taking responsibility for things you got wrong. In that spirit, ...2 weeks ago
- Commandments & Cures
You’d beDrunk by noon, no one would knowJust like the pandemicWithout the sourdoughIf I were there, I’d find a wayTo get treated for hysteriaEvery dayLyrics Riki Lindhome.A varied selection today in Nick’s Kōrero:Thou shalt have no other gods - with Christopher Luxon.Doctors should be seen and not heard - with ...2 weeks ago - Australia needs greater defence self-reliance, and extra funding
Two recent foreign challenges suggest that Australia needs urgently to increase its level of defence self-reliance and to ensure that the increased funding that this would require is available. First, the circumnavigation of our continent ...2 weeks ago
- Pick ‘n’ Mix at 6am on Thursday, March 20
Here’s my selection1 of scoops, breaking news, news, analyses, deep-dives, features, interviews, Op-Eds, editorials and cartoons from around Aotearoa’s political economy on housing, climate and poverty from RNZ, 1News, The Post-$2, The Press−$, Newsroom/$3, NZ Herald/$, Stuff, BusinessDesk/$, Politik-$, NBR-$, Reuters, FT/$, WSJ/$, Bloomberg/$, New York Times/$, The Atlantic-$, The ...2 weeks ago - Gordon Campbell on Winston Peters’ bad trip, and the return of the PPPs zombie
According to RNZ’s embedded reporter, the importance of Winston Peters’ talks in Washington this week “cannot be overstated.” Right. “Exceptionally important.” said the maestro himself. This epic importance doesn’t seem to have culminated in anything more than us expressing our “concern” to the Americans about a series of issues that ...2 weeks ago - Climate Fresk – a neat way to make the complexity of climate change less puzzling
Up until a few weeks ago, I had never heard of "Climate Fresk" and at a guess, this will also be the case for many of you. I stumbled upon it in the self-service training catalog for employees at the company I work at in Germany where it was announced ...2 weeks ago
- Japan and Australia can fill each other’s defence gaps
Japan and Australia talk of ‘collective deterrence,’ but they don’t seem to have specific objectives. The relationship needs a clearer direction. The two countries should identify how they complement each other. Each country has two ...2 weeks ago
- Submission on the Draft Biometric Processing Privacy Code
The NZCTU strongly supports the OPC’s decision to issue a code of practice for biometric processing. Our view is that the draft code currently being consulted on is stronger and will be more effective than the exposure code released in early 2024. We are pleased that some of the revisions ...2 weeks ago
- Eggs in more baskets: diversify Australian agricultural exports away from US
Australia’s export-oriented industries, particularly agriculture, need to diversify their markets, with a focus on Southeast Asia. This could strengthen economic security and resilience while deepening regional relationships. The Trump administration’s decision to impose tariffs on ...2 weeks ago
- The Fisheries Reform Scam – Sam Woolford
Minister Shane Jones is introducing fastrack ‘reforms’ to the our fishing industry that will ensure the big players squeeze out the small fishers and entrench an already bankrupt quota system. Our fisheries are under severe stress: the recent decision by the High Court ruling that the ...2 weeks ago - Climate Change: Failed again
In what has become regular news, the quarterly ETS auction has failed, with nobody even bothering to bid. The immediate reason is that the carbon price has fallen to around $60, below the auction minimum of $68. And the cause of that is a government which has basically given up ...2 weeks ago
- Trump’s tariffs challenge India’s economic balance
US President Donald Trump’s tariff threats have dominated headlines in India in recent weeks. Earlier this month, Trump announced that his reciprocal tariffs—matching other countries’ tariffs on American goods—will go into effect on 2 April, ...2 weeks ago
- NZ’s First #MeToo Case Wants To Practise Law Again
Hi,Back in June of 2021, James Gardner-Hopkins — a former partner at law firm Russell McVeagh — was found guilty of misconduct over sexually inappropriate behaviour with interns.The events all related to law students working as summer interns at Russell McVeagh:As well as intimate touching with a student at his ...2 weeks ago - Climate sceptic ACT MP attacks National
Climate sceptic MP Mark Cameron has slammed National for being ‘out of touch’ by sticking to our climate commitments. Photo: Lynn GrievesonMōrena. Long stories shortest: ACT’s renowned climate sceptic MP Mark Cameron has accused National of being 'out of touch' with farmers by sticking with New Zealand’s Paris accord pledges ...2 weeks ago - Libertarian Jesus
Now I've heard there was a secret chordThat David played, and it pleased the LordBut you don't really care for music, do you?It goes like this, the fourth, the fifthThe minor falls, the major liftsThe baffled king composing HallelujahSongwriter: Leonard CohenI always thought the lyrics of that great song by ...2 weeks ago - People matter—especially when frigate crews are too small
People are getting carried away with the virtues of small warship crews. We need to remember the great vice of having few people to run a ship: they’ll quickly tire. Yes, the navy is struggling ...2 weeks ago
- Auckland’s Western Line: Walking and cycling catchments
This is a guest post by Peter Bisley. It previously appeared on his substack, and is republished here by kind permisison. How can active transport connections maximise City Rail Link benefits City Rail Link successfully ran a test train last month on the 3.45km line under central Auckland, ahead ...2 weeks ago
- Bernard’s Pick ‘n’ Mix at 6am on Wednesday, March 19
Mōrena. Here’s my selection1 of scoops, breaking news, news, analyses, deep-dives, features, interviews, Op-Eds, editorials and cartoons from around Aotearoa’s political economy on housing, climate and poverty from RNZ, 1News, The Post-$2, The Press−$, Newsroom/$3, NZ Herald/$, Stuff, BusinessDesk/$, Politik-$, NBR-$, Reuters, FT/$, WSJ/$, Bloomberg/$, New York Times/$, The Atlantic-$, ...2 weeks ago - Unity is the answer to Europe’s defence woes
US President Donald Trump’s hostile regime has finally forced Europe to wake up. With US officials calling into question the transatlantic alliance, Germany’s incoming chancellor, Friedrich Merz, recently persuaded lawmakers to revise the country’s debt ...2 weeks ago
- Australian politics needs clearer national security boundaries
We need to establish clearer political boundaries around national security to avoid politicising ongoing security issues and to better manage secondary effects. The Australian Federal Police (AFP) revealed on 10 March that the Dural caravan ...2 weeks ago
- Government must act decisively and ban engineered stone
The NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi have reiterated their call for Government to protect workers by banning engineered stone in a submission on MBIE’s silica dust consultation. “If Brooke van Velden is genuine when she calls for an evidence-based approach to this issue, then she must support a full ban on ...2 weeks ago
- Tuesday 18 March
The Labour Inspectorate could soon be knocking on the door of hundreds of businesses nation-wide, as it launches a major crackdown on those not abiding by the law. NorthTec staff are on edge as Northland’s leading polytechnic proposes to stop 11 programmes across primary industries, forestry, and construction. Union coverage ...2 weeks ago
- First-person view drones: transitioning from sport to battle
It’s one thing for military personnel to hone skills with first-person view (FPV) drones in racing competitions. It’s quite another for them to transition to the complexities of the battlefield. Drone racing has become a ...2 weeks ago
- ‘There are no exemptions. Just eat it.’
Seymour says there will be no other exemptions granted to schools wanting to opt out of the Compass contract. Photo: Lynn GrievesonLong stories shortest: David Seymour has denied a request from a Christchurch school and any other schools to be exempted from the Compass school lunch programme, saying the contract ...2 weeks ago - Nuclear Ukraine: Budapest Memorandum – what it says and is it relevant?
Russian President Boris Yeltsin, U.S. President Bill Clinton, Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma, and British Prime Minister John Major signed the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty in ... 2 weeks ago - A Palate Cleanser
Edit: The original story said “Palette Cleanser” in both the story, and the headline. I am never, ever going to live this down. Chain me up, throw me into the pit.Hi,With the world burning — literally and figuratively — I felt like Webworm needed a little palate cleanser at the ...2 weeks ago
- Do Americans really want urban sprawl?
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sarah Wesseler (Image credit: Antonio Huerta) Growing up in suburban Ohio, I was used to seeing farmland and woods disappear to make room for new subdivisions, strip malls, and big box stores. I didn’t usually welcome the changes, but I assumed others ...2 weeks ago
- Myanmar’s desperate condition: fragmentation, drugs, money-laundering and more
Myanmar was a key global site for criminal activity well before the 2021 military coup. Today, illicit industry, especially heroin and methamphetamine production, still defines much of the economy. Nowhere, not even the leafiest districts ...2 weeks ago
- The Hardest Word
What've I gotta do to make you love me?What've I gotta do to make you care?What do I do when lightning strikes me?And I wake up and find that you're not thereWhat've I gotta do to make you want me?Mmm hmm, what've I gotta do to be heard?What do I ...2 weeks ago - Bernard’s Pick ‘n’ Mix at 6am on Tuesday, March 18
Here’s my selection1 of scoops, breaking news, news, analyses, deep-dives, features, interviews, Op-Eds, editorials and cartoons from around Aotearoa’s political economy on housing, climate and poverty from RNZ, 1News, The Post-$2, The Press−$, Newsroom3, NZ Herald, Stuff, BusinessDesk-$, NBR-$, Reuters, FT-$, WSJ-$, Bloomberg-$, New York Times-$, The Atlantic-$, The Economist-$ ...2 weeks ago - Gordon Campbell On Luxon’s Survival Chances, And The India FTA
Whenever Christopher Luxon drops a classically fatuous clanger or whenever the government has a bad poll – i.e. every week – the talk resumes that he is about to be rolled. This is unlikely for several reasons. For starters, there is no successor. Nicola Willis? Chris Bishop? Simeon Brown? Mark ...2 weeks ago
- Feedback on work with engineered stone and materials containing crystalline silica
The NZCTU remains strongly committed to banning engineered stone in New Zealand and implementing better occupational health protections for all workers working with silica-containing materials. In this submission to MBIE, the NZCTU outlines that we have an opportunity to learn from Australia’s experience by implementing a full ban of engineered ...2 weeks ago
- Big deal
The Prime Minister has announced a big win in trade negotiations with India.It’s huge, he told reporters. We didn't get everything we came for but we were able to agree on free trade in clothing, fabrics, car components, software, IT consulting, spices, tea, rice, and leather goods.He said that for ...2 weeks ago - A Return to a US Gilded Age?
I have been trying to figure out the logic of Trump’s tariff policies and apparent desire for a global trade war. Although he does not appear to comprehend that tariffs are a tax on consumers in the country doing the tariffing, I can (sort of) understand that he may think ...2 weeks ago - France is prominent in efforts to shape Syria’s future, again
As Syria and international partners negotiate the country’s future, France has sought to be a convening power. While France has a history of influence in the Middle East, it will have to balance competing Syrian ...2 weeks ago
- “Capital poor”
One of the eternal truths about Aotearoa's economy is that we are "capital poor": there's not enough money sloshing around here to fund the expansion of local businesses, or to build the things we want to. Which gets used as an excuse for all sorts of things, like setting up ...2 weeks ago
- Pictures Tell The Story
National held its ground until late 2023 Verion, Talbot Mills & Curia Polls (Red = Labour, Blue = National)If we remove outlier results from Curia (National Party November 2023) National started trending down in October 2024.Verion Polls (Red = Labour, Blue = National)Verian alone shows a clearer deterioration in early ...2 weeks ago - Daddy
Daddy, are you out there?Daddy, won't you come and play?Daddy, do you not care?Is there nothing that you want to say?Songwriters: Mark Batson / Beyonce Giselle Knowles.This morning, a look at the much-maligned NZ Herald. Despised by many on the left as little more than a mouthpiece for the National ...2 weeks ago - Monday 17 March
Employers, unions and health and safety advocates are calling for engineered stone to be banned, a day before consultation on regulations closes. On Friday the PSA lodged a pay equity claim for library assistants with the Employment Relations Authority, after the stalling of a claim lodged with six councils in ...2 weeks ago
- Luxon announces start of India trade deal talks
Long stories shortest in Aotearoa’s political economy: Christopher Luxon surprises by announcing trade deal talks with India will start next month, and include beef and dairy. Napier is set to join Whakatane, Dunedin and Westport in staging a protest march against health spending restraints hitting their hospital services. Winston Peters ...2 weeks ago - In a divided world, momentum behind negotiations grows
At a time of rising geopolitical tensions and deepening global fragmentation, the Ukraine war has proved particularly divisive. From the start, the battle lines were clearly drawn: Russia on one side, Ukraine and the West ...2 weeks ago
- Mercury Lane, and Auckland Transport’s habitual failure
When the City Rail Link opens (circa 2026), all signs point to it immediately being a huge success. It will be transformational for Auckland, with ripple effects across the city. Thousands of people an hour will pour in and out of the new and upgraded stations. So, as well as ...2 weeks ago
- Bernard’s Pick ‘n’ Mix at 6am on March 17
Here’s my selection1 of scoops, breaking news, news, analyses, deep-dives, features, interviews, Op-Eds, editorials and cartoons from around Aotearoa’s political economy on housing, climate and poverty from RNZ, 1News, The Post-$2, The Press−$, Newsroom3, NZ Herald, Stuff, BusinessDesk-$, Newsroom-$, Politik-$, NBR-$, Reuters, FT-$, WSJ-$, Bloomberg-$, New York Times-$, The Atlantic-$, ...2 weeks ago - 2025 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
A listing of 26 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 9, 2025 thru Sat, March 15, 2025. This week's roundup is again published by category and sorted by number of articles included in each. We are still interested ...3 weeks ago
- Maxing out – next steps for progressives
Max Harris and Max Rashbrooke discuss how we turn around the right wing slogans like nanny state, woke identity politics, and the inefficiency of the public sector – and how we build a progressive agenda. From Donald Trump to David Seymour, from Peter Dutton to Christopher Luxon, we are subject to a ...3 weeks ago
- Bernard’s Soliloquy for the week to March 16
The Government dominated the political agenda this week with its two-day conference pitching all manner of public infrastructure projects for Public Private Partnerships (PPPs). Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories shortest in our political economy this week: The Government ploughed ahead with offers of PPPs to pension fund managers ...3 weeks ago - Eating Like Kings
You know that it's a snake eat snake worldWe slither and serpentine throughWe all took a bite, and six thousand years laterThese apples getting harder to chewSongwriters: Shawn Mavrides.“Please be Jack Tame”, I thought when I saw it was Seymour appearing on Q&A. I’d had a guts full of the ...3 weeks ago - David now turns to Rodney with a stricken face
So here we are at the wedding of Alexandra Vincent Martelli and David Seymour.Look at all the happy prosperous guests! How proud Nick Mowbray looks of the gift he has made of a mountain of crap plastic toys stuffed into a Cybertruck.How they drink, how they laugh, how they mug ...3 weeks ago - Fact brief – Is waste heat from industrial activity the reason the planet is warming?
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Is waste heat from industrial activity the reason the planet is warming? Waste heat’s contribution to global warming is a small fraction of ...3 weeks ago
- On why complaining about incompetent David Seymour’s School Lunches is the only rational respo...
Some continue to defend David Seymour on school lunches, sidestepping his errors to say:“Well the parents should pack their lunch” and/or “Kids should be grateful for free food.”One of these people is the sitting Prime Minister.So I put together a quick list of why complaint is not only appropriate - ...3 weeks ago - Whistling Past The Graveyard.
“Bugger the pollsters!”WHEN EVERYBODY LIVED in villages, and every village had a graveyard, the expression “whistling past the graveyard” made more sense. Even so, it’s hard to describe the Coalition Government’s response to the latest Taxpayers’ Union/Curia Research poll any better. Regardless of whether they wanted to go there, or ...3 weeks ago
- Jane Kelsey – Transforming neoliberalism
Prof Jane Kelsey examines what the ACT party and the NZ Initiative are up to as they seek to impose on the country their hardline, right wing, neoliberal ideology. A progressive government elected in 2026 would have a huge job putting Humpty Dumpty together again and rebuilding a state that ...3 weeks ago
- Ain’t No Use
See I try to make a differenceBut the heads of the high keep turning awayThere ain't no useWhen the world that you love has goneOoh, gotta make a changeSongwriters: Arapekanga Adams-Tamatea / Brad Kora / Hiriini Kora / Joel Shadbolt.Aotearoa for Sale.This week saw the much-heralded and somewhat alarming sight ...3 weeks ago - Bernard’s Pick ‘n’ Mix on Saturday, March 15
Here’s my selection1 of scoops, breaking news, news, analyses, deep-dives, features, interviews, Op-Eds, editorials and cartoons from around Aotearoa’s political economy on housing, climate and poverty from RNZ, 1News, The Post-$2, The Press−$, Newsroom3, NZ Herald, Stuff, BusinessDesk-$, NBR-$, Reuters, FT-$, WSJ-$, Bloomberg-$, New York Times-$, The Atlantic-$, The Economist-$ ...3 weeks ago - Is the New Zealand Healthcare System Doing Badly?
By international standards the New Zealand healthcare system appears satisfactory – certainly no worse generally than average. Yet it is undergoing another redisorganisation.While doing some unrelated work, I came across some international data on the healthcare sector which seemed to contradict my – and the conventional wisdom’s – view of ...3 weeks ago - Labour draws a clear line in the sand on National’s privatisation binge
Mountain Tui is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Over the last year, I’ve been warning about Luxon’s pitch to privatise our public assets. He had told reporters in October that nothing was off the cards:Schools, hospitals, prisons, and ...3 weeks ago
- CubaDupa captured a sense of defiant joy
Wellingtonians are so used to negative media narratives that celebrating their city feels like a radical act. In that context, CubaDupa’s ‘communal joy’ theme made perfect sense, write Joel MacManus and Lyric Waiwiri-Smith. The theme of this year’s CubaDupa was “communal joy”. At first glance, it’s an eye-roller; less of ...1 day ago - CubaDupa captured a sense of defiant joy
Wellingtonians are so used to negative media narratives that celebrating their city feels like a radical act. In that context, CubaDupa’s ‘communal joy’ theme made perfect sense, write Joel MacManus and Lyric Waiwiri-Smith. The theme of this year’s CubaDupa was “communal joy”. At first glance, it’s an eye-roller; less of ...1 day ago
- You don’t have to be called Steve to be a stevedore
As the Govt changes the law to prioritise ‘merit-based appointments’, the Port of Auckland’s boss explains why diversity and inclusion is good business The post You don’t have to be called Steve to be a stevedore appeared first on Newsroom. ...1 day ago - You don’t have to be called Steve to be a stevedore
As the Govt changes the law to prioritise ‘merit-based appointments’, the Port of Auckland’s boss explains why diversity and inclusion is good business The post You don’t have to be called Steve to be a stevedore appeared first on Newsroom. ...1 day ago
- Dogs see their world through smell – and scientists are starting to translate it like never before
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jacqueline Boyd, Senior Lecturer in Animal Science, Nottingham Trent University Lorenzooooo/Shutterstock Scent is how dogs largely experience the world, a lot like the way we humans rely on sight. We know little about how dogs interpret scent, but thanks to a ...1 day ago - Dogs see their world through smell – and scientists are starting to translate it like never before
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jacqueline Boyd, Senior Lecturer in Animal Science, Nottingham Trent University Lorenzooooo/Shutterstock Scent is how dogs largely experience the world, a lot like the way we humans rely on sight. We know little about how dogs interpret scent, but thanks to a ...1 day ago
- William Wordsworth’s last home is up for sale – returning it to a private residence would be a l...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amy Wilcockson, Research assistant, University of Glasgow Until recently, fans of William Wordsworth could visit his final home, Rydal Mount and Gardens, nestled in the heart of England’s green and beautiful Lake District. Renowned as one of the most prominent British poets, ...1 day ago
- William Wordsworth’s last home is up for sale – returning it to a private residence would be a l...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amy Wilcockson, Research assistant, University of Glasgow Until recently, fans of William Wordsworth could visit his final home, Rydal Mount and Gardens, nestled in the heart of England’s green and beautiful Lake District. Renowned as one of the most prominent British poets, ...1 day ago
- ‘Putin’s brain’: Aleksandr Dugin, the Russian ultra-nationalist who has endorsed Donald Trump
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kevin Riehle, Lecturer in Intelligence and Security Studies, Brunel University of London Aleksandr Dugin, sometimes referred to as “Putin’s brain” because of his ideological influence on Russian politics, endorsed the policies of Donald Trump in a CNN interview aired on March 30. ...1 day ago
- ‘Putin’s brain’: Aleksandr Dugin, the Russian ultra-nationalist who has endorsed Donald Trump
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kevin Riehle, Lecturer in Intelligence and Security Studies, Brunel University of London Aleksandr Dugin, sometimes referred to as “Putin’s brain” because of his ideological influence on Russian politics, endorsed the policies of Donald Trump in a CNN interview aired on March 30. ...1 day ago
- Canada a 51st state? Here’s how American annexation could actually favour Canada
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Felix Arndt, Professor and John F. Wood Chair in Entrepreneurship, University of Guelph When United States President Donald Trump first floated the idea of annexing Canada, many observers rolled their eyes. The common assumption was that this proposal, like much of Trump’s ...1 day ago
- Canada a 51st state? Here’s how American annexation could actually favour Canada
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Felix Arndt, Professor and John F. Wood Chair in Entrepreneurship, University of Guelph When United States President Donald Trump first floated the idea of annexing Canada, many observers rolled their eyes. The common assumption was that this proposal, like much of Trump’s ...1 day ago
- ‘Sorry mate, I didn’t see you’: when drivers look but don’t see cyclists on the road
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Giulio Ponte, Research Engineer at the Centre for Automotive Safety Research, University of Adelaide Serhii Milekhin/Shutterstock When a vehicle and a cyclist collide, the cyclist almost always emerges worse off. Globally, more than 40,000 cyclists are killed and millions more seriously ...1 day ago
- ‘Sorry mate, I didn’t see you’: when drivers look but don’t see cyclists on the road
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Giulio Ponte, Research Engineer at the Centre for Automotive Safety Research, University of Adelaide Serhii Milekhin/Shutterstock When a vehicle and a cyclist collide, the cyclist almost always emerges worse off. Globally, more than 40,000 cyclists are killed and millions more seriously ...1 day ago
- Defence is shaping up to be a key election issue, whether politicians like it or not
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter J. Dean, Director, Foreign Policy and Defence, United States Studies Centre, University of Sydney International and domestic policy have collided in Australia in recent weeks with a force not seen in decades. Foreign policy concerns have dominated media headlines, from ...1 day ago
- Defence is shaping up to be a key election issue, whether politicians like it or not
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter J. Dean, Director, Foreign Policy and Defence, United States Studies Centre, University of Sydney International and domestic policy have collided in Australia in recent weeks with a force not seen in decades. Foreign policy concerns have dominated media headlines, from ...1 day ago
- New RNZ-Reid Research poll: Half of Kiwis want defence spending to increase
It comes on the back of increases announced by Australia, the UK, and other European nations. ...1 day ago - New RNZ-Reid Research poll: Half of Kiwis want defence spending to increase
It comes on the back of increases announced by Australia, the UK, and other European nations. ...1 day ago
- Cancer patients from migrant backgrounds have a 1 in 3 chance of something going wrong in their care
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ashfaq Chauhan, Research Fellow, Australian Institute of Health Innovation, Macquarie University SeventyFour/Shutterstock More than 7 million people in Australia were born overseas. Some 5.8 million people report speaking a language other than English at home. But how well are we ...1 day ago
- Cancer patients from migrant backgrounds have a 1 in 3 chance of something going wrong in their care
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ashfaq Chauhan, Research Fellow, Australian Institute of Health Innovation, Macquarie University SeventyFour/Shutterstock More than 7 million people in Australia were born overseas. Some 5.8 million people report speaking a language other than English at home. But how well are we ...1 day ago
- Australians want nature protected. These 3 environmental problems should be top of the next governme...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Euan Ritchie, Professor in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, School of Life & Environmental Sciences, Deakin University Christina Zdenek Australia is a place of great natural beauty, home to many species found nowhere else on Earth. But it’s also particularly vulnerable to ...1 day ago
- Australians want nature protected. These 3 environmental problems should be top of the next governme...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Euan Ritchie, Professor in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, School of Life & Environmental Sciences, Deakin University Christina Zdenek Australia is a place of great natural beauty, home to many species found nowhere else on Earth. But it’s also particularly vulnerable to ...1 day ago
- Giving up a daily coffee or weekly parma? How the cost-of-living crisis is reshaping our spending ha...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Meg Elkins, Senior Lecturer, School of Economics, Finance and Marketing and Behavioural Business Lab Member, RMIT University Bangkok Click Studio/Shutterstock Remember when grabbing a coffee was just… grabbing a coffee? When a parma at the local was a budget meal? When ...1 day ago
- Giving up a daily coffee or weekly parma? How the cost-of-living crisis is reshaping our spending ha...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Meg Elkins, Senior Lecturer, School of Economics, Finance and Marketing and Behavioural Business Lab Member, RMIT University Bangkok Click Studio/Shutterstock Remember when grabbing a coffee was just… grabbing a coffee? When a parma at the local was a budget meal? When ...1 day ago
- A ban on price gouging and new powers to break up supermarkets are on the table this election. Would...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Barbora Jedlickova, Senior Lecturer, School of Law, The University of Queensland wisely/Shutterstock With the federal election campaign now underway, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has promised that if re-elected, Labor would seek to make price gouging illegal in the supermarket sector. A ...1 day ago
- A ban on price gouging and new powers to break up supermarkets are on the table this election. Would...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Barbora Jedlickova, Senior Lecturer, School of Law, The University of Queensland wisely/Shutterstock With the federal election campaign now underway, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has promised that if re-elected, Labor would seek to make price gouging illegal in the supermarket sector. A ...1 day ago
- Adolescence has sparked fears over teen slang – but emoji don’t cause radicalisation
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jessica Kruk, Lecturer in Indonesian Studies and Linguistics, The University of Western Australia Shutterstock Jack Thorne and Stephen Graham’s crime drama Adolescence has earned widespread praise for its portrayal of incel culture and male violence. But the show’s portrayal of ...1 day ago
- Adolescence has sparked fears over teen slang – but emoji don’t cause radicalisation
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jessica Kruk, Lecturer in Indonesian Studies and Linguistics, The University of Western Australia Shutterstock Jack Thorne and Stephen Graham’s crime drama Adolescence has earned widespread praise for its portrayal of incel culture and male violence. But the show’s portrayal of ...1 day ago
- New Zealand’s concerns over Cook Islands’ ‘shadow fleet’ revealed
Cook Islands-registered ship, Eagle S, was seized on Christmas day, 2024, in the Baltic Sea. ...1 day ago
- The battle to control NZME is heating up
The Herald’s publisher is reopening nominations for boardroom directors in an attempt to stave off Jim Grenon’s aggressive takeover bid, writes Catherine McGregor in today’s extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. NZME strikes back After weeks of forward momentum, Jim Grenon’s attempted ...1 day ago
- The battle to control NZME is heating up
The Herald’s publisher is reopening nominations for boardroom directors in an attempt to stave off Jim Grenon’s aggressive takeover bid, writes Catherine McGregor in today’s extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. NZME strikes back After weeks of forward momentum, Jim Grenon’s attempted ...1 day ago
- Prime Minister doubles down on allowing exclusion of Treaty Principles Bill submissions
But legal scholars warn the move sets a worrying precedent. ...1 day ago
- No armed drones in NZDF arsenal, but tests continue
The NZ Defence Force says it does not have any armed drones, but is involved in experiments with them. ...1 day ago
- No armed drones in NZDF arsenal, but tests continue
The NZ Defence Force says it does not have any armed drones, but is involved in experiments with them. ...1 day ago
- Workplace Relations minister announces plans to relax health and safety laws
Brooke van Velden says business directors and management are doubling up duties because of unclear rules. ...1 day ago
- Workplace Relations minister announces plans to relax health and safety laws
Brooke van Velden says business directors and management are doubling up duties because of unclear rules. ...1 day ago
- Freshwater case attacks decades of policy, Crown says
Eight weeks into Ngāi Tahu’s freshwater trial, after hearing from 40 witnesses, delving into hundreds of documents and previous judgments by courts and tribunals, the Crown tells the judge: don’t get hung up on volume.On Tuesday, barrister Mike Colson KC began closing arguments for the Attorney-General, taken to the High ...1 day ago
- Freshwater case attacks decades of policy, Crown says
Eight weeks into Ngāi Tahu’s freshwater trial, after hearing from 40 witnesses, delving into hundreds of documents and previous judgments by courts and tribunals, the Crown tells the judge: don’t get hung up on volume.On Tuesday, barrister Mike Colson KC began closing arguments for the Attorney-General, taken to the High ...1 day ago
- John Tamihere takes government to court over lost Whānau Ora contract
Lawyers acting for the Whānau Ora Commissioning Agency chief executive have appeared in Wellington High Court to argue for a judicial review of the decision to award the North Island contract to another provider. Lyric Waiwiri-Smith reports. John Tamihere’s challenge to the procurement process that saw his commissioning agency lose ...1 day ago
- Who gets to embrace ‘abundance’ in New Zealand politics?
A new book challenges the left to stop being the parties of ‘no’ and adopt a new type of politics – one that builds. But can anyone in New Zealand politics credibly embrace abundance, or are we doomed to squabble in scarcity for ever? For the first time in a ...1 day ago
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