If you read articles in the Spinoff and elsewhere you might imagine and thought that the Property Investors’ Federation are heartless landlords only thinking of themselves – let me offer you a different perspective, writes Andrew King. In recent weeks I’ve had the misfortune of seeing my name in headlines suggesting that I have “urged” … Read more
Toby Manhire watched the second leaders’ debate among a crowd of undecided voters at Q Theatre. Maybe the afternoon meal of pulled teeth and gravel soup in the presidential debate emphasised it but, shit, that was a good debate. Whether it was a motivational speech or a few Red Bulls, Jacinda Ardern had a different … Read more
It was all awful, but these were the most awful bits. Well, that was … something. All those who made it through the first Donald Trump/Joe Biden debate are now bonded by the horror of the experience, one which veteran commentators are variously calling “a disgrace”, “a train wreck” and “the worst debate I have … Read more
Some people were shocked when Judith Collins told Nicky Hager he would have to account for his mean words about her when he ‘meets his maker’. The National leader was simply articulating an orthodox theological position, writes Hayden Donnell. Working at The Spinoff has its challenges. Editors keep posting unflattering pictures of me above my … Read more
With overseas voting in the general election opening today, a new campaign is urging the estimated one million New Zealanders abroad to exercise their democratic right. Don’t be alarmed when you see Viktor inciting eligible offshore New Zealanders to meddle, meddle, meddle as the nonpartisan initiative Every Kiwi Vote Counts launches today. The foil is … Read more
Winston Peters claims complete exoneration, but the idea the fundraising activities of the NZ First Foundation are unlinked to the party just won’t wash, writes electoral law expert Andrew Geddis. The Serious Fraud Office’s announcement that it has charged two people with “obtaining by deception” after its investigation into the New Zealand First Foundation is … Read more
All it took was a laser focus on gettable centre-right voters, writes Ben Thomas. Act has previously called itself the “party of the individual” and, since 2011 with only a single MP, that has been quite literally true. Luckily for its long-time – and long suffering – supporters, this year that individual is the rising … Read more
In Ted Dawe’s new novel Answering to the Caul, traumatised young men obliterate the schools that made ‘ordinary kids into evil bastards’. And as Dawe told the Herald last week, his sensational 2012 novel Into the River had its roots in the sex abuse scandal that’s just blown open at Dilworth School. Here, Dawe writes … Read more
Brooke Stanley Pao, the incoming co-ordinator for Auckland Action Against Poverty, has some choice words for the current government on exactly what ‘kindness’ without action achieves for people living in poverty. Back in 2017, before Jacinda Ardern was sworn in as prime minister, she said she wanted the new government to be “empathetic and kind”. … Read more
Despite recent hiccups, the Green Party still appears to be gaining votes. However, these may be coming from the Labour faithful, writes Pattrick Smellie for BusinessDesk. Three weeks out from polling day, and just five days before the start of early voting, Labour Party strategists might be expected to be feeling pretty confident. Poll after … Read more
Having surgery was the best thing I ever did. Everybody deserves the option. I am 10 days post-surgery. Everyone seems surprised at how well I’m doing. There’s just one group who get it, who understand why I’m so happy. They’re those who haven’t yet been able to get the surgery that I’ve had. Last Monday, … Read more
Laura O’Connell Rapira has some ideas for improving the standard of TV election debates in Aotearoa. Last week I hate-watched the TVNZ Leaders’ Debate. I knew I wasn’t going to like it. TV election debates are generally awful. Whoever decided fast-paced, adversarial soundbite clashes where folks speak over each other was the best way to … Read more
Israel Adesanya has fought his way to the top of his sport, and into the hearts and minds of New Zealanders – whether they want him there or not. What’s at stake when he fights this weekend in Abu Dhabi? Just two years into his UFC career, mixed martial artist Israel Adesanya is a bonafide … Read more
For almost four years, a thriving cannabis smoking lounge operated within walking distance of a police station. Michael Andrew looks back at his one and only visit to The Daktory, and asks the founder what it meant for New Zealand’s movement to legalise cannabis. It was a muggy summer afternoon in early 2009 when a … Read more
In the latest instalment of her series chronicling the ins and outs of dating in 2020, Alie Benge details the unique challenges of dating while Christian. I’m part of a rare Christian archetype: the unmarried 30-year-old. You’ll see us prowling the edges of a congregation, hook noses and one blind eye, looking for an opportune … Read more
With Stuart Nash kicking the can down the road to 2024, the oceans have lost out in favour of fishing corporations yet again, writes Russel Norman. A few weeks ago the minister of fisheries, Stuart Nash, backed into a corner by John Campbell’s relentless reporting on the state of our fisheries, announced more funds would … Read more
Each week in the lead-up to the election, The Side Eye cartoonist Toby Morris is going to teach us how to draw a different New Zealand politician. This week, it’s the leader of the Act Party. Click here for the rest of the How to draw series. The Side Eye is a monthly non-fiction comic by … Read more
The Māori Party’s time in government with National proves the impact of minor parties isn’t always measurable by the number of bills they pass or the amount of funding they secure, but also its impact on the political tone, argues Ben Thomas. After Tuesday’s lacklustre leader’s debate, one question hung in the air: where were … Read more
Legalising euthanasia while the world is in the grip of a deadly pandemic would further stretch an already stretched health system, and have implications far beyond that for the disabled community, writes Robyn Hunt. Read more perspectives on the assisted dying referendum here. Considering assisted dying in the middle of a deadly world pandemic seems counterintuitive. … Read more
Labour has made an extraordinary ascent in the polls and is now clinging to a mostly non-threatening brand of centrism. Hayden Donnell counts the cost of that strategy. Cast your mind back to 2016. As Bill English rolled out his budget, Grant Robertson issued what looked like a criticism. In an article headlined “a Budget … Read more
Jacinda Ardern and Judith Collins showed their true colours in the first leaders’ debate, and they were pretty pale. Last night I settled in on the couch with a beer and takeaways, and watched an engaging, rambunctious and focused political debate. It was entertaining but also challenging and informative, and covered the critical issues facing … Read more
Determined to write New Zealand’s first Covid book, Paul Little chronicled the lives of more than 20 New Zealanders under lockdown as rural domesticity took over his own. It all started with a mysterious virus causing a global pandemic that threatened the lives of millions of people, my writer wife and I losing our long-standing … Read more
Uncertainty is an unavoidable part of healthcare at the edges of life, writes Colin Gavaghan of Yes for Compassion. Read more perspectives on the assisted dying referendum here. You’ve probably seen the adverts. Parents are taking their offspring to buy their first car. But the salespeople, instead of bigging up their products, are emphasising all … Read more
A legal challenge to the University of Otago’s diversity policy for medical student intake doesn’t deserve to succeed, write Maria Hook, Jane Calderwood Norton and Andrew Geddis This week the Christchurch High Court is hearing a legal challenge to Otago University’s medical school ‘Mirror on Society’ policy, and associated admission scheme. Full details of the … Read more
We already know how to solve our elective surgery crisis, says New Zealand Orthopaedic Association president Peter Robertson. We just need to take action. New Zealand is facing an elective surgery crisis – this isn’t news. The situation has been worsening for years and over successive governments. Now and again some money is lobbed in, … Read more
Let’s put tax at the core of this election. Sharing wealth is how we share care and responsibility for this land and all of the people in it, writes Laura O’Connell Rapira. It’s election season in the middle of a pandemic and global economic crisis. These are strange times we find ourselves in, and looking … Read more
It’s been revealed that an upcoming novel by the Harry Potter author features a crossdressing serial killer. In the last several years Joanne “JK” Rowling has doubled, tripled, and as of last week, quadrupled down on her bigotry towards transgender people, both in her public statements and in her popular fiction. Anyone who’s not a … Read more
Over the last few months, Linda Burgess has cheered herself up by watching food television. And saying fuck. For fuck’s SAKE! I say as my husband grates the broccoli. And I think, when did fuck become tame like – well, like for god’s, or even for goodness, sake? I listen to so many podcasts, ours, … Read more
Labour says this will be the Covid election. National says it’s about the economy. There’s something big being missed in the middle, writes Justin Giovannetti. It was the week the economy took centre stage. The scene was set in the pre-election fiscal update, which on Wednesday offered a sobering snapshot of what’s happening under the … Read more