Winston’s war on wokeness
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7:04 am, March 25th, 2025 - 32 comments
Categories: chris hipkins, climate change, economy, employment, Environment, labour, Living Wage, Media, media abuse, national, nz first, science, unemployment, wages, winston peters, workers' rights -
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In what looked like an early election campaign launch Winston Peters has done his old man shaking his fist at the sky tirade against everything woke and has urged us to show some common sense.
The word “woke” appears 14 times in his speech notes and “common sense” five times.
At the time of his speech there was a protest against the ongoing genocide that is happening in Gaza which Winston found out about. He was clearly that keen to be disrupted that he built into his speech notes the opportunity to pick a fight with them.
He would have been so annoyed if they had chosen to boycott the meeting.
He attacked Labour’s handling of the economy and said this:
In September of [2023], one month before the election, Chris Hipkins was the Prime Minister and Grant Roberston was the Minister of Finance. The following is what they reported on the New Zealand Economy – to you the New Zealand people.
Their September 2023 pre-election economic and fiscal update (commonly referred to as the PREFU) claimed this:
That the economy shows no recession, a growing economy, more jobs, and wages ahead of inflation.
They said, and we quote “the PREFU released today shows New Zealand’s economy is turning the corner”.
They said that the economy was to grow by 2.6% on average over the forecast period. They claimed further that fiscal rules had been met. That there was a return to surplus.
And then this most extraordinary of all boasts – “our economic plan to support New Zealanders dealing with the cost of living while investing in a stronger, more resilient and inclusive economy, is working”.
He then claimed that the statement was a litany of lies.
But the problem is that he has misreported what was actually said and ignored official advice.
It appears that this release is what he was referring to. The release includes these bullet points:
- Economy to grow 2.6 percent on average over forecast period
- Treasury not forecasting a recession
- Inflation to return to the 1-3 percent target band next year
- Wages set to grow 4.8 percent a year over forecast period
- Unemployment to peak below the long-term average
- Fiscal Rules met – Net debt to peak at 22.8 percent of GDP in 2024/25 and return to surplus in forecast period (2026/27).
The release did say that the economy appears to be “turning the corner”. And at the time this is what Treasury thought would happen.
Growth has since been anemic but only because this Government has slashed at Government spending.
Treasury did not forecast a recession and instead predicted that growth would be between 1.3% and 3.2% in the forecast period. The recession is this Government’s fault.
Inflation was 2.2% by the end of 2024.
Wage growth is anemic but minimising minimum wage increases, causing increased unemployment and attacking fair pay agreements will do that.
Unemployment is up slightly but again slashing spending will do that.
Net Crown debt and gross Crown debt have crept up but this is what happens when you promulgate unfunded tax cuts.
There is a whole lot of revisionist writing going on in the heads of Winston’s speech writers. They are trying to transfer blame for the country’s current economic issues to Labour. But the reality is that things are worse. But only because this Government is so bad at economic management.
Winston then raged against some fringe issues.
He attacked the main stream media.
He accused Labour the Greens and the Māori Party of being “parties of moral outrage” which is pretty rich when you think of anytime that Shane Jones says something. Or Winston come to think about it.
To reinforce the sense of hypocrisy he complained about “woke globalist, Marxist, economic, cultural, and social engineering policies”. At this point if you closed your eyes and imagined Winston with an American accent you would swear it was Donald Trump talking.
He alleged a “Collection of Communist’ type economics”. Winston like the rest of the right in the would would not recognise a Marxist if they were bitten by one.
He attacked DEI and accused Labour of “drumming up racial rhetoric that only serves to divide our country”. Again this sounds like Shane Jones every time he opens his mouth.
He accused Labour of receiving “hundreds of thousands of dollars for policy” from the Unions. If only we knew how much NZ First received from Phillip Morris.
He wants to fight against woke banks, aka banks who realise that in the medium term the sale of petroleum will no longer be viable. He wants to stop men from walking into women’s and girl’s bathooms and to get rid of DEI from the public sector.
He chose to attack the Paris Climate accord and claimed that it would cost the country $22 billion plus.
This figure is highly speculative. The latest figures I have seen suggest that the costs have been or will be up to 2030 between $871 million and $3.2 billion a year. Of course if we cut greenhouse gas emissions and stick to what we have agreed to it will not cost this much.
Given estimates that global economic output will fall by up to 34 percent if the Earth is allowed to warm by 3 degrees Celsius this century, but investing less than 2 percent of GDP now could eliminate most of those losses you have to wonder why he would argue against the cost. The long term cost of run away climate change is much, much greater.
Winston did the usual “we are too insignificant to do anything when it comes to climate change”. But our emissions are 15.3 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per head of population compared to China’s 9.8t, and India’s 2.9t. The US figure is not that much higher at 17.3t and Russia tops the figures at 18.5t.
I believe we should be doing something. Per head of population we pump out much more than the Chinese or the Indians. To put the blame on them is thinly veiled racism.
Winston then went for another niche policy, allowing local government to refuse to flouridate water despite the health benefits. Way to stick it to those scientists who know what they are talking about.
He finished with a clarion call to “to take back control, take back our country, and Make New Zealand First Again”.
It is almost as if NZ First has not been in Government for 4.5 of the past 7.5 years.
The good news is that it looks like Winston is getting ready to pull the pin on this Government. The bad news is that he wants us to have wall to wall Trumpian talking points in the subsequent election campaign.
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Winston sounding a little desperate……4.9% looming and ignominy.
Phony patriotism used to be the "last refuge of scoundrels". Then it was "political correctness". Now it is "anti woke".
A niche policy is not a fringe policy; the Coalition is full of fringe policies for which they claim mandate.
Flouridation of drinking water will making bread making easier
Merriam-Webster dictionary defines 'woke' as “aware of and actively attentive to important facts and issues (especially issues of racial and social justice),” and identified as U.S. slang. It originated in African American English and gained more widespread use beginning in 2014 as part of the Black Lives Matter movement. By the end of that same decade it was also being applied by some as a general pejorative for anyone who is or appears to be politically left-leaning."
I attended a meeting last election where the NZF candidate slated 'virtue-signalling woke socialists'. At the next meeting beforehand I asked him whether he was going to talk about me again. I've known him for years so I used a gentle approach to let him know I was not insulted by what was for him name-calling.
In 1650 an English court was dealing with one George Fox who told Justice Bennet of Derby that he should tremble before God. Justice Bennet of Derby called him a 'quaker' and members of the Society of Friends adopted the name. It is one way to deal with insults.
So, let's all be 'woke' together. "Wokers of the world, unite." It's not for nothing that the rising fascist right is attacking workers and unions, the judiciary, civil servants, teachers, community organisations. (I bet one or two US judges have names for Donald Trump which are not presidential, or quakerly.) We of the left should be proud to be woke socialists and have no problem either with pointing out what is virtuous and correct behaviour.
I know that Winston Peters is using woke as a more modern version of politically correct or PC which we can all remember as a former, favoured term of abuse for the left, and which for me meant 'being respectful".
For the opposite of woke is Winston's political MO – lack of decency, disrespect and division.
Given the term originated in the Black community in the US, I think it's legitimate to apply it retrospectively to historical figures such as William Wilberforce who as a British MP was instrumental in the abolition of the slave trade.
That's one reason I'm more than happy to accept the term as a descriptor of myself and my attitudes, and do so with pride.
Any insult a fascist throws at you is a badge of honour.
I agree and what you wrote expresses all I feel. Thanks Mac1.
For someone who has always found a group of dissidents to stir up to get his 5%, it is rich Winston is calling Labour liars and not having a clear group to court.
Winston, it is the woke caring group who believe people should be helped and supported to have wellbeing, meaning jobs health and homes.
We don't believe we need to stand on another's neck to do it.
Well said Mac …100% agree.
I'm woke ..
Maybe I need to get a trucker hat .. with that emblazoned upon it..?
Woke at the wheel
Since the road & transport lobby sides strongly with National this could be a good election slogan.
"woke at the wheel"
Indeed. My town sits on SH1 and when waving the flag for Gaza and Tino Rangatiratanga issues, I nored a major supporter for the causes by tooting were the truck drivers.
In fact…I am so woke…
..I should have triple exclamation marks after the word..
And peters on wokism..is deranged angry old man shaking his fists at the clouds ..
..if he wasn't such a reactionary..it'd be funny…
..and kinda interesting how trump..and his minny-me/shadow peters…have so besmirched a generally positive ..up untill now ..word ..
Populism…
..we need to claim it back..
..it has its merits.
..along with woke..
Nope – just a lot of dottiness.
I just couldn’t resist that straight line;;;
Heh…!…(Valid comment..)
Yes Phillip plus the T shirt Woke workers Unite.
Let's be totally alliterative: Woke Workers Wunite!
And here I’m thinking that Winston is looking into a cure for insomnia…. I’ve been averaging about three hours of sleep a night for the past week or two…
Go to a legal weed shop…ask for the strongest indica they have..
You'll sleep like a baby…
..middle of the nite… can't sleep..a small pipe.
..and boom..!
Haha yeah thanks, I was having a chat with a “neighbour” at the weekend. He popped in last night with a “herb” going by the name of “Bruce Banner”. Tried some last night, slept like a baby and I’m feeling pretty chilled out today… feeling pretty hungry though
I'm predicting that this will go down very well indeed with the core NZF vote.
As far as Peters is concerned, those who are negatively identified by the badge of 'woke' – will already be voting for the GP or TPM, or maybe Labour left wing. Certainly not in any of the demographics that he might be appealing to.
So there is no downside for him denigrating them, and plenty of upsides for his 'populism'.
Yeah….he may steal some of ACT's votes with his dumb anti-woke waffle.
I'm just not interested. I didn't read the article because the headline contained the word 'woke'. Ignore Winston and Shane – give them no coverage – leave them to mumble drunkenly in their own special corner of the internet. Winston is 80? Leave him be – he's an old man and deserves to be left in peace with his memories of days gone by.
Winston’s main wish these days might well be a dry fart…
"Woke, woke, woke, tirade, tirade, tirade"
"I'm sorted, I'm woke"
His 'Let's not dwell on the past' skills are awesome. "2017-2020? You must be imagining those years, the people of New Zealand aren't interested in your fake news any more."
Greens and TPM need to go hard here and remind kiwis who signed the ferry contract that Willis cancelled.
Hipkins needs to double down on his NZF dislike in public as hes on record as not willing to working with them.
Reframe the msm's neo liberals mantra ….if you can be bothered.
I will only have any time for Hipkins if he instigates a Wealth Tax or a Land Tax, reinstates the 10 year Bright line test and uses the proceeds to fully fund the health service.
A Capital Gains Tax will raise sod-all revenue for several years.
The Greens would support all of the above.
Like the gutless wonder would do anything like that.
Pretty f'd off he is still there after his ineptitude in selling the few policies he didnt torch.
Electorally damaged goods….good luck labour you'll need it.
Agreed ..
His torching of 'woke' policies defines him ..
..he did what peters wants to do…
Kinda shaky ground for hipkins to be pontificating from..
And re the election:..he has a hell of a lot of ground to make up..
..and the only way I see him doing that..is thru policies that excite the electorate..
..policies that undo the damage done to his credibility by that previous torching..
..kinda shaky ground for hipkins to be pontificating from…eh..?
Winston goes abroad as our FM and "normalises" a continuing relationship with a nation which might be the biggest threat to the 1945 order yet. And democracy besides, greater than the HUAC era.
And then comes back to engage in uncivil discourse of his inner Muldoon from the 1975 era with all the panache of Archie Bunker, as sent up by Murray Ball in Stanley.
In his rush to embrace a return to nationalist populism, in a war against both social liberal democracy and social democracy, he should remember his history.
Why did he quote Peter Fraser at the UN before the 2024 election and why did FDR praise Wendell Willkie his opponent in 1940.
The American kulturekampf is based on a bible and flag nationalist absolutism and it is destructive to civil society. It is of the 1930's GOP that wanted fascism to win in Europe over the unChristian commies. Why did England and that GOP sleep.
Lets rebrand the term woke. The only group i consistently hear using the term are oldish and old rightwing or conservative males moaning about things, often white but not exclusively. For example Hoskins, Peters, simeon brown, shane jones. So to me using woke as an insult or a critical manner is calling someone a moaning right wing old guy. "The old woke guy moaning about people speaking maori on the news"