Hi and welcome to our special 'spies and state secrets' issue of Werewolf, which has been inspired by the way the Key government has plainly put aside any seasonal cheer in order to pursue the Waihopai Three through civil court - and thus recoup the costs of the damage done to its spy base near Blenheim. So much for the season of ' peace and goodwill to all men...' We outline the likely legal framework for the next stage of the case, via interviews with experts Warren Brookbanks and Bill Hodge, who happen to be the go-to guys on 'claim of right' defences and torts law in New Zealand.

Much the same motives of revenge and paranoid secrecy have driven the US government's attitude to national secrets, as Wellington writer James Robinson demonstrates with his extensive report filed from the US, where James is currently engaged in postgraduate journalism studies. Ever since the early Cold War period and onwards to Richard Nixon, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, successive US Presidents have obstructed any moves towards greater transparency and accountability with respect to whatever they deem to be within the ambit of state security. Genuine national secrets, outright lies and political convenience have all become entwined, as Robinson demonstrates, in the process. Elsewhere in this issue, Cushla McKinney looks at the social benefits and personal risks and gains associated with the so called' stomach stapling' procedures involved with weight loss surgery. Along the way, Cushla notes the fascinating contrast that exists between our social tolerance of anorexia on one hand, and obesity on the other.

In Left Coasting. Rosalea Barker examines the hurdles being erected by the medico-insurance complex to frustrate the intent of the Obama healthcare plan. Lyndon Hood's latest satirical column joins Pooh Bear and Piglet in an attempt to narrow the wage gap with Australia. The Complicatist showcases the latest album by Sufjan Stevens and its conscious links to outsider art, on the eve of Stevens' New Zealand tour in February. In the Milestone Movies film column, Brannavan Gnanalingham celebrates the anarchic spirit of the 1966 Czech film Daisies , and puts its irreverent spirit ( and the Prague Spring two years later) in context with other art movements that challenged the heavy hand of Soviet repression.

The children's classic book column this month is devoted to Avi's terrific maritime adventure The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle , and we note in passing the similarity between its young proto-feminist heroine and the anarchism of Huckleberry Finn. For Cartoon Alley this month, Tim Bollinger reviews the latest work by Taiyo Matsumoto and Amanda Vahamaki and offers another installment of his Little Eye cartoon, while Brent Willis presents the latest concerns of Ranga the Paranoid Ape.

As always, Werewolf is a monthly thank you to Scoop supporters, and aims to provide a showcase for good journalism and cartooning. If you'd like to be part of it, contact me on the address below and we can talk story ideas. Thanks to George McLellan and Alistair Thompson for helping me to put up the issue online.

Gordon Campbell
Werewolf/Scoop
gordon@werewolf.co.nz

The contents of this edition are:

The Quest to Punish the Waihopai Three
http://werewolf.co.nz/2010/11/the-quest-to-punish-the-waihopai-three/
The legal battle now shifts to civil court
by Gordon Campbell

Heavyweight Contenders
http://werewolf.co.nz/2010/11/heavyweight-contenders/
The plusses (and perils) of weight loss surgery
by Cushla McKinney

Hiding in Public
http://werewolf.co.nz/2010/11/hiding-in-public/
Truman to Nixon, Bush to Obama – how the US has rationalized the ‘need’ for state secrecy
by James Robinson

& from the last edition

Profiteering from Prisons
http://werewolf.co.nz/2010/10/profiteering-from-prisons/
On the global evidence, private prisons are no more efficient, and are no less expensive for the taxpayer
by Rory MacKinnon

Lady in Waiting
http://werewolf.co.nz/2010/10/lady-in-waiting/
Helen Clark’s chances of becoming the next UN Secretary-General
by Gordon Campbell

Saint Australia
http://werewolf.co.nz/2010/10/saving-a-nation-of-sinners/
The blessings of the Lucky Country now extend to the afterlife
by Gordon Campbell

Left Coasting : Open Season on Healthcare
http://werewolf.co.nz/2010/11/left-coasting-open-season-on-healthcare/
Count the ways the medical-industrial complex is bad for everyone’s health…
by Rosalea Barker

Classics : The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle (1990)
http://werewolf.co.nz/2010/11/classics-the-true-confessions-of-charlotte-doyle-1990/
Murder, mutiny, class rebellion and a terrific teenage heroine
by Gordon Campbell

Milestone Movies : Daisies (1966)
http://werewolf.co.nz/2010/11/milestone-movies-daisies-1966/"
Freedom’s just another word for making fun of everything
by Brannavan Gnanalingham

From the Hood : Lost in Wiseacre Wood
http://werewolf.co.nz/2010/11/from-the-hood-lost-in-wiseacre-wood/"
Isn’t it funny / How a bear likes cutting the public service? / Buzz buzz buzz, / I wonder why he does.
by Lyndon Hood

The Complicatist : Sufjan Stevens and outsider art
http://werewolf.co.nz/2010/11/the-complicatist-sufjan-stevens-and-outsider-art-2/
Hello madness, my old friend…
by Gordon Campbell

Cartoon Alley
http://werewolf.co.nz/2010/11/werewolf-cartoon-alley/
Reviews, commentary and comics from local artists
by Werewolf

Cartoon Alley: Reviews and commentary #18… Tim Bollinger
http://werewolf.co.nz/2010/11/reviews-and-commentary-18-tim-bollinger/
Some comics I’ve been reading lately…. Gogo Monster & The Bun Field
by Tim Bollinger

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