Must be western elites fomenting rebellion against a democratically elected government because clearly, tens of thousands of Romanians would never take to the streets to rid themselves of a corrupt regime.
//
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Only ‘outstanding’ if you share a black/white worldview where people’s varied belongings/potentials can only fit into one box. I would rather trust that most people are capable of holding more than one position at once. It’s certainly what I’ve experienced. Life is complex. Ask any poor brown woman or queer disabled migrant.
However, practically speaking some in Labour may still need reminding that they are a team and sometimes their faction does not get to win, cos politics. Politics always seems an unfortunate reduction of life in that respect.
Poto Williams was in discussions with the Labour leadership regarding her concerns, the Labour leadership believed they had an agreement that she wouldn’t post anything, she changed her mind and then posted it anyway.
The damage and threat to Little’s leadership is breath-taking in its arrogance and naivety…
If this is what happened then it makes the whole thing worse… Poto is lucky she wasn’t ‘gone by lunchtime’.
This is the crux of the problem. I, too, respect her for what are strong and genuinely held views. No decent person would quarrel with her on them. But to go ahead and defy an agreement she appears to have made with the party leadership is almost beyond comprehension.
I could be wrong, but I suspect she was encouraged – maybe even coerced – to go rogue on the agreement by person/persons whose agenda(s) were not the same as her own. If so, I hope she knows never to take their advice again.
On Checkpoint, Andrew Little said Poto Williams raised the points with Little last week. It seems that Little then went ahead and announced Jackson was going to be a candidate, without taking the issues raised by Poto to the caucus?
Am I missing something? Surely Little should have had a wider discussion with caucus, and perhaps the wider party, about the issues raised by Poto, before going public and announcing Jackson as a candidate?
Then is it surprising Williams was pissed off with Little not going through the required process and ignoring her advice?
Exactly!
It’s not Poto who has the problem here – it’s Little.
The authoritarian manner of his decision making is cringe worthy. I’m having very serious thoughts about him as PM.
Who do you suggest takes his place at this late stage?
I’ve heard Shaw make far more “cringing” comments than that, yet I accept people are people and can make errors of judgment, we are all capable of that, yes, all of us.
Did Shaw arbitrarily announce that he’d chosen someone to skip the list selection process? How about that many members think that someone’s recent behaviour is contrary to some of the essential principles and policies of the party?
Little doesn’t suffer from foot-in-mouth disease. His problem is that he became complacent and forgot that Labour is a democratic party that he can’t dictate to. Happens in every group organisation from time to time, the person with the vision sometimes forgets to bring people along with them for the ride, and starts unilateral action.
I think it’s recoverable, but it’s definitely something for Little to learn from.
NO, but Shaw did arbitrarily announce that he could “work with National’, I wonder how many members agreed with that decision?
Any party that states they are prepared to work with the worst scumbags to ever have the opportunity to destroy NZ, will never receive my support, that’s never.
You seem to have for gotten how important it is to keep the “dirty laundry” out of the public domain.
It’s for ALL members to learn from, making public statements that create the perception of disunity is probably the MOST UNPRODUCTIVE and DESTRUCTIVE method of getting their point across, no matter how valid the point is.
The Green Party formed a working relationship with National to work on a few ideas where the two political parties have common ground. The first step was a $323 million home insulation fund to make 180,000 Kiwi homes warmer and drier over the next four years.
Another area of common ground is the New Zealand Cycleway where Kevin Hague added his expertise to the Prime Minister’s tourism project.
That is one of the Strengths of the Green Party. They have shown that they are able to work across the political divide to advance policies that are directed towards positive ends.
“NO, but Shaw did arbitrarily announce that he could “work with National’, I wonder how many members agreed with that decision?”
Wtf are you on about? The membership passed a remit at two separate AGMs allowing the party to work with National.
I’d also like to see a citation for Shaw having made that announcement arbitrarily or at all. I suspect you are talking about Russell Norman but he still had the ok from the party to do that (even though how he did it was not particularly wise).
Edit, Here’s a whole post on the Green Party’s position on working with National and not supporting them to form government, and how that decision was arrived at.
weka – Early on in his role as co-leader James did say something to that effect – but what he was saying was simply reiterating the Green position to work with National where positive action that addressed Green Party policies could be achieved.
There has been next to no area in the past few years where that has been the case. There was some hope such as with the sub-committee to investigate special needs in schooling – but in the end disappointingly that went nowhere.
I’d still like to see the citation for context. Shaw became co-leader 30 May 2015. Here he is a week later being interviewed in the media,
“What century are we talking about?”, Shaw responds when asked if the Greens are ever likely to sit around a Cabinet table with National.
“Look, I cannot see, certainly in 2017, how that could possibly function. It will be coming to the end of a third term National Government, we are miles apart (especially on the environment). The underlying economic system that produces the kind of environmental and social costs and consequences that we go on about is core to National’s way of governing. If we wanted to be in a coalition with them we would have to have a conversation with them about the nature of the economy and I can’t see them giving up on the model they’ve had for the last 30 years.”
But the Green Party is unashamedly on the hunt for National votes – and it sees no contradiction between that and its hardline position about doing a deal with any future National government.
Yes Carolyn_nth – what you’re missing is the wider picture of WHY Willie Jackson was invited into Labour – which is that he could help connect Labour to the urban Maori and the disadvantaged Maori, and the enrolled non-voter – all vital for the Labour vote.
His mistakes were in the past, he’d apologised – several times – for them.
And yes, he’s a blokey-type jokey sort of bloke – not the sort necessarily appreciated by educated women.
Andrew Little talked to Poto Williams about these things.
Poto Williams should be “big” enough, and intelligent enough, to realise there are other matters at play in this scene ….. and personally I would have thought, as a Cook Islander (who are usually big on Christianity) that she could see the need for forgiveness in this matter.
If Jackson becomes sexist and pro-violence while he’s a candidate or an MP, then that’s a different matter – she’d be right to really get stuck into him.
But meanwhile, as an intelligent Labour woman she needs to show a bit of forgiveness and perhaps a bit of advice to him on how he should behave, and attitudes towards women.
And she needs to keep to caucus rules which she signed up to.
But didn’t Little fail to follow caucus/Labour Party rules on candidate selection before going public? Surely he should be leading by example?
As I understand it, the Labour Party systems are meant to be fairly democratic, especially with regard to candidate selection. The strategic reasoning may be sound in terms of Labour Party principles, but surely that should have been discussed more internally before Little went public on it. That is my point.
The way you describe it, the Labour Party member sounds very authoritarian.
I’m not certain about attracting urban Maori and the disadvantaged Maori because they are important to the LP vote. Surely it should be about what Labour can do for these groups, and surely the LP shouldn’t be sidelining principles about equality for all, including women (including Maori women)etc, in order to gain votes?
“The way you describe it, the Labour Party member sounds very authoritarian.”
yes, compared to the Greens, where this kind of things is incredibly rare presumably because they work with a consensus model rather than an authoritarian one. i.e. you wouldn’t get this dissent because the caucus wouldn’t disregard the opinions of one of their spokespeople like this.
Saying he was too casual or playing devil’s advocate is pretty mild as apologies go.
But Williams is supposed to remain silent (as Labour spokesperson on dv) and wait until after he’s been given membership, a waiver, fast-tracked up the list, made an MP, and then repeats his sort of attitudes of late 2013? Bit bloody late then.
Yeah, that’s the one. It’s not like anyone is really expecting the LP to get to grips with rape culture, but what are they thinking is going to happen when Jackson shoots his mouth off when they’re in govt? Or god forbid the month before the election (which actually might be ok if it bumps the Green vote). It’s possible that they’ve gotten an assurance from Jackson that he won’t be an arse.
“Poto Williams should be “big” enough, and intelligent enough, to realise there are other matters at play in this scene ….. and personally I would have thought, as a Cook Islander (who are usually big on Christianity) that she could see the need for forgiveness in this matter.”
OMG!!!
🙄
Sorry Jenny – but that has to be about as offensive as Willie Jackson was to the young woman on radio.
It doesn’t work that way Carolyn Nth. I find Martyn Bradbury too much most of the time but, from my own knowledge and experiences in the LP, his version of what happened re- Poto Williams sounds more than a tad plausible. He has many contacts including MPs.
Of course Little consulted widely and it probably included senior union personnel as well. Its fairly obvious most approved of allowing Willie Jackson back into the party for the same reasons Little has publicly expressed. But for reasons only Poto can fully explain, she appears to have chosen to renege on an agreement she made with the Labour leadership which would have included the deputy leader and the party president at the least.
Willie Jackson knows West Aucklanders and South Aucklanders like the back of his hand. He understands them and can speak their language. Huge numbers of them don’t bother to vote. Willie is well known and trusted in these two regions and he has the power of persuasion which would be a hugely valuable tool in getting them out to vote for Labour.
Edit: Jenny Kirk above is on the button. She broke the most important caucus rule – keeping caucus matters confidential to caucus.
Well, Jackson may have an understanding of west and south Auckland men, but what about the women, given the survivors of the Roastbuster abuse were westie women?
If Williams did agree not to go public, then it is fair to criticise her for breaking that agreement. When she made that promise, did she know Little was going to go public with it in a couple of days, or did she think there’d be more discussion of it within the party?
Yes I’d like to see more people voting. But many have given up because they don’t think any politicians will do anything for them.
So what is Labour going to do for west and South Aucklanders, and urban Maori?
It’s all speculation but if I had to guess I’d say what it looks like from the outside is that there was some initial discussion in caucus about brining Jackson in, Williams’ concerns were ignored, and in amongs that there are the Māori politics (in and outside the party) as well as the feeling amongs the general membership. It’s not just Williams that is upset about this whole thing.
Leftie: It was the timing of her FB post that made me feel that she did indeed know
how so? because the timing of the announcement (on a public holiday), and William’s FB response. suggests to me the possibility that she had thought the possible Jackson candidacy would be discussed more widely in the party before it was announced publicly.
I asked:
So what is Labour going to do for west and South Aucklanders, and urban Maori?
Still no answer. And I have in mind that the big hole in Labour’s housing policy – ie so far nothing to directly combat the rising cost of private rentals, indicates low income westies and South Aucklanders have not been given a lot of consideration in the policies.
You’re talking about a legislative vote in parliament. If Labour was happy to allow the whole of parliament to have a say in Willie Jacksons’ return to politics then someone would have to draw up legislation which would go to a select committee and their recommendations would be put to the vote in the debating chamber where both sides could debate the pros and cons. If it was a party vote controlled by the whips then she could ‘cross the floor’ and vote with the other side whoever they might be.
It would make a hilarious comedy show but somehow don’t think it would be approved by the speaker. 😎
“I could be wrong, but I suspect she was encouraged – maybe even coerced – to go rogue on the agreement by person/persons whose agenda(s) were not the same as her own.”
Interesting. Do you think the public undermining of Little is part of a larger potential leadership challenge?
Not at this stage. Andrew Little is strong and does not suffer fools gladly. Nor does he put up with people who play silly political games behind the scenes. Helen Clark was the same and she also had some enemies inside the party – at least in the initial years.
Not likely. Too long ago. The culprits (for want of a better word) wouldn’t have even been born. No, they have ambitions beyond what they are worth and know their chances of success while Little is leader is zilch. That’s my conclusion based on what I’ve seen and heard.
I listened to it last night. Little only says that he discussed it with Williams a few days before the announcement about Jackson, and she expressed the same injections as in her FB post. He does not indicate if Williams knew he was about to announce the candidacy in spite of Williams objections.
He does not mention that he had breached LP candidacy procedures by making an executive decision on Jackson’s candidacy.
And Little’s having trouble controlling a caucus of 31. No Key, English plummeting into the future that is 2002, an insane deputy PM – and the election’s still Labour’s to lose. WTF?
That’s more-or-less what Andrew said on Campbell RNZ tonight, Anne. Can’t remember the exact words, but Poto definitely stepped out of line. Any problems an MP has with whatever policy has to be discussed in caucus first, and dealt with there.
Poto is blinkin’ lucky she just got off with a mild reprimand.
My own transgression – over a much more important issue at the time – Rogernomics – resulted in three days of no-speaks by anyone – very uncomfortable to experience.
Poto – and other Labour women – need to look at the wider picture, and they also need to know what Willie Jackson has been doing in the intervening years since roadbusters. There is something underhand about this vendetta.
“My own transgression – over a much more important issue at the time – Rogernomics – resulted in three days of no-speaks by anyone – very uncomfortable to experience.”
Do you regret making that stand, then?
If not, how do we evaluate the importance of an issue?
Firstly, he reckons he knows what the leadership believed about their behind the scenes discussions with Williams. If someone’s telling him, then why isn’t he calling the leadership on the damaging leaks as much as he is Williams?
Secondly, he’s bitching about identity politics while talking about WJ getting out the “urban Maori” vote. Hypocritical, much?
Thirdly, if he thinks it’s smart that Labour undemocratically elevate a random Maori celebrity to get the urban Maori vote, does he really think that the best role model Labour can find is someone who can’t bring forward a decent apology for referring to rape as “mischief”? Seriously?
FFS. Bradbury’s a fucking tool. Maybe I forgot, and that’s why I bothered this time.
The way I see it is that Little is only bending over backwards for Willie because he is scared shitless the Maori/Mana deal will wipe out his Maori MPs. Bit of a risk really because he is alienating many Labour supporters who can’t see the merits of a talk-back host getting a free ride high on the list ahead of genuine Labour people.
I suspect less thought went into it than that – WJ was looking for a place to live and got on the O’Conner bandwagon, Little and he hammered it out themselves and nobody knew about it until it was being announced like it was a done deal.
And if WJ’s comment history even occurred to them, they probably assumed it was water under the bridge.
And now they’re in the shit. Complacency fucks folks every time.
lol
I remember once on my last evening in London deciding to have a feast of “Traditional English Fish and Chips”. After a night going at both ends I managed to struggle onto the plane to take me home. Fish and Chips never passed my lips again for a very long time.
Reading a Bradbury rant has much the same effect.
Despite your rather useful descriptions 🙂 I felt the need to go have a look myself (because otherwise sensible people in this thread are treating what he says about Labour as a valid source for what happened). I see he is now the Pete George of the left, having to selectively quote people on TS in order to frame his agenda. Oh dear. Might be ok if all the people that hate IP end up there though 🙂
Had to laugh at his quote of from you weka. Made me giggle, I was thinking Pete George as well LOL.
Did concern me the whole “I’m a man, so you better listen to me” vibe that ran through his whole piece. I wonder if he will get how much a sexist prick he is? Or the fact if you opposed to civil rights, you not on my side or anyone else’s who actually give a dam about people.
He quoted me the other day too. I’m not that happy to be on his radar tbh, seeing what he’s done to others. I agree a big part of this is “listen to me”. Some of that seems just ego out of control. But the anti-IP stuff that is coming up not just with him but with others, that’s lefties taking their memes not just from the like of Trotter but from the alt-right. I find it concerning and it does look to me like these are predominantly white men who are emboldened by the US election result.
The civil rights framing is good, thanks for that.
I share your concerns and it’s a step backwards. It’s been a long hard struggle to get women’s, race, LGBTI and disability issues incorporated within the dominant left organisations, policies and campaigns.
These civil rights issues were also watered down at the same time class issues were watered down within and through the neoliberal shift. But guys that seem to want to return to a largely white, heterosexual, male dominated left seem to be using the collapse of neoliberalism to push their retro agenda.
Good point Carolyn_nth. It’s like these guys don’t even know what major class A retrogrades they are being as well.
I don’t want to live in a world where people don’t have civil rights, where women, LGBTI, indigenous, and disabled are not a major part of the solution.
I know people in the US who are very scared right now. The thing that scares me here is that while I see NZ as being very different than the US politically and socially, I think we are quite capable of having our own version of authoritarianism arise here. That’s what the whole anti-IP is starting to look like. The false framing of what IP is, and the push from lefties who also support Tr*mp. I guess it’s useful to see this more honestly, but I also think we it’s likely we don’t have a lot of time to start working together. Not Bradbury, but the rest of us. If we get a hard GFC for instance and a reactive conservatism.
I’d always read Bradbury with a grain of salt, went off him with his whole emerald army thing. Gave him a break when he did waatea news show. But now he’s back to his authoritarian best – so a lost cause.
I’ve had a few tear fulled facebook conversations of late as well. Mainly over heath care for disabled friends of mine. They deeply concerned about the end of Obama care. It’s like the weakest in society, or those who have the most to lose, are the constant target of these retrograde individuals be they left or right. We have all lost since the rise of neo-liberalism, time to try somthing different.
Yeah all we got is organising ourselves, and doing it local. Did that tonight with group I work with, small steps to prepare them if it gets worse.
The Daily Blog’s moderators make that site a joke. There’s no discussion unless you toe their line.
I wrote 1 comment last night that they let through, foolishly I commented before I had read all of Bomber’s writing on Jackson (note to self- no more commenting after 2nd glass of wine) My second comment said that I wanted to withdraw what I had said about Bomber understanding the seriousness of the Roastbusters, because it looked like he was prepared to ‘throw women’s issues under a bus” . Nothing particuarly inflammatory about my comment- but no, 24 hours later, they haven’t let it through.
I wrote a pissed off comment on the Chris Trotter post- saying Trotter had done more damage to the Labour party with his columns than Poto Williams had. That one hasn’t seen the light of day either.
Thank you to the moderators at the Standard who don’t make us kiss their arses before we can get our comments published.
Because that all that term identitarians means, and end to civil rights. When people on the left have taken on board wholesale acceptance of the rights criticism of civil rights, the illusion of any sort of freedom, becomes stark.
There have several of saying this from the start.
It is clear many in the Labour Party have not learnt the lessons they should have from Clinton’d defeat.
As Bradbury puts it so well.
“Me, me, me, I, I, I and my, my, my have replaced ‘us’ as the language of political inclusion.
Replacing class for hyper individualism makes solidarity almost impossible and creates fractures within unity, which is exactly what we are seeing happen in real time with the Labour Party right now.”
When it’s about a large segment of the population, and the way they are treated within the system e.g. women, sexual violence survivors, etc. It’s not individualism, any more than white guys focusing about their issues…. that could just as easily be called..me, me, me…. don’t care about yous others, according to your logic.
Systemic treatment of women, rape culture etc, is a collective issue, just like class.
Systemic treatment of women, rape culture etc, is a collective issue, just like class.
Hear! Hear!
In my humble opinion Jackson ruled himself out of any further involvement in Political representation the day he “interviewed” that unfortunate young woman and asked her if rape was possible if the girls considered the boys to be “good looking”!
For goodness sake! He clearly, doesn’t understand the nature of sexual abuse!
An “apology” simply doesn’t cut it!
And Little thinks he would make a good candidate????
Thanks Carolyn and Macro – I too do not see an attitude of dismissal and denigration of women as Identity Politics , but more akin to a classs issue.
Antonina
I think “akin to a class issue”, means that they are similar in being about systemic oppression and/or discrimination of a whole group of people – not that gender oppression is a class issue per se.
But Little looked at other aspects of Jackson’s life, Macro – and saw that he had redeemed himself somewhat by finding out about womens refuges, and why they exist, and the end result of sexual abuse and violence. And that he was now running programmes at the Urban Maori Authority to help re-educate people and counter abuse and violence.
People are not just one dimensional. They’re made up of many different facets, and some are good,and some not so good – but if they get the opportunity to reflect on their not so good attributes, they can change them.
That appears to have happened in Jackson’s case – and that’s what Andrew Little saw.
And yes, from the point of view of bringing urban maori, young maori, and disadvantaged maori in to see that Labour could help them, than that makes him a good candidate.
“and saw that he had redeemed himself somewhat by finding out about womens refuges, and why they exist, and the end result of sexual abuse and violence. And that he was now running programmes at the Urban Maori Authority to help re-educate people and counter abuse and violence.”
Have read what you have quoted in some articles from the Herald et al, Macro. I doubt that Poto Williams was unaware of the steps Willie Jackson had taken over the last 3 years. That’s what Andrew Little is saying, that Willie Jackson is backing up his apologies with action.
Little and Jackson don’t get to be the ones that decide if Jackson has changed his views and beliefs about rape culture. It’s obvious that Jackson does many good things. It’s also obvious that he still doesn’t get what the problem is. Neither does Little, and it’s a shame he didn’t choose to work this in a way that was good for all sides.
Working with Urban Maori is well and good – but it doesn’t suggest that he has changed the underlying problem his attitudes wrt of the denigration of women.
He hasn’t just been working with urban Maori though. It appears it doesn’t matter what he does to address the wrongful things he said in the past, for some, it will never be enough, he is damned for life.
Well that’s the way it is with rapists…
It’s a hard road back.
Now I’m not saying that Jackson is one – but his interview on Radio Live was pretty bloody horrible, and a huge apology for rape culture. That was the reason so many advertisers withdrew their support forthwith from the programme and forced Radio Live to remove him and Henare from the air.
It was a stupid and insensitive interview, and too damned right he should apologise. But even that is not enough. He really has to demonstrate, in the eyes of all abused women, that he is truly repentant – and that is going to take time and effort.
“He hasn’t just been working with urban Maori though. It appears it doesn’t matter what he does to address the wrongful things he said in the past, for some, it will never be enough, he is damned for life.”
That’s a misrepresentation of what people think Leftie. For instance, I said a few days before the Williams’ statement that for me it wasn’t about keeping Jackson out of Labour, it was about how Labour dealt with the rape culture issues. Thus far, badly, although it could have been worse.
Others believe that Jackson should never be in parliament again, and I understand why they argue that (myself, I think we should take all rape apologists out which would decimate parliament).
As for Jackson, I think you simply fail to understand what the problem is here and why his apologies have fallen flat. Anyone can say the right thing to get what they want. It’s not about that, it’s about demonstrating that he has changed. I just don’t see it.
And as Macro has been arguing, this wasn’t just a faux pas. It was a major issue around rape culture that never got resolved, hence it coming back to bite Labour now. Lots of us could have told Labour this would happen and I’d hazard a guess that Little was told and chose to ignore it. It’s on him then.
“Well that’s the way it is with rapists…
It’s a hard road back.
Now I’m not saying that Jackson is one”
Aren’t you, Macro? Because it sure sounded like that was what you were calling him.
Weka, I wasn’t referring “about keeping Jackson out of Labour” My comment is about giving someone a chance to redeem themselves. We learn through our entire lives, do we not? And I haven’t got the impression from what Andrew Little has said in the media, that he ignored concerns. There is a process to be followed, that would have been a more productive platform to raise those concerns.
I awoke this morning with the horrible realization that I had mis-named Jackson’s co-host.
Willie Jackson’s co-host was of course John Tamahere not Henare. My sincere apologies for this error, and any offense it may have caused.
As to the query raised by Leftie above the fact remains that people who encourage, or condone rape, are as much to blame as those who carry out the abuse.
Amy said she was a friend of one of the Roast Busters’ victims. Jackson told her the girls in the case “shouldn’t be drinking anyway” and claimed that since some of the girls had consented, the boys couldn’t be considered rapists.
“No, but if they’re still raping other girls then it does make them rapists,” replied Amy.
Jackson then tried to ascertain if rape was possible when the girls considered the boys “good looking”.
Whether the girls had been drinking or not, unconsented sexual abuse is rape.
Whether or not the girls considered the boys “good looking”, unconsented sexual abuse is rape.
The fact of the matter is that many men and women in this country do not understand this, and I’m sure Jackson is one of them.
Misnamed? Frankly you shouldn’t have written it like that at all Macro, and your apology is accepted, but how about an acknowledgement on someone who said something wrong in the past and the time spent since in working to address it. Willie Jackson is backing up his apology, and at least he is trying and making effort.
Sorry, but Little and Jackson don’t get to be the ones that decide if Jackson has changed his views and beliefs about rape culture. It’s obvious that Jackson does many good things. It’s also obvious that he still doesn’t get what the problem is. Neither does Little, and it’s a shame he didn’t choose to work this in a way that was good for all sides.
Trump is said to have has lost his shit because a woman parodied Sean Spicer and apparently, in Trumps world, there’s nothing more degrading than a woman taking the piss.
"it was Spicer’s portrayal by a woman that was most problematic in the president’s eyes"https://t.co/o7dFVs9gzG— Kaili Joy Gray (@KailiJoy) February 7, 2017
@calvininsf – i am here to serve – alec has trump – melissa has spice – i would need a few days to prepare – so if called – i will be ready— ROSIE (@Rosie) February 7, 2017
The Germans stand up to corporates trying to buy and take over their national game.
The AllBlacks were sold as cash cows to transnationals without a murmur.
Their main sponsor, AIG , has enough money for them, but appears to not have enough for Christchurch.
This is interesting and coincerning.
Humans could be extinct in 9 years – scientists
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Its a law like gravity: whenever a right-wing government is elected, they start attacking democracy. And now, after talking to their Republican and Tory and Fidesz chums at the International Democracy Union forum in Wellington, National is doing it here, announcing plans to remove election-day enrolment. Or, to put it ...
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Jacqui Van Der Kaay writes – Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National ...
Gary Judd writes – The Dean of the law school at the Auckland University of Technology is someone called Khylee Quince. I have been sent her social media posting in which she has, over the LawNews headline “Senior King’s Counsel files complaint about compulsory tikanga Maori studies for ...
Cleo Paskal writes – WASHINGTON, D.C.: ‘Many of us have received phone calls from [the opposing camp] telling them if they join the camp they will be given projects for their wards and $300,000 [around US$35,000] each’, says former Malaita Premier Daniel Suidani. The elections in Solomon Islands aren’t ...
With hindsight, it was inevitable that (a) Hamas would agree to the ceasefire deal brokered by Egypt and Qatar and that ( b) Israel would then immediately launch attacks on Rafah, regardless. We might have hoped the concessions made by Hamas would cause Israel to desist from slaughtering thousands more ...
Placards and mourners outside the Kilbirnie Mosque following the Christchurch terror attack: MSD has terminated the Kaiwhakaoranga service, which has been used by 415 families since the attacks. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The Government’s pledge to only cut ‘back office’ staff rather than ‘frontline’ services is on increasingly shaky ground, with ...
There’s been a few smaller public transport announcements over the last week or so that I thought I’d cover in a single post. Fareshare I’ve long called for Auckland Transport to offer a way to enable employer-subsidised public transport options. The need for this took on even more importance ...
Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National Minister Matt Doocey, reflects poorly on Genter and ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
Who likes being sneered at? Nobody. Worse yet, when the sneerer has their facts all wrong, and might well be an idiot.The sneer in question is The adults are in charge now, and it is a sneer offered in retort to criticism of this new Government, no matter how well ...
When in government, Labour pushed to extend the Parliamentary term to four years, to reduce accountability and our ability to vote out a bad government. And now, they're trying to do it through the member's ballot, with a Four-Year Parliamentary Term Legislation Bill. The bill at least requires a referendum ...
A ballot for a single Member's Bill was held today, and the following bill was drawn: Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill (Hūhana Lyndon) The bill would prevent the government from stealing Māori land in breach of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. It ...
Simeon Brown, alongside Wayne Brown, is favouring a political figleaf now in exchange for loading up tens of millions in extra interest costs on Auckland ratepayers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s is pushing back hard at suggestions from Local Government Minister Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown ...
Buzz from the Beehive One headline-grabber from the Beehive yesterday was the OECD’s advice that the government must bring the Budget deficit under control or face higher interest rates. Another was the announcement of a $1.9 billion “investment” in Corrections over the next four years. In the best interests of ...
Chris Trotter writes – Had Zheng He’s fleet sailed east, not west, in the early Fifteenth Century, how different our world would be. There is little reason to suppose that the sea-going junks of the Ming Dynasty, among the largest and most sophisticated sailing vessels ever constructed, would have failed ...
David Farrar writes – Two articles give a useful contrast in balance. Both seek to be neutral explainer articles. This one in the Herald on Social Investment covers the pros and cons nicely. It links to critical pieces and talks about aspects that failed and aspects that are more ...
The tikanga regulations will compel law students to be taught that a system which does not conform with the rule of law is nevertheless law which should be observed and applied…Gary Judd KC writes – I have made a complaint to Parliament’s Regulation ...
The future of Te Huia, the train between Hamilton and Auckland, has been getting a lot of attention recently as current funding for it is only in place till the end of June. The government initially agreed to a five year trial, through to April 2026, but that was subject ...
TL;DR: Hamas has just agreed to Israel’s ceasefire plan. Nelson hospital’s rebuild has been cut back to save money. The OECD suggests New Zealand break up network monopolies, including in electricity. PM Christopher Luxon’s news conference on a prison expansion announcement last night was his messiest yet.Here’s my top six ...
A homicide in Ponsonby, a manhunt with a killer on the run. The nation’s leader stands before a press conference reassuring a frightened nation that he’ll sort it out, he’ll keep them safe, he’ll build some new prison spaces.Sorry what? There’s a scary dude on the run with a gun ...
Hi,I know it’s been awhile since there’s been any Webworm merch — and today that all changes!Over the last four months, I’ve been working with New Zealand artist Jess Johnson to create a series of t-shirts, caps and stickers that are infused with Webworm DNA — and as of right ...
The OECD’s chief economist yesterday laid it on the line for the new Government: bring the deficit under control or face higher Reserve Bank interest rates for longer. And to bring the deficit under control, she meant not borrowing for tax cuts. But there was more. Without policy changes—introducing a ...
After a hiatus of over four months Selwyn Manning and I finally got it together to re-start the “A View from Afar” podcast series. We shall see how we go but aim to do 2 episodes per month if possible. … Continue reading → ...
In 2008, the UK Parliament passed the Climate Change Act 2008. The law established a system of targets, budgets, and plans, with inbuilt accountability mechanisms; the aim was to break the cycle of empty promises and replace it with actual progress towards emissions reduction. The law was passed with near-universal ...
Buzz from the Beehive Local Water Done Well – let’s be blunt – is a silly name, but the first big initiative to put it into practice has gone done well. This success is reflected in the headline on an RNZ report:District mayors welcome Auckland’s new water deal with ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate ConnectionsA farmworker cleans the solar panels of a solar water pump in the village of Jagadhri, Haryana Country, India. (Photo credit: Prashanth Vishwanathan/ IWMI) Decisions made in India over the next few years will play a key role in global ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – The Children’s Minister, Karen Chhour, intends to repeal Section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 because it creates conflict between claimed Crown Treaty obligations and the child’s best interests. In her words, “Oranga Tamariki’s governing principles and its act should be colour ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. ...
Brian Easton writes – This is about the time that the Treasury will be locking up its economic forecasts to be published in the 2024 Budget Economic and Fiscal Update (BEFU) on budget day, 30 May. I am not privy to what they will be (I will report on them ...
TL;DR:Winston Peters is reported to have won a budget increase for MFAT. David Seymour wanted his Ministry of Regulation to be three times bigger than the Productivity Commission. Simeon Brown is appointing a Crown Monitor to Watercare to protect the Claytons Crown Guarantee he had to give ratings agencies ...
The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. Carr had made highly ...
I could be a florist'Round the corner from Rye LaneI'll be giving daisies to craziesBut, baby, I'll wrap you up real safe Oh, I can give you flowers At the end of every dayFor the center of your table, a rainbowIn case you have people 'round to stay Depending on ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to May 12 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Finance Minister Nicola Willis will give a pre-budget speech on Thursday.Parliament sits from Question Time at 2pm on ...
The price of the foreign affairs “reset” is now becoming apparent, with Defence set to get a funding boost in the Budget. Finance Minister Nicola Willis has confirmed that it will be one of the few votes, apart from Health and Education and possibly Police, which will get an increase ...
A listing of 26 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 28, 2024 thru Sat, May 4, 2024. Story of the week "It’s straight out of Big Tobacco’s playbook. In fact, research by John Cook and his colleagues ...
Yesterday I received come lovely feedback following my Star Wars themed newsletter. A few people mentioned they’d enjoyed reading the personal part at the beginning.I often begin newsletters with some memories, or general thoughts, before commencing the main topic. This hopefully sets the mood and provides some context in which ...
April 30 was going to be the day we’d be calling Mum from London to wish her a happy birthday. Then it became the day we would be going to St. Paul's at Evensong to remember her. The aim of the cathedral builders was to find a way to make their ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – Can’t remember the last book by a Kiwi author you read? Think the NZ government should spend less on the arts in favor of helping the homeless? If so, as far as Newsroom is concerned, you probably deserve to be called a cultural ignoramus ...
Eric Crampton writes – Grudges are bad. Better to move on. But it can be fun to keep a couple of really trivial ones, so you’re not tempted to have other ones. For example, because of the rootkit fiasco of 2005, no Sony products in our household. ...
A new report warns an estimated third of the adult population have unmet need for health care.Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāHere’s the six key things I learned about Aotaroa’s political economy this week around housing, climate and poverty:Politics - Three opinion polls confirmed support for PM Christopher Luxon ...
Today is May the fourth. Which was just a regular day when my mother took me to see the newly released Star Wars at the Odeon in Rotorua. The queue was right around the corner. Some years later this day became known as Star Wars Day, the date being a ...
Buzz from the Beehive Much more media attention is being paid to something Winston Peters said about former Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr than to a speech he delivered to the New Zealand China Council. One word is missing from the speech: AUKUS. But AUKUS loomed large in his considerations ...
Is the economy in another long stagnation? If so, why?This is about the time that the Treasury will be locking up its economic forecasts to be published in the 2024 Budget Economic and Fiscal Update (BEFU) on budget day, 30 May. I am not privy to what they will be ...
The annual list of who's been bribing our politicians is out, and journalists will no doubt be poring over it to find the juiciest and dirtiest bribes. The government's fast-track invite list is likely to be a particular focus, and we already know of one company on the list which ...
In the weeks after the October 7 Hamas attacks on Southern Israel I wrote about the possible 2nd, 3rd and even 4th order effects of the conflict. These included new fronts being opened in the West Bank (with Hamas), Golan … Continue reading → ...
Peter Dunne writes – It is one of the oldest truisms that there is never a good time for MPs to get a pay rise. This week’s announcement of pay raises of around 2.8% backdated to last October could hardly have come at a worse time, with the ...
David Farrar writes – Newshub reports: Newshub can reveal a fresh allegation of intimidation against Green MP Julie-Anne Genter. Genter is subject to a disciplinary process for aggressively waving a book in the face of National Minister Matt Doocey in the House – but it’s not the first time ...
The Treasury has published a paper today on the global productivity slowdown and how it is playing out in New Zealand: The productivity slowdown: implications for the Treasury’s forecasts and projections. The Treasury Paper examines recent trends in productivity and the potential drivers of the slowdown. Productivity for the whole economy ...
Winston Peters’ comments about former Australian foreign minister look set to be an ongoing headache for both him and Luxon. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for subscribers features co-hosts and , along with regular guests on Gaza and ...
These puppet strings don't pull themselvesYou're thinking thoughts from someone elseHow much time do you think you have?Are you prepared for what comes next?The debating chamber can be a trying place for an opposition MP. What with the person in charge, the speaker, typically being an MP from the governing ...
The land around Lyme Regis, where Meryl Streep once stood, in a hood, on the Cobb, is falling into the sea.MerylThe land around Lyme Regis, around the Cobb that made it rich, has always been falling slowly but surely into the sea. Read more ...
Photo by Jari Hytönen on UnsplashIt’s that new day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when and I co-host our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm. Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream for our chat about the week’s news ...
Buzz from the Beehive Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters was bound to win headlines when he set out his thinking about AUKUS in his speech to the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. The headlines became bigger when – during an interview on RNZ’s Morning Report today – he criticised ...
The Post reports on how the government is refusing to release its advice on its corrupt Muldoonist fast-track law, instead using the "soon to be publicly available" refusal ground to hide it until after select committee submissions on the bill have closed. Fast-track Minister Chris Bishop's excuse? “It's not ...
As pressure on it grows, the livestock industry’s approach to the transition to Net Zero is increasingly being compared to that of fossil fuel interests. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / Getty ImagesTL;DR: Here’s the top five news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above ...
The New Zealand Herald reports – Stats NZ has offered a voluntary redundancy scheme to all of its workers as a way to give staff some control over their “future” amidst widespread job losses in the public sector. In an update to staff this morning, seen by the Herald, Statistics New Zealand ...
On Werewolf/Scoop, I usually do two long form political columns a week. From now on, there will be an extra column each week about music and movies. But first, some late-breaking political events:The rise in unemployment numbers for the March quarter was bigger than expected – and especially sharp ...
David Farrar writes – The Herald reports: TVNZ says it is dealing with about 50 formal complaints over its coverage of the latest 1News-Verian political poll, with some viewers – as well as the Prime Minister and a former senior Labour MP – critical of the tone of the 6pm report. ...
Muriel Newman writes – When Meridian Energy was seeking resource consents for a West Coast hydro dam proposal in 2010, local Maori “strenuously” objected, claiming their mana was inextricably linked to ‘their’ river and could be damaged. After receiving a financial payment from the company, however, the Ngai Tahu ...
The Green Party is welcoming the announcement by the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform Chris Bishop to approve most of the Wellington City Council’s District Plan recommendations. ...
David Seymour has failed to get the sweeping cuts he wanted to the free and healthy school lunch programme, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Hon Willie Jackson has been invited by the Oxford Union to debate the motion “This House Believes British Museums are not Very British’ on May 23rd. ...
Green Party MP Hūhana Lyndon says her Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill is an opportunity to right some past wrongs around the alienation of Māori land. ...
A senior, highly respected King’s Counsel with decades of experience in our law courts, Gary Judd KC, has filed a complaint about compulsory tikanga Māori studies for law students - highlighting the utter depths of absurdity this woke cultural madness has taken our society. The tikanga regulations will compel law ...
The Government needs to be clear with the people of the Nelson Marlborough region about the changes it is considering for the Nelson Hospital rebuild, Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...
Ministers must front up about which projects it will push through under its Fast Track Approvals legislation, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
Your Excellency Ambassador Meredith, Members of the Diplomatic Corps and Ambassadors from European Union Member States, Ministerial colleagues, Members of Parliament, and other distinguished guests, Thank you everyone for joining us. Ladies and gentlemen - In diplomacy, we often speak of ‘close’ and ‘long-standing’ relations. ...
The Therapeutic Products Act (TPA) will be repealed this year so that a better regime can be put in place to provide New Zealanders safe and timely access to medicines, medical devices and health products, Associate Health Minister Casey Costello announced today. “The medicines and products we are talking about ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, today released his decision on twenty recommendations referred to him by the Wellington City Council relating to its Intensification Planning Instrument, after the Council rejected those recommendations of the Independent Hearings Panel and made alternative recommendations. “Wellington notified its District Plan on ...
Rape Awareness Week (6-10 May) is an important opportunity to acknowledge the continued effort required by government and communities to ensure that all New Zealanders can live free from violence, say Ministers Karen Chhour and Louise Upston. “With 1 in 3 women and 1 in 8 men experiencing sexual violence ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government will be delivering a more efficient Healthy School Lunches Programme, saving taxpayers approximately $107 million a year compared to how Labour funded it, by embracing innovation and commercial expertise. “We are delivering on our commitment to treat taxpayers’ money ...
New research on the impacts of extreme weather on coastal marine habitats in Tairāwhiti and Hawke’s Bay will help fishery managers plan for and respond to any future events, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. A report released today on research by Niwa on behalf of Fisheries New Zealand ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters will lead a broad political delegation on a five-stop Pacific tour next week to strengthen New Zealand’s engagement with the region. The delegation will visit Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Tuvalu. “New Zealand has deep and ...
There has been a material decline in gas production according to figures released today by the Gas Industry Co. Figures released by the Gas Industry Company show that there was a 12.5 per cent reduction in gas production during 2023, and a 27.8 per cent reduction in gas production in the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins tonight announced the recipients of the Minister of Defence Awards of Excellence for Industry, saying they all contribute to New Zealanders’ security and wellbeing. “Congratulations to this year’s recipients, whose innovative products and services play a critical role in the delivery of New Zealand’s defence capabilities, ...
Welcome to you all - it is a pleasure to be here this evening.I would like to start by thanking Greg Lowe, Chair of the New Zealand Defence Industry Advisory Council, for co-hosting this reception with me. This evening is about recognising businesses from across New Zealand and overseas who in ...
It is a pleasure to be speaking to you as the Minister for Digitising Government. I would like to thank Akolade for the invitation to address this Summit, and to acknowledge the great effort you are making to grow New Zealand’s digital future. Today, we stand at the cusp of ...
New Zealand is urging both Israel and Hamas to agree to an immediate ceasefire to avoid the further humanitarian catastrophe that military action in Rafah would unleash, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The immense suffering in Gaza cannot be allowed to worsen further. Both sides have a responsibility to ...
A new online data dashboard released today as part of the Government’s school attendance action plan makes more timely daily attendance data available to the public and parents, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. The interactive dashboard will be updated once a week to show a national average of how ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced Rosemary Banks will be New Zealand’s next Ambassador to the United States of America. “Our relationship with the United States is crucial for New Zealand in strategic, security and economic terms,” Mr Peters says. “New Zealand and the United States have a ...
The Government is considering creating a new tier of minerals permitting that will make it easier for hobby miners to prospect for gold. “New Zealand was built on gold, it’s in our DNA. Our gold deposits, particularly in regions such as Otago and the West Coast have always attracted fortune-hunters. ...
Minister for Trade Todd McClay today announced that New Zealand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will commence negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA). Minister McClay met with his counterpart UAE Trade Minister Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi in Dubai, where they announced the launch of negotiations on a ...
New Zealand Sign Language Week is an excellent opportunity for all Kiwis to give the language a go, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. This week (May 6 to 12) is New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) Week. The theme is “an Aotearoa where anyone can sign anywhere” and aims to ...
Six tertiary students have been selected to work on NASA projects in the US through a New Zealand Space Scholarship, Space Minister Judith Collins announced today. “This is a fantastic opportunity for these talented students. They will undertake internships at NASA’s Ames Research Center or its Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), where ...
New Zealanders will be safer because of a $1.9 billion investment in more frontline Corrections officers, more support for offenders to turn away from crime, and more prison capacity, Corrections Minister Mark Mitchell says. “Our Government said we would crack down on crime. We promised to restore law and order, ...
The OECD’s latest report on New Zealand reinforces the importance of bringing Government spending under control, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The OECD conducts country surveys every two years to review its members’ economic policies. The 2024 New Zealand survey was presented in Wellington today by OECD Chief Economist Clare Lombardelli. ...
The Government has delivered on its election promise to provide a financially sustainable model for Auckland under its Local Water Done Well plan. The plan, which has been unanimously endorsed by Auckland Council’s Governing Body, will see Aucklanders avoid the previously projected 25.8 per cent water rates increases while retaining ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters discussed the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and enhanced cooperation in the Pacific with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during her first official visit to New Zealand today. "New Zealand and Germany enjoy shared interests and values, including the rule of law, democracy, respect for the international system ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop today released his decision on four recommendations referred to him by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, opening the door to housing growth in the area. The Council’s Plan Change 92 allows more homes to be built in existing and new ...
Thank you, John McKinnon and the New Zealand China Council for the invitation to speak to you today. Thank you too, all members of the China Council. Your effort has played an essential role in helping to build, shape, and grow a balanced and resilient relationship between our two ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
From today, passengers travelling internationally from Auckland Airport will be able to keep laptops and liquids in their carry-on bags for security screening thanks to new technology, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Creating a more efficient and seamless travel experience is important for holidaymakers and businesses, enabling faster movement through ...
People with an interest in the health of Northland’s marine ecosystems are invited to a public meeting to discuss how to deal with kina barrens, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones will lead the discussion, which will take place on Friday, 10 May, at Awanui Hotel in ...
Kiwi exporters are $100 million better off today with the NZ EU FTA entering into force says Trade Minister Todd McClay. “This is all part of our plan to grow the economy. New Zealand's prosperity depends on international trade, making up 60 per cent of the country’s total economic activity. ...
There are heartening signs that the extractive sector is once again becoming an attractive prospect for investors and a source of economic prosperity for New Zealand, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The beginnings of a resurgence in extractive industries are apparent in media reports of the sector in the past ...
The return of the historic Ō-Rākau battle site to the descendants of those who fought there moved one step closer today with the first reading of Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / The Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill. The Bill will entrust the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres west ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced 25 new high-speed EV charging hubs along key routes between major urban centres and outlined the Government’s plan to supercharge New Zealand’s EV infrastructure. The hubs will each have several chargers and be capable of charging at least four – and up to 10 ...
The coalition Government will not proceed with the previous Government’s plans to regulate residential property managers, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I have written to the Chairperson of the Social Services and Community Committee to inform him that the Government does not intend to support the Residential Property Managers Bill ...
The Government has announced an independent review into the disability support system funded by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston says the review will look at what can be done to strengthen the long-term sustainability of Disability Support Services to provide disabled people and ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Albanese government is talking up the crucial role of gas as a transition fuel “through to 2050 and beyond”. In a gas strategy to be released on Thursday, the government envisages the fuel’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Next week the government will again next try to get its legislation through to deal with non-citizens who won’t cooperate with efforts to deport them. The bill, which the opposition and crossbench refused to rush ...
A long-term project that will set out an alternative vision for Aotearoa that looks beyond the narrow confines of the policy straight jacket adopted by successive governments. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bree Hurst, Associate Professor, Faculty of Business and Law, QUT, Queensland University of Technology TK Kurikawa/Shutterstock A much-awaited report into Coles and Woolworths has found what many customers have long believed – Australia’s big supermarkets engage in price gouging. What started ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Daniel Ghezelbash, Associate Professor and Deputy Director, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law, UNSW Law & Justice, UNSW Sydney The Albanese government wanted to avoid an inquiry into its migration amendment bill. The report, handed down yesterday by a senate committee that ...
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Love the people of Romania
Must be western elites fomenting rebellion against a democratically elected government because clearly, tens of thousands of Romanians would never take to the streets to rid themselves of a corrupt regime.
//
Half a million people protesting the government, wow!
Sounds like it’s a protest against neo-liberalism and austerity.
And not reported in NZ’s msm.
What a surprise….
Instead from the Herald.
Polly Gillespie not on air after Facebook post
Tape Face slammed: ‘unfunny, pointless’
Amanda Knox: You probably hated me
The worst excuses for sick days
Posh flees after ‘Beckileaks’ drama
The top viewed stories on Stuff.
Polly & Grant missing from the airwaves after her attack on radio bosses
Why my wedding day was the loneliest day of my life
Queen Elizabeth II marks record 65 years on throne, but it’s tinged with sadness
Young Central Otago couple collect their $18 million Lotto win
Maybe George Carlin was right along.
So you won’t want to be branded a ‘stupid people’ and hypocrite by quoting or linking from either source ever again, will you?
Hey I’m not that bad.
I’d have to make the effort of doing a google search on this dipshit’s badly transcribed words to find the original links.
Of course if I did that then I’d probably find something that I could get annoyed about.
You do an excellent George Carlin impersonation.
You probably know it as editing. 🙂
Little reminds Labour caucus about discipline: http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/323972/willie-jackson-concerns-'a-matter-for-caucus‘
Another outstanding article by Malcolm Bradbury on the subject.
Class vs Identity Politics – Why Andrew Little has no choice but to stare down the Identitarians inside Labour
http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2017/02/07/class-vs-identity-politics-why-andrew-little-has-no-choice-but-to-stare-down-the-identitarians-inside-labour/
Only ‘outstanding’ if you share a black/white worldview where people’s varied belongings/potentials can only fit into one box. I would rather trust that most people are capable of holding more than one position at once. It’s certainly what I’ve experienced. Life is complex. Ask any poor brown woman or queer disabled migrant.
However, practically speaking some in Labour may still need reminding that they are a team and sometimes their faction does not get to win, cos politics. Politics always seems an unfortunate reduction of life in that respect.
+ 100% Sacha.
Excerpt from Paul’s link:
If this is what happened then it makes the whole thing worse… Poto is lucky she wasn’t ‘gone by lunchtime’.
“the Labour leadership believed they had an agreement that she wouldn’t post anything, she changed her mind and then posted it anyway.”
I respect her reservations but I’d fire her for that, on the spot. Must have some factional support to protect her.
This is the crux of the problem. I, too, respect her for what are strong and genuinely held views. No decent person would quarrel with her on them. But to go ahead and defy an agreement she appears to have made with the party leadership is almost beyond comprehension.
I could be wrong, but I suspect she was encouraged – maybe even coerced – to go rogue on the agreement by person/persons whose agenda(s) were not the same as her own. If so, I hope she knows never to take their advice again.
+100
On Checkpoint, Andrew Little said Poto Williams raised the points with Little last week. It seems that Little then went ahead and announced Jackson was going to be a candidate, without taking the issues raised by Poto to the caucus?
Am I missing something? Surely Little should have had a wider discussion with caucus, and perhaps the wider party, about the issues raised by Poto, before going public and announcing Jackson as a candidate?
Then is it surprising Williams was pissed off with Little not going through the required process and ignoring her advice?
Exactly!
It’s not Poto who has the problem here – it’s Little.
The authoritarian manner of his decision making is cringe worthy. I’m having very serious thoughts about him as PM.
Macro
Who do you suggest takes his place at this late stage?
I’ve heard Shaw make far more “cringing” comments than that, yet I accept people are people and can make errors of judgment, we are all capable of that, yes, all of us.
Did Shaw arbitrarily announce that he’d chosen someone to skip the list selection process? How about that many members think that someone’s recent behaviour is contrary to some of the essential principles and policies of the party?
Little doesn’t suffer from foot-in-mouth disease. His problem is that he became complacent and forgot that Labour is a democratic party that he can’t dictate to. Happens in every group organisation from time to time, the person with the vision sometimes forgets to bring people along with them for the ride, and starts unilateral action.
I think it’s recoverable, but it’s definitely something for Little to learn from.
NO, but Shaw did arbitrarily announce that he could “work with National’, I wonder how many members agreed with that decision?
Any party that states they are prepared to work with the worst scumbags to ever have the opportunity to destroy NZ, will never receive my support, that’s never.
You seem to have for gotten how important it is to keep the “dirty laundry” out of the public domain.
It’s for ALL members to learn from, making public statements that create the perception of disunity is probably the MOST UNPRODUCTIVE and DESTRUCTIVE method of getting their point across, no matter how valid the point is.
The Greens have already worked with National
That is one of the Strengths of the Green Party. They have shown that they are able to work across the political divide to advance policies that are directed towards positive ends.
If you can’t bring them along with you, then you’ve got to get rid of them otherwise, you’re going nowhere.
“NO, but Shaw did arbitrarily announce that he could “work with National’, I wonder how many members agreed with that decision?”
Wtf are you on about? The membership passed a remit at two separate AGMs allowing the party to work with National.
I’d also like to see a citation for Shaw having made that announcement arbitrarily or at all. I suspect you are talking about Russell Norman but he still had the ok from the party to do that (even though how he did it was not particularly wise).
Edit, Here’s a whole post on the Green Party’s position on working with National and not supporting them to form government, and how that decision was arrived at.
https://thestandard.org.nz/green-politics/
weka – Early on in his role as co-leader James did say something to that effect – but what he was saying was simply reiterating the Green position to work with National where positive action that addressed Green Party policies could be achieved.
There has been next to no area in the past few years where that has been the case. There was some hope such as with the sub-committee to investigate special needs in schooling – but in the end disappointingly that went nowhere.
I’d still like to see the citation for context. Shaw became co-leader 30 May 2015. Here he is a week later being interviewed in the media,
“What century are we talking about?”, Shaw responds when asked if the Greens are ever likely to sit around a Cabinet table with National.
“Look, I cannot see, certainly in 2017, how that could possibly function. It will be coming to the end of a third term National Government, we are miles apart (especially on the environment). The underlying economic system that produces the kind of environmental and social costs and consequences that we go on about is core to National’s way of governing. If we wanted to be in a coalition with them we would have to have a conversation with them about the nature of the economy and I can’t see them giving up on the model they’ve had for the last 30 years.”
But the Green Party is unashamedly on the hunt for National votes – and it sees no contradiction between that and its hardline position about doing a deal with any future National government.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/69120801/The-Green-Partys-Shaw-and-Turei-new-look-new-direction
Maybe it was in the week before that?
Yes Carolyn_nth – what you’re missing is the wider picture of WHY Willie Jackson was invited into Labour – which is that he could help connect Labour to the urban Maori and the disadvantaged Maori, and the enrolled non-voter – all vital for the Labour vote.
His mistakes were in the past, he’d apologised – several times – for them.
And yes, he’s a blokey-type jokey sort of bloke – not the sort necessarily appreciated by educated women.
Andrew Little talked to Poto Williams about these things.
Poto Williams should be “big” enough, and intelligent enough, to realise there are other matters at play in this scene ….. and personally I would have thought, as a Cook Islander (who are usually big on Christianity) that she could see the need for forgiveness in this matter.
If Jackson becomes sexist and pro-violence while he’s a candidate or an MP, then that’s a different matter – she’d be right to really get stuck into him.
But meanwhile, as an intelligent Labour woman she needs to show a bit of forgiveness and perhaps a bit of advice to him on how he should behave, and attitudes towards women.
And she needs to keep to caucus rules which she signed up to.
But didn’t Little fail to follow caucus/Labour Party rules on candidate selection before going public? Surely he should be leading by example?
As I understand it, the Labour Party systems are meant to be fairly democratic, especially with regard to candidate selection. The strategic reasoning may be sound in terms of Labour Party principles, but surely that should have been discussed more internally before Little went public on it. That is my point.
The way you describe it, the Labour Party member sounds very authoritarian.
I’m not certain about attracting urban Maori and the disadvantaged Maori because they are important to the LP vote. Surely it should be about what Labour can do for these groups, and surely the LP shouldn’t be sidelining principles about equality for all, including women (including Maori women)etc, in order to gain votes?
“The way you describe it, the Labour Party member sounds very authoritarian.”
yes, compared to the Greens, where this kind of things is incredibly rare presumably because they work with a consensus model rather than an authoritarian one. i.e. you wouldn’t get this dissent because the caucus wouldn’t disregard the opinions of one of their spokespeople like this.
His mistakes were only a few years ago.
Saying he was too casual or playing devil’s advocate is pretty mild as apologies go.
But Williams is supposed to remain silent (as Labour spokesperson on dv) and wait until after he’s been given membership, a waiver, fast-tracked up the list, made an MP, and then repeats his sort of attitudes of late 2013? Bit bloody late then.
Yeah, that’s the one. It’s not like anyone is really expecting the LP to get to grips with rape culture, but what are they thinking is going to happen when Jackson shoots his mouth off when they’re in govt? Or god forbid the month before the election (which actually might be ok if it bumps the Green vote). It’s possible that they’ve gotten an assurance from Jackson that he won’t be an arse.
/naivety.
Well said Jenny
“Poto Williams should be “big” enough, and intelligent enough, to realise there are other matters at play in this scene ….. and personally I would have thought, as a Cook Islander (who are usually big on Christianity) that she could see the need for forgiveness in this matter.”
OMG!!!
🙄
Sorry Jenny – but that has to be about as offensive as Willie Jackson was to the young woman on radio.
“Cook Islander (who are usually big on Christianity) that she could see the need for forgiveness in this matter.”
This is a pretty weird and borderline racist thing to say.
It doesn’t work that way Carolyn Nth. I find Martyn Bradbury too much most of the time but, from my own knowledge and experiences in the LP, his version of what happened re- Poto Williams sounds more than a tad plausible. He has many contacts including MPs.
Of course Little consulted widely and it probably included senior union personnel as well. Its fairly obvious most approved of allowing Willie Jackson back into the party for the same reasons Little has publicly expressed. But for reasons only Poto can fully explain, she appears to have chosen to renege on an agreement she made with the Labour leadership which would have included the deputy leader and the party president at the least.
Willie Jackson knows West Aucklanders and South Aucklanders like the back of his hand. He understands them and can speak their language. Huge numbers of them don’t bother to vote. Willie is well known and trusted in these two regions and he has the power of persuasion which would be a hugely valuable tool in getting them out to vote for Labour.
Edit: Jenny Kirk above is on the button. She broke the most important caucus rule – keeping caucus matters confidential to caucus.
Well, Jackson may have an understanding of west and south Auckland men, but what about the women, given the survivors of the Roastbuster abuse were westie women?
If Williams did agree not to go public, then it is fair to criticise her for breaking that agreement. When she made that promise, did she know Little was going to go public with it in a couple of days, or did she think there’d be more discussion of it within the party?
Yes I’d like to see more people voting. But many have given up because they don’t think any politicians will do anything for them.
So what is Labour going to do for west and South Aucklanders, and urban Maori?
Why wouldnt she know when she had been in discussions about Willie Jackson?
It was the timing of her FB post that made me feel that she did indeed know.
It’s all speculation but if I had to guess I’d say what it looks like from the outside is that there was some initial discussion in caucus about brining Jackson in, Williams’ concerns were ignored, and in amongs that there are the Māori politics (in and outside the party) as well as the feeling amongs the general membership. It’s not just Williams that is upset about this whole thing.
Leftie: It was the timing of her FB post that made me feel that she did indeed know
how so? because the timing of the announcement (on a public holiday), and William’s FB response. suggests to me the possibility that she had thought the possible Jackson candidacy would be discussed more widely in the party before it was announced publicly.
I asked:
So what is Labour going to do for west and South Aucklanders, and urban Maori?
Still no answer. And I have in mind that the big hole in Labour’s housing policy – ie so far nothing to directly combat the rising cost of private rentals, indicates low income westies and South Aucklanders have not been given a lot of consideration in the policies.
Spot on Anne and Jenny, you are both are right on the button.
“Edit: Jenny Kirk above is on the button. She broke the most important caucus rule – keeping caucus matters confidential to caucus.”
What if it’s a matter of conscience? I’m thinking of Marilyn Waring crossing the floor.
Labour could have had Jackson and satisfied the women in the party. Pity they didn’t do that.
From what I remember Williams had support from other Labour women.
You’re talking about a legislative vote in parliament. If Labour was happy to allow the whole of parliament to have a say in Willie Jacksons’ return to politics then someone would have to draw up legislation which would go to a select committee and their recommendations would be put to the vote in the debating chamber where both sides could debate the pros and cons. If it was a party vote controlled by the whips then she could ‘cross the floor’ and vote with the other side whoever they might be.
It would make a hilarious comedy show but somehow don’t think it would be approved by the speaker. 😎
No, I was making a comparison on matters of conscience. Nice side step though 🙂
+ 100% Anne. I don’t think you’re wrong. I suspect the same as you do.
“I could be wrong, but I suspect she was encouraged – maybe even coerced – to go rogue on the agreement by person/persons whose agenda(s) were not the same as her own.”
Interesting. Do you think the public undermining of Little is part of a larger potential leadership challenge?
Not at this stage. Andrew Little is strong and does not suffer fools gladly. Nor does he put up with people who play silly political games behind the scenes. Helen Clark was the same and she also had some enemies inside the party – at least in the initial years.
“Andrew Little is strong…”
This does seem to be an attempt to weaken him. Nevertheless, I was curious in the other agenda(s) you suspected.
Could it be related to Jackson being ex Alliance?
Not likely. Too long ago. The culprits (for want of a better word) wouldn’t have even been born. No, they have ambitions beyond what they are worth and know their chances of success while Little is leader is zilch. That’s my conclusion based on what I’ve seen and heard.
Every major political party has them.
“the Labour leadership believed they had an agreement that she wouldn’t post anything, she changed her mind and then posted it anyway.”
I respect her reservations but I’d fire her for that, on the spot. Must have some factional support to protect her.
Me too if it was true but I’m not going to use Bradbury as a useful source for what happened.
Fair call – doh. Subsequent RNZ story here: http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/checkpoint/audio/201832310/andrew-little-defends-decision-to-let-willie-jackson-stand-for-labour
thanks, can’t bring myself to listen to him, too much disappointment.
I listened to it last night. Little only says that he discussed it with Williams a few days before the announcement about Jackson, and she expressed the same injections as in her FB post. He does not indicate if Williams knew he was about to announce the candidacy in spite of Williams objections.
He does not mention that he had breached LP candidacy procedures by making an executive decision on Jackson’s candidacy.
Does the Labour Party have a process by which candidates are selected by “executive decision”?
If not, is there a rule that states the leader can’t express an opinion on the subject? Has he exceeded his mandate?
If not, why make up spurious claims (“breached LP candidacy procedures”)? Aren’t the facts of the matter sufficient grounds for concern?
Agreed. Very lucky.
Corbyn is having problems as well with ill-discipline with UK Labour and a failure to discipline such acts is costing them dearly.
And Little’s having trouble controlling a caucus of 31. No Key, English plummeting into the future that is 2002, an insane deputy PM – and the election’s still Labour’s to lose. WTF?
She was very lucky.
That’s more-or-less what Andrew said on Campbell RNZ tonight, Anne. Can’t remember the exact words, but Poto definitely stepped out of line. Any problems an MP has with whatever policy has to be discussed in caucus first, and dealt with there.
Poto is blinkin’ lucky she just got off with a mild reprimand.
My own transgression – over a much more important issue at the time – Rogernomics – resulted in three days of no-speaks by anyone – very uncomfortable to experience.
Poto – and other Labour women – need to look at the wider picture, and they also need to know what Willie Jackson has been doing in the intervening years since roadbusters. There is something underhand about this vendetta.
+100 Jenny and Andrew Little is into redemption and giving people a chance to do better.
“My own transgression – over a much more important issue at the time – Rogernomics – resulted in three days of no-speaks by anyone – very uncomfortable to experience.”
Do you regret making that stand, then?
If not, how do we evaluate the importance of an issue?
Martyn.
I actually read it. Probably won’t bother again.
Firstly, he reckons he knows what the leadership believed about their behind the scenes discussions with Williams. If someone’s telling him, then why isn’t he calling the leadership on the damaging leaks as much as he is Williams?
Secondly, he’s bitching about identity politics while talking about WJ getting out the “urban Maori” vote. Hypocritical, much?
Thirdly, if he thinks it’s smart that Labour undemocratically elevate a random Maori celebrity to get the urban Maori vote, does he really think that the best role model Labour can find is someone who can’t bring forward a decent apology for referring to rape as “mischief”? Seriously?
FFS. Bradbury’s a fucking tool. Maybe I forgot, and that’s why I bothered this time.
The way I see it is that Little is only bending over backwards for Willie because he is scared shitless the Maori/Mana deal will wipe out his Maori MPs. Bit of a risk really because he is alienating many Labour supporters who can’t see the merits of a talk-back host getting a free ride high on the list ahead of genuine Labour people.
I suspect less thought went into it than that – WJ was looking for a place to live and got on the O’Conner bandwagon, Little and he hammered it out themselves and nobody knew about it until it was being announced like it was a done deal.
And if WJ’s comment history even occurred to them, they probably assumed it was water under the bridge.
And now they’re in the shit. Complacency fucks folks every time.
Unless Labour’s party vote rises, there will be few of their list MPs who get in.
lol
I remember once on my last evening in London deciding to have a feast of “Traditional English Fish and Chips”. After a night going at both ends I managed to struggle onto the plane to take me home. Fish and Chips never passed my lips again for a very long time.
Reading a Bradbury rant has much the same effect.
Despite your rather useful descriptions 🙂 I felt the need to go have a look myself (because otherwise sensible people in this thread are treating what he says about Labour as a valid source for what happened). I see he is now the Pete George of the left, having to selectively quote people on TS in order to frame his agenda. Oh dear. Might be ok if all the people that hate IP end up there though 🙂
Had to laugh at his quote of from you weka. Made me giggle, I was thinking Pete George as well LOL.
Did concern me the whole “I’m a man, so you better listen to me” vibe that ran through his whole piece. I wonder if he will get how much a sexist prick he is? Or the fact if you opposed to civil rights, you not on my side or anyone else’s who actually give a dam about people.
He quoted me the other day too. I’m not that happy to be on his radar tbh, seeing what he’s done to others. I agree a big part of this is “listen to me”. Some of that seems just ego out of control. But the anti-IP stuff that is coming up not just with him but with others, that’s lefties taking their memes not just from the like of Trotter but from the alt-right. I find it concerning and it does look to me like these are predominantly white men who are emboldened by the US election result.
The civil rights framing is good, thanks for that.
I share your concerns and it’s a step backwards. It’s been a long hard struggle to get women’s, race, LGBTI and disability issues incorporated within the dominant left organisations, policies and campaigns.
These civil rights issues were also watered down at the same time class issues were watered down within and through the neoliberal shift. But guys that seem to want to return to a largely white, heterosexual, male dominated left seem to be using the collapse of neoliberalism to push their retro agenda.
+1
The message that I got loud and clear over at TDB, is that the left is a working class male thing and the rest of us (ie women) need to STFU
Good point Carolyn_nth. It’s like these guys don’t even know what major class A retrogrades they are being as well.
I don’t want to live in a world where people don’t have civil rights, where women, LGBTI, indigenous, and disabled are not a major part of the solution.
I know people in the US who are very scared right now. The thing that scares me here is that while I see NZ as being very different than the US politically and socially, I think we are quite capable of having our own version of authoritarianism arise here. That’s what the whole anti-IP is starting to look like. The false framing of what IP is, and the push from lefties who also support Tr*mp. I guess it’s useful to see this more honestly, but I also think we it’s likely we don’t have a lot of time to start working together. Not Bradbury, but the rest of us. If we get a hard GFC for instance and a reactive conservatism.
I’d always read Bradbury with a grain of salt, went off him with his whole emerald army thing. Gave him a break when he did waatea news show. But now he’s back to his authoritarian best – so a lost cause.
I’ve had a few tear fulled facebook conversations of late as well. Mainly over heath care for disabled friends of mine. They deeply concerned about the end of Obama care. It’s like the weakest in society, or those who have the most to lose, are the constant target of these retrograde individuals be they left or right. We have all lost since the rise of neo-liberalism, time to try somthing different.
Yeah all we got is organising ourselves, and doing it local. Did that tonight with group I work with, small steps to prepare them if it gets worse.
The Daily Blog’s moderators make that site a joke. There’s no discussion unless you toe their line.
I wrote 1 comment last night that they let through, foolishly I commented before I had read all of Bomber’s writing on Jackson (note to self- no more commenting after 2nd glass of wine) My second comment said that I wanted to withdraw what I had said about Bomber understanding the seriousness of the Roastbusters, because it looked like he was prepared to ‘throw women’s issues under a bus” . Nothing particuarly inflammatory about my comment- but no, 24 hours later, they haven’t let it through.
I wrote a pissed off comment on the Chris Trotter post- saying Trotter had done more damage to the Labour party with his columns than Poto Williams had. That one hasn’t seen the light of day either.
Thank you to the moderators at the Standard who don’t make us kiss their arses before we can get our comments published.
“Trotter had done more damage to the Labour party with his columns”
I agree with that.
awww… but he went got learned himself a fancy new word.
“Identitarians” — and he can even spell it — now just another 8 months of him breathlessly repeating it in reference to senior Labour MPs…
I suppose that makes him a Blusterfarian.
Or a Sexistprickitarian?
When did you stop believing in civil rights Paul?
Because that all that term identitarians means, and end to civil rights. When people on the left have taken on board wholesale acceptance of the rights criticism of civil rights, the illusion of any sort of freedom, becomes stark.
Prime TV- 5.30-labour getting a wack re willie in labour.Careful poto ,careful.
There have several of saying this from the start.
It is clear many in the Labour Party have not learnt the lessons they should have from Clinton’d defeat.
As Bradbury puts it so well.
“Me, me, me, I, I, I and my, my, my have replaced ‘us’ as the language of political inclusion.
Replacing class for hyper individualism makes solidarity almost impossible and creates fractures within unity, which is exactly what we are seeing happen in real time with the Labour Party right now.”
Are you a labour supporter Paul?
I am left wing.
When it’s about a large segment of the population, and the way they are treated within the system e.g. women, sexual violence survivors, etc. It’s not individualism, any more than white guys focusing about their issues…. that could just as easily be called..me, me, me…. don’t care about yous others, according to your logic.
Systemic treatment of women, rape culture etc, is a collective issue, just like class.
Hear! Hear!
In my humble opinion Jackson ruled himself out of any further involvement in Political representation the day he “interviewed” that unfortunate young woman and asked her if rape was possible if the girls considered the boys to be “good looking”!
For goodness sake! He clearly, doesn’t understand the nature of sexual abuse!
An “apology” simply doesn’t cut it!
And Little thinks he would make a good candidate????
Thanks Carolyn and Macro – I too do not see an attitude of dismissal and denigration of women as Identity Politics , but more akin to a classs issue.
Antonina
How is mis-treating and mis-valuing women possibly “a class issue”? It’s sexism. Already has a name, thanks.
I think “akin to a class issue”, means that they are similar in being about systemic oppression and/or discrimination of a whole group of people – not that gender oppression is a class issue per se.
Ah, thanks.
But Little looked at other aspects of Jackson’s life, Macro – and saw that he had redeemed himself somewhat by finding out about womens refuges, and why they exist, and the end result of sexual abuse and violence. And that he was now running programmes at the Urban Maori Authority to help re-educate people and counter abuse and violence.
People are not just one dimensional. They’re made up of many different facets, and some are good,and some not so good – but if they get the opportunity to reflect on their not so good attributes, they can change them.
That appears to have happened in Jackson’s case – and that’s what Andrew Little saw.
And yes, from the point of view of bringing urban maori, young maori, and disadvantaged maori in to see that Labour could help them, than that makes him a good candidate.
“and saw that he had redeemed himself somewhat by finding out about womens refuges, and why they exist, and the end result of sexual abuse and violence. And that he was now running programmes at the Urban Maori Authority to help re-educate people and counter abuse and violence.”
You can link to that?
And Poto Williams was unaware of this??
Have read what you have quoted in some articles from the Herald et al, Macro. I doubt that Poto Williams was unaware of the steps Willie Jackson had taken over the last 3 years. That’s what Andrew Little is saying, that Willie Jackson is backing up his apologies with action.
I repeat what weka says below:
Working with Urban Maori is well and good – but it doesn’t suggest that he has changed the underlying problem his attitudes wrt of the denigration of women.
He hasn’t just been working with urban Maori though. It appears it doesn’t matter what he does to address the wrongful things he said in the past, for some, it will never be enough, he is damned for life.
Well that’s the way it is with rapists…
It’s a hard road back.
Now I’m not saying that Jackson is one – but his interview on Radio Live was pretty bloody horrible, and a huge apology for rape culture. That was the reason so many advertisers withdrew their support forthwith from the programme and forced Radio Live to remove him and Henare from the air.
It was a stupid and insensitive interview, and too damned right he should apologise. But even that is not enough. He really has to demonstrate, in the eyes of all abused women, that he is truly repentant – and that is going to take time and effort.
“He hasn’t just been working with urban Maori though. It appears it doesn’t matter what he does to address the wrongful things he said in the past, for some, it will never be enough, he is damned for life.”
That’s a misrepresentation of what people think Leftie. For instance, I said a few days before the Williams’ statement that for me it wasn’t about keeping Jackson out of Labour, it was about how Labour dealt with the rape culture issues. Thus far, badly, although it could have been worse.
Others believe that Jackson should never be in parliament again, and I understand why they argue that (myself, I think we should take all rape apologists out which would decimate parliament).
As for Jackson, I think you simply fail to understand what the problem is here and why his apologies have fallen flat. Anyone can say the right thing to get what they want. It’s not about that, it’s about demonstrating that he has changed. I just don’t see it.
And as Macro has been arguing, this wasn’t just a faux pas. It was a major issue around rape culture that never got resolved, hence it coming back to bite Labour now. Lots of us could have told Labour this would happen and I’d hazard a guess that Little was told and chose to ignore it. It’s on him then.
“Well that’s the way it is with rapists…
It’s a hard road back.
Now I’m not saying that Jackson is one”
Aren’t you, Macro? Because it sure sounded like that was what you were calling him.
Weka, I wasn’t referring “about keeping Jackson out of Labour” My comment is about giving someone a chance to redeem themselves. We learn through our entire lives, do we not? And I haven’t got the impression from what Andrew Little has said in the media, that he ignored concerns. There is a process to be followed, that would have been a more productive platform to raise those concerns.
I awoke this morning with the horrible realization that I had mis-named Jackson’s co-host.
Willie Jackson’s co-host was of course John Tamahere not Henare. My sincere apologies for this error, and any offense it may have caused.
As to the query raised by Leftie above the fact remains that people who encourage, or condone rape, are as much to blame as those who carry out the abuse.
http://thewireless.co.nz/articles/two-years-on-from-the-roast-busters
Whether the girls had been drinking or not, unconsented sexual abuse is rape.
Whether or not the girls considered the boys “good looking”, unconsented sexual abuse is rape.
The fact of the matter is that many men and women in this country do not understand this, and I’m sure Jackson is one of them.
Misnamed? Frankly you shouldn’t have written it like that at all Macro, and your apology is accepted, but how about an acknowledgement on someone who said something wrong in the past and the time spent since in working to address it. Willie Jackson is backing up his apology, and at least he is trying and making effort.
Sorry, but Little and Jackson don’t get to be the ones that decide if Jackson has changed his views and beliefs about rape culture. It’s obvious that Jackson does many good things. It’s also obvious that he still doesn’t get what the problem is. Neither does Little, and it’s a shame he didn’t choose to work this in a way that was good for all sides.
Trump is said to have has lost his shit because a woman parodied Sean Spicer and apparently, in Trumps world, there’s nothing more degrading than a woman taking the piss.
The Germans stand up to corporates trying to buy and take over their national game.
The AllBlacks were sold as cash cows to transnationals without a murmur.
Their main sponsor, AIG , has enough money for them, but appears to not have enough for Christchurch.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-38802113
The insurance co screwing ChCh is IAG, Insurance Australia Group, not AIG, American International Group who sponsor the All Blacks
This is interesting and coincerning.
Humans could be extinct in 9 years – scientists
Alarmist drivel.
well said Stunned Mullet, the correspondent who posted this link seems to have a strong attraction to alarmist drivel
“Bishops get Maori minder”
Love the click bait title, great appointment by the way.
http://www.waateanews.com/waateanews/x_story_id/MTU1OTA=/Bishops-get-Maori-minder