So we have a legal product, that the pro-tax advocates insist must pay a fine of around $60 a week or $3000 a year for their “filthy” habit. I can see the middle-class do-gooders sneer as they support higher and higher taxes on the poor and brown and obviously stupid people who continue to smoke.
What the middle-class liberals who dominate the leadership in the Green and Labour Parties don’t have any recognition of is that working people in New Zealand are radically overtaxed and deeply resent that. This is especially true when considered in relation to the benefits we are able to access through the public health, education, housing systems.
As the minimum wage gets closer to the living wage the goal of cementing in a living wage rate (or preferably the two-thirds of the average wage goal) to be written into our collective employment agreements becomes more realistic.
We are a union of 7000 financial members. We estimate that up to one-quarter of our members could be on…
A National Day of mourning is still needed. One was held following the Christchurch earthquake and today’s terror victims deserve at least.
Love Aotearoa Hate Racism (LAHR) is anticipating an unprecedented turnout at our rally against Islamophobia and racism at Auckland’s Aotea Square this Sunday, March 24, at 2pm.
We need to do more, much more to challenge all forms of bigotry and hatred. This includes on a personal level calling out anyone and everyone who peddles the lies and hatreds. It means physically protecting where necessary any people that are being targetted for abuse for their race, religion, ethnicity, sex or gender.
Global Peace and Justice Auckland is encouraging all supporters of peace and justice to join the international day of action on Saturday, March 16 against the US government’s effort to engineer a coup in Venezuela and a new devastating war there.
The US government has done everything within its power to cause the Venezuelan economy to suffer a deep recession combined with high inflation as the price of oil fell. This began under US President Obama and have been intensified by Trump.
When asked in a very recent Venezuelan poll who they considered to be the legitimate president of Venezuela 57% replied Nicolas Maduro, the elected president of the country, compared to just 32% for Juan Guaido who “declared” himself president a few weeks ago.