Politics

New Zealand First

Posted 4:26pm Sunday 25th March 2012 by Callum Fredric

The New Zealand First Party is the Salmond College of political parties – far enough away from the mainstream to be forgotten by most, but not quite far out enough to gain notoriety like the Mana Party (Aquinas). For the average Kiwi, only one thing springs to mind when they think of NZ First ... Read more...

Sex, blackmail and head injuries

Posted 4:26pm Sunday 25th March 2012 by Callum Fredric

National MP Nick Smith has resigned from his ministerial roles after the first major Parliamentary scandal of the year. On July 7 last year, Dr. Smith wrote a letter to ACC in support of his “friend” Bronwyn Pullar, who was fighting a long-running battle with ACC after suffering a head injury in a Read more...

The Six Breeds of Anti Alcohol Activist

Posted 4:27pm Sunday 18th March 2012 by Callum Fredric

01 | Health NazisYeah that’s right, Critic breached Godwin’s law. Deal with it. The health nazis want to ban alcohol (and the KFC Double Down) to protect you from yourself. According to these finger-wagging wowsers, if a guy drinks six standards, he’s officially binge-drinking. That would explain Read more...

Government serves up waffle with condescension sauce

Posted 4:27pm Sunday 18th March 2012 by Charlotte Greenfield

Prime Minister John Key has hinted at further overhaul to the student loan system, but is unlikely to reinstate interest for fear of reprisal by students “getting out of bed before 7 o’clock at night.” Critic polled students on the various insurrectionary activities they could pursue by Read more...

Parliament Hears Mojo Mathers

Posted 4:27pm Sunday 18th March 2012 by Callum Fredric

The yelling match is over. Green Party MP Mojo Mathers, who is profoundly deaf, will receive Parliamentary funding for a note-taking assistant and any extra support that she needs in order to carry out her duties as an MP. Speaker of the House Lockwood Smith issued a direction to Read more...

Rich White Men Battle to Evict Black Guy

Posted 6:37pm Sunday 11th March 2012 by Sam McChesney

The race for the Republican presidential nomination drags hilariously on. Actually, given that at the time of writing Mitt Romney has just won in the key state of Ohio, the race may actually be over by the time this issue of Critic gets published. In that case, don’t think of this blurb as obsolete, Read more...

Choose Your Political Poison

Posted 4:53pm Sunday 4th March 2012 by Callum Fredric

The 58% have spoken, and the MMP voting system is here to stay. But several key aspects of the system are up for review, and the Electoral Commission is calling for submissions from the public. Some of the issues you can give your two cents on include: The threshold for a party to get into Read more...

Dole-bludgers told to get job, haircut

Posted 4:53pm Sunday 4th March 2012 by Callum Fredric

Xbox sales have crashed after the Government announced the first stage of its welfare reforms on Monday February 27. Solo parents on the DPB will be expected to look for part-time work once their oldest child hits five, and full-time work once their oldest child hits 14. Having another kid while on Read more...

Execrable

Posted 4:53pm Sunday 4th March 2012 by Callum Fredric

Welcome to a new year of Execrable, the column that gives you an insight into the spiffing world of OUSA. The year has got off to a great start already, with the old OUSA logo that made the S look like a J being gradually phased out, allowing the Japanese Association to call off its Yakuza Read more...

Summer Political Roundup

Posted 3:39pm Friday 24th February 2012 by Callum Fredric

Summer isn’t all backyard cricket, beer and barbecues. In fact, New Zealand’s politicians have been working hard all summer to take away your freedom to engage in those activities. Here’s a roundup of what happened while you were away over the break ... Tea tapes Biggest letdown of 2012. The Read more...