same old national
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Scratch a Tory…
Written By: - Date published: 9:27 am, October 22nd, 2008 - 40 comments
…and you still reveal a bigot, it seems. Here is National’s Immigration spokesperson, Lockwood Smith, (he who likes to swallow dead fish) on taking more Asian seasonal worker migrants instead of Polynesians: “There are some skills in the vineyard that some people are perhaps better at, for example some of the pruning … some of […]
Wouldn’t you be embarrassed if…..?
Written By: - Date published: 1:28 pm, October 15th, 2008 - 40 comments
I have to declare – yes, I am an urban liberal. So I would be embarrassed if a member of my family said this: The National Party’s candidate for New Plymouth (Jonathan Young) says homosexuality is a choice and strongly objects to it being seen as a “normal alternative“: Jonathan Young’s views, printed in the […]
Tories still bigots at heart
Written By: - Date published: 11:56 pm, October 12th, 2008 - 47 comments
When I saw this guy using the guise of a Youtube debate question to attack Clark on her appearance, I felt sorry for the little jerk – what a pathetic life he must lead. When I saw Bill ‘do what it takes to win’ English do the same thing (at 1.30), while an audience of […]
Hooten shows his true colours
Written By: - Date published: 1:56 pm, October 12th, 2008 - 36 comments
The Herald reports that producers had to interrupt the filming of today’s Eye to Eye because Mathew Hooten called Winston Peters a “f***ing c***”. Apparently Hooton confirmed he used the phrase but was unrepentant. I think we all knew Hooten was a childish bully, it’s just kind of a shame he had to confirm it […]
In case you missed it
Written By: - Date published: 9:31 am, October 10th, 2008 - 14 comments
Here’s the footage from 3News last night on the fresh National Party cocktail revelations. Bill English’s comments again serve to reinforce the message of The Hollow Men: this is a group of people who are about winning at all costs, principles be damned.
No, Bill.
Written By: - Date published: 8:29 pm, October 9th, 2008 - 27 comments
I felt a pang of pity for Bill English tonight as I watched TV3 roll out another secret tape. After all, “winning is everything” isn’t an unusual sentiment in politics. But when I considered the second part of his comment, “despite the highly principled statements”, my pity faded. It’s one thing to engage in “win […]
Costs of the Nats tax cuts – commentators’ views
Written By: - Date published: 12:15 pm, October 9th, 2008 - 4 comments
Here’s a smattering of what some of the commentators are saying: Gordon Campbell: Putting tax cuts ahead of science and research neatly underlines the lack of vision, or sensible strategy for growth in the National package … The cutbacks on science and research will only send more scientists and high tech jobs offshore and rob New […]
Nats desperate to silence grassroots activists
Written By: - Date published: 1:53 pm, September 28th, 2008 - 33 comments
An email from a reader: “A friend and I were putting up some Vote with Both Eyes Open posters on Lambton Quay the other night. We had just put some up around the intersection by Parliament and crossed the road when a senior National advisor came up to us with one of our recently pasted banners […]
Key on scrapping four weeks annual leave
Written By: - Date published: 11:15 am, September 18th, 2008 - 24 comments
Thanks to the wonders of Scoopit I’ve just come across this old TVNZ footage of John Key’s first day as National’s finance spokesman. It’s interesting to see where his economic priorities lay: The more things change, the more they stay the same, eh? [It’s worth noting that this isn’t some aberration limited to John Key […]
Key still wishes we had invaded Iraq
Written By: - Date published: 6:45 am, September 18th, 2008 - 158 comments
Helen Clark made foreign policy judgement a campaign issue today when she told a Grey Power meeting that if New Zealand had invaded Iraq with the US as John Key wanted we would have lost up to 60 soldiers*. Through a spokesman, John Key said “the claim of 60 dead is hysterical and desperate”. I […]
Look. Over there!
Written By: - Date published: 3:26 pm, September 5th, 2008 - 49 comments
A friend has just rung to excitedly inform me that National’s conservation policy has now also been released by Trevor Mallard. That means there is officially a leak in the National Party caucus. I expect in the next hour or so the Nats are going to start their misdirection campaign and I expect it will […]
Sales pitch
Written By: - Date published: 9:33 am, August 26th, 2008 - 59 comments
He just doesn’t give up does he? Maurice Williamson was spotted this morning still trying to sell his toll booth idea to Auckland motorists. Spy photos below.
Nat: our ‘diversity’ is just a gimmick
Written By: - Date published: 11:39 am, August 25th, 2008 - 35 comments
Unless a party has a systematic bias towards one sector of the population, it would be normal to expect that their candidates would represent a cross-section of the community – after all, talented, qualified people can be found in all groups; political aptitude is not just a Pakeha male trait. So, it was kind of […]
Nats: some of us look like youse
Written By: - Date published: 10:33 am, August 18th, 2008 - 142 comments
National is desperate for you to know its party list is a diverse one. It’s a diverse list alright. I mean you’ve got a woman at 7, another at 10, yet more at 17 and 20 – you’re talking up to four women in a National Cabinet! And two of them aren’t even Pakeha! OK, all […]
Nats bashing on solo mums
Written By: - Date published: 4:28 pm, August 11th, 2008 - 110 comments
Wonder of wonders, the Nats’ benefits policy has an 11 page document attached to it. Oh, wait, it’s mostly just stats ripped from the MSD website and long-winded rewordings of the bullet-points, not actual detail of the Nats’ policy. So, what have we got from the party that proclaims it wants more disciplined spending, less […]
Ambitious for beneficiary-bashing
Written By: - Date published: 11:36 am, August 11th, 2008 - 40 comments
That nice man, Mr Key, the one who says the old Left/Right divide is over, that he’s a new man with a new (ambitious) vision for New Zealand has rolled out an unprecedented and exciting policy today: beneficiary bashing. At present, we have a world-leading benefit system. By investing in staff, WINZ has become more […]
Policies for the wrong time (again)
Written By: - Date published: 8:40 pm, August 10th, 2008 - 40 comments
We’ve heard a lot about the ‘private’ opinions of some senior National MP’s this week. What we haven’t heard much about is the policy direction National was putting out in public during the conference. Rod Oram has a very interesting commentary on that topic in Sunday Star Times “National needs a shake-up”. Rod Oram always […]
Giving with one hand, taking with the other
Written By: - Date published: 11:49 am, August 10th, 2008 - 30 comments
I’ve gotta admit feeling a little bit sorry for Key over the story of his offer to donate “a good part” of his PM’s salary – should he win – to charity. One of those cases of damned if you do, damned if you don’t. Crosby/Textor would be rightly concerned about the potential downside of […]
A hard place
Written By: - Date published: 11:41 am, August 10th, 2008 - 13 comments
Kudos to Crosby Textor for doing such a good job of changing the secret agenda debate to the issue of who taped the conversations (although whoever came up with the absurd idea of taking photos of John’s rubbish should probably be put on leave until the election is over) but they have a harder job […]
Desperate Nats reduced to bounties and bribery
Written By: - Date published: 3:48 pm, August 8th, 2008 - 123 comments
When there’s a strike on, it’s common practice for bosses to offer individual workers a bonus payment to scab on their comrades and return to work. Most workers spit on such offers, they know the best outcome in the long-term comes when they stand strong; they refuse to scab because it’s in their best interests […]
The National Party Old Boys’ Club
Written By: - Date published: 10:45 am, August 7th, 2008 - 17 comments
Tane’s made the point before but it’s worth making again: National may have a new frontman but at its core is largely unchanged – and since being ousted nearly a decade ago, members of the National Party Old Boys’ Club have been plotting their return to power. Political reporter Dene Mackenzie notes today in the […]
Déjà vu
Written By: - Date published: 10:58 am, August 6th, 2008 - 6 comments
If you didn’t already have enough doubts about whether to trust John Key, Bill English and Lockwood Smith by virtue of the recent revelations here’s another one to ponder. A promise to resign over future policy isn’t new territory for the Nats. Neither is failing to keep it (click image for larger version).
News coverage of English revelations
Written By: - Date published: 11:59 am, August 5th, 2008 - 9 comments
Here’s the segment on the English meltdown from TV One last night. [I wanted to put up TV3’s as well – it’s good coverage, including interviews with KiwiBank customers – but I just can’t seem to deal with their flaky video stream (anyone else have problems with it?)]
Old boys’ club
Written By: - Date published: 12:13 pm, August 1st, 2008 - 46 comments
John Key: “We don’t have enough women in our caucus, so we’ve had to start cross-dressing” (Press, June 9, 2007) He’s not wrong there:
Sickening
Written By: - Date published: 1:08 pm, July 31st, 2008 - 118 comments
Speaking in Rotorua earlier this week, John Key offered the following reason why you should vote for him to be Prime Minister: “The only time we’ve won the rugby World Cup we had a male Prime Minister.” You make my stomach turn, Mr Key. You’re just another sexist old bigot.
Nats spending your money to build “Brand Key”?
Written By: - Date published: 5:30 pm, July 7th, 2008 - 72 comments
Looks like John Key might be a little less “self-made” and a little more “taxpayer-made” than he’d have us believe… click the image for a larger version.
Sacked
Written By: - Date published: 4:13 pm, July 7th, 2008 - 103 comments
In perhaps the most unsurprising announcement of the year, National has let slip it’s going to maintain its 90 day no rights policy, which basically means your boss can sack you for whatever reason he likes within the first 90 days of your employment. Don’t be fooled by the spin there’s already a provision for […]
Democracy under attack
Written By: - Date published: 3:02 pm, July 6th, 2008 - 27 comments
Ruth Laugesen’s got a piece in the SST today entitled “How National’s spin doctors operate“. She points out that Crosby/Textor’s methods, contrary to the opinion of many other journalists here, do differ from what are considered standard focus group and polling methodologies. Auckland University political studies senior lecturer Jennifer Lees-Marshment suggests that C/T are different […]
Who’s driving the ‘truck strike’?
Written By: - Date published: 3:02 pm, July 3rd, 2008 - 100 comments
So, let’s get this straight the Government has increased road user charges for diesel vehicles by half the amount recommended by the Ministry of Transport to cover the roading costs of those vehicles. The increase is 7-8%. Road user chargers account for 10% of trucking costs. So, we’re talking a less than 1% increase in […]
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