Gordon Campbell on the rise of the far right, and battle bots
In his victory speech at the Cannes film festival this week, the British film director Ken Loach warned that the rise of far right parties […]
World – Europe
Gordon Campbell on Pharmac’s indefensible stance on the new melanoma drugs
One of the interesting line items in this month’s Budget will be the one that sets out the increase – if any – in Pharmac’s […]
Gordon Campbell on the left’s current challenges in Spain
In December, the elections in Spain ended in a four way stalemate. Neither of the two old major parties – the ruling right wing Partida […]
Gordon Campbell on Podemos, and Spain’s election stalemate
The events of 2015 taught us a lot about the potential ( and the limits) of left wing populism. Syriza in Greece had started the […]
Gordon Campbell on MP pay rises, and the Paris agreement
Somehow, the ‘need” for belt tightening – or of stemming the rise in income inequality – just goes right out the window at this time […]
Gordon Campbell on why Islamic State’s growing weakness makes it more dangerous
One of the great things about writing online is that if you have a bad morning, readers will pick up on it, and take you […]
Gordon Campbell on Islam and the Paris attacks
According to polls, a third of Republican voters in Iowa want Islam to be criminalized. Unfortunately, the cornfields of middle America aren’t the only place […]
Gordon Campbell on Corbyn, Trump and outsider politics
Jeremy Corbyn elevated to the leadership of Britain’s Labour Party! Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders on the rise in the US… On both sides of […]
Gordon Campbell on selecting refugees, Aussie generosity and a cat video
Now that we know how many Syrian refugees New Zealand will accept, the focus can shift onto how they’ll be selected, and the criteria in […]
Gordon Campbell on Refugees, the Flag and Bo Diddley
There’s a simple statistical reason why New Zealand should increase its refugee intake. Our UN quota has remained static – or fallen slightly – over […]
Gordon Campbell on the government’s response to the refugee crisis in Europe
The government’s refusal to accept an emergency intake of refugees from the hundreds of thousands now pouring into Europe is pretty shameful. This country makes […]
Gordon Campbell on the deal over Iran’s phantom nukes, and nuking Greece’s future
Though it isn’t being mentioned, Islamic State was really the elephant in the room in the final phase of the decade-long negotiations on Iran’s nuclear […]
Gordon Campbell on where Greece goes from here
When you ain’t got nothin’ you got nothin’ to lose – Bob Dylan As one candid British commentator tried to come to grips with why […]
Gordon Campbell on Tiwai Point, and saying “No” in Greece
Its hard to see how Rio Tinto’s one month delay in announcing its intentions about the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter is a good sign for […]
Gordon Campbell on the crisis in Greece
Greece, as the cradle of democracy, is getting no brownie points for actually practicing it. The decision by the Greek government to go back to […]
Gordon Campbell on the latest good reason for dumping the monarchy
The monarchy, the media and the masses is a threesome made in tabloid heaven, and it has seen a lot of action during this past […]
Gordon Campbell on lessons for Labour from the UK election
If the polls were right – and the pollsters kept telling us how accurate they’d been in 2010, and even Nate Silver was getting the […]
Gordon Campbell on why Miliband will be the next British PM
The Britain that goes to the polls on Thursday looks awfully familiar to anyone from New Zealand. In Britain too, a smooth but vacuous technocrat […]
Gordon Campbell on how Europe is (finally) acting against Saudi Arabia’s human rights abuses
For decades, the ringing statements on human rights by various European and US governments have been undermined by the diplomatic support they’ve given to the […]
Gordon Campbell on the Privy Council’s Teina Pora decision
The quashing of the convictions of Teina Pora for the rape and murder of Susan Burdett in 1992 has shone a spotlight once again on […]
Gordon Campbell on the recent smackdown over Greece, and Mr Spock RIP
There had been a fortnight of fevered buildup. Yet here we are in the aftermath of the February 28 showdown between the new Syriza government […]
Gordon Campbell on the latest arm-wrestling bout over Greece’s austerity crisis, and Father John Misty
This morning’s meeting between Greece and Europe’s finance ministers seems to have broken up without any substantial agreements being reached, beyond a bit of bridging […]
Gordon Campbell on the election in Greece, and EU turmoil
The election in Greece on Sunday – and the likely triumph of the left wing Syriza Party – will be only the first of three […]
Gordon Campbell on the similarities between John Key and David Cameron
This week, Prime Minister John Key was reportedly invited to join a private birthday celebration for the young daughter of British PM David Cameron. They’re […]
Gordon Campbell on the Charlie Hebdo killings and response
Now that the Kouachi brothers have made their Butch-and-Sundance dash for martyrdom, and now that the millions have marched in Paris and elsewhere to defend […]
Gordon Campbell on New Zealand’s response to Kiwi jihadis
When Parliament resumes on October 20, Prime Minister John Key will reportedly be making a major speech on security and intelligence issues. The speech is […]
Gordon Campbell on the troubled aftermath of Scotland’s independence vote
A week can be a very long time in Scotland’s 300 year struggle for independence. The “ No” vote last week that seemed to end […]
Gordon Campbell on National’s phantom tax cut package
Hmmm. So National’s tax cuts package turns out to be one of those television advertisements that screams a headline promise – perfect skin! a youth […]
Gordon Campbell on the West’s existential crisis about what to do with Putin, and the Islamic State
Say one thing for Russian President Vladimir Putin. At least he’s given NATO a purpose in life. Right now, that consists of being something that […]
On corporate manslaughter, and France’s upcoming elections
Yesterday, the Pike River inquiry heard renewed calls for a criminal charge of corporate manslaughter to be put on the books in New Zealand. “Some […]