zzero use

Categories under zzero use

IF: A day in the life of Matthew Hooton

Written By: - Date published: 7:39 am, March 25th, 2014 - 32 comments

[Satire]  I has a dream… Winston retired from politics and went on to set up a bird rescue centre in a remote spot in the Raukumura Range, but the centre was burned down after two teenagers high on glue broke in and set it alight. The delicious smells of hundreds of roasted native birds attracted the attentions of the poor for miles around… desperate and hungry people tore at each other to get into the still-burning sanctuary…  I awoke in a fever and ran to my computer, and in seconds flat I had my NBR column finished.

LocalBodies: National Slumps in Polls As Ministers Struggle

Written By: - Date published: 9:19 am, March 24th, 2014 - 22 comments

There is danger of reading too much into polls months out from an election. Commentators were claiming that National was too strong to lose the next election based on a rogue poll. Few looked at multiple polls, accounted for the margin of error nor the trends over past months. The last fortnight has seen a National with the latest Roy Morgan Poll plummeting from the Colmar Brunton result of 51% to 45.5%. And it is based on a lack of ministerial performance…

NRT: A good idea from NZFirst

Written By: - Date published: 7:06 pm, March 20th, 2014 - 4 comments

From an environmental economics perspective, mining is a wealth transfer, shifting public wealth (minerals) into private profits of mining companies. Along the way, it creates jobs, but it is basically spending capital. When the resources run out or become unprofitable to extract the jobs disappear and a regional economy geared solely to resource extraction withers and dies. NZ First wants to change that.

Labour and the Greens announce forestry policies

Written By: - Date published: 3:48 pm, March 19th, 2014 - 39 comments

Labour announced policies today seeking to reinvigorate the Forestry Industry and to promote more local processing of logs.  And the Greens have announced a policy designed to increase the use of wood in local buildings.

NRT: An economic upgrade?

Written By: - Date published: 2:24 pm, March 17th, 2014 - 60 comments

No Right Turn reacts to David Cunliffe’s speech on Friday. “…one thing is clear: we need to move our economy away from a focus on milk. Our environment can’t sustain it, and its not delivering for anyone other than a narrow class of wealthy farmers.” “… rich economies have multiple sources of income. And they consciously develop them through industrial policy.”

Polity: The Greens’ draft list

Written By: - Date published: 12:37 pm, March 17th, 2014 - 107 comments

Rob Salmond at Polity looks at the draft Green party list. “The Greens have released their draft party list today, in advance of a party member STV vote. The top 20 is…”

Guest Post – What is Shane Jones doing?

Written By: - Date published: 9:02 am, March 15th, 2014 - 149 comments

A guest post on Shane Jones and what effect his recent behaviour is having on Labour’s election chances.

David Cunliffe’s speech to the New Zealand Institute

Written By: - Date published: 12:13 pm, March 14th, 2014 - 124 comments

Speech notes from today’s address to the New Zealand Institute.  “Trickle-down economics and its neoliberal parentage have failed New Zealanders and left many of our emerging businesses starved of investment capital and skills.  The opportunity gaps have widened and there is no clear, shared strategy to a high value, high income future.  That’s something Labour will change. We want an economy that works for all New Zealanders.”

LB: Greens hit the ground running

Written By: - Date published: 11:50 am, March 13th, 2014 - 35 comments

Dave Kennedy (aka bsprout)  at Local Bodies is the Green candidate for Invercargill. He posted this on Monday in response to Josie Pagani’s pundit post. It is on the preparedness of the Green party for this election It got overshadowed in the news cycle by burst of corrupt stench of self-entitled elitist behaviour from National, but is worth reposting anyway. It is going to be interesting to look at this election campaign where National is fighting two large parties on the left.

Five Eyes, One Network

Written By: - Date published: 12:32 pm, March 12th, 2014 - 60 comments

Edward Snowden revelations indicate that the US NSA pressured the NZ government to make last year’s hasty changes to the GCSB and TICS laws, to enable mass surveillance.  John Key sometimes denies he knows of visits to NZ by the NSA’s Gen Keith Alexander – but Key would have to approve the visits.

NRT: Proving my point

Written By: - Date published: 10:52 am, March 12th, 2014 - 46 comments

Last week No Right Turn argued strongly that we needed full transparency over Cabinet Office advice on ministers’ conflicts of interest, because we couldn’t trust the Prime Minister to represent that advice accurately, and we couldn’t trust secret advice to be accurate. And John Key has just proven his point: “Prime Minister John Key has admitted he misled reporters over Cabinet Office advice…”

Key, Peters and the early election

Written By: - Date published: 8:20 am, March 11th, 2014 - 57 comments

Three years ago National announced a full term election date and ruled out going into coalition with NZ First. Fast forward to now and we are having an early election and Key is not ruling out going into coalition with Peters. Get the sense that National is becoming desperate?

Beltway blues: serving the public interest?

Written By: - Date published: 12:00 pm, March 10th, 2014 - 32 comments

Gower’s one-dimensional, distorted, gotcha reporting, highlights the failings of TV3 news & The Nation.  Corin Dann and Qu &A are less one-dimensional, but speak within the B-Hive-Media Loop, that  speaks for the comfortable middle & Business classes, & manufactured a “problem” week for Cunliffe.

Guest post – Who is David Cunliffe?

Written By: - Date published: 8:41 am, March 10th, 2014 - 182 comments

A guest post on the enigma that is David Cunliffe by David Craig.

Overreach

Written By: - Date published: 10:32 pm, March 9th, 2014 - 33 comments

The attacks on David Cunliffe have got a bit silly, with the latest from the Herald being to pretty much charge him with the crime of having a wealthy friend.

Auckland Council CCO 2 step

Written By: - Date published: 10:42 am, March 7th, 2014 - 13 comments

Mai Chen argues that the current review of Auckland Council CCOs will put them on a tighter leash.  Tony Holman argues against the whole CCO set up: it’s a trojan horse, 2 step towards privatisation of Auckland assets.  Aucklanders need to have their say. Vote out Team Key to prevent such sales.

NZ independence? back to the future

Written By: - Date published: 10:50 am, March 4th, 2014 - 150 comments

NZ seems like a client state of both US imperialism, and the UK monarchy: a throwback to the first part of the 20th century. John Key was quick to support the US & EU lines on the Crimea; some low achieving, British royals are visiting NZ at taxpayers’ expense.

How short are memories?

Written By: - Date published: 11:39 pm, March 3rd, 2014 - 216 comments

John Key is attacking David Cunliffe for using a trust to obscure some donations – whilst repeating the word ‘tricky’ about Cunliffe as many times in one sound-bite as humanly possible. It’s an astonishingly brazen stone to throw given National’s glass house. Do no reporters remember John Key, Hollow Man, or anything about National’s funding […]

A tale of two journalists

Written By: - Date published: 8:59 am, March 2nd, 2014 - 111 comments

Trisha Dunleavy has outlined the problems a& challenges for public service TV in NZ. Contrasting tales of 2 TV journalists – Rachel Smalley & Patrick Gower – highlight the problems with NZ’s (currently) dominant infotainment approach to news.

How to build better beggars

Written By: - Date published: 9:00 am, March 1st, 2014 - 35 comments

In the United States, the street beggars have great patter. Despite what South Park would have us believe, when you walk down the main street of a major city, you don’t get hordes of people shiftlessly shaking cups at you, asking for “change?” There are a few.  But far more often, there’s a story.  I […]

The Genesis share float has problems

Written By: - Date published: 8:21 am, February 27th, 2014 - 17 comments

The Government has effectively conceded that the Genesis share float will not meet expectations and is softening New Zealand up to the prospect that only 30% of the shares may be sold. It makes you wonder why they are still going a head with the sale.

Guest Post – Labour Candidate Deborah Russell

Written By: - Date published: 12:01 pm, February 25th, 2014 - 48 comments

In the first of what may be a series of posts by candidates this year Deborah Russell, Labour’s candidate for the seat of Rangitikei, was invited to provide a guest post on her world view and why she is standing for office.

On polls and things

Written By: - Date published: 9:16 am, February 25th, 2014 - 106 comments

The periodic agony and ecstasy attached to opinion poll results has kicked in with a pessimistic TVOne poll result being released on the weekend. But how accurate are they and are we in danger of damaging an election campaign by focussing too much on them?

Polity: A bad week

Written By: - Date published: 9:11 am, February 24th, 2014 - 142 comments

There’s no skating around it – Labour didn’t have a good last week. And the biggest shame is that beltway errors have been allowed to eclipse real progress on issues that actually matter to New Zealand families. The lack of direct relevance in the errors does not matter, because these issues matter for perceptions. If Labour is perceived as bumbling, or as lacking self-awareness, that will certainly be reflected at the ballot box. But there were a few bright spots.

Labour’s Manukau East candidate selection

Written By: - Date published: 1:22 pm, February 22nd, 2014 - 42 comments

Today the Labour Party selects its candidate for the Manukau East seat.  The seat is one of the safest Labour seats in the country and whoever wins could be in Parliament for a long time.  There is a strong lineup of candidates and the selection is a wide open one.  Update: and Jenny Selesa has been selected.

Rock star – “No depression”

Written By: - Date published: 11:46 am, February 21st, 2014 - 104 comments

Popular songs can capture the heartbeat of communities.  “Rock Star” economy”?  Or “No Depression in New Zealand”?  A song that links the NZ of Muldoon & John Key. “History Never Repeats”?  Who has pulled up the ladder & who wants to replace ladders with something more accessible to all?

Home thoughts from abroad

Written By: - Date published: 7:19 pm, February 20th, 2014 - 55 comments

Porirua mayor Nick Leggett has put up a couple  interesting posts about Labour’s prospects in the upcoming election in progressonline.  I think his political message is timely and true: Labour’s approach to this election cannot be “just a list of things that you’re against,” rather it should focus on what it’s for, and what it will do for New Zealanders. That could be very popular with voters.

David Cunliffe’s home

Written By: - Date published: 2:56 pm, February 20th, 2014 - 227 comments

National is now targeting David Cunliffe and his family.   Metiria Turei was attacked for living in a castle and wearing designer jackets, and now David Cunliffe is being attacked for being wealthy.  The criticisms miss the point.  There is nothing inherently wrong with being wealthy.  But there is everything wrong in setting fire to the ladder of social support after you have had the opportunity to climb it.

Easy Vote or Voter Intimidation?

Written By: - Date published: 9:19 pm, February 17th, 2014 - 123 comments

Good to see Labour has stood up against National’s “harder-to-vote” revisions to the Electoral Amendment Bill, especially making voters now have to state their name to get a voting paper. The reason for this is to allow scrutineers to more easily challenge a voter’s credentials, and is similar to voter intimidation practices in conservative States in the US. Expect  National Party scrutineers questioning more voter credentials in the 2014 election.

Plausible deniability: Smoke & mirrors

Written By: - Date published: 12:56 pm, February 17th, 2014 - 79 comments

It’s puzzling why John Key diverted attention from who spied on Winston Peters, by implicating Cameron Slater.  Following revelations about the 5 Eyes spying capabilities, & illegal surveillance of Kim Dotcom, there is much at stake for Key. Recapping some significant details in the surveillance saga.

Fairfax quotes Government cheerleader

Written By: - Date published: 2:06 pm, February 16th, 2014 - 30 comments

Fairfax posted an article recently where three businessmen were interviewed on what they thought the political parties should be discussing this election year. The comments from the first interviewee were basically a John Key love in so I thought we should try and provide some balance …