The Standard Week: 10-17 October

Written By: - Date published: 12:57 pm, October 17th, 2008 - 7 comments
Categories: standard week - Tags:

The polls are closing, National dropped 7% and 4% in the Roy Morgan and TV3 polls, respectively, as the full impact of Key’s lies on Tranzrail was felt. Word is that National’s internal numbers are turning a few more hairs grey, while Labour’s are renewing optimism in their camp. Colmar Brunton hasn’t followed the trend but the story round the traps is that has more to do with, um,exceptionally close relations between McCully and Colmar than anything else. Remember, those poll numbers all came before what has turned into a week from hell for National. Labour’s use of its launch to announce a major economic stimulus programme and protection of bank deposits showed that it was reacting to changing economic conditions, which left Key looking out of touch as he drummed out another rendition of his stump speech at National’s launch just down the road. Even a points victory in the debate on Tuesday has come back to hurt Key as it has become apparent he has been making promises in private to the Maori Party that contradict what he’s telling the public. National will be bracing for another couple of rounds of bad polls as first the negative reaction to the tax cut/Kiwisaver cut policy and then this latest dishonesty flows through over the coming weeks. They will be eyeing that crucial 44-46% level, below which they will not be able to govern, with increasing concern. Here are our favourite posts of the week:

Pita falls for the lines – but not for long
His predilection for telling people what they want to hear is becoming something of an ongoing issue…[more]

Wrong time for short-term thinking
Now, more than ever, I don’t think New Zealand can afford to be run by a party that refuses to make long-term investments in the future….[more]

A real economic plan
I don’t give Labour praise lightly but I think today Clark showed that they have the best answer for the hard times to come. National has only the failed policies of the past….[more]

Labour chickens out on $15 minimum wage
a lost opportunity politically, a let down for workers, and a reminder that if you want a truly left-wing Labour-led Government you need to party vote Green….[more]

The Standard line
check out this series of posts which will aim to cover issues as they arise and present the left-wing arguments and counter-arguments in bit-size form, allowing you to impress friend and foe alike with your mastery of political debate [more]

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7 comments on “The Standard Week: 10-17 October ”

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  1. Matthew Pilott 1
    17 October 2008 at 1:04 pm

    This is called “The Standard week”. I thought there was no “the standard” as such, but this confirms it. I’m also parodying a complete dumb-arse.

  2. r0b 2
    17 October 2008 at 1:37 pm

    I’m also parodying a complete dumb-arse.

    Terrible parody – needs work on spelling, punctuation, and lame made up “1iabore” type frothing. 5/10, could try harder 🙂

    Good summary SP – it’s been quite a week all right!

    (In transit – hope to be back in the real world one day soon….)

  3. Ianmac 3
    17 October 2008 at 3:36 pm

    Matthew Pilott (not Hooten!) I enjoy your posts esp on Colin Espiners Blog. It is hard to parody. Laughter makes it hard to peck ouwt the rite keys I mean the Right Key.
    Actually someone over there spoke about an interesting credible poll coming out. Um. If it shows Nat at 56% it must be credible!!

  4. deemac 4
    17 October 2008 at 4:20 pm

    you missed the highlight of the week – Rodney Hide on Back Benches challenging Charles Chauvel to run naked along Lambton Quay. Creepy or what? (Actually he called it Lambton Street – a “senior moment” or an indication he’s losing it?)
    He then insisted on a group hug with Charles and Josie Pagani. You can see the full weirdness on the TVNZ site…

  5. Matthew Pilott 5
    17 October 2008 at 5:07 pm

    Hey thanks Ianmac. Stuff can be an interesting place. Probably fewer partisan types there overall, but the comments are certainly a mixed bag – I’ve seen your good work there too. Have a good weekend all – only a few weeks to go…

  6. Jesse 6
    18 October 2008 at 2:17 pm

    [lprent: warning comment by a previously banned wishart spammer]

    Well ended up a good week for John Key and the Nats with the latest Fairfax Poll Nats 51% Labour 33%
    Some how I figure those are going to be about the numbers on polling day with the Labour vote slipping away in the big Pacific Island Communities mainly due Social Engineering.
    I dont think Pete Hodgson is cutting it as a strategist Labour needs some one more in tune with the voters.

  7. Razorlight 7
    19 October 2008 at 4:39 am

    The story of the week should be “where the fuck is all this money coming from”. It truley is amazing and scary how little time is being given to this issue. I hope it is a question that is asked more and more of politicians of both sides.

    SP, you once laughed at the Nats and mocked their policy to borrow. Remember writing this

    “A fancy new class of ‘investment vehicle’ will be created – infrastructure bonds. Banks etc will buy these off the Government, which will use the money to build roads and then the bond holder will, over the course of several decades, make huge profits from these bonds. It’s a fancy name, but it’s the same thing – we borrow money off someone else and pay them a mint for it later on. Our public debt would increase from 20% to 22% of GDP as a result. Hundreds of millions will flow overseas every year to pay our debts, rather than being used to fund our hospitals and schools.”

    Lets hope you are consistent with your criticisms of this policy and put the blowtorch on all parties spending policies. Or was it only a bad policy to borrow when Cullen wasn’t planning to do it?

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