Gordon Campbell on the dangers posed by the upcoming security services review
Could the June review of New Zealand’s security and intelligence be about to bestow on our spy agencies the express right to break the laws […]
Gordon Campbell
Gordon Campbell on the America’s Cup, and Lee Marvin
Like the Commonwealth Games, the America’s Cup is one of those large sporting events that is struggling to find anyone foolish enough to want to […]
Gordon Campbell on Andrew Little’s not-so-great week
No, it hasn’t been a terrific week so far for Andrew Little. The Labour leader’s decision to exclude the Greens from the (toothless?) committee that […]
Gordon Campbell on Labour’s latest stance on Iraq
On RNZ this morning, Labour leader Andrew Little expressed his support for air strikes in Iraq against Islamic State – and by doing so, he […]
Gordon Campbell on the SkyCity debacle
“What is this? A centre for ants? …I don’t wanna hear your excuses! The building has to be at least three times bigger than this!” […]
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 how Iraq’s visiting Foreign Minister embodies an Iraq that’s not worth fighting for
When Iraq’s Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari makes a whistle-stop visit to Auckland on Friday, he will be issuing a formal invitation for New Zealand to […]
Gordon Campbell on the government’s reluctance to treat the enemies of Islamic State as its friends
While the government attacks the left’s alleged reluctance to respond militarily to Islamic State, it continues to be strangely timid about another aspect of its […]
Gordon Campbell on the Maori “separatism” bogey
Leadership requires the leader to set aside self-interest. It is a concept that sometimes seems quite alien to Prime Minister John Key – who has […]
Gordon Campbell on the reluctance to support the Kurds against Islamic State
The boundary line between our troops having (a) an ‘advise and assist’ role in Iraq and (b) an actual combat role – which Prime Minister […]
On tomorrow’s speeches by John Key and Andrew Little
The Key government has already kicked off the political year on a stridently ideological note, with Environment Minister Nick Smith choosing to lay all manner […]
Gordon Campbell on whether Saudi Arabia is a bigger threat than Islamic State
So the US has been holding talks in London this week with its 21 coalition allies, on how best to co-ordinate the military response against […]
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 Ian Fletcher resignation & GCSB's new role
Like most events in security intelligence, the resignation for “family reasons” of GCSB boss Ian Fletcher has got (a) a simple straightforward explanation and (b) […]
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 the dumping of bad news at Christmas
Gordon Campbell on the dumping of bad news at Christmas By Gordon Campbell If the government really did have good tidings of great joy you […]
Gordon Campbell on Rick Ellis as Te Papa’s new CEO
The recent appointment of former TVNZ boss Rick Ellis to head Te Papa has copped a fair bit of criticism. Much of it has been […]
Gordon Campbell on John Key’s posturing about Islamic State
One of the main achievements of the Clark government was that it kept New Zealand out of overt involvement in the 2003 Iraq invasion. It […]
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 John Key avoiding being held accountable for the SIS and GCSB
Will the management split on security and intelligence issues that Prime Minister John Key announced yesterday serve to enhance or to reduce his public accountability […]
Gordon Campbell on the Lyttleton executive pay scandal, and more TPP problems
It isn’t often that one story can encapsulate (a) the bogus rhetoric used to justify sky-high pay packages for top executives, (b) the unequal way […]
Gordon Campbell on the last rites for the TPP
The Trans Pacific Partnership trade deal is one of those litmus issues that has always had more to do with one’s place on the political […]
Gordon Campbell on the farcical elevation of David Seymour
With the election won, it’s time to find jobs for the boy. David Seymour is the Act Party’s latest scrounger to be rewarded by the […]
Gordon Campbell on the case for using air power against the Islamic State
There is an Alice Through the Looking Glass quality to the current response to the Islamic State. Everything about it seems inside out. Many people […]
Gordon Campbell on Cunliffe’s Last Stand
Right now, embattled Labour leader David Cunliffe has three options. None of them are particularly attractive for him personally, or for the Labour Party. In […]
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 Labour’s very bad year
While Labour leader David Cunliffe still appears to be in denial about the extent of Saturday night’s debacle, there was hardly a single redeeming feature […]
Gordon Campbell on a campaign that is ending as it began
This election campaign is getting no less strange as it heads on down to the wire. Winston Peters is still refusing to say whether a […]
Gordon Campbell on first time voting (Greens)
For the last two days, I’ve turned my column over to a couple of guest columnists who are first time voters. They’ve been asked to […]