Search Results

  1. ACT’s ugly racist face exposed

    Written By:  Eddie -  Date published: 11:51 pm, February 28th, 2010 -  57 comments
    Categories: act, maori party, racism, rodney hide
    Tags: , ,

    Former ACT Deputy Leader Muriel Newman has launched into a racist tirade that amounts to ‘bloody bludging Maoris’. Incredibly, Rodney Hide agrees, saying that Maori have a culture of dependency. To ACT, poverty isn’t the result of an unequal and unfair economic system, it’s a lifestyle choice. They say Maori are morally deficient and to blame for their poverty.

  2. National-style standards and Key’s teacher trap

    Written By:  Mike Smith -  Date published: 1:00 pm, February 15th, 2010 -  38 comments
    Categories: education, Unions
    Tags: , , ,

    When the Government came under fire over National Standards John Key was quick to raise the anti-union bogey. The old stereotypes are certainly still strong in National, but they have led Key into a trap. What might have worked for Muldoon or Maggie in the past won’t work now for a number of reasons.

  3. No help for the invisible

    Written By:  Marty G -  Date published: 12:10 pm, February 12th, 2010 -  5 comments
    Categories: jobs, unemployment
    Tags:

    Relating to what I wrote yesterday about the Right and much of the media being largely blind to the existence of those of us on low and middle incomes, here’s an interesting piece from the New York Times: The folks in the upper-income group are not suffering much, if at all, from the profound reversals […]

  4. Quick comments

    Written By:  Marty G -  Date published: 12:00 pm, February 11th, 2010 -  18 comments
    Categories: climate change, Economy, foreshore and seabed, Mining
    Tags:

    The Government and the secretive Iwi Leadership Group are looking at an option where no-one owns the foreshore and seabed. It’s often forgotten that the Ngati Apa case, which sparked the foreshore and seabed, contraversy was about big business. Ngati Apa wanted to have title over the seabed so it could undertake aquaculture, bypassing a […]

  5. Goff’s response to Key

    Written By:  Marty G -  Date published: 2:53 pm, February 9th, 2010 -  79 comments
    Categories: Parliament, phil goff
    Tags:

    Even National Party pollster, David Farrar, could only give Key’s speech a B Goff says that it’s ‘Alan Bollard 1, John Key 0’. There’s talk of a step change but no actual plan that will close the gaps. ‘No bold plan, no plan at all’ ‘Big Tuesday? More like tip-toe Tuesday’ Rubbishs the notion that […]

  6. Unemployment: real action, not vague promises needed

    Written By:  Marty G -  Date published: 4:41 pm, February 6th, 2010 -  43 comments
    Categories: education, minimum wage, unemployment
    Tags:

    The Herald reports: “[Key] also raised the 15 per cent Maori unemployment rate, saying improving education outcomes for Maori children would help address that.” Improved education sounds good but: 1) how is Key going to actually lift Maori educational achievement? Not by cutting millions from the education budget like he did last year. Not by […]

  7. Nats in line for big $$ from own tax reforms

    Written By:  Marty G -  Date published: 11:23 am, January 27th, 2010 -  31 comments
    Categories: economy, tax
    Tags:

    Fran O’Sullivan has a piece pointing out the vested interests of senior Nats regarding tax reform: “More than two-thirds of the National line-up have beneficial interests in trusts (entities that the Inland Revenue believes are responsible for a $300 million hole in tax revenues at the current 33 per cent tax rate).” – National wants to […]

  8. You’re not a doctor, Tariana

    Written By:  Marty G -  Date published: 7:30 am, January 26th, 2010 -  46 comments
    Categories: health
    Tags:

    Tariana Turia got her stomach stapled to tackle her diabetes and it seems to have worked. She wants more people to get the operation. If stomach stapling is a cost-effective way to treat diabetes and will prevent the need for other medical care I think that’s great. What I don’t want to see happen is […]

  9. Easter trading defeated (again)

    Written By:  Eddie -  Date published: 12:00 pm, December 10th, 2009 -  10 comments
    Categories: workers' rights
    Tags: , ,

    A victory for New Zealand’s 270,000 retail workers and their families last night, with Parliament voting 62-59 to reject National MP Todd McClay’s Easter Sunday trading bill. This debate has never been about observing a religious holiday as the neoliberals try to paint it, it’s about recognising that there should be times during the year […]

  10. Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention

    Written By:  Zetetic -  Date published: 8:00 am, December 1st, 2009 -  10 comments
    Categories: maori party
    Tags:

    Everyone played their part in reacting to the Brash Report. Bosses uncritically applauded it. Unions forcefully rejected it. Labour and the Greens exposed it as a strawman. Key bravely slew the strawman. And the Maori Party, well: “One of the recommendations in the report promoted bridging the income gap between New Zealand and Australia, and […]

  11. Goff at DL – a socialist review

    Written By:  Guest post -  Date published: 1:58 pm, November 28th, 2009 -  39 comments
    Categories: drinking liberally, phil goff
    Tags:

    Below Omar of Socialist Aotearoa gives his impressions of Phil Goff at Drinking Liberally in Auckland earlier this week. On an unrelated note, isn’t it funny (in a non-‘ha, ha’ way) how 4,000 pro-smackers gets lots of coverage but a blind eye is turned when the Left is out in bigger numbers? The protests yesterday by low-paid public servants […]

  12. Nats’ backers tire of do-nothing Key

    Written By:  Eddie -  Date published: 12:31 pm, November 28th, 2009 -  44 comments
    Categories: john key, national/act government
    Tags:

    Reading Fran O’Sullivan is always interesting because she provides an insight into the thinking of the business elite who fund National, and who expect it to govern for them. A lot of her article today is devoted to calling for radical reforms that obviously aren’t politically viable for Key to do, but one paragraph in particular stood […]

  13. Stockholm Syndrome and leaky homes at the coast

    Written By:  lprent -  Date published: 4:12 pm, November 27th, 2009 -  47 comments
    Categories: foreshore and seabed, maori party
    Tags:

    Bomber over at Tumeke has a good post up on Goff’s speech. Pointing out the Maori Party has Stockholm Syndrome is not race baiting That to me sums up Goff’s speech, far more eloquently than I could. He referred to Eddies earlier post…. ..ouch, did we read the same speech? I don’t think pointing out […]

  14. Shame on you

    Written By:  Guest post -  Date published: 12:30 pm, November 26th, 2009 -  77 comments
    Categories: class war, climate change, maori party, national/act government
    Tags: , ,

    Never in the history of New Zealand politics has so much taxpayers’ money been hurled into the chasm with such contempt for the poor citizens who will pay billions out of their own dwindling pockets forever while rich polluters wreck the earth with impunity and bask in the profits. Never in the history of NZ […]

  15. Our word is our bond

    Written By:  r0b -  Date published: 8:30 am, November 26th, 2009 -  22 comments
    Categories: Environment, maori party
    Tags: ,

    Maori Party policy on the environment: We aspire to work together to make the economy great but not at the expense of our environment. Climate change affects us all and the biggest emitters must take responsibility to change the way they do business. Any cost they pass on to consumers must encourage environmentally responsible choices. […]

  16. A plague on both your houses

    Written By:  r0b -  Date published: 10:15 am, November 24th, 2009 -  35 comments
    Categories: climate change, Environment, maori party, national, scoundrels
    Tags: ,

    So, as far as National and Maori leaders are concerned, it’s a done deal: “Maori Party to support ETS – bill to become law in days”. Unless (as suggested by Eddie) some Maori Party MPs remember their principles and vote against it, National’s ETS will be forced through parliament under urgency. NRT weighs in with […]

  17. Harawira and Katene to cross the floor?

    Written By:  Eddie -  Date published: 8:15 am, November 24th, 2009 -  14 comments
    Categories: climate change, maori party, national/act government
    Tags:

    National wants to get its shambolic ETS through the House this week. It’s not quite clear what the hurry is; there’s no actual reason why it should be passed before the Copenhagen meeting in December, it’s just an artificial deadline that National have set themselves.   We already know the ETS will cost taxpayers hundreds […]

  18. Goff gets it right, as Key goes off the rails

    Written By:  Eddie -  Date published: 3:30 pm, November 22nd, 2009 -  24 comments
    Categories: john key, phil goff
    Tags:

    Phil Goff has managed to defy the critics and make himself relevant. His speech on ACC and his criticisms of National’s backroom deals with the Maori Party got praise and draw a contrast between Labour and Key’s government, with Labour on the right side of popular opinion. It’s a nice piece of timing too. The […]

  19. Doctors speak up against ETS

    Written By:  r0b -  Date published: 7:41 am, November 19th, 2009 -  4 comments
    Categories: class war, climate change, national
    Tags:

    A couple of days ago I raised (again) the question of why we don’t see more experts, scientists and academics contributing to public debate. Well here’s one example where they are doing so: Docs say emissions trading scheme will hurt Kids Senior doctors today said that the intended changes to New Zealand’s emissions trading scheme […]

  20. Total shambles

    Written By:  r0b -  Date published: 10:45 am, November 17th, 2009 -  61 comments
    Categories: Environment, national, scoundrels
    Tags:

    The government’s handling of the ETS is a total shambles at every level. Even their fans at The Herald are pointing out the elephants in the room: Another sorry chapter in emissions farce It is rare that all-party select committees of Parliament cannot agree on some improvements to a Government bill even if some parties […]

  21. Light at the end of the tunnel

    Written By:  r0b -  Date published: 6:56 am, November 16th, 2009 -  21 comments
    Categories: honeymoon, john key, leadership
    Tags:

    We’ve been in the tunnel of love too long. (You youngsters can go look it up.) The media’s affair with our personable but apparently useless PM has been a trying time for we lefties. But I think there are glimmers of light at the end of the tunnel. Those glimmers come in the form of several […]

  22. Failures of leadership: English, Hide, and Harawira

    Written By:  Marty G -  Date published: 1:57 pm, November 15th, 2009 -  66 comments
    Categories: leadership, maori party, Media, national/act government, racism
    Tags:

    I know this point/counterpoint series of posts on Hone Harawira maybe getting a bit tiresome but I have to disagree with the assertion in a couple of recent ones that Harawira has been treated more harshly Bill English and Rodney Hide or, by implication, than a Pakeha in his situation would have. And I think that those […]

  23. Harawira offensive & dumb. No excuses

    Written By:  Marty G -  Date published: 9:00 am, November 13th, 2009 -  73 comments
    Categories: corruption, racism
    Tags:

    Frankly, I don’t appreciate being called a white motherf**ker, by Buddy Mikaere and Hone Harawira. Before you start, that’s not to deny that Pakeha stole vast amounts of Maori resources despite the treaty signed between the Crown and iwi, and in spite of the Crown’s own laws.  The thief – the Crown – and the victims – the […]

  24. Political Jurisprudence

    Written By:  rocky -  Date published: 6:59 am, November 13th, 2009 -  55 comments
    Categories: uncategorized
    Tags:

    There’s no question that Hone Harawira’s comments were stupid, but I don’t believe they were racist. For a start, the white mofos reference began in Buddy Mikaere’s email to Harawira, so it’s not entirely inappropriate that those words were used in return. I quite often, when replying to emails or blog comments, use the words […]

  25. Nat Green split

    Written By:  r0b -  Date published: 4:01 pm, November 10th, 2009 -  51 comments
    Categories: greens, national
    Tags:

    I’ve been saying for a while now that folks should be reading Pundit. Recent excellent new author there Claire Browning has a real scoop today: After the honeymoon, divorce: Greens break up with National by Claire Browning The Greens have walked away from part of their working arrangement with the government. Jeanette Fitzsimons revealed exclusively […]

  26. Yeah, nah, too far

    Written By:  Eddie -  Date published: 12:46 pm, November 10th, 2009 -  81 comments
    Categories: maori party
    Tags: ,

    We all use language sometimes that’s too stong and we regret. Hone Harawira apologised today over his choice of words in the “white motherf**kers” email. Unfortunately, he followed that up by saying Phil Goff “should be lined up against the wall and shot” over the foreshore and seabed law. It looks to me like his […]

  27. Foreshore and Seabed debate in context

    Written By:  rocky -  Date published: 5:15 am, November 9th, 2009 -  50 comments
    Categories: foreshore and seabed, treaty settlements
    Tags:

    Te Tiriti o Waitangi is not well understood by most New Zealanders, including most of the politicians that make up our main political parties. It is due to this lack of understanding, as well as populist politicking by some notable politicians, that there is an underlying resentment in our population regarding any policy which adequately […]

  28. National announces ACC privatisation

    Written By:  Marty G -  Date published: 5:26 pm, October 22nd, 2009 -  59 comments
    Categories: ACC, national/act government, privatisation
    Tags:

    National is going to privatise ACC. As part of the deal for support on its ACC cuts and levy hikes from the Maori Party and ACT, it will be privatising ACC’s Work Account (the part paid by employers for workplace accidents). First, there will be a perfunctory report provided by the ACC Stocktake Group, a […]

  29. National’s repeated abuse of democratic process

    Written By:  r0b -  Date published: 6:53 am, October 19th, 2009 -  15 comments
    Categories: democracy under attack, national
    Tags: ,

    The current National led government clearly regards the processes of democracy is an inconvenience to which it must pay lip service, but nothing more. The first signs appeared very early, with repeated abuse of the mechanism of urgency. This got to the point that even their fans at The Herald were moved to rebuke them: […]

  30. Sharples a scapegoat for Nats’ bumbling schemers

    Written By:  Eddie -  Date published: 2:19 pm, October 17th, 2009 -  10 comments
    Categories: john key, maori party, Media, national/act government
    Tags: ,

    If we’re to believe National’s version of events, Pita Sharples kept secret from his colleagues that he was going to take $3 million from a contestable Te Puni Kokiri (TPK) fund meant for job initiatives and give it to Maori TV (MTS) to subsidise their World Cup bid. When it became a big story Sharples apologised […]

  31. O’Sullivan: Key a poor manager, Smith needs to go

    Written By:  Eddie -  Date published: 1:08 pm, October 17th, 2009 -  36 comments
    Categories: john key, national/act government
    Tags:

    Fran O’Sullivan’s piece today tries to resurrect the ‘Key=Obama’ line for some reason. She even refers to Obama as Key’s ‘alter ego’. I’m not quite sure she understands what the term means. Alter egos are like ying and yang, contrasting parts of the same whole. Does she think they’re one person with different personas at […]

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