National democracy
No Dunne deal – directly elect coalitions
As with the America’s Cup, coming second place in party politics generally equates with losing. Until recently, it had been looking as though the hospital pass Bill English received from the charismatic, if unchivalrous, Sir John Key might not prove fatal…
Courage for more than a cuppa
It’s 30 years since David Lange belatedly called taihoa. His Labour Party caucus cohorts had unleashed the neoliberal onslaught that, amongst other tragedies, precipitated New Zealand’s ongoing youth suicide epidemic. Throughout the…
After a little shadow voting elect the prime minister
It must be exercising the mind of ‘Mattiavelli’ McCarten. Simply give the job of prime minister, post the election, to ‘Wily’ Winston. After all, it is entirely up to the winning bloc as to who the prime minister should be. Across all voters, Winston…
Soon-to-be 175-year search for an indigenous flag
Failure to embrace a new flag in the past bought Aotearoa a power of trouble. When the Treaty of Waitangi was signed, by default the national flag became the Union Jack. Eight years earlier, in 1832, the group of northern tribes that became known as the…