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The freedom to lie during an election campaign
Written By: - Date published: 6:55 am, December 11th, 2019 - 75 comments
Two recent National advertisements involving drastically inaccurate graphics have attracted attention. And at the same time National is opposing changes to the Electoral Law that would extend the time that it is an offence to publish a false and misleading advertisement during an election period.
Crash ‘n Burn
Written By: - Date published: 10:14 am, December 10th, 2019 - 17 comments
A chuttering PM and…well, I guess being left speechless.
Right wing lies
Written By: - Date published: 8:29 am, December 6th, 2019 - 110 comments
New Zealand and the United Kingdom are both cursed with the right wing parties having the same advisors and similar means of campaigning
Little’s Electoral Bill a curate’s egg – good in parts
Written By: - Date published: 1:51 pm, December 4th, 2019 - 11 comments
I’ve always liked Punch magazine’s famous cartoon “True humility” where the curate assures his bishop noticing his bad egg that parts of it are excellent. Most discussion on Little’s Bill has focused on the bad bits regarding foreign donations. The good bit requires all political ads online to be attributed.
Why some MPs should not tweet
Written By: - Date published: 9:16 am, December 3rd, 2019 - 7 comments
National MP Joanne Hayes has provided a textbook example of the perils of Twitter.
National’s Youth lauranorda rhetoric
Written By: - Date published: 2:16 pm, November 27th, 2019 - 20 comments
National is proposing changes to the Youth Court system that show not only a disregard for working in the interests of young people but disturbingly show a complete lack of understanding about how the Youth Court works.
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 …
UK Conservative’s social media is remarkably similar to National’s social media
Written By: - Date published: 9:37 am, November 6th, 2019 - 31 comments
The British Conservative Party and the New Zealand National Party appear to be using very similar twitter strategies involving the setting of highly edited video to naff music and the making of patently ridiculous claims.
Unapologetic populism?
Written By: - Date published: 7:51 am, October 29th, 2019 - 44 comments
A Wall Street broker has accused Democratic nominee Elizabeth Warren of unapologetic populism in her desire to help workers, the environment, those with lower incomes, and women and minorities as if these are bad things.
Truth, boomer memes and the next election campaign
Written By: - Date published: 9:05 am, October 26th, 2019 - 54 comments
Thanks to Facebook’s lax attitude to fact checking it appears that the next election campaign is going to be a rough one.
National’s plans to torment poor people leaked
Written By: - Date published: 8:08 am, October 4th, 2019 - 110 comments
National’s plans to torment poor people for political gain have been leaked.
National’s faux outrage
Written By: - Date published: 8:35 am, September 27th, 2019 - 33 comments
The National Party has described as “censorship at the extreme” a rule in Parliament’s standing orders the latest version of which was enacted under the last National Government. Updated with Simon Bridges opposing the relaxation of the rule in 2017
Every day New Zealanders
Written By: - Date published: 12:37 pm, September 18th, 2019 - 20 comments
Simon Bridges thinks that Jacinda Ardern’s international campaign to change the way that social media handles hate speech and terrorism a big talkfest that will achieve nothing, even though Facebook has as a result announced significant changes to its platform.
National’s double standard
Written By: - Date published: 9:31 am, September 15th, 2019 - 100 comments
National has a rather murky past when it comes to dealing with issues relating to the behaviour of its Members of Parliament.
National advertisements ruled misleading
Written By: - Date published: 7:38 am, September 13th, 2019 - 32 comments
National has recently had two different advertisements ruled misleading by the Advertising Standards Authority.
The biggest loser
Written By: - Date published: 2:15 pm, September 10th, 2019 - 21 comments
Boris Johnson has lost a sixth Parliamentary vote in six days as Britain lurches into a constitutional crisis.
Toxic masculinity
Written By: - Date published: 8:36 am, August 28th, 2019 - 153 comments
As the Amazon burns and the world looks on aghast as our lungs go up in flames Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has chosen to respond to an offer of help from the G7 by picking a fight with French leader Emmanuel Macron.
Cmon Aussie …
Written By: - Date published: 10:48 am, August 18th, 2019 - 54 comments
In the last week Australia has insulted Pacific nations by refusing to commit to a 1.5 degree maximum increase in global temperatures and by claiming that Pacific Islands will be fine because they can pick Australia’s fruit. And Alan Jones has almost lost his job through misogynist attacks on Jacinda Ardern.
National still does not get MMP
Written By: - Date published: 8:23 am, August 14th, 2019 - 62 comments
National has shown that it does not understand MMP by being overly concerned that some electorates may be slightly bigger or smaller than other electorates.
Do poor people and women exist in right wing economics land?
Written By: - Date published: 7:30 am, August 13th, 2019 - 125 comments
David Seymour has written a critique of Deborah Russel’s review of the hard right economic tome “Economics in one lesson”. And totally missed the point of what she was saying.
Five days is a long time in politics
Written By: - Date published: 2:20 pm, August 6th, 2019 - 27 comments
Five days ago Simon Bridges predicted that unemployment had gone up. The latest figures show that the unemployment rate is at its lowest rate for the past eleven years. Update: My enthusiasm was too high. It has been pointed out to me that the Bridges tweet was from last year. My apologies to Simon …
Memo from Crosby Textor – fake news
Written By: - Date published: 9:06 am, August 2nd, 2019 - 19 comments
The Standard has obtained an internal memo from CTF Partners (formerly Crosby Textor) where it responds to allegations that it is a kindergarden for the rich children of Conservative Party donors, has engaged in misogynist behavior and ran anti and pro cycle astroturf campaigns to get a cycleway moved from near a client’s business premises to near an opponent’s premises.
Later Whaleoil
Written By: - Date published: 11:07 am, August 1st, 2019 - 66 comments
The Whaleoil blog has announced that there will be no new blog posts on the site.
The unbelievable lightness of Simon Bridges
Written By: - Date published: 11:49 am, July 31st, 2019 - 31 comments
Simon Bridges has insulted women and Tokelauans at the same time with a thinly veiled attack on Jacinda Ardern.
When your Comms team goes rogue
Written By: - Date published: 11:00 am, July 24th, 2019 - 8 comments
Former UK Labour MP Jared O’Mara must be regretting not treating his staff better as his Comms adviser has announced his resignation via O’Mara’s own twitter account.
Sometimes explaining is not losing
Written By: - Date published: 8:03 am, July 18th, 2019 - 98 comments
Stacey Kirk thinks that Julie Anne Genter should not have criticised National’s spin on the Government’s fuel efficient importation policy but forgets to do her basic job of analysing National’s spin.
Make America white again
Written By: - Date published: 11:32 am, July 16th, 2019 - 81 comments
Donald Trump has attacked a group of young female Democrat politicians and has claimed they should go back to the country they were born in. Even though they were actually born in the United States.
Simon Bridges Going Blue in the Face Barking at Green Cars
Written By: - Date published: 3:48 pm, July 14th, 2019 - 51 comments
Simon Bridges is barking madly at green cars.
Is POTUS up to the job?
Written By: - Date published: 2:34 pm, July 8th, 2019 - 275 comments
A senior Psychologist thinks that POTUS Donald Trump is not up to doing the job. And the UK Ambassador to the US says that the Trump White House is uniquely dysfunctional and inept.
National supports 47% tax rate for top income bracket *
Written By: - Date published: 7:21 am, July 5th, 2019 - 25 comments
* this is one possible interpretation for National’s praise of the Morrisonn Government’s change to Australian tax system.
National offers to help with housing crisis
Written By: - Date published: 11:50 am, June 28th, 2019 - 105 comments
On behalf of the National Party Judith Collins has offered to help Labour deal with the housing crisis, the one that National is responsible for.
- Watch: Traffic-stopping haka breaks out during hīkoi to Parliament
Vehicles were barred from entering the intersection as a group of men performed the haka to a crowd of hundreds of onlookers. ...3 days ago - Hīkoi to Parliament: The families taking part and why
The hīkoi is a family affair, with tamariki everywhere; pepe sleeping in carts and buggies or tugging their cousins' hair. ...3 days ago
- The best signs from the final day of the Toitū Te Tiriti hīkoi
How many ways can you say you’re pissed off? A good protest sign signifies all the things you want to say at a demonstration: I’m here, I care and I’ve found the most fed up/witty/creative way to express this. And after a week of nationwide protests for the Toitū Te ...3 days ago - Pike River: 14 Years On And Far Too Many Of Us Are Being Injured At Work
"The Minister’s actions on health and safety show the Minister has failed to understand the lessons of Pike River. Instead of boosting health and safety at work, her party and her Government are looking for ways to water down the protections it has delivered." ...3 days ago - Live: 35,000 join as Treaty Principles Bill hīkoi reaches Parliament
Hīkoi mō te Tiriti is heading for Waitangi Park and heavy traffic through the CBD is expected ahead of the evening commute. ...3 days ago
- Dunedin Hospital protesters rally to support campaign
About 1000 people turned up to hear why building the hospital as planned, was important. ...3 days ago
- Watch: ‘Kill the bill, kill the bill’ – David Seymour walks out, waves to proteste...
The ACT leader was met with chants of "Kill the bill, kill the bill" when he walked out of the Beehive, before waving to the crowd and returning inside. ...3 days ago
- Livestream: 35,000 join as Treaty Principles Bill hīkoi reaches Parliament
The Treaty Principles Bill's architect made a brief appearance, and was met with chanting, as 35,000 people protesting overflowed from Parliament's lawn. ...4 days ago
- Public humiliation is still a common teaching tool in medical education. Here’s how it leaves pati...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Carolyn Heward, Lecturer, Clinical Psychology, James Cook University Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock Imagine being questioned about complex technical knowledge in front of your peers, supervisors, and members of the public – knowing that a wrong answer could lead to public ridicule. ...4 days ago - Hīkoi mō Te Tiriti: The final day march to Parliament in photos
It was an early start for thousands as the hīkoi sets off for its final destination - the grounds of Parliament. ...4 days ago
- It’s clear footy has an Indigenous participation problem, and the AFL draft is only part of the so...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Chelsey Taylor, PhD Candidate, Swinburne University of Technology From revolutionary Geelong ruckman Graham “Polly” Farmer, to the electrifying Krakouer brothers (Phil and Jim) at North Melbourne, through to modern stars such as Charlie Cameron, Adam Goodes, Lance Franklin and Eddie Betts, Indigenous ...4 days ago
- What our politicians’ signatures tell us about their personalities
We asked a handwriting expert to analyse the scrawls of our elected officials. Here’s what they said. Recently I received a press release from the trio of ministers – Simeon Brown, Shane Jones and Chris Bishop – tasked with overseeing the government’s controversial fast-track consenting bill. The press release itself ...4 days ago
- Livestream: 19,000 join as Treaty Principles Bill hīkoi reaches Parliament
'The energy, the power-it's palpable here on the ground,' an MP says as a sea of red, black and white flags sorrounds the Beehive. ...4 days ago
- Education minister says kids should be in school instead of at hīkoi
But the son of a haka expert, travelling down with students from Huntly, says "this is all part of our learning, this is their school". ...4 days ago
- Basic rules for screen time at a young age can help reduce childhood obesity – new research
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ladan Hashemi, Senior Research Fellow in Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Childhood obesity is a growing concern worldwide. But in New Zealand it’s a particularly pressing issue. With one of the highest rates in the OECD, about one ...4 days ago
- Livestream: Treaty Principles Bill hīkoi mō te Tiriti at Parliament
Thousands have marched through the streets of a capital and to the Beehive. ...4 days ago
- Kanaky Aotearoa Solidarity Says “Toitū Te Tiriti!”
Kanaky Aotearoa Solidarity supports te hikoi and says Toitū te Tiriti! Māori never ceded sovereignty! ...4 days ago
- Video: Te Pāti Māori MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke reacts to haka heard around the world
In the face of criticism, Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke says there was definitely a moment of 'what just happened?', after the House was suspended during voting. ...4 days ago
- Livestream: Treaty Principles Bill hīkoi at Parliament
'The energy, the power-it's palpable here on the ground,' an MP says as a sea of red, black and white flags makes its way to the Beehive and crowds line the streets. ...4 days ago
- Review: Camping is the hyper horny, extremely silly play we need right now
Almost a decade ago, Camping dazzled with four relative unknowns in a tiny venue. Now it returns, with an all-star cast on a bigger stage. Does it still deliver? The original run of Camping, on stage at The Basement, is the funniest and most kinetically bizarre show I’ve seen in ...4 days ago
- ‘We don’t even have a CT scan here’: Dunedin Hospital protesters rally
About 1000 people turned up to hear why building the hospital as planned, was important. ...4 days ago
- Biggest Ever Community Petition, With Over 200,000 Signatures, Opposes Treaty Principles Bill
The country has spoken. This Bill is a bad faith attempt to revoke the Government’s commitments to Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and it’s visible to not just Aotearoa, but the world. ...4 days ago
- Justice Committee Calls For Submissions On The Principles Of The Treaty Of Waitangi Bill
The committee is intending to complete hearings by the end of February 2025. Further decisions about hearings will be made and communicated in due course. ...4 days ago
- To build support, it might be time for the Greens to hang up their movement-style approach to politi...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Narelle Miragliotta, Associate Professor in Politics, Murdoch University State and territory elections held in 2024 have not delivered the electoral and legislative gains the Greens would have hoped for or expected. Of the elections conducted this year, the Greens’ performance was, ...4 days ago
- Australia’s new anti-vaping program in schools is a good step – but education is only part of th...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonine Jancey, Academic and Director Collaboration for Evidence, Research and Impact in Public Health, Curtin University Drazen Zigic/Shutterstock Last week, the federal government announced a plan to roll out an anti-vaping program in schools across the country. The education program, ...4 days ago
- We pay less for houses in one-in-100 year flood zones – but overlook risks of more devastating flo...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Song Shi, Associate Professor, Property Economics, University of Technology Sydney If you’re buying a house near a river or on a floodplain, you will likely come up against the question of flood risk. We usually talk about this in terms of chance. ...4 days ago
- What was the deal with Julius Caesar and Cleopatra’s ‘situationship’?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Charlotte Dunn, Lecturer in Classics, University of Tasmania Carl Gottlieb Venig/Wikimedia The Egyptian queen Cleopatra is often associated with glamorous beauty routines, deadly snake bites, lavish banquets and torrid affairs with some of the most notorious men in Roman history. ...4 days ago
- The cost of being: An ‘anti-capitalist’ barista and tutor renting in Wellington
As part of our series exploring how New Zealanders live and our relationship with money, a 23-year-old explains why she’s been working since she was 11. Want to be part of The Cost of Being? Fill out the questionnaire here. Gender: Female. Age: 23. Ethnicity: Cambodian Chinese. Role: Barista, tutor, campaigner, ...4 days ago
- Regulations Ministry: Online tool can be used to share ‘red tape horror stories’
The Regulations minister wants to hear "from tradies, farmers, teachers, chefs, engineers - every person doing productive work". ...4 days ago
- Elon Musk’s new job will bring tech ‘disruption’ to the US government – and history says it ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Hallam Stevens, Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies, James Cook University On November 12, United States president-elect Donald Trump announced he would appoint Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, to lead a newly constituted Department of Government Efficiency alongside fellow tech billionaire and former ...4 days ago
- AI for life: how sovereign Wiradyuri ways of knowing can transform technology for good
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jessica Russ-Smith, Associate Professor, Social Work and Assistant Deputy Head of School, School of Allied Health, Australian Catholic University Philip Schubert/Shutterstock From climate change to geopolitical instability to health emergencies, we are entering a period of momentous change. The technology industry ...4 days ago
- Live updates: Toitū Te Tiriti hīkoi marches to parliament
Tens of thousands are expected to gather in Te Upoko-o-te-ika-a-Māui today, as the nationwide Toitū Te Tiriti hīkoi prepares to arrive at parliament. Follow this blog for up-to-date coverage and reaction. ...4 days ago
- NZ media’s second wave of doom
MediaRoom: North & South magazine ‘suspending’ print publication is the latest in a wave of closures in our media, suffering from extended economic malaise and lower advertising The post NZ media’s second wave of doom appeared first on Newsroom. ...4 days ago - Powered-up Regulatory Standards Bill removes role of courts
In his third attempt at constraining the drafting of new laws, David Seymour is seizing the controls The post Powered-up Regulatory Standards Bill removes role of courts appeared first on Newsroom. ...4 days ago
- With 14 community newspapers due to close, too many parts of NZ are becoming ‘news deserts’
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Greg Treadwell, Senior Lecturer in Journalism, Auckland University of Technology Getty Images When media company NZME proposed the closure of 14 community newspapers last week, the so-called “news desert” encroached a little further into the local information landscape. The term refers ...4 days ago
- New Zealand’s new ‘anti-scam czar’ gets to work
Millions of dollars are lost to scams each year. Should more attention be on the social media giants that platform them? Stewart Sowman-Lund writes in today’s edition of The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...4 days ago
- Dunedin Hospital rebuild: Rally stirs more opposition to cutbacks
A sea of Southerners filled Dunedin's Town Hall last night in support of the Save Our Southern Hospital campaign. ...4 days ago
- Thousands expected at Parliament as hīkoi moves towards the capital
This article first appeared at rnz.co.nz and is republished with permission.Tens of thousands of people are expected to gather at Parliament today as the final leg of the Hīkoi mō Te Tiriti reaches its last destination – but organisers and participants are saying it will not end there.At Takupūwāhia Marae ...4 days ago
- Treaty hīkoi: Commuter disruption expected as protest reaches Wellington
People on foot and in cars began making their way into central Wellington from the early hours of this morning. ...4 days ago
- Press Gallery 101: The House chats with Jason Walls
After an abuse apology kerfuffle in Parliament last week, The House spoke to Press Gallery chair Jason Walls about how the Press Gallery works, and who gets to join. ...4 days ago
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