Obama endorses bi-partisan plan to cut debt and raise revenues, but will it pass the House? UN declares famine in Somalia, asks what's going on in Eritrea; Cameron faces 130 questions in parliament; Chinese security forces shoot 14 protesters, killing four; Pakistans spends US$4 million lobbying US lawmakers; and more
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World News Brief, Wednesday July 20
Congressional leaders push ahead with US debt-cutting plans; August 2 is deadline that could see US default on debt obligations; Muslim activists attacked police station in Chinese province of Xinjiang; US holds talks with Qaddafi reps--says Libyan leader must step down; Clinton pledges to press Pakistan to give up on terrorism measures against India; Rupert and James Murdoch appear before Parliament; and more
Read MoreWorld News Brief, Tuesday July 19
In Britain, phone-hacking scandal focuses on police corruption and Cameron, while threat grows in the US (+ analysis); Surprise result in Euro bank stress tests; 1,000 Syrian troops with tanks surround rebel town; Yemeni al-Qaeda reaching into Somalia; UN tells Thailand and Cambodia to pull their heads in; and more
Read MoreGod, or a guinea pig?
Mark Lynas suggests we should, in our God-like way, try a little geo-engineering. It is, after all, an emergency. If there is a God, he could be some distance from Mr Lynas, because that’s not what ‘dominion’ means
Read MoreTax Burdens: Some Facts (For a Change)
Bill English and David Farrar spent last week telling fibs about the tax burden high-income families assume. I want to set the record straight with some details about how much the top 10% really pay
Read MoreNew Zealand needs to vote for Palestine
New Zealand has a chance this September at the United Nations to support the Palestinian quest for the same basic human rights and the self-determination that Kiwis take for granted. Will it have the guts to do so?
Read MoreWorld News Brief, Friday July 15
Credit ratings agencies threaten to downgrade US from AAA status; Republicans clash with Obama and each other over debt ceiling (+ analysis); China overtaking US as superpower; Italy plans US$67 billion in cuts to calm debt worries; At least 21 killed in more Mumbai bombings; Singapore's economy shrinks; and more
Read MoreWhat if Hone had crossed his fingers?
The Speaker says Hone Harawira has to say the magic words that make you an MP in the right way, and he only gets one chance to do it each time. Is this taking legal formalism just a bit too seriously?
Read MoreManagement wisdom: 7 top tips for NZ
New Zealand has spent a decade looking for the fast track back to the top half of the OECD. So here are seven top ideas for where this country goes next and how our businesses might succeed on a global scale
Read MoreWorld News Brief, Thursday July 14
Euro debt crisis expands: Ireland debt downgraded to junk, fears for Italy as bond yields rise, and Eurozone officials plan emergency summit for Greece (+ analysis); China's growth slows; Pakistan spy chief heads to Washington after US cuts off aid; Thousands flee Nigerian city after religious violence; and more
Read MoreYou know what really grinds my gears?
In which your humble author vents his spleen indiscriminately about things that happen to be in the news.
Read MoreHow John Key tried to do a 'Reagan' on Labour, and failed
Labour was meant to have been caught in a fiscal trap, but with its capital gains tax it has wriggled free and got back on track
Read MoreGreed is good, as long as it's green
Green capitalism on a roll - Pure Advantage campaign and Green Growth paper launched last week - Green Party right in on the action, and making hay while the sun shines
Read MoreTax: Some facts (for a change)
John key says Labour's tax package will make high-income earners "not welcome in New Zealand". Where might they be more welcome than here?
Read MoreWorld News Brief Tuesday, July 12
US stalls over debt reduction talks--Republicans balked at Obama's tax increases; Australia to tax 500 biggest polluters; Chinese exports up 20 per cent in one year; Syrian forces raid city of Homs, killing one; drought in Somalia world's 'worst humanitarian crisis'; fears Eurozone crisis could spread to Italy, Europe's third-largest economy; and more
Read MoreAmerica's ugly, ideological hostage-takers
As the US hurtles towards debt default, there's a growing sense that Tea Party acolytes may well be prepared to deliberately tank the economy if it ensures a one-term Obama and future power for them. It is ugly ideology.
Read MoreBattle with geography slowly being won
It's been ten years since the Knowledge Wave conference. So has the world changed for you? Has technology and innovation swept you away? Or are we expecting too much, too soon?
Read MoreWorld News Brief, Friday July 8
Major budget talks in US--Obama meets Boehner; US$1 trillion could be saved by reorganising federal government bureaucracy, according to expert; South Korea will host 2018 Winter Olympic Games; Hong Kong media reporting that former Chinese president Jiang Zemin has died; Libyan rebels take Western town on way to Tripoli; North Korea bribed Pakistani military for information on nuclear-bomb making; Europeans angry at credit rating agencies for downgrading Portugal; and more
Read MoreDairy goes green
Fonterra is helping dairy farmers write good farm stories: tales that start with basic effluent compliance, and could end in best sustainability practice and bridging the gap between conservationists and farmers
Read MoreThompson's demise a bad omen for his old boys' club
Adieu Alasdair Thompson. But is one man's fall from grace a sign of a larger shift in the business world?
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