On the Economics of Mining DOC Land
Click to enlarge At yesterday’s Post cabinet press conference [video], Prime Minister John Key repeated the government’s current defensive position on the proposal to extend […]
General Politics
On the Wellywood sign (& Education Cuts)
As the Facebook critics of the Wellywood sign have pointed out, it is pretty hard to see the logic of promoting the creativity of the […]
On fresh evidence about the gender pay gap
An appropriate newsflash yesterday for International Women’s Day. After analyzing Inland Revenue data, the Women’s Ministry has found that women almost immediately begin to be […]
On Theresa Gattung’s attack on Telecom
One hates to kick someone when they’re down – but when it is former Telecom CEO Theresa Gattung and she is peddling a book in […]
On David Garrett’s sterilisation plan, and the divisions within Hamas
David Garrett’s bizarre suggestion that people who abuse children should be given a $5,000 incentive to get themselves sterilized is so crass that one hardly […]
On the Phil Heatley saga,and more on low budget films
Image from nznationalparty’s photostream – On board the NUShip Perth Normally when there is a personal cloud over a Minister, they would stand down and/or […]
On the government’s environmental credibility problems in Canterbury, and attacks on Police
Click to enlarge Reportedly, Ronald Reagan’s aides would go into in panic mode whenever the avuncular President started to ad lib a few additional points […]
On Trevor Mallard’s big day, and the Film Commission’s new low budget film scheme
Normally, Trevor Mallard is not renowned for his subtlety, yet his stealth attack on Education Minister yesterday in the House was a stone classic. First, […]
On the problems in making the tax cuts equation stack up
Would scrapping the depreciation rules on rental residential property really deliver the $1.6 billion promised? That $1.6 billion sits on one side of the ledger […]
On John Key’s agenda for the nation
Compensate is such a slippery word. If you set out to make the elite squad in team A immensely better off with money taken from […]
On the government’s clueless response to unemployment and why Mike Moore shouldn’t go to Washington
Well, we’re now seeing some of the fruits of small government, and having government butt out of our lives. Unemployment rose to 7.3 % during […]
Gordon Campbell on the government's tolerance of white collar crime
This government takes a crush ’em and crate ’em approach to crime – unless that is, the offender happens to be wearing a tie. In […]
Gordon Campbell on the SAS in Kabul, and the media’s duty to report on their actions
The saga of media coverage of the SAS in Afghanistan took another turn on the weekend with National MP Eric Roy bizarrely blaming Helen Clark […]
On the ‘Three Strikes’ Policy and the SAS in Kabul
Click to enlarge In the Book of Leviticus, God takes a no nonsense, zero tolerance approach to offending. Curse your parents, or let your child […]
On whether people should be able to burn the flag at Anzac Day
Click to enlarge Any masochist who wants to feel depressed about the state of the New Zealand judiciary needs only to turn to Justice Terence […]
The Treasury Update, And Calls for Austerity
Any future built on Treasury forecasts is on shaky ground, but lets assume the relative optimism expressed by Treasury in yesterday’s half yearly fiscal update […]
Anne Tolley’s last stand, and those abusive mayoral texts
Education Minister Anne Tolley is painting herself into a dangerous corner by threatening to sack the boards of trustees at any primary schools still refusing […]
China’s role in our problems with P
Media coverage of the battle against P has tended to focus on the role of Maori gangs in the P trade. Yet most of the […]
Margaret Bazley’s attacks on legal aid
The ‘gone by lunchtime’ response to legal aid that the Key government has chosen to adopt in the wake of Margaret Bazley report needs to […]
Phil Goff and the race card
Click to enlarge Playing the race card is one of those claims that is meant to shut down any further debate, and Phil Goff knew […]
Campbell: Using kids as guinea pigs (+ Hone, ETS)
Over the past 30 years, the public has regularly been treated as laboratory rats for this or that ideological hobby horse of government. Crash on […]
The selective targeting of Beenie Man
Reportedly, Big Day Out organizers have backed down from their original intention to include the Jamaican dancehall musician Beenie Man in the next BDO festival […]
The powers of search and surveillance
Does the Search and Surveillance Bill, as the NZ Herald has recently maintained, really give a web of state agencies ‘sweeping powers to spy, bug […]
The Harawira junket, and Sean Plunket
At least the coalition government has shown itself to be united this week – it seems intent on junketing at taxpayer expense across a broad […]
Gordon Campbell: Foreshore and Seabed deals & dealing with Iran
Click to enlarge So today, the government formally agrees to dump the foreshore and seabed legislation. On one level, this means karma retribution for National, […]
Anne Tolley’s 19th century approach to education
Remember National’s election promise to return New Zealand to the top half of the OECD tables? In government, its moves in education seem motivated more […]
Managing the Press Gallery, and Afghanistan
Click for big version As a free fire exercise in which anything at all can be raised, the Prime Minister’s post Cabinet press conference should […]
The RWC resolution, and ACC changes
So the outcome of the Rugby World Cup fiasco is a reversion to sanity – one bid only, involving Maori Television, TVNZ and TV3. In […]
The Rugby World Cup bids
There seem to be two Rugby World Cups taking place in 2011. One is an absolutely splendid affair being overseen by RWC Minister Murray McCully […]
Tim Groser’s battle with the Wall Street Journal, and the Obama Peace Prize
Ouch. The main media byproduct of the recent Tim Groser march on Washington seems to have been this nasty editorial in the Wall Street Journal […]