Bill Ralston: fringe rightie

Written By: - Date published: 10:32 am, March 12th, 2010 - 22 comments
Categories: Media - Tags: , ,

We all knew Bill Ralston had become a nutty fringe right-winger despite how much he likes to play the slighted liberal.

But his decision to start a Facebook group attacking public broadcasting, and to do so with two nutty Objectivists (one of whom did National’s 2008 billboard campaign) is quite refreshing.

Lots of people in the public eye hold pretty extreme ideas, but most of them keep them to themselves and try to look Moderateâ„¢. Not our mate Bill though. Oh no, he’s proudly pinning his loony right-wing colours to the mast – and then some.

Whole thing raises some questions though. What does it mean that Key’s media trainer and the man responsible for his billboards are both Randian loons? What was Ralston doing taking public money to be the head of news for TVNZ? And will he give the money back now he’s made it clear he thinks it’s theft?

22 comments on “Bill Ralston: fringe rightie ”

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  1. tc 1
    12 March 2010 at 10:52 am

    Ralston is washed up and a notable failure from his tenure at TVNZ and a rather insecure one attacking Public broadcasting.

    The fact is without it the standards in the ‘media’ dissappear as all developed nations have a strong/independant public radio/TV to play it straight and be a reliable source the public reply on in times of need.

    Bill displays what a hypocrite and idiot he is by undermining one of the institutions that keep his profession relevant, for now that is…..man shoots foot but this man’s too much a loon to feel it.

  2. richard martin 2
    12 March 2010 at 11:33 am

    His credit card bill while at TVNZ was “theft”.

  3. Robert Winter 3
    12 March 2010 at 11:41 am

    Perhaps too long in the Prego lunch zone?

  4. Bill 4
    12 March 2010 at 11:58 am

    Maybe I should have put my comment under the cruelest cuts here seeing as how that nice Ayn woman has popped up more obviously here than under Marty’s post?

  5. MikeE 5
    12 March 2010 at 4:45 pm

    so let me get this straight – if you don’t agree with forcing people to fund your choice in music/radio listening, you are now a “fringe rightie” ?

    • Duncan 5.1
      12 March 2010 at 5:01 pm

      No, I’d say being an Objectivist fruitloop makes you a “fringe rightie”.

      • Bill 5.1.1
        12 March 2010 at 5:05 pm

        I’m becoming more and more persuaded that Randian shit ( why dignify such a crock of shit with a term so misleading as ‘objectivism’?) is not fringe right, but increasingly mainstream right.

        • prism 5.1.1.1
          12 March 2010 at 5:23 pm

          Why I started taking an interest in Rand was because I kept hearing of British and USA politicians and top men who were followers of the creed. She seems to have infiltrated consciousness of many, sort of like scientology.

          • Bill 5.1.1.1.1
            12 March 2010 at 7:13 pm

            Yup. One way to look at it is that capitalist systems reward selfish bastards….you don’t get to be a successful banker as well as be a nice guy.

            And so you have all these fucked up successful people who are ‘of a type’ and they start informing themselves and each other of this Randist shit which explains and exults them.

            Of course they like it. They are better than you and me by a long shot, according to ( in their minds) a rational unbiased ‘philosophy’.

            So they adopt it.

            And it pushes them to greater excesses within the systems of Capitalism and over time it is Randist levels of selfishness that demarcate who will and who wont be successful within those systems. ( Last years bastard becomes this years ‘just a tad too nice’ runner up, ie loser.)

            And when some of these people move into government then the anti-state component of Randist ‘thought’ is pursued and executed with particular fervour because it is that ( the state) which sits as a political expression of selflessness…the antithesis to and a limitation on the central Randist tenet of selfishness.

            • prism 5.1.1.1.1.1
              12 March 2010 at 8:36 pm

              Yes Bill I guess that would be the progression. Politics is supposed to be where power lies so people ambitious for themselves may be drawn towards that role thankfully not all with complete self-interest.

              After the Rogerian economic change I came across some amazing essays castigating altruism and diminishing the ‘nobility’ of kindness, charity or generosity rejecting it as a giving action but merely leading to a feeling of self-satisfaction and so a receiving, taking activity. I thought it very cold and inhuman and now I see a connection to Rand’s thoughts.

  6. prism 6
    12 March 2010 at 5:31 pm

    It is interesting to remember that there was a plot carried out to kidnap a bloke in Wellington and hold him in an underground cell. Something happens to some men who get enough money so that they distance themselves from ordinary life, and concepts of integrity, fairness, consideration, connection and co-operating with others. Go a little mad really.

  7. Anthony Karinski 7
    12 March 2010 at 6:02 pm

    I don’t think it’s fair to target Ralston as a lunatic right wing fruit loop. So you disagree on whether Radio NZ should be publicly funded. Fine. And in this case some really far right people agree with Ralston. That doesn’t mean he agrees with them on everything. Just like someone who advocates a smoke free society probably isn’t a nazi.

  8. Clint Heine 8
    13 March 2010 at 4:19 am

    I would have thought you’d be a little more mature than to call somebody a host of names just because they set up a little facebook group – or worse, have a opinion that you don’t like. Playground stuff don’t you think?

    • Salsy 8.1
      13 March 2010 at 9:48 am

      Rich coming from you Clint, Ive seen the way you attack Allan Woods on The Dont Save Radio New Zealand facebook page. What a boring bunch of user pays obsessed BS – and thats just your comments…

      • Anthony Karinski 8.1.1
        13 March 2010 at 8:56 pm

        So what if it is rich. It still doesn’t address the underlying issue. Just proves that some people are willing to stoop to the same level as those they criticise. You’re just turning it into a childish tit for tat. Aim for the ball, not the man.

  9. The Baron 9
    13 March 2010 at 2:36 pm

    Oh god, more “what’s happening on facebook” commentary from the standard. Next week – shock horror, someone defaced Helen Clark’s MySpace page. Call the airforce (whoops)!

    Really? Who cares?

  10. Bill Ralston 10
    14 March 2010 at 7:24 pm

    Hello, thanks for all your kind comments. I’ve just discovered the perils of Facebook. Someone, who I do not know, for some insane rwason known only to him, put me on that particular site as an “administrator” (whatever that is). He did not ask my permission, nor would he have received it.
    If anyone is interested in the views on RNZ of someone who is, according to your comments, such an obvious member of the vast right wing conspiracy, I’d suggest they read my column in The Listener of March 13 where I suggest we seriously need a debate about what we want from public broadcasting.
    Thanks, I’ll leave you to your conspiracy theories and insults now.
    Bill Ralston.

    • prism 10.1
      14 March 2010 at 9:03 pm

      the barren – silly shallow stuff.
      Anthony karinski – We’re not talking about recreational drugs like smoking, we are talking about reliable information, delivered all the time, not in sound bites between advertisements with whatever slant the private station owner feels is most likely to boost profits and his/her own capital increments.
      MikeE – I think that forcing people to pay taxes to support the effective running of a prosperous, well-informed democracy providing a publicly owned radio voice is a reasonable one. It would be more than unsatisfactory if private interests gained control and perhaps all the broadcasting available to us had to be personally passed by someone like yourself.
      Bill Ralston – The Listener seems to take a light hearted view now of many things that thoughtful citizens hold dear. Perhaps controversy resulting from your assertion that RNZ services need a debate will give The Listener a boost like the Sunday Star Times item on fake terrorists testing security at sports events.

    • IrishBill 10.2
      14 March 2010 at 9:15 pm

      Odd thing, Bill, is that you need to join a group to be an administrator.

      • Tigger 10.2.1
        14 March 2010 at 9:24 pm

        I’m pretty sure the Listener is part of the right wing conspiracy or at least is desperate to be part of it so thanks Bill but I’ll pass.