thedailyblog--2020-09-07--Government of the Media, by the Media, for The Media.

I MUST HAVE MISSED the news bulletin in which the appointment of Jack Tame as People ’ s Prosecutor was announced .
I guess Winston Peters missed it , too .
Otherwise , why would he have put himself in the dock on Q+A last Sunday morning ?
( 6/9/20 ) Not that Winston was ever in real trouble , not from “ James ” – as the NZ First leader kept calling him .
Winston ’ s been around too long to be seriously discommoded by an ambitious young journalist less than half his age .
But , as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , he had plenty of other things to be going on with , 40 days out from a general election in which he is fighting for his political life and legacy , than to submit himself to the inquisitorial fury of People ’ s Prosecutor Tame .
Anyone who knows anything about the way current affairs shows like Q+A are put together will share Winston ’ s outrage .
Securing the appearance of a prominent politician on such shows is always a delicate exercise .
The person , or , more likely , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to know what the programme intends to talk to their boss about .
And believe me , if they are told that the programme intends to ambush him with a whole series of questions of the “ Are you still beating your wife ?
” variety , then the show ’ s producers will be told , very politely , to fuck right off .
So , you can bet your bottom dollar that Winston and his minders weren ’ t told anything remotely like that .
He ’ d made himself available @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would mostly be about the tragic loss of the live-cattle-carrier capsized by a typhoon in the East China Sea .
He did this believing , perhaps naively , that he was dealing with honest broadcasting professionals , not media bushwhackers .
You can also lay down a fairly heavy bet that Tame and his producers talked through the interview with considerable care , deciding exactly when the ugly shift from friendly interviewer Jack , to pitiless inquisitor Jack , would take place .
Equally likely is the encouragement Tame would have been receiving @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as the interview unfolded .
Were it a case of an interviewer gone rogue , Tame would have been shut down immediately .
So , the Tame-Peters interview didn ’ t just happen – it was organised .
Just think about that for a moment .
The leader of a political party – precariously poised on the edge of political oblivion – is invited to appear on a television programme whose producers ’ and host ’ s intention is to ambush and embarrass him .
Not , it is important to note at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ evidence gathered by its own journalists , and about which he , having been given fair warning , will be invited to make comment .
No , no , no : that would be what honest-to-God professional journalists would do .
I ’ ll never forget my old boss at The Independent Business Weekly , Warren Berryman , drumming it into me that real journalists don ’ t do ambushes .
The subject of a story must always be offered the opportunity to respond to its content .
It ’ s called “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ TVNZ understood the meaning of the word .
Not anymore it would seem .
If Tame had anything solid in the way of evidence of Winston ’ s and NZ First ’ s wrongdoing , then he and his producers kept it to themselves .
All we got to hear was a quick-fire series of questions cleverly constructed to leave their guest with nowhere safe to go .
Perhaps , they really did have the goods on Winston , and what they were trying to winkle out of him was a flat denial @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a lie – as the cameras rolled .
Then again , maybe they didn ’ t .
Which leaves me – and I ’ m pretty sure a pretty large chunk of the Q+A audience – wondering what TVNZ ’ s game is .
This is , after all , a public broadcaster .
That should mean , at the very least , that the highest possible standards , not just of journalism , but also of common human decency , are drummed into every single staff member .
Because , you know @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Back in the days when news and current affairs constituted a sort of holy order , separated and secured from Hunter S Thompson ’ s “ cruel and shallow money trench where pimps and thieves run free and good men die like dogs for no good reason ” – i.e .
the rest of the television industry .
For what it ’ s worth , this is what I think their game is .
I think it ’ s about the substitution of the news media ( young journalists in particular ) for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is about “ government of the people , by the people , for the people ” , what we ’ re actually looking at is a bunch of journalists who no longer put much faith in democracy .
Because , you know , there are so many people out there who are racists , misogynists and homophobes .
As such , they shouldn ’ t really be allowed to govern the country – should they ?
What we ’ ve got is a bunch of journalists who , wittingly or unwittingly , are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ government of the media , by the media , for the media .
They ’ re doing it for us – of course they are – because , you know , most of us really aren ’ t up to the job of doing it ourselves .
Joining a political party , earning the trust and confidence of its members , being selected as a parliamentary candidate , getting elected .
It ’ s all so tedious , so demeaning .
Having to listen to ordinary citizens , secure their votes , stay @ @ @ @ @ @ @ easier to cast the cloak of the media ’ s protection over the weak and stupid .
So much more satisfying to slay the monsters – like Winston Peters – who , these journalists are pretty sure , are cheats and misleaders , live on the people ’ s airways , or luridly on private-sector newsprint .
Because , you must know that if the media doesn ’ t take on the role of the People ’ s Champion ; the People ’ s Prosecutor ; if charlatans and extremists aren ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ microphones to be ambushed and politically executed ; then there ’ s every possibility that the people – idiots that they are – will re-elect them .

I MUST HAVE MISSED the news bulletin in which the appointment of Jack Tame as People’s Prosecutor was announced. I guess Winston Peters missed it, too. Otherwise, why would he have put himself in the dock on Q+A last Sunday morning? (6/9/20) Not that Winston was ever in real trouble, not from “James” – as the NZ First leader kept calling him. Winston’s been around too long to be seriously discommoded by an ambitious young journalist less than half his age. But, as he angrily told Tame and his producer, he had plenty of other things to be going on with, 40 days out from a general election in which he is fighting for his political life and legacy, than to submit himself to the inquisitorial fury of People’s Prosecutor Tame.
Anyone who knows anything about the way current affairs shows like Q+A are put together will share Winston’s outrage. Securing the appearance of a prominent politician on such shows is always a delicate exercise. The person, or, more likely, his or her minders, will want to know what the programme intends to talk to their boss about. And believe me, if they are told that the programme intends to ambush him with a whole series of questions of the “Are you still beating your wife?” variety, then the show’s producers will be told, very politely, to fuck right off.
So, you can bet your bottom dollar that Winston and his minders weren’t told anything remotely like that. He’d made himself available for an interview on the understanding it would mostly be about the tragic loss of the live-cattle-carrier capsized by a typhoon in the East China Sea. He did this believing, perhaps naively, that he was dealing with honest broadcasting professionals, not media bushwhackers.
You can also lay down a fairly heavy bet that Tame and his producers talked through the interview with considerable care, deciding exactly when the ugly shift from friendly interviewer Jack, to pitiless inquisitor Jack, would take place. Equally likely is the encouragement Tame would have been receiving through his earpiece from the control room as the interview unfolded. Were it a case of an interviewer gone rogue, Tame would have been shut down immediately. So, the Tame-Peters interview didn’t just happen – it was organised.
Just think about that for a moment. The leader of a political party – precariously poised on the edge of political oblivion – is invited to appear on a television programme whose producers’ and host’s intention is to ambush and embarrass him. Not, it is important to note at this point, to question him on evidence gathered by its own journalists, and about which he, having been given fair warning, will be invited to make comment. No, no, no: that would be what honest-to-God professional journalists would do.
I’ll never forget my old boss at The Independent Business Weekly, Warren Berryman, drumming it into me that real journalists don’t do ambushes. The subject of a story must always be offered the opportunity to respond to its content. It’s called “fairness” and there was time when TVNZ understood the meaning of the word.
Not anymore it would seem. If Tame had anything solid in the way of evidence of Winston’s and NZ First’s wrongdoing, then he and his producers kept it to themselves. All we got to hear was a quick-fire series of questions cleverly constructed to leave their guest with nowhere safe to go. Perhaps, they really did have the goods on Winston, and what they were trying to winkle out of him was a flat denial, which they could then expose as a lie – as the cameras rolled. Then again, maybe they didn’t.
Which leaves me – and I’m pretty sure a pretty large chunk of the Q+A audience – wondering what TVNZ’s game is. This is, after all, a public broadcaster. That should mean, at the very least, that the highest possible standards, not just of journalism, but also of common human decency, are drummed into every single staff member. Because, you know what, they used to be. Back in the days when news and current affairs constituted a sort of holy order, separated and secured from Hunter S Thompson’s “cruel and shallow money trench where pimps and thieves run free and good men die like dogs for no good reason” – i.e. the rest of the television industry.
TDB Recommends NewzEngine.com
For what it’s worth, this is what I think their game is. I think it’s about the substitution of the news media (young journalists in particular) for the people. And since democracy itself is about “government of the people, by the people, for the people”, what we’re actually looking at is a bunch of journalists who no longer put much faith in democracy. Because, you know, there are so many people out there who are racists, misogynists and homophobes. As such, they shouldn’t really be allowed to govern the country – should they?
What we’ve got is a bunch of journalists who, wittingly or unwittingly, are dragging us all in the direction of government of the media, by the media, for the media. They’re doing it for us – of course they are – because, you know, most of us really aren’t up to the job of doing it ourselves.
Joining a political party, earning the trust and confidence of its members, being selected as a parliamentary candidate, getting elected. It’s all so tedious, so demeaning. Having to listen to ordinary citizens, secure their votes, stay on their good side. So much easier to cast the cloak of the media’s protection over the weak and stupid. So much more satisfying to slay the monsters – like Winston Peters – who, these journalists are pretty sure, are cheats and misleaders, live on the people’s airways, or luridly on private-sector newsprint.
Because, you must know that if the media doesn’t take on the role of the People’s Champion; the People’s Prosecutor; if charlatans and extremists aren’t lured in front of the cameras and microphones to be ambushed and politically executed; then there’s every possibility that the people – idiots that they are – will re-elect them.


thedailyblog--2020-09-08--The battle over time under late capitalism – time for a four day week

I want to celebrate the promise from Labour and the Greens that we will get another public holiday to celebrate Matarike – the star cluster that Maori use to mark the new year ’ s arrival .
At least most workers will be able to celebrate this day with a day off work because the bosses won ’ t want to pay them time and a half for working it and give them an alternative holiday if it is a usual working day for them .
Late capitalism has fought to turn every minute of every day into a potential @ @ @ @ @ @ @ anything special about any particular minute .
Work processes have become non-stop in many instances .
It used to be a law in this country that working more than 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week would entitle you to penal rates .
Work on a Saturday got time and a half for the first four hours then double time after that .
Any work on a Sunday was at double time .
Once the legal compulsion to pay penal rates for these times was abolished by National in the early @ @ @ @ @ @ @ private sector – were not able to keep them as part of their employment agreements .
The bosses do everything they can to control every minute you are at work .
they try and steal time off you by making all preparation for work , or cleaning up time after work your responsibility .
Bosses use self-employment agreements to ensure they don ’ t have to pay for any time waiting around if they don ’ t have work for you .
Zero-hour contracts became the standard in many industries so bosses had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no obligations .
New technologies are being used to increase the monitoring and policing of our work .
No consideration is given to the fact that night work is simply bad for people ’ s health .
The Maritime Union has blamed the 12-hour night shifts they are forced to work on the wharves as contributing to a recent death .
The promoters of family values celebrated the destruction of the weekend and the possibility of families to spend time together .
Community life , sport , culture and recreational activities become harder @ @ @ @ @ @ @ manage by simply working more and more hours .
For security guards they are paid a minimum wage and are expected to work a 60-hour week to make a living .
No penal rates apl ; ly until after 60 hours and then they are lucky if it is time and a quarter .
Other workers are kept on contracts with only a bare minimum of hours guaranteed as a way of getting around the 2015 ban on zero-hour contracts .
The boss still gets all the flexibility they want and the workers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sir no sir ” situation to get extra hours .
Favouritism and bullying remain rife as a consequence .
The ban on zero hour contracts followed a Unite Union-led campaign in the fast food industry .
The law also required that workers who have to be available for work should get compensated for this .
Very few companies do this however and operate in the knowledge that workers will generally take the extra work offered or run the risk of not being offered it in the future .
In recent years the employment @ @ @ @ @ @ @ process of stealing workers time has gone too far .
The sleepover case in 2016 ruled that workers looking after children in a residential home should get at least the minimum wage when sleeping over because they were required to get up and attend to any issues .
In the Smiths City case in 2018 a 15-minute unpaid meeting before the official start time was deemed paid work .
In December 2018 the court ruled that time spent putting on and taking off protective gear in meat works was work and should be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ won a case that overtime could not be compulsory if no compensation was being made for “ availability ” .
In a post-covid world we have some workers deemed “ essential ” still on minimum wages .
We have some workers having to work many extra hours every week to meet the health and other emergencies associated with dealing with the crisis whilst other workers are being laid off in the tens of thousands .
The bosses used to force all workers , including children , to work sixty or more hours a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a century ago with the mass campaigns for an 8-hour day and forty-hour week .
Penal rates were introduced to enforce this change .
Bosses were being penalised for forcing workers to do more hours .
Despite the massive growth in the productivity of labour we have actually gone backwards in terms of real pay and control of hours .
We have too many workers working too few hours for too little pay whilst others are forced to work too many hours .
In the post covid world working people need to share @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their ability to make a living .
One good way to start would be a four day 32-hour week with a minimum wage of $ 25 an hour .
That would equal a five day 40-hour week at $ 20 an hour .

I want to celebrate the promise from Labour and the Greens that we will get another public holiday to celebrate Matarike – the star cluster that Maori use to mark the new year’s arrival.
At least most workers will be able to celebrate this day with a day off work because the bosses won’t want to pay them time and a half for working it and give them an alternative holiday if it is a usual working day for them.
Late capitalism has fought to turn every minute of every day into a potential source of work time and to eliminate anything special about any particular minute. Work processes have become non-stop in many instances.
It used to be a law in this country that working more than 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week would entitle you to penal rates. Work on a Saturday got time and a half for the first four hours then double time after that. Any work on a Sunday was at double time.
Once the legal compulsion to pay penal rates for these times was abolished by National in the early 1990s most workers – especially in the private sector – were not able to keep them as part of their employment agreements.
The bosses do everything they can to control every minute you are at work. they try and steal time off you by making all preparation for work, or cleaning up time after work your responsibility.
Bosses use self-employment agreements to ensure they don’t have to pay for any time waiting around if they don’t have work for you.
Zero-hour contracts became the standard in many industries so bosses had maximum flexibility to suit their needs with no obligations.
New technologies are being used to increase the monitoring and policing of our work.
No consideration is given to the fact that night work is simply bad for people’s health. The Maritime Union has blamed the 12-hour night shifts they are forced to work on the wharves as contributing to a recent death.
The promoters of family values celebrated the destruction of the weekend and the possibility of families to spend time together.
Community life, sport, culture and recreational activities become harder and harder to manage.
Many workers manage by simply working more and more hours. For security guards they are paid a minimum wage and are expected to work a 60-hour week to make a living. No penal rates apl;ly until after 60 hours and then they are lucky if it is time and a quarter.
Other workers are kept on contracts with only a bare minimum of hours guaranteed as a way of getting around the 2015 ban on zero-hour contracts. The boss still gets all the flexibility they want and the workers are forced into a docile “yes sir no sir” situation to get extra hours. Favouritism and bullying remain rife as a consequence.
The ban on zero hour contracts followed a Unite Union-led campaign in the fast food industry. The law also required that workers who have to be available for work should get compensated for this. Very few companies do this however and operate in the knowledge that workers will generally take the extra work offered or run the risk of not being offered it in the future.
In recent years the employment court has started to rule that the process of stealing workers time has gone too far.
The sleepover case in 2016 ruled that workers looking after children in a residential home should get at least the minimum wage when sleeping over because they were required to get up and attend to any issues.
In the Smiths City case in 2018 a 15-minute unpaid meeting before the official start time was deemed paid work.
In December 2018 the court ruled that time spent putting on and taking off protective gear in meat works was work and should be paid.
Earlier this year Postal Workers won a case that overtime could not be compulsory if no compensation was being made for “availability”.
In a post-covid world we have some workers deemed “essential” still on minimum wages.
We have some workers having to work many extra hours every week to meet the health and other emergencies associated with dealing with the crisis whilst other workers are being laid off in the tens of thousands.
The bosses used to force all workers, including children, to work sixty or more hours a week. They were forced to stop a century ago with the mass campaigns for an 8-hour day and forty-hour week. Penal rates were introduced to enforce this change. Bosses were being penalised for forcing workers to do more hours.
Despite the massive growth in the productivity of labour we have actually gone backwards in terms of real pay and control of hours.
We have too many workers working too few hours for too little pay whilst others are forced to work too many hours.
In the post covid world working people need to share the work that is available without losing their ability to make a living. One good way to start would be a four day 32-hour week with a minimum wage of $25 an hour. That would equal a five day 40-hour week at $20 an hour.


thedailyblog--2020-09-08--Here we go again – trucking companies want more state subsidies for their road-destroying businesses

“ Truckers demand billion dollar spend to fix dilapidated roads ” is just the latest in a decades-long history of trucking companies with their hands out to us for the destruction their trucks cause to our roads .
One single eight tonne axle does the same damage to a road as 10,000 cars so some of these big trucks – carrying up to sixty tonne loads over seven axles – will do the same damage as 70,000 cars travelling over the same road .
Do the trucking companies pay for the damage they cause ?
No – not even a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pay road user charges but – surprise , surprise – these are not set at 70,000 times the tax on petrol !
Trucking companies are adept at using motorist complaints about poor roads to bully successive governments into spending billions on road maintenance .
Meanwhile they work hard to undermine government spending on rail transport at every turn .
The poster boy for political sellouts in transport is former Labour MP Richard Prebble who ran a campaign to “ Save Rail ” and then set about destroying it on behalf of corporate truckers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Surely it ’ s time we buried Prebble ’ s legacy under a rebuilt rail network which would be cheaper , more efficient and with a much lower carbon footprint .

“Truckers demand billion dollar spend to fix dilapidated roads” is just the latest in a decades-long history of trucking companies with their hands out to us for the destruction their trucks cause to our roads.
One single eight tonne axle does the same damage to a road as 10,000 cars so some of these big trucks – carrying up to sixty tonne loads over seven axles – will do the same damage as 70,000 cars travelling over the same road.
Do the trucking companies pay for the damage they cause? No – not even a tiny fraction of the cost. They pay road user charges but – surprise, surprise – these are not set at 70,000 times the tax on petrol!
Trucking companies are adept at using motorist complaints about poor roads to bully successive governments into spending billions on road maintenance. Meanwhile they work hard to undermine government spending on rail transport at every turn.
The poster boy for political sellouts in transport is former Labour MP Richard Prebble who ran a campaign to “Save Rail” and then set about destroying it on behalf of corporate truckers once he was elected in 1984.
Surely it’s time we buried Prebble’s legacy under a rebuilt rail network which would be cheaper, more efficient and with a much lower carbon footprint.


thedailyblog--2020-09-09--Winning Joke: Why the Traditional Left will just have to live with Rainy-Day Robertson’s disappointi

Winning Joke: Why the Traditional Left will just have to live with Rainy-Day Robertson’s disappointing tax policy

EVEN IN the rapidly gentrifying Auckland suburb of Three Kings , the wailing of the Traditional Left was clearly audible .
“ Thirty-nine percent !
Is that it ?
Even when , as you so helpfully point out , Grant , Australia ’ s top tax rate is 47 percent !
Seriously , are you guys taking the piss ?
Is this some kind of joke ?
” Labour ’ s timid excuse for a tax policy ( and , believe me , ‘ timid ’ is being kind ! )
will do almost nothing to address New Zealand ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Rainy-Day Robertson ’ s latest disappointment will generate yet another , by now , entirely predictable call for “ a new left-wing party ” .
Ageing lefties will proclaim the urgent need for a political force capable of occupying the political and electoral void which Labour has , for the past thirty years , been so loathe to fill .
Once again , we will hear all about the 730,000 registered voters who failed to cast a ballot back in 2014 , and be invited to consider how much more scope there must @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the Left to vacuum-up their untapped support .
The riposte to this argument is , as always , brutal in its unanswerability .
Do those promoting “ a new left-wing party ” really believe that if close to 25 percent of registered voters were in any way accessible to a well-organised political force , such a force would not have arisen to translate their uncast votes into parliamentary seats ?
Hell !
Are these folk seriously suggesting that if Labour could be convinced that all they needed to win over the fabled @ @ @ @ @ @ @ handful of “ progressive ” policies , it wouldn ’ t be offering them a manifesto radical enough to make even Jeremy Corbyn blush ?
Of course they would !
In fact , they ’ ve already given it a go .
Has the Traditional Left forgotten Labour ’ s leftward policy shift following Helen Clark ’ s departure for New York City ?
Oh , sure , it wasn ’ t exactly “ For the Many , Not the Few ” , but it did include removing GST from fruit and vegetables @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a useful measure of union power ; as well as rock-solid opposition to John Key ’ s “ partial privatisation ” policies .
Think of these promises , made in 2011 under the leadership of Phil Goff , as an experiment to determine whether a marginal shift to the left in policy would be answered by a marginal improvement in Labour ’ s vote .
So , what happened ?
Well , as the late Jim Anderton used to say : “ I ’ ve got news for you – and it ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Party Vote in 2008 , after 9 years in office , was a pretty dismal 33.99 percent .
Three years later , however , Labour ’ s Party Vote fell to 27.48 percent .
Far from attracting the votes of the dispossessed and marginalised , Labour shed 181,944 of its most loyal supporters .
It was the party ’ s worst showing in the popular vote for more than 80 years .
And did those lost votes end up in the column of Hone Harawira ’ s and Sue Bradford ’ s “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The latter ’ s manifesto was Corbynesque before Corbyn – as progressive a document as any traditional leftist could wish for .
And yet , mysteriously , the arses of the dispossessed and marginalised remained firmly deposited on their couches .
Mana attracted precisely 24,168 valid ballots : a princely 1.08 percent of the Party Vote .
Those 730,000 votes – let alone a “ Missing Million ” of them !
– just ain ’ t there , comrades .
The people who could ( and , God knows , who should ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lost to the Traditional Left , they are , in all but the most extraordinary circumstances , lost to the entire political process .
Thirty years of neoliberalism have seen to that !
Does the Covid-19 Pandemic qualify as an extraordinary circumstance ?
Well , it just might .
But the Traditional Left can forget about exploiting it , because Billy Te Kahika Jr. is way ahead of them .
It ’ s conspiracy theories , anti-science , and the crazed , visceral hatred of all things wise and gentle , that fills @ @ @ @ @ @ @ social media in 2020 – not the woke fantasies of adolescent revolutionaries , or the dogma of superannuated Marxists .
Not that Karl , himself , was in any doubt about the revolutionary potential of what he called the lumpenproletariat .
A quick squiz at his The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis-Napoleon makes it clear that the father of Marxism regarded people as dispossessed and marginalised as the hardcore Parisian poor as being available only to political charlatans and demagogues .
This is how he described the men who rose to power on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ demagogue , Charles Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte ( 1808-1873 ) : “ At the court , in the ministries , at the head of the administration and the army , a gang of blokes of whom the best that can be said is that one does not know whence they come — these noisy , disreputable , rapacious bohemians who crawl into gallooned coats with the same grotesque dignity as the high dignitaries of Soulouque — elbow their way forward.
” “ [ N ] oisy , disreputable , rapacious bohemians ” : if that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Jami-Lee Ross and Billy TK , then I don ’ t know what is !
Is Labour ’ s tax policy a disappointment ?
Of course it is !
But it ’ s the best the Traditional Left is going to get .
Why ?
because Labour ’ s pollsters are telling them that upwards of 200,000 women over the age of 45 years have shifted their allegiance from National to Labour .
( Where else , FFS , does the traditional Left think Labour ’ s projected 50 percent-plus of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) A great many of these women will be well-heeled matrons of the middle-class who think Jacinda ’ s just so wonderful !
Still more will be the wives , sisters and daughters of “ Waitakere Men ” – upwardly-mobile members of the skilled working-class .
( The SUV-driving relations of those small-business-owning “ tradies ” who made the introduction of Labour ’ s Capital Gains Tax politically impossible . )
These voters ( and that ’ s the key factor in this whole electoral equation , isn ’ t it , these @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but not so well that they ’ re going to be caught by a tax which only kicks-in when your salary tops $ 180,000 .
In the immortal words of Vic Deakins ( played by John Travolta ) in the 1996 movie , Broken Arrow : “ Fuck ‘ em , if they can ’ t take a joke .
”

EVEN IN the rapidly gentrifying Auckland suburb of Three Kings, the wailing of the Traditional Left was clearly audible. “Thirty-nine percent! Is that it? Even when, as you so helpfully point out, Grant, Australia’s top tax rate is 47 percent! Seriously, are you guys taking the piss? Is this some kind of joke?”
Labour’s timid excuse for a tax policy (and, believe me, ‘timid’ is being kind!) will do almost nothing to address New Zealand’s outrageous social inequality. Inevitably, Rainy-Day Robertson’s latest disappointment will generate yet another, by now, entirely predictable call for “a new left-wing party”. Ageing lefties will proclaim the urgent need for a political force capable of occupying the political and electoral void which Labour has, for the past thirty years, been so loathe to fill.
Once again, we will hear all about the 730,000 registered voters who failed to cast a ballot back in 2014, and be invited to consider how much more scope there must be in 2020 for a genuine party of the Left to vacuum-up their untapped support.
The riposte to this argument is, as always, brutal in its unanswerability. Do those promoting “a new left-wing party” really believe that if close to 25 percent of registered voters were in any way accessible to a well-organised political force, such a force would not have arisen to translate their uncast votes into parliamentary seats? Hell! Are these folk seriously suggesting that if Labour could be convinced that all they needed to win over the fabled “missing million” voters were a handful of “progressive” policies, it wouldn’t be offering them a manifesto radical enough to make even Jeremy Corbyn blush? Of course they would!
In fact, they’ve already given it a go.
Has the Traditional Left forgotten Labour’s leftward policy shift following Helen Clark’s departure for New York City? Oh, sure, it wasn’t exactly “For the Many, Not the Few”, but it did include removing GST from fruit and vegetables; reforming the energy sector; restoring a useful measure of union power; as well as rock-solid opposition to John Key’s “partial privatisation” policies.
Think of these promises, made in 2011 under the leadership of Phil Goff, as an experiment to determine whether a marginal shift to the left in policy would be answered by a marginal improvement in Labour’s vote. So, what happened?
Well, as the late Jim Anderton used to say: “I’ve got news for you – and it’s all bad.” Labour’s Party Vote in 2008, after 9 years in office, was a pretty dismal 33.99 percent. Three years later, however, Labour’s Party Vote fell to 27.48 percent. Far from attracting the votes of the dispossessed and marginalised, Labour shed 181,944 of its most loyal supporters. It was the party’s worst showing in the popular vote for more than 80 years.
TDB Recommends NewzEngine.com
And did those lost votes end up in the column of Hone Harawira’s and Sue Bradford’s “new left-wing party”, Mana? The latter’s manifesto was Corbynesque before Corbyn – as progressive a document as any traditional leftist could wish for. And yet, mysteriously, the arses of the dispossessed and marginalised remained firmly deposited on their couches. Mana attracted precisely 24,168 valid ballots: a princely 1.08 percent of the Party Vote.
Those 730,000 votes – let alone a “Missing Million” of them! – just ain’t there, comrades. The people who could (and, God knows, who should) be casting them aren’t just lost to the Traditional Left, they are, in all but the most extraordinary circumstances, lost to the entire political process. Thirty years of neoliberalism have seen to that!
Does the Covid-19 Pandemic qualify as an extraordinary circumstance? Well, it just might. But the Traditional Left can forget about exploiting it, because Billy Te Kahika Jr. is way ahead of them. It’s conspiracy theories, anti-science, and the crazed, visceral hatred of all things wise and gentle, that fills halls and attracts thousands of followers on social media in 2020 – not the woke fantasies of adolescent revolutionaries, or the dogma of superannuated Marxists.
Not that Karl, himself, was in any doubt about the revolutionary potential of what he called the lumpenproletariat. A quick squiz at his The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis-Napoleon makes it clear that the father of Marxism regarded people as dispossessed and marginalised as the hardcore Parisian poor as being available only to political charlatans and demagogues. This is how he described the men who rose to power on the shoulders of that quintessential political charlatan and demagogue, Charles Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte (1808-1873):
“At the court, in the ministries, at the head of the administration and the army, a gang of blokes of whom the best that can be said is that one does not know whence they come — these noisy, disreputable, rapacious bohemians who crawl into gallooned coats with the same grotesque dignity as the high dignitaries of Soulouque — elbow their way forward.”
“[N]oisy, disreputable, rapacious bohemians”: if that’s not a perfect pen portrait of Jami-Lee Ross and Billy TK, then I don’t know what is!
Is Labour’s tax policy a disappointment? Of course it is! But it’s the best the Traditional Left is going to get. Why? because Labour’s pollsters are telling them that upwards of 200,000 women over the age of 45 years have shifted their allegiance from National to Labour. (Where else, FFS, does the traditional Left think Labour’s projected 50 percent-plus of the Party Vote has come from?!)
A great many of these women will be well-heeled matrons of the middle-class who think Jacinda’s just so wonderful! Still more will be the wives, sisters and daughters of “Waitakere Men” – upwardly-mobile members of the skilled working-class. (The SUV-driving relations of those small-business-owning “tradies” who made the introduction of Labour’s Capital Gains Tax politically impossible.) These voters (and that’s the key factor in this whole electoral equation, isn’t it, these Kiwis actually vote) are doing well, but not so well that they’re going to be caught by a tax which only kicks-in when your salary tops $180,000.
In the immortal words of Vic Deakins (played by John Travolta) in the 1996 movie, Broken Arrow:
“Fuck ‘em, if they can’t take a joke.”


thedailyblog--2020-09-10--Driving Out The Money-Changers of Reactionary Christianity

THERE IS SO MUCH which passes unnoticed in our society .
So much greed and exploitation : not only in factories , shops and offices , where we are accustomed to finding it ; but also in the supposed sanctuaries of ordinary workers ’ private lives .
There are bosses who wring fat profits out of their employees ’ poorly paid labour .
But these are not the worst exploiters .
That title belongs to those who prey upon the individual ’ s need for solace and affection in a heartless world .
The fat little pastors who strip their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cash is left to them and slip it to their own pockets .
The petty tyrants who swathe their followers in ignorance and poison them with prejudice .
The high-living preachers who rail against every manifestation of human happiness and pleasure .
The ruthless commissars of a cruel and unforgiving dictator god .
They describe themselves , and the money-making rackets they dignify with the name of church , “ Christian ” , but these ravening wolves are no such thing .
The essence of the Christian faith is the giving of love @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It is about opening oneself to the world and all its contradictions – not about imprisoning beaten-down individuals in narrow-minded sects .
Most importantly , it is about allowing Love and Truth to set people free .
We learned today , from the Minister of Health , Chris Hipkins , that the congregation of the Mt Roskill Evangelical Fellowship Church numbers 323 .
From the NZ Herald ’ s veteran journalist , Simon Collins , we also learned that the collective contribution of these church members , many of them low-wage workers , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was a “ phenomenal ” $ 1.8 million .
Out of this sum , reported Collins , citing figures made available to him by former Massey University religious historian , Peter Lineham , an equally phenomenal $ 862,000 was distributed among the church ’ s two “ key management personnel ” and six “ close family member employees of board members ” .
Information of this kind and detail is new to most New Zealanders .
To most Americans , however , there is nothing new or shocking about such a close relationship @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the United States , evangelical Christianity is a multi-billion dollar industry .
It ’ s “ mega churches ” – able to seat thousands of worshippers – are often located in economically devastated communities .
The very same communities , in many instances , from which President Donald Trump ’ s most vociferous white , gun-toting , working-class followers are drawn .
Of course , it is not just among poor white Americans that these religious entrepreneurs rattle their collection plates .
In the poverty-stricken African-American communities , also , the ruthless @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rife .
So called “ store-front churches ” are a common sight on the streets of the black ghettoes of America .
Like their white equivalents , the pastors of these African-American churches preach an ultra-orthodox version of Christianity – laying particular emphasis on the need to abjure the sinful ways of “ secular-humanist ” America .
“ Traditional family values ” , by which they mean the unforgiving patriarchal values found in the books of the Old Testament , are promoted as a way of fencing-off oneself and one ’ s family @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , violence and addiction by which America ’ s decaying urban communities are beset .
Almost always absent from these money-making religious ventures is the radically progressive Christian theology exemplified by Dr Martin Luther King and manifested in the black civil rights movement he led during the 1950s and 60s .
The life-affirming , justice-seeking , emancipatory New Testament messages of Jesus – most especially his rejection of material gain in favour of love-giving and truth-seeking – are essentially incompatible with the religious entrepreneurs ’ business model .
It is not only in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ values of the neoliberal order have triumphed – putting to flight the “ applied Christianity ” of democratic socialism .
In New Zealand ’ s churches , too , Mammon has triumphed over God .
There are holdouts , still , of course : St Matthew ’ s in the City ; brave officers of the Salvation Army ; Pope Francis ’ s disciples in the Catholic Church .
But , more and more congregations have turned inward : gnawing morosely at the dry bones of Leviticus ; endlessly parsing the homophobic epistles @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gone into its closet to pray – and locked the door behind it .
It should not have taken the Covid-19 Pandemic to expose the tremendous danger posed to New Zealand society by this authoritarian , anti-science , anti-social and reclusive mutation of Christianity .
The Left , especially , has been remiss in not assailing its gross exploitation of Maori and Pasifika believers .
No more objectionable legacy of colonialism exists than the alien repressiveness imposed upon the indigenous peoples of the Pacific by Western Imperialism ’ s missionary scouts .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , along with the political quietism and ruinously competitive piety it has encouraged , have stood , unrebuked by left-wing activists for far too long .
When Simon Collins asked a member of the Mt Roskill Evangelical Fellowship Trust ( which runs the church ) if he had anything to say in response to Health Minister Hipkins ’ comment that members of his church “ don ’ t accept , or haven ’ t previously accepted , the science involved here ” , the trustee replied : “ What would Trump say ?
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ more startling indication of just how deeply the deranged ideas of American far-right evangelism have penetrated the desperate communities of South , West and Central Auckland .
The Left has for too long accepted the argument that any Pakeha criticism of the reactionary versions of Christianity ( and Islam ) embedded in immigrant communities is ipso facto racist .
For the members of the Mt Roskill Evangelical Fellowship Church who have tested positive for Covid-19 , and for the broader Auckland community put at risk by the dangerous , American-sourced , misinformation spread @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s self-imposed ideological reticence has been singularly unhelpful .
Progressive New Zealanders of every hue should not hesitate to become missionaries for Love , Truth and Freedom – the emancipatory cause to which both genuine Christianity , and genuine Democratic Socialism , have always been committed .

THERE IS SO MUCH which passes unnoticed in our society. So much greed and exploitation: not only in factories, shops and offices, where we are accustomed to finding it; but also in the supposed sanctuaries of ordinary workers’ private lives.
There are bosses who wring fat profits out of their employees’ poorly paid labour. But these are not the worst exploiters. That title belongs to those who prey upon the individual’s need for solace and affection in a heartless world.
The fat little pastors who strip their already poor congregations of what little spare cash is left to them and slip it to their own pockets. The petty tyrants who swathe their followers in ignorance and poison them with prejudice. The high-living preachers who rail against every manifestation of human happiness and pleasure. The ruthless commissars of a cruel and unforgiving dictator god.
They describe themselves, and the money-making rackets they dignify with the name of church, “Christian”, but these ravening wolves are no such thing. The essence of the Christian faith is the giving of love – not the taking of money. It is about opening oneself to the world and all its contradictions – not about imprisoning beaten-down individuals in narrow-minded sects. Most importantly, it is about allowing Love and Truth to set people free.
We learned today, from the Minister of Health, Chris Hipkins, that the congregation of the Mt Roskill Evangelical Fellowship Church numbers 323. From the NZ Herald’s veteran journalist, Simon Collins, we also learned that the collective contribution of these church members, many of them low-wage workers, for the year ended March 2019, was a “phenomenal” $1.8 million. Out of this sum, reported Collins, citing figures made available to him by former Massey University religious historian, Peter Lineham, an equally phenomenal $862,000 was distributed among the church’s two “key management personnel” and six “close family member employees of board members”.
Information of this kind and detail is new to most New Zealanders. To most Americans, however, there is nothing new or shocking about such a close relationship between religion and money-making. Indeed, in the United States, evangelical Christianity is a multi-billion dollar industry. It’s “mega churches” – able to seat thousands of worshippers – are often located in economically devastated communities. The very same communities, in many instances, from which President Donald Trump’s most vociferous white, gun-toting, working-class followers are drawn.
Of course, it is not just among poor white Americans that these religious entrepreneurs rattle their collection plates. In the poverty-stricken African-American communities, also, the ruthless exploitation of desperation and despair is similarly rife. So called “store-front churches” are a common sight on the streets of the black ghettoes of America.
Like their white equivalents, the pastors of these African-American churches preach an ultra-orthodox version of Christianity – laying particular emphasis on the need to abjure the sinful ways of “secular-humanist” America. “Traditional family values”, by which they mean the unforgiving patriarchal values found in the books of the Old Testament, are promoted as a way of fencing-off oneself and one’s family from the very real dangers of crime, violence and addiction by which America’s decaying urban communities are beset.
TDB Recommends NewzEngine.com
Almost always absent from these money-making religious ventures is the radically progressive Christian theology exemplified by Dr Martin Luther King and manifested in the black civil rights movement he led during the 1950s and 60s. The life-affirming, justice-seeking, emancipatory New Testament messages of Jesus – most especially his rejection of material gain in favour of love-giving and truth-seeking – are essentially incompatible with the religious entrepreneurs’ business model.
It is not only in the secular world that the naked capitalist values of the neoliberal order have triumphed – putting to flight the “applied Christianity” of democratic socialism. In New Zealand’s churches, too, Mammon has triumphed over God. There are holdouts, still, of course: St Matthew’s in the City; brave officers of the Salvation Army; Pope Francis’s disciples in the Catholic Church. But, more and more congregations have turned inward: gnawing morosely at the dry bones of Leviticus; endlessly parsing the homophobic epistles of St Paul. Fundamentalist Christianity has gone into its closet to pray – and locked the door behind it.
It should not have taken the Covid-19 Pandemic to expose the tremendous danger posed to New Zealand society by this authoritarian, anti-science, anti-social and reclusive mutation of Christianity. The Left, especially, has been remiss in not assailing its gross exploitation of Maori and Pasifika believers.
No more objectionable legacy of colonialism exists than the alien repressiveness imposed upon the indigenous peoples of the Pacific by Western Imperialism’s missionary scouts. The social conservatism which missionary Christianity has entrenched, along with the political quietism and ruinously competitive piety it has encouraged, have stood, unrebuked by left-wing activists for far too long.
When Simon Collins asked a member of the Mt Roskill Evangelical Fellowship Trust (which runs the church) if he had anything to say in response to Health Minister Hipkins’ comment that members of his church “don’t accept, or haven’t previously accepted, the science involved here”, the trustee replied: “What would Trump say?” It is hard to imagine a more startling indication of just how deeply the deranged ideas of American far-right evangelism have penetrated the desperate communities of South, West and Central Auckland.
The Left has for too long accepted the argument that any Pakeha criticism of the reactionary versions of Christianity (and Islam) embedded in immigrant communities is ipso facto racist. For the members of the Mt Roskill Evangelical Fellowship Church who have tested positive for Covid-19, and for the broader Auckland community put at risk by the dangerous, American-sourced, misinformation spread by reactionary Christians, the Left’s self-imposed ideological reticence has been singularly unhelpful.
Progressive New Zealanders of every hue should not hesitate to become missionaries for Love, Truth and Freedom – the emancipatory cause to which both genuine Christianity, and genuine Democratic Socialism, have always been committed.


thedailyblog--2020-09-10--Sanctifying The Sub-Cluster – What Needs Now To Happen Following Mt Roskill Evangelical Church Covid

Sanctifying The Sub-Cluster – What Needs Now To Happen Following Mt Roskill Evangelical Church Covid-19 Outbreak

Like many New Zealanders , I felt that the news coming through yesterday that some “ science-disbelieving ” Evangelical church had produced itself a sub-cluster of Covid-19 seemed a cold slap in the face .
Hadn ’ t we all worked so hard over first the Level Four lockdown , and then the much more recent Level 3 ?
Who WERE these people to come along , do the wrong thing , apparently potentially deliberately , and thence undermine the Team of Five Million by patching over to Team Virus right as we seemed to be getting things back under @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and thought about it a bit .
The first thing to be said … was actually put rather more eloquently than I ’ ll likely be able to manage by the relevant Local Board Chair , Julie Fairey .
In a statement to Twitter yesterday , she said : “ It is looking increasingly like the Mt Roskill Evangelical Fellowship have made some terrible mistakes and are dealing with horrible consequences as a result .
Shaming and blaming doesn ’ t help , in fact it encourages people to hide symptoms and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ right .
You see , our first impulse in scenarios such as these is to reach out and to apportion blame .
It makes us feel like we ’ re Doing Something .
It gives us back that illusory sensation of ‘ control ’ .
We fool ourselves into thinking that by reaching out with hard words , harsh words , self-declared “ necessary ” invectives – that we are shoring up the defences against anything like it ever happening again .
And occasionally , that is not altogether incorrect .
Some people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ discipline ’ and social , peer pressure , and they correct themselves and never do whatever it was ever again .
Except in this instance , the idea that one might come in for a heaping helping of opprobrium for just so happening to harbour within one ’ s self the virus … may be counterproductive .
People leap to conclusions , leap down your throat , and provide an active disincentive towards actually coming forward and getting tested – standing up and helping to contain the virus ’ s further spread .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ fantasy – but take a look at how the South Auckland family at the ‘ ground zero ’ for the Coolstore cluster were treated .
There is no indication that they did ANYTHING wrong – in fact every indication that by coming forward and getting tests done , they saved lives … and we STILL had a certain swathe of moral outrage brigade pounce upon them to absolutely INSIST that they MUST have bent the rules , broken the rules , sold out the rules for thirty pieces of inequitable silver and/or a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Our need to ‘ judge ’ and to ‘ condemn ’ , in other words , meant that even those who were absolutely squeaky clean , got put through the wringer – in a way that precious few of us would claim to actually be facilitating people coming forward and Doing The Right Thing in earnest on into the future .
Now imagine what we ’ d do to some people – like some of these folks at the Mt Roskill Evangelical Fellowship Church – who may have done the wrong thing in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they genuinely didn ’ t remember a close contact , and therefore allowed a “ tentacle ” of the virus to slip through the contact-tracing net … or due to something more ( c ) overtly intentional .
The point we absolutely need to remember is that when we ’ re in a mess like this , it ’ s less important pointing fingers as to how we got here and who ’ s responsible for it … than it is to work together to get out of the situation .
Something that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ together – and supporting the people we actually DO need to reach in this scenario , to make good choices .
For ALL our sakes .
Although having said that , I ’ d be lying if I said I wasn ’ t rather angry about all of this .
Albeit for somewhat different reasons to most of us , perhaps .
You see , I am what we could probably describe as a “ religious fundamentalist zealot ” .
I am not Christian ( although I am given to understand that my @ @ @ @ @ @ @ may happen to be ) , but my place of worship is directly adjacent to Mt Roskill – it ’ s where our religious community is perhaps centered .
And as soon as I saw the news reports around this Evangelical church being at the center of an expanding sub-cluster , apparently because some of its members were ill-disposed toward taking the threat seriously , believing the science , working with the state upon this matter … I knew exactly how things were going to go .
Every time something like this happens @ @ @ @ @ @ @ !
The Religious !
Always are the problem !
Tut-tut !
” Which ignores , of course , all the devoutly religious sorts who aren ’ t , and all the non-religious who are .
Now this does not mean that there is no correlation in some corners of the world between particular strains of religious adherence and … unhelpful behavior .
Certain American mega-churches spring instantly to mind .
As do the frankly terrifying reports of the actions and flagrant conspiratorial conduct of the Shincheonji group in South Korea .
I mean @ @ @ @ @ @ @ older Latinate sense – they literally “ breathe together ” , as well as concealing their membership from the state .
But here ’ s the thing .
Various religious groups behaving badly in these crisis-ridden times are “ letting the side down ” .
They ’ re making the rest of us look bad precisely because they loom so large within the public imagination that they block out everybody else who ’ s doing the right thing .
My Mandir ( Hindu Temple ) closed its doors as soon as the Lockdown @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Rolinson has put zealous effort into mastering the intricacies of Zoom so as to continue preaching to his congregations without requiring all his parishioners to be in the same room .
And I say “ making us look bad ” , “ letting the side down ” , etc .
not simply because I am idly concerned about the optics of the situation in an abstract measure .
But because these optics , these perceptions have real consequences .
If you don ’ t believe me , take the word of Reverend @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a church that is following the rules , now receiving hate mail from members of the public because of the latest cluster.
” That ’ s something happening here , in New Zealand , as of this morning .
And it ’ s something which may yet have further consequences , also .
Because if religious groups start feeling that they ’ re being unfairly singled out and persecuted – some may begin to behave poorly in response .
It ’ s not because they ’ re religious – it ’ s because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this a few months back with some associates overseas .
They saw that in their jurisdictions , religious worship was being severely clamped down upon … at the same time that Black Lives Matter protests were being allowed to go ahead .
They therefore felt that they were being singled out .
That there was an anti-religious , or perhaps anti-Christian agenda afoot .
And they therefore became rather less than favourably disposed towards the restrictions upon churches and church-gatherings as a result .
Optics matter .
Particularly when it ’ s the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ singled out that makes or breaks the crisis-response .
Having said all of that , I don ’ t think it incorrect to acknowledge that there ’ s an occasional correlation of ‘ conspiratorial thinking ’ out there in the community with certain groups .
It ’ s just that the “ certain groups ” in question aren ’ t necessarily the religious ones .
Rather , they ’ re the sorts of people who ’ d be having an issue with a Labour-led Government etc .
whether there was a pandemic or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ – If they were sketchy about “ big ” government and pro-conspiratorial thinking BEFORE the pandemic … well , they may be Gerry Brownlee .
And that ’ s really the crux of it , I feel .
There are no authentic tenets of Chistian ( or , for that matter , Hindu ) theology that I am aware of which overtly demand people to frustrate disaster-relief efforts in the course of a pandemic .
There are several that seem to cut almost exactly the other way when it comes to enjoining the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ instructions .
But that ’ s almost immaterial at this point .
I have long observed that an appreciable amount of Theology-Done-Badly is people basically coming up with excuses to go ahead and do whatever it was they wanted to do anyway .
The same goes for the anti-religious out there in our society who are , at this juncture , behaving likewise .
They ’ re entitled to their views , of course – but I can ’ t help but feel that many of them up in arms about this present @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Covid-19 sub-cluster to push an anti-religious barrow-and-bandwagon which has precious little to do with the actual realities of the situation .
That is to say – what they wanted to do anyway .
I don ’ t want to end on a harsh note , so I ’ ll simply say this : Various figures from the Mt Roskill Evangelical Fellowship Church now appear to be more actively working with the Ministry of Health in order to get the Covid-19 sub-cluster under control .
Whatever you may happen to think about their beliefs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ approach of engagement – on both sides – deserves to be applauded .
Success is not necessarily contingent upon making the right choice all of the time , nor especially making the right choices consistently and to begin with .
But rather , it is attained through growing , learning , and making better decisions today and tomorrow than you did yesterday or the day before that .
And that – with its implicit spirit of ‘ repentance-of-the-deed ’ – goes for all of us .
Not just the religious .

Like many New Zealanders, I felt that the news coming through yesterday that some “science-disbelieving” Evangelical church had produced itself a sub-cluster of Covid-19 seemed a cold slap in the face. Hadn’t we all worked so hard over first the Level Four lockdown, and then the much more recent Level 3? Who WERE these people to come along, do the wrong thing, apparently potentially deliberately, and thence undermine the Team of Five Million by patching over to Team Virus right as we seemed to be getting things back under control.
And then I stopped myself, and thought about it a bit.
The first thing to be said … was actually put rather more eloquently than I’ll likely be able to manage by the relevant Local Board Chair, Julie Fairey.
In a statement to Twitter yesterday, she said:
“It is looking increasingly like the Mt Roskill Evangelical Fellowship have made some terrible mistakes and are dealing with horrible consequences as a result. Shaming and blaming doesn’t help, in fact it encourages people to hide symptoms and contacts. Please be kind.”
Quite right. You see, our first impulse in scenarios such as these is to reach out and to apportion blame. It makes us feel like we’re Doing Something. It gives us back that illusory sensation of ‘control’. We fool ourselves into thinking that by reaching out with hard words, harsh words, self-declared “necessary” invectives – that we are shoring up the defences against anything like it ever happening again.
And occasionally, that is not altogether incorrect. Some people do respond to that measure of ‘discipline’ and social, peer pressure, and they correct themselves and never do whatever it was ever again. Except in this instance, the idea that one might come in for a heaping helping of opprobrium for just so happening to harbour within one’s self the virus … may be counterproductive. People leap to conclusions, leap down your throat, and provide an active disincentive towards actually coming forward and getting tested – standing up and helping to contain the virus’s further spread.
You may think that I am projecting fantasy – but take a look at how the South Auckland family at the ‘ground zero’ for the Coolstore cluster were treated. There is no indication that they did ANYTHING wrong – in fact every indication that by coming forward and getting tests done, they saved lives … and we STILL had a certain swathe of moral outrage brigade pounce upon them to absolutely INSIST that they MUST have bent the rules, broken the rules, sold out the rules for thirty pieces of inequitable silver and/or a one-night romantic liaison into the bargain.
TDB Recommends NewzEngine.com
Our need to ‘judge’ and to ‘condemn’, in other words, meant that even those who were absolutely squeaky clean, got put through the wringer – in a way that precious few of us would claim to actually be facilitating people coming forward and Doing The Right Thing in earnest on into the future.
Now imagine what we’d do to some people – like some of these folks at the Mt Roskill Evangelical Fellowship Church – who may have done the wrong thing in a more active sense. Whether because they genuinely didn’t remember a close contact, and therefore allowed a “tentacle” of the virus to slip through the contact-tracing net … or due to something more (c)overtly intentional.
The point we absolutely need to remember is that when we’re in a mess like this, it’s less important pointing fingers as to how we got here and who’s responsible for it … than it is to work together to get out of the situation. Something that can really only be accomplished by working together – and supporting the people we actually DO need to reach in this scenario, to make good choices. For ALL our sakes.
Although having said that, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t rather angry about all of this. Albeit for somewhat different reasons to most of us, perhaps.
You see, I am what we could probably describe as a “religious fundamentalist zealot”. I am not Christian (although I am given to understand that my immediate forebear, the Reverend Rolinson, may happen to be), but my place of worship is directly adjacent to Mt Roskill – it’s where our religious community is perhaps centered.
And as soon as I saw the news reports around this Evangelical church being at the center of an expanding sub-cluster, apparently because some of its members were ill-disposed toward taking the threat seriously, believing the science, working with the state upon this matter … I knew exactly how things were going to go.
Every time something like this happens, various people will go “Aha! The Religious! Always are the problem! Tut-tut!”
Which ignores, of course, all the devoutly religious sorts who aren’t, and all the non-religious who are.
Now this does not mean that there is no correlation in some corners of the world between particular strains of religious adherence and … unhelpful behavior. Certain American mega-churches spring instantly to mind. As do the frankly terrifying reports of the actions and flagrant conspiratorial conduct of the Shincheonji group in South Korea. I mean “conspiratorial” here also in its older Latinate sense – they literally “breathe together”, as well as concealing their membership from the state.
But here’s the thing. Various religious groups behaving badly in these crisis-ridden times are “letting the side down”. They’re making the rest of us look bad precisely because they loom so large within the public imagination that they block out everybody else who’s doing the right thing. My Mandir (Hindu Temple) closed its doors as soon as the Lockdown order went into effect. The Rev. Rolinson has put zealous effort into mastering the intricacies of Zoom so as to continue preaching to his congregations without requiring all his parishioners to be in the same room.
And I say “making us look bad”, “letting the side down”, etc. not simply because I am idly concerned about the optics of the situation in an abstract measure. But because these optics, these perceptions have real consequences. If you don’t believe me, take the word of Reverend Frank Ritchie –
“Just heard of a church that is following the rules, now receiving hate mail from members of the public because of the latest cluster.”
That’s something happening here, in New Zealand, as of this morning.
And it’s something which may yet have further consequences, also. Because if religious groups start feeling that they’re being unfairly singled out and persecuted – some may begin to behave poorly in response. It’s not because they’re religious – it’s because they’re human.
I saw this a few months back with some associates overseas. They saw that in their jurisdictions, religious worship was being severely clamped down upon … at the same time that Black Lives Matter protests were being allowed to go ahead. They therefore felt that they were being singled out. That there was an anti-religious, or perhaps anti-Christian agenda afoot. And they therefore became rather less than favourably disposed towards the restrictions upon churches and church-gatherings as a result.
Optics matter. Particularly when it’s the compliance of those who may feel harshly singled out that makes or breaks the crisis-response.
Having said all of that, I don’t think it incorrect to acknowledge that there’s an occasional correlation of ‘conspiratorial thinking’ out there in the community with certain groups.
It’s just that the “certain groups” in question aren’t necessarily the religious ones. Rather, they’re the sorts of people who’d be having an issue with a Labour-led Government etc. whether there was a pandemic or not.
Or, phrased another way –
If they were sketchy about “big” government and pro-conspiratorial thinking BEFORE the pandemic … well, they may be Gerry Brownlee.
And that’s really the crux of it, I feel.
There are no authentic tenets of Chistian (or, for that matter, Hindu) theology that I am aware of which overtly demand people to frustrate disaster-relief efforts in the course of a pandemic. There are several that seem to cut almost exactly the other way when it comes to enjoining the obeying of secular authorities with reasonable legal instructions. But that’s almost immaterial at this point.
I have long observed that an appreciable amount of Theology-Done-Badly is people basically coming up with excuses to go ahead and do whatever it was they wanted to do anyway.
The same goes for the anti-religious out there in our society who are, at this juncture, behaving likewise. They’re entitled to their views, of course – but I can’t help but feel that many of them up in arms about this present situation are seeking to utilize the current Covid-19 sub-cluster to push an anti-religious barrow-and-bandwagon which has precious little to do with the actual realities of the situation. That is to say – what they wanted to do anyway.
I don’t want to end on a harsh note, so I’ll simply say this:
Various figures from the Mt Roskill Evangelical Fellowship Church now appear to be more actively working with the Ministry of Health in order to get the Covid-19 sub-cluster under control. Whatever you may happen to think about their beliefs more generally, I think that that approach of engagement – on both sides – deserves to be applauded.
Success is not necessarily contingent upon making the right choice all of the time, nor especially making the right choices consistently and to begin with. But rather, it is attained through growing, learning, and making better decisions today and tomorrow than you did yesterday or the day before that.
And that – with its implicit spirit of ‘repentance-of-the-deed’ – goes for all of us.
Not just the religious.


thedailyblog--2020-09-11--Complaint of racism against the spokesperson of the Israel Institute Dr David Cumin

We are writing to ask the University of Auckland to investigate this complaint of anti-Palestinian and anti-Arab racism by Senior Lecturer in the University ’ s School of Medicine , Dr David Cumin .
Dr Cumin was speaking at a debate on “ Different perspectives of Israel ” held at Auckland University on Thursday 3 October last year .
During the debate Dr Cumin attempted to defend Israeli brutality against unarmed Palestinian protestors in the Great March of Return protests by saying Palestinians engaged in “ …violent riots on the border with Israel to which they bring children to use @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Israel ’ s first woman Prime Minister sums the situation up beautifully .
Golda Meir said : “ there can only be peace when the Arabs start to love their children more than they hate us ” ” Video of Dr Cumin delivering these comments is here .
In our view this is a particularly vile statement of anti-Palestinian racism and a repugnant slur on all Arabs .
An important way to identify racism is to reverse the ethnicities in a statement and then evaluate it again .
If another employee made the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would quite rightly be condemned as despicable anti-semitism and the employee would be sacked .
Similarly if these statements were made in relation to Maori , Pasifika or European peoples they would likewise be condemned as deeply racist and the staff member sacked .
We request this matter be investigated by Auckland University and disciplinary action taken .
We look forward to hearing from you .

We are writing to ask the University of Auckland to investigate this complaint of anti-Palestinian and anti-Arab racism by Senior Lecturer in the University’s School of Medicine, Dr David Cumin.
Dr Cumin was speaking at a debate on “Different perspectives of Israel” held at Auckland University on Thursday 3 October last year. During the debate Dr Cumin attempted to defend Israeli brutality against unarmed Palestinian protestors in the Great March of Return protests by saying Palestinians engaged in
“…violent riots on the border with Israel to which they bring children to use as human shields. The quote of Israel’s first woman Prime Minister sums the situation up beautifully. Golda Meir said: “there can only be peace when the Arabs start to love their children more than they hate us””
Video of Dr Cumin delivering these comments is here.
In our view this is a particularly vile statement of anti-Palestinian racism and a repugnant slur on all Arabs.
An important way to identify racism is to reverse the ethnicities in a statement and then evaluate it again. If another employee made the same statements in relation to Jews they would quite rightly be condemned as despicable anti-semitism and the employee would be sacked. Similarly if these statements were made in relation to Maori, Pasifika or European peoples they would likewise be condemned as deeply racist and the staff member sacked.
We request this matter be investigated by Auckland University and disciplinary action taken.
We look forward to hearing from you.


thedailyblog--2020-09-13--Dr Liz Gordon: Welfare and Education

Dr Liz Gordon: Welfare and Education

Strong support from me for Labour ’ s policies for the return of the Training Incentive Allowance for beneficiaries and also for the raising of the cap on earnings to $ 160 per week before the benefit is affected .
Both are important aspects to empower and liberate beneficiaries from the gruelling regime of sad impoverishment , of the body and spirit , that National brought in from 1991 onwards , and that previous Labour governments have refused to unpick .
But what I particularly wanted to talk about this week is the parlous state of schooling , which , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s Schools working party , has barely been addressed in this government ’ s term .
Around a third of New Zealanders leave school without usable qualifications , although some gain them subsequently in ‘ stuff the turkey ’ youth training schemes .
There is a strong link between social advantage and educational performance .
There always has been , because that was how our colonial schooling system was set up , to mirror the class-based education of ‘ home ’ .
The idea was that the poor would just learn enough @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fodder while the wealthy would soar to the heights of university and fancy careers .
Everyone in their place , as it were .
It has been a remarkably successful system .
While the rhetoric of ‘ education for all ’ has always been strong , it has never been achieved .
Schools point to poor home environments as the cause of this gap .
This is correct .
The learning gap at age 5 between top and bottom performers is probably around 2 years , and more importantly kids from enriched environments @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ .
A few years ago the OECD noted that the biggest indicator of school achievement in New Zealand was the number of books in the home .
Literacy , conversation , discussion of ideas and the use of language are very important indicators of subsequent learning success .
But can ’ t these gaps be eradicated by skilled teachers in the educational environment ?
Well , the answer is , yes they can , but it is not something that our school system has turned its energies to .
Individual schools and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , put in place significant enrichment systems in their schools , but these tend to fizzle out over time , because they are hard .
In fact , schools are more likely to be exclusionary and punitive than massively enriching .
Chris Hipkins had to opportunity to unpick one of the drivers of this , school competition , by abolishing the Board of Trustees system , but has chosen not to do this .
The reality is that under the current system educational gaps have grown and will continue to grow .
Even @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to buy laptops and internet connections for thousands of families during the Covid lockdown , my hypothesis is that being away from school will have further increased learning gaps .
Research in the UK has shown this , and it will be not any different here .
Research on this is urgently needed .
While there is concern about the Covid effects on those sitting NCEA examinations , it is younger students who are likely to bear the long term effects , as gaps have increased in basic learning .
I am currently @ @ @ @ @ @ @ workers in certain workplaces about their schooling experiences one , two , three or four decades ago .
If we ever get to publish this work , which is highly confidential , everyone will be shocked at the barriers that people have encountered in schooling .
Being told you are dumb , lazy , bad , thick or useless , by teachers or peers , is not conducive to a great learning experience .
Being told that you are hated , being suspended or excluded , and having the blame or scorn of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ end the schooling experience on a terrible note .
As far as I am concerned , there are three principles that need to be pursued that can , over time , reduce the learning gaps .
And what follows from this will need to be significant investment in high quality learning for all children .
It should be a right ( and yes , I am strongly in favour of bringing the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child , to which we are a proud signatory , into the Education @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that all children will be supported to learn everything that schooling has to offer in New Zealand .
Instead of creating daft league tables , the expectation is that everyone will leave qualified in a range of ways ( and I would go the Canadian way with graduation requirements that include civics , work and community service elements ) .
The second principle is that schools must be fit for purpose in the modern age .
This is also about the curriculum .
Including compulsory New Zealand history is a great start , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Language ( our other official languages ) , civics ( the Covid experience has shown how much we need that ! )
and other modern curriculum elements are needed .
The third principle is that schools should ditch the colonial attitudes and become learning communities for all .
Formal discipline models should be replaced with low-level restorative practices all the time .
Bullying would fade away once punitive values are abolished and negotiation skills are taught instead .
No-one would ever be removed from a school , but would be managed and supported @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a huge ask , but it must be done .
Our current system is poor value for money because huge effort goes into things that do not bring value to all .
A successful schooling system for all would mean happier and more effective teachers , students , parents and society .
Goodness knows that the ignorance and stupidity unmasked by Covid has shown that an excellent schooling system for all is sorely needed .
Get schooling right , and so much else will grow from that .
Dr Liz Gordon is a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in destroying neo-liberalism in all its forms and moving towards a socially just society .
She usually blogs on justice , social welfare and education topics .

Strong support from me for Labour’s policies for the return of the Training Incentive Allowance for beneficiaries and also for the raising of the cap on earnings to $160 per week before the benefit is affected. Both are important aspects to empower and liberate beneficiaries from the gruelling regime of sad impoverishment, of the body and spirit, that National brought in from 1991 onwards, and that previous Labour governments have refused to unpick.
But what I particularly wanted to talk about this week is the parlous state of schooling, which, despite the best effort of the Tomorrow’s Schools working party, has barely been addressed in this government’s term.
Around a third of New Zealanders leave school without usable qualifications, although some gain them subsequently in ‘stuff the turkey’ youth training schemes. There is a strong link between social advantage and educational performance. There always has been, because that was how our colonial schooling system was set up, to mirror the class-based education of ‘home’.
The idea was that the poor would just learn enough to participate in the workforce as factory fodder while the wealthy would soar to the heights of university and fancy careers. Everyone in their place, as it were. It has been a remarkably successful system. While the rhetoric of ‘education for all’ has always been strong, it has never been achieved.
Schools point to poor home environments as the cause of this gap. This is correct. The learning gap at age 5 between top and bottom performers is probably around 2 years, and more importantly kids from enriched environments come to school ‘ready to learn’.
A few years ago the OECD noted that the biggest indicator of school achievement in New Zealand was the number of books in the home. Literacy, conversation, discussion of ideas and the use of language are very important indicators of subsequent learning success.
But can’t these gaps be eradicated by skilled teachers in the educational environment? Well, the answer is, yes they can, but it is not something that our school system has turned its energies to. Individual schools and teachers have, from time to time, put in place significant enrichment systems in their schools, but these tend to fizzle out over time, because they are hard.
In fact, schools are more likely to be exclusionary and punitive than massively enriching. Chris Hipkins had to opportunity to unpick one of the drivers of this, school competition, by abolishing the Board of Trustees system, but has chosen not to do this. The reality is that under the current system educational gaps have grown and will continue to grow.
TDB Recommends NewzEngine.com
Even though the Ministry of Education rushed out to buy laptops and internet connections for thousands of families during the Covid lockdown, my hypothesis is that being away from school will have further increased learning gaps. Research in the UK has shown this, and it will be not any different here. Research on this is urgently needed.
While there is concern about the Covid effects on those sitting NCEA examinations, it is younger students who are likely to bear the long term effects, as gaps have increased in basic learning.
I am currently involved in a project that has asked workers in certain workplaces about their schooling experiences one, two, three or four decades ago. If we ever get to publish this work, which is highly confidential, everyone will be shocked at the barriers that people have encountered in schooling. Being told you are dumb, lazy, bad, thick or useless, by teachers or peers, is not conducive to a great learning experience. Being told that you are hated, being suspended or excluded, and having the blame or scorn of a school community on your head can end the schooling experience on a terrible note.
As far as I am concerned, there are three principles that need to be pursued that can, over time, reduce the learning gaps. And what follows from this will need to be significant investment in high quality learning for all children. It should be a right (and yes, I am strongly in favour of bringing the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which we are a proud signatory, into the Education Act).
The first principle is that all children will be supported to learn everything that schooling has to offer in New Zealand. Instead of creating daft league tables, the expectation is that everyone will leave qualified in a range of ways (and I would go the Canadian way with graduation requirements that include civics, work and community service elements).
The second principle is that schools must be fit for purpose in the modern age. This is also about the curriculum. Including compulsory New Zealand history is a great start, but compulsory Te Reo Māori and Sign Language (our other official languages), civics (the Covid experience has shown how much we need that!) and other modern curriculum elements are needed.
The third principle is that schools should ditch the colonial attitudes and become learning communities for all. Formal discipline models should be replaced with low-level restorative practices all the time. Bullying would fade away once punitive values are abolished and negotiation skills are taught instead. No-one would ever be removed from a school, but would be managed and supported within the school community. This is a huge ask, but it must be done.
Our current system is poor value for money because huge effort goes into things that do not bring value to all. A successful schooling system for all would mean happier and more effective teachers, students, parents and society.
Goodness knows that the ignorance and stupidity unmasked by Covid has shown that an excellent schooling system for all is sorely needed. Get schooling right, and so much else will grow from that.
Dr Liz Gordon is a researcher and a barrister, with interests in destroying neo-liberalism in all its forms and moving towards a socially just society. She usually blogs on justice, social welfare and education topics.


thedailyblog--2020-09-14--The Left’s Lost Allies

The Left’s Lost Allies

LET ’ S BE HONEST , last Saturday ’ s Advance NZ rally in Aotea Square was bloody impressive .
If the Left had turned out a crowd that large they would have claimed at least 5,000 participants .
Now , the last time I remember seeing that sort of number in the Square was when the CTU summoned its affiliates in support of a concerted national push for higher wages .
It was a very well organised affair , with workers bussed-in from all over Auckland .
By contrast , Jami-Lee Ross and Billy Te Kahika turned out 5,000+ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not much more than a summons via Facebook and Instagram .
It is now vitally important for the Left to understand what it is looking at : a large and potentially dangerous mass movement of the Right .
Such a thing has not been seen in New Zealand for a very long time .
Perhaps the closest historical parallel is “ Rob ’ s Mob ” .
This , too , was a populist phenomenon , whipped-up on the basis of lies and misinformation by an accomplished political demagogue .
The huge difference @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Rob ’ s Mob ” was under the firm control and direction of the National Party and its leader , Robert Muldoon .
It was a movement created out of whole cloth to challenge the Labour Party ’ s confident assumption that it remained the party of the people .
With the able assistance of the privately-owned news media – especially the right-wing tabloid “ Truth ” – conservative working-class voters were encouraged to look upon “ Rob ” Muldoon as their champion against the pointy-headed intellectuals and communists who were accused of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was a neat anticipation , in reverse , of what has happened with Jacinda .
A substantial chunk of working-class voters were drawn across the political divide and into the camp of their traditional enemy .
National mustered these defectors with the skill of a heading-dog .
The crowds turning-out to Muldoon ’ s rallies numbered in the thousands .
New Zealand had its own Trump when the man himself was still working for his dad !
What we ’ re looking at in the case of Jami-Lee Ross and Billy Te Kahika @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ideologically and organisationally , from Rob ’ s Mob .
Advance NZ and the Public Party are not under the control of any coherent political group .
They are being mobilised by Te Kahika only in the sense that he is drawing together the loose threads of far-Right conspiracism – most them traceable back to Alt-Right social media platforms in the United States – and weaving them into a more-or-less coherent narrative of resistance to Jacinda Ardern ’ s government .
Once again , the historical parallels are uncanny .
In 1974-75 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( at whose instigation remains unclear ) from Hanna Barbera – a studio dedicated to producing animated cartoon series for American television .
The resulting animated sequences , cleverly embedded in National ’ s television advertising , burst upon the 1975 election campaign like a thunderclap .
Their impact , especially the infamous “ Dancing Cossacks ” sequence , was devastating .
Labour had nothing even remotely comparable with which to answer National ’ s devastating attack .
Forty-five years later , skilfully constructed media messages are , once again , making a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who , historically , have identified strongly with the Labour Party .
Sourced from the United States , these messages are not , like Hanna Barbera ’ s cartoons , the product of a shadowy collaboration between the National Party and American “ friends ” with a mutual interest in ridding New Zealand of a radical social-democratic government .
Indeed , it is precisely against such “ Deep State ” machinations that the political messages of 2020 are directed .
The authors and repeaters of these conspiracy theories have no more interest in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ keeping the conventional Left in office .
Their purpose is to disrupt the status-quo fundamentally : to bring the whole rotten edifice of elite power crashing down upon the heads of its corrupt political mis-leaders .
Their loyalty is only to the Disrupter-in-Chief in the White House .
But if , by helping Trump , they can also assist his New Zealand imitators and disciples , then where ’ s the harm ?
Overlaying all these hymns of fear and loathing is , of course , the global Covid-19 Pandemic .
Without the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ conspiracy theories can take root and thrive would – at least in New Zealand ’ s case – be lacking .
Interestingly , the formation of “ Rob ’ s Mob ” , and the populist campaign ( National ’ s slogan in 1975 was “ New Zealand the way want it.
” ) which they did so much to propel forward , was enormously assisted by the fear and uncertainty created by the 1973 Oil Crisis .
Massive increases in the price of crude oil had destabilised the hitherto booming economies of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that the whole post-war era of security and prosperity was coming to an end .
Muldoon played upon these anxieties “ like a piano ” .
Now , many on the left will argue that Advance NZ ’ s 5,000 protesters pale into insignificance when compared to the 30,000 people who turned out against the TPPA , or the 50,000 who protested against the global lack of progress against Climate Change .
This is true .
Also true , however , is that a large number of the Maori who took part in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ agreement as yet another attempt to steal away of their power , were also at Saturday ’ s protest .
Likewise , many of those who joined the climate change protests out of frustration at the lack of action from a prime minister who had promised to make the issue her generation ’ s “ nuclear-free moment ” .
After so many broken promises – so many betrayals – it takes surprisingly little to convince people that the powers-that-be can not be trusted .
That all politicians lie .
The truly frightening thing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Te Kahika ’ s success in persuading thousands of New Zealanders that Covid-19 is just another trick , just another way of stealing away their power , is realising just how many of them once marched at the Left ’ s side .
Before recoiling in horror at where so many of their fellow citizens have ended up , and what they have found there , perhaps “ progressive ” New Zealanders should ask themselves how , and why , their former allies became so lost .

LET’S BE HONEST, last Saturday’s Advance NZ rally in Aotea Square was bloody impressive. If the Left had turned out a crowd that large they would have claimed at least 5,000 participants. Now, the last time I remember seeing that sort of number in the Square was when the CTU summoned its affiliates in support of a concerted national push for higher wages. It was a very well organised affair, with workers bussed-in from all over Auckland. By contrast, Jami-Lee Ross and Billy Te Kahika turned out 5,000+ of their people on the strength of not much more than a summons via Facebook and Instagram. It is now vitally important for the Left to understand what it is looking at: a large and potentially dangerous mass movement of the Right.
Such a thing has not been seen in New Zealand for a very long time. Perhaps the closest historical parallel is “Rob’s Mob”. This, too, was a populist phenomenon, whipped-up on the basis of lies and misinformation by an accomplished political demagogue. The huge difference, of course, is that “Rob’s Mob” was under the firm control and direction of the National Party and its leader, Robert Muldoon. It was a movement created out of whole cloth to challenge the Labour Party’s confident assumption that it remained the party of the people.
With the able assistance of the privately-owned news media – especially the right-wing tabloid “Truth” – conservative working-class voters were encouraged to look upon “Rob” Muldoon as their champion against the pointy-headed intellectuals and communists who were accused of taking-over the Labour Party. The result was a neat anticipation, in reverse, of what has happened with Jacinda. A substantial chunk of working-class voters were drawn across the political divide and into the camp of their traditional enemy. National mustered these defectors with the skill of a heading-dog. The crowds turning-out to Muldoon’s rallies numbered in the thousands. New Zealand had its own Trump when the man himself was still working for his dad!
What we’re looking at in the case of Jami-Lee Ross and Billy Te Kahika, however, is something quite distinct, ideologically and organisationally, from Rob’s Mob. Advance NZ and the Public Party are not under the control of any coherent political group. They are being mobilised by Te Kahika only in the sense that he is drawing together the loose threads of far-Right conspiracism – most them traceable back to Alt-Right social media platforms in the United States – and weaving them into a more-or-less coherent narrative of resistance to Jacinda Ardern’s government.
Once again, the historical parallels are uncanny. In 1974-75, the National Party was offered assistance (at whose instigation remains unclear) from Hanna Barbera – a studio dedicated to producing animated cartoon series for American television. The resulting animated sequences, cleverly embedded in National’s television advertising, burst upon the 1975 election campaign like a thunderclap. Their impact, especially the infamous “Dancing Cossacks” sequence, was devastating. Labour had nothing even remotely comparable with which to answer National’s devastating attack.
Forty-five years later, skilfully constructed media messages are, once again, making a forceful impression on the consciousness of groups who, historically, have identified strongly with the Labour Party. Sourced from the United States, these messages are not, like Hanna Barbera’s cartoons, the product of a shadowy collaboration between the National Party and American “friends” with a mutual interest in ridding New Zealand of a radical social-democratic government. Indeed, it is precisely against such “Deep State” machinations that the political messages of 2020 are directed.
The authors and repeaters of these conspiracy theories have no more interest in restoring the conventional Right to power than keeping the conventional Left in office. Their purpose is to disrupt the status-quo fundamentally: to bring the whole rotten edifice of elite power crashing down upon the heads of its corrupt political mis-leaders. Their loyalty is only to the Disrupter-in-Chief in the White House. But if, by helping Trump, they can also assist his New Zealand imitators and disciples, then where’s the harm?
Overlaying all these hymns of fear and loathing is, of course, the global Covid-19 Pandemic. Without the Pandemic, the febrile environment in which conspiracy theories can take root and thrive would – at least in New Zealand’s case – be lacking.
TDB Recommends NewzEngine.com
Interestingly, the formation of “Rob’s Mob”, and the populist campaign (National’s slogan in 1975 was “New Zealand the way YOU want it.”) which they did so much to propel forward, was enormously assisted by the fear and uncertainty created by the 1973 Oil Crisis. Massive increases in the price of crude oil had destabilised the hitherto booming economies of the Western powers. Ordinary people sensed that the whole post-war era of security and prosperity was coming to an end. Muldoon played upon these anxieties “like a piano”.
Now, many on the left will argue that Advance NZ’s 5,000 protesters pale into insignificance when compared to the 30,000 people who turned out against the TPPA, or the 50,000 who protested against the global lack of progress against Climate Change. This is true. Also true, however, is that a large number of the Maori who took part in the TPPA protest, seeing the free-trade agreement as yet another attempt to steal away of their power, were also at Saturday’s protest. Likewise, many of those who joined the climate change protests out of frustration at the lack of action from a prime minister who had promised to make the issue her generation’s “nuclear-free moment”. After so many broken promises – so many betrayals – it takes surprisingly little to convince people that the powers-that-be cannot be trusted. That all politicians lie.
The truly frightening thing about Jami-Lee Ross’s and Billy Te Kahika’s success in persuading thousands of New Zealanders that Covid-19 is just another trick, just another way of stealing away their power, is realising just how many of them once marched at the Left’s side. Before recoiling in horror at where so many of their fellow citizens have ended up, and what they have found there, perhaps “progressive” New Zealanders should ask themselves how, and why, their former allies became so lost.