These Are the New Magicians
All universities are performing a magic trick. The professors to watch out for are those who insist they know how the trick is done – and have a better one.
Chris Trotter
Known principally for his political commentaries in The Dominion Post, The ODT, The Press and the late, lamented Independent, and for "No Left Turn", his 2007 history of the Left/Right struggle in NZ.
This Is Their Single Biggest Obstacle
Raising taxes will be a hard-sell for Chris Hipkins if all the additional revenue is pledged to funding pay equity.
Through the Gun or Education?
Reformers will tell you that education is the answer. Revolutionaries know they’re lying.
The Pressure Points
When Israel tried to force Hamas’ hand by instituting the blockade, the terrorists would have been delighted. Nothing was more calculated to unhinge the sentimental nations of the West than images of emaciated children. These would be the martyrs that counted.
We Are on a Collision Course
Can New Zealanders change their direction of travel? Do they want to?
Too Few to Win, Too Many to Die
Why should New Zealanders pay the slightest attention to anything the UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples has to say?
When the Panic Goes Live
The Professional-Managerial Class feels the chill winds of change around its privileged status – and it doesn’t like it.
So They Set Brushfires
What chance do the “progressive forces” have of prevailing in the battle for the future if they are forced to admit, if only to themselves, that the left is losing to the right in a fair fight?
The Right Time for the Wrong Left
Poor old Labour doubles-down on identity politics, just as democratic-socialism comes back into fashion.
This Is the Logic of Israel’s War
Indeed, it decided to eliminate not just Hamas, but their regional ally, Hezbollah. Then they asked themselves: ‘Why destroy the puppets but leave the puppet-master unscathed?’
The Worst Case Scenario, Really
Like a possum in the headlights of a fast-approaching SUV, the world would stand frozen as the two other serious nuclear powers contemplated their next move.
Labour Plays the Politics of Aspersion
This is where the Politics of Aspersion have led us. No wonder Winston Peters held his head in his hands as Brooke van Velden read out Vance’s words on the floor of the House.
Red Pill, Blue Pills and the Matrix That Is Capitalism
So many right-wingers continue to make the same, fundamental, category error. They truly believe that the people winning all the battles are communists. Even when they’re capitalists.
We Need Adults in the Room
NZ will not move towards a new economic dispensation unless it is convinced the politicians offering it are serious, responsible and competent individuals. Men and women who know what men and women are and refuse to divide their fellow citizens along ethnic lines.
Why Winston’s Right and Corin’s Wrong
More interviews of the sort broadcast by RNZ on Wednesday, 23 April 2025, and it’s a pretty safe bet that JMAD’s 2026 survey will be delivering even worse news.
This Woke War on Capitalism`
To build a better world, the woke are convinced that this one must first be burned to the ground. They can only be countered by the rest of us proving them wrong.