On legal aid, and the definitive account of the Hobbit saga
For a party that made the Nanny State such a big part of its 2008 election campaign, today’s cutbacks to legal aid are merely National’s […]
Police and Crime
On the ongoing saga of prisoners' right to vote
Last year, and despite the objections of its own Attorney-General, the Key government removed the right of all prisoners to vote. That puts us outside […]
On the Wongs, and more on Police pursuits
Surprise surprise. Sammy Wong may not have told Lockwood Smith’s appointed Parliamentary Services investigator all of the relevant truth relating to one of Wong’s taxpayer […]
On needless Police pursuit deaths, and the new Catch 22 powers of the SIS
At his post Cabinet press conference yesterday, Prime Minister John Key confirmed that 18 people had died in police pursuits this year. Scoop asked him […]
on John Key’s hopes for trade progress at APEC (and the war on P)
Later this week, Prime Minister John Key heads off to the APEC conference in Yokohama, where his hosts seem to be living through some very […]
On taking away the right to vote from prisoners, and John Key’s latest slur on MMP
Click for big version For the last few months a silly and spiteful private members Bill sponsored by National MP Paul Quinn has been working […]
On the ‘quake aftermath, and Sean Plunket’s exit
The news that Police have reported a 53% leap in domestic violence incidents in the wake of the Christchurch earthquake stands in stark contrast to […]
On the appointing of Zaoui’s tormenter to investigate complaints against the Police
There’s no success like failure, as Bob Dylan once pointed out, and failure is no success at all. A reward for failure is the only […]
On the Waihopai ‘Claim of Right’ Defence, and Arming the Police
Jump to ‘Reduce Violence : Arm the Police. Yeah, right.’ Usually when the public feels outraged by an acquittal in a high profile trial, the […]
On Julia Gillard, and Simon Power
Julia Gillard’s ascent to the top job in Australia will face its first major policy test in the next fortnight, as she will have to […]
On the child abuse scandal within the Catholic Church
At the school I attended as a child, any and all queries by parents about the standard of teaching or the content of the syllabus […]
On the Waihopai Three Verdict, and East Jerusalem
2008 Image: Ploughshares Penetrate Waihopai Base Deflate Dome The acquittal of the Waihopai Three for their attack on the Waihopai spy base is as welcome […]
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 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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
Putting the 9/11 Terrorists on Trial
Click to enlarge For years, human rights advocates have argued that terrorism is essentially criminal behaviour, and terrorists should therefore be tried under the rules […]
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 […]
A Few Extra Reasons Why The Boscawen Bill Should Be Dumped
Interesting that Act MP John Boscawen wants to introduce legislation that will try to re-define what is or isn’t a permitted means, and level, of […]
Foreign ownership rules, and California’s support for Chief Justice Sian Elias
To its critics, the government’s response to the recession has looked like an Eighties Revival. Psychologically speaking, that’s not so surprising, When in trouble, politicians […]
Gordon Campbell: The Sian Elias speech about crime
The recent speech by Chief Justice Sian Elias may have been greeted with some – sensational headlines – “Top Judge Suggests Prison Amnesty” – and […]
The Erosion Of Justice
As the civil rights we enjoy get whittled away, the pattern is becoming very familiar. Initially, fresh powers of search, detention, use of secret evidence […]
Parliament’s willingness to scrutinise the SIS
This evening the new members of Parliament’s committee on the security and intelligence will meet for the first time. John Key, Rodney Hide, Tariana Turia, […]
Spies in Parliament, the Rugby World Cup and the privatization of TVNZ
So, as Scoop recommended six weeks ago, the SIS is to be told to close its files on sitting MPs. Paul Neazor, the SIS Inspector-General, […]