John Key has reinvented politics for New Zealand – winning politics in New Zealand now has nothing to do with policy, leadership, or content of any kind. Politics is entertainment. A few jokes, a bit of teasing, lots of banter, golf, and holidays with a bit of work on the side.
It’s a spectacular success. No one has gotten near it.
It’s where the people are. You go to them, no more expecting them to come to you and be attracted to your message in your terms.
“A few jokes, a bit of teasing, lots of banter, golf, and holidays with a bit of work on the side.’….so its a B.O.D. then….no wonder he’s right at home
Still to arrive despite a Nobel Peace Prize for the people who held the country together.
These issues are bread and butter for the internationalist Left. Surely this is a textbook case for assistance to build democracy and the administrative leadership the country needs.
I can’t understand why the military and its weapons is considered the best use of the Western nations’ funds to fight Daesh.
Military Industrial Complex and there is money in war. Daesh gets its weapons from someone, like the US, Germany, France, England, Sweden, Russia, China and any other manufacturer of killing machines that I may have forgotten. People? ha collateral damage and we have got seven billion and counting of them, so a few hundred thousands here and there missing are nothing but a trickle down in an ocean.
Interesting breakdown of those opposing the TPPA from political parties ( from TPPA News Bulletin #80 , 17 December 2015)
….Shows that supporters of NZF and Winston Peters are MOST opposed to the TPPA…87%
“Kiwis against the TPPA
In successive polls, Kiwis have rejected the TPPA. A stunning TV3 Reid Research poll revealed that a majority of NZ voters reject the TPPA. The coverage said that 52% rejected the TPPA (some people didn’t have an opinion, and the rejection was over 60% of those who expressed an opinion). 73% of Labour supporters were against it (is Andrew Little listening?), 84% Greens and 87% NZ First. Even 23% of National
Party supporters were against the TPPA. That’s an amazing result especially as it came after a month of media carrying the government’s PR and spin while we couldn’t see the final text. Then last week, 97.5% voted no to TPPA in an online referendum run by the people’s ‘Real Choice’ ”
(which gives lie to the constant criticism here by some, especially professed Greens, that Winston Peters and NZF are right wing and not to be trusted….more anti TPPA from NZF supporters than than the Greens …take note !)
Current polling suggests that even if Winston goes into coalition Labour/Greens it still won’t be enough and do you really think (and be honest here) that Winston wants to play second fiddle to the Greens or anyone?
PR, if Winston wants to be in coalition/supply agreement or whatever on the government side, he will be playing second fiddle to whomsoever, for he’s not going to be the major partner with the most seats.
And an elvish Christmas to you, too. I hope you get a good end bonus.
Like he did with Jim Bolger before the uncooperative Jenny Shipley dropped Bolger and then Peters. Or the second fiddle that he played for Helen Clark?
I think that you misunderstand the concept of cooperation in politics.
I think you merely prove PRs main points.
Winston is, as PR says, “particularly fond of the baubles of office” and doesn’t like having to “play second fiddle to the Greens or anyone”.
Do you think that Little would, if it came down to it, include Winston in his Government and exclude the Greens if that was one of Winston’s demands?
Do you think that the Green Party would go along with it, as they had to do when Helen Clark excluded them from being part of her Government?
Would a Labour-led Government find that titles were a good idea if Winston demanded a knighthood as part of his price?
Are you happy that these would merely be the trifles of co-operation in Government?
Sigh – read the seat numbers in 2005. I really wish that you mythmaker idiots would do some parliamentary maths.
50 Labour Party
48 National Party
07 New Zealand First Party
06 Green Party
04 Mâori Party
03 United Future New Zealand
02 ACT New Zealand
01 Jim Anderton’s Progressive
Jim Anderton was a known partner and trusted by Labour.
The Maori party had essentially declared war on Labour so they were out of the mix.
UF were a known and trustworthy commodity in government.
The Greens and NZ First were both ‘unknown’ to Labour as to how well they’d work in government. But NZF had people who’d been in government before. The Greens did not.
Lab went for the mix with the least political risk for them as a government. If the Greens had gotten one more, then they would have been a contender. But that would have required that Peter Dunne preferred them over NZF which he didn’t.
Now look at 2014
60 National Party
32 Labour Party
14 Green Party
11 New Zealand First Party
02 Māori Party
01 ACT New Zealand
01 United Future
Assume National got a five less seats and Labour got a five more.
The Maori party appears to be just as hostile as they were back in 2005, but now because they are heavily in the pockets of corporate iwi. ACT and UF are supplicant clients of National. So assume all of them support National and Labour won’t. Besides
37 + 14 + 02 + 01 +01 = 55 == well short
but
37 + 14 + 11 = 62
A pretty simple coalition compared to anything in 2005. The Greens are not what they were in 2005, they are a lot more stable. In many ways NZF social policies are closer to the Greens now than they are to Labour.
Personally I don’t think there is a hope in hell of Winston going with National unless Key is dumped along with a lot of the National frontbench who launched that personal attack on him in 2008. I doubt if many of the cabinet experienced hands in NZF will either – Joyce’s National campaign was directly responsible for their time in the wilderness..
But lets follow your idiotic bauble logic.
NZF’s MPs will get more cabinet posts in a coalition where they are about half of the size of the main party. That party now has relatively few ex-cabinet ministers, which means that the parties are more cabinet equal. It is nearly a third larger than a cabinet neophyte Green party. NZF on a straight equal basis will get more baubles and a more equal partnership in the L + NZF + G.
That won’t happen in National where more than a third of their MPs will have some kind of RECENT cabinet experience.
I have a problem following some of the latter part of this comment. There are statements that don’t seem to be accurate.
For example “many of the cabinet experienced hands in NZF”. There is only one of them – Winston. Only 3 others were even in Parliament pre 2011 and none of them had any Executive, much less Cabinet experience. The same applies to “parties are more cabinet equal”. They aren’t.
“about half of the size of the main party”. Your own assumption is 11 to 37, which is nothing like “about half”
” It is nearly a third larger than a cabinet neophyte Green party” It isn’t. It would be, on your assumptions, 11 NZF to 14 Greens. Also, as I comment above, they are both ” cabinet neophyte” parties.
If the Green Party is larger than NZF they are certainly going to demand more Cabinet positions than NZF. It won’t be NZF that is the second party. It will be the Greens. They (the Greens) can also remember how NZF locked them out in 2005.
I think Winston can adapt his “principles” to get first pick of the baubles and a knighthood. I don’t really think he wants to have to follow two parties in the pecking order.
Actually, it’s at the point where NZ1st simply couldn’t side with National as their policies are poles apart. IMO, there’s actually a higher probability of Labour siding with National.
Over the last few months I have become increasingly concerned about the actions of our Prime Minister, and how they show a complete lack of understanding about the impacts of sexual and physical violence in this country. His “prison rape” joke on radio yesterday was the last straw. I believe it is no longer OK for John Key to make light of sexual abuse and sexual violence, and so I ask you to join me in calling on the White Ribbon organization to remove John Key as an ambassador.”
~ Kyle MacDonald, ActionStation Member
Martin Shkreli, the former hedge fund manager under fire for buying a pharmaceutical company and ratcheting up the price of a life-saving drug, is in custody following a securities probe not directly related to those actions.
A seven-count indictment unsealed in Brooklyn federal court charged Shkreli with conspiracy to commit securities fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and securities fraud. A second defendant, attorney Evan Greebel, of Scarsdale, New York, was charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud. It was not immediately clear who will represent Greebel in court.
Can’t say that I’m surprised in the least as his ratcheting up of the price of a drug simply to boost his own wealth shows the psychopathic tendencies.
With all that is going on at present, those of you who are anti-TPPA (as I am) may have missed this ray of hope discussed by Gordon Campbell on Scoop yesterday.
A leading thinker speaks out:
“Slaughter’s never something to be recommended.” PAUL HENRY, TV3, Friday 18 December 2015
Alison Mau, Hilary Barry, Jim Kayes
As noted a couple of days ago, the egregious breakfast show PAUL HENRY has been markedly improved by the temporary absence of …. Paul Henry. His temporary replacement, Alison Mau, is far more intelligent and serious—and a nice person as well. This puts others at ease; Henry’s slaves Hilary and Jim are notably more relaxed and have been smiling and laughing this week rather than grimacing as Henry makes one of his ignorant and brutal comments, cringing as he grovels to a National Party politician, or forcing out an uneasy snicker at one of his mirthless jokes.
However, Alison Mau is still at the mercy of the show’s producers. So she had no option but to talk to the discredited former ACT führer Jamie “Lock Up His Sisters” Whyte, who was one of the guests on the “Panel” segment after the 8 o’clock news. The other Panel guest was the 21 year old blogger Verity Johnson. She did not even try to disguise her contempt for Whyte.
First item up for discussion was the decision to allow Rugby League player Russell Packer, convicted of serious assault, to remain in Australia. Whyte started by making a Paul Henry-standard joke: “It’s a severe punishment to have to stay in Australia,” he quipped. Nobody laughed. Then he embarked on a long and wandery homily about how equal treatment of offenders is unfair on the rich, who suffer unduly because “they have more to lose.” This led him on to some even more confused remarks about the love life of Brad Pitt, and then another awkward joke about how he loves alcohol.
As Whyte rambled on, Verity Johnson looked hard up and to the right, to a spot as far away from Whyte as possible. She also fought to stop herself from laughing out loud. Even Jim and Hilary, accustomed to listening to bizarre monologues every morning, were clearly uncomfortable….
JAMIE “LOCK UP HIS SISTERS” WHYTE: I’m a very jolly chap, especially after a certain time of night. … It’s been a very boring year. the highlight was the Free Trade deal. It was bloody great. Cons? I suppose all the slaughter. Slaughter’s never something to be recommended.
ALISON MAU: But there are legitimate concerns about the TPP. Even Tim Groser admits that.
JAMIE “LOCK UP HIS SISTERS” WHYTE:[speaking as slowly as possible to convey how serious he is] People don’t like companies suing governments. That’s a feature I LIKE because it constrains government. And I like government to be constrained. Ummm….
As Whyte bored on, the camera cruelly pulled back to show Verity Johnson shaking her head and rolling her eyes, Jim and Hilary wincing, and even the technicians and studio crew shaking their heads in disbelief.
After Whyte was gone, Jim and Hilary made a few light-hearted remarks about the absent Henry enjoying his overseas holiday. Ali Mau then uttered what might have been an even more nonsensical statement than anything by the hapless ex-ACT führer….
ALISON MAU: Paul DESERVES a holiday! He’s worked EXTREMELY hard all year….
IN A COUNTERINSURGENCY FAR, FAR AWAY….
(with thanks to Foreign Policy magazine)
The first great struggle between the Rebel Alliance and the Galactic Empire ended with the destruction of the Death Star and an apparent victory for the Rebels at the Battle of Endor. Yet we now know that the struggle has raged on for the last 30 years. Why did the defeat of Emperor Palpatine and the much heralded “return of the Jedi” not produce decades of peace under a restored Republic?
In hindsight, it’s clear that for the Rebel Alliance the Imperial defeat at the Battle of Endor was a classic example of a catastrophic victory: a sudden collapse of a seemingly unbeatable foe that produced opportunities it was unprepared to exploit. Rather than capitalizing on their historic gains and establishing the hoped-for New Republic, the Rebels simply allowed the Galactic Empire to fragment, ushering in a period of chaos.
Now, facing a more virulent version of the Empire under the guise of the mysterious First Order, the Resistance, the successor of the Rebel Alliance, must succeed where its progenitor failed: It must be prepared to “win the peace” and show that it represents the best hope to end this destructive conflict and bring order to the galaxy.
As Libya, Iraq, and Syria have shown us, the combination of intense religious factionalism and a chaotic post-conflict environment is a toxic one that can lead to escalating violence and brutality. To avoid that outcome, the new Resistance must learn from the mistakes of the Rebel Alliance and quickly devise a plan to destroy the First Order and re-establish the Republic on the basis of indirect rule.
Ultimately, the success of the peace will depend on the Resistance’s ability to hold territory and provide law and order, especially in places that were once dens of criminality. For this reason, the stability of planets like Jakku and Tatooire- is crucial and can no longer be left to the control of crime bosses like the Hutts.
And then there are the lessons that fail to get learned; the “Horror vacui” when regimes are forced out with no replacing plan to re-settle civic order; the temptation of “boots on the ground” when hit and run tactics simply fail; the magic recipe of “Build, Hold, Govern” … suffice to say that analogies to stuff happening on earth right now abound.
The Resistance may find itself concluding — as Britain and later the United States did — that the only way to re-establish order over fragmented, politically diverse territories is indirect rule supported by indigenous law enforcement. Carefully cultivating local leaders will be crucial to providing a legitimate “face” for the new Resistance-led government. Otherwise, if the Resistance fails to govern, or governs too directly as the Empire did (and effectively become a new empire but in faun organic cotton), there will be no end in sight to the generational wars among the stars.
John Key reflecting on ponytailgate: “…but there’s only one person who understands the complete story and that’s me and I’m quite comfortable with it.” My emphasis.
So, how come Serco are in line for performance bonuses this year, even after they’ve had the contract retracted for failure to run a safe prison?
$8 million over 4 years in bonuses, including about $1 million this year, according to Andrea Vance. Apparently some money will be recovered to cover costs, but there’ll still be bonuses paid for this year.
I don’t have a link, sorry – just listening (in disbelief – no no disbelief, just disgust) to One News.
Because ever bodies mate john is fucking useless at driving a hard bargain and gets shafted in every deal. The fact the inept douche bag made millions makes me wonder how much he must of made his bosses.
We should get Michael Cullen out of retirement, shouldn’t we?
That magnificent deal he did when he bought back the railways off Toll Holdings. That showed how negotiations should be done and how to get a real bargain, didn’t it? Pay $665 million for something that was essentially worthless. That deal was even sillier than Bond paying Packer $1 billion for TV9. Packer bought that back a couple of years later for $250 million.
That purchase of the railways showed real skill. Or, as is more realistic, total stupidity by the government of the time. http://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/rail-buy-back-marks-new-sustainable-era-transport
The rail should never of been sold ,its as intrinsic to a functioning country as the roads, the rail lines need to be a seperated from from the cartage side and be treated the same as roads.
Imagine an airport in a major city that only let its own planes land, not a good idea is it.?
“Do you think we can ever get rid of hate?” The Panel, RNZ National, Friday 18 December 2015
Jim Mora, Jock Anderson, Nicky Pellegrino
“I think there’s a certain unwillingness to intervene when unruliness breaks out.”—Jim Mora.
Indeed.
Jim Mora was talking in this case about crime on the trains in Auckland, but perhaps some of the following incidences of “unwillingness to intervene when unruliness breaks out” passed across his mind for a moment….
JOCK ANDERSON casually insulting Australian soldiers, JOHN BISHOP cracking anti-Arab hate “jokes”, MICHAEL BASSETT snarling that Nicky Hager is a Holocaust-denier, MICHELLE BOAG denouncing for several minutes the untermenschen who dare to question the wisdom of politicians, CHRIS TROTTER laughing at the fate of political dissidents, DENISE L’ESTRANGE-CORBET shouting insanely about the poor (“I don’t believe there IS a shortage of jobs in New Zealand!”), CHRIS TROTTER (again) sternly lecturing those foolish enough to doubt the integrity of the Deep South jury that found the killer of Trayvon Martin “not guilty”, ROSEMARY McLEOD contemptuously dismissing Egyptian civilians (“Those people don’t WANT democracy!”) and—nobody who heard this one will ever forget it—Cameron Slater’s personal servant JORDAN WILLIAMS frothing and bawling like a banshee at Josie McNaught [1].
The list goes on, and on, and on, ad absurdum, ad nauseam.
Every one of those outbreaks of unruliness came on The Panel, the RNZ National program hosted by…. Jim Mora. In each of those outbreaks of unruliness, Mora either kept silent, or—perhaps even worse—joined in with the derisive laughing at the victims. He was unwilling—or afraid—to intervene.
– – – – – – – – – –
Right at the end of the program, the host brought up the German government’s decree that social media platforms must delete hate speech within 24 hours….
JIM MORA: Do you think we can ever get rid of hate? NICKY PELLEGRINO:[speaking very slowly to convey great seriousness] You can’t get rid of it, but you can refuse to give it a platform.
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A new digital platform aims to make it easier for small businesses to access services from multiple government agencies, leaving them more time to focus on their own priorities. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Minister for Small Business Stuart Nash ...
Million-dollar start to gun collection eventsPolice Minister Stuart Nash says a solid start has been made to the gun buyback and amnesty after the first weekend of community collection events. “Gun owners will walk away with more than ...
Police Minister Stuart Nash has praised Police and gun owners after the first firearms collection event saw a busy turnout at Riccarton Racecourse in Christchurch. “Police officers and staff have put a tremendous effort into planning and logistics for the ...
Seventy-eight new Police constables are heading out to the regions following today’s graduation of a new recruit wing from the Royal New Zealand Police College. Police Minister Stuart Nash says the record high number of new Police officers being recruited, ...
Fonterra’s use of coal has been the target of numerous grassroots campaigns in recent years. Last year 350 Aotearoa affiliated groups, Fossil Free Aoraki and 350 Nelson launched a petition dismissing the dairy giant’s initial target of no new ...
Information sessions on proposals for The Medicinal Cannabis Scheme take place in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch over the next fortnight. The sessions are open to anyone with an interest in learning more about the proposed scheme. ...
“Our children are our most vulnerable, most innocent victims and we do not want to see any more children harmed by these ‘known sex offenders’. The safety of our community must be the paramount consideration.” ...
“The announcement that Fonterra will immediately stop installing any new coal boilers or increasing capacity to burn coal is the signal that the biomass fuel supply industry welcomes” said Brian Cox, Executive Officer of the Bioenergy Association. ...
18 July 2019-- Coal Action Network Aotearoa (CANA) today welcomed Fonterra’s commitment to build no new coal plants, a “no brainer” for the climate crisis the world faces. The group has been urging this transition for six years now and ...
The increase in demand for cage-free eggs is set to continue according to animal rights organisation SAFE, who says the egg industry should expect this and prepare. ...
Wellington, New Zealand – 350 Pacific made a formal submission to the New Zealand Government’s Environment Parliamentary Select Committee on the Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Bill, led by the Pacific Climate Warriors (PCWs) based in ...
There used to be a school of thought on the centre right side of politics that the best way to neuter the Greens as a political force would be to let them have a spell in government. Then, according to ...
Today (18 July) is Nelson Mandela International Day when the United Nations highlights the importance of humane conditions of imprisonment. In New Zealand our prisons are overcrowded and understaffed. At 214 prisoners per 100,000 people, we have the fifth ...
NZEI Te Riu Roa will take legal action over the lengthy delay in implementing pay increases for teachers. Novopay announced yesterday that teachers would have to wait until 11 September to see pay increases that they won when they settled ...
EDS has filed its submission on the Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Bill. The Bill sets targets for greenhouse gas reductions, provides for the government to set a series of carbon budgets, and sets up a new, independent, Climate ...
The New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union has identified an absurd case of mission creep at Wellington City Council: the decision to spend $21,750 on two Consumer NZ investigations into different brands of bike lights. ...
The Motor Trade Association is welcoming the release of the Government’s new draft road safety strategy. MTA Chief Executive Craig Pomare says the association is pleased to see vehicle safety has been made a priority in the Road to Zero ...
The Department of Conservation continue to repeat the same old story about attacks on staff and how it is affecting their role in protecting our precious wildlife. NZ herald https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12249704 ...
The government's silence on the fact that the country's second-largest milk processor is on the brink of becoming 25% Chinese Government owned has been deafening. ...
School Strike 4 Climate NZ welcomes the coalition Government’s endeavour to take action on reducing agricultural emissions but is disappointed at the weak stance that the Government has taken on the issue. ...
The Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) has issued a formal warning under the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009 (AML/CFT Act) to seven reporting entities within the Regus Management Limited (RNZML) designated business ...
The Northland Regional Council (NRC) has voted to exclude all GM/GE precautionary provisions in its regional plan, despite years of community engagement showing support for such protection. There is a sense of betrayal following the way the NRC Chairman ...
New Zealand’s ‘mission-driven’ charities working in international aid are showing early signs of changing the way they work, in particular prioritising building the capacity and resilience of local communities to do their own development. ...
Teachers will have to wait until 11 September for pay increases won as part of their collective agreement negotiations settled in June, according to an update sent to schools today from Novopay. ...
July 16 (BusinessDesk) - Energy Minister Megan Woods says the government “won’t die in a ditch” if its goal of 100 percent renewable electricity generation isn't reached by 2035. ...
The Electricity Networks Association (ENA) is welcoming the Government’s response to the Interim Climate Change Committee (ICCC) Report released today. Graeme Peters, chief executive of the ENA, said one of the key recommendations, endorsed by the ...
An article* published this month in the Journal of Health Organization and Management raises questions over the way health board members are elected and whether the boards are even needed. ...
NZEI Te Riu Roa's kindergarten teacher members will vote on a proposed settlement to their collective agreement after four days of negotiations with the Ministry of Education and kindergarten employers. ...
Vector has today welcomed the ICCC’s report on Accelerated Electrification . Vector agrees that accelerating the electrification of transport and process heat will play a major role in reducing the country’s greenhouse gas emissions. Initiatives to ...
The New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union is calling on the Porirua City Council to cancel its underwriting of a proposed Canadian-led privately owned adventure park slated for public land after a similar project created a huge liability for Christchurch ...
Youth climate change campaigners Generation Zero welcome the Interim Climate Change Committee’s (ICCC’s) reports: Accelerated Electrification and Action on agricultural emissions ; which were finally released by the Government today, almost three months ...
Fish & Game New Zealand notes the announcement today that the Government and the intensive agriculture leadership have reached a ‘historic consensus’ and are exploring using a formal sector-government agreement instead of bringing agriculture ...
The independent Interim Climate Change Committee’s report on Accelerated Electrification was released today by the Minister for Energy and Resources, Hon Dr Megan Woods. ...
The independent Interim Climate Change Committee’s report Action on agricultural emissions was released today by the Minister for Climate Change, Hon James Shaw and the Minister of Agriculture, Hon Damien O’Connor. ...
Please find attached embargoed copies of two media statements from the Interim Climate Change Committee http://img.scoop.co.nz/media/pdfs/1907/Embargoed_Interim_Climate_Change_Committee_Accelerated_electrification_MEDIA_STATEMENT.pdf ...
Greenpeace Executive Director, Dr Russel Norman, has reacted with disbelief that the Government’s latest climate proposal includes an option for dairy to voluntarily deal with their emissions over the next six years. ...
This week’s “Youth Parliament” is an expensive waste of time that promotes taxpayer-funded junketeering, says the New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union . “We shouldn’t be training kids on the joys of the trough,” says Taxpayers’ Union spokesperson ...
Infrastructure Minister Shane Jones admitted on Q+A tonight that the state of New Zealand’s infrastructure planning is “dismal” and the government needs to get on with building “rather than writing more reports about it.” ...
DairyNZ has released its submission on the Zero Carbon Bill and is calling on the Government to revise the methane target in the Bill to one that does not put at risk New Zealand’s world-leading dairy sector. Farm profit could ...
July 15 (BusinessDesk) - Foreign Minister Winston Peters will have bi-lateral meetings with two of US president Donald Trump's most hawkish defence and security advisers in a five day trip to Washington D.C. ...
Youth climate change campaigners Generation Zero are calling for Members of Parliament to show political courage as the Zero Carbon Bill goes through the crucial Select Committee process. ...
Annual net migration was provisionally estimated at 50,200 (± 800) in the year ended December 2018 compared with 52,600 in the previous year, Stats NZ said today. ...
New Zealanders have the opportunity to contribute to the government’s Review of Retirement Income Policies, including questions around Superannuation and KiwiSaver. Submissions are now open for the Review, being run by the Commission for Financial ...
Yesterday at Mataatua Marae the Tamaki Makaurau Electorate of the Māori party congratulated Rangi Mclean who was appointed to the Vice president Tāne role of the party nation-wide executive. ...
The funding crisis facing the disability sector has become more urgent following the disturbing news that the Ministry of Health will not increase contract prices for providers this year, the New Zealand Disability Support Network said today. ...
The growing number of working poor is an alarming indicator that the regulatory Minimum Wage does not cut it said Closing the Gap spokesperson Peter Malcolm. ...
Historic hui gives overwhelming agreement for a Māori Inquiry The inquiry into state run Oranga Tamariki will be led by whanau, kaimahi and Māori leaders. ...
Drug infiltration into our maximum security prisons is putting prisoners and staff at unnecessary risk, and one tool that would be of huge benefit is a full body scanner. ...
A children’s television presenter, New Zealand’s first supermodel, and bloody Cocksy! Jordan Hamel pays tribute to the Kiwi icons that helped get him through his life.Adolescence was not a great time for me. Depression, anxiety, sexuality, awkward social interactions, emotional ...
The House - The Youth Parliament has beat the real thing to the punch by declaring a climate change emergency this week. Youth Press Gallery member Sophie Dixon reports. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rona Macniven, Research Fellow, University of Sydney Indigenous Australians have a long and proud heritage in both traditional sports and games, and in modern sport through the achievements of people like Johnathan ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alice Gorman, Senior Lecturer in Archaeology and Space Studies, Flinders University It’s 50 years since the two Apollo 11 astronauts – Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin – spent 22 hours collecting samples, ...
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in reality television and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s.It’s a wacky, wacky week on The Real Pod this week. But is it wackier than the fact that Gilda Kirkpatrick saw a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Neal Hughes, Senior Economist, Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) Water prices in the southern Murray-Darling Basin have reached their highest levels since the worst of the Millennium ...
It seems inevitable that New Zealand will soon officially be in a state of emergency over climate change, with a declaration likely to be passed in Parliament. Is this a good thing? The debate over moving into official emergency status ...
The newsreader turned talkback host Peter Williams (not Peter Williams) is furious about the mainstream refusal to acknowledge the cheesiness of the moon.I’m sorry but my head still hurts.Yesterday I blew to smithereens the so-called “consensus” on the “science” around ...
Every fish on the iconic New Zealand Commercial Fish Species poster, ranked. There are a few staples of the quintessential fish and chip shop: sticky plastic curtains, soggy paper tickets with a little red number, tin pottles of Wattie’s tomato sauce, ...
Eligible home owners will be able to claim grants for energy-efficient heaters this winter as part of the government's Warmer Kiwi Homes programme. ...
MediaRoom this week: the Media Council backs reporters asking questions, urges caution linking a group to the Christchurch attacks, muses on news vs advertising and wants corrections published faster. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonti Horner, Professor (Astrophysics), University of Southern Queensland Even though we can see the Moon shining brightly in the night sky – and sometimes in daylight – it’s hard to put into ...
By Pacific Media Centre NewsdeskIndonesian President Joko Widodo’s threat to pursue anyone who impedes investment is worrying environmental activists who claim that such actions could criminalise those fighting for the environment, reports CNN Indonesia.Jokowi made the threat ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Monica Barratt, Vice Chancellor’s Senior Research Fellow, Social and Global Studies Centre, RMIT University A NSW Coronial Inquest investigating a series of drug-related deaths at Australian music festivals has heard evidence of ...
The Netball World Cup grand final is tie-proof and won't end in any kind of super over. RNZ's netball reporter Ravinder Hunia who's in Liverpool explains why. ...
Party Line is a new audio work by Evangeline Riddiford Graham that reinvestigates the Cartwright Inquiry, medical mispractice and misogyny through the lens of the #metoo era. In a red room six handsets dangle from the ceiling on their spiral cords. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Neil R Jordan, Lecturer, UNSW Humans and dogs go way back. From wolf totems to the big bad wolf of fact and fairy tale, through sheepdogs, lap dogs, and labradoodles, our relationships ...
For Auckland is a new Spinoff podcast of civic conversations with people working to create and sustain a better Auckland for all. In episode three, host Timothy Giles speaks to Grace Stratton about accessibility, in fashion and in Auckland.She’s launched ...
Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.Today’s contentForeign affairs and trade Peter Dunne (Newsroom): Beware, nice ...
Human rights activists and refugees are calling on the PM to use her international profile to speak out against China’s persecution of religious groups. ...
Instead of buying a cuppa in exchange for a place to work, Coffee Supreme is flipping the script.For the last 25 years, Coffee Supreme has stuck to what it does best, which is sourcing, roasting, brewing and selling some seriously ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Blaskovich, Senior Research Officer, The University of Queensland Artistic depictions of several chemical elements feature in a new exhibition from today as part of Australia’s celebrations for the International Year of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anthony Hopkins, Senior Lecturer, Australian National University In 2017, a small group of male prisoners participated in an eight-week yoga program at the Alexander Maconochie Centre(AMC), which houses all adult prisoners in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ramon Zenel Shaban, Clinical Chair and Professor of Infection Prevention and Disease Control at the University of Sydney, University of Sydney “Travel safe, travel far, travel wide, and travel often,” saysNomadic ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Bone, Lecturer, Massey University A majority of academic staff at some of Australia’s top universities work in casual or fixed-term positions. This reflects a trend towards casualisation in academia, and other ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Claire Smith, Professor of Archaeology, College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, Flinders University The Budj Bim Cultural Landscape in south-west Victoria is the first Indigenous Australian landscape to be gazetted on ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will touch down in Melbourne this afternoon, four months after her planned visit to the city was called off due to the Christchurch terror attack. ...
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Union to take legal action against Novopay, building site sediment damaging waterways, and the govt’s road safety strategy explained.Teachers are taking legal action against Novopay, amidst the news their payrise ...
The lawyer representing bankrupt blogger Cameron Slater in a defamation case has been trying since February to withdraw from the case, but a judge keeps declining. Tim Murphy reports. ...
Net migration, skills shortage, and the challenge for employers to hire the people they need are frequent themes in our media, but there is a talent pool trained right here many are overlooking. ...
The young Kiwi sprinters who won relay bronze at the World University Games - setting a new NZ record - can still go much faster on the world stage. ...
A recent issue of Air Force News revealed that a senior NZDF officer served a six-month posting at the Qatar base, placing New Zealanders at the heart of the main targeting and bombing centre in that region, writes Darius ShahtahmasebiLast ...
Figure 10: A Kanak voter wearing a ‘Kanaky New Caledonia’ flag tee shirt at the Loyalty Islands special polling booth in Vallee du Tir, Noumea. Image: David Robie David Robie Wednesday, July 17, 2019 Abstract The French-ruled ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Darren Paul Fisher, Head of Directing, Department of Film, Screen and Creative Media, Bond University Something incredible might be happening to James Bond: a separation, a personal Brexit of sorts. According to ...
Depending on which coalition party you ask, the Government is either introducing a new way to fund community wellbeing or using the same funds to tackle organised crime. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Samantha Hepburn, Director of the Centre for Energy and Natural Resources Law, Deakin Law School, Deakin University A freedom of information request has revealed Adani sought the names of CSIRO and Geoscience ...
For generations, women have done the heavy lifting in the fight for social change. What will it take to get more men to give a fuck about their children’s future?At every question and answer session I attend, I get a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Melissa Kang, Associate professor, University of Technology Sydney I Need to Know is an ongoing series for teens in search of reliable, confidential advice about life’s tricky questions. If you’re a teen, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katarina Miljkovic, ARC DECRA fellow, Curtin University Look up on a clear night and you can see some circular formations on the face of our lunar neighbour. These are impact craters, circular ...
Open mike 18/12/2015 
Open mike is your post.
I have been reading and listening to the aftermath of Trump’s comments about the four female first term Democratic representatives, all of whom are “people of color.” I found the US coverage interesting both as evidence of partisanship and the ...2 hours ago
The Herald reports that the housing shortage / bubble has hit a new level:New Zealand is short of 130,000 homes, the tally having risen lately by 30,000, two economists say. Jarrod Kerr and Jeremy Couchman, Kiwibank economists said: "This time ...2 hours ago
The proposed Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Bill treats biogenic methane emissions differently from all other carbon emissions. The latter are to be measured net so that emissions from fossil fuels can be offset by carbon stored in trees. ...18 hours ago
by Gearóid Ó Loingsigh This article aims to answer a simple question, whether the conflict is only a rural one or whether it is also urban. The verb ‘to be’ is conjugated in the present tense as ,despite what some ...1 day ago
1 day ago
On Sunday July 7, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Associate Health Minister Julie Anne Genter announced their intention to review the Ministry of Health’s Funded Family Care policy and repeal Part 4Aof the 2000 NZ Public Health and Disability Act. These are festering injustices ...2 days ago
Belle is a lovely fifteen year-old border collie who belongs to our friends and neighbours at Bryan’s Beach, Michael and Judy Corboy. Belle, in her old age, can hardly see or hear, but – as a constant participant at social ...2 days ago
A Woman’s Place is on the Podium was a public meeting in London on 10 July to discuss women’s sports and the impact of transwomen competing against women. The venue was sold out with a packed hall of 750 people. ...4 days ago
An occasional series where I will ponder allegations of anti-Semitism directed at the British Labour Party and its members.In this case, we are thinking about an allegedly anti-Semitic image shared by a Labour Party member. Its origins appear to be ...1 week ago
1 week ago
2 weeks ago
Welcome to another heaping helping of research publications related to climate change drivers and mechanisms, the effects of climate change and how we might yet grope our way into systems approaches to dealing with the mess we're making, despite ourselves. ...2 weeks ago
The People's "Friend": In this masterpiece of revolutionary propaganda, the homicidal political psychopath, Jean-Paul Marat, has been transformed by Jacques-Louis David, the French Revolution's most accomplished artist, into a martyred hero of the ordinary people of Paris. Thanks to Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook, ...2 weeks ago
The principle of one person, one vote doesn’t apply for local elections. In fact, you don’t even need to be a person to have voting rights. Welcome to the ratepayer roll. While the ratepayer roll accounts for less than 1% ...2 weeks ago
Image Credit: Blog Writing Tips. I notice a few regulars no longer allow public access to the site counters. This may happen accidentally when the ... 2 weeks ago
When people slate the current Government for taking too long on certain issues, or not getting everything right, just check the outrage and quit helping National manufacture consent for their decade of Disaster Economics and much more. Bill couldn’t ...3 weeks ago
Robots could soon replace many low-skill jobs, such as President of the United States. US Presidential hopeful and doomsday prophet Andrew Yang went to extreme lengths to make a point in the first round of Democratic primary debates today, replacing ...3 weeks ago
More people have died in the shower this year than will die in a KiwiBuild home. KiwiBuild home owners are experiencing a surprise windfall this month, as the price of their houses have begun to rise dramatically, due to growing ...3 weeks ago
A new digital platform aims to make it easier for small businesses to access services from multiple government agencies, leaving them more time to focus on their own priorities. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Minister for Small Business Stuart Nash ...2 days ago
Fonterra’s use of coal has been the target of numerous grassroots campaigns in recent years. Last year 350 Aotearoa affiliated groups, Fossil Free Aoraki and 350 Nelson launched a petition dismissing the dairy giant’s initial target of no new ...2 hours ago
A children’s television presenter, New Zealand’s first supermodel, and bloody Cocksy! Jordan Hamel pays tribute to the Kiwi icons that helped get him through his life.Adolescence was not a great time for me. Depression, anxiety, sexuality, awkward social interactions, emotional ...20 mins ago
The House - The Youth Parliament has beat the real thing to the punch by declaring a climate change emergency this week. Youth Press Gallery member Sophie Dixon reports. ...47 mins ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rona Macniven, Research Fellow, University of Sydney Indigenous Australians have a long and proud heritage in both traditional sports and games, and in modern sport through the achievements of people like Johnathan ...49 mins ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alice Gorman, Senior Lecturer in Archaeology and Space Studies, Flinders University It’s 50 years since the two Apollo 11 astronauts – Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin – spent 22 hours collecting samples, ...2 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Neal Hughes, Senior Economist, Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) Water prices in the southern Murray-Darling Basin have reached their highest levels since the worst of the Millennium ...2 hours ago
Instagram will test the removal of 'likes' from New Zealand-based users' content from today. ...3 hours ago
The newsreader turned talkback host Peter Williams (not Peter Williams) is furious about the mainstream refusal to acknowledge the cheesiness of the moon.I’m sorry but my head still hurts.Yesterday I blew to smithereens the so-called “consensus” on the “science” around ...3 hours ago
Every fish on the iconic New Zealand Commercial Fish Species poster, ranked. There are a few staples of the quintessential fish and chip shop: sticky plastic curtains, soggy paper tickets with a little red number, tin pottles of Wattie’s tomato sauce, ...3 hours ago
MediaRoom this week: the Media Council backs reporters asking questions, urges caution linking a group to the Christchurch attacks, muses on news vs advertising and wants corrections published faster. ...3 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonti Horner, Professor (Astrophysics), University of Southern Queensland Even though we can see the Moon shining brightly in the night sky – and sometimes in daylight – it’s hard to put into ...4 hours ago
By Pacific Media Centre Newsdesk Indonesian President Joko Widodo’s threat to pursue anyone who impedes investment is worrying environmental activists who claim that such actions could criminalise those fighting for the environment, reports CNN Indonesia. Jokowi made the threat ...4 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Monica Barratt, Vice Chancellor’s Senior Research Fellow, Social and Global Studies Centre, RMIT University A NSW Coronial Inquest investigating a series of drug-related deaths at Australian music festivals has heard evidence of ...4 hours ago
The Netball World Cup grand final is tie-proof and won't end in any kind of super over. RNZ's netball reporter Ravinder Hunia who's in Liverpool explains why. ...4 hours ago
Two of Australia's big banks and their New Zealand operations have taken another hit. ...5 hours ago
Fonterra is accelerating plans to reduce its reliance on fossil fuels by 11 years. ...5 hours ago
Party Line is a new audio work by Evangeline Riddiford Graham that reinvestigates the Cartwright Inquiry, medical mispractice and misogyny through the lens of the #metoo era. In a red room six handsets dangle from the ceiling on their spiral cords. ...6 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Neil R Jordan, Lecturer, UNSW Humans and dogs go way back. From wolf totems to the big bad wolf of fact and fairy tale, through sheepdogs, lap dogs, and labradoodles, our relationships ...6 hours ago
The government's chief digital technology advisor said it is fulfilling its function despite meeting only once this year. ...6 hours ago
Human rights activists and refugees are calling on the PM to use her international profile to speak out against China’s persecution of religious groups. ...8 hours ago
Instead of buying a cuppa in exchange for a place to work, Coffee Supreme is flipping the script.For the last 25 years, Coffee Supreme has stuck to what it does best, which is sourcing, roasting, brewing and selling some seriously ...8 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Blaskovich, Senior Research Officer, The University of Queensland Artistic depictions of several chemical elements feature in a new exhibition from today as part of Australia’s celebrations for the International Year of ...9 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ramon Zenel Shaban, Clinical Chair and Professor of Infection Prevention and Disease Control at the University of Sydney, University of Sydney “Travel safe, travel far, travel wide, and travel often,” says Nomadic ...9 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Con Doolan, Professor, School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, UNSW Former Australian Greens leader Bob Brown made headlines this week after he objected to a proposed wind farm on Tasmania’s Robbins Island. ...9 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Claire Smith, Professor of Archaeology, College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, Flinders University The Budj Bim Cultural Landscape in south-west Victoria is the first Indigenous Australian landscape to be gazetted on ...9 hours ago
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Union to take legal action against Novopay, building site sediment damaging waterways, and the govt’s road safety strategy explained.Teachers are taking legal action against Novopay, amidst the news their payrise ...10 hours ago
The Government is readying tens of millions of dollars to cover a Stats NZ budget blowout. ...11 hours ago
The lawyer representing bankrupt blogger Cameron Slater in a defamation case has been trying since February to withdraw from the case, but a judge keeps declining. Tim Murphy reports. ...11 hours ago
Net migration, skills shortage, and the challenge for employers to hire the people they need are frequent themes in our media, but there is a talent pool trained right here many are overlooking. ...12 hours ago
Te Radar reviews a history of Kiwi comedy which establishes that we’ve been laughing at ourselves since forever. ...12 hours ago
The young Kiwi sprinters who won relay bronze at the World University Games - setting a new NZ record - can still go much faster on the world stage. ...12 hours ago
The Foreign Affairs Minister's latest Washington speech was less contentious than his last - but there was still plenty to chew over. ...12 hours ago
A recent issue of Air Force News revealed that a senior NZDF officer served a six-month posting at the Qatar base, placing New Zealanders at the heart of the main targeting and bombing centre in that region, writes Darius ShahtahmasebiLast ...12 hours ago
After 50 years of resting on our Moon-landing achievement, the space race is gaining momentum again. ...12 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Darren Paul Fisher, Head of Directing, Department of Film, Screen and Creative Media, Bond University Something incredible might be happening to James Bond: a separation, a personal Brexit of sorts. According to ...24 hours ago
Depending on which coalition party you ask, the Government is either introducing a new way to fund community wellbeing or using the same funds to tackle organised crime. ...24 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Samantha Hepburn, Director of the Centre for Energy and Natural Resources Law, Deakin Law School, Deakin University A freedom of information request has revealed Adani sought the names of CSIRO and Geoscience ...1 day ago
There's a bold push for Wellington's cricket ground to be renamed ‘Support Women’s Sport Basin Reserve’. ...1 day ago
For generations, women have done the heavy lifting in the fight for social change. What will it take to get more men to give a fuck about their children’s future?At every question and answer session I attend, I get a ...1 day ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katarina Miljkovic, ARC DECRA fellow, Curtin University Look up on a clear night and you can see some circular formations on the face of our lunar neighbour. These are impact craters, circular ...1 day ago
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/201783337/labour-unlawful-hager-warrant-evidence-of-political-pressure
Strong statement from Parker….reaction will be interesting
So let me get this straight…
Hager’s raid was illegal
Dotcom’s raid was illegal
looks like a pattern to me
and Winston also on radio but guess what declines from police and Nact
Key too busy on the Rock, the Crowd Goes Wild, Radio Sport, The Edge…….
Far too much to do to be actually doing his job.
+1
John Key has reinvented politics for New Zealand – winning politics in New Zealand now has nothing to do with policy, leadership, or content of any kind. Politics is entertainment. A few jokes, a bit of teasing, lots of banter, golf, and holidays with a bit of work on the side.
It’s a spectacular success. No one has gotten near it.
It’s where the people are. You go to them, no more expecting them to come to you and be attracted to your message in your terms.
“A few jokes, a bit of teasing, lots of banter, golf, and holidays with a bit of work on the side.’….so its a B.O.D. then….no wonder he’s right at home
Tunisia
After the revolution [6 mins]
Employment, freedom, dignity
Still to arrive despite a Nobel Peace Prize for the people who held the country together.
These issues are bread and butter for the internationalist Left. Surely this is a textbook case for assistance to build democracy and the administrative leadership the country needs.
I can’t understand why the military and its weapons is considered the best use of the Western nations’ funds to fight Daesh.
Military Industrial Complex and there is money in war. Daesh gets its weapons from someone, like the US, Germany, France, England, Sweden, Russia, China and any other manufacturer of killing machines that I may have forgotten. People? ha collateral damage and we have got seven billion and counting of them, so a few hundred thousands here and there missing are nothing but a trickle down in an ocean.
+1
The system we have is: Profit for the few before people.
I’m glad to see this guy arrested. What a prick.
“the world’s most hated CEO”, bet there’s quite a few contenders for that title.
I bet some fellow pharamceutical CEO’s both admired and hated him 😉
Interesting breakdown of those opposing the TPPA from political parties ( from TPPA News Bulletin #80 , 17 December 2015)
….Shows that supporters of NZF and Winston Peters are MOST opposed to the TPPA…87%
“Kiwis against the TPPA
In successive polls, Kiwis have rejected the TPPA. A stunning TV3 Reid Research poll revealed that a majority of NZ voters reject the TPPA. The coverage said that 52% rejected the TPPA (some people didn’t have an opinion, and the rejection was over 60% of those who expressed an opinion). 73% of Labour supporters were against it (is Andrew Little listening?), 84% Greens and 87% NZ First. Even 23% of National
Party supporters were against the TPPA. That’s an amazing result especially as it came after a month of media carrying the government’s PR and spin while we couldn’t see the final text. Then last week, 97.5% voted no to TPPA in an online referendum run by the people’s ‘Real Choice’ ”
(which gives lie to the constant criticism here by some, especially professed Greens, that Winston Peters and NZF are right wing and not to be trusted….more anti TPPA from NZF supporters than than the Greens …take note !)
To believe WinstonFirst will side with Labour post-election is as foolish as thinking WinstonFirst will side with National post-election
Winston will do whats best for Winston not whats best for any particular party
Perhaps – but it’s reasonably clear that he is not particularly enamoured of Key.
Hes not too keen on the Greens either but he is particularly fond of the baubles of office and hes probably quite keen on being knighted as well
But that’s what I mean, for every valid reason he could go left theres an equally valid reason for him to go right
@ Pucky …well you would say that wouldnt you…the nacts HATE Winston…and they know he will form a coalition with Labour if he can
…which he will
http://www.roymorgan.com/findings/6599-roy-morgan-new-zealand-voting-intention-december-2015-201512092333
Current polling suggests that even if Winston goes into coalition Labour/Greens it still won’t be enough and do you really think (and be honest here) that Winston wants to play second fiddle to the Greens or anyone?
PR, if Winston wants to be in coalition/supply agreement or whatever on the government side, he will be playing second fiddle to whomsoever, for he’s not going to be the major partner with the most seats.
And an elvish Christmas to you, too. I hope you get a good end bonus.
Like he did with Jim Bolger before the uncooperative Jenny Shipley dropped Bolger and then Peters. Or the second fiddle that he played for Helen Clark?
I think that you misunderstand the concept of cooperation in politics.
I think you merely prove PRs main points.
Winston is, as PR says, “particularly fond of the baubles of office” and doesn’t like having to “play second fiddle to the Greens or anyone”.
Do you think that Little would, if it came down to it, include Winston in his Government and exclude the Greens if that was one of Winston’s demands?
Do you think that the Green Party would go along with it, as they had to do when Helen Clark excluded them from being part of her Government?
Would a Labour-led Government find that titles were a good idea if Winston demanded a knighthood as part of his price?
Are you happy that these would merely be the trifles of co-operation in Government?
Sigh – read the seat numbers in 2005. I really wish that you mythmaker idiots would do some parliamentary maths.
50 Labour Party
48 National Party
07 New Zealand First Party
06 Green Party
04 Mâori Party
03 United Future New Zealand
02 ACT New Zealand
01 Jim Anderton’s Progressive
Jim Anderton was a known partner and trusted by Labour.
The Maori party had essentially declared war on Labour so they were out of the mix.
UF were a known and trustworthy commodity in government.
The Greens and NZ First were both ‘unknown’ to Labour as to how well they’d work in government. But NZF had people who’d been in government before. The Greens did not.
50 + 06 + 03 + 01 == 60 insufficient + 1 unknown
50 + 07 + 03 + 01 == 61 sufficient + 1 unknown
50 + 07 + 06 + 01 == 64 more than required + 2 unknowns
50 + 07 + 06 + +03 + 01 == 67 way more than required + 2 unknown
Lab went for the mix with the least political risk for them as a government. If the Greens had gotten one more, then they would have been a contender. But that would have required that Peter Dunne preferred them over NZF which he didn’t.
Now look at 2014
60 National Party
32 Labour Party
14 Green Party
11 New Zealand First Party
02 Māori Party
01 ACT New Zealand
01 United Future
Assume National got a five less seats and Labour got a five more.
The Maori party appears to be just as hostile as they were back in 2005, but now because they are heavily in the pockets of corporate iwi. ACT and UF are supplicant clients of National. So assume all of them support National and Labour won’t. Besides
37 + 14 + 02 + 01 +01 = 55 == well short
but
37 + 14 + 11 = 62
A pretty simple coalition compared to anything in 2005. The Greens are not what they were in 2005, they are a lot more stable. In many ways NZF social policies are closer to the Greens now than they are to Labour.
Personally I don’t think there is a hope in hell of Winston going with National unless Key is dumped along with a lot of the National frontbench who launched that personal attack on him in 2008. I doubt if many of the cabinet experienced hands in NZF will either – Joyce’s National campaign was directly responsible for their time in the wilderness..
But lets follow your idiotic bauble logic.
NZF’s MPs will get more cabinet posts in a coalition where they are about half of the size of the main party. That party now has relatively few ex-cabinet ministers, which means that the parties are more cabinet equal. It is nearly a third larger than a cabinet neophyte Green party. NZF on a straight equal basis will get more baubles and a more equal partnership in the L + NZF + G.
That won’t happen in National where more than a third of their MPs will have some kind of RECENT cabinet experience.
I have a problem following some of the latter part of this comment. There are statements that don’t seem to be accurate.
For example “many of the cabinet experienced hands in NZF”. There is only one of them – Winston. Only 3 others were even in Parliament pre 2011 and none of them had any Executive, much less Cabinet experience. The same applies to “parties are more cabinet equal”. They aren’t.
“about half of the size of the main party”. Your own assumption is 11 to 37, which is nothing like “about half”
” It is nearly a third larger than a cabinet neophyte Green party” It isn’t. It would be, on your assumptions, 11 NZF to 14 Greens. Also, as I comment above, they are both ” cabinet neophyte” parties.
If the Green Party is larger than NZF they are certainly going to demand more Cabinet positions than NZF. It won’t be NZF that is the second party. It will be the Greens. They (the Greens) can also remember how NZF locked them out in 2005.
I think Winston can adapt his “principles” to get first pick of the baubles and a knighthood. I don’t really think he wants to have to follow two parties in the pecking order.
Actually, it’s at the point where NZ1st simply couldn’t side with National as their policies are poles apart. IMO, there’s actually a higher probability of Labour siding with National.
+100 …and not just a “higher probability”….an actuality at the moment…Labour’s policies are Nact light blue eg TPPA, spy bill…
Over the last few months I have become increasingly concerned about the actions of our Prime Minister, and how they show a complete lack of understanding about the impacts of sexual and physical violence in this country. His “prison rape” joke on radio yesterday was the last straw. I believe it is no longer OK for John Key to make light of sexual abuse and sexual violence, and so I ask you to join me in calling on the White Ribbon organization to remove John Key as an ambassador.”
~ Kyle MacDonald, ActionStation Member
http://www.actionstation.org.nz/noribbon?utm_campaign=noribbon1&utm_medium=email&utm_source=actionstation
Thanks EP for the opportunity to join and sign this petition. Done.
FJK is a disgraceful affront to any person who has been the victim of sexual assault!
esoteric pineapple …t+100 …good work ….have signed
I’m (hopefully) getting knocked off soon so this’ll probably be my last post for the year
So everyone have a merry Christmas and stay healthy over the holidays
You’re getting knocked off?!? I guess that’s the risk of hanging out at WO so much. But it sounds like you are planning a ressurection…
😈 😆
I’m not sure that I want to condone such a public crime. I trust that you have told the police about this impending act of violence?
Have a good xmas and try not to get cooked like a turkey in the summer sun… 😈
Didn’t know the ministry of truth had such a good holiday plan, .!
roflnui
See you on the other side Puckish.
..not too much cooking sherry Pucky
It seems that once more NZ is featuring in world media for all the wrong reasons thanks to the disgraceful behaviour of our PM.
http://edition.cnn.com/2015/12/17/asia/new-zealand-prime-minister-rape-joke/index.html
Thanks Key. You have, yet again, made me embarrassed for my country.
Thanks Karen, that has the white ribbon petition which I couldn’t find yesterday,
http://www.actionstation.org.nz/noribbon
http://whiteribbon.org.nz/about/
http://whiteribbon.org.nz/act/ambassadors/
World’s ‘most hated CEO’ Martin Shkreli arrested for fraud
Can’t say that I’m surprised in the least as his ratcheting up of the price of a drug simply to boost his own wealth shows the psychopathic tendencies.
TPPA Alert.
With all that is going on at present, those of you who are anti-TPPA (as I am) may have missed this ray of hope discussed by Gordon Campbell on Scoop yesterday.
http://gordoncampbell.scoop.co.nz/2015/12/17/gordon-campbell-on-how-the-republicans-just-buried-the-tpp/
Excellent!
A leading thinker speaks out:
“Slaughter’s never something to be recommended.”
PAUL HENRY, TV3, Friday 18 December 2015
Alison Mau, Hilary Barry, Jim Kayes
As noted a couple of days ago, the egregious breakfast show PAUL HENRY has been markedly improved by the temporary absence of …. Paul Henry. His temporary replacement, Alison Mau, is far more intelligent and serious—and a nice person as well. This puts others at ease; Henry’s slaves Hilary and Jim are notably more relaxed and have been smiling and laughing this week rather than grimacing as Henry makes one of his ignorant and brutal comments, cringing as he grovels to a National Party politician, or forcing out an uneasy snicker at one of his mirthless jokes.
However, Alison Mau is still at the mercy of the show’s producers. So she had no option but to talk to the discredited former ACT führer Jamie “Lock Up His Sisters” Whyte, who was one of the guests on the “Panel” segment after the 8 o’clock news. The other Panel guest was the 21 year old blogger Verity Johnson. She did not even try to disguise her contempt for Whyte.
First item up for discussion was the decision to allow Rugby League player Russell Packer, convicted of serious assault, to remain in Australia. Whyte started by making a Paul Henry-standard joke: “It’s a severe punishment to have to stay in Australia,” he quipped. Nobody laughed. Then he embarked on a long and wandery homily about how equal treatment of offenders is unfair on the rich, who suffer unduly because “they have more to lose.” This led him on to some even more confused remarks about the love life of Brad Pitt, and then another awkward joke about how he loves alcohol.
As Whyte rambled on, Verity Johnson looked hard up and to the right, to a spot as far away from Whyte as possible. She also fought to stop herself from laughing out loud. Even Jim and Hilary, accustomed to listening to bizarre monologues every morning, were clearly uncomfortable….
JAMIE “LOCK UP HIS SISTERS” WHYTE: I’m a very jolly chap, especially after a certain time of night. … It’s been a very boring year. the highlight was the Free Trade deal. It was bloody great. Cons? I suppose all the slaughter. Slaughter’s never something to be recommended.
ALISON MAU: But there are legitimate concerns about the TPP. Even Tim Groser admits that.
JAMIE “LOCK UP HIS SISTERS” WHYTE: [speaking as slowly as possible to convey how serious he is] People don’t like companies suing governments. That’s a feature I LIKE because it constrains government. And I like government to be constrained. Ummm….
As Whyte bored on, the camera cruelly pulled back to show Verity Johnson shaking her head and rolling her eyes, Jim and Hilary wincing, and even the technicians and studio crew shaking their heads in disbelief.
After Whyte was gone, Jim and Hilary made a few light-hearted remarks about the absent Henry enjoying his overseas holiday. Ali Mau then uttered what might have been an even more nonsensical statement than anything by the hapless ex-ACT führer….
ALISON MAU: Paul DESERVES a holiday! He’s worked EXTREMELY hard all year….
More on Jamie “Lock Up His Sisters” Whyte….
/open-mike-07102015/#comment-1079367
So…Tertiary Councils have fewer members, more government appointees and are going to cost more…who would have thunk it?
http://i.stuff.co.nz/manawatu-standard/news/9716785/University-reforms-an-attack-on-democracy
http://i.stuff.co.nz/waikato-times/news/75217389/Tertiary-councils-get-big-pay-rise
IN A COUNTERINSURGENCY FAR, FAR AWAY….
(with thanks to Foreign Policy magazine)
The first great struggle between the Rebel Alliance and the Galactic Empire ended with the destruction of the Death Star and an apparent victory for the Rebels at the Battle of Endor. Yet we now know that the struggle has raged on for the last 30 years. Why did the defeat of Emperor Palpatine and the much heralded “return of the Jedi” not produce decades of peace under a restored Republic?
In hindsight, it’s clear that for the Rebel Alliance the Imperial defeat at the Battle of Endor was a classic example of a catastrophic victory: a sudden collapse of a seemingly unbeatable foe that produced opportunities it was unprepared to exploit. Rather than capitalizing on their historic gains and establishing the hoped-for New Republic, the Rebels simply allowed the Galactic Empire to fragment, ushering in a period of chaos.
Now, facing a more virulent version of the Empire under the guise of the mysterious First Order, the Resistance, the successor of the Rebel Alliance, must succeed where its progenitor failed: It must be prepared to “win the peace” and show that it represents the best hope to end this destructive conflict and bring order to the galaxy.
As Libya, Iraq, and Syria have shown us, the combination of intense religious factionalism and a chaotic post-conflict environment is a toxic one that can lead to escalating violence and brutality. To avoid that outcome, the new Resistance must learn from the mistakes of the Rebel Alliance and quickly devise a plan to destroy the First Order and re-establish the Republic on the basis of indirect rule.
Ultimately, the success of the peace will depend on the Resistance’s ability to hold territory and provide law and order, especially in places that were once dens of criminality. For this reason, the stability of planets like Jakku and Tatooire- is crucial and can no longer be left to the control of crime bosses like the Hutts.
And then there are the lessons that fail to get learned; the “Horror vacui” when regimes are forced out with no replacing plan to re-settle civic order; the temptation of “boots on the ground” when hit and run tactics simply fail; the magic recipe of “Build, Hold, Govern” … suffice to say that analogies to stuff happening on earth right now abound.
The Resistance may find itself concluding — as Britain and later the United States did — that the only way to re-establish order over fragmented, politically diverse territories is indirect rule supported by indigenous law enforcement. Carefully cultivating local leaders will be crucial to providing a legitimate “face” for the new Resistance-led government. Otherwise, if the Resistance fails to govern, or governs too directly as the Empire did (and effectively become a new empire but in faun organic cotton), there will be no end in sight to the generational wars among the stars.
John Key reflecting on ponytailgate: “…but there’s only one person who understands the complete story and that’s me and I’m quite comfortable with it.” My emphasis.
Hmm.
Good news on norightturn – The Aussies won over the megacorporate tobacco giant.
http://norightturn.blogspot.co.nz/2015/12/plain-packs-win-in-australia.html
So, how come Serco are in line for performance bonuses this year, even after they’ve had the contract retracted for failure to run a safe prison?
$8 million over 4 years in bonuses, including about $1 million this year, according to Andrea Vance. Apparently some money will be recovered to cover costs, but there’ll still be bonuses paid for this year.
I don’t have a link, sorry – just listening (in disbelief – no no disbelief, just disgust) to One News.
Because ever bodies mate john is fucking useless at driving a hard bargain and gets shafted in every deal. The fact the inept douche bag made millions makes me wonder how much he must of made his bosses.
We should get Michael Cullen out of retirement, shouldn’t we?
That magnificent deal he did when he bought back the railways off Toll Holdings. That showed how negotiations should be done and how to get a real bargain, didn’t it? Pay $665 million for something that was essentially worthless. That deal was even sillier than Bond paying Packer $1 billion for TV9. Packer bought that back a couple of years later for $250 million.
That purchase of the railways showed real skill. Or, as is more realistic, total stupidity by the government of the time.
http://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/rail-buy-back-marks-new-sustainable-era-transport
The rail should never of been sold ,its as intrinsic to a functioning country as the roads, the rail lines need to be a seperated from from the cartage side and be treated the same as roads.
Imagine an airport in a major city that only let its own planes land, not a good idea is it.?
This?
https://t.co/sosinBbnUD
“Do you think we can ever get rid of hate?”
The Panel, RNZ National, Friday 18 December 2015
Jim Mora, Jock Anderson, Nicky Pellegrino
“I think there’s a certain unwillingness to intervene when unruliness breaks out.”—Jim Mora.
Indeed.
Jim Mora was talking in this case about crime on the trains in Auckland, but perhaps some of the following incidences of “unwillingness to intervene when unruliness breaks out” passed across his mind for a moment….
JOCK ANDERSON casually insulting Australian soldiers, JOHN BISHOP cracking anti-Arab hate “jokes”, MICHAEL BASSETT snarling that Nicky Hager is a Holocaust-denier, MICHELLE BOAG denouncing for several minutes the untermenschen who dare to question the wisdom of politicians, CHRIS TROTTER laughing at the fate of political dissidents, DENISE L’ESTRANGE-CORBET shouting insanely about the poor (“I don’t believe there IS a shortage of jobs in New Zealand!”), CHRIS TROTTER (again) sternly lecturing those foolish enough to doubt the integrity of the Deep South jury that found the killer of Trayvon Martin “not guilty”, ROSEMARY McLEOD contemptuously dismissing Egyptian civilians (“Those people don’t WANT democracy!”) and—nobody who heard this one will ever forget it—Cameron Slater’s personal servant JORDAN WILLIAMS frothing and bawling like a banshee at Josie McNaught [1].
The list goes on, and on, and on, ad absurdum, ad nauseam.
Every one of those outbreaks of unruliness came on The Panel, the RNZ National program hosted by…. Jim Mora. In each of those outbreaks of unruliness, Mora either kept silent, or—perhaps even worse—joined in with the derisive laughing at the victims. He was unwilling—or afraid—to intervene.
– – – – – – – – – –
Right at the end of the program, the host brought up the German government’s decree that social media platforms must delete hate speech within 24 hours….
JIM MORA: Do you think we can ever get rid of hate?
NICKY PELLEGRINO: [speaking very slowly to convey great seriousness] You can’t get rid of it, but you can refuse to give it a platform.
Indeed.
[1] /open-mike-17042013/#comment-620413