Written By: - Date published: 3:16 pm, November 19th, 2008 - 53 comments
Categories: International, john key -
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John Key’s off on his first trip as PM tomorrow – APEC in Peru. When I saw him interviewed about this he seemed to think it would be ‘a good chance to meet other world leaders’ which, as former member of the dip corp, made me groan. You’re not a world leader just because you won an election in some wee country, John, you have to prove your worth on the international stage, as Clark did. More importantly, APEC is not just about meeting people - it’s not a gentleman’s club, it’s not an opportunity to get some names in your autograph book – it’s about serious business.
The world is facing a triple crunch – credit, food, and oil. They’re all inter-related and global. Dealing with them effectively requires global reform of our economies. Part of this is a major re-work of the finance sector. IT is these issues that leaders will be discussing at APEC.
Now, John Key’s the ‘money-man with a heart’, it would be nice to think that he could offer some ideas to contribute to the solution. Perhaps he could take a leaf from the New Economics Foundation’s ‘From the ashes of the crash‘, which lays out 20 first step reforms, many of them concerning the organisation of the finance markets, to get us past the ‘triple crunch’ and create a Green New Deal. As a finance insider, Key could suggest how the industry needs to be reformed to prevent greedy, unaccountable gamblers putting us all at risk in return for a quick buck. You never know, his counterparts might even listen.
If he were to go to APEC and do that, actually make a difference rather than just notch up ‘pull asides’ and ‘one-on-ones’, it would really be something. He could then, deservedly, call himself a world leader.
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Get over it people we haven’t had a truly good orator in power in NZ since David Lange.
Neither Key nor Clark are any great shakes on the public speaking front, does this make them any less effective as PMs – I doubt it.
Regarding APEC anything useful that Key (the NZ delegation) or indeed other PMs (NZ delegations) have achieved in the past won’t occur in front of the cameras anyway, I can’t recall the hard yards in relation to the FTA with China or CER with Australia being done in front of the media.
Speaking clear English is essential in international fora as if you don’t, the translators will not be able to translate you correctly. And even English speakers from other countries have trouble with the NZ accent and our talking speed. Helen Clark always spoke clearly, slowly and grammatically (and of course brilliantly) although she tended to have the NZ oi vowel.
What I find particularly interesting (and annoying) about Key”s speech is the sh sound he uses for s – as if he is intoxiated, eg Osh traylia. It is well known from his biography that his father who died when John was young was an alcoholic. So I wonder if he learnt his diction from a drunk father? This is not being judgmental or classist, just being an interested linguist.
The Canadian Prime Minister is a joke. He is another climate change denier and is only PM because the left in Canada are divided. He recently won another election (they have had a lot lately with their dysfunctional government and no MMP) with the lowest voter turn out ever.
So no kudos from shaking his hand, sorry.
What you judgmental Janet, surely not.
goodness me we are really self centred this morning
Tim Ellis imagining that contempt for him is contempt for the whole working class
geta grip tim
Janet, that “sh” for “s” sound was one identified by a linguist on a TV programme I watched. As I recall she picked it out as one in keeping with a recent change in NZ English pronunciation. I really do think that us lefties are better to focus on critiquing the content of Key’s utterances, rather than the accent/dialect.
carol
thought for a moment you were talking about sh sean connerry
not chief sheeple
m
John Key has expertise in Economics? I thought his expertise was in money markets. Is that the same thing?
Piss off, Janet. That is a new low in filth-selling even for you.
So are we all sounding intoxicated now? That’s scary.
If we are to hear and see JK every 5 minutes in/on the media we are allowed to critique the sounds assaulting us.
Interesting comment on scoop about the breathless media coverage sounding rather like job applications. I wonder how many of those embedded media on the cessna (or whatever it was) with JK have been affected by the hypnotic power aura around the Nat PM (for the moment). Even Muldoon became attractive with power apparently.
Personally I prefer principle.
Well, as I recall, someone (Jane Clifton’s) response on that TV programme was that the recent changes in NZ pronunciation is making people sound like children. Maybe the “sh” thing is a Scottish influence as indicated by Randal.
Hmmm… I think a politician’s speech style should be criticised if it makes their meaning sound confusing or ambivalent or incoherent (as with Bush W sometimes). But a lot of the criticism I’ve seen of Key’s speech above, seems to be focused on features of his speech that are in keeping with current trends in NZ English, and especially that of people from lower socio-economic backgrounds. So, I think we on the left need to be sure we are criticising elements that apply to Key’s speech only, and not to speech of a large section of “ordinary” kiwis.
There is nothing wrong with being working class or having an alcoholic parent – many of us are/have. But I’m puzzled by middle class people I know of who affect a working class accent.
Nonsense, Janet. It was a nasty, gutter smear and you know it. It was of the level of “Helen Clark talks like a man, she must be a lesbian”. Helen Clark can’t change her voice, and John Key can’t change his accent. It’s how they are. Personalising it, and bringing Key’s alcoholic father into the equation is one of the lowest things I’ve seen on this site. It’s vicious and disgusting, and says much more about you and your nasty, arrogant, vicious attitude than it does anybody else.
TE
What’s so shameful about having a father who is an alcoholic? It seems to be a big deal with you. It’s not a moral issue, and kids can’t chose their parents.
JK’s childhood has been reported widely in the MSM eg the SST, including that fact.
You know, some kids have gay parents, some kids have parents who are HIV+, some kids only have one parent, some kids have parents in jail, some kids have parents who have died, some kids have two middle class parents, some kids even have parents who hit them. None of these things are slurs on the poor kids.
Labour leader Phil Goff said this morning that it was good that Key was going to Apec as it would provide a good opportunity to meet with other world leaders and push for coordinated solutions on the global financial crisis, and to work on the Trans Pacific agreement with the US and other countries. ie building relationships counts. But what would he know, not being a highly qualified former diplomat…
as an aside, he thinks green policy on trade (making it harder) would make the global situation worse.
PS I think KEy’s ssh’ing is really annoying but it’s what he does. And BTW he could change it just as CLark apparantly did change her voice deliberately to a lower register. It’s called speech training. It’s probably the least of his worries, and ours…
Nasty stuff, Janet. Really scraping the barrell.
Janet,
You know, some kids have gay parents,
True. So if we said a man had a very high-pitched or effeminate voice and suggested that might be attributed to his homosexual father, that would be OK with you? In fact, I needn’t ask the question; your comments above prove the answer is surely “yes”.
Scribe,
Huh? I mean… huh?
(Although, in truth, if you asked me I would, after I stopped boggling, make a relatively coherent argument that gender related voice pitch is a societal thing not a familial thing.)