Hager’s “Dirty Politics”

Written By: - Date published: 5:30 pm, August 13th, 2014 - 189 comments
Categories: accountability, blogs, brand key, crosby textor, election 2014, john key, national, the praiseworthy and the pitiful, you couldn't make this shit up - Tags: , ,

So the book is an expose of the Slater-Ede-Key Dirty Politics machine, based on data acquired and leaked to Hager.

Will Update over the evening

I was totally wrong about the topic.

The book was introduced and shown on Livestream – best one by 3 News.

The topic of the book is the “dirty, despicable game of politics, played by dirty, despicable people” (to quote, Slater from memory).

When Slater’s site was hacked and went down. Someone came away with thousands of documents they gave to Hager.

The book documents the smear machine that perpetuated attack politics, through what is known in the US as, “”two track politics”.  This is where the leader, in this case John key, puts on a nice friendly front to the public, while he is involved with dirty attack politics carried out by his team.

Tracey Watkins on Stuff reports:

In a statement, Hager said the book, titled Dirty Politics, focused on individuals in the National government, including Prime Minister John Key, senior ministers and staff in the prime ministers office.

Hager said he has obtained emails including correspondence between Slater and ninth floor staffers for John Key.

“The book is based upon a large number of internal communications between the National-aligned blogger Slater and a network of National Party figures,” Hager said in the statement.

“The documents are very revealing about Slater and his collaborators including much that is shocking and distasteful.

“But much more important the documents also cover politicians and Beehive staff, showing the highly coordinated National Party attack politics used year after year throughout Keys prime ministership.”

Hager said his book was based in “thousands and thousands” of documents from Slater’s computer.

“You are not going to believe how bloody awful it is.”

Bryce Edwards tweeted a copy of page two of the book.

Dirty Politics page two

Danyl Mclaughlan tweeted a copy of part of the Index.

Dirty Politics index

 

Press release from the publisher of the book:

 In the same election campaign, the prime minister’s office used its knowledge of secret SIS documents to tip off Slater and arrange an attack on the Labour leader (Chapter 3).

Gower has reported on 3 News that the National Party was involved in the attack on Len Brown re his affair.

Brook Sabin tweeted that Slater blackmailed Rodney Hide to stand down from ACT.

Gower said on 3 News that Hide was forced to stand down due to some dirt the Nats had on him.

Hager will be on Campbell Live tonight.

Matthew Hooton tweeted:

Hager’s allegation I arranged for a liquor company to sponsor & is a total lie

Scoop News on the book

video of book launch

Campbell Live tonight mentioned extracts of the book that claim Slater et al were planning to attack Peter Dunne through his (alleged) secret donors from the tobacco industry.

It also refers to an extract where the Slater team tried to get a video of a drunken Winston Peters at Backbenchers. Peters did not co-operate.  He didn’t appear.

It also claims that a guy from the tobacco industry wrote posts favourable to the industry, which were posted on the Whale Oil site.

189 comments on “Hager’s “Dirty Politics” ”

  1. mickysavage 1

    Wow.

    It has been alleged that Key’s office was using SIS information for political advantage by leaking to Slater. If there is proof then he has to resign.

    I have not read the book yet but if there is anything to this allegation he has to go.

    • One Anonymous Bloke 1.1

      SIS information about whom? 😈

    • One Anonymous Bloke 1.2

      What’s the relevant legislation? Will we need Graham McCready to see justice done?

    • Gosman 1.3

      Yes if there is hard evidence SIS information was passed on then he should resign. Is there this hard evidence?

      • tricledrown 1.3.1

        He should resign and be prosecuted to the full extent of the law!
        After the Polices lack of action over John Banks they had better follow through on this otherwise McCready will!
        Keys integrity is disappearing along with his smug smile!

      • Tom Jackson 1.3.2

        The publisher claims it is in the book.

    • Stuart Munro 1.4

      you seem to have had a couple of words clipped:

      he has to go

      he has to go to prison

  2. CnrJoe 2

    SIR Nicky Hager Arise.

  3. yeshe 3

    Go Nicky Hager ! Thank you, thank you, thank you. Stay safe out there …. you are a brave and brightly brilliant Kiwi.

  4. the pigman 4

    Where can I buy it?!!? Is it available online yet?

    Just take my money already 😀

  5. ianmac 5

    Hang on Karol. I happen to know that John Key is a lovely kind man who has a friendly engaging manner and a great smile. It just cannot be true that he was part of Nasty Tricks. It just can’t be that he is not what he seems. Nicky must be just making it all up.

    Note: This just putting up the standard National Supporter response. (For me I am pleased if it outs the Dirty tricks and it unmasks the Key clique. Just deserts.)

    • the pigman 5.1

      Ian you got it all wrong, they’re gonna say:

      “WHAT ABOUT H-FEE?! U R NARSTY PARTEE!” before swiping your bananas and climbing back into the trees. 😉

    • AmaKiwi 5.2

      No, this is not the standard National response. The standard response is to try to destroy Nicky Hager without ever replying to the evidence.

  6. karol 6

    Bryce Edwards tweeted a photo of page two. Will add to the post soon. I stopped editing the post so micky could put this post at the top of the page.

    Index image tweeted

  7. Ant 7

    So good that Slater was the weak link.

  8. Graham 8

    So a political party uses a friendly blog to help get its message out
    Lol
    Pot kettle anyone

    • Lanthanide 8.1

      Yes, lets distract from what has actually gone on here and point fingers in every other direction.

      Pretty sad.

    • Craig Glen Eden 8.2

      Oh how you wish Graham sadly its looking way way worse. I wish I could say nice try but your attempt to divert was well to say pathetic is being to kind.

    • Liberal Realist 8.3

      “So a political party uses a friendly blog to help get its message out”

      More like “The governing party allegedly used intelligence services to inform it’s attack bloggers on topics of interest to be used to attack the opposition”

    • Michael 8.4

      Not quite. Hager alleges that Key used the SIS to mount political attacks on his opponents. National has form for this, of course, under Muldoon, which is another reason why our intelligence services must be reformed (or replaced with something that serves the country’s interests, not just those of the National Party). Other allegations seem to concern the misuse of official machinery, and information, for narrow, partisan purposes. Not on as far as I’m concerned. Key needs to get the arse card on 20 September, following which he and his mates should face criminal proceedings.

    • Barry 8.5

      Hi,
      I must agree, this is hardly a shock. I guess it will not look good to have the details actually exposed, but really it is no surprise, and I don’t think it is much of story
      I guess we will learn more

    • Geoff 8.7

      Um er Graham I think you need to come up to speed with the extent of the allegations

  9. redfed 9

    According to his website Slater is in Israel right at this precise moment. I guess he thought it would be more peaceful than over here.

    • Lanthanide 9.1

      Korea.

      • the pigman 9.1.1

        Said he had just got to Israel on his website when I dropped in 20 minutes ago for the schadenfreude. His moderator pal said they’d be “moderating heavily”, so I figured there was no point in posting anything.

        So excited to get my trotters on this 🙂

    • alwyn 9.2

      That’s all right. Mickey Savage has apparently fled the country as well.
      They must both have something to hide, according to your logic.
      For anyone who really wants a copy I understand they will be on the remainders table at The Warehouse tomorrow.

    • Instauration 9.3

      Cameron John Slater overseas ? With his criminal convictions (if declared) I would have thought his “Sphere of Travel” would be very limited. Israel, – Korea, do they let just anybody in ?

  10. john 10

    So Whaloil apparently has communications with National Party insiders.

    And this is claimed to be “unbelievable” big news?

    Apparently some of the attacks were nearly quarter as nasty as the recently seen hate chants.

    That’s about as mindblowing as a year old weather report for Invercargill.

    • Lanthanide 10.1

      Yes, because the PM leaking SIS secrets that were then used to attack the leader of the opposition is of the same consequence as some students saying “fuck John Key”.

      • dave 10.1.1

        a government using internal security service against political opponents breaking in to political opponent computers KEY MUST RESIGN !this ede is on the tax pay payer pay roll in keys office ,key is the minister of charge off the sis his mate fletcher runs the dam thing key must resign at once!

    • marsman 10.2

      @ john. Those were anti-hate chants.

    • David 10.3

      Why don’t you address what the topic of the book is? It is proof that the National party that has a long history of being patriots of NZ has been hijacked by some thoroughly cynical dicklocks who don’t give a fig about anything but holding on to the levers of power and turning NZ into a kleptocracy. And your third line is intriguing, are you insinuating that some left wing blogs were complicit in whipping up some John Key hate? I don’t come across many people who loathe the man, they just loathe what he does & doesn’t stand for.

      So, in conclusion, up your game or go troll some other site.

      • john 10.3.1

        If you don’t come across people here who loathe John Key, the some advice for you.

        Enroll at primary school learn how to read.

        • felix 10.3.1.1

          Pretty ironic coming from someone who didn’t make it all the way to the end of the sentence. 🙄

          • john 10.3.1.1.1

            How stupid is it to say there’s not many who hate Key?

            All you’ve got to do is read any page here and you’ll find plenty of hate.

            • One Anonymous Bloke 10.3.1.1.1.1

              You will certainly find hatred of his policies and personal ethics. It’s a distinction I’ve noticed wingnuts struggle with.

              • john

                When you say “fuck John Key” then try to claim it’s only really his policies and ethics you’re against, you just make yourself look like an imbecile.

                [lprent: Off topic. I’m not feeling charitable today. Troll elsewhere. Banned 6 weeks. ]

                • karol

                  The Nats have made John Key and his public persona their main PR vehicle. They front his smiley face in various media, and it is used as a diversion from the policies and values of his government.

                • One Anonymous Bloke

                  Ah, so kids chanting equals “any page here” on Planet John.

                  For what it’s worth, I think the kids chant is more or less equivalent to “who ate all the pies”, and while the “fat bastard” might feel the crowd hates them they’d be mistaken. Still, it’s a finer point I don’t expect you to consider or understand.

                  However, if John Key really did use SIS information against Phil Goff, then yeah, fuck him: to employ a wingnut trope, he can rot in prison.

                  • john

                    You just proved you’re an imbecile.

                    Trying to claim you’re not against him – just his policies – then unable to resist a “fuck him”:

                    Idiot.

                    • CnrJoe

                      I’ve got a spare fuc u – u wan it?

                    • disturbed

                      Is this blogger “john” actually John Key?

                      He seems unusually rather hurt that people hate Key?

                      Maybe this is our about to be former PM John Key trolling.

                • David

                  Aw, don’t ban the poor little puppydog chasing his tail around. His argument is so strong, we just can’t understand it.

                  [lprent: He should have done it on OpenMike. It is a lot safer to do it there. ]

        • David 10.3.1.2

          Yep, I’m enrolling at a partnership school to do my national standards very soon. Just so I can match my pathetic intellect with such a juggernaut as yourself. Of course some people lack the rationality to play the ball & not the man. Just like some people who advocate progressive politics must be pinko commie man hating, anti progress bastards. You want to see unadulterated hatred & filth, you are on the wrong site my friend.

    • marty mars 10.4

      yep the filth is already known by righties but I wonder what ‘the middle’ will think of the slime – not much I’d say – key stinks and everyone is going to know it buddy

    • felix 10.5

      Oh look, john’s read the book! Amazing!

    • Michael 10.6

      I live in Invercargill and find the weather reports to be most useful. I also find Hager’s book that our Prime Minister misused the resources of the intelligence community to smear his domestic political opponents useful, too, as it confirms my suspicion that the National Party and democracy are oxymoronic.

    • tricledrown 10.7

      McCready will do for Key what he’s done for Banks!
      John belittling the usurping of unbridled power Keys use of SIS documents is treasonous!

  11. Ffloyd 11

    A bit ominous that a U.S Gov’t plane just happened to land in Rotorua today supposedly to look at something or other. Forgotten what.

    • alwyn 11.1

      You mean the one with the bunch of Congressmen on a jolly?
      That is about as significant as the annual Speaker’s tour that our Parliament organises.
      Actually it’s less significant than that. There are dozens of these by US politicians each year. The senior Congressmen usually go to Paris or London.

    • Rodel 11.2

      Ffloyd
      Secretive visits by interesting USA high ranking persons usually happens a few weeks before elections in New Zealand.

      • alwyn 11.2.1

        Secretive? You have got to be dreaming.
        When you park a 737-300 (I think that is the model) on the runway at Rotorua and it is clearly identified as being in the USAF and has “United States Of America” emblazoned in letters about a metre high and about 20 metres long it is a bit of a stretch to say it is a “Secretive Visit”.
        Then you have the US Consulate’s Office tell the paper who is on board and that they are neither secretive nor high-ranking and you still rabbit on?
        You have got to be dreaming. As I said above. They are getting out of Washington because the climate there at this time of year is bloody terrible.

        • thatguynz 11.2.1.1

          Huh? Who in their right mind leaves Washington DC in the middle of summer with high 20 degree temperatures to come to NZ in the middle of winter for a jolly?

          • alwyn 11.2.1.1.1

            I refer you to a random extract from Trip Advisor.

            “. Re: DC in August?

            Downside: it can be hot, humid, and generally gross in terms of air quality, with afternoon thunderstorms or intense sun.
            Upside: all the locals leave town because it can be hot, humid, and generally gross, so traffic is a lot easier to deal with and crowds can be less.”

            These Congressmen are the locals who get out of town.
            I’ve been there a number of times in August and September.
            If it had been in the 20s and reasonable humidity it would have been fine.
            It wasn’t and the stay wasn’t pleasant.
            I always liked the comment that Washington and Jefferson must have been the greatest politicians the world has ever seen for being able to persuade the rest of the US Founding Fathers to put the Capital near their homes in Virginia.

            I think you have been lucky enough to avoid it.

    • tricledrown 11.3

      Celebrating 40 years since Watergate!
      Ffloyd.

  12. Cancerman 12

    Considering Key has already acknowledge he is in regular contact with Whale Oil so unless there is a particular smoking gun its not really much news.

    • Lanthanide 12.1

      Makes it quite hard to deny any particular claim then, doesn’t it?

      • Cancerman 12.1.1

        Yeah youre right it is hard to deny the claim but a particular claim would have to be controversial. Its like Key knew in New York about the “Liu attack” He knew that because Whale Oil told him. So if its just scandals like this its not going to be very damaging.If he has been providing Whale Oil info from spying then yes it will be massive but I will wait and see. I doubt this is going to be that big.

        • felix 12.1.1.1

          Hi Cancerman.

          Sorry but I don’t recall making you the arbiter of what will and won’t constitute “damage”.

          Most people don’t even know who Key’s mate Slater is.

          • weka 12.1.1.1.1

            Until now. That service alone is worth the book. But the SIS stuff takes it so much further.

    • miravox 12.2

      http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11308353

      It includes email correspondence between Whaleoil blogger Cameron Slater and Jason Ede, one of the Prime Minister John Key’s press secretaries, in relation to information found on Labour’s website.

      The National Party had denied any involvement, but Mr Hager’s book showed Mr Slater and Mr Ede had discussed the information and how to avoid being caught.

      Does this relate to the pinched party member details that included banking details? Schadenfruede in a big way if it does.

    • felix 12.3

      Oh look, Cancerman isn’t worried at all!

      • grumpystilskin 12.3.1

        Cancerman talking about a smoking gun?
        I’d say that’s worrying, but on a whole new level.

    • tricledrown 12.4

      using leaked SIS documents

      • One Anonymous Bloke 12.4.1

        Would that be an offence for which the maximum penalty exceeds two years imprisonment? 😈

    • tricledrown 12.5

      Crawl back under your rock crabyman Key has an attention deceitful disorder His days as a dirty dealing smiling assassin at the Merrill Lynch Mob haven’t changed now he is leader!
      Hager has caught him flat footed using the SIS for personal gain!

  13. swordfish 13

    I remember back in 08, Hager published a Sunday Star-Times article exposing Key’s secret use of Crosby/Textor (here…http://www.stuff.co.nz/510500/Nats-secret-advisers-accused-of-dirty-tricks-in-Aussie ). I’m very pleased it’s on this rather than the GSCB, potentially a much greater impact. From Brent Edwards on RNZ, one of the core claims seems to be (as Mickey has implied) that (via Key’s office) Slater used leaked SIS info to attack Goff during 2011 Election campaign.

  14. nadis 14

    If sis secret info had been leaked then not only would people be resigning but they’ll also go to jail. Here’s my prediction. It won’t happen because Hager will be “inferring” it and suggesting it. There won’t be any proof, but if there is I’d be the first to convict. If there was proof Hager would already have presented evidence to the polis.

    The book summarised: “politics is ditty. Smears happen. Here’s some dirt about the nats. No other party does it. Elect labor. I’m not partisan.”

    • thatguynz 14.1

      Clearly you missed one of Nicky Hager’s previous books (Seeds of Distrust) which almost took down Helen Clark then right? Try googling “corngate” and see how you get on..

  15. Wonderpup 15

    I cannot believe that the topic of this book will not have been known by senior government figures. Hager will be well and truly in the sights of the security services, and even with great countermeasures the general outline of what he was working on will have been known.

    Slater is out of the country, which gives him a nice buffer. Coincidence indeed.

    What goes round comes round. And in this case its a big bucket of slop.

    • CnrJoe 15.1

      What? No broadband in wherever or under whatever rotting log he’s slid under. How very McCully

      • Wonderpup 15.1.1

        Korea, apparently. Better broadband than we get here! But a nice distance to get responses filtered through ‘advisors’ without appearing slower: a good excuse for latency, one might say.

        • AmaKiwi 15.1.1.1

          Which Korea? North or South? The North could teach even the CIA a thing or two about “crowd control.”

  16. rob 16

    Looking forward to reading this, and seeing how damaging it is or isn’t/
    Watch Slater and Slater go into full discredit Hager mode, rather than actually addressing the content
    I highly recommending the comments on Slaters website re this issue, it shows how blind they are all are, with no ability to see anything apart from the sun shining like a partial eclipse out of someones arse.

  17. cricklewood 17

    Be really interesting how this plays out, will Slater dump any and all smears he has a response? Or did they know what was coming and have a strategy in place to deal with it?

    Either way this will open the floodgates on what will be the dirtiest campaign in NZ history as the polls shift and the right has nothing to lose.

  18. Tracey 18
    • During the 2011 election campaign Slater obtained a database of the Labour Party’s members, e-mails and donations, and gleefully attacked the party. What no one knew is that Key’s dirty tricks person, Ede, had helped throughout, including searching inside the Labour Party computers and helping Slater plan the subsequent attacks on Labour. Ede’s office was just two doors from John Key’s and presumably he was using his Ministerial Services computer (Chapter 2).
    • In the same election campaign, the prime minister’s office used its knowledge of secret SIS documents to tip off Slater and arrange an attack on the Labour leader (Chapter 3).
    • Ede drafted official information act requests for Slater to use in other attacks, for instance against Ministry of Foreign Affairs staff who were in conflict with the government (Chapter 3).
    • When the Labour Party leadership race was on last year and getting good publicity, Ede got National Party research staff to prepare an attack on David Cunliffe and other contenders’ policies that was published on David Farrar’s Kiwiblog website the following day (Chapter 9).
    • The more the National Government has used Slater, the closer that Key himself has got to the attack blogger. For instance, when most New Zealanders were appalled by Slater’s offensive comments about the West Coast man who died in the car crash, his closest associates rallied to support him. One of those who phoned him and commiserated at that time, according to Slater’s account of the conversation, was John Key (Chapter 12).

    Key and his colleagues have known their use of proxies and allies for attacks and dirty tricks was risky, but they believed they could keep it secret. It was only the unexpected leak that has brought the story to the light. The book is full of stories that might otherwise have remained secret.

    From the publisher

    • infused 18.1

      yeah, I call bullshit on that first part. The website was open, and the files in plain sight. He may have got some help, or someone directed him there.

      • weka 18.1.1

        You are missing the point. A senior official of the govt of the day, attached to the PM’s office, used parliamentary resources and presumably salaried time to damage an opposition political party in a covert way. Do you really approve of this?

    • Michael 18.2

      If this stuff is true, Key must go to prison, along with his flunkies.

    • PJ 18.3

      Link? I’d like to link to this, and spread it far and wide…

  19. wyndham 19

    These revelations now and then Dotcoms on July 15th. Presumably the latter will be about the GCSB kerfuffle.

    A classic display of chickens and roosts.

    However be prepared for the bite back. That’s what cornered rats do.

    • Clemgeopin 19.1

      “Dotcoms on July 15th’

      That would be on Sept 15.
      The big bite will be on Sept 20.

  20. RedLogix 20

    The thing to remember is that Hagar is pretty scrupulous about only publishing information he has solid evidence for.

    Of course the rest of us could deduce all this was true from the circumstantial evidence and consistent behavior of the people involved over many years.

    I’ve suggested on a few occasions that at least some of John Key’s ‘luck’ could be best explained by him misusing SIS and GCSB sourced information for political purposes.

    I’m not in a position to read Hagar’s book anytime soon – but if as Mickey says – it has proof that Key has done this, to any extent whatsoever, then he must resign.

    And while Key might be able to sneeringly dismiss this call from the left – it will be the Establishment itself which will ultimately rebel at this. They will fully understand the implications to themselves.

    • weka 20.1

      “it will be the Establishment itself which will ultimately rebel at this. They will fully understand the implications to themselves.”

      Maybe, but hasn’t the establishment been turning a blind eye to this shit for 6 years now?

      • hoom 20.1.1

        The source is a beautiful irony.

        Personally I’m not surprised at all, the Smiling Assassin, Hollow Man persona is there & pretty obvious for those who care to open their eyes.

        Actual use of stuff like SIS info if proven should mean the end of his time in Parliament.

        Am curious about the implications for Nat internal factions?

        Edit: Hmm, did not mean to be in this reply section 😮

        • Draco T Bastard 20.1.1.1

          Actual use of stuff like SIS info if proven should mean the end of his time in Parliament.

          And the beginning of his very, very long time in prison.

  21. Hayden 21

    Just walked past Unity Books, still big queues at the registers.

  22. Dan1 22

    I can’t believe TV3’s Paddy Gower deeming Hager’s revelations of the Whaleoil-Ede-Key trifecta is not as damaging as the Snowden leaks might have been. The lies and slime that Key has made out he is not involved in will resonate amongst many Nats who expect some political skulduggery but not to the pits that Whaleoil and Key have descended.
    Team Key have just been handed the equivalent of Don Brash getting into the dodgem as well as the Brethren scandal.
    Whaleoil/ Ede / key are the real Team Key.

    Campbell will be interesting tonight.

    • Anne 22.1

      Yes, Corin Dann underscored the impact on TV1 tonight. They didn’t even report the event until shortly before the sports news which is usually reserved for the dross.

      Evidence of what we all know – TVNZ live in John Key’s pocket!

    • infused 22.2

      I think everyone was expecting something more. After John Campbells interview, I was just thinking, wtf. Hager was struggling to sell that at all. John Campbell was actually half decent for once.

      • weka 22.2.1

        Bingo! “everyone knew this already”

      • karol 22.2.2

        Campbell clearly stated it was known by many that Slater is a nasty person.

        hager answered well.

        This is not good for Slater, his collaborators, thePM’s office, the Nats, and ultimately Key in the court of public opinion.

        But, keep on trying to hold that (no smoking gun in Key’s hand) straw. Then there’s the SIS bit.

  23. ianmac 23

    Rumours that the Beehive will be dropping a lot of “squirrels” except I don’t know what squirrels are.

    • wonderpup 23.1

      I assume they are things that you can let out of a bag to distract everyone. You know: like a … HOLD ON! SQUIRREL! < runs off into the bush >

  24. vto 24

    Slater is a fat slug unwelcome most everywhere.

    What is it like to always have to look over your shoulder cuntface? Ask me, coward boy, I can tell you.

  25. weka 25

    This is good, I’d forgotten what had triggered that hack.

    Mr Hager described Mr Slater as an “obnoxious” blogger whose attacks on a young man killed in a car crash earlier this year had led to hackers attacking the Whaleoil website.

    He said the attack knocked out the Whaleoil site for a number of days during which time a hacker had come away with “thousands and thousands” of documents.

    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11308353

    • infused 25.1

      I doubt that very much to be honest. A dos attack doesn’t give you access to someones server.

      • weka 25.1.1

        Others beg to differ. Read the comments,

        http://publicaddress.net/hardnews/dirty-politics/

        • weka 25.1.1.1

          Oh, and Bingo! “But how did he get those documents?”

        • infused 25.1.1.2

          Yeah, I read the comments. More bullshit. This is my domain.

          There was no email stored there, I only had to look up his MX records to see that.

          set q=mx
          whaleoil.co.nz
          Server: UnKnown
          Address: 192.168.2.1

          Non-authoritative answer:
          whaleoil.co.nz MX preference = 0, mail exchanger = aspmx.l.google.com
          whaleoil.co.nz MX preference = 10, mail exchanger = alt1.aspmx.l.google.com
          whaleoil.co.nz MX preference = 10, mail exchanger = alt2.aspmx.l.google.com
          whaleoil.co.nz MX preference = 20, mail exchanger = aspmx2.googlemail.com
          whaleoil.co.nz MX preference = 20, mail exchanger = aspmx3.googlemail.com
          whaleoil.co.nz MX preference = 20, mail exchanger = aspmx4.googlemail.com

          whaleoil.co.nz nameserver = art.ns.cloudflare.com
          whaleoil.co.nz nameserver = pat.ns.cloudflare.com
          art.ns.cloudflare.com internet address = 173.245.59.102
          pat.ns.cloudflare.com internet address = 173.245.58.139

          I don’t doubt his shit was stolen, but it wasn’t from his server.

      • lprent 25.1.2

        We only have Slater saying it was a denial of service attack.

        He routinely lies about most things. Why should he have have told the truth about that?

        I found it puzzling at the time that the denial of service attack wasn’t showing up in the travel time of pings to his URI. I suspect that he was simply lying about whatever the problem was.

        By the sounds of what Hager says about where he got the emails from, it seems just as likely that some insider on the Whaleoil site trashed the system after removing the files that they wanted.

        • infused 25.1.2.1

          If you did a tracert at the time, you’d have seen the final routes were unreachable and ping times in the thousands.

          Your probably thinking why I know all this. At the time, I was interested in why his cloudflare protection wasn’t working. He introduced it as this dos attack was happening. So I started to snoop around to see exactly how his infrastructure was configured.

          • lprent 25.1.2.1.1

            Did a traceroute and pings after it’d disappeared. They weren’t much higher than 100ms round trip.

            Of course I’m probably using different routings than you are. However it did the same from NZ, US, and NZ servers with the expected times. That was later in the day, after it had disappeared.

            Mind you his site is still embarrassingly badly protected against the malicious. I ran a wget to pick up some old posts for archiving a few months (embarrassing posts tend to disappear from his site after a while). It let me run them the gets overlapping and without limits.

            Even with the offloading the comments to Disqus reducing the database and layout processing, not constraining the number of post read connections from a single IP is a hell of vulnerability.

            I suspect that they haven’t figured out how to use cloudflare that well yet.

            I suspect that if I had ever felt the urge to be nasty then his site would be toast. You don’t need a DDOS to do it. A simple DOS would be sufficient.

            • infused 25.1.2.1.1.1

              It’s just run on a shitty server with no limits in place.

              dos attack is old news. I can rent 10gbps for a few hours @ $50.

    • mark Ras 25.2

      They used to hang people for TREASON.I strongly object to my taxes being used to pay for such undemocratic political influence.Key must resign. STOP A mate voting National,Bloody Legend!!!!

  26. weka 26

    Hey, we can play National Party Spin Bingo. I think the board might be just about full already though.

    https://twitter.com/MrJonathanKing/status/499440853857738752/photo/1

    [lprent: I saw that on Dimpost earlier. ]

  27. Rosie 27

    Haven’t stopped grinning since the news of “Dirty Politics” broke. Sit back and watch all hell break loose. Finally nailed the bastards after all this time. There ain’t nothing you can do it about RWNJ’s, there’s no excuses now.

    And aha! Even here in Ohariu we have a tabbaco co donations Dunne story in the book, which of course, could be put to good use by PPO in an effort to oust Dunne 😀

    Cant WAIT to get my hands on a copy.

    • weka 27.1

      Have fun with that Rosie!

      • Rosie 27.1.1

        Oh, we will 😀 You can be sure of that.

        How convenient that a candidates meeting is scheduled for 1st September in Johnsonville, the first of 6 for the area………….That just for starters. We will have a lot more to discuss in our next planning meeting!

        Love the chart you posted weka. RWNJ’s are so predictable you can pre empt their arguments.

  28. ropata 28

    Website for the book : http://dirtypoliticsnz.com/

    Just the author’s precis of the contents is shocking enough… I shudder to think what other filthy tricks Hager has uncovered.

    Quote:

    The chapters that follow will describe the origins and then the many facets of the covert attack machine run by the National Party and its allies. They include persistent attacks on Labour Party politicians, attacks that consciously set out to distract, wear down or demoralise them rather than trying to debate issues or win a political argument; orchestrated attacks on potential coalition partners; repeated searches for sexual scandal and other ‘dirt’ to use for political purposes; and supposedly independent ‘issue’ campaigns actually run by National Party figures to advance the party’s interests. Within the party there was concerted manipulation of National’s candidate selection processes.

    The attacks are heightened by the routine use of extreme and mocking language. Environmentalists are green Taliban. Almost everyone on the left of politics is a liar and a hypocrite. An environment is created and encouraged where anonymous commenters on blogs and news sites join in the attacks, competing with each other in abuse and ugly personal insults. It is more like political warfare than a debate of ideas and beliefs.

    The book begins by setting the scene and introducing the bloggers who became a political force only after the period covered by The Hollow Men. Then the serious material begins: the continuous close ties between the prime minister’s office and the attack dogs, the role of Judith Collins and the inside story of the political issues and campaigns that they manipulated – layer upon layer of hidden activities and dirty politics.

    • karol 28.1

      Oh, interesting, thanks, weka.

      So I will remember that the next time some commenter tries to use the “Green Taliban” line…. and commenters using abuse here – though not “anonymous” but pseudononymous.

    • karol 28.2

      And some other interesting things in the preface. This pretty much mirrors what lynn says of his experience of being attacked by Slater via his employer.

      n January of the following year I travelled to Dunedin for a conference, where I met a series of people who raised their concern about Cameron Slater, the Whale Oil blogger and son of a former National Party president. One woman who had left a critical comment on the Whale Oil blog site had then faced threatening approaches to her employer about why she had made the comment from her work computer. A university academic who spoke on a panel with a visiting left-leaning MP was sent a series of heavy e-mails and had messages left on his phone advising him not to associate with the politician. He believed the messages led back to Slater.

      Also, there’s an anecdotal report of a news organisation being afraid to look to closely at Slater’s activities, because they were afraid they’d come under attack from him/them.

      Hager also used some corroborating evidence from Nat Party sources.

      Also, the preface says key has never been close to Slater, but he has been very friendly with DPF. however, he has got closer to Slater over the last year. Hager mentions the various factions in the Nats, with Slater begin aligned more to some than others, but how, sometimes they come together to smear their common opponents.

  29. Clemgeopin 29

    REMEMBER THIS DATE :

    Wednesday, 13 August 2014.

    The day that National’s dirty tricks brigade is exposed to the nation. The Key’s election defeat is done and dusted now. A new chapter of our political history has begun.

    Key and Slater : You were the weakest link!

    Good bye, to the Nasty National government!
    Welcome, to the caring, decent, positive Labour led Government!
    Bring it on!

    Can’t wait for 20 Sept 2014.

    • AmaKiwi 29.1

      Key’s defeat is NOT done and dusted unless you and I make sure everyone knows.

      Every time you check out at a store, encounter a waiter/waitress, see a friend, etc., ask them, “Did you see those horrible revelations about Key . . . ”

      We have to spread the word to those who rarely pay attention to such matters. You and I have to make it the talk of the country.

      • weka 29.1.1

        +1

        “Did you see those horrible revelations about Key . . . ”

        “Are you registered to vote/going to vote?”

        “We can change things…”

  30. alwyn 30

    Perhaps someone who has seen the various claims on TV, as I assume no one has had time to read the book yet, can tell me whether the following things are claimed by Mr Hager.

    Hager received a lot of material from an unidentified source on a USB stick.
    He only had access to this material and has no way of knowing whether it was really from Slater’s system and has not been altered in any way.
    He admits that the material is stolen.
    He opposes anyone hacking into peoples emails or computers, except when it is being given to him and it is about someone he dislikes.
    He will not release the original material or assist in identifying who hacked Slater’s system.
    We have no way of knowing whether Hager himself edited, added to or deleted material from the data he claims to have received.

    Hmm. In spite of this we still plan to hang Key?

    • karol 30.1

      The cat is out of the bag. let’s see what Key et al deny, and what actual evidence is available.

    • weka 30.2

      I’ve just read the preface to the book at http://dirtypoliticsnz.com/

      “Hager received a lot of material from an unidentified source on a USB stick.”

      Yes.

      “He only had access to this material and has no way of knowing whether it was really from Slater’s system and has not been altered in any way.”

      Some of the material was confirmed by other sources. Hager says the material ‘appears’ to be from the attack on Slater’s site. The second and third parts of your statement require technical expertise, but I suspect that faking thousands of emails and FB conversations is too big a task for Hager. Possible I suppose, but you’d really have to have some kind of evidence if you want to go down that track.

      “He admits that the material is stolen.”

      Not in the preface. He says he has no knowledge of how the material was obtained. His statement on the using of leaked emails and other information,

      Important issues surround the use of leaked communications. First, everyone has the right to keep their communications private and there must be a very high public interest to justify publishing them. In this case, I believe most readers will agree that the materials raise very serious matters of political accountability, relating directly to the prime minister and other senior government ministers. They show a continuous collaboration between the prime minister’s office, bloggers and sympathetic media to arrange attacks on National’s opponents and to influence elections. This differs from the story and face presented by the National Party to the public and helps to explain much about what is wrong with contemporary politics.

      On the other hand, there was also a considerable amount of very personal information about relationships and other subjects, where the right to privacy outweighs any public interest. This material has not been included in the book and will not be passed to others. The fact that Slater and his associates have made a career of exposing the very private details of other people’s lives does not make it right to do that to them.

      “He opposes anyone hacking into peoples emails or computers, except when it is being given to him and it is about someone he dislikes.”

      🙄 See above.

      “He will not release the original material or assist in identifying who hacked Slater’s system.”

      I haven’t seen anything on that, care to back it up?

      “We have no way of knowing whether Hager himself edited, added to or deleted material from the data he claims to have received.”

      Might be a good idea to wait and see the actual book, alwyn, and see how Hager presents and cites the material. You jumping the gun like this makes you look like your lines are being fed a tad early. Good try though.

      [lprent: Thanks. Added a teaser from the preface as a post. ]

      • alwyn 30.2.1

        Thank you Weka.
        You have clarified some of the points.
        As I said I haven’t seen anything from the TV or the book so I couldn’t really work out what he was proposing.
        I wasn’t meaning to imply that he had made it all up. What I was curious about was whether the people who supplied him with the stolen material could have altered it or changed parts of it before passing it on. Even a few words or a few added items could totally change the meaning of things.
        I did see Hager on the late news. I found it fascinating that he could complain about Slater accessing the, apparently, unprotected Labour Party website and use that to justify his using what he said was stolen (hacked) material. He really did a lot of hopping around with his statements though.

        • weka 30.2.1.1

          The problem wasn’t with Slater AND John Key’s senior staffer accessing the Labour website, it’s what they did with the information they accessed. I find it interesting that so many right wingers don’t understand the difference between that, and a journalist using leaked material for the public good.

          btw, the thread you are commenting on is under a post that has the information about Hager in it. Didn’t read the post?

    • Draco T Bastard 30.3

      He admits that the material is stolen.

      Well, that just proves its authenticity.

      He will not release the original material or assist in identifying who hacked Slater’s system.

      He will, of course, release some of the content – it comes with the book and I suspect more will be forthcoming. Some won’t be as it’s highly personal (and I really hope that he’s contacting those people and pointing them in the direction of a good lawyer and a class action.)

      Journalists sources are sacrosanct.

    • Pascals bookie 30.4

      Interesting questions al, but at the end of the day, Hager isn’t up for election.

      Key is responsible for the SIS and GCSB.

      So, kind of different really.

    • Clemgeopin 30.5

      I think most people will believe Hager any day over Key or Slater, fortunately for us or unfortunately for you. Key and National are finished for this election. Expect 40% or less support for the Nats now.

    • tricledrown 30.6

      Not a bad. Idea alwynger how much are you getting paid

  31. outofbed 31

    Just got home with a copy it was an interesting night
    Lots of press and packed out

  32. feijoa 32

    I can see why Labour chose vote Positive as their slogan
    I hope NZers are ready for an honest transparent democratic government
    This looks like the gamechanger

  33. fisiani 33

    So the conspiracy theorist Hagar rushes out a pre-election book that uses stolen emails that apparently shows the author of the most popular political blog gets tip offs from a wide range of people. So what???? Loads of unfounded allegations. Please make this a campaign.

  34. Mike the Savage One 34

    ‘Dirty Politics’, how interesting, this can only be the tip of the iceberg though, as there will surely be much more that has not been accessed and published.

    • ropata 34.1

      Seems like Hager’s book covers a hell of a lot of dirty dealings against political opponents… but I have no doubt that the Key government had all sorts of other grubby back room deals going on.

      Just carrying on like a shonkey investment banker…

  35. Clemgeopin 35

    The day I lost even a modicum of respect for John Key was the day he proudly announced to the press that he keeps all the dirty information about his opponents in the top draw in his office for later use! What a disgrace for a PM of a county to indulge in such low despicable nasty behaviour!

  36. karol 36

    Oh dear. How will this impact a possibility of NZ First supporting a Key government?

    NZ First Press Release.

    Author Nicky Hager’s book is a most disappointing expose that reveals a Nixonian element arising in New Zealand politics, says New Zealand First.

    “In short, taxpayers resources have been used both publicly and privately to attack all manner of public figures with the objective of gaining political advantage,” says Leader Rt Hon Winston Peters.

    “Of course there will be denials but this story is about the communications between the accused and they cannot deny it.

    “This is the story of what the accused did in thousands of emails showing their behaviour.

    “Sadly for the Prime Minister it goes to his office in the same way it went to Nixon’s office during the Watergate scandal.

    “New Zealanders who for so long did not believe, or did not want to believe, that we would politically behave this way, like the release of the emails behind the book “The Hollow Men”, now have to admit that this is the political environment which now prevails.

    “The basis is the emails of the accused and frankly it is senseless for them to try to deny it.

    “This is a very dark day in New Zealand politics,” says Mr Peters.

    • AmaKiwi 36.1

      “Watergate” is a brilliant reminder by Winston.

      Nothing so represents political corruption like Watergate.

      Tell your friends, “This is New Zealand’s Watergate” (with the obvious inference that Key must resign).

      • Draco T Bastard 36.1.1

        It’s the first time in a long time that the term Watergate has been applied correctly.

        And, yes, Key must resign forthwith. No waiting around for the election and the incoming government (not this corrupt one) must start a full inquiry as to the allegations about the PMs office misuse of our intelligence services and whatever else the book contains.

    • weka 36.2

      As soon as I heard Hager say that Peters was one of the targets of Slater/Ede, I thought bugger, that’s NZF above 5%.

      If Key goes, Peters would be quite capable of forming a coalition with National. Hell, even if Key stays, I wouldn’t trust Peters any more than I did before, which is not at all. He’ll do what he wants at the time.

    • Weepus beard 36.3

      Wow, that is intense. Tomorrow is going to be massive.

      • karol 36.3.1

        I guess tomorrow the rightees, the astroturfers, will be out in force, having received their instructions and spin lines.

  37. karol 37

    This quote, allegedly by Slater, from the book – was mentioned on Campbell Live tonight, too.

    Tweet with quote. – as I recall after the Feb 11 quake:

    What I can’t believe … is how we have to bail out those useless pricks in the Sth island again … Those suburbs are hard core Labour … so the houses are gone and the scum are gone too

    Nice!

    • ropata 37.1

      I met Slater (at the first and only blogger’s drinks I plan to attend) and when I mentioned my former home town, his exact words: “fuck Christchurch”. Couldn’t believe my ears. What a despicable human being. Had to avoid him from then on… maybe I should have taken more forceful action

      (surprisingly short too.. barely scrapes over 5’4″ I reckon… don’t know how he could ever intimidate anyone as a debt collector)

      Those were the same blogger’s drinks that led to one person stalking one of the M&M bloggers, sparking legal action and the demise of that blog. I also met one of WO’s female flunkies who later got into a doomed relationship with Michael Lhaws… all in all a disastrous event

    • the pigman 37.2

      Ladies and gentlemen, the Canon Media Awards NZ’s Best Blogger!

  38. Stuart Munro 38

    Nicky Hager’s site is generous in its revelations. But the implications of his not releasing the significant volume of damaging personal information is not just good civil policy – it reminds the unscrupulous diry tricks folk on the right not to overreach. I hope he has good security: Key will clearly stop at nothing.

  39. karol 39

    So Helen Kelly must have a copy of the book. She has just tweeted:

    OMG @maritimeunion the whaleoil links with Port of Auckland exposed. The board and snr mgmt cant possibly stay Mr Mayor #lies #whosePort?

    • felix 39.1

      Slater always denied working for the POA.

      As Nixon discovered, it’s the lie that gets you.

      • karol 39.1.1

        Russel Norman appears to be reading the book too.

        Tweet from Norman.

        The stuff about Ports of Auckland is dynamite. If the collusion between PoA and Slater is right, the mgt should be sacked. #DirtyPolitics

        Another Norman Tweet:

        Evidence of Odgers asking Farrar, Slater, Hooten to publish Hager address in hope it wd endanger his safety is disturbing #DirtyPolitics

  40. karol 40

    Dear gods!
    Just reading Danyl Mclaughlan’s summary of the book.

    Bye bye Judith!

    Slater tries to get dirt on people via prostitutes.

    He tried to get dirt on Duncan Garner! Will the worm turn?

  41. Murray Olsen 41

    This book should be enough to have Key and Whalespew up on charges. Given that both are obvious flight risks, they should be denied bail. They could share a cell and tell each other those Bubba jokes that the scum on his blog find so funny.

    I really do hope that this is the end of Key, and a few others. It’s a real test of the strength of our democratic institutions and I have an ominous dread that they won’t be up to it. How we handle this will say far more about how mature we are as a nation than any number of deaths in an episode of imperial rock climbing on a far away peninsula.

    Oh, and FJK.

  42. dave 42

    fall out is going to ripple protest outside keys house this Saturday at 2 pm there should be no room for this corruption in new Zealand key must resign

    • disturbed 42.1

      Now Electoral Commission go check the book out for wrongful electionerring by NatZ please?

      And can we have the excellent song/video Planet Key back on MSM please?

      Maybe we can add some rope with a neck loop around a branch on a tree inserted in that paddock and all opposition targeted MP;s standing around like Hang em high?

  43. CnrJoe 43

    CANON Media Award Winning Blogger Cameron WhaleOil Slater, I can’t help myself, my new expletives

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  • Lester's Prescription – Positive Bleeding.

    I live my life (woo-ooh-ooh)With no control in my destinyYea-yeah, yea-yeah (woo-ooh-ooh)I can bleed when I want to bleedSo come on, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)You can bleed when you want to bleedYea-yeah, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)Everybody bleed when they want to bleedCome on and bleedGovernments face tough challenges. Selling unpopular decisions to ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago
  • Casey Costello gaslights Labour in the House

    Please note:To skip directly to the- parliamentary footage in the video, scroll to 1:21 To skip to audio please click on the headphone icon on the left hand side of the screenThis video / audio section is under development. ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    3 days ago
  • Why is the Texas grid in such bad shape?

    This is a re-post from the Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler Headline from 2021 The Texas grid, run by ERCOT, has had a rough few years. In 2021, winter storm Uri blacked out much of the state for several days. About a week ago, Hurricane Beryl knocked out ...
    3 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on a textbook case of spending waste by the Luxon government

    Given the crackdown on wasteful government spending, it behooves me to point to a high profile example of spending by the Luxon government that looks like a big, fat waste of time and money. I’m talking about the deployment of NZDF personnel to support the US-led coalition in the Red ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    3 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Wednesday, July 24

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:40 am on Wednesday, July 24 are:Deep Dive: Chipping away at the housing crisis, including my comments RNZ/Newsroom’s The DetailNews: Government softens on asset sales, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • LXR Takaanini

    As I reported about the city centre, Auckland’s rail network is also going through a difficult and disruptive period which is rapidly approaching a culmination, this will result in a significant upgrade to the whole network. Hallelujah. Also like the city centre this is an upgrade predicated on the City ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    3 days ago
  • Four kilograms of pain

    Today, a 4 kilogram report will be delivered to Parliament. We know this is what the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care weighs, because our Prime Minister told us so.Some reporter had blindsided him by asking a question about something done by ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Wednesday, July 24

    TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Wednesday, July 24, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Beehive: Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced plans to use PPPs to fund, build and run a four-lane expressway between Auckland ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • Luxon gets caught out

    NewstalkZB host Mike Hosking, who can usually be relied on to give Prime Minister Christopher Luxon an easy run, did not do so yesterday when he interviewed him about the HealthNZ deficit. Luxon is trying to use a deficit reported last year by HealthNZ as yet another example of the ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    3 days ago
  • A worrying sign

    Back in January a StatsNZ employee gave a speech at Rātana on behalf of tangata whenua in which he insulted and criticised the government. The speech clearly violated the principle of a neutral public service, and StatsNZ started an investigation. Part of that was getting an external consultant to examine ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Are we fine with 47.9% home-ownership by 2048?

    Renting for life: Shared ownership initiatives are unlikely to slow the slide in home ownership by much. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:A Deloitte report for Westpac has projected Aotearoa’s home-ownership rate will ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Let's Win This

    You're broken down and tiredOf living life on a merry go roundAnd you can't find the fighterBut I see it in you so we gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsWe gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsAnd I'll rise upI'll rise like the dayI'll rise upI'll rise unafraidI'll rise upAnd I'll ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • Waimahara: The Singing Spirit of Water

    There’s been a change in Myers Park. Down the steps from St. Kevin’s Arcade, past the grassy slopes, the children’s playground, the benches and that goat statue, there has been a transformation. The underpass for Mayoral Drive has gone from a barren, grey, concrete tunnel, to a place that thrums ...
    Greater AucklandBy Connor Sharp
    4 days ago
  • A major milestone: Global climate pollution may have just peaked

    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Global society may have finally slammed on the brakes for climate-warming pollution released by human fossil fuel combustion. According to the Carbon Monitor Project, the total global climate pollution released between February and May 2024 declined slightly from the amount released during the same ...
    4 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Tuesday, July 23

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Tuesday, July 23 are:Deep Dive: Penlink: where tolling rhetoric meets reality BusinessDesk-$$$’s Oliver LewisScoop: Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Tuesday, July 23

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Tuesday, July 23, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Health: Shane Reti announced the Board of Te Whatu Ora- Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • HealthNZ and Luxon at cross purposes over budget blowout

    Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the “botched merger” of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago
  • 2500-3000 more healthcare staff expected to be fired, as Shane Reti blames Labour for a budget defic...

    Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    4 days ago
  • Might Kamala Harris be about to get a 'stardust' moment like Jacinda Ardern?

    As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic party’s primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...
    PunditBy Tim Watkin
    5 days ago
  • Solutions Interview: Steven Hail on MMT & ecological economics

    TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...
    The KakaBy Steven Hail
    5 days ago
  • Reported back

    The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Vandrad the Viking, Christopher Coombes, and Literary Archaeology

    Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell On The Biden Withdrawal

    History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    5 days ago
  • Joe Biden's withdrawal puts the spotlight back on Kamala and the USA's complicated relatio...

    This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    5 days ago
  • Why we have to challenge our national fiscal assumptions

    A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Existential Crisis and Damaged Brains

    What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • A speed limit is not a target, and yet…

    This is a guest post from longtime supporter Mr Plod, whose previous contributions include a proposal that Hamilton become New Zealand’s capital city, and that we should switch which side of the road we drive on. A recent Newsroom article, “Back to school for the Govt’s new speed limit policy“, ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    5 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Monday, July 22

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Monday, July 22

    TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #29

    A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
    6 days ago
  • I'd like to share what I did this weekend

    This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    6 days ago
  • For the children – Why mere sentiment can be a misleading force in our lives, and lead to unex...

    National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Order image, ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    6 days ago
  • A friend in uncertain times

    Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago
  • The Chaotic World of Male Diet Influencers

    Hi,We’ll get to the horrific world of male diet influencers (AKA Beefy Boys) shortly, but first you will be glad to know that since I sent out the Webworm explaining why the assassination attempt on Donald Trump was not a false flag operation, I’ve heard from a load of people ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • It's Starting To Look A Lot Like… Y2K

    Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • Bernard’s Saturday Soliloquy for the week to July 20

    Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Pharmac Director, Climate Change Commissioner, Health NZ Directors – The latest to quit this m...

    Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    1 week ago
  • Flooding Housing Policy

    The Minister of Housing’s ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Minister’s metaphor of ‘flooding the market’ I do not see how the ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    1 week ago
  • A Voyage Among the Vandals: Accepted (Again!)

    As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā's Chorus for Friday, July 19

    An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Friday, July 19

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Weekly Roundup 19-July-2024

    Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    1 week ago
  • Weekly Climate Wrap: A market-led plan for failure

    TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Tobacco First

    Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • Trump’s Adopted Son.

    Waiting In The Wings: For truly, if Trump is America’s un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is America’s Octavian, the Republic’s youthful undertaker – and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMP’S SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the “illiberal” prime ...
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Friday, July 19

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSA announced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago

  • Joint statement from the Prime Ministers of Canada, Australia and New Zealand

    Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue.  We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    17 hours ago
  • AG reminds institutions of legal obligations

    Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. “The Abuse in Care Inquiry’s report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faith‑based institutions were ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    20 hours ago
  • More young people learning about digital safety

    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government’s online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views.  “It is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    21 hours ago
  • Speech to the Conference for General Practice 2024

    Tēnā tātou katoa,  Ngā mihi te rangi, ngā mihi te whenua, ngā mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    23 hours ago
  • Employers and payroll providers ready for tax changes

    New Zealand’s payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts.  “The Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Experimental vineyard futureproofs wine industry

    An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre – Te Pokapū Wāina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. “The research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Funding confirmed for regions affected by North Island Weather Events

    The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Regions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Indonesian Foreign Minister to visit

    Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced.   “Indonesia is important to New Zealand’s security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,” says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Strengthening partnership with Ngāti Maniapoto

    He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kōrero, he kōrero, he kōrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of Ngāti Maniapoto, Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka says. “My thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust – Ngāti Maniapoto for bringing their important kōrero to a ministerial ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Transport Minister thanks outgoing CAA Chair

    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.“I have received Ms Fredric’s resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,” Mr Brown says.“On behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Test for Customary Marine Title being restored

    The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliament’s test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says.  “Section 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Opposition united in bad faith over ECE sector review

    Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are ‘dangerous changes’ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet.  “Issues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Kiwis having their say on first regulatory review

    After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks.  “The level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations I’ve been ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Government upgrading Lower North Island commuter rail

    The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Government moves to ensure flood protection for Wairoa

    Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawke’s Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • PM speech to Parliament – Royal Commission of Inquiry’s Report into Abuse in Care

    Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. It’s the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care.  At the heart of this report are the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Government acknowledges torture at Lake Alice

    For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care “Whanaketia – through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,” was tabled in Parliament ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Government acknowledges courageous abuse survivors

    The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry “Whanaketia – through ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Half a million people use tax calculator

    With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis.  “Tax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Paid Parental Leave improvements pass first reading

    Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. “It includes a change ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Rebuilding the economy through better regulation

    Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • ‘Open banking’ and ‘open electricity’ on the way

    New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Competitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Charity lotteries to be permitted to operate online

    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. “Under current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Accelerating Northland Expressway

    The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and Whangārei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “For too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Sir Don to travel to Viet Nam as special envoy

    Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced.    “It is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,” Mr ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Grant Illingworth KC appointed as transitional Commissioner to Royal Commission

    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024.  “I am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • NZ to advance relationships with ASEAN partners

    Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane.    “ASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Mr Peters says.   “This will be our third visit to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Backing mental health services on the West Coast

    Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “This $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,” Mr Doocey says. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • NZ support for sustainable Pacific fisheries

    New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. “This support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealand’s commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Students’ needs at centre of new charter school adjustments

    Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. “Cabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Commissioner replaces Health NZ Board

    In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today.  “The previous government’s botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Minister to speak at Australian Space Forum

    Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum.  While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation.  “New Zealand has a thriving space ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
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  • Climate Change Minister to attend climate action meeting in China

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  • Oceans and Fisheries Minister to Solomons

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  • Update on global IT outage

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    New Zealand and Japan will continue to step up their shared engagement with the Pacific, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says.    “New Zealand and Japan have a strong, shared interest in a free, open and stable Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says.    “We are pleased to be finding more ways ...
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  • New infrastructure energises BOP forestry towns

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