Why a robust constitutional framework requires Archives New Zealand's organisational independence
Read MoreYour Punt
The Battle of Porta-loo
At the next election New Zealanders will decide whether or not to keep MMP or replace it with something else. So what does history tell us about our voting system and why did we change to MMP?
Read MoreModernising New Zealand’s drug law
Unsurprisingly, initial political reaction to the Law Commission's drug law review has been negative, despite its measured approach. So how can we tackle the drug problem in New Zealand?
Read MoreCitizen involvement in the New Auckland
With postal voting for the new Auckland Council now less than eight months away, it seems that local boards will have some clout as they seek to represent the will of the people
Read MoreThe problem of tackling climate change via the markets
If we are serious about climate change, we need to challenge the very fundamentals of the global economic order
Read MoreSacred Memories: Almodóvar’s Broken Embraces
Memory has a habit of intruding. It knocks. It wishes to be recognised. Broken Embraces is an act of commemoration, a tribute for the dead
Read MoreThe dark side of the Twilight phenomenon
The hit movies Twilight and New Moon – and the books they are basd on – have huge popular appeal but glamourise violent, dependent romantic relationships
Read MoreMaking sense of Mexico’s ‘drug wars’
The fallout from Mexico’s so-called drug wars continues unabated. What is really behind the carnage?
Read MoreNew Zealand's role in Sri Lanka's civil war
Is New Zealand inadvertently supporting the cause of the Tamil Tigers?
Read MoreA mirror full of memories
Haircuts are milestones on the journey of life
Read MoreNetball—a dysfunctional game
Is netball too old-fashioned in this aggressive age?
Read MoreBarlow: an appeal for justice
It’s too early to say whether the Privy Council’s Barlow decision marks a tectonic shift in the law governing criminal appeals—or a minor refinement—but it does offer much-needed reassurance about appellate courts’ willingness to do justice
Read MoreThe 2020 vision of crowds
And why they will be disappointed with Nick Smith’s answer to the emissions reduction conundrum
Read MoreBiofuels revisited
Jeanette Fitzsimons’ Sustainable Biofuel Bill has been drawn from the Member’s ballot. It’s sustainable, all right—defying repeal—and the first real test of this Government’s green credentials
Read MoreYou Can't Beat Wellington on a Good Day
Listening to the public might be a drag for local government, but it's a necessity, especially when the waterfront's at stake
Read MoreIf it doesn’t communicate, what practical use has a language?
Can Maori language be anything more than an intellectual or cultural indulgence?
Read MoreHave your say! Law Commission launches website for public feedback
The Law Commission has created an online consultation site -- www.talklaw.co.nz -- to encourage feedback about its current law reform projects. Sounds like a good idea to us here at Pundit, so here's how it will work
Read MoreEmissions reduction: talking hot air
The Emissions Trading Scheme Review Committee is deliberating—and lobby pressure is building towards Copenhagen, where international emissions reduction targets will be debated. That’s heavy weather up ahead
Read MoreThe European Dis-Union
The EU is not all it's cracked up to be
Read MoreWhy publish 'Veitch Breakup' Story? And many other media questions
A whole bunch of things in the New Zealand media and blogs are quite perplexing to watch from the other side of the world... For example, what's with the Kiwi media's swine flu excitement?
Read More