Search Results

  1. Bulldozing Paradise

    Written By:  Michael Foxglove -  Date published: 11:25 am, January 15th, 2010 -  30 comments
    Categories: Conservation, heritage, tourism, transport
    Tags:

    Today I thought I’d link to some of the amazing scenery Gerry Brownlee wants to bulldoze for his road through the middle of Fiordland National Park. This is a picture of the Hollyford Valley from Hollyford track’s gallery [hat-tip norightturn]. These guys look like they run a pretty cool guided touring business up the Hollyford […]

  2. Helping Haiti

    Written By:  Eddie -  Date published: 6:31 am, January 15th, 2010 -  9 comments
    Categories: International
    Tags: ,

    The enormity of the disaster that has hit Haiti is becoming more apparent by the hour. It is thought that tens of thousands, if not 100,000, are dead and many more are injured, trapped, or homeless. It is estimated that 60% of buildings in the capital, Port-au-Prince, have been destroyed. All infrastructure is heavily damaged. The government, already weak, has […]

  3. Updates

    Written By:  lprent -  Date published: 10:18 pm, December 30th, 2009 -  7 comments
    Categories: admin
    Tags:

    Haven’t had as much time as I’d like for updates so far – there are some who have been insisting that I be social over the break! There is also a vast oversupply of wine in cupboard, beer in the fridge, and diet forthcoming in the new year where beer is forbidden (red wine is […]

  4. Seasons greetings

    Written By:  notices and features -  Date published: 9:27 am, December 26th, 2009 -  7 comments
    Categories: humour
    Tags:

    lolz. Cheers to saltandvingarclips for linking to their hilarious vids in comments

  5. Xmas number one in the UK.

    Written By:  lprent -  Date published: 10:01 pm, December 24th, 2009 -  9 comments
    Categories: music, video, youtube
    Tags:

    One of the stranger Internet campaigns has being going on in Britain. It has resulted in this excellent track being the Xmas number 1 single this year (it is in my programming playlist for special bugs). Far better than the usual mulch, and enough to wash out the taste of John Keys version of Snoopys […]

  6. Fun stuff

    Written By:  IrishBill -  Date published: 10:50 pm, December 23rd, 2009 -  15 comments
    Categories: rumour
    Tags:

    I must say I love the Christmas season. You spend a lot of time catching up with all sorts of interesting people, having a few too many drinks and sharing some gossip. How much of it is true is anyone’s guess but here’s a few things I’ve picked up around the traps. John Key’s office […]

  7. Time to up the pressure on our leaders

    Written By:  notices and features -  Date published: 10:00 am, December 22nd, 2009 -  38 comments
    Categories: climate change
    Tags: , ,

    Greenpeace executive director Kumi Naidoo makes the case that the failure of our leaders at Copenhagen means the time has come to intensify the pressure on them, including through non-violent civil disobedience and direct action. Hat tip: Greenpeace blog.

  8. Oh yeah, SPEEDholes

    Written By:  Eddie -  Date published: 7:29 am, December 22nd, 2009 -  7 comments
    Categories: climate change, humour, transport
    Tags:

    Could making the surface of cars rough be a cheap and esay way to boost fuel efficiency, thereby saving oil and helping tackle climate change? The idea comes from the dimples on golf-balls, which hold a thin layer of air to the ball, lessening turbulence and drag. And, amazingly, it appears to work: [the full segment on […]

  9. Today’s climate protest in Wgtn

    Written By:  notices and features -  Date published: 6:09 pm, December 21st, 2009 -  26 comments
    Categories: activism, climate change
    Tags:

    Two protests today successfully highlighted the role of New Zealand’s agricutural industry and business community in contributing to climate change. The first protest involved a blockade of the NZ Stock Exchange entrance and resulted in nine arrests. In the second action two activists scaled the building of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade for […]

  10. Those hard to find WIMPs

    Written By:  lprent -  Date published: 4:00 pm, December 21st, 2009 -  25 comments
    Categories: science
    Tags:

    There have been some new results from the search for WIMPs (Weakly Interacting Massive Particles) at the Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS) in Minnesota. This showed up in The Economist science section last week with an excellent summary of what they were looking for and why in the post “An early Christmas present?. Around a […]

  11. Right’s privatisation arguments rubbish

    Written By:  Guest post -  Date published: 3:05 pm, December 20th, 2009 -  152 comments
    Categories: assets, privatisation
    Tags:

    As a senior economist at a respected company, John Carran wrote some apallingly simplistic tripe in his article, “Exorcising the asset sale bogey“, Dominion Post, 19 Dec. It is as if the programme of privatisation in the late 1980s and 1990s never happened, and we have learnt nothing from those experiences and subsequent socio-economic consequences. […]

  12. Failing the future

    Written By:  r0b -  Date published: 9:41 am, December 20th, 2009 -  99 comments
    Categories: climate change, Environment, leadership
    Tags: ,

    So Copenhagen has ended in failure. I’m not surprised, but I am disappointed. As The Guardian reports: Low targets, goals dropped: Copenhagen ends in failure Deal thrashed out at talks condemned as climate change scepticism in action The UN climate summit reached a weak outline of a global agreement in Copenhagen tonight, falling far short […]

  13. All that glitters

    Written By:  notices and features -  Date published: 12:00 pm, December 18th, 2009 -  15 comments
    Categories: Satire
    Tags:

    Brilliant piece from Stephen Colbert on the nutty American Right’s new obsession with gold. Sure, it’s billed as a survivalist thing – preparing for the collapse of society brought on by Obama’s socialist agenda – but the truth is it’s dumb rednecks getting ripped off by immoral capitalists, again.

  14. The Climate Scoreboard

    Written By:  r0b -  Date published: 11:02 am, December 17th, 2009 -  41 comments
    Categories: climate change, Environment
    Tags:

    More details here.

  15. Scientific conspiracy on a global scale

    Written By:  r0b -  Date published: 1:54 pm, December 15th, 2009 -  40 comments
    Categories: dpf, Environment, Satire
    Tags:

    In a recent post my good friend and fellow concern troll DPF covered the Associated Press review of the leaked “climategate” materials. The review concluded that the science of global warming was genuine. But DPF had some concerns: “My worry is that there is now a mindset where only data that fits the thesis is […]

  16. Neolibs’ great experiment in meltdown

    Written By:  Marty G -  Date published: 12:45 pm, December 15th, 2009 -  41 comments
    Categories: capitalism, economy, International, tax
    Tags:

    With huge infusions of EU cash and deregulation that brought in foreign companies looking to make a quick buck, Ireland’s economy grew pretty quickly over the past 25 years. On the back of their new-found wealth, Irish governments implemented a neoliberal revolution – cutting taxes for the rich, privatising public assets, the usual formula for […]

  17. No spark in Nats’ power reforms

    Written By:  Marty G -  Date published: 4:34 pm, December 9th, 2009 -  39 comments
    Categories: energy, national/act government
    Tags: , ,

    A friend just texted: “Brownlee’s power reforms look relatively benign, what’s the catch?” It’s true, Brownlee’s reforms are just minor tinkering. The only thing of note is the needless little kick in the guts for environmentalists by making Meridian take on Whirinaki. And that tells us something. For all National’s bluster in opposition about power […]

  18. Shame on Labour for backing Goff

    Written By:  Guest post -  Date published: 11:30 am, December 9th, 2009 -  42 comments
    Categories: labour, phil goff
    Tags:

    By Andrew Campbell Shame on the Labour caucus. If it’s true that they back Phil Goff’s Nationhood speech without reservations and therefore his strategy to use dog whistling racist tactics to win back the white male vote then they deserve the long period in opposition such an approach will bring. The closing of the ranks […]

  19. Are you ‘really’ unemployed?

    Written By:  Marty G -  Date published: 8:41 am, December 8th, 2009 -  5 comments
    Categories: unemployment
    Tags:

    Governments use statistical tricks to lower the official unemployment rate. This fun video shows how many jobless people get swept under the carpet. It’s not that the statisticians aren’t aware of the jobless. In the US, they use different definitions of unemployment. ‘U-3’, the official unemployment rate only counts those people who are actively looking […]

  20. Capitalism in its wonderful natural form.

    Written By:  lprent -  Date published: 7:55 pm, December 7th, 2009 -  29 comments
    Categories: act, auckland supercity, Satire
    Tags:

    Following on from our report earlier this year about ideal places for libertarians to go, it appears that we are now seeing capitalism in its wonderful Ayn Rand style libertarian idealized form. Somali ‘maritime companies” have setup a stock exchange to help incubate free enterprise in its natural form. From Reuters we have this report. […]

  21. Palin supporters

    Written By:  r0b -  Date published: 10:53 am, December 7th, 2009 -  24 comments
    Categories: International
    Tags: ,

    Sarah Palin supporters, in their own words. Ok, it’s a cheap shot – I’m pretty sure you could eventually compile similar inane footage from the supporters almost any major political figure or party. But hey – never let it be said that I’m above cheap shots when it comes to Sarah Palin. Plus, it’s funny. […]

  22. Exclusive: New evidence shows Lee lied about NZ on Air funding

    Written By:  Eddie -  Date published: 2:27 pm, December 6th, 2009 -  53 comments
    Categories: melissa lee
    Tags:

    Newly uncovered correspondence between Melissa Lee and NZ on Air shows that she and her leader, John Key, seriously misled the media, the house and the public over the issue of her company’s misappropriation of $80,000 of NZ on Air funds. Documents obtained by The Standard show Lee’s claim to media that she had no […]

  23. In a land of plenty

    Written By:  notices and features -  Date published: 11:34 am, December 5th, 2009 -  Comments Off on In a land of plenty
    Categories: activism, economy, employment, Media
    Tags:

    Alister Barry’s other classic documentary on the effects of the Right’s neoliberal revolution on every day New Zealanders, In a Land of Plenty, is also now online thanks to NZ On Screen. Check it out below:

  24. Ethical meat on its way

    Written By:  Marty G -  Date published: 7:58 am, December 4th, 2009 -  20 comments
    Categories: climate change, energy, Environment, farming, food, science
    Tags:

    Jon Stewart covers developments in the science around making meat without raising and killing an animal. Jon has a laugh of course but this is actually really exciting stuff. I’ve been following the developing science around this for a while. The upsides are huge. You can grow meat without the animal. That means no sow […]

  25. Obama – war president

    Written By:  r0b -  Date published: 7:03 am, December 3rd, 2009 -  41 comments
    Categories: International
    Tags: , ,

    Well, any lingering hopes that Obama was something different can now be out of their misery. He’s just another American establishment politician after all. Drawing on the rhetoric of 9/11 Obama has committed to an escalation in Afghanistan: WASHINGTON – President Obama unveiled his plan Tuesday night to send 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan, declaring […]

  26. Jon Stewart’s Glenn Beck parody

    Written By:  Eddie -  Date published: 4:33 pm, December 2nd, 2009 -  2 comments
    Categories: humour, Media
    Tags: , ,

    Caught this on The Nation. Brilliant. Jon Stewart has done it again, and this time he even brought out his acting chops. In what will probably become a historic Glenn Beck impression, Stewart uses Beck’s recent appendicitis operation to concoct a conspiracy theory of his own. Using a chalkboard, glasses, and a game of Operation […]

  27. President punches kid in face

    Written By:  Eddie -  Date published: 5:15 pm, December 1st, 2009 -  9 comments
    Categories: International
    Tags:

    The Associated Press reports: Romania’s government has collapsed and its economy is in shambles but its presidential campaign has been dominated in recent days by a video that appears to show the president striking a 10-year-old boy in the face. Well, he’s got the pro-smacking vote I guess… [In the interests of fairness I should […]

  28. Someone Else’s Country

    Written By:  notices and features -  Date published: 10:30 am, November 30th, 2009 -  11 comments
    Categories: history, Media
    Tags: , , , ,

    As the same old faces of the Right roll out the same old failed neoliberal ideas in new packaging, it’s a useful time to rewatch Alister Barry’s fantastic documentaries on what happened the last time round. In many cases even the faces haven’t changed. Someone Else’s Country examines the devastating effects of the neoliberal revolution […]

  29. Key must bite the bullet over Copenhagen

    Written By:  Demeter -  Date published: 11:03 am, November 27th, 2009 -  6 comments
    Categories: climate change
    Tags: , , ,

    Another instalment of “John Key’s” video diary from talented impersonator PlumedeKiwi; this time taking a comedic stab at the PM’s refusal to attend the UN climate talks in Copenhagen. Key has come under an increasing amount of pressure in recent weeks over the summit, widely dubbed one of the most important meetings in history. It’s […]

  30. Who wins from digging up Coromandel

    Written By:  Marty G -  Date published: 10:42 am, November 27th, 2009 -  17 comments
    Categories: Environment
    Tags:

    Gerry Brownlee is talking of digging up Coromandel to extract a few tens of millions of dollars worth of gold. Naturally, the company that owns the Waihi mine is all for it. The local community gets little benefit from mining. According to the 2006 census, unemployment in Waihi is twice the national average (8.3% at […]

  31. The evidence on warming

    Written By:  r0b -  Date published: 9:29 am, November 27th, 2009 -  94 comments
    Categories: climate change, Environment
    Tags: ,

    Much ado about nothing in the last few days, with the release of materials related to climate change and warming on both the international and local scales. First the international event – “Climategate” (sigh) – the now well known theft and publication of data from the University of East Anglia’s world renowned Climate Research Unit. […]

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