[…] i thought I would remind you of how you are, in-fact, the only people to enslave your own race. sure white people enslaved others, at least we were united enough not to enslave ourselves.
Although the guy talking about people on hilltops seeing the page and “screaming racism from the top of their lounges” made me smile.
Does it reveal that many Pakeha got where they are today because of their ethnicity rather than their talents? Positive discrimination is such a handicap, eh.
Kia ora whanau – I’d really like you all to stop being so greedy and start sharing the myriad of riches that we have (which are listed above) with all of our Pakeha brothers & sisters. I fully tautoko this party who wish to share in the undeserved lifestyle that we so ungratefully complain about and wish that they could enjoy the bountiful riches that have been bestowed on us by themselves.
When the working class are abandoned and ignored by social democracy and a lot of white/pink people wind up genuinely in the shit, see no way out and are looking for answers/explanations, racism will always come along and offer easy answers; answers that largely blossom from (in the case of NZ) society’s pre-existing and utterly ingrained casual racism.
Both liberal and conservative elites and all governing institutions will, of course, continue to pretend that economic injustice is not an integral part of the market economy and so simply decry the racism. And ‘the best’ of it? Some of the targetted ‘identity politics’ policies of recent years that sought to ameliorate economic disparity while denying the existence of class, is going to be feeding right on back into this shite.
Maybe some chickens are looking to be coming home to roost.
Bill, while I think you may be right that a rising tide lifts all boats, for some identity politics are always going to be more compelling than economics. Far better to accept that and move on rather than this impotent railing, no?
Nothing wrong with identity politics if class is factored in or acknowledged too. And it works the other way too race and gender should be factored in or acknowledged when looking at class.
And if you accept the fact of class being made invisible by politicians and their parties/policies, then the fucking racism that is clearly evident from comments on that fb page is going to continue to fester and grow.
btw. What exactly was it Hone said about housing and how was it reported so that some guy came to be thinking that there was going to be ‘Maori only’ housing? And has that been put to rights and explained amid all the jibing and piss taking that, to be honest, seems to be more about the fb guy’s political naivity and lack of media savvy?
And what about all that racism being expressed in comments and the apparent popularity of those sentiments? Is the idea just to ignore all that cos, y’know, it’s just stupid white trash speak and worth nothing beyond ridicule and superior smirking silences?
Because if that is to be the broad response in NZ, then NZ is setting itself up for some ugly shit some time in the future.
Right now, people are focussed on racism. I’d suggest it be taken seriously and underlying causes addressed and misconceptions challenged. But, y’know, I expect that suggestion and concern to fall on stoney ground. I expect to see a couple of days of ridicule topwards the likes who are commenting on that fb page alongside expressions of dismissive anger from leftists. And then for it to ‘go away’ and allowed to fester until next time around.
What exactly was it Hone said about housing and how was it reported so that some guy came to be thinking that there was going to be ‘Maori only’ housing? And has that been put to rights and explained amid all the jibing and piss taking that, to be honest, seems to be more about the fb guy’s political naivity and lack of media savvy?
From what I remember, and this is only from the MSM and ts, Mana’s first press releases were about housing for Maori. After the reaction to that, they came out and said that the policy would be for all people. I don’t know if that was a policy change, or if they just presented it differently. The thing that struck me at the time was that either Mana were being very naive in how they presented that whole policy (or they didn’t care), or they were very clever (if you look at the timing with the Ikaroa-Rawhiti by-election, they sent a clear message of support to Maori, and then a few days later they pacified Pakeha). I don’t know which I think is true.
Nothing wrong with identity politics if class is factored in or acknowledged too. And it works the other way too race and gender should be factored in or acknowledged when looking at class.
And if you accept the fact of class being made invisible by politicians and their parties/policies, then the fucking racism that is clearly evident from comments on that fb page is going to continue to fester and grow.
I agree. I’m not sure quite what you mean about the connection with other identity politics, as I don’t see NACT or Labour as engaging in that majorly other than with some individual policies like gay marriage. That they’re removing class from the debate is definitely happening, and I agree there needs to be a conversation about why so many people agree with the Pakeha Party. The main problem here, on ts, is that that conversation has largely been initiated by vto, who’s race politics are too near the John Ansell end of the spectrum, so the discussions never get passed that. Personally I’d be interested in having the conversation amongst people that are already grounded in acceptance of the Treaty etc.
I think maybe what you are saying is that white, working and underclass men are getting a very hard time and that this needs to be acknowledged and responded to. I agree. The question is how to frame that debate, and how to engage with people who already frame that debate in racist and proto-racist ways.
Let me know if I’ve missed the mark there with how I’ve read your comment.
The Mana housing policy was originally released in a Maori electorate, to Maori voters. The release was targeted at them, which in the circumstances was fair enough. I asked if it would be extended to all people in need of housing and the unequivocal answer was yes. I asked on the day of public release. Even though I think Mana need to learn a lot about using social media, there was no intent for this to be a Maori only policy.
“And ‘the best’ of it? Some of the targetted ‘identity politics’ policies of recent years that sought to ameliorate economic disparity while denying the existence of class, is going to be feeding right on back into this shite.”
Just go to the fb page comments for some examples. The whole ‘Maori are privileged by the education system’ tripe is just one of many you will see being said over and over again.
I can’t take the comments on that page as serious examples of identity politics policies. Can you give some examples of what you mean? eg which education policies. Or were you meaning perception of policies rather than actual policies?
I know that the Clark govt removed much of the funding available directly to Maori community projects, to the great detriment of many grass roots initiatives. That happened in direct response to people complaining about race based funding and Labour being afraid of losing votes. Despite the removal of race based funding, we still hear alot of criticism of things like Whanau Ora, Tariana Turia’s project, despite Whanau Ora funding being open to all ethnic groups.
I’m sure there are some targetted policies, and it would certainly be very useful to know what they are and analyse them. At the moment it looks like another case of us all arguing about something without the facts (not you and I, but the whole country).
Nothing like stunning ignorance to further divide and hurt our country. When we are as weak as we are, pathogens like this silly Pakeha Party can really infect the minds of already deluded folks.
Diving? Well, I ‘d have to say that ultimately John Key is responsible for sending the country into a nose dive, but he has been aided by the likes of Sky Casino, Warner Bro’s, and of course his trusty pals Paula, Hekia, Simon, Peter, John and so on. Then there’s a media that feeds all the petty misinformed jealousies of the fools of this country. It’s a social, moral and economic nosedive. Although if you meant to say divide, it would be all of the above as well.
Oh, and not to mention the increasingly hostile approach of employers in this country. At this rate there will be no turning back to a time of fairness, dignity and trust in the workplace. The NZ workplace has been divided by mistrust and power grabbing by employers. See Helen Kelly’s excellent article as an example of this
Could be good for the Left. Would never get an electorate seat and unlikely to get to 5% of the vote but still take enough support from the same pool of rednecks who would otherwise vote for Keys, so could help push a Left coalition over the line. When things get as tight as they have done in NZ over the last two general elections the slightest variable could make a big difference.
While redneck’s etymology is not clear Wiki offered rural origins, and the modern US usage as ‘used broadly to degrade working class and rural whites that are perceived by urban progressives to be insufficiently liberal’
Your view is unnecessarily narrow, focusing on ‘working'(class) ie origin, rather than on the illiberalism ie attitude, that it connotes for majority users in NZ. You might like to consider the extent to which the term is gendered, too.
I’m sort of with Morrissey on this one. If redneck doesn’t denote prejudice then neither does wetback.
There’s nothing wrong with the term being used to describe a farmer or a manual worker. The problem is when it is foolishly and inappropriately used to mean “bigot”.
The vilest, most ignorant, most illiberal views in this country come from radio loudmouths like Michael Laws and Leighton Smith, a whole raft of complacent newspaper opinionistas, right wing “Think Tank” reptiles like Bob McCoskrie and Bruce Logan, ACT on Campus halfwits, and assorted other bewildered/nasty/lazy/st000pid souls.
Note that nearly all of them are distinguished by their LACK of hard work, and especially by their lack of hard PHYSICAL work. They do not get sunburnt, except when they lie on the beach at a Fiji resort. They are bigots, not rednecks. In fact, I can think of only two bigots who could fairly be described as “rednecks”—John “Hone” Carter and Garth “The Knife” McVicar.
“Redneck”, when used as a term of abuse, is nothing more than a sniffy east coast liberal putdown of ALL working people, who the Eastern liberal establishment, i.e. the Democratic Party, resented because they were unconvinced by the Barack Obamas and Bill Clintons of the late ’60s and early ‘seventies.
You need to stop indolently recycling such abusive, foolish, and inaccurate language.
You’re right. Sorry, that was ignorant of me. I hadn’t realised that the term had that meaning at all. I’d always thought it was limited to white conservative bigots but realise now that’s not the case.
This gives me a great deal of hope. We only have to turn one in four of those pre-Orewa gnat supporters and Labour will once again lead in the polls. But how to do it?
Sadly I can’t help thinking that the current Labour caucus seems more intent on winning over some of the 17% that went to the gnats post Orewa.
theres really only two outcomes i can see from this
1) theyre actually well meaning but deluded – so when they start saying what it is they want politically, every one will go “yeah, youve got that already, whats your point again?”, and their support will atrophy and/or no-one will bother working with them
or
2) they will expose them selves as outright racists and their support will atrophy and/or no-one will want to work with them
either way – i see it as no biggie really. the pefect response to all this “The maori party is a racist party” is “so what?”
If you can get enough people who want to join theres nothing stopping you, go for your life. If you wanted to have a one armed jewish lesbian party theres nothing stopping you if youve got the numbers. If youre just bonkers or dont really have much of a clue – you will expose yourself pretty quickly
there’s more of them than we’d like to think in NZ. Most won’t come out into the sunlight as they prefer to slither around under rocks with their own kind. So they’ll probably stay with the gnats or nzf
Remember, this is exactly the same bullshit that nearly got Don Brash elected in 2005. And he never came up with a single concrete example of “special maori privilege”.
Right now they’re just a couple of idiots, but what they’ve got is momentum. And while a stationary idiot is just an idiot, a rolling mass of idiocy can do a lot of damage.
If that momentum is sustained for much longer, they’ll be approached by smarter, shrewder, more calculating players who will quietly take over behind the scenes and try to translate this momentum into real political support for something.
Maybe Lusk for a faction within National. Maybe Gibbs for the rebirth of ACT. It’s open to anyone really, bunch of angry ignorant voters for the taking.
Shit, it may have already happened for all we know.
😀 There is one good thing that has come out of it. It’s got a lot of people talking, typically people that don’t vote.
Other than that, couldn’t really care less. Knowing their luck, it will become a political party. New Zealand is crazy like that. I think this will appeal to a lot of people.
If the Pakeha party wanted to have a discussion about untangling the causes from the symptoms of poverty in a marginalised and disadvantaged racial group where they reject what we are currently doing and propose something else, that would not necessarily be an inherently racist thing to do.
But the Pakeha Party isn’t interested in that. They just want to have a whine about Maori because somehow they think Maori are already more “privileged”. They have constructed a mental fantasyland where stealing the land off it’s rightful owners, exploiting that stolen wealth for their exclusive enrichment and entrenching their white privilege somehow makes them martyrs.
The question is WHY do they feel like martyrs? Why this constant bubbling up of ignorant but popular racism? Generally speaking this party appeals to a broad range of blue collar and mortgage belt whites who think they see a lazy brown elite getting rich on unearned rents and handouts while their hard work is rewarded with increasingly unaffordable housing, stagnant wage growth and poor job security. They feel they’ve played the capitalist game honestly but the rules have been changed. The concerns of this constituency is completely ignored or belittled by the neo-liberal intelligensia component of our elites who dominate the race debate. Who, actually, does speak for Joe and Jane Six-Pack on Struggle Street?
The political vacuum left by the captured political and intellectual technocrats in the elite cadres of our political establishment is always going to be filled by increasingly incoherent and radical parties of the popular right, just like it is in Europe. This wave will be beaten back, but every time the sea recedes on an Orewa or a Pakeha Party the tide is just that little further up the beach for the established order.
I can nail it for you quite easily. It’s because of the land/money given to Maori tribes and such. Not that there is anything wrong with it, but that this stuff was meant to be tidied up along time ago, but keeps going on and on and on.
Rubbish. Do you honestly believe the dog whistling will stop? Why would the Right give up the opportunity to exploit the divisions it has manufactured?
“Not that there is anything wrong with it, but that this stuff was meant to be tidied up along time ago, but keeps going on and on and on.”
Well yeah, it was meant to be tidied up around 1840 or so, but pakeha chose to ignore that and plough ahead as if they owned the place for the next 150 years, largely to the detriment of maori.
Bit rich to turn around after 150 years and blame maori for it going on and on and on.
You mean a bunch of people who have benefited from an imbalance are upset that the situation is being righted and they want to stop the process before they lose any more of their advantage.
“Not all pakeha are hot under the collar about maori catching up either.
So what?”
The point in this context is that white, working/underclass men (and women I guess) have genuine grievances with how society is treating them. One problem is they’re blaming the wrong target. Telling them they are privileged in comparison to Maori doesn’t solve that, it most likely makes it worse (depending on how it is done).
The other problem is that the people with genuine grievances are merged with the people who are simply just racist. But treating those two groups as the same is a mistake.
The other side of it though is that working class/underclass members of the dominat culture are still privileged over working class/underclass members of minority cultures.
Well the Maori have their own party and what have they done? Got into bed with the very people who stand to do all of the things outlined in this diatribe. You can not expect change if you are not willing to put in the “hard yards” and so far this party just look like a bunch of opportunists.
Really need more anvils dropped in high school and documentaries on Te Treati O Waitangi and NZ history to make people realise just how much the Crown fucked over Maori tribes T_T
Then just click on the lowest “reply” button in that thread. So in this instance you should have clicked on the reply button in the 12:14pm comment by felix.
Your post 19 should have used the reply button. You do that a lot (don’t use the reply button so your comment is out of whack with the rest of the discussion). Just wondered why.
The Pakeha Party: initially I thought it was a clever prank, but apparently not. It’s party purpose-built for Troglodytes, Knuckle-Draggers & Mouth-Breathers: now they’ve found themselves a place to call Home, which is convenient for the rest of us, as it will allow us to keep an eye on ’em.
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Today, a worker contacted me asking if she could go to the police over her employer stealing thousands of dollars from her in unpaid wages. The employer also did not pay this worker’s taxes or student loan which amounts to tax fraud. As a workers rights activist, who founded the ...
Signed, Sealed, Delivered, They're Yours: Is there any person more vulnerable than a jilted lover on the rebound? Or, anything more certain than that the charmer, the predator, the glib spinner of lies and promises will seek such broken people out? Yes, of course, he will love every one of ...
Though Jonathan Romain is a fairly high profile Rabbi, writing in several papers and popping up on TV and the radio, this story doesn't seem to have made it to the Guardian yet, so I'll take the unusual step of linking the Stephen Pollard edited Jewish Chronicle:Rabbi Dr Jonathan Romain ...
There's an election afoot, and that is when noted opinion formers such as myself get to make wild fools of ourselves by pretending we have the faintest idea what will happen.So, here is my absurdly optimistic prediction:Labour - 285Conservative - 262SNP - 53Lib Dems - 20PC - 5Ireland - 18 ...
Image Credit:Increase Social Media Traffic & Website Traffic I notice a few regulars no longer allow public access to the site counters. This may happen accidentally when the blog format is altered. If your ...
Belinda CridgeI was reading my son a story last night. A great tale of derring-do of five mountaineers scaling the Matterhorn for the first time. One in the party had tried six times previously and failed, this was the last attempt before winter closed another season. They tried a ...
As introduced, the Zero Carbon Bill included an expansive secrecy clause, which would have covered virtually all decisions by the Climate Change Commission over our most important policy area. The Ministry for the Environment admitted this was a mistake (or as they put it, an "oversight"), and the select committee ...
Rachael Shaw, Victoria University of WellingtonWhen we think about animals storing food, the image that usually comes to mind is a squirrel busily hiding nuts for the winter. We don’t usually think of a small songbird taking down an enormous invertebrate, tearing it into pieces and hiding these titbits ...
. . NZ First’s success in putting the euthenasia bill to a public referenda may not be the victory they believe it to be. They may even have sounded the death-knell for a second Labour-NZ First-Green coalition. On 23 July this year, NZ First MP, Jenny Marcroft, submitted a Supplementary ...
Interesting contrasting pictures in the Guardian:Corbyn gets the classic positive shot - low angle and a clear background, making him look authoritative (of course, being Corbyn, he doesn't do authoritative very well).Where as Johnson gets pictured with children at some sort of mad-hatters' tea party:Begging the question, who is the ...
Paternalism is contentious. Arguments for state action to protect us from ourselves are fraught. I come down pretty heavily on the anti-paternalism side of the argument, but I’ve heard respectable defences of paternalism. But policy around vaccination is hardly paternalistic. There’s a clear market failure that could be pointed to ...
I’ve been reading Jules Verne’s novel Twenty thousand leagues under the sea, considered as one of the very earliest science fiction stories. In brief, Monsieur Aronnax and a couple of sidekicks are taken prisoner by Captain Nemo and his mysterious crew and treated to an underwater voyage around the world ...
Darroch Ball, Spokesperson for Justice New Zealand First is proud that a key Coalition Agreement commitment which will provide for a more transparent and effective criminal justice system has been realised. Legislation to establish the Criminal Cases Review Commission, an independent body focused on identifying and responding to possible miscarriages of ...
"Today we have made a choice that will leave a legacy... I hope that means that future generations will see that we, in New Zealand, were on the right side of history." - Jacinda Ardern, Third Reading of the Zero Carbon Bill ...
Darroch Ball, New Zealand First List MP A Member’s bill has been proposed that would provide income tax exemptions for all New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) personnel while on operational deployment overseas. The Income Tax (Exemption for Salary or Wages of NZDF Members on Active Deployment) Amendment Bill proposed by New Zealand First ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, New Zealand First Leader New Zealand First is proud to have brought common sense to the Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Bill, which passed its final reading in Parliament today. Party Leader Rt Hon Winston Peters says months of hard work went into negotiating a balanced ...
Jenny Marcroft MP, Spokesperson for Health New Zealand First has listened to calls to recognise paramedics as registered health professionals under the Health Practitioners’ Competence Assurance Act (the Act).Today, the Coalition Government announced plans for paramedics to be registered as health practitioners under the Act, and the establishment of a ...
We began the week by commemorating the New Zealand Wars and celebrating a major increase in the number of teachers. Then, we were busy supporting offenders into work and getting our rail back on track after years of underinvestment. And that's just the start! ...
In October I was sworn in as the Mayor of Lower Hutt.It’s the privilege of my life to serve Hutt people as their Mayor. There is something really special to be able to serve the community where I was raised, and where I live. ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Racing Racing Minister Winston Peters met with Korea Racing Authority Chairperson Nak Soon Kim in Seoul today to discuss closer cooperation between the New Zealand and Korean horse racing industries. As part of the visit to the Seoul Racecourse, Mr Peters witnessed ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is investing $10 million to establish Otago as the centre of New Zealand’s creative digital industry over the next ten years, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. “The initiative will bring us closer to the vision of ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF)’s skills and employment programme will help young Otago people into long-term forestry careers, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. Te Ara Mahi will invest $63,000 in the 2020 school year to support eight 17 and 18 ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) will support local plans to revitalise and stimulate economic development opportunities in Otago, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones has announced. The four Regional Economic Development Ministers have approved an in-principle investment of $19.9 million towards the region’s ...
Mark Patterson, Spokesperson for Primary Industries New Zealand First is pleased to have received the Technical Advisory Group (TAG) report on the Coalition Government’s Mycoplasma bovis eradication efforts, which shows significant progress in the fight against the disease. New Zealand First Spokesperson for Primary Industries, Mark Patterson, says the report’s findings ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development Hon David Parker, Minister for Trade and Export Growth The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is investing to support economic growth opportunities for Otago’s engineering and manufacturing sectors, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones and Trade and Export Minister David Parker announced today. Almost $20 million ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs Foreign Minister Winston Peters and his South Korean counterpart, Kang Kyung-wha, discussed in Seoul today opportunities to work more closely in the Pacific and the situation on the Korean Peninsula. Mr Peters and Minister Kang confirmed New Zealand and the ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development Hon Nanaia Mahuta, Minister for Māori Development The three marae in the historic Parihaka Pa complex in Taranaki have been upgraded to high speed broadband with the support of the Provincial Growth Fund (PGF), Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. “Connecting the ...
Hon Ron Mark, Minister of Defence Minister of Defence Ron Mark will today launch the Advancing Pacific Partnerships 2019 Defence Assessment during a speech at Te Papa. The Assessment outlines how Defence will partner with our Pacific Island neighbours and invest in Pacific regional security architecture. The Plan aligns with the Coalition ...
A new Provincial Growth Fund investment could create about 80 new jobs in Gisborne over the next two years, turning a local small business into a “beacon of employment” in the process. Regional Economic Development Parliamentary Under-Secretary Fletcher Tabuteau said the PGF’s Te Ara Mahi funding stream would provide $1.6m ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters will travel to the Republic of Korea and Japan next week. “The Republic of Korea and Japan are two of New Zealand’s closest partners in the region with whom we share common values and ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced today that New Zealand is leading a police support mission in Bougainville as the region prepares to vote in a non-binding referendum on its political future. “New Zealand has accepted an invitation ...
New Zealand First MP Shane Jones is defending Immigration New Zealand (INZ) after it instructed officials to stop granting visas as an exception to instructions. He has also lashed out at immigrant leaders upset with the tightening of the rules, saying they had an “elevated sense of entitlement”. Members of ...
A change to the End of Life Choice Bill was passed in Parliament, meaning if politicians decide to vote for the law it must be approved by the public first. A binding referendum was a condition insisted on by New Zealand First, and Jenny Marcroft’s supplementary order paper (SOP) successfully ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters will travel to Washington DC today to attend a ministerial meeting focused on defeating ISIS, and to continue pursuing New Zealand’s trade opportunities. Mr Peters will participate in a meeting of Foreign and Defence Ministers from key countries contributing to the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS. ...
The recently crowned Bird of the Year, the hoiho/yellow eyed penguin, is getting a much needed helping hand alongside more than 168 other community conservation projects announced Minister for Conservation Eugenie Sage today. 168 community conservation projects throughout New Zealand are benefiting from $8 million in government grants, including $500,000 ...
Controls on assault rifles and semi-automatic firearms are to be broadened to include some types of pistols, under changes to a bill currently making its way through Parliament. Police Minister Stuart Nash has tabled a Supplementary Order Paper to the Arms Legislation Bill, which is currently before a Select Committee ...
Minister of Defence Ron Mark will travel to Singapore today to conduct a counterpart visit and to co-chair the third annual Singapore-New Zealand Defence Ministers’ Meeting with his counterpart, Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen. “Singapore is one of our most important defence partners in the region, and our ...
Nelson’s Salisbury School is to be rebuilt, creating a modern and suitable learning environment for students at the residential special school, Education Minister Chris Hipkins and Associate Education Minister Tracey Martin announced today. The school for girls aged 8-15, in Richmond, was earmarked for closure by National until the process ...
The panel undertaking a comprehensive review of the Resource Management Act has identified the main issues to be addressed and options for reform and is calling for feedback to inform its final report. In July the Government announced the comprehensive review of the resource management system, including the RMA - ...
An important safety valve has been added to New Zealand’s criminal justice system with the third reading of the Criminal Cases Review Commission Bill today. The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) will investigate claimed miscarriages of justice. “We’ve seen how our justice system can very occasionally get things spectacularly wrong, ...
Racing Minister Winston Peters welcomes the tabling of the Racing Industry Transition Agency (RITA) 2019 Annual Report in Parliament today. He says the 2019 Annual Report marks the point when New Zealand’s racing industry’s decline was arrested and a turnaround started. RITA’s 2019 Annual Report recorded an industry net profit ...
The New Zealand Government is today sending 21 firefighters to help fight the ongoing catastrophic Australian bushfires. “The fires in Australia are in some of the toughest, most challenging conditions ever,” says Internal Affairs Minister Tracey Martin. “As of yesterday morning, there were 100 active bushfire-related incidents across Queensland and ...
More frontline support for schools through a new education agency, as part of a redesigned Ministry of Education More support for principals and school boards including through a new centre of leadership and local leadership advisor roles New independent disputes panels for parents and students Management of school property ...
The Government’s reform of the Tomorrow’s Schools system is a watershed moment in education and an opportunity to create meaningful change for ākonga Māori and their whānau, Associate Education Minister Kelvin Davis said today. “Last year through Kōrero Mātauranga | Education Conversation, Māori teachers, parents, ākonga, whānau, hapū and iwi ...
Infrastructure Minister is welcoming the first of many updated project pipelines from the newly established New Zealand Infrastructure Commission today. The New Zealand Infrastructure Commission, Te Waihanga, has released an expanded pipeline of major capital projects – another crucial step towards delivering better infrastructure outcomes. “The first iteration of the ...
Tougher gun laws designed to improve public safety through firearms prohibition orders are proposed in a new document released for public input. Police Minister Stuart Nash says firearms prohibition orders (FPOs) would give new powers to Police to ensure high-risk individuals come nowhere near firearms. “We have already prohibited the ...
Andy Coupe has been confirmed as TVNZ’s new Board Chair. “Mr Coupe has strong commercial and capital markets experience and TVNZ has benefited from his technical knowledge of business and finance, as well as his extensive governance experience,” the Minister of Broadcasting, Communications and Digital Media Kris Faafoi said. Andy ...
Associate Minister of Transport Julie Anne Genter today officially opened a separated pathway, following the completion of the Kaiwharawhara Stream bridge, which will improve safety for cyclists and pedestrians along Hutt Road. The $6.8m Hutt Road project provides a separated path for cycling and pedestrians, the replacement of informal parking ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters today announced the appointment of career diplomat Si’alei van Toor as New Zealand’s next Ambassador to Russia. “I’m pleased to appoint Ms van Toor to this position. She brings a wealth of experience to the role having previously served as Senior Trade Adviser to the ...
The Treasury’s 2019 Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU) will be released on Wednesday December 11, Finance Minister Grant Robertson says. The Coalition Government will publish the 2020 Budget Policy Statement at the same time, outlining the priorities for Budget 2020. Further details on arrangements for the release will ...
A new initiative to better support small businesses through hands-on mentoring and advice has been launched by the Minister for Small Business. The first event in the Kiwi Business Boost series of regional workshops and online tools has been launched in Wairoa by Stuart Nash. “The Business Boost initiative combines ...
The latest Quarterly Connectivity Report shows that more and more New Zealanders are moving to Ultra-fast Broadband (UFB), with Rolleston having the highest uptake at 74 per cent, as at the end of September. “This means that nearly three quarters of Rolleston’s households and businesses have moved to ultra-fast services. ...
The passing of the Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Bill will help ensure a safe planet for our kids and grandkids, the Minister for Climate Change James Shaw said today. The landmark legislation which provides a framework to support New Zealanders to prepare for, and adapt to, the effects ...
The review of Oranga Tamariki practice around the planned uplift of a Hastings baby in May shows significant failings by the Ministry and that the planned and funded changes to shift from a child crisis service to a proper care and protection service need to be accelerated, Children’s Minister Tracey ...
Education Minister Chris Hipkins has wished students the best of luck for this year’s NCEA and New Zealand Scholarship exams which start tomorrow. Around 140,000 students will have participated in 119 NCEA and New Zealand Scholarship exams by the end of the exam period on 3 December. “I want to ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters today announced the appointment of Bede Corry as New Zealand’s next High Commissioner to the United Kingdom. “The appointment of a senior diplomat to this important role underlines the significance New Zealand places on our relationship with the United Kingdom,” said Mr Peters. “The United ...
An innovative approach to boosting the number of frontline Police has seen 20 new officers graduate from one of the uncommon training wings in Auckland. Police Minister Stuart Nash says the graduation of 20 constables today means that 1,765 new Police officers have been deployed since the coalition government took ...
Corrections Minister Kelvin Davis says the 1.2 million hours of community work completed by offenders in the last financial year has helped local communities right across the country. “Community work sentences are a great way for people to pay something positive back to society. There is a massive benefit to ...
"A pathway for Police in leadership with Iwi Māori, to achieve the aspirations of Māori whānau." Police launch of Te Huringa o Te Tai, Pipitea Marae, Thorndon Quay, Wellington Nau mai, haere mai. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, ka nui te mihi, ki a koutou. Hello everyone, warm greetings to you all. ...
Working New Zealanders are getting more in their back pockets under the Coalition Government’s economic plan. Stats NZ data today shows average weekly ordinary time earnings are up by $83 since the Government took office. This shows that working New Zealanders are getting higher take-home pay, and that employers are ...
The Government is supporting schools to cut down their energy consumption and reduce environmental impacts, with a quarter of all schools having their lights replaced with LEDs, a sustainability contestable fund and a plan to improve the environmental sustainability of all schools in the future. Education Minister Chris Hipkins and ...
Tourism Minister Kelvin Davis heads to China on Friday to lead the New Zealand Government presence at the China-New Zealand Year of Tourism closing ceremony. The ceremony will take place at Canton Tower in Guangzhou on Sunday 10 November. “The Year of Tourism has been mutually beneficial for both New ...
Should we plan for drought or deluge and how is CO2 released from the ocean’s floor? Several climate change projects were given a boost in the latest Marsden Fund investment of $83.6 million, Research, Science and Innovation Minister Megan Woods said today. “Climate change is long-term challenge that requires out-of-the-box ...
Leaders of 16 countries negotiating the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) have announced the completion of negotiation on the text as well as agreement on virtually all market access issues between 15 countries. The leaders said they will work with India to resolve its outstanding concerns in a way that ...
Civil Defence Minister Hon Peeni Henare says World Tsunami Awareness Day today (5 November) is a chance for all New Zealanders to learn more about the tsunami risk in our regions and the right actions to take to stay safe. “All of New Zealand’s coastline is at risk of tsunami. ...
New Zealand’s more than 1000 paramedics are to have their role as key frontline health professionals formally recognised and regulated in the same way as doctors and nurses, Health Minister David Clark says. The Government has agreed to regulate paramedics under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003. “Paramedic leaders ...
Changes to insolvency law announced by the Government today will include requirements to honour up to 50 per cent of the value of gift cards or vouchers held by consumers, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Kris Faafoi says. “When a business is insolvent, these consumers are often left out of ...
Six New Zealanders tonight received medals for their meritorious work in the frontline public service. The Public Service Medal, established by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, is awarded annually. “For the second year this Government has recognised public servants who have made a real difference to the lives of New ...
Minister for Trade and Export Growth David Parker heads to Shanghai today for the China International Import Expo and meetings focused on reforming the WTO. Over 90 New Zealand companies will be exhibiting at the second China International Import Expo (CIIE), which runs from 5-10 November. “China is one of New Zealand’s ...
Drivers holding a current five-year learner or restricted car or motorbike licence, expiring between 1 December 2019 and 1 December 2021, will receive an automatic two-year extension, Associate Transport Minister Julie Anne Genter announced today. Over 144,000 drivers’ time-limited licences are due to expire in the next two years; 67,000 ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Minister for Trade and Export Growth David Parker have announced the conclusion of negotiations to upgrade New Zealand’s existing free trade agreement with China. “This ensures our upgraded free trade agreement will remain the best that China has with any country,” Jacinda Ardern said. She ...
Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau congratulates the Ten Kiwi organisations who have been recognised for their outstanding contribution to the wellbeing and the prosperity of their communities. Economic Development New Zealand (EDNZ), announced the awards at its annual conference in Blenheim last weekend. “A special congratulations to ...
Minister for Building and Construction Jenny Salesa has welcomed the record high of 13,000 building and construction apprentices in active training with main provider the Building and Construction Industry Training Organisation (BCITO). “We are committed to reversing the long-term decline in trades training and it’s excellent to see more people ...
The National Party is floating the idea of replacing the tertiary fees-free policy with a scheme like KiwiSaver to pay for University or polytechnic courses; and the Crown says Winston Peters claim his privacy was breached falls away entirely when held up against the law. ...
Malcolm Harbrow, at No Right Turn, has picked up on an important governance issue which our web search (a brief one, we acknowledge) suggests was missed by the mainstream media. The Referendums Framework Bill was due back from Parliament’s Justice Select Committee yesterday. Harbrow would have been monitoring its progress because he was one of around ...
The State Services Commission has shut down the inquiry into how Budget sensitive information was accessed from the Treasury website, because a key member failed to declare a conflict of interest. ...
Taxpayers deserve a stronger commitment from National to scrap the fees-free policy, says the New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union . Taxpayers’ Union spokesman Louis Houlbrooke says, “On one hand, National correctly called fees-free an ‘expensive failure’. ...
In this chapter from journalist Frances Cook’s guide to getting your finances sorted, she finally comes to terms with her attitudes and behaviour around money. They say the first step is accepting you have a problem. One of the first things I had to accept was that I was guilty of ‘lifestyle ...
Pioneering conservationist Richard Henry’s crucial contribution to saving our endangered native birds is remembered today, 13 November 2019, the 90th Anniversary of his death. ...
State Services Commissioner Peter Hughes has today terminated the investigation into how Budget-sensitive material was accessed at the Treasury and appointed a new inquirer. ...
One journalist’s quest for a silly answer leads to a desperate search for the truth behind the most bizarre news story. A woman was reading a book, her husband was driving, and their son was asleep in the back seat when an axe flew through the windscreen. The short-handled axe – ...
The Earthquake Commission’s Annual Report 2018-19 has been tabled in Parliament today. The Annual Report summarises progress being made on EQC’s mission “to reduce the impact on people and property when natural disasters occur.” ...
The country's biggest listed transport company, Mainfreight, has had a 6 percent lift in profit as better trading in overseas markets has offset the slower growth in local markets. ...
The catastrophic bushfires in Australia are framed very differently depending on which media you consume, writes Duncan Greive from Sydney.The horizon started the day crisp and clear, the bushfires out there but not palpable. A group of 60 or so media from across Australia and New Zealand, all holed up ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jane Tiller, Ethical, Legal & Social Adviser – Public Health Genomics, Monash University In the past week, news has spread of a Florida judge’s decision to grant a warrant allowing police to search one of the world’s largest online DNA databases, for ...
“At the end of the day when you commit a brutal act such as murder a ‘difficult upbringing’ will never explain why someone chose to take another’s life.” ...
The Department of Corrections is marking World Kindness Day today (13 November) by acknowledging the work Good Bitches Baking does spreading kindness through baked goods to those who need it most. ...
The spat between Labour and New Zealand First ministers over Indian arranged marriages may have moved behind closed doors -but is no closer to resolution. ...
Emily Writes provides an essential guide through the vast world of sex toys and finds something for everyone. Sex toys have well and truly become mainstream. When you buy a toy you’re taking control of your sex life and fully celebrating your body and how wonderful it is. These days, there ...
United against David Seymour’s euthanasia and assisted suicide bill, representatives from all walks of life will gather peacefully on Parliament's lawn on Wednesday 13 November between 12 and 2 pm. Over 39,000 submissions have been written and heard. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Whitehouse, Bennett Chair of Autism, Telethon Kids Institute, University of Western Australia It’s 25 years since the fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-IV) was published. The manual is the clinical “bible” that defines the criteria for the diagnosis ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Frédérik Saltré, Research Fellow in Ecology, Flinders University For more than 3.5 billion years, living organisms have thrived, multiplied and diversified to occupy every ecosystem on Earth. The flip side to this explosion of new species is that species extinctions have also ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Petterson, Professor of Geology, Auckland University of Technology CC BY-NDClimate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change.If you have a question you’d like an expert ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Glen Fuller, Associate Professor Communications and Media, University of Canberra Once upon a time when something was simple to do we said: “It’s as easy as riding a bike.” But switching from driving a car to riding a bike as one’s main ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Kinsella, Professor of Literature and Environment, Curtin University I start with a disclaimer: I am a UWA Publishing poet. I have published a book of poetry with them (as well as a novel), and have two books forthcoming with them in ...
Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.Today’s content by Dr Bryce Edwards.Education Audrey Young (Herald): Why Education Minister Hipkins has shot to the top of the ...
Jacinda Ardern says she doesn’t see Ports of Auckland's future as ‘necessarily being political’; and call for urgent review of foreign forestry investment. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Humphery-Jenner, Associate Professor of Finance, UNSW Myer is the in the clear, sort of, after Australia’s first judicial ruling on a securities class action. It centred around allegations that Myer misled the market about its projected earnings. The court found Myer ...
Health Minister David Clark has told the House the overall District Health Board deficit is actually almost $170 million higher than the Government had previously admitted. ...
The education ministry's decision not to investigate a teacher sex case in Marlborough means the victim children and parents have been short-changed, argues Victoria University of Wellington's Michael Macaulay ...
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Big changes coming for how schools are run, highly anticipated OCR decision coming today, and a clear-eyed look at the protests up Ōwairaka/Mt Albert.The government has set up a fight with a dangerous political constituency – highly involved parents at affluent ...
Lawyers acting for those being sued by Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters over his supernannuation overpayment say he has failed to present any evidence to back his sweeping public comments on the issue. ...
Winston Peters' case in the High Court reminds us that NZ Super is chickenfeed to wealthy people. So why don't we recover the pension through more progressive taxation? ...
Black Ferns fullback Selica Winiata is aiming to achieve a rare double - refereeing international rugby while still playing the game at the highest level. ...
A protest against the felling of non-native trees on one of Auckland’s maunga has erupted this week. Ben Thomas says they’re behaving like brats and ignoring the rights of iwi.Letting go can be hard, even if it’s for the best.This is not to say that a few dozen angry residents ...
The trial of the man accused of Grace Millane’s murder is unlike any other in New Zealand history, recounted in micro-beats, each one tweeted and push-notified. Anna Connell asks what it’s doing to justice.It was a story that horrified New Zealand. In December last year, the news of the death ...
Housing advocate Jade Kake has been working with her hapū to increase engagement in the ongoing Ngāpuhi settlement and Tūhono process. Dissatisfied with the media’s preoccupation with the rūnanga leadership, she writes here about the real work and healing that has been, and is still to be, done.Ko Jade Kake tōku ...
Emergency cash injections for DHBs are a symptom of a woefully inadequate budget planning process that is increasingly an exercise in futility, Association of Salaried Medical Specialists Executive Director Ian Powell says. ...
Source: Council on Hemispheric Affairs – Analysis-Reportage By Danny Shaw Yesterday, Sunday November the 10th, at approximately 4pm (eastern standard time) the democratically elected president and vice president of Bolivia, Evo Morales and Álvaro García respectively, were forced to resign from power. This was no voluntary resignation as CNN, ...
In the second part of a new event series looking at the future of Auckland, The Spinoff and Auckland Council host In My Backyard: Glen Innes, to ask what the suburb can teach the rest of the city about housing. Throughout its history, Glen Innes has had the highest density of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rachel Badlan, Postdoctoral Researcher, Atmospheric Dynamics, UNSW As the east coast bushfire crisis unfolds, New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian and Rural Fire Service operational officer Brett Taylor have each warned residents bushfires can create their own weather systems. This is not ...
Iran has announced the discovery of a new oilfield containing 53 billion barrels of crude. So what does that say about the NZ government’s move to be a world leader in shutting down the issue of new permits for oil and gas exploration – a move which Jacinda Ardern characterised ...
A wild, hilly spear, studded with brilliant beaches and thrilling bush, the Coromandel Peninsula is a magic geographical cul-de-sac. Here’s how to explore this stunning part of our backyard.If you’ve got friends or relatives visiting Aotearoa, top of their list should be sorting out their NZeTA (New Zealand Electronic Travel ...
12 November 2019 Water and infrastructure professionals from across the public and private sectors attended a panel discussion on 4 November, focused on the Government’s proposed water reforms and most particularly the potential impacts on our urban environments. ...
Fifteen years on, Sam Brooks looks at Gwen Stefani’s wet, weird, wild and wonderful debut album Love. Angel. Music. Baby.The first thing we hear on Love. Angel. Music. Baby. – No Doubt frontwoman Gwen Stefani’s first album – is applause and cheering.Then a piano. Then Stefani warbling, sweetly, mournfully, almost ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Coral Gartner, Associate Professor, School of Public Health, The University of Queensland More than 2,000 people in the United States have developed serious lung damage in a poisoning outbreak associated with the use of vaping devices this year. At least 39 people ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Maggie Ivanova, Senior Lecturer, Drama, Creative and Performing Arts, Flinders University Review: The Dark Master and Totes Adorbs Hurricane, OzAsia Festival, Adelaide, 22 October – 8 November In theatre, the play text tends to drive the storytelling. The interpretation of this ...
Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee has made key amendments to the Credit Contracts Legislation Amendment Bill, giving borrowers more protection from harmful high cost consumer credit contracts. The changes indicate that the Select Committee ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Janet Stanley, Associate professor/Principal Research Fellow, Melbourne Sustainable Society Institute, University of Melbourne Fires of unprecedented number and ferocity are today raging in New South Wales and Queensland. Residents in some regions woke to news that the fire danger was “catastrophic”. Rural ...
The government’s reform of 1989’s Tomorrow’s Schools legislation has been announced today, and it’s promising changes for students, teachers, principals and boards.What is “Tomorrow’s Schools”?In 1989, the government introduced the Tomorrow’s Schools reforms, which meant all schools became much more independent, giving Boards power over almost all school ...
The Council of Licenced Firearms Owners (COLFO) is urging politicians to heed evidence from respected international experts on why a proposed firearms registry in New Zealand is doomed to fail. ...
Go Bus drivers in Auckland will be taking full strike action from tomorrow as relations reach a new low with their employer following a week where the company has cancelled regular wage bargaining, arbitrarily suspended union-affiliated drivers, rejected ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By William Peterson, Associate Professor, Flinders University Review: OzAsia Festival, Adelaide, 22 October – 8 November The most exciting work at OzAsia cuts across genres, styles, and cultures to create something distinctive and new: a work of art that could not exist without ...
Large and small scale and Māori foresters say the 50 Shades of Green march on parliament on Thursday (eds 14 November) highlights deliberately created confusion about the true nature and recent scope of forestry expansion. ...
Where do we watch content, what do we want from it, and how do we view New Zealand news? Here’s what we learned from NZ On Air’s latest survey on identity, culture and the media. We still like to watch free-to-view TVDespite the lingering doom and gloom around linear television, almost ...
Last month, Greenpeace head Russel Norman surrendered his speaking slot at an EPA conference to student climate activist Sorcha Carr, who told the EPA exactly what she thought of them. It was a bold move, which confronted both regulators and polluters (or, as the EPA calls them, "stakeholders") with the ...55 mins ago
Climate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, please send it to climate.change@stuff.co.nz The growth of the human population over the last 70 ...4 hours ago
by The Council of Disobedient Women In her excellent oral submission to the Abortion reform select committee on 31st October on behalf of Otago University’s Department of Public Health, historian and public health researcher Hera Cook stated: “We would ask that the committee not use the term ‘pregnant persons’ and ...17 hours ago
Distract And Divert: The rise of what we have come to call “Identity Politics” represents the ideological manifestation of the ruling class’s objective need to destroy class politics, and of the middle-class’s subjective need to justify their participation in the process.THE RELIEF of the ruling class can only be imagined. ...1 day ago
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If Maori get it they want it to… do what? Cryptic.
First time I’d even heard of these non-factors… now that I do a google search I see that they’ve been getting some oxygen today…
Ah, see, they think “the Maori” isn’t a group of people, but rather a hivemind, like the Borg Collective.
So if The Maori get something, they want The Maori to get it. They’re really supportive, see?
Aha! We should have known there was a non-racist purpose buried within their mashing of the English language.
I liked Toby Manhire’s take at the Listener
“If the Maori get it, we want it to!” Yeah! But want it to what? The missing word, almost certainly, is “thrive”.
http://www.listener.co.nz/commentary/the-internaut/pakeha-party-launched-a-new-voice-for-non-racism/
Unfortunately the very funny wiki page that included mention of Manhire’s satire has been edited and recommended for deletion.
I think Tā moko will look impressive on them.
I see they are looking to change their name already – how about “One Nation” after Pauline Hanson’s Australian party? Seems to suit.
This is obviously pretty poor satire.
[um. no it’s not. you fucken idiot. Zet]
ZET:
Oh I thought it was satire like the “Billionaires for Bush” thing.
That familiar nagging sensation in your head is you being wrong and shooting your mouth off before doing any basic research. Again.
QOT:
It seemed like satire, it’s that bizarre.
Brett. The post isn’t a screen shot of the site page.
Yeah, could do with a better explanation and a link to the FB page.
The fb page is worse than WO:
Although the guy talking about people on hilltops seeing the page and “screaming racism from the top of their lounges” made me smile.
I know, it’s part horror part hilarity
“Hand’s up whos here to laugh and troll?”
For those that haven’t have the pleasure yet
https://www.facebook.com/ThePakehaParty
Yeah I assumed it was a troll page, just because there was way too much U MAD BRO? etc
Beholdth Brett Dale, the man without a brain.
Marvel as he stumbles and makes an ignorant arse out of himself on anything more complex than eating.
Be dazed at the depths of his stupid as he tries and fails to understand relatively simple issues.
And lastly, laugh as he digs himself in deeper Every. Single. Time.
_______________________________
🙄
Stick to sports m’kay? At least in that you can successfully bluff to some state of “knowledge”. At least until a true sports geek noms on you.
What is the point of that comment?
This reveals more about you than you might want to actually admit to.
Does it reveal that many Pakeha got where they are today because of their ethnicity rather than their talents? Positive discrimination is such a handicap, eh.
“This reveals more about you than you might want to actually admit to.”
Such as?
Kia ora whanau – I’d really like you all to stop being so greedy and start sharing the myriad of riches that we have (which are listed above) with all of our Pakeha brothers & sisters. I fully tautoko this party who wish to share in the undeserved lifestyle that we so ungratefully complain about and wish that they could enjoy the bountiful riches that have been bestowed on us by themselves.
When the working class are abandoned and ignored by social democracy and a lot of white/pink people wind up genuinely in the shit, see no way out and are looking for answers/explanations, racism will always come along and offer easy answers; answers that largely blossom from (in the case of NZ) society’s pre-existing and utterly ingrained casual racism.
Both liberal and conservative elites and all governing institutions will, of course, continue to pretend that economic injustice is not an integral part of the market economy and so simply decry the racism. And ‘the best’ of it? Some of the targetted ‘identity politics’ policies of recent years that sought to ameliorate economic disparity while denying the existence of class, is going to be feeding right on back into this shite.
Maybe some chickens are looking to be coming home to roost.
Bill, while I think you may be right that a rising tide lifts all boats, for some identity politics are always going to be more compelling than economics. Far better to accept that and move on rather than this impotent railing, no?
Nothing wrong with identity politics if class is factored in or acknowledged too. And it works the other way too race and gender should be factored in or acknowledged when looking at class.
And if you accept the fact of class being made invisible by politicians and their parties/policies, then the fucking racism that is clearly evident from comments on that fb page is going to continue to fester and grow.
btw. What exactly was it Hone said about housing and how was it reported so that some guy came to be thinking that there was going to be ‘Maori only’ housing? And has that been put to rights and explained amid all the jibing and piss taking that, to be honest, seems to be more about the fb guy’s political naivity and lack of media savvy?
And what about all that racism being expressed in comments and the apparent popularity of those sentiments? Is the idea just to ignore all that cos, y’know, it’s just stupid white trash speak and worth nothing beyond ridicule and superior smirking silences?
Because if that is to be the broad response in NZ, then NZ is setting itself up for some ugly shit some time in the future.
Right now, people are focussed on racism. I’d suggest it be taken seriously and underlying causes addressed and misconceptions challenged. But, y’know, I expect that suggestion and concern to fall on stoney ground. I expect to see a couple of days of ridicule topwards the likes who are commenting on that fb page alongside expressions of dismissive anger from leftists. And then for it to ‘go away’ and allowed to fester until next time around.
+1
What exactly was it Hone said about housing and how was it reported so that some guy came to be thinking that there was going to be ‘Maori only’ housing? And has that been put to rights and explained amid all the jibing and piss taking that, to be honest, seems to be more about the fb guy’s political naivity and lack of media savvy?
From what I remember, and this is only from the MSM and ts, Mana’s first press releases were about housing for Maori. After the reaction to that, they came out and said that the policy would be for all people. I don’t know if that was a policy change, or if they just presented it differently. The thing that struck me at the time was that either Mana were being very naive in how they presented that whole policy (or they didn’t care), or they were very clever (if you look at the timing with the Ikaroa-Rawhiti by-election, they sent a clear message of support to Maori, and then a few days later they pacified Pakeha). I don’t know which I think is true.
Nothing wrong with identity politics if class is factored in or acknowledged too. And it works the other way too race and gender should be factored in or acknowledged when looking at class.
And if you accept the fact of class being made invisible by politicians and their parties/policies, then the fucking racism that is clearly evident from comments on that fb page is going to continue to fester and grow.
I agree. I’m not sure quite what you mean about the connection with other identity politics, as I don’t see NACT or Labour as engaging in that majorly other than with some individual policies like gay marriage. That they’re removing class from the debate is definitely happening, and I agree there needs to be a conversation about why so many people agree with the Pakeha Party. The main problem here, on ts, is that that conversation has largely been initiated by vto, who’s race politics are too near the John Ansell end of the spectrum, so the discussions never get passed that. Personally I’d be interested in having the conversation amongst people that are already grounded in acceptance of the Treaty etc.
I think maybe what you are saying is that white, working and underclass men are getting a very hard time and that this needs to be acknowledged and responded to. I agree. The question is how to frame that debate, and how to engage with people who already frame that debate in racist and proto-racist ways.
Let me know if I’ve missed the mark there with how I’ve read your comment.
The Mana housing policy was originally released in a Maori electorate, to Maori voters. The release was targeted at them, which in the circumstances was fair enough. I asked if it would be extended to all people in need of housing and the unequivocal answer was yes. I asked on the day of public release. Even though I think Mana need to learn a lot about using social media, there was no intent for this to be a Maori only policy.
“And ‘the best’ of it? Some of the targetted ‘identity politics’ policies of recent years that sought to ameliorate economic disparity while denying the existence of class, is going to be feeding right on back into this shite.”
Can you give some examples Bill?
Just go to the fb page comments for some examples. The whole ‘Maori are privileged by the education system’ tripe is just one of many you will see being said over and over again.
I can’t take the comments on that page as serious examples of identity politics policies. Can you give some examples of what you mean? eg which education policies. Or were you meaning perception of policies rather than actual policies?
I know that the Clark govt removed much of the funding available directly to Maori community projects, to the great detriment of many grass roots initiatives. That happened in direct response to people complaining about race based funding and Labour being afraid of losing votes. Despite the removal of race based funding, we still hear alot of criticism of things like Whanau Ora, Tariana Turia’s project, despite Whanau Ora funding being open to all ethnic groups.
I’m sure there are some targetted policies, and it would certainly be very useful to know what they are and analyse them. At the moment it looks like another case of us all arguing about something without the facts (not you and I, but the whole country).
Between this lot and the Conservative Party, holding Winston 1st to 4.9% ought to be a doddle.
and the Maori Party aren’t racist? Talk about double standards.
No, they aren’t. Glad we could clear that up.
Looks like John Key’s got a coalition partner after all.
+1 Mary.
Nothing like stunning ignorance to further divide and hurt our country. When we are as weak as we are, pathogens like this silly Pakeha Party can really infect the minds of already deluded folks.
What do you think is diving the country now?
“What do you think is diving the country now?”
Diving? Well, I ‘d have to say that ultimately John Key is responsible for sending the country into a nose dive, but he has been aided by the likes of Sky Casino, Warner Bro’s, and of course his trusty pals Paula, Hekia, Simon, Peter, John and so on. Then there’s a media that feeds all the petty misinformed jealousies of the fools of this country. It’s a social, moral and economic nosedive. Although if you meant to say divide, it would be all of the above as well.
Oh, and not to mention the increasingly hostile approach of employers in this country. At this rate there will be no turning back to a time of fairness, dignity and trust in the workplace. The NZ workplace has been divided by mistrust and power grabbing by employers. See Helen Kelly’s excellent article as an example of this
Could be good for the Left. Would never get an electorate seat and unlikely to get to 5% of the vote but still take enough support from the same pool of rednecks who would otherwise vote for Keys, so could help push a Left coalition over the line. When things get as tight as they have done in NZ over the last two general elections the slightest variable could make a big difference.
Stop calling bigots “rednecks”. That’s an ignorant and elitist term of contempt for working people.
+1
Rebuke uncalled for.
While redneck’s etymology is not clear Wiki offered rural origins, and the modern US usage as ‘used broadly to degrade working class and rural whites that are perceived by urban progressives to be insufficiently liberal’
Your view is unnecessarily narrow, focusing on ‘working'(class) ie origin, rather than on the illiberalism ie attitude, that it connotes for majority users in NZ. You might like to consider the extent to which the term is gendered, too.
I’m sort of with Morrissey on this one. If redneck doesn’t denote prejudice then neither does wetback.
I’m sort of with Morrissey on this one. If redneck doesn’t denote prejudice then neither does wetback.
There’s nothing wrong with the term being used to describe a farmer or a manual worker. The problem is when it is foolishly and inappropriately used to mean “bigot”.
The vilest, most ignorant, most illiberal views in this country come from radio loudmouths like Michael Laws and Leighton Smith, a whole raft of complacent newspaper opinionistas, right wing “Think Tank” reptiles like Bob McCoskrie and Bruce Logan, ACT on Campus halfwits, and assorted other bewildered/nasty/lazy/st000pid souls.
Note that nearly all of them are distinguished by their LACK of hard work, and especially by their lack of hard PHYSICAL work. They do not get sunburnt, except when they lie on the beach at a Fiji resort. They are bigots, not rednecks. In fact, I can think of only two bigots who could fairly be described as “rednecks”—John “Hone” Carter and Garth “The Knife” McVicar.
“Redneck”, when used as a term of abuse, is nothing more than a sniffy east coast liberal putdown of ALL working people, who the Eastern liberal establishment, i.e. the Democratic Party, resented because they were unconvinced by the Barack Obamas and Bill Clintons of the late ’60s and early ‘seventies.
You need to stop indolently recycling such abusive, foolish, and inaccurate language.
You’re right. Sorry, that was ignorant of me. I hadn’t realised that the term had that meaning at all. I’d always thought it was limited to white conservative bigots but realise now that’s not the case.
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/redneck
Good on you, Mary. You have provided a lesson in humility and good grace.
Are you watching, Populuxe1?
What this filthy piece of ‘reasonable’ sounding racism reminds me of – whether it’s meant to be satire or not – is that nine years ago the gnat party was at 28%… and then within 2 weeks of Brash’s Orewa speech they surged to 45%
The slippery self-serving neolib that currently heads parliament and who has no idea of what building a nation is all about, has only managed to increase support from Brash’s 45% to 46.5%
This gives me a great deal of hope. We only have to turn one in four of those pre-Orewa gnat supporters and Labour will once again lead in the polls. But how to do it?
Sadly I can’t help thinking that the current Labour caucus seems more intent on winning over some of the 17% that went to the gnats post Orewa.
theres really only two outcomes i can see from this
1) theyre actually well meaning but deluded – so when they start saying what it is they want politically, every one will go “yeah, youve got that already, whats your point again?”, and their support will atrophy and/or no-one will bother working with them
or
2) they will expose them selves as outright racists and their support will atrophy and/or no-one will want to work with them
either way – i see it as no biggie really. the pefect response to all this “The maori party is a racist party” is “so what?”
If you can get enough people who want to join theres nothing stopping you, go for your life. If you wanted to have a one armed jewish lesbian party theres nothing stopping you if youve got the numbers. If youre just bonkers or dont really have much of a clue – you will expose yourself pretty quickly
sunlight – disinfectant etc etc
there’s more of them than we’d like to think in NZ. Most won’t come out into the sunlight as they prefer to slither around under rocks with their own kind. So they’ll probably stay with the gnats or nzf
On the other hand they can do what they like in the voting booth.
Which is to take votes from Key. Will be interesting to see whether they get more of the vote than UntiedFuture like the Legalise Cannabis Party.
Hmm, I dunno framu.
Remember, this is exactly the same bullshit that nearly got Don Brash elected in 2005. And he never came up with a single concrete example of “special maori privilege”.
Right now they’re just a couple of idiots, but what they’ve got is momentum. And while a stationary idiot is just an idiot, a rolling mass of idiocy can do a lot of damage.
If that momentum is sustained for much longer, they’ll be approached by smarter, shrewder, more calculating players who will quietly take over behind the scenes and try to translate this momentum into real political support for something.
Maybe Lusk for a faction within National. Maybe Gibbs for the rebirth of ACT. It’s open to anyone really, bunch of angry ignorant voters for the taking.
Shit, it may have already happened for all we know.
true – caution is neccessary.
but i still like the approach of giving them enough rope as opposed to trying to make them go away
“a rolling mass of idiocy can do a lot of damage.” gold – 🙂
Not if it’s vigorously, publicly cluebatted and ‘anvilled from orbit :3
But yeah, you’re pretty much on the ball on this probably being used to resurrect the Kwi/Iwi zombie or shock ACT back into a shambling half-life 🙁
This is a good thing – makes it easier to round them up later 🙂
The sad thing about the supporters of this party of ignorance, is that many of them think any attention is proof of the validity of their claims.
infused, you’re one of the sponsors aren’t you? Where do you see it going?
😀 There is one good thing that has come out of it. It’s got a lot of people talking, typically people that don’t vote.
Other than that, couldn’t really care less. Knowing their luck, it will become a political party. New Zealand is crazy like that. I think this will appeal to a lot of people.
If the Pakeha party wanted to have a discussion about untangling the causes from the symptoms of poverty in a marginalised and disadvantaged racial group where they reject what we are currently doing and propose something else, that would not necessarily be an inherently racist thing to do.
But the Pakeha Party isn’t interested in that. They just want to have a whine about Maori because somehow they think Maori are already more “privileged”. They have constructed a mental fantasyland where stealing the land off it’s rightful owners, exploiting that stolen wealth for their exclusive enrichment and entrenching their white privilege somehow makes them martyrs.
The question is WHY do they feel like martyrs? Why this constant bubbling up of ignorant but popular racism? Generally speaking this party appeals to a broad range of blue collar and mortgage belt whites who think they see a lazy brown elite getting rich on unearned rents and handouts while their hard work is rewarded with increasingly unaffordable housing, stagnant wage growth and poor job security. They feel they’ve played the capitalist game honestly but the rules have been changed. The concerns of this constituency is completely ignored or belittled by the neo-liberal intelligensia component of our elites who dominate the race debate. Who, actually, does speak for Joe and Jane Six-Pack on Struggle Street?
The political vacuum left by the captured political and intellectual technocrats in the elite cadres of our political establishment is always going to be filled by increasingly incoherent and radical parties of the popular right, just like it is in Europe. This wave will be beaten back, but every time the sea recedes on an Orewa or a Pakeha Party the tide is just that little further up the beach for the established order.
I can nail it for you quite easily. It’s because of the land/money given to Maori tribes and such. Not that there is anything wrong with it, but that this stuff was meant to be tidied up along time ago, but keeps going on and on and on.
“Given”.
An interesting choice of word. The fact is that the land etc has been returned.
Yeah, I’m not arguing that. Like I said, someone just needs to finish it and let the country move on.
Rubbish. Do you honestly believe the dog whistling will stop? Why would the Right give up the opportunity to exploit the divisions it has manufactured?
Yes I do.
“Not that there is anything wrong with it, but that this stuff was meant to be tidied up along time ago, but keeps going on and on and on.”
Well yeah, it was meant to be tidied up around 1840 or so, but pakeha chose to ignore that and plough ahead as if they owned the place for the next 150 years, largely to the detriment of maori.
Bit rich to turn around after 150 years and blame maori for it going on and on and on.
You know what I mean.
Yep, I think I do.
You mean a bunch of people who have benefited from an imbalance are upset that the situation is being righted and they want to stop the process before they lose any more of their advantage.
You’re such a dickhead felix.
I genuinely think that’s what you mean. Pakeha have an advantage and they don’t want to lose it.
If that’s not what you mean then say what you mean.
Not all Pakeha have an advantage, or privilege.
Its insane to think so.
Not all pakeha are hot under the collar about maori catching up either.
So what?
so what????
Felix, is some kid posting under your name?
Yep. The last two comments I’ve posted, a child has posted underneath.
ps the “so what” was because your comment doesn’t mean anything in the context of this discussion, Brett.
“Not all pakeha are hot under the collar about maori catching up either.
So what?”
The point in this context is that white, working/underclass men (and women I guess) have genuine grievances with how society is treating them. One problem is they’re blaming the wrong target. Telling them they are privileged in comparison to Maori doesn’t solve that, it most likely makes it worse (depending on how it is done).
The other problem is that the people with genuine grievances are merged with the people who are simply just racist. But treating those two groups as the same is a mistake.
Yeah that’s a fair point weka.
The other side of it though is that working class/underclass members of the dominat culture are still privileged over working class/underclass members of minority cultures.
” given to Maori tribes and such” GIVEN??!
Well the Maori have their own party and what have they done? Got into bed with the very people who stand to do all of the things outlined in this diatribe. You can not expect change if you are not willing to put in the “hard yards” and so far this party just look like a bunch of opportunists.
The stupid, it burns:
http://tvnz.co.nz/politics-news/pakeha-party-considers-registering-popularity-soars-5502997
Really need more anvils dropped in high school and documentaries on Te Treati O Waitangi and NZ history to make people realise just how much the Crown fucked over Maori tribes T_T
So do something about it. Start a political party, make some noise, rather than just complaining.
T_T
Yes, because pointing out that something is wrong is totes badzors
🙄
Envy is a left wing word
And yet the righties keep using it (“envy”) about the left.
As in National referring to the left as “the politics of envy”?
Weka:
Agree.
What, with everything I say?
your post about underclass working men and woman.
Ok. Is there a reason you so often fail to use the reply button?
weka:
It didnt show up in your post.
“It didn’t show up in your post.”
Then just click on the lowest “reply” button in that thread. So in this instance you should have clicked on the reply button in the 12:14pm comment by felix.
P.s. I’m not trying to encourage you.
Thanks for the tip and lack of encouragement.
You are welcome, just do a little extra homework on some issues before you shoot your mouth off, and I’ll encourage you with a +1 or similar.
What?
Your post 19 should have used the reply button. You do that a lot (don’t use the reply button so your comment is out of whack with the rest of the discussion). Just wondered why.
weka:
Your asking me how the internet works???
Lol, no, but I understand now from fender’s comment 🙂
To quote The Don,
They’ll be gone by lunchtime…
Can’t even be bothered blogging about them… *yawn*
This is so ridiculous it’s not even funny.
What specifically do these Pakeha want anyway?
To promote their internet business, mostly.
The Pakeha Party: initially I thought it was a clever prank, but apparently not. It’s party purpose-built for Troglodytes, Knuckle-Draggers & Mouth-Breathers: now they’ve found themselves a place to call Home, which is convenient for the rest of us, as it will allow us to keep an eye on ’em.