Johnny plays general

Written By: - Date published: 9:48 pm, April 20th, 2009 - 23 comments
Categories: International, john key, national/act government - Tags:

This morning on Breakfast, Key said we’ll send in troops to Fiji as part of a multi-national force if need be. At the same time, McCully was on National Radio refusing to countenance any such deployment. Key also said we’ll send more people to Afghanistan if there’s an exit strategy.  While McCully no decision would be made until a review of New Zealand’s deployments was complete later this year.

Key disagrees with his Minister of Defence on defence, the Minister for the Environment on environmental measures, and his Minister for Finance on the economy. Is he actually in charge at all?

Anyway, McCully was totally correct to refuse to discuss any military action in Fiji.  We’re not in any position to take on the Fijian military even with mates, even if it was the smart thing to do. So we shouldn’t be threatening the regime with military action because we’re not going to back it up. Unfortunately, any chance of using soft power like the Pacific Islands Forum is now screwed and Bainimarama’s hold is strengthened.

Don’t talk loudly when you carry a small stick. That’s just dumb diplomacy. McCully knew that, but then Key had to open his big mouth.

23 comments on “Johnny plays general ”

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  1. bobo 1
    20 April 2009 at 10:02 pm

    Very amateur performance from Key on this, even talking hypothetically on sending troops to Fiji is a mistake. This just reinforces what Bainimarama says about NZ and Aussie ready to invade at any time, entrenching his own hold on power.

  2. mike 2
    20 April 2009 at 10:19 pm

    “Unfortunately, any chance of using soft power like the Pacific Islands Forum is now screwed”
    What a joke – like it wasn’t already? Good on JK for telling us what he thinks – not just kick for touch like his predecessor did.

    Another gutsy call was the one to boycott the jihad supporters racist summit. A+

    • Maynard J 2.1
      20 April 2009 at 11:02 pm

      The joke is Key thinking we could use our military to take on Fiji. When you’re PM, you can’t say what’s on your mind. What if he met, say, Silvio Berlusconi and thought he was a right fuckwit. When interviewed on TV a couple of days later, would you applaud him for saying Berlusconi is a fuckwit?

      In case you don’t know this, people often conceal their true feelings, in order to remain socially acceptable, especially when in formal circumstances. More so, in diplomacy, as it is a very formal situation. If this is news to you, have a crack at it and you might find some friends. If this is not news to you, then why am I having to explain it to you? It seems we’re left with two conclusions about you: you are a social retard, or somewhat dim.

      A poor call to pander to the genocidal nazi-emulating racists. F

  3. Kevin Welsh 3
    20 April 2009 at 11:59 pm

    You the man, Mike.

  4. Steve Withers 4
    21 April 2009 at 12:16 am

    A PM constantly gazumping his ministers demonstrates he either has no idea what they are doing or they disagree with him and he can’t get them to toe the line. Either way, it’s a mess that will lead to trouble.

    As for the Conference on Racism it look likes we didn’t go because we don’t want to talk about……racism.

    Another “D’oh!” moment from the US and its toadies…….well….Israel’s toadies, really as avoiding facing the reaction to that country’s policies that is at the heart of the boycott. The people of the Middle East will have had it confirmed for them yet again that the US and it’s clients aren’t at all serious about addressing the issue of Palestine in ANY context.

    Bad politics in the long run. But we know that from the past. Some people refuse to learn.

    • Tigger 4.1
      21 April 2009 at 9:47 am

      Anyone want to take bets as to how Key will react if the US joins Israel in bombing Iran? He’s probably already prepared his press release about the evils of the Arab empire…

    • BLiP 4.2
      21 April 2009 at 11:02 am

      I’m not so sure the Key is gazumping his ministers so as much as he just makes things up on the spot and hopes no one will notice. Here’s Johnny telling the Financial Times there will be no more fiscal stimulus for the New Zealand economy. Contrast that with the Minister for Agriculture announcing tax relief for farmers.

      Does any National minister know what any other is doing or is this confusion a deliberate policy to keep the public bewildered?

  5. Whacky Lefty 5
    21 April 2009 at 12:40 am

    Fijis militocracy is so fragile, Frank knows how easy it was for him to lead a coup and so how easy it will be during the next change of leadership in the honoured Fijian tradtion, a military coup.
    Lets remeber he arrested his mate ’cause he thought he’ld kill him. He then let him go after he realised it was all in his head.

    Fijis Army is bigger than ours & we don’t have the logistical capability to even get to Fiji.

  6. Irascible 6
    21 April 2009 at 1:00 am

    In the 18th & 19th Centuries the military used to give their cannons nicknames to describe the power of the weapon. Perhaps National should give John Key a weaponry nickname along the same lines?
    I’d suggest “Mighty Mouth – the Loose Cannon” the weapon well known for dropping the shot on the cannoneer’s foot.

  7. Jenny 7
    21 April 2009 at 6:58 am

    Reminds me of the old nickname of NZ at the beginning of the last century.

    “Prussia of the South Seas”

    In 1914. It was said that New Zealand declared war on Germany before Britain, so that we could seize the German colonies in Samoa for ourselves.

    We all know how that ended.

  8. T-Rex 8
    21 April 2009 at 7:31 am

    Oh come on. “As part of a multinational force if need be” is a pretty hedged statement. It’s a bit unreasonable to attack Key for his naivete in suggesting we could take on the fijian military single handed when that’s not what he suggested.

    Also, Fiji’s Army is not bigger than NZ’s – quite aside from the fact that we also have a navy and an airforce and vastly superior equipment. Yes, some sort of Normandy style landing would be completely ridiculous and retarded, but I actually think it’s quite cowardly to suggest that we have absolutely no ability to project force. We’re a significant regional power and if it comes to some sort of UN action I think it would be grossly inappropriate for NZ to sit back in the case of Fiji. The moral mandate for intervention is pretty strong.

  9. mickysavage 9
    21 April 2009 at 7:43 am

    I reckon that we should and Johnny boy should lead from the front ; )

  10. illuminatedtiger 10
    21 April 2009 at 8:14 am

    You should’ve seen him on Sunrise this morning. Oliver Driver quizzed him on power walls and Key fell apart.

  11. illuminatedtiger 11
    21 April 2009 at 8:17 am

    Anyone see Key on Sunrise this morning?

  12. Tom Semmens 12
    21 April 2009 at 10:55 am

    Actually in the Great War Britain declared war on our behalf, we had no say and didn’t want one. The story goes that in WWII, we declared war on Germany after the U.K., but because of the international date line officially it was still (I think) the previous day in NZ, hence the joke we were so keen on the war we declared war on Germany before Britain did.

  13. Pat 13
    21 April 2009 at 11:04 am

    History shows when dictators lose the plot things can deteriorate very quickly. NZ needs to consider the possibility that military intervention in conjunction with Australia might be required if shots start being fired in Fiji. I would expect some contingency plan would already be drawn up for this.

    • BLiP 13.1
      21 April 2009 at 11:12 am

      I would imagine that there are now and certainly have been NZ SAS operatives hiding amongst the tourists.

  14. Irascible 14
    21 April 2009 at 2:48 pm

    A favourite comment by teachers on old style reports to describe a student like Key was “If John put his brain into gear before opening his mouth he might actually be able to answer the questions with some semblance of learning.”
    Such comments didn’t stop the student continuing to be a “Loose Cannon” firing off irrationally and off target.