Naming the game

Written By: - Date published: 6:34 pm, August 12th, 2014 - 78 comments
Categories: dpf, election 2014, making shit up, same old national, you couldn't make this shit up - Tags: ,

It’s been interesting to watch the nats and their busy little helpers working away at branding the election campaign as a nasty one.

It’s been disappointing to watch the media falling for it so hard.

Like every election there’s been some nutters defacing billboards across the entire political spectrum. But a couple of weeks ago the two main nat proxies – David Farrar and Cameron Slater started running up defaced National Party billboards with the clear intent of making National the victim.

It makes sense. When your opponent brands themselves positive and you need to suppress their vote the best thing to do is throw around the mud. Thus we’ve had Farrar and Slater desperately linking anything they can that make it look like the campaign is nasty.

And their handlers did a good job of it. Start with some vandalised billboards, then drop a video, then a stupid comment you’ve sat on for a while from a random moron candidate and voilà, you’ve got a narrative.

The irony is, of course that the people driving that narrative are some of the nastiest operators on the web, you only have to look at Slater’s rape culture attacks on Tania Billingsley to see how far these creeps will go to protect their political masters.

But of course the media doesn’t really get irony. So we’ve seen journalists repeating the Nats’ lines verbatim, and Rawdon Christie giving Key a free pass on linking a video of a bunch of drunk kids he picked up from Slater’s blog with the Internet Mana party.

And just on that, imagine if Laila Harre or David Cunliffe had commented on how Slater’s rapey posts were a bad reflection on John Key. Despite the fact there’s a close link between Key and Slater, and that most journalists know this, if only because they’ve been the targets of it, I don’t think any presenter would have let that pass.

And that’s the problem right there. Because until the media start calling National on this shit instead of playing along with it we’ll continue to see the election campaign being about sideshows and distractions. Because the last thing National want to talk about is what actually matters.

78 comments on “Naming the game ”

  1. disturbed 1

    Got it in one.
    Only solution.=have all affected opposition parties call for a united forum voice where they will call for an enquiry into Government interference in the electoral process by the media bias inside public media.

    Just as the electoral Commission did with the Planet Key song video today, as it was called an political advertisement, so is all the bias throw to us from TVNZ and RNZ.
    What’s good for the goose is good for the gander too.

  2. Ad 2

    At the end of their second term, National are never going to be able to wash themselves clean in the mind of the great majority of voters. They have the political aura of PigPen. So I wouldn’t worry about hygiene of any variety this election.

    National are trying to say that the others stink just as much, and if we’re all that muddy, you may as well pick the one with the cutest squeal. Problem is, few vote on the basis of mud coverage alone. Very few Joe-public buy that after any second term of any government. It’s simply not a winning tactic.

    “Protect New Zealand” and “Vote Positive” are both superior themes that allude to greater hygiene, not less. National doesn’t need another Kumeu – it smelled too bad.

  3. fisiani 3

    Oh for goodness sake stop playing the victim. Go on Kiwiblog and see if you can find a single poster advocating or defending hoarding vandalising. You will not find one. This blog is filled with fanatics not just advocating and defending but also justifying criminal damage by claiming that National have brought it on themself. Any feminists reading this will recognise the crap of this wife beating logic. ‘she asked for it”, Enough is enough…..get my meaning!!!!

    • One Anonymous Bloke 3.1

      Says nothing about Cameron Slater’s abuse of grieving families. Is inconsolable over damage to some billboards.

      Your double standards are showing, trash.

      • Gosman 3.1.1

        Does that mean you support vandalism of election billboard s?

        • Pascals bookie 3.1.1.1

          Only idiots give a shit about it.

          • minarch 3.1.1.1.1

            +1 its really is a non-issue, there only billboards FFS

            the majority of the vandalism will be done by youth being youth

        • You_Fool 3.1.1.2

          I do, all vandalism of election billboards is fine in my books, doubly so if it is actually intelligent or entertaining.

          Does that mean I get to call Slater nasty now?

          • shorts 3.1.1.2.1

            Myself and the family are big fans of the defaced billboards, the local body elections are a particular highlight – racist and nazi bullshit earns a fail

            Quite impressed with some parties and how quick they are to replace and fix their vandalised billboards

    • This is one feminist who thinks it’s a bit shit of you to compare Zetetic’s post to “wife-beating logic”. As far as I can tell Zet isn’t justifying the vandalism (would love to know how you read that from his post), just pointing out the hypocrisy of nasty operators like Slater crying foul over some spraypaint.

    • BLiP 3.3

      I love how you apply classic CrosbyTextor tactics – accuse others of what it is you are doing yourself. In this case, its that poor ole nice Mr John Key who’s playing the victim yet all the while enabling his minions to victimise others. This year is a bit of a twist on the 2008 National Ltd™ nastiness kicked off when John Key mocked Helen Clark’s childless state: que social media “hairy legged lesbian bitch troll from Leningrad” tirade. I can only guess as to why the MSM has bought into this year’s National Ltd™ narrative of being the victim. It only has to examine John Key’s Question Time behaviour over the last six months to identify the source of the nastiness. There is, of course, the usual considerations to keep in mind when observing the performance of an indolent, under-funded, and largely cowed MSM, plus the fact the bulk of the MSM is driven by the rampant greed of foreign-owned multinationals. Truth becomes a sacrifice to Mammon. A more nuanced observation of the MSM’s viritual felatio of John Key might lead one to consider its acceptance of the victim-narrative helps ease its collective cognitive dissonance. As facts overwhelm the three-year-long narrative of John Key being the most popular prime minister ever to have walked on water, it must have been a bit of jolt to see a bunch of rowdy students chanting that which most rational New Zealanders believe. The idea that the “Fuck John Key” message was a spontaneous outburst of anger and frustration at National Ltd™ is just too uncomfortable a fact to reconcile what the MSM has been telling its consumers for years.

      As the burning effigy and billboard vandalism . . . hmmm, false flag much? Just askin’.

      • Bill 3.3.1

        There was a certain momentum gathering behind quite humerous and thoughtfully sabotaged billboards. And of course the National Party billboards were the ones having their message turned upside down to the greatest extent. How convenient then to have all billboard alterations become synonymous with anti-semitism. A set up? I suspect so.

        And I think it’s a shame that Labour and the Greens didn’t focus their condemnation on anti-semistism rather than getting all po faced about general billboard graffiti.

        • weka 3.3.1.1

          The GP probably feel obliged to focus on criticising the billboard graffiti given that last time the partner of one of their staffers organised some.

    • Murray Olsen 3.4

      You’re better off comparing it to an abused wife who takes self defence classes and beats the shit out of the wifebeater next time he touches her. He asked for it.

  4. disturbed 4

    Shit I couldn’t believe it, I watched for the very first time the first session of seven sharp tonight and we saw the idiot Mike Hosking beginning what is called a “fact check” where he is going to check various MPs even the PM on whether they lied or not.

    Then (as I almost feel of my chair) he sends his assistant out with proof from Last night’s Helensville debate where he showed Key saying “that’s why the Government has worked on bringing the prison population down….and she holds up a graph showing that of static numbers of prisoner population currently, so Key lied again to his own electorate a definite no no.

    He will tonight be conjuring up some lame excuse no doubt.
    Wonders never cease. worth a watch.
    Fisiani the natz fanatic will have to spin very hard to absolve his or her leader. that s officially now Keys 151st lie.

  5. Gosman 5

    Considering a number of people here have basically stated people who have been caught doing so are legends it is a bit rich to try and claim that it is just politics as usual. I have never seen that sort of attitude before.

  6. disturbed 6

    Zetetic, I agree the media does need a kick up the butt, and start asking hard question’s of this shabby NatZ floundering policy sinking us all in red ink.

    If Treasury released these statistics that during the last six years or so the crown debt has gone up over four hundred percent ratio to GDP surely the clowns at our public funded media should be asking these charlatan’s on our behalf why?
    Instead they are running around and up there own arses asking stupid questions about billboard vandalism? Is this a jail offence no.
    Is deceiving the pubic and keeping secrets like this from us the taxpayer we say yes.
    Treasury report.
    Crown debt rises from 2008 at 6% ratio to GDP to 26% ratio to GDP in 2013.

    • john 6.1

      Reminding us yet again that planet left is so far off this planet they’ve never even heard of the global financial crisis.

      • Descendant Of Sssmith 6.1.1

        If it was a crisis why did we get such ridiculous spending such as bailing out Wanganui Collegiate who could have sold their assets like this government sold ours, funding of useless parenting programs (still waiting for an evaluation of these), billions spend on roads that made no economic sense (still waiting for a list of businesses setting up in Northland after the road is built), tax cuts, a large increase is security staff for the PM, massive increases in expenditure on expensive consultants, …..

        Didn’t appear to be in crisis mode really – seemed to be in spend, spend, spend mode, panic pants on fire mode maybe, look after mates mode more likely.

      • thatguynz 6.1.2

        Oh you mean that Global Financial Crisis that ex-banking colleagues of our esteemed Prime Minister engineered through derivatives and re-hypothetication? Regrettably for you I would wager that there are a number here who are infinitely more well-versed in it than you so feel free to debate away. Please regale us with your wisdom.

        • john 6.1.2.1

          So many weak arguments tonight – this time a pathetic attempt to link Key’s career years earlier with the responsibility for the global financial crisis many years later.

          It just looks so desperate to try link anything so weak and tenuous.

          • Draco T Bastard 6.1.2.1.1

            this time a pathetic attempt to link Key’s career years earlier with the responsibility for the global financial crisis many years later.

            John Key himself has said that he was responsible for management of these toxic financial systems which caused the GFC when he was at one of the banks he worked for.

          • thatguynz 6.1.2.1.2

            You fatuous muppet. You really don’t read before you type do you. If you don’t think that bankers caused the GFC, (which incidentally hasn’t actually finished) who DO you think caused it?

  7. Grantoc 7

    I suppose Cameron and Farrar organised the Dotcom drunken idiots video and for the Nats billboards to be vandalised.

    And they clearly hacked the Labour Party candidate’s Facebook page putting up the comments on Shylock and comparing him to Key.

    Because had they not done this there would have been no story for the right wing media to get their teeth into.

    Of course that’s what must have happened. There couldn’t possibly be any other explanation.

    Besides mocking Jewishnerss is so cool these days. And only the Nats are this cool

    • felix 7.1

      Meh, apart from a bit of uncalled-for anti-jewish (or was it anti-banker?) language, none of that shit is even worth a story.

      Kids saying fuck the pm? And what? Where have you been all your life?

      • Anne 7.1.1

        It was anti-banker. According to someone on the Panel today the fellow has admitted not knowing much about Shakespeare…

        I don’t know what they teach them these days but history and literature apparently has a much lower priority than it did when I was at school.

        • Draco T Bastard 7.1.1.1

          There isn’t enough time to read all of the literature ever produced and Shakespeare isn’t the only great writer.

          • Murray Olsen 7.1.1.1.1

            Yeah, all Shakespeare ever did was take a whole heap of well known sayings, add a few more words, and made plays out of them.

            I actually believe the Labour guy when he said he didn’t know who Shylock was. I’d bet on more than one person in the NAct cabinet not knowing either, at least at the time.

        • Tracey 7.1.1.2

          is he mixing up shylock with shyster?

          It was still stupid.

      • BLiP 7.1.2

        . . . anti-jewish (or was it anti-banker?) . . .

        I’m not sure it was either. The term “Shylock” is a common sobriquet for those in the Mafia who run the loan-sharking operation. In that context, and bearing in mind the criminal actions of the outfits John Key worked for, it seems appropriate and not worth all the fuss. After all, John Key has claimed to be Jewish, Christian, and agnostic depending on which audience he was addressing at the time so religion is hardly a matter which concerns him except for expediency. That his minions are writhing with offence seems a tad contrived. I mean, where was their outrage when John Key was telling racist jokes . . .

        . . . The good news is that I was having dinner with Ngati Porou as opposed to their neighbouring iwi, which is Tuhoe, in which case I would have been dinner . . .

        . . . wattaguy.

        • BLiP, I don’t think it does anyone any credit to keep insisting that Shylock is a reference with no Jewish overtones. The Mafia didn’t start using it just because they liked the sound of it, and I really doubt that anyone using it in New Zealand in 2014 is just an aficionado of American-Italian crime syndicate slang.

          • felix 7.1.2.1.1

            I strongly disagree.

            It is not at all unusual in our culture to use language with no knowledge whatsoever of the history or etymology involved.

            Having avoided Shakespeare for most of my life, the first time I recall coming across the word “shylock” was in the film Get Shorty. It had no racial or religious overtones. Since then I’ve heard it in the same context in other films.

            That doesn’t make me “an aficionado of American-Italian crime syndicate slang”, it just means I’ve had more exposure to 20th century films than I’ve had to renaissance literature, and I hardly think I’m particularly unusual in that regard.

            Now I don’t think I’ve ever used the word myself, but if I had, I would definitely not have been aware of the connotations. If Gibson is guilty of anything it’s that he repeated someone else’s criticism without finding out what it meant, and that’s a bit dumb.

            • Stephanie Rodgers 7.1.2.1.1.1

              This was John Key’s excuse for saying someone was wearing a “gay” red shirt: “oh, whoops, there I go using words to convey meaning without knowing their meaning.”

              And to be honest, you can’t have it both ways: either Shylock is a totally innocuous term which doesn’t have anything to do with Jewish stereotypes or Steve Gibson was a numpty for using the word without understanding it referred to a Jewish stereotype.

              I would also note that of course the word had “racial and religious overtones” in Get Shorty, you just didn’t recognise them.

        • minarch 7.1.2.2

          mmmmm

          nothing like some puha and pakeha 🙂

          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgbPwbsE0oM

    • karol 7.2

      It’s interesting how some of the once were totally anti-PC people, have now become more PC than thou…!!!??

      When did some rightee last criticise lefties for being “PC”?

  8. vto 8

    I really don’t think the media matters. The disaffected and stomped on have been mobilised by the “fuck john key” chant and now the gates are wide open. They have found a voice and it is being screamed loud and clear, no holding back.

    Poor old older establishment generation don’t quite know what to make of it so they discredit it. Ha ha, so easy to spot. Who cares about their vote. Wont make one iota of difference to the outcome as they vote blue winston anyway. No difference … nup

    Times have moved. The youth don’t read john Armstrong or the herald or even watch breakfast chunder.

    Good to hear all people speaking – no matter their style.

    John Key lies and cheats
    Youth chants and defaces

    whoop de fucking shit

  9. Sable 9

    The mcmedia haven’t “fallen” for anything. They are as complicit as the rest of Keys lackeys.

    Consider for a moment “who” they are and “who” they represent. Big business with strong ties to political parties that further their capitalist agenda. In other words, National….

    Look no further than Australia if you want a template for what we have here in NZ. The mainstream media are “dirty”, time to stop being so bloody naive…

  10. Weepus beard 10

    Haha, the hate speech merchant’s website is going into meltdown again.

    http://www.whaleoil.co.nz/2014/08/internal-notice-commenters/

    This is the prime minister’s mouth piece, remember.

  11. john 11

    This is such a transparently tenuous attempt to blame those attacked for the attacks.

    It is as pathetic, as it is weak.

    It has desperation written all over it.

    • gobsmacked 11.1

      No, the people to blame are the people who carry out the attacks.

      So who has been defacing billboards with disgusting anti-Jewish graffiti? Do you know? I don’t.

      Was it drunk idiots? White supremacists? Paid-up members of the Labour party? Young Nats under orders to create a story?

      Again, I don’t know. But, like Rawdon Christie, Corin Dann and too many so-called reporters, you seem to have decided who was responsible, without evidence, and conveniently connect the billboards with things or people that aren’t connected.

      If anyone has information, they should provide it. If they don’t, they shouldn’t invent it. That’s called a smear.

      Dirty tactics indeed.

      • john 11.1.1

        You say nobody knows who damaged the billboards.

        Which conflicts with your statement that the people being blamed aren’t connected to it.

        And your statement that I have decided who is responsible for the billboards, is made up fiction.

        I’ve never blamed or insinuated anyone for the billboard damage.

        I know that the Internet Party is responsible for putting up a hate video – they said so themselves.

        I know a Labour MP is responsible for antisemitic and nasty tweet. Cunliffe has told him off for it.

        • Draco T Bastard 11.1.1.1

          I know that the Internet Party is responsible for putting up a hate video – they said so themselves.

          That wasn’t a hate video no matter how much you wish to term it as such.

          • john 11.1.1.1.1

            You’re delusional – not many things that would be more hateful.

            • One Anonymous Bloke 11.1.1.1.1.1

              How about mocking and abusing a grieving family while being egged on by the Prime Minister? Where does that feature on your hate-ometer?

            • Draco T Bastard 11.1.1.1.1.2

              Anger, yes, hate – no.

            • Tracey 11.1.1.1.1.3

              Revealing the name of a sexual abuser leading to identification of the victim, against her wishes, and causing her more sufferkng?

              Telling a victim of crime you would apologise if you knew her name, so she lifts her own suppression, and you say attempted rape and bungling by the govt isnt serious enough?

            • minarch 11.1.1.1.1.4

              did you not notice all those young men and women in that video were smiling and laughing

              not really a sign on much hatred going on

        • Tracey 11.1.1.2

          You must have hated the homophobic attacks on clark and her husband. Probably putyou off voting right.

      • Tracey 11.1.2

        Plus 1

  12. McGrath 12

    The left are complicit by their silence with the anti-Semitic overtones and abusiveness of this election. That tosser Gibson and his ‘Shylock’ comment, effigy burning by the Left, and the calls of “F John Key” are not exactly what you call “Vote Positive”…

    I always thought that anti-Semitism was a Europe disease. I didn’t expect to see the Left import it into New Zealand. Leadership is needed by the Left to reign in their more “enthusiastic” supporters…

    • gobsmacked 12.1

      As you know perfectly well, shouting “fuck John Key” has nothing to do with anti-Semitism.

      One is rude. The other is racist. That basic difference is not hard to grasp, unless you are desperate to smear.

      Anyone who voted against Helen Clark is a sexist pig, FACT. (See? Anyone can play this stupid game).

    • Descendant Of Sssmith 12.2

      I thought the right mocked individuals apologising on behalf of a group yet here you are wanting this to happen.

      Inconsistent much?

    • There has not been “silence” about Gibson being a tosser, the effigy burning was not “by the Left”, and you seem to be confusing a chant at an Internet Party event with the slogan of the Labour Party campaign.

    • tricledrown 12.4

      M cGrath so who’s your daddy

    • Tracey 12.5

      You know that labour party isnt imp, right?

  13. disturbed 13

    We have got to admire the youth today.

    They are our future and can’t be denied a voice.

    They all remind me of me in my younger days’

    So we Elders will be alongside each other when we storm the bastille gates and bring out the bureaucrats and those against the people.

    Always this when the rich and powerful take our liberty and freedom from us all that our forefathers fought and died for on foreign battlefields so must we in their honour and memory.

    Welcome all you young partisans we ain’t dead yet.

  14. anker 14

    John, Grantoc McGrath and all you others squealing about the bill boards. Maybe the left only apologize when its something “serious” We don’t see defacing bill boards as that serious. Having said that, I do see the anti-semitic views as serious.

    And on that note I am sorry about any Anti-semitic expressed in the campaign. Whoever they came from as other than the Labour guy (who says he didn’t realize the implication of the term Shylock and has apologize profusely and is on his last warning) we don’t know who did this stuff. Left? Neo-nazi’s? I don’t believe the culprits have been found

  15. Blue 15

    If I thought any of the right-whingeing was genuine, I’d say have a cup of concrete and harden up. But it’s not, so I won’t.

    It’s pretty transparent what the right is up to – they have no policy to talk about and they need to feed the chooks something. And trivial bullshit goes down so well with our MSM.

    If anyone is waiting for the media to call them on their crap I would suggest not holding your breath.

    • Anne 15.1

      What amuses me about all this right-wing gnashing of teeth over non existent anti-Semitism in the campaign is that throughout history it’s always been the the right-wing fascist types and white supremacists who indulged – and still indulge – in it.

  16. outofbed 16

    Just got back from a Billboard check round
    Most billboard damage is to Nationals .
    But then they have three times more then any other party so its not surprising.
    I must confess I am getting sick of seeing Keys smug shot everywhere.
    Mainly because I start humming

    You can’t hide your lying’ eyes
    And your smile is a thin disguise
    I thought by now you’d realise
    There ain’t no way to hide your lying eyes

    Rather annoying as I am not an Eagles kinda guys

    Love New Zealand!

  17. outofbed 17

    Just got back from a Billboard check round
    Most billboard damage is to Nationals .
    But then they have three times more then any other party so its not surprising.
    I must confess I am getting sick of seeing Keys smug shot everywhere.
    Mainly because I start humming

    You can’t hide your lying’ eyes
    And your smile is a thin disguise
    I thought by now you’d realise
    There ain’t no way to hide your lying eyes

    Rather annoying as I am not an Eagles kinda guys

    Love New Zealand!

  18. geoff 18

    CORPORATE MEDIA

    Just how deep do you believe?
    Will you bite the hand that feeds?

  19. Charlieboy 19

    And chief stirrer Farrer dresses up as Jimmy Saville, yes the well known paedo, and no one says anything. Go figure! Ohh, it was just a joke!

    • minarch 19.1

      are you serious ?

      not just any pedo, but “the UKs most prolific pedophile”

      not to mention a necrophiliac…

      that was a VERY bad choice of costumes !

  20. fisiani 20

    What part of criminal damage to National hoardings is acceptable? This is not a few random scrawls , this is an orchestrated hate campaign around the country to target and prevent the National Party from having their freedom of speech. Positive people should not damage National hoardings. People who love New Zealand should not damage National hoarding. Thus the people who damage National hoardings are people who are negative and do not love New Zealand.

    • redfed 20.1

      It is a beat up. In South Auckland the damage is no worse than it has been for many years, in fact the level of damage is probably less than it has ever been.

      The trouble with social media is that you have one billboard defaced somewhere and a photo taken and then it gives the impression of mass defacement going on. There must be hundreds of National billboards in the country. The odd defacement is not evidence of anything.

      Besides Labour’s are being hit too. This is random damage, not some conspiracy of which you have no evidence of.

    • minarch 20.2

      “People who love New Zealand should not damage National hoarding. Thus the people who damage National hoardings are people who are negative and do not love New Zealand.”

      thats actually quite a chilling attitude to read….

      your starting to sound a little hysterical now

      or possibly a little Orwellian….

      what would you suggest we should do with these seditious bas@3rds that offend the great leader so ?

    • karol 20.3

      During the 2011 election many of David Cunliffe’s billboards around New Lynn were graffiti-ed with that very lame and puerile, school yard, added letter to his name.

      It’s not just anti-Nats that damage billboards.

    • framu 20.4

      “People who love New Zealand should not damage National hoarding. Thus the people who damage National hoardings are people who are negative and do not love New Zealand.”

      WTF?!

      take your thought police bullshit somewhere else

  21. Charlieboy 21

    Yep, damage to hoardings is unacceptable,all hoardings should be left alone. This includes the creepiest damage I have seen, someone has taken to cutting out chunks of Jacinda Ardern’s face. She has made light of it,but it does mean there is some nut out there with a very sharp knife attacking pictures of a woman’s face. A very negative person.

    • framu 21.1

      yes – one group of hoardings i drive past has all the labour and mana faces removed, on a daily basis – but the nat ones are fine.

      Could it be that this sort of thing has gone on for years to all election hoardings and the right are acting like a bunch of pathetic victorian moral crusaders with no sense of reality?

      quick someone get the smelling salts!

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    5 days ago
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    7 days ago
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    7 days ago
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    7 days ago
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