the praiseworthy and the pitiful
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This is extremely dangerous to our democracy
Written By: - Date published: 9:00 am, April 3rd, 2018 - 29 comments
Make of this what you will.
The Largesse
Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, April 3rd, 2018 - 51 comments
April the first and second mark the days when those receiving entitlements receive a yearly increase in line with the CPI and the governments increase to Accommodation Supplement also comes into effect. So what does it all mean for those receiving entitlements?
Hope – A powerful but dangerous tool.
Written By: - Date published: 9:40 am, April 2nd, 2018 - 27 comments
Some interesting musings on hope and dashed hope by “Upper Hutt boy in London” – Nick Kelly.
The manufacturing of a narrative
Written By: - Date published: 1:27 pm, March 31st, 2018 - 606 comments
The past week has seen the Herald focus on issues concerning Clare Curran to the almost exclusion of anything else, including the perilous state of our Health system and Kim Dotcom’s successful appeal against the last Government’s breach of his rights of privacy.
Love war, fear and hate.
Written By: - Date published: 10:59 am, March 31st, 2018 - 28 comments
Political power doesn’t respond well when those who are meant to be invisible decide to be visible.
Joyce may have been right about the Fiscal hole
Written By: - Date published: 8:30 am, March 28th, 2018 - 100 comments
Steven Joyce’s prediction of a $11.7 billion deficit in the Government’s finances may be true. But this is because the last Government has underfunded health and hidden problems.
Local Bodies: NZ Politics, a rocky road ahead.
Written By: - Date published: 6:25 am, March 27th, 2018 - 29 comments
Dave Kennedy at Local Bodies looks at the tough task ahead for Labour, and where retired MPs are landing.
Kiwibuild kicks off
Written By: - Date published: 8:59 am, March 26th, 2018 - 218 comments
The first big Kiwibuild announcement, 3 to 4,000 houses in Mt Albert has been made. And National has responded that it was all their idea and they did not want to announce it because it would be seen as pork barrelling.
Naughty Nick’s Parliamentary Porkie
Written By: - Date published: 7:39 am, March 22nd, 2018 - 39 comments
Nick Smith has been caught out by Trevor Mallard telling a porkie in Parliament.
Du Plessis-Allan jumps the shark
Written By: - Date published: 9:59 am, March 18th, 2018 - 87 comments
Heather Du Plessis-Allan has suggested that there is a power struggle happening in the Labour Party. Without the benefit of things normally considered to be important elements of an argument, those things being facts.
Doofus of the week – March 17, 2018
Written By: - Date published: 12:48 pm, March 17th, 2018 - 37 comments
is awarded this week to Lisa Prager who is convinced that construction of cycleways in Auckland is part of a global conspiracy to take away our rights and whose sledge hammering technique is not optimal.
Collins: No one cares about National’s abject failure over housing
Written By: - Date published: 10:42 am, March 16th, 2018 - 111 comments
Judith Collins thinks that no one cares that National oversaw the creation of a significant housing crisis.
Housing needs a builder not a crusher
Written By: - Date published: 8:11 am, March 12th, 2018 - 82 comments
Phil Twyford has the perfect response to National’s claim that Judith Collins’ appointment as Housing Spokesperson would cause him to lose sleep.
Was National a good economic manager?
Written By: - Date published: 9:30 am, March 10th, 2018 - 75 comments
Bill Rosenberg from the CTU has stated convincingly why National is not and was not a sound manager of the economy.
Doofus of the week March 10, 2018
Written By: - Date published: 8:15 am, March 10th, 2018 - 157 comments
An occasional post where we celebrate the extremely banal or bad taste or idiotic behaviour in politics.
Steven Joyce threatens to sue Matthew Hooton and the NBR
Written By: - Date published: 5:22 pm, March 5th, 2018 - 76 comments
Matthew Hooton has been sacked as a contributor to the NBR and Steven Joyce has threatened to sue him and the NBR over claims that Joyce is not popular in caucus and should be sacked.
Simon Bridges’ not very good first week
Written By: - Date published: 9:37 am, March 4th, 2018 - 44 comments
In this very important first week Simon Bridges has committed two major blunders. He has claimed he was environmentally friendly when any view of his Ministerial history would confirm that this is not the case. And he forgot his Government oversaw the stripping of democratic rights from all prisoners, and adjusted his position when his error was pointed out.
Doofus of the week – March 3, 2018
Written By: - Date published: 8:30 am, March 3rd, 2018 - 29 comments
David Seymour has created history by being the first person to win two doofuses of the week awards for blatant misogyny and disrespecting young kiwis who this week won olympic medals.
Some Trash.
Written By: - Date published: 11:52 am, March 1st, 2018 - 27 comments
Being anti-plastic is all the rage these days. How might business respond?
Facebook Bullshit
Written By: - Date published: 12:04 pm, February 26th, 2018 - 70 comments
A very cursory glance at Facebook, Palantir Technologies, Cambridge Analytica, AggregateIQ, click bait, targeted ads…and what the hell is the FBI playing at?
Doofus of the week – David Seymour
Written By: - Date published: 1:00 pm, February 24th, 2018 - 21 comments
Hot on the heels on the news that he is going to spend valuable time dancing with the stars David Seymour has engaged in a good old fashioned piece of fat shaming. From Anna Bracewell-Worrall at Stuff: ACT party politician David Seymour has openly fat-shamed politicians, saying journalists should use a wide-angle lense to figure […]
Little proposes radical shake up of the Criminal Justice system
Written By: - Date published: 11:39 am, February 24th, 2018 - 152 comments
Andrew Little has called for a complete change the way criminal justice works. But National’s initial response suggests that the prospects of a mature discussion on the issue are slim.
Joyce stands down as National struggles to find new leader *
Written By: - Date published: 8:07 am, February 24th, 2018 - 13 comments
* in Australia.
Arm me with
Written By: - Date published: 8:19 am, February 23rd, 2018 - 186 comments
Teachers in America have responded to Donald Trump’s proposal to arm teachers in response to the Parkland School massacre with a request that they be armed with anything but guns.
National’s meh leadership contest
Written By: - Date published: 4:27 pm, February 22nd, 2018 - 76 comments
National’s leadership contest is one week old. The latest is a central edict that all candidates have to be nice to each other and a claim that candidates are not offering senior positions to MPs in exchange for their support.
Strong and decisive
Written By: - Date published: 8:54 am, February 18th, 2018 - 154 comments
Judith Collins has picked on the campaign term strong and decisive for behaviour better described as brutal and obdurate.
Seymour is dancing with the stars
Written By: - Date published: 8:00 am, February 17th, 2018 - 33 comments
David Seymour has indicated his commitment to improving ACT’s plight by enrolling for Dancing with the Stars.
Beetrooted
Written By: - Date published: 1:58 pm, February 16th, 2018 - 20 comments
Australian Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce’s future in politics is on the line as he responds to allegations of infidelity, hypocrisy and misuse of Government resources.
No Bridges Bridges announces he will seek National leadership
Written By: - Date published: 1:26 pm, February 14th, 2018 - 20 comments
Simon Bridges has announced that he too will be seeking the National Party leadership.
Bio-fuels.
Written By: - Date published: 2:15 pm, February 11th, 2018 - 35 comments
Biofuels and fossil. The difference?
The problem with Charter Schools
Written By: - Date published: 12:38 pm, February 11th, 2018 - 296 comments
The Government is moving to stop the creation of new charter schools and require existing charter schools to integrate with the public system.
- Review: Inside Mystery Festival, Auckland’s most secretive concert
Does a slightly dodgy gimmick make for a majorly shit music festival? As Lyric Waiwiri-Smith finds out, not necessarily. To have entered Auckland’s Mystery Festival on Saturday, you needed stamina, a fondness for drum and bass, break-neck-speed head bopping, a pair of jorts or those ruched Glassons short shorts and, ...2 weeks ago - Takatāpui, Rainbow & MVPFAFF+ Survivors Lead Aotearoa’s Journey Toward Truth & Reconcilia...
The research from Takatāpui, Rainbow, and MVPFAFF+ survivors also highlights the urgent need to end State control over children’s care decisions, advocating instead for empowering whānau with the necessary support and resources to provide appropriate ...2 weeks ago - The cost of being: A disabled beneficiary who often has to spend bus money on food
As part of our series exploring how New Zealanders live and our relationship with money, a ‘skint’ 32-year-old on the supported living payment explains how she gets by. Want to be part of The Cost of Being? Fill out the questionnaire here. Gender: Trans woman. Age: 32. Ethnicity: Pākehā. Role: Long-term ...2 weeks ago
- Minister Using Extraordinary Power Shows Need For Fair Pay Offer At NZDF As Strike Continues
PSA members who are civilian workers escalated industrial action last week after NZDF refused to budge from a zero-pay rise offered during negotiations for a new collective agreement. ...2 weeks ago
- “The Beginning Of A New Chapter” – Care Experienced Rangatahi Hope Landmark Apology Will Signa...
VOYCE - Whakarongo Mai has been advocating for care experienced rangatahi since 2017, and CEO Tracie Shipton hopes the apology will mark the start of a new and better chapter for care in Aotearoa. ...2 weeks ago
- A national apology and what’s left unsaid
Government agency and political leaders will apologise today for decades of historic abuse in state care, writes Duncan Greive in today’s extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...2 weeks ago
- What is Cop29? A beginner’s guide to the big climate summit in Baku
Is the global conference more than just a gabfest, and what is it doing in Azerbaijan? What is Cop and why is it 29? Cop is the “conference of the parties” – that is, the 197 parties that have ratified the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change born out ...2 weeks ago
- The new stalking law, explained
Legislation that will make stalking illegal will be introduced to parliament before the end of the year. Here’s everything you need to know. Hang on – is stalking currently legal? It’s complicated. A lot of the behaviours that constitute stalking, like sending abusive messages and threatening violence, are already offences ...2 weeks ago
- Hīkoi mō te Tiriti day one: ‘Lets make this hīkoi build a nation’
Since setting off Monday morning numbers have swelled from a couple hundred to well over 1000 people, demonstrating their opposition to the coalition government's controversial Treaty Principles Bill and other policies impacting Māori. ...2 weeks ago
- Barring Aaron Smale from the abuse in care apology is a very, very bad joke
The grim irony of prohibiting a journalist who has shown such tenacity in the face of an obstructive state. The story of abuse in New Zealand state and faith-based care is a long and sorry dirge of ignominy. To which can now be added: the decision to deny Aaron Smale ...2 weeks ago
- Why I made a ‘punk rock’ documentary about gender in Aotearoa
Perrin Hastings, creator and host of The Gender Agenda, shares their personal journey to making a new local series about gender for rangatahi. From a very young age, I knew I was going off-script. I would sit and study television shows where gay characters were punchlines. If there was a ...2 weeks ago
- Open Letter Against Oceana Gold And Fast Track Expansion
“Oceana Gold have opted to use the Fast Track legislation to go ahead with the Waihi North gold mining project at Waihi and in the conservation forest at Wharekirauponga. ...2 weeks ago
- The NZ Super Fund has Israeli investments worth $35m. Could it divest?
Sanctions would likely require a law change, but there’s another path the government could consider if it chooses to take a tougher line. The decision by Israel’s parliament to designate the United Nations’ Palestinian relief agency UNRWA a “terrorist organisation” has been condemned by many governments, with claims it will ...2 weeks ago
- For abuse in care survivors, an apology without action means nothing
Tomorrow, the prime minister will deliver a national apology for abuse that occurred in state and faith-based care. But for survivors, redress and accountability still look to be a long way off, writes Steve Goodlass. As we drew closer to the date of the public apology, the response minister Erica ...2 weeks ago
- Khalistan ‘Referendum’ In Auckland Discussed At Top Diplomatic Levels
A Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesperson confirmed that S Jaishankar, India's minister of external affairs, raised the issue during the meeting but declined to provide details of the discussion. ...2 weeks ago
- Commission Calls For The Promise Of Te Tiriti O Waitangi To Be Honoured
The Commission’s Rongomau Taketake Indigenous Rights Governance Partner, Dayle Takitimu, said the Government had completely ignored the Waitangi Tribunal’s recommendations in its interim report Ngā Mātāpono, including for the Bill to be abandoned. ...2 weeks ago
- Interim Financial Statements Of The Government Of New Zealand For The Three Months Ended 30 Septembe...
The September results are reported against forecasts based on the Budget Economic and Fiscal Update 2024 (BEFU 2024), published on 30 May 2024, and the results for the same period for the previous year. ...3 weeks ago
- Commission Report Released On Domestic Contribution To The Second Nationally Determined Contribution
Minister of Climate Change Simon Watts today released the Commission’s report on the domestic emissions reductions that Aotearoa New Zealand could achieve as part of the country's second nationally determined contribution (NDC2). ...3 weeks ago
- Cleaners Left In Limbo After Contract Change At Auckland Transport Sites
After MMS lost its contract to provide cleaning services for Auckland Transport sites to City Cleaning, cleaners’ pay and conditions should have been transferred to the new contractor under Part 6A of the Employment Relations Act. ...3 weeks ago
- Social Housing Cutbacks Confirmed As Govt Axes Another 310 Kāinga Ora Workers
This makes a total of 551 roles lost since April 2024, or one in six workers across the country. A third of the workforce is in Auckland. ...3 weeks ago
- Have Your Say On The Oversight Of Oranga Tamariki System Legislation Amendment Bill
The bill seeks to enhance oversight and monitoring of the Oranga Tamariki system by making structural changes to the Independent Children’s Monitor and the Children and Young People’s Commission. ...3 weeks ago
- Has Simon Watts Forgotten Who The Minister Is?
Does he not realise that he is the Minister in charge of the people who perpetrated this travesty? The people who have been affected need to see action, instead of the Minister’s ‘disappointment’. ...3 weeks ago
- More Than 18,400 Kiwis Call On Select Committee To Front Up On MPs’ Expenses
“Why should MPs not be held to the same standards as Ministers? If you’re spending taxpayers’ money, the public need to see the receipts” said James Ross, Policy and Public Affairs Manager at the Taxpayers’ Union. ...3 weeks ago
- Introduction Of The Treaty Principles Bill
The existence and introduction of the Bill is extremely disappointing, has created angst amongst our people and further fuels the divisiveness created by Hon David Seymour and the Act Party. ...3 weeks ago
- Treaty Principles Bill Is Deliberately Divisive
...3 weeks ago
- Parihaka: Remembering A Legacy Of Peaceful Resistance
This small papakāinga, now a powerful symbol of passive resistance, was the site of Aotearoa's first recorded non-violent stand against colonial violence and land confiscation. ...3 weeks ago
- Cook Islands Leader Insists New Passports Won’t Affect Ties With New Zealand
The Cook Islands leader says new passport proposal will not impact ties with Aotearoa, but a New Zealand Foreign Affairs spokesperson says it "would have implications". ...3 weeks ago
- The Treaty Principles Bill Is Advanced Without Us And In Spite Of Us
“The Bill is an attack on our rangatiratanga and the move to bring it forward is yet another tactic to distract us from the real issues facing New Zealanders. This Bill is being advanced without us and in spite of us. ...3 weeks ago
- Unemployment Rising Shows The Need For A Plan
Wages are also reflecting the softer labour market, with 37% of all workers seeing no pay rise, and 50% of workers seeing an annual pay rise less than the 3.8% increase in household costs reported yesterday. With the minimum wage rising by less than ...3 weeks ago
- Unemployment Rate At 4.8 Percent
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate, as measured by the Household Labour Force Survey, was 4.8 percent in the September 2024 quarter, compared with 4.6 percent in the previous quarter. ...3 weeks ago
- IRD Have Lied To New Zealanders, Heads Must Roll
...3 weeks ago
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