class war

Government report card: poverty, jobs, housing – FAIL!

Written By: karol - Date published: 8:34 am, February 13th, 2013 - 22 comments

The Salavation Army “State of the Nation” report is out today, and, as Metiria Turei says, it makes depressing reading.  It describes a nation of increasing inequalities, with those on low incomes, and their children, being hit particularly hard.

The failure of economic austerity

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 8:54 am, February 11th, 2013 - 18 comments

As one writer sums it up – “no austerity has helped any economy”. So why do we carry on with this failed ideology? Perhaps because, while it does nothing for the vast majority of people, it helps make the super-rich even richer…

Beneficiary bashing – mission accomplished

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 9:05 am, February 6th, 2013 - 172 comments

National’s constant beneficiary bashing has borne predictable fruit – beneficiaries are now perceived as the most discriminated against group in the country.

Opposition speeches & ‘Roads of Madness’

Written By: karol - Date published: 12:05 pm, January 30th, 2013 - 54 comments

Debates on the PM’s statement to the House show that this do-nothing government needs to go.  Plenty of good ideas from opposition MPs. An excellent speech by Genter against Joyce’s ‘Roads of Madness’ & for public transport.

The Feral Rich Are Destroying Our Civilised Society

Written By: notices and features - Date published: 3:27 pm, January 29th, 2013 - 87 comments

Reprinted with permission, from Dave Kennedy (bsprout) at Local Bodies.

The heart of darkness

Written By: Zetetic - Date published: 10:39 am, January 27th, 2013 - 181 comments

I wondered why the Herald had given a column to a barely literate liquidator, until now. They say sunlight is the best disinfectant, and running Damien Grant’s hateful, self-centred pieces exposes the ugliness at the heart of the neoliberal capitalist class. The titles alone are enough: ‘I’d rather a better phone than feed a hungry child’, ‘Life as the top capitalist in capitalism the only life worth having’.

Media Bias & Democracy II: beyond 2 sides

Written By: karol - Date published: 11:56 am, January 22nd, 2013 - 52 comments

MSM “impartiality” focuses on two sides of a very narrow and shifting “centre”.  Parliamentary Labour parties have got locked into appealing to this centre, over time shifting the caucus rightwards. Only momentum from the flax roots can break the resulting steady rightwards shift.

Affordable housing

Written By: Zetetic - Date published: 9:39 am, January 18th, 2013 - 24 comments

The housing bubble’s clearly back. More wealth concentrated in the hands of the few. More of the rest of us stuck with renting for life. The politicians are talking about affordable housing. But Labour’s plan’s not affordable unless your income’s $60,000 a year or more. And who could afford the petrol you would burn living in National’s planned exurbs?

Ear treatment cuts another attack on the poor

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 3:58 pm, January 15th, 2013 - 27 comments

The Nats want to cut the budget for surgery to install grommets, a technique for treating persistent ear infection (especially in children). Naturally those most effected by this ill-considered move will be children from poor families.

State housing vs home ownership

Written By: karol - Date published: 9:45 am, January 11th, 2013 - 160 comments

Labour’s 2012 Kiwibuild policy has focused on building homes for first time buyers.  Now we are told Labour’s 2011 policy pledging to increase the state housing stock still stands.  This raises many questions: including do-ability and the Labour leadership’s continuing (neoliberal) focus.

Halting Dynamics and Shifting Inertias

Written By: Bill - Date published: 5:20 pm, January 7th, 2013 - 43 comments

Like many, I’ve been somewhat bemused and not a little angered that austerity is touted as a pathway to economic recovery. Like many, I’ve come to view both austerity and bail outs simply as means to put public monies and the control of public institutions into private hands – all the while diminishing the power of citizens on both an individual and collective basis.

But why consciously destroy or abandon real economic activity in a quest for power? Why not continue to build on whatever ‘real economy’ bases of power you posses? Idle speculation might suggest a lust for power, y’know… power for power’s sake. Or a reaction to, or recognition of impending peak resources in a world of growing population.

The unreported & off the cliff

Written By: karol - Date published: 10:58 am, January 2nd, 2013 - 12 comments

Over the last year some issues have been under-reported, some ignored: the climate/environment, subversive FBI activities, bankster rorts, decline of democracy, the need for new left & green politics. Some news has been overdramatised, some masks the real needs.  And the “fiscal cliff”?

Sacred cows

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 9:02 am, December 20th, 2012 - 38 comments

An anonymous editorial in The Herald yesterday suggested that the government raise revenue by cutting the “sacred cow” of interest free student loans.  For some strange reason the sacred cow of National’s tax cut bribe for the rich was not similarly offered up for sacrifice.  I wonder why that might be.

Beyond the middleclasses

Written By: karol - Date published: 8:29 am, December 16th, 2012 - 82 comments

Political parties tend to target the middle-classes, while those struggling on low incomes have become increasingly disenfranchised.  The MSM tends to focus on the impact of the recession on the middle-classes, and not those really suffering. Who can provide support over the holiday period?