Posts by Craig Ranapia
Last ←Newer Page 1 2 3 4 5 Older→ First
-
So if it's about choosing a candidate who will win then those superdelegates might have a bit of thinking to do.
Neil:
Yes, if Clinton loses the popular votes, scores fewer delegates and gets the nomination thanks to a clot of unelected and unaccountable party grandees...
Well, I'll just say I suspect Al Gore will have his Blackberry full of interview requests, while McCain implodes with glee.
-
Meanwhile we got the full court press on Rob Waddell's heart condition -- the one he's been quite happily living with for the best part of fifteen years -- which was apparently responsible for him losing a "deciding" race that didn't actually decide very much at all. Guess they had to justify sending the press pack down to Lake Karapiro "in the first place.
-
The sudden decision's political effectiveness was greatly enhanced by the fact that it actually put John Key on the spot, whereupon he looked some way short of decisive in reply.
Especially when I think he'd do us all a favour if he just told Duncan Garner to go fuck himself with his microphone. Seriously, what the hell is going on with Three. Garner's not doing a bad job, on the whole, but when he's going for the 'gotcha' -- and he's an equal opportunity offender, so no bias involved -- it falls flat more often than not. And what makes it worse is that there's usually a solid story under the juvenile attempt to catch some poli out.
-
Sometimes it's just the least worst option. I think NZ would be in a far worse situation now without the Maori seats - I'm sure we would have had an armed seperatist movement.
Neil: I know that's not the place you're coming from, but if the spectre of race war is used as a campaign tool by anyone this campaign season, I'll make it my personal mission to but my gardening boots so far up their butt they'll be tasting leather for the rest of their lives. "I know the natives are revolting, Carruthers, but why are they shooting at us" is a bad joke.
another interesting factiod is that maori were denied secret ballot until 1938...
And interesting that the Maori seats were always intended as a temporary measure, based on the assumption that Maori would eventually adopt a more conventional mode of land ownership -- assuming the noble savages didn't die out first. Don't you just love how thoroughly disobliging Maori are?
-
Rosie:
Fair question, I'll go check because I don't think that was the case but am quite happy to prove myself wrong. :)
-
I would personally prefer it if Maori could set aside their claim to specialness for their own sakes, but I do not think it is right or just to force them to do so.
Um, Ben, I'm sure there were plenty of Maori who weren't down with all this women's suffrage nonsense but I don't feel much regret that they were 'forced' to accept it. I sure didn't support MMP. but I happened to be on the losing side of that particular argument and went through my grieving process a long time ago.
Democrazy Kiwi-style's a bitch, but a remarkably benign one. I'd also make the observation that, thankfully, a major change to our electoral law can't be made by Order in Council. Another nice thing about Parliamentary democracy is that no legislation is guaranteed passage.
-
No, I'm picking about three weeks later...
Just enough time to organise a wake in the best traditions of good bad taste. You bring the Broil King, and I'll supply enough alcohol that you can witness my Humpty Dance of Ecstasy without your eyes melting.
-
Viktor Yushchenko, anyone?
Oh, I don't think the Liarbore Dykeocracy is that evil. Character assassination, sure. The politics of fear applied three times a day with a sledgehammer. Whatever works. Your intelligence and sense of human dignity given a good going over. Simple objective reality told to go screw itself. But no dioxin smoothies.
-
Am I the only one who thinks that the Maori Party holding the balance of power might lead to a grand coalition?*
Nope -- because I don't think National is going to be running a feral campaign in the Maori seats. Labour will, if Shane Jones' latest vapourings are a reliable indicator of what their strategy is from here on in.
-
We won't have to wait long for wingnutosphere implosions anyway. Their lack of positive affirmation for Key is noticeable already.
And that's a bad thing, how? Frankly, I'd be more worried if Key was getting his tummy rubbed by the left or right wingnuts out there. With a little luck, the day Key becomes Prime Minister the usual suspects are going to Mama Cass on their own bile. The only downside is that we're going to have to endure a particularly toxic election campaign first.
Last ←Newer Page 1 … 1068 1069 1070 1071 1072 … 1235 Older→ First