The Politics of Hate: Racism and Islamophobia in NZ Today
This talk was presented to the Pōneke branch of the ISO on 17 March 2020 by Romany Tasker-Poland, a teacher, trade unionist, and member of the ISO. We are speaking about a year after the massacre at the mosques in Christchurch, as commemorations are being held. Every day is bringing out more information about this […]
Italian workers strike to force action on the coronavirus pandemic
Italian workers have gone on strike to shut down the country as the death toll from the COVID-19 pandemic surpasses 7,500 – mostly in Lombardy, the main industrial region in the north-west of the country. Despite the government’s well-publicised lockdown, it has been business as usual for many sectors of the economy. Last week, the […]
The Ghosts of Waters Three
This year Aotearoa has been visited by the ghosts of waters three. The ghost of water-supply haunts the whole of Te Ika-a-Māui (North Island), Rēkohu (Wharekauri/Chatham Islands) and parts of Te Waipounamu (South Island). Te Tai Tokerau (Northland), Tāmaki Makaurau (Auckland) and Waikato, in particular have been in drought for quite some time and are […]
At last: Action against COVID-19
At the Prime Minister’s press conference today announcing Level 4 lockdown Jacinda Ardern said, “If community transmission takes off in New Zealand the number of cases will double every five days. If that happens unchecked our health system will be inundated and tens of thousands of New Zealanders will die.” Ardern reminded the media that […]
Labour’s COVID-19 response package: Not enough for workers
When the Labour-led Coalition Government revealed its first fiscal response package to the COVID-19 pandemic I was, at first, jubilant. The pessimist in me had been expecting austerity, expecting cuts and sell offs. This package is definitely not that. $12.1 billion in spending and 4% of GDP – great! But as the afternoon continued and […]
Inadequate Action against COVID-19: Govt Must Put People before Profit
Around the world capitalist governments (there are no others, unfortunately) have criminally permitted COVID-19 to spread and cause needless deaths. From the political harassment of Li Wenliang by the Chinese Stalinist police state to the present day, governments have behaved appallingly. Why? Because they have sought to limit the impact of responses to COVID-19 on the business of […]
Why We Need Revolution
Revolution is a necessary part of social change. During the English Civil War, the American Revolution, the French Revolution and the European revolutions of 1848 rising capitalist classes wrested power from the feudal aristocracies that had dominated Europe for a thousand years. Elsewhere in the globe, as in Latin America, China and Africa, revolution has been […]
Why Hasn’t Labour Delivered?
On 19 September the Labour Party faces the hurdle of being elected into government for another term of office. Having the advantages of incumbency, re-election should be a cake-walk. One would think that all Labour needs to do is to deliver improvements in the standard of living of the working-class majority to ensure popularity. One […]
2019: A Year of Global Rebellion
In 2019 we witnessed an inspiring wave of rebellions spanning four continents and two dozen countries. Significant rebellions of varying scales have happened in Sudan, Algeria, Hong Kong, Chile, Lebanon, Iraq, Haiti, Nicaragua, Catalunya, Guinea, Puerto Rico, Colombia, Zimbabwe, Ecuador, Honduras, Iran, Kashmir, West Papua, Indonesia, Egypt, Czech Republic. There have also been major strikes […]
Students in the Degree Factory: Alienation and Mental Health
Mental health is in crisis across the world. This is felt acutely in New Zealand too. The Mental Health Commissioner reported that nearly half of New Zealanders will live with mental illness and/or addiction at some point during their lifetime. This is a rate of nearly one-in-five New Zealanders who live with mental illness or […]
