Greening the place up

Written By: - Date published: 10:22 am, September 14th, 2017 - 50 comments
Categories: election 2017, greens - Tags: , ,

I’m voting Green. It would be foolish not to. Without The Greens, there will be no change.

Labour alone cannot carry the mantle that has to be borne for all our sakes. Labour/Green is the way forward and is being offered to us right now. Lifting that pairing up and over the line is the gift we can give, the action we can take, the choice we can make, here and now, for everyone, no matter what their political persuasion.

In my corner of the world, I’m voting for the Labour candidate, Liz Craig; she’s exactly the person needed here in the South; warm, generous and intelligent and I sincerely hope she wins the seat over National’s Sarah Dowie.

My Party vote will go to The Greens, because I believe the new Government would be lacking, would be less than it could be, would be without real substance, without The Greens. It’s a simple equation; Labour plus The Greens equals real progress, real change, real hope.

I have a plea, and I almost never plead: if you are weighing up whether or not a vote for The Greens is a wise vote, do as I will do and give your Party vote to The Green Party.

 

50 comments on “Greening the place up ”

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  1. Brendan 1
    14 September 2017 at 10:50 am

    I heartily endorse this message.

  2. roy cartland 2
    14 September 2017 at 10:51 am

    Good on you. I’m trying to get my people to do the same in Wellington, with some success. Sometimes I feel like I’m preaching to the choir, sometimes to a brick wall.

    So:
    If you’re thinking of going NZF or TOP, don’t risk wasting your vote. With the GP it will count, and count well.

    If you’re right-leaning, AND want a habitable environment, go GP as well. The wealth opps thru GP are through the roof and will grow as the world picks them up. Short-term, old-style market wealth has failed, you know it. Wouldn’t we rather be all pretty wealthy than have a few billionaires and swathes of moaning ‘losers’?

  3. Union city greens 3
    14 September 2017 at 11:24 am

    Yes to a green presence in the next government. A solid left flank will keep the labour government honest. Much more so than NZ1st ever will.

    Unbelievably we still have supposed left wingers who say they will not vote in this election. They gotta get their heads straight.

  4. Robert Guyton 4
    14 September 2017 at 11:36 am

    Chris Trotter writes today: “The National Party doesn’t do surrender.”
    Nor should we.

    • cathy 4.1
      15 September 2017 at 6:19 am

      what is surrender about voting tactically.

      the national party sure does plenty of that, why shouldn’t we?

  5. left_forward 5
    14 September 2017 at 11:40 am

    Thank you – I entirely agree with you.

  6. The Rock 6
    14 September 2017 at 12:31 pm

    I sincerely hope that, in the aftermath of the defeat of the left at the upcoming election, the Greens get together and decide if they really do want to change NZ for the better and if they do then hopefully they’ll decide that working with National is a possibility

    Blue/Green would be a winner which means the Greens would be a winner and so NZ would win

    • Robert Guyton 6.1
      14 September 2017 at 12:39 pm

      The Greens have already “got together” and rejected working with National. Blue/Green is an algae, not a winner.
      Edit: And here, Rock, is one reason why The Greens reject National:
      http://norightturn.blogspot.co.nz/2017/09/this-should-have-happened-long-time-ago.html

    • marty mars 6.2
      14 September 2017 at 1:07 pm

      What a lovely sincere hope – i hope that when the gnats lose the people rise up in an overwhelming tide of indignation against the polluted polluting gnats and forever deny them power and that the Greens carry on winning election after election with labour and the people rejoice every year and burn effigies for the sad gnats that did NOTHING for the people or environment other than exploit and abuse them.

    • tracey 6.3
      14 September 2017 at 2:59 pm

      How? Your post is confusing. Nats could have approached the Greens at any time in 9 years but havent cos they dont want to spook their suppirters, some farmers woukd hate them for it and ghey only give a fuck about Green policies when they think they are losing.

      • The Rock 6.3.1
        14 September 2017 at 3:04 pm

        The Greens have ruled out going with National so its on the Greens to make the first overtures, theres been work together before so I see no reason, if both sides are prepared to compromise, why it couldn’t happen on a larger scale

        • Robert Guyton 6.3.1.1
          14 September 2017 at 3:07 pm

          The Greens “overtures” are being made directly to the people of New Zealand. If they are wanted by enough people, they’ll get into Government. They’re wanted by me.

          • The Rock 6.3.1.1.1
            14 September 2017 at 3:31 pm

            As a hypothetical, if the Greens and National found enough common ground (in 2020) and could govern together would you be happy if they went into coalition together?

            • Macro 6.3.1.1.1.1
              14 September 2017 at 4:33 pm

              Mining in conservation land?
              Deep sea oil?
              Selling coal?
              Building roads of National Significance?
              Giving tax breaks to the wealthy?
              Polluting Rivers?
              Selling off Public Assets
              ….
              Yep – lots of common ground.

    • Draco T Bastard 6.4
      14 September 2017 at 3:03 pm

      Working with National only destroys society faster.

    • tracey 6.5
      14 September 2017 at 3:08 pm

      You should have suggested it at the Nat Party conference.

    • AB 6.6
      14 September 2017 at 4:08 pm

      Why would a party of hope work with economic, social and environmental vandals like National?
      It’s like asking the lamb to work with the wolf. And it’s a cracked record endlessly played by right-wing stirrers – solely with the intention of annoying lefties. Best laughed off, I have to say.

  8. Macro 8
    14 September 2017 at 1:35 pm

    We have already voted and have to say the easiest voting I have ever done. No queue, state my full name, hand my card over, and get my voting paper in about 1 minute. Tick for the Green’s and our Candidate – whom I nominated. Place the paper in the box, and out the door. Total time taken about 3 mins. Well done the Electoral office. Also I saw them out in the local market the other week signing up people to vote – something I had never seen before.

    I’m hoping there are going to be a number of first time voters this election, and they will find that its not all that scary and a very user friendly experience.

    I don’t think first time voters are being targeted under the current polling regimes. They are not the ones with land lines and usually more mobile in their habitation. Also they are the ones being encouraged to vote by Metria, Marama, et al and I have a feeling that there could be a reasonable sized but unassessed support for the Green Party.

    Furthermore there is a good contingent of over seas voters who vote Green and over the past few elections the Greens have picked up an extra seat when these votes come in.

    • happynz 8.1
      14 September 2017 at 5:48 pm

      Overseas Green voters describe us; daughter in Florida, wife in Thailand, and me toiling away in the Middle East.

      Time to change the government.

      • Macro 8.1.1
        14 September 2017 at 6:17 pm

        🙂 good to hear! Wow the commute home will be more than an hour! Have a daughter is in Perth – just 7 and a half hours away. But middle east to Florida! guess Emirates has a flight going that way.

  9. Sans Cle 9
    14 September 2017 at 1:54 pm

    Thanks Robert. I’m voting Green for my children, my children’s children and future people I shall never meet. I want to give them more than the Sun Moon and Stars…….I want to give them a piece of habitable earth, where they can think about what to gift forward.

  10. Psycho Milt 10
    14 September 2017 at 2:11 pm

    I’m voting Green.

    Me too – in fact, already have. Party vote Green, electorate vote Labour. The Electoral Commission’s doing a great job – they’ve got a polling station in the student caf a minute’s walk from my office, and while I was there I got to watch them enrolling students to vote. Great stuff.

  11. Robert Guyton 11
    14 September 2017 at 2:33 pm

    I’m so encouraged by the responses here, that I’m going to vote twice!

    🙂

    It is, really though, very strengthening to read comments from people who are clear about their role and not bamboozled by the hoopla, pish and pabulum spread about by the Disrupters and the Deceivers.

    • Karen 11.1
      14 September 2017 at 3:14 pm

      Vote early, vote often!

      Great post, Robert. You are one of my all time favourite Greens.

      I know I live in a bit of a bubble but I have heard of quite a few giving their party vote to the Greens for the first time this election.

  12. Robert Guyton 12
    14 September 2017 at 2:46 pm

    Bill! Bunions driving you insane again?
    Claiming that people would willingly slit their throats rather than vote for a political party they don’t support is…unhinged? Fair comment?

    • weka 12.1
      14 September 2017 at 2:53 pm

      I’ve banned him for a couple of weeks. Life’s too short 🙂

      • Robert Guyton 12.1.1
        14 September 2017 at 3:04 pm

        That’s the spirit, weka – no doubt Bill expected a wet bus-ticket but instead got the bums’ rush!
        Bill, try a comfrey-compress. Warm it first and don’t wrap them too tight or they’ll ache more.

        • weka 12.1.1.1
          14 September 2017 at 3:08 pm

          I suspect the ban hammer will be swinging a bit at the moment, as I find myself less willing to spend time on moderation the closer we get to the election. Easier to just tidy up the place especially for such blatant ill will from someone.

      • Karen 12.1.2
        14 September 2017 at 3:46 pm

        Hurrah!!!!

  13. Rosemary McDonald 13
    14 September 2017 at 2:49 pm

    Partner and I just voted. Him Labour/Green and moi Green/Green. Highly unlikely that National will be shifted from Taranaki/King Country, but we wanted to give the alt candidates a wee boost.

    For the future.

    PS…the National scrutineer at the polling place looked liked her coffee cup was filled with broken glass and lemon juice. What’s that about? The results aren’t in yet sweetie! 🙂

    • weka 13.1
      14 September 2017 at 2:50 pm

      “Him Labour/Green and moi Green/Green”

      is the party one first?

      • Rosemary McDonald 13.1.1
        14 September 2017 at 3:00 pm

        Candidate first.

        Labour candidate has been getting around the rohe, putting in the time even if she’s on a Sisyphean mission. Blood runs blue around here….between farming and the Taranaki fossil fuel industry it’ll be uphill all the way.

        I thought the young Green candidate needed a spot of encouragement.

        • weka 13.1.1.1
          14 September 2017 at 3:02 pm

          Probably the same for me, they’re going to be at the next election in some capacity hopefully.

        • tracey 13.1.1.2
          14 September 2017 at 3:05 pm

          I party voted Green and gave Labour candidate my vote. I would love to think that the demographic changes, particularly in Rolleston, might have shifted the balance in Selwyn but I doubt it… From Richardson to Adams… no wonder the rivers here are fucked up.

  14. tracey 14
    14 September 2017 at 3:02 pm

    I plead with people to ignore the notion of wasted votes ( not a criticism of your post Robert). If we did not have polls how would we know what is a waste? Vote with conviction for the kind of NZ you want and want for those who come after. Do not compromise that for a misguided notion of a wasted vote. Otherwise we keep getying what we always had

    If you want a decent shift from the government we have, Labour and NZF, imo, wont deliver it. How many more young people have to die, mentally ill suffer, disabled feel like pariahs, elderly queue for life saving ops before we stand up and say no more?

    • weka 14.1
      14 September 2017 at 3:21 pm

      I don’t know, the notion of wasted votes applies very well to TOP 😈

      But I get what you mean. I’m hearing Labour voters saying they will vote Green to keep them in parliament. People are happy to use the Greens as the conscience of the left, but not enough to fully support them. NZ will get the govt the left deserves 😉

  15. Ad 15
    14 September 2017 at 3:11 pm

    Better get what’s left of that Green base out Robert.
    Not looking pretty in poll of polls.

    • Robert Guyton 15.1
      14 September 2017 at 4:11 pm

      Wanting to look pretty, Ad, in the polls or anywhere else for that matter, seems a little facile. I’d settle for a slightly scruffy, plain-faced 10% at the Poll of Polls on the 23rd.

    • tracey 15.2
      14 September 2017 at 4:29 pm

      Relentlessly positive ay Ad.

  16. alwyn 16
    14 September 2017 at 3:23 pm

    There is no need to worry Robert.
    A staunch Green supporter assured us a couple of days ago that they were never going to drop below 10%
    Have a word with him. I’m sure it will cheer you up.
    https://thestandard.org.nz/iammetiria-for-nzer-of-the-year/#comment-1367570

    • Robert Guyton 16.1
      14 September 2017 at 4:05 pm

      You’re right, alwyn, there’s no need to worry – we do though, ’cause, human nature, but yes, in this situation, there’s no need, as your link proves.
      (Sorry mods, somehow I was signed out – back in now).

  17. thomas forrow 17
    14 September 2017 at 9:41 pm

    Over here for a wedding So I voted in London two ticks Greens, Queues out the door
    Getting the low hanging fruit to vote first getting my kids and their mates the forms downloaded so they do their special vote.
    So I claim 8 Party votes for the Green Party [ I Hope 🙂 ]

  18. Robert Guyton 18
    14 September 2017 at 9:49 pm

    Wasn’t thomas forrows comment good to hear!
    I’m sleeping with a smile on my face 🙂