On John Key’s illusory gains on free trade
John Key’s tendency to govern by photo opportunity took a drastic new turn on the weekend. As Radio New Zealand reported this morning, the New […]
NZ World News
On the Hillary Clinton visit
Click for big version Prime Minister John Key and Secretary Of State Hillary Rodham Clinton in the Beehive Theatrette – More images, audio and video […]
On The Hobbit finale
Great. The Hobbit stays here. Everyone’s happy about that – you, me, John Key, Robyn Malcolm…we’re all so very happy, at least until we look […]
On the Latest stage of The Hobbit drama
So, according to Sir Peter Jackson and Philippa Boyens all that Warners are asking for in an uncertain world is certainty. A surety that no […]
On the Paul Henry saga
So far, the penalties levied on Paul Henry’s have gone no further than a two week suspension for his on air querying of whether Kiwis […]
Gordon Campbell on the end game for The Hobbit
The two main issues that will decide Warners’ decision about where to shoot The Hobbit are both inching towards a resolution. Neither involve the actors’ […]
Gordon Campbell on the trade unions vs Peter Jackson wrangle over 'The Hobbit'.
If the production of The Hobbit does finally move to eastern Europe, it would not be because of the actors’ wage bill or any fresh […]
On the Games, and progress in exporting democracy
Reportedly, Scotland and Wales are sending their teams to the Commonwealth Games in Delhi, while Canada and New Zealand are still delaying team departures, until […]
On John Key’s false rationale for being in Afghanistan, and Vincent Gallo’s sweet revenge
Late last week, a major bi-partisan American organization released its report on the policy options facing the US and NATO forces in Afghanistan. This was […]
On our first combat death in Afghanistan
The first fatality in the New Zealand deployment in Afghanistan has occurred on the same day the Dutch ended their deployment in Uruzgan province, as […]
On the Gaza inquiry, and new twists in the Carter affair
It may seem ‘too late’ to announce the appointment of a UN inquiry panel into the Gaza flotilla raid. Whether it is also ‘too little’ […]
On the making of The Hobbit
Given that successive governments have identified the film industry as a prime catalyst of the knowledge economy, you might have expected more local media attention […]
On John Key getting us mixed up in Australia’s problems with asylum seekers
Click for big version Asylum seekers? We’ve been here before under a National-led government. In 1999, the then-Immigration Minister Tuariki Delamere used the spectre of […]
On the World Cup, and the media’s buy-in to the national mood of elation
Well, New Zealand made a splash in the Fifa World Cup coverage yesterday – and I don’t mean via the draw with Italy. No, the […]
On our costly and futile efforts in Afghanistan
Routinely, we are told that the New Zealand Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) in Afghanistan’s Bamiyan province has been doing a great job – and maybe […]
On the need for New Zealand to condemn the Gaza blockade
The Israeli attack on the Turkish aid convoy to Gaza, and its subsequent slaughter of the civilians on board is being condemned around the world. […]
On Gordon Brown’s exit, and the SAS role in defending women’s oppression in Afghanistan
Now that Gordon Brown has resigned, the way is a little bit clearer for Nick Clegg to make a deal with Labour – but only […]
On privatizing water, and the SAS in Afghanistan
Local Government Minister Rodney Hide continues to pursue his vocation in life, of turning public assets into profit centres for the private sector. The amendment […]
On RWC fever, and Obama’s Supreme Court choice
RNZ this morning carried the news that “new research” now shows that the Rugby World Cup would add an estimated $535 million to the nation’s […]
On New Zealand's Anti-Nuclear Posturing
Click for big version New Zealand’s national identity is very much based on our sense of virtuous purity – and the feeling that we can […]
On why free trade with the US is more Monty Python than Holy Grail
Perhaps we can all quietly sign a pact to forego comparing a free trade deal with the US to the quest for the Holy Grail. […]
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 monarchy, and Keith Locke’s mechanism for replacing it
Click for big version Prince William And The Governor General Anand Satyanand. Photography by Woolf – www.woolf.co.nz Flexibility is an essential feature of the modern […]
Public funding for a Rugby World Cup that few can afford to attend
In any other industry, the taxpayer/ratepayer subsidies being offered to the professional rugby industry for its World Cup event in 2011 would be being slagged […]
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 […]
The SAS going Dutch – or Canadian – in Afghanistan
Now that our SAS troops are heading back into combat in Afghanistan the key question becomes – who are they going to replace? The answer […]
McCully’s oversell of changes to our foreign aid programme
The belated release yesterday of the April 23 Cabinet papers on the changes to New Zealand’s aid programme suggest that Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully […]
On Fiji And Its Critics
Oh dear. In the black and white universe in which the likes of No Right Turn reside, I’m now allegedly a supporter of despotism for […]
Events in Fiji
Chris Trotter is well able to look after himself, but the recent criticism on him by No Right Turn over the Fiji situation is worth […]
The Helen Clark appointment
While Helen Clark’s appointment to a four year term as administrator of the United Nations Development Plan is a major personal achievement, let’s not lose […]