Category Archives: New Zealand Politics

Posts that deal with issues current in New Zealand politics

When is bias no longer bias? When it’s everything.

Posted on 13th Sep, 2015 by Puddleglum

Is Mike Hosking politically biased? I think the answer is ‘yes’. Is our media politically biased? I think the answer is also  ‘yes’. Is our society politically biased? That’s not quite so easy to answer. But for a more worrying reason … Continue reading →

Posted in Democracy, Economics, Free Market, Human Nature, Media, New Zealand Politics, Political Psychology | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Why Syrian refugees?

Posted on 6th Sep, 2015 by Puddleglum

There’s two aspects to the Syrian refugee crisis that are worth thinking about a bit more deeply. That’s because both of them represent something of a departure from past behaviour. The first is the question which a few commentators, such … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Nature, Human Wellbeing, International Politics, Media, New Zealand Politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Pointless referenda I would like

Posted on 1st Sep, 2015 by Puddleglum

Well, the flag’s well and truly come down for the start of the silly season so let’s get into the spirit of it all. Yes, time to put aside all that serious politico stuff that ‘lefties’ get so uptight about. As … Continue reading →

Posted in Democracy, National Identity, New Zealand Politics, Political Psychology | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Pointless referenda I would like

PMs just wanna have fun …

Posted on 25th Apr, 2015 by Puddleglum

According to John Key it was all just innocent “horsing around“. It wasn’t, of course – as John Armstrong in the New Zealand Herald understands. And Key knew that too. All his protests to the contrary amount to him pulling our collective … Continue reading →

Posted in Democracy, Human Nature, National Identity, New Zealand Politics, Political Polls, Political Psychology | Tagged , , , , | 17 Comments

The politics of the empty tomb – Part I

Posted on 9th Apr, 2015 by Puddleglum

An advantage of a few days holiday is that it allows time to let the mind reflect and run free from the routine daily tasks it has to perform in work-a-day life. Given the last few days holiday (‘Holy-day’) were about … Continue reading →

Posted in Freedom, Human Nature, Human Wellbeing, New Zealand Politics, Philosophy | 3 Comments

‘And then she goes and spoils it all …’

Posted on 5th Feb, 2015 by Puddleglum

[I’ve awoken from my summer slumber and find I have a lot to write. Apologies about the length.] Well, what was that all about? As Colin Peacock said when he introduced the Mediawatch item on it, what exactly “put a Catton … Continue reading →

Posted in Democracy, New Zealand Politics, Philosophy, Political Psychology | 9 Comments

‘Everybody knows …’ the politics of dissimulation

Posted on 3rd Dec, 2014 by Puddleglum

“Everybody knows that the dice are loaded Everybody rolls with their fingers crossed Everybody knows that the war is over Everybody knows the good guys lost Everybody knows the fight was fixed The poor stay poor, the rich get rich … Continue reading →

Posted in Democracy, New Zealand Politics, Political Polls, Political Psychology | Tagged , , , , | 10 Comments

Drawing the poison

Posted on 26th Sep, 2014 by Puddleglum

It’s – more or less – thirty years since Roger Douglas’ faction gained control of the Treasury benches. It’s even longer since it latched its fangs onto the Labour Party jugular. The bloody leadership struggle within the Labour Party since the election … Continue reading →

Posted in Democracy, Labour, New Zealand Politics | Tagged , , , | 39 Comments

Blowholes and memory holes

Posted on 5th Sep, 2014 by Puddleglum

When whales were hunted in previous centuries, the old method was to spot the intermittent bursts of spray that were shot into the air when a whale came to the surface to take a breath. The time gaps between these … Continue reading →

Posted in Blogging, Democracy, New Zealand Politics, Political Psychology | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

We no longer have a Prime Minister

Posted on 1st Sep, 2014 by Puddleglum

Having just listened to an item featuring John Key on Checkpoint (National Radio) I now have to announce that New Zealand has no-one at present performing the proper role of Prime Minister. John Key could not have acted less Prime Ministerial if he had … Continue reading →

Posted in Blogging, Democracy, Media, New Zealand Politics, Political Polls, Political Psychology | Tagged , , , , , | 31 Comments