Run Brian Run

Written By: - Date published: 7:30 am, May 23rd, 2019 - 103 comments
Categories: abortion, Abuse of power, brethren, Deep stuff, democracy under attack, Politics - Tags: ,

Brian Tamaki, recent victim of self/God?-inflicted burns. Don't be like Brian.

I hope this post does not dissuade him.  But I doubt that Brian Tamaki reads the Standard.  And I hope he gets together a party and runs for Parliament next year.  Because the MMP system allows extremist groups to gather together small groups of people and then consign their votes to irrelevancy.

From the Herald:

Destiny Church leader Brian Tamaki will tomorrow launch a political party after weighing up a move into politics for “a number of months”.

In a statement, he invited media to his church in Auckland to be informed as to what the party would look like.

“This is not a decision which we have undertaken lightly,” he said.

But because of an “escalating tide of poor decision-making” and the “eroding of New Zealand values by politicians – “we feel that we have had no choice but to stand up for the ever-growing silent majority of regular New Zealanders who are becoming more and more fed up and sick of the spin.”

It is not clear what these New Zealand values that he talks about are.

But he has complained about how he had been politically gang raped by the Government because it had refused to fund his man up programme, even though he had not actually applied for funding.  And he threatened prison riots yet expected the Government to let him into prisons and fund him to do so.

To the 2% of the population who think Brian is onto a good thing can I urge you to support him and vote for him.

And to Alfred Ngaro I think I have found your soul mate.

103 comments on “Run Brian Run ”

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  1. Sanctuary 1
    23 May 2019 at 7:45 am

    Great to see so many parties vying for the 4% wingnut vote. With the New Conservatives and the New, NEW Conservatives and the Brian Tamaki Party and the Handmaidens was a documentary party of Alfred Ngaro and the New Christians and the Old New Christians, they'll all get about 15,000 votes each.

    • Incognito 1.1
      23 May 2019 at 7:51 am

      15,000 votes each!? That’s more than ACT got in 2017!!

    • AB 1.2
      23 May 2019 at 7:55 am

      "4% wing nut vote"

      Yeah – though the concern is that these fundie religious parties are like a sh*t stain. The dirty area looks tiny, but there is a much larger invisible halo of contamination that can make us all sick.

      • marty mars 1.2.1
        23 May 2019 at 8:03 am

        Yes and they use stealth and fear to extend their influence. Fundamentalists are a danger to everyone imo especially when they indulge in 'wordly' affairs to increase their members and money.

  2. Incognito 2
    23 May 2019 at 7:48 am

    What will it be called?

    Destiny New Zealand?

    Brian’s Party?

    Where will he stand?

    Will he talk with National and will National talk with him?

    We need to get answers from Bishop Brian because we value honesty, integrity, and transparency more than a good side show, unless it is GoT, it seems …

    • mauī 2.1
      23 May 2019 at 7:55 am

      Destiny's Child featuring Brian-sayé

    • UncookedSelachimorpha 2.2
      23 May 2019 at 8:32 am

      " Will he talk with National and will National talk with him? "

      100% yes I would think! If he gets a seat, which seems unlikely

    • Puckish Rogue 2.3
      23 May 2019 at 9:50 am

      Has to be Brians Song

    • Wensleydale 2.4
      23 May 2019 at 2:54 pm

      So much potential…

      The Harley-Davidson Party

      The Soul Hunters (like the Head Hunters, but with less violence and drugs and more soft rock and hand-waving)

      The Life Of Brian Party (because he's a very naughty boy)

      Bish (a bit like Gwyneth Paltrow's Goop – possibly appealing to trend-setting hipsters or ladies who lunch)

      I'm sure there are more, but I'm supposed to be working.

      • Incognito 2.4.1
        23 May 2019 at 10:21 pm

        Very good.

        Given that Brian has promised “politics with teeth” and the religious belief in himself, I’d settle for the Tooth Fairy Party.

  3. Sabine 3
    23 May 2019 at 7:53 am

    will his church be still tax exempt now that he too wants to get on the government gravy train?

    will his so called charities (all funded by the tithing of his congregation – and thus in many cases by government as the 10% of come from benefits) loose their tax exempt status.

    and lastly, has no one learned anything from the last few decades and especially the last election in the us?

  4. Rosemary McDonald 4
    23 May 2019 at 7:55 am

    How long before the Godbotherers run foul of hate speech rules?

    • Formerly Ross 4.1
      23 May 2019 at 1:16 pm

      The Godbotherers are copping some hate here. Hate speech works both ways. 🙂

    • michelle 4.2
      24 May 2019 at 2:43 pm

      lean on me (judeath said) it wont be long before you(hanna) can find somebody (else ) to lean on, he he he cant wait for the elections it gonna be a real ding dong.

  5. Irascible 5
    23 May 2019 at 8:19 am

    I predict that these theocrcy advocates will discover that NZ voters suffer from electile function disorder… the realisation that none of them arouse political enthusiasm.

    • Adrian Thornton 5.1
      23 May 2019 at 8:51 am

      Yes true, but to be fair, Labour and national don't really excite to many people that much either…voting for Labour is a process of just going through the motions, like you have been stranded on a desert island with them, and you don't actually really like them..but well you know.

      Not a pretty picture, and no one comes out looking good.

  6. observer 6
    23 May 2019 at 8:20 am

    Credit to Henry Cooke at Stuff, who reminds us that we've been here before:

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/112930387/destiny-church-launching-political-party–again

    Unlike other talking heads on telly who waffle on about his potential vote, as opposed to an actual vote that was counted, in 2 elections. Brian did not "trouble the scorers".

    • mac1 6.1
      23 May 2019 at 8:51 am

      Yes, in 2003, so it obviously takes a decade and a half to forget one's earlier folly, or to hope that the voters have forgotten.

      Reading about Brian Tamaki's prediction that he would rule in 2004 brings to me to recall wondering what went through the thoughts of the religious rapturists who were denied being assumed into heaven from the top of Mount Herbert on Banks Peninsula.

      Perhaps they too are ready for a second try having forgotten ………………….

      • ianmac 6.1.1
        23 May 2019 at 11:55 am

        That was a very long time ago Mac1. Back in the 60s I remember the publicity around the Mt Herbert Trek and wondered what the people said as the sun rose as usual and another day began as usual.

        "Oh damn! Bible must be wrong." So how will Brian manage another error?

  7. Sarah 7
    23 May 2019 at 8:36 am

    I'm seriously thinking of starting the Jedi Party which 53,000 people identified as their religion in the 2001 census. I think I'd give these tossers a run for their money. Hahaha.

  8. UncookedSelachimorpha 8
    23 May 2019 at 8:37 am

    " And to Alfred Ngaro I think I have found your soul mate. "

    But please start your own, separate, splinter party anyway, and hoover up a bit more of the nasty vote.

  9. Invisiphilia 9
    23 May 2019 at 8:40 am

    Brian Tamaki and Alfred Ngaro can form the Ngaro-minded coalition. It will be doomed to the hell of political irrelevancy for sure after they get their five minutes of fame based on their delusions of grandeur.

  10. Dean Reynolds 10
    23 May 2019 at 9:22 am

    It used to be said that the Left 'never multiplies, it only divides'. It seems that we can now apply this description to the growing number of loony, Right wing, so called Christian parties emerging onto the political landscape. I pray that they all cancel each other out & take enough party votes off National to ensure its defeat. Tamaki is just doing God's work, but not in the way he thinks

  11. observer 11
    23 May 2019 at 9:33 am

    Spare a thought for the TV network producers who have to organise their election debates. Back in the day, Dunne and Anderton were excluded (because parties too small), went to court, won and got included after all.

    Half a dozen parties even smaller than Dunne/Anderton's, all vying to be National's new BFF, all doomed to irrelevance, and all demanding to be on prime time telly. What fun.

    • Dukeofurl 11.1
      23 May 2019 at 11:33 am

      The judgement wasnt really allowing all comers

      " I accept the basis of the plaintiffs’ case that by inviting the plaintiffs, and therefore all leaders of political parties in Parliament, and thus inviting leaders of all parties who Professor Levine considers will probably be represented in the next Parliament there at least is a rational and logic to the list."

      Dunne, Anderton v Canwest – Judgment

      http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0508/S00149.htm

    • greywarshark 11.2
      23 May 2019 at 12:32 pm

      Get Julie Christie to devise a new sort of Reality TV game! Make money while everyone gets to view them and vote them off or on, they can dance one week, do stand up comedy the next, sing NZ requests another.

    • Stuart Munro. 11.3
      24 May 2019 at 2:19 am

      It's not a captive audience any more – that horse has well and truly bolted.

      The larger parties seem to be pretty irrelevant too – not so much acting on the will of the people as the whims of NZInc, a policy that would be bit more tenable were it not that Inc have NFI how to govern a country.

  12. Anne 12
    23 May 2019 at 9:42 am

    It's all there in the picture above. Gold watch, gold bracelet and two gold rings. I don't know how many thousands of dollars they represent together but I'm sure its a fair few.

    It really is hard to fathom how these Destiny Church members can be so fooled.

    • Siobhan 12.1
      23 May 2019 at 11:06 am

      Thats something I've thought about too. But then humans have a long history of falling for the appearance of power. All Religion has taken full advantage of that. Be it the Bling of the Catholics, the Property Portfolio of pretty much any religion, the gold watches on the wrists of Buddhist Monks and New Age Gurus.

      Then again, think of all the people who voted for John Key the self serving vacuous Ex Merchant Banker with Friends in High Places? The number of people you meet who rely on Public Health, Public Education even Public Housing etc etc…yet vote for the Party fundamentally opposed to adequately funding such things led by a person and people who would rather chew off their own arm than 'Go Public' for either Health care or Education. .

      Not that Labour are a heck of alot different with their 'Fiscal Responsibility' restrictions. I'd have alot more faith in our Minister of Health if I was sure they too rely 100% on the Public Health Service…But at least they wring their hands and look concerned I guess.

      It really is hard to fathom how these voters can be so fooled.

      • Anne 12.1.1
        23 May 2019 at 11:23 am

        I have much sympathy for what you have said Siobhan. After several decades in and around the political arena, cynicism does become hard to overcome but I do try….

      • greywarshark 12.1.2
        23 May 2019 at 12:35 pm

        How can National Party people be so fooled and so many think that this is a Really Good country, prosperous and smart. If it looks good, it must be worthy of consideration, and vice versa. And don't we all want to look good! Join the Prosperity Party and kiss my ring, truly I do not lie.

  13. Psycho Milt 13
    23 May 2019 at 9:53 am

    At last, here truly is someone fit to inherit the mighty legacy of Graeme Capill and Colin Craig…

  14. Tiger Mountain 14
    23 May 2019 at 11:37 am

    Praise be–two religious nutters declare in one week. Two registered, and bankrolled, right wing Christian parties would likely assist the Nats to fail in 2020.

    And what about the Brethren–“we don’t vote but want to influence the election anyway” lot? Which member of Brian or Alfred’s “Invisible Friend” parties will show a liking for young girls, or other dodgy pursuits first? that purient interest may see them get ample unwelcome attention.

    There is meant to be a division between religion and state in this country, and hopefully the US is a strong enough example of why that should remain.

  15. gsays 15
    23 May 2019 at 11:54 am

    Is this a good time to ask if we are still in favour of lowering the threshold to 3%?

    I am, not to give Destiny a break, but to allow other 'fringe' voices a seat at the table.

    Like it or not, fundies are a part of our populace.

    • greywarshark 15.1
      23 May 2019 at 12:38 pm

      Fundies, populace; drop the pop-u and lace them to a fence where they used to have rodeos. It would be the kindest thing to do for them, and give the poor innocent animals a break from our bovine voyeurism.

    • lprent 15.2
      23 May 2019 at 2:18 pm

      That was my immediate thought as well.

      I would like to lower the threshold to 4% as recommended by the royal commission and various reviews.

      But I want a good healthy margin between helping new mass parties and the genocidal adherence to Knesset politics.

      • greywarshark 15.2.1
        23 May 2019 at 4:57 pm

        (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8necbhPHuIA

        lprent Yes to 4%. Going down 1% mightn't seem much to some, but it puts viable parties in a reasonable position to get the numbers, without letting in all the disaffected minorities willing to tumble the nationwide system, while they demand a win for some individual concession. Both are important, but the strength of the main system enables consideration and supply to the smaller group, or that is the idea, and the best way to do things.

  16. michelle 16
    23 May 2019 at 1:41 pm

    My bet is non of the christian parties will get a seat and why would we want to bring in a bunch of religious zealots anyway. Morals have declined and so has respect, dignity and integrity something we lacked in our last born to rule tory government. Leadership starts at the top another thing lacking in the last govt. I see Simeon Browne complaining about the new synthetic law yet under there watch synthetics were legalised many people became heavily addicted and now national are saying be harder on the dealers but some of the dealers will be users dealing to pay for their habit thanks to peter the dunny courtesy of the national coalition harper valley pta .

  17. WeTheBleeple 17
    23 May 2019 at 1:50 pm



  18. peter 18
    23 May 2019 at 1:57 pm

    Bishop Brian is putting his wife up on the hustings. Rejection's a bit hard, the work of a parliamentarian's a bit hard and there are far more important things to do. I mean running the world by telling others how they should be doing it is easier than actually doing it. Oh well can tell wifey what to do.

    There go all the Mongrel Mob and Black Power votes. Guess they'll join the party and get into the fund raising activities. Might have to sell a bit more P.

  19. UncookedSelachimorpha 19
    23 May 2019 at 2:04 pm

    Might be a rear-guard desperation move, trying to retain some relevance. Destiny has less members than I thought – and in decline. From Wikipedia:

    " At its peak in 2003, Destiny Church had a network of 19 churches throughout New Zealand, with a total membership in excess of 5,000. By June 2012 it had 11 remaining churches, with fewer than 3000 regular attendees. Churches have closed in Porirua, Wanganui and Dunedin. By June 2013, Destiny Church Wanganui was no longer listed on the main church website. In addition, other branches had Kaitaia, Opotiki, Taumaranui, and Hawkes Bay had either closed down or merged with other church branches. "

    You need about 130k votes to cross the 5% threshold – can't see it happening!

    • jeremyB 19.1
      23 May 2019 at 8:28 pm

      Well, if the numbers are dropping, his income stream is too.

      He probably knows they have no chance but the positives (for Brian at least) are the internal funding drive it generates, the appearance of standing up for what he believes and he can act a martyr when he fails.

  20. observer 20
    23 May 2019 at 2:11 pm

    Great press conference to start things off. Satire now overtaken by the news.

    Hannah Tamaki was clear on one thing: wants all abortion illegal. So even more Alabama than Ngaro.

  21. Chris 21
    23 May 2019 at 2:27 pm

    The best news since last election day.

  22. Matiri 22
    23 May 2019 at 4:27 pm

    Just heard on Jesse @ Radio NZ that some wag jumped in and grabbed the coalition.org.nz domain and set up some website content (Tamaki's not too smart there!) and have posted a load of nonsense…. or maybe it's more sensible than the 'real thing'.smiley

  23. Peter 23
    23 May 2019 at 5:19 pm

    The entertainment factor in the election just soared. Hannah told us she's not God!

    By the time the election comes around with their polling so high she’ll get to be in the leaders’ debate. Wow, Hannah and Mike!

    On immigration she said she didn’t know how many was too many immigrants. 500 a year might be okay but not 5000 (with the tone of awe that it could be that high. )
    “Statistics New Zealand’s latest migration figures show annual net immigration or the year ended January of 58,400 people.”

  24. peterlepaysan 24
    23 May 2019 at 8:34 pm

    With all these wannabe parties (and I include Seymour) I just hope and pray that TVNZ organise a an election debate with all of them.

    Who needs game of thrones?

    Popcorn anyone?

  26. millsy 26
    23 May 2019 at 11:31 pm

    We should be careful. Such a party could become a force if it dropped the whole thing about telling people who they can and cannot sleep with or have kids with and instead focused on pokies, booze and loan sharks.

    • Rae 26.1
      24 May 2019 at 6:34 am

      That sounds more like a party that Dr Lance O'Sullivan might lead.

      • millsy 26.1.1
        24 May 2019 at 10:02 am

        O' Sullivan is moderately conservative. He could be persuaded to stand for this party.

  27. vto 27
    24 May 2019 at 5:45 am

    first media interview question should be "do you agree with Israel Folau that gays will be going to hell?"

    • Rae 27.1
      24 May 2019 at 6:35 am

      You really think we need to ask?

      • Incognito 27.1.1
        24 May 2019 at 7:41 am

        Exactly!

        The question asked should be: do you think we should make life Hell for others? I always wonder why some people think they are justified in giving other people a taste of what their Afterlife might be without being asked for their unsolicited opinions, a kind of religious spam.

  28. Ad 28
    24 May 2019 at 7:50 am

    Christian Heritage + Christian Party got pretty close once.

    Uniting the Christians with big fat donors like EBs, into close to 5%, snt impossible.

    Could be enough to form a National government.

      • Ad 28.1.1
        24 May 2019 at 9:14 am

        That's as silly an argument as banning democracy because Trump.

        • RedLogix 28.1.1.1
          24 May 2019 at 9:20 am

          That's as silly as saying that because all the works of man are imperfect, we should ban humans. Democracy sure isn't perfect despite it's Hitlers, Trumps and Bosonaros, but on the whole we regards the benefits as worth the risks.

          But mixing religion and politics is a reliably bad idea.

          • Sam 28.1.1.1.1
            24 May 2019 at 9:27 am

            Because religion is a political tool, always has been, freedom of religion ect. Ie, the older generation are upset that things are changing, especially religion and they don't want it to change. Thus, the "business as usual" mentality is catering in more ways than one. Most of them don't actually give two shits.

            • RedLogix 28.1.1.1.1.1
              24 May 2019 at 9:46 am

              Because religion is a political tool,

              Well maybe but it's even worse when politics become a religious tool.

              the older generation are upset that things are changing,

              On average the older you get the more shit has happened to you and the more hard lessons you've learned in life. One very frequently learned lesson is that not all change is necessarily a good thing.

              • Sam …
                24 May 2019 at 9:52 am

                Yeah, there's plenty of religious politics on our side, the left-wing side that I'm okay with (Episcopalians, need I say more?). People categorise stuff, regardless of whether or not they fit well into said categories. The same Catholic Church which condemns abortion and homosexual marriage also promotes immigration reform, increased welfare / government assistance (and private of course), and nuclear disarmament, and opposed the Iraq War. Trying to impose right or left politics on religion doesn't necessarily fit neither.

    • Dennis Frank 28.2
      24 May 2019 at 8:51 am

      Technically, the prospect of christian unity isn't quite zero. Jesus called for it just before he was crucified. God's will be done, and God seems to have chosen splitting rather than unity. God's response: 45,000 christian sects thus far. So for two millennia, christians have been producing diversification rather than unity. God's will.

      Liam Hehir outs himself as a conservative christian on the Spinoff, and cites the Apostles’ "Creed. It doesn’t dictate the optimal forms and levels of taxation and the size of government. It doesn’t have anything in particular to say about monetary policy. It provides no conclusive guidance as to striking the balance between environmental protection and human development. What stance would a Christian political party take on all those questions? The truth is that there is no Christian position that could be adopted because there will never be a consensus about those things between Christians."

      • Ad 28.2.1
        24 May 2019 at 9:13 am

        Christianity remains the largest ideological force in the world, and remains remarkably unified for the damage it has done, and had done to it. Sure more enduring and effective than any socialist, social democrat, or communist entity.

        Laim should learn to read on the formation of the New Zealand Labour Party and its early leadership including the first two Prime Ministers. He will find his answers for New Zealand right there.

        • RedLogix 28.2.1.1
          24 May 2019 at 9:34 am

          Christianity remains the largest ideological force in the world,

          On that I whole-heartedly and happily agree. But crucially the pews of churches have people who will cast their votes across the entire political spectrum; churches are a pivot of moral coherence and unity, but each individual believer must retain the right to investigate and cast their vote according to their conscience.

          I've no problem with individuals (Jim Bolger springs to mind) who are openly religious also being political, but when religious institutions become openly political and start implicitly directing how their believers should vote … they've stepped over the line.

          I deliberately chose the example of Saudi because far from being an aberration like Trump, Islam traditionally links religion and politics very closely. Indeed the idea of caliphate quite literally erases the distinction.

  29. Graeme 29
    24 May 2019 at 8:29 am

    The name he's chosen, Coalition Party, will this fly wiht the electoral commission?

    In the MMP environment "coalition" or "the coalition government" refers to the group of entities that have a majority in parliament, not a single, minor party. Can't see this name getting approved.

    Looks like Tamaki going off half cocked again like he did with his prison recruitment. If he'd had the name approved he would have secured the domains as well.

    • Dennis Frank 29.1
      24 May 2019 at 8:56 am

      Depends how many postmodernists have infiltrated the Electoral Commission. The doctrine of postmodernism says that words mean whatever their users think they mean, plus whatever readers or listeners think they mean, so discourse is rendered totally subjective. The idea that everyone conform to dictionaries is antiquated.

      • Robert Guyton 29.1.1
        24 May 2019 at 9:59 am

        What do you mean by "dictionaries"?

        • RedLogix 29.1.1.1
          24 May 2019 at 10:15 am

          Dictionaries are nothing but the projection of privilege.

          • greywarshark 29.1.1.1.1
            25 May 2019 at 9:32 am

            Dictionaries are nothing but the projection of privilege. That's the thinking of a determinedly practical engineer. Dictionaries are collections of the words that a particular society with a particular language are using to express the myriad ways of thinking and feeling in relation to their reality, their environment, other people and themselves.

            You are not acknowledging our complexity, and that can include flexibility and acceptance of other word construction than the official one. So it seems, to express your thinking, saying that insisting on precise wording and dismissing anything else, is a projection of privilege.

            It enables us to precisely state a thought and colour it to show an aspect I want to emphasise, colour for this purpose being used as a simile or a metaphor. I can't remember what is the right meaning but you will understand what I mean.

        • Dennis Frank 29.1.1.2
          24 May 2019 at 10:30 am

          It was a cultural reference, Robert. During my education, dictionaries functioned as the determinant of word meanings. The tacit assumption that such objective definitions operated as the supreme authorities was universal. The idea that subjective interpretations at variance with the accepted meanings could have validity was never expressed.

          That's likely due to the tendency of such wacky notions to get utterers condemned as stupid (at best) or subversive (at worst). It was common for such dissidents to be condemned as communists in those days.

    • Rae 29.2
      24 May 2019 at 6:19 pm

      This afternoon, driving past Claudelands Park and the Heaphy Terrace mosque in Hamitlon, I saw a number of Mongrol Mob patched members just standing in the park, spread out and all facing the mosque across the road, a couple of Muslim guys were talking to a couple of them, status unknown to me, one with what seemed to be a book in his hands. It took me a few seconds to realise that it was obviously the mob still honouring the pledge to watch over the mosque during Friday prayers (it had been some time since I'd driven that way on a Friday) and the book would have to have been the Koran.

      After 15 March, seeing the reaction of so many Maori it occurred to me we could see a lot of Maori converting. I wonder if Tamaki realised it too?

    • Incognito 29.3
      24 May 2019 at 10:55 pm

      Very good point!

      Acceptable party name

      A party name (and any abbreviation) will be accepted provided it:

      is not likely to confuse or mislead voters

      https://www.elections.org.nz/party-registration-handbook/part-1-registering-party