On evidence that New Zealand is a more socially just society than Australia
Illustration by Tim Denee – www.timdenee.com Before this election campaign began, there was a lot of angst about our income gap with Australia. We will […]
General Politics
On Labour's plans to raise the retirement age
Labour’s plan to raise the retirement age from 65 to 67 by 2033 (with exemptions for some manual workers) and to gradually lift employer Kiwisaver […]
On the Prefu, and on the RWC attempts to vilify the French
Update: Audio – Bill English speaks to media at the release of the 2011 pre-election fiscal update. Click a link to play audio (or right-click […]
Gordon Campbell on the Rugby World Cup Victory
Opinion – Gordon Campbell This close, nail biting victory – without the triumphalism that the All Blacks running riot over their opponents would have entailed […]
On the death of Gaddafi and how the Rena spill relates to East Cape oil exploration
The death of Muammar Gaddafi – either from wounds inflicted by a NATO air strike, or (more likely) from summary execution on his way to […]
Gordon Campbell on who should pay for the Rena clean-up
So Transport Minister Stephen Joyce will be meeting this morning with the Mediterranean Shipping Company, the Greek firm that chartered the Rena from its Greek […]
On RNZ’s banning of Bomber Bradbury
The lifelong ban that RNZ has now been imposed of Martyn “Bomber” Bradbury for breaching the state broadcaster’s hallowed standards of balance is outrageous, even […]
On why the deal on Police covert video surveillance is a travesty
Click for big version. At Saturday’s protest against the bill in Wellington. Photo by Anne Russell. So a cosy deal has been reached between National […]
On the latest SAS death in Afghanistan
Somehow, the job that we’re doing in Afghanistan is so crucial that it is worth our SAS soldiers dying for – but only until 31st […]
On the Act Party’s latest policy contortions
Click for big version. By bringing together every dope smoking university student who owns a copy of Bob Marley’s Legend with every rural Rasta, the […]
On the Police surveillance bailout, and Morning Report
Illustration by Tim Denee – www.timdenee.com It would be easier to respect the law if – repeatedly – the Police and SIS didn’t seem so […]
On youth voting and the RWC’s C-List celebrities
The Greens’ Gareth Hughes has highlighted the apparent lack of interest by the young in this year’s election. Only about 72% of eligible 18-24 year […]
On workplace deaths, and Italy’s threat to Europe
It has been a bad week for those who think that business can be safely left to regulate itself. Workplace safety failures have been revealed […]
On Nicky Hager’s new book
Nicky Hager’s book launch press conference. Video credit: Anne Russell In late 2001, I remember interviewing Helen Clark on another subject, but took the opportunity […]
On Syria, and the lessons of the British riots
The call this morning by the Obama administration for Bashir al-Assad to leave office in Syria, and the US imposition of sanctions has been echoed […]
On the Government’s latest plans to Americanise the welfare system
What is it about National’s plans for welfare reform and natural disasters? On the same day in February that the Welfare Working Group released its […]
On the Christchurch rebuild, and the political abuse of the SIS
Probably, some will regard the height restriction of seven stories for the rebuild of Christchurch’s central city area as being unnecessarily arbitrary and uniform, and […]
On the Right’s Lethal Prescription for the Global Economy
Illustration by Tim Denee – www.timdenee.com Stock markets jittery, the price of gold heading through the roof… the vandalising of the US economy by the […]
On Barack Obama’s debt deal
If nothing else, Barack Obama’s tactics during the debt ceiling crisis have clarified how he plans to run for President next year: not as a […]
On the Lieutenant O’Donnell inquiry
The New Zealand Defence Force never ceases to amaze. Yesterday’s report into the death last year in Afghanistan of Lieutenant Tim O’Donnell has found shortcomings […]
On the Norway massacre
Illustration by Tim Denee – www.timdenee.com As the work of a homegrown right wing dissident, the Norway massacre clearly has more in common with the […]
On Labour’s tax package (and Rupert Murdoch)
There could hardly have been a better set of Dom-Post headlines yesterday – Fruit and Vege Prices Rocket / Healthy Choices Off The Menu As […]
On Don Brash’s race gambit (and Hugh Grant’s finest hour)
It must have been a grim moment indeed in the Act Party offices when the Resurrection of Orewa went up on the whiteboard as the […]
On the capital gains tax debate
Illustration by Tim Denee – www.timdenee.com The fact that, at last, one of New Zealand’s major parties has embraced the kind of tax on capital […]
On the bailout in Greece
Illustration by Tim Denee – www.timdenee.com Evidently, the recent attempt by EMA boss Alisdair Thompson to justify the gender pay gap has been just the […]
On National’s neglect of the armed forces
Illustration by Tim Denee – www.timdenee.com Only a National government could get away with the changes in the New Zealand Defence Force now taking place […]
On the Te Tai Tokerau result
Illustration by Tim Denee – www.timdenee.com In the wake of his victory in the Te Tai Tokerau by-election, Hone Harawira has run strategic rings around […]
On rebuilding Christchurch – and Rupert Murdoch’s beef with the Rugby World Cup
So the long awaited report on land remediation in Christchurch by the consulting engineers Tonkin and Taylor has been delivered to Prime Minister John Key […]
On yesterday’s quakes in Christchurch
In the short term, as CERA chief Roger Sutton claimed yesterday, the collapse of some 50 already-damaged buildings in the Christchurch CBD red zone will […]
On the exchange rate, and faux prudery about politicians
Given all the other problems facing the New Zealand economy, the exchange rate is among the least likely to engender much sympathy among the ordinary […]