Meanwhile, at nationalmps.co.nz…

Written By: - Date published: 11:16 am, March 9th, 2010 - 19 comments
Categories: blogs, national - Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Remember how a couple of months back National set up NationalMPs? It was meant to be their answer to Red Alert, Labour’s frequently raucous, unstagemanaged blog where Labour’s MPs write what they want.

The problem is, either the National leadership doesn’t trust its MPs not to say something really stupid (a safe presumption given their line-up) and aren’t letting anything but the most innocuous, non-political posts go up, or National’s MPs really are just incredible bores and buffoons. Maybe it’s both.

I’d actually completely forgotten about NationalMPs [hattip to mickysavage for reminding me]. And that says something in itself. Our rightwing counterparts certainly haven’t forgotten about Red Alert because it’s interesting and the MPs write passionately about real issues. Here, in contrast, are the topics of the last week’s posts on NationalMPs:

  • Nicky Wagner talking about the Flower Festival
  • Amy Adams talking about Selwyn to no-one
  • Simon Bridges arguing with no-one about whether Rotorua or Tauranga is better
  • Craig Foss talking about the Hawkes Bay Lawmakers vs Lawyers Cricket game
  • Aaron Gilmore talking about someone a la George Jetson developing a jetpack
  • Colin King discussing how he has recently been painted
  • Eric Roy analyzing the decision to allow opossums into the country
  • Nicky Wagner talking about the opening of a new Habitat for Humanity home.

The tag-line of the site is “join the conversation” but there are literally no comments on any of the posts. That’s not surprising. Who wants to converse about flowers with Nicky Wagner, whose only achievement of any note has been getting caught out in the [insert region here] fiasco?

In fact, the most interesting thing on the site is a picture of Cam Calder standing next to a Young Nat who is wearing an abort73.com t-shirt. Abort73 is a virulent anti-right to choose organisation from the US (Roe v Wade was in 1973).

Come on National, it’s a new century (no, not the 20th, the 21st) and the public deserves better from politicians than generic [insert region here] newsletters and stage-managed blog sites. Your MPs do actually have ideas of their own to communicate, don’t they?

19 comments on “Meanwhile, at nationalmps.co.nz… ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. tc 1
    9 March 2010 at 11:38 am

    It’s a mirror of the thought processes which drive our great governments MP’s……..the tumbleweed graphic is spot on.

    I liked the profile of my MP….grammar/law with honours/banking…explains alot.

    The lights are on, the sites up…..but no-one’s home. Bet this post prods them into some more banal banter on it so I can’t wait.

    • Tigger 1.1
      9 March 2010 at 12:44 pm

      The Rotorua-Tauranga post is as edgy as this site is going to get. The PR hacks won’t let anything interesting slip through.

  2. Jeremy 2
    9 March 2010 at 11:57 am

    Oh man, I’d forgotten about that one. Mind you, given that there was no reason to visit it, it’s hardly surprising that it’s gone no where…

  3. pollywog 3
    9 March 2010 at 11:58 am

    *yawn*… alright

    While on the subject of MP blogs. Hone has been quiet for a while. Foreshore and seabed hui wrapped up 3 months ago yet the whole issue seems stalled ?

    http://www.tokerau.co.nz/index.php

    Whose gig is it within gov’t to repeal and replace the current law ?..Nick Smith ? Is there a reason to stall and stretch the issue out to a possible second term for this coalition of the unwilling ? Whatever happened to urgency or is it such a complex issue blah blah blah and theres still mileage to be made slating Labour for the law in the first place ?

  4. Bored 4
    9 March 2010 at 12:09 pm

    Just had a look, jeez these guys are so so so boring (and I should know).

  5. mickysavage 5
    9 March 2010 at 12:15 pm

    I was thinking about setting up an alternative satirical site. But I then had another look and I am not sure that you do better than the real thing. Are we sure it is not satirical?

  6. the sprout 6
    9 March 2010 at 12:36 pm

    Heh, yeah. Bound to fail.

    Blogs are a great platform for Oppositions, and National used them well in Opposition, snappy and informal – but they are a nightmare for Governments due to all sorts of inconsistency of message and gatekeeping problems. Any Govt Chief of Comms would have to be mad to allow them. Because they can’t be allowed to function like real blogs, at best they just end up looking moribund and out of touch.

  7. Clarke 7
    9 March 2010 at 12:38 pm

    That site bears the same resemblance to an authentic blog that Spray On Dairy Whip Creamer bears to authentic cream.

  8. Ed 8
    9 March 2010 at 12:51 pm

    Selecting the electorate Bay of Plenty gave some spirited public discussion in typical National style . . .
    Selecting Wellington Central and Wigram only showed the line of photos of suits – not even a list MP dares to put a name to contact in those and some other electorates . . .

  9. Draco T Bastard 9
    9 March 2010 at 12:52 pm

    Your MPs do actually have ideas of their own to communicate, don’t they?

    Unlikely. IMO, the reason why conservatives think all the answers are in the past is because they have no imagination.

  10. a human 10
    9 March 2010 at 12:58 pm

    i love the 2009 Report Card

    it is a page of zero information and not one of the suggested links does anything

    i am guessing they got Tolley wrote it

  11. not convinced 11
    9 March 2010 at 1:51 pm

    apologies for the typos above
    here it is as a multiple choice

    A: i am guessing they got Tolley to write it
    B: i am guessing they let Tolley write it
    C: i am guessing Tolley wrote it

    now report to your minisrty of truth officer for a declaration of achievement

  12. Jem 12
    9 March 2010 at 2:02 pm

    So, who’s Aaron Gilmore?

    • Marty G 12.1
      9 March 2010 at 2:13 pm

      The luckiest MP around. He was the lowest ranked candidated to get in on National’s list. If Labour had got 40 more votes the seat would have gone to them.

  13. Mac1 13
    9 March 2010 at 7:27 pm

    NationalMPs is so bad that an MP cannot spell his own electorate- “Kiakoura”, indeed.

  14. Anne 14
    9 March 2010 at 8:02 pm

    I recall reading it when it first appeared and all I learned was:
    Craig Foss’s parents had an anniversary…
    Simon Bridges and his wife had a wonderful Labour week-end.
    somebody or another Parata(?) was a play-centre baby and
    drum roll…..
    Paula Bennett was staunchly proud of her Westies.

    and that was it!

  15. Jim Nald 15
    9 March 2010 at 8:16 pm

    Is that a real National website? or a joke??

    If real, the Nats should more accurately call it http://www.disconnect.co.nz

  16. Julie 16
    10 March 2010 at 9:23 am

    I wrote a bit about one of Craig Foss’s posts back in February, despite being politics free on the surface the post actually gave a bit of insight into how he thinks…

    http://thehandmirror.blogspot.com/2010/02/inside-one-baby-boomers-mind-scary.html

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