Category Archives: Economics

We are better than this

Posted on December 1, 2015 by admin

The recent Canadian election campaign, which ended in the defeat of the conservative Harper government featured one outstanding campaign ad. It was not produced by the opposition but Adbusters, the Vancouver based anti-consumerist organisation. Even if it is pretty shocking … Continue reading →

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TPPA : No bus but sheep truck

Posted on October 13, 2015 by admin

TPPA – more of the same old same old This cartoon appeared in the Listener Magazine in 1999. Slane could recycle it for today. Nothing has changed. Then it was the APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) conference in Auckland. New Zealand’s … Continue reading →

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TPPA : Dining out on dead rats

Posted on October 6, 2015 by admin

TPPA – what we don’t know All governments involved in the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) have kept negotiations deliberately secret. This enables them to brush of any criticism from its sceptical citizens as uninformed scaremongering. They won’t release the full text for some … Continue reading →

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VW emissions scandal: Any surprises ?

Posted on September 28, 2015 by admin

Emission Scandal The various emissions standards and testing regimes in the US, EU and individual countries are complex. Like most of us I was only superficially informed by news reports about the VW scandal but not the background and long … Continue reading →

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Ayn Rand’s monsters : Neoliberal-Man

Posted on September 2, 2015 by admin

Neoliberal economic theory based on fiction All capitalist market economic theory is based on the existence of an all informed rational creature acting solely in it’s own individual self-interest. Such creature is rather like the mythical unicorn. It does not … Continue reading →

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Lurch to the neoliberal right I can’t help it to have the benefit of knowledge and experience, which only comes with age. Unlike everybody under 50 who grew up under the intense ‘greed is good’ indoctrination of the neoliberal Reagan/Thatcher/Rogernomics era … Continue reading →

Posted on August 5, 2015 by admin | Leave a comment

Don’t touch that sausage

Posted on August 1, 2015 by admin

“Making laws and making sausages are very similar. The public will generally consume the final result, but you wouldn’t want them to watch exactly how they are made.” TPP minister Tim Grosser The arrogance and contempt of this government has … Continue reading →

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Public bad Private good – A myth that won’t die

Posted on July 29, 2015 by admin

The Privatisation myth lives on One of the cornerstones of neoliberal dogma is privatisation of public assets and services. PRIVATISATION. Sell state-owned enterprises, goods and services to private investors. This includes banks, key industries, railroads, toll highways, electricity, schools, hospitals … Continue reading →

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War on drugs is war on us

Posted on July 25, 2015 by admin

Drug laws are based on racial discrimination against the Chinese. This fact should get your attention in the current climate in New Zealand where everyone pretends to be so politically correct about racism against the ethnic Chinese. Drug laws are still discriminating on … Continue reading →

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From Greece to Germany. When will we focus on the elephant in the room ?

Posted on July 20, 2015 by admin

We are living in interesting times. The last few weeks were especially fascinating to watch. We are witnessing history in the making First all eyes were on Greece. The narrative was all about the Greeks bringing their dire plight all … Continue reading →

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