One of the reasons National won the election was due to its success in counter messaging – and the way so many media commentators ran with th the right-wing spin.
It’s been a long time coming. Electrifying Auckland suburban rail has been talked about ever since Christchurch (1929-1970) and Wellington (1939 to the present) electrified their suburban rail.
President Obama would have more authority to challenge President Putin over the Ukraine if the US was not involved in similar landgrabs for military and strategic purposes.
The real barrier to a settlement is a hard-right faction within the Washington establishment, which basically sings to the tune of the Israeli government.
The Melbourne result showed that the Greens can do well in a seat where they are seen to have a chance of winning, and when they put in a big campaign effort – a bit like the NZ Greens did when Jeanette Fitzsimons won Coromandel in 1999.
The Greens are running a strong campaign around the message that only by the Greens continuing to hold the balance of power in the Senate will the hard right agenda of an Tony Abbott government be restrained.