“…and let’s hope the others learn to make better choices. We do want someone in charge that knows what’s going on, don’t we?”
No, actually they don’t. Denial is their thing. It’s how they get by. Everyday. If you are the kinda person who has your head in the sand about truly significant threats like Climate Change—if you can easily deny it is even happening—you clearly don’t want your chosen leader to keep reminding you of it do you?
In The States, from whence I hail, we’ve watched this for decades now. In 2005 a massive hurricane (Katrina) drowned New Orleans and beyond. GW Bush flew over in his 747 and said, ‘no one could have imagined a Cat-5 hurricane making a direct hit on New Orleans.’ Even though there had been white papers and ample coverage and presentations for years saying it was inevitable and what would happen. Hell, even Joe Biden this week called Hurricane Milton “the storm of the century.” Last I checked 2005 was in this century and by almost any and ALL measures Katrina dwarfed Milton.
In 2001 everyone in GW Bush’s governing Cabinet kept repeating, “no one could have imagined terrorists flying airplanes” into buildings like that. The security services had spent that year ‘running through the halls with their hair on fire’ with intel “something big was coming.”
Denial is our true epidemic; denial is so much easier and more comforting than reality. Who wants to have to admit to themselves their PM actually KNOWS OR KNEW many of these inconvenient facts and would prefer to just lie to them and feign ignorance? Who wants to believe he is that Machiavellian?
Voters today broadly aren’t rational. They are making choices based on emotions, not reason. And this new era of politicians have realized that.
We truly are living in a post-truth disinformation landscape whence a plurality of folks would rather not know the facts. They are more comfortable having their biases confirmed.
Life is easier when you stay in denial. Until, one day, it isn’t anymore. It finally becomes undeniable. Then you tell yourself, “no one could have imagined that happening.”
Buckle-up for more of this, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet Kiwis.
Great comment Mark, so much more comforting than reality.
I saw a clip this week of Trump saying he'd never heard of this kind of weather event happening before, over the recent storms. Then they played one of him saying the exact same thing years earlier.
Spot on Mark, are you, like me, watching with bated breath the ongoing shit show in the US election? ... I have many American glass artist friends and am witnessing their growing concern .... I find it incomprehensible that the Orange Cockwomble has around 47% support! FFS! aren't his followers aware of his multiple and proven crimes or do they simply refuse to believe so?, don't they see his clearly malignant narcissism and psychopathy terrifyingly combined with his fascist leanings? ... those sycophants in the GoP have obviously chosen money and position over conscience but I'm truly mystified why the common man would ever support him - Noel Casler has stated what I've always felt about trump - that he despises the MAGA base. What strange and horrible times we are going through - Luxon mirrors trump's arrogance and lack of empathy towards the people but his m.o. is also coloured with craven cowardice - trump is overt, Luxon lacks the balls to be so!
Luxon is to this place and time what Newt Gingrich was to the U.S. in the ‘90’s. A gateway drug. The precursor. A trial balloon if you will.
Like much of the world, the Americans are lurching far-right: Authoritarian Right. Orbán in Hungary is their model. We’re becoming Russia in the USA.
Even if Harris/Walz manage to pull it off in November—it’s gonna be a squeaker and the battles will be daily for weeks to follow Nov. 5th—this is far from over. Trump can be dead and buried and this will continue.
Listen to podcasts at all? Try “Autocracy in America.” Historian Anne Applebaum is onto it all.
We’re in a whole new era now. And Russia and China are loving this.
As an American refugee here in NZ, it is so hard to watch it hitting the shores here now…
In other words, people are horrid. The money doesn’t cause it, the people came before the money. We’re a selfish species. Colonizing a planet and stripping it bare. Give us just a little comfort and power (status?) and this is what we do. We can all probably name a few notable figures who mostly haven’t seemed to succumb to it, but these days? They are hard to find…
Perhaps I should have said Power corrupts Mark? "People are horrid" No. I believe in the goodness and sense of community that we have. That people generally work out what is fair. Our bad leaders currently want to separate and break us down to helpless individuals. Communities have to join together to fight this on many levels Truth to defeat outright lies. Help and support each other and stand up for what we feel is fair kind and for our betterment and environment.
I’m from the U.S., we’re ahead of you Kiwis in this swirling vortex towards the drain. I had to give up on that kind of optimism and turning of the cheek these last couple-3 decades there. To have faith, optimism and hope SLAPPED down year after year after year after…trains one to set their expectations dreadfully low. It’s too painful otherwise. ‘Hope for the best? PLAN for the worst’ is how many of us survive it now. And we regard the Hope as an opioid to be wary of getting hooked on.
When someone tries to shoot your last President in the face and HALF the population of the nation says, “he MISSED?! WTF?!” You know you are well beyond ‘believing in the goodness and sense of community that we have.’
The last hope I have left is that maybe by speaking up I can help a few Kiwis avoid what most of the N. Hemisphere is doing now…
Yes indeed thanks to the internet we aren't buffered from the insanity any more :/ - to my mind it started with the insidious creep and influence of the media cancer that is Rupert Murdoch.
I haven't heard of "Autocracy in America" Mark - will check it out - I follow Heather Cox Richardson plus Noel Casler's sub stack and watch daily the Meidas Touch Network, Brian Tyler Cohen and the always excellent Glenn Kirschner who translates the legalise so well.
This is one hell of a read. Now I’m going to stretch my meagre digital knowledge and try to save it. Thanks again Nick and you too Mark Behnke for your insight.
No portfolios and isn’t across any of the detail of what’s happening in cabinet. All his brain power must be going into running a tight ship in his Botany electorate. He’s unaware, and the rest of us need to be very aware, so we can get rid ASAP
I was unaware of the magnitude of his lack of awareness - that list should be in an ad on the front page of some money hungry newspapers… Someone could get a givealittle going…
In corporate land Luxon’s lack of performance and awareness would have HR all over him, facing close supervision and a Performance Process and well….dismissal. This guy is the employee from hell, he is taking the piss and stealing his salary. Normal workers get dismissed for less! So disgraceful.
Well done Stray Dog when key was pm someone kept a list of his lies. It was a sizeable list.
Although cluxon sounds like an android (human like robot) he ain't one, if he was we could send him back to the factory to reprogramme him, and a bunch of his lieutenants, with some basic intellect and empathy.
I totally agree! Lying daily as a normal behaviour, gives the populace the mandate that lying is okay! It should never be, there should be a law here as well.
I believe he does know and that he lies as his default mode. Would explain why so many others in this Govt take the same approach. After all the boss sets the tone for any enterprise surely. What a sad day it was when so many in the country voted for this train wreck. As an aside Jacinda received a small para on page 7 of today’s paper reporting her receiving her Damehood?? from William. From the ridiculous to the sublime.
OMG Nick...looking at that list of 'ignorance' you just have to wonder what the guy does all day! He even gets a few hours up his sleeve jetting off around the planet! Isn't it proof that he is just a mannikin, a figure that the gullible chose to vote for.....meanwhile the Wild West outlaws are running and ruining the country!
I sent a (quite long) diatribe to Cluxon last week...re Casey Costello mostly. I'd better send a follow up to apologise re my assumption he knew what I was referring to, and that he is always welcome to come to me and ask if unsure:).
Can't believe this wobblehead is our PM. Plus.......I'm feeling very very angry that he chooses to take the piss out of us like this!
I did share this as it's such good info. Thanks Nick....I hope you have a nice coffee in front of you and a lovely Sunday ahead!
Thanks Nick.....words failed me (like they do every day!) and then the image of those silly thigs you stick on your dashboard came to mind! Maybe we could re-instate them with crazy caricatures of the CoC.
Once again Nick thanks for doing the heavy lifting and keeping us all aware. The reason we have this sneering idiot and his vile sidekicks all shitting in the nest is precisely because so many in this country are unaware. And too many willfully so. Aided and abetted by a corporate funded media who do everything in their power to keep it that way.
I move that Luxon is henceforth referred to as "I know nothing" Schultz from Hogan's Heroes. The physical resemblance is also uncanny.
His belief that running the country is like running a business is so deeply flawed, not least that the days of CEO's being able to put forward a case of deniability to avoid liability are well and truly over. He might like to chat to the other previous PM, Jenny, about how that went #cough# Mainzeal #cough#
You’re not wrong. But we have to be careful not to demonise them. If that happens, I can see Winnie and Seymour copying the Trump playbook even closer.
Crikey - it doesn't look good when you lay it out like that.
Still, he's meeting all his KPIs though. "Key Performative Ignorance" that is.
Key performative ignorance!
Very clever
Feed him to the crocodiles! ...Crikey
It wouldn't work. There's some things even crocs won't touch.
“…and let’s hope the others learn to make better choices. We do want someone in charge that knows what’s going on, don’t we?”
No, actually they don’t. Denial is their thing. It’s how they get by. Everyday. If you are the kinda person who has your head in the sand about truly significant threats like Climate Change—if you can easily deny it is even happening—you clearly don’t want your chosen leader to keep reminding you of it do you?
In The States, from whence I hail, we’ve watched this for decades now. In 2005 a massive hurricane (Katrina) drowned New Orleans and beyond. GW Bush flew over in his 747 and said, ‘no one could have imagined a Cat-5 hurricane making a direct hit on New Orleans.’ Even though there had been white papers and ample coverage and presentations for years saying it was inevitable and what would happen. Hell, even Joe Biden this week called Hurricane Milton “the storm of the century.” Last I checked 2005 was in this century and by almost any and ALL measures Katrina dwarfed Milton.
In 2001 everyone in GW Bush’s governing Cabinet kept repeating, “no one could have imagined terrorists flying airplanes” into buildings like that. The security services had spent that year ‘running through the halls with their hair on fire’ with intel “something big was coming.”
Denial is our true epidemic; denial is so much easier and more comforting than reality. Who wants to have to admit to themselves their PM actually KNOWS OR KNEW many of these inconvenient facts and would prefer to just lie to them and feign ignorance? Who wants to believe he is that Machiavellian?
Voters today broadly aren’t rational. They are making choices based on emotions, not reason. And this new era of politicians have realized that.
We truly are living in a post-truth disinformation landscape whence a plurality of folks would rather not know the facts. They are more comfortable having their biases confirmed.
Life is easier when you stay in denial. Until, one day, it isn’t anymore. It finally becomes undeniable. Then you tell yourself, “no one could have imagined that happening.”
Buckle-up for more of this, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet Kiwis.
Great comment Mark, so much more comforting than reality.
I saw a clip this week of Trump saying he'd never heard of this kind of weather event happening before, over the recent storms. Then they played one of him saying the exact same thing years earlier.
‘zactky…
Spot on Mark, are you, like me, watching with bated breath the ongoing shit show in the US election? ... I have many American glass artist friends and am witnessing their growing concern .... I find it incomprehensible that the Orange Cockwomble has around 47% support! FFS! aren't his followers aware of his multiple and proven crimes or do they simply refuse to believe so?, don't they see his clearly malignant narcissism and psychopathy terrifyingly combined with his fascist leanings? ... those sycophants in the GoP have obviously chosen money and position over conscience but I'm truly mystified why the common man would ever support him - Noel Casler has stated what I've always felt about trump - that he despises the MAGA base. What strange and horrible times we are going through - Luxon mirrors trump's arrogance and lack of empathy towards the people but his m.o. is also coloured with craven cowardice - trump is overt, Luxon lacks the balls to be so!
Luxon is to this place and time what Newt Gingrich was to the U.S. in the ‘90’s. A gateway drug. The precursor. A trial balloon if you will.
Like much of the world, the Americans are lurching far-right: Authoritarian Right. Orbán in Hungary is their model. We’re becoming Russia in the USA.
Even if Harris/Walz manage to pull it off in November—it’s gonna be a squeaker and the battles will be daily for weeks to follow Nov. 5th—this is far from over. Trump can be dead and buried and this will continue.
Listen to podcasts at all? Try “Autocracy in America.” Historian Anne Applebaum is onto it all.
We’re in a whole new era now. And Russia and China are loving this.
As an American refugee here in NZ, it is so hard to watch it hitting the shores here now…
Money corrupts Mark. It has always been so.
In other words, people are horrid. The money doesn’t cause it, the people came before the money. We’re a selfish species. Colonizing a planet and stripping it bare. Give us just a little comfort and power (status?) and this is what we do. We can all probably name a few notable figures who mostly haven’t seemed to succumb to it, but these days? They are hard to find…
Perhaps I should have said Power corrupts Mark? "People are horrid" No. I believe in the goodness and sense of community that we have. That people generally work out what is fair. Our bad leaders currently want to separate and break us down to helpless individuals. Communities have to join together to fight this on many levels Truth to defeat outright lies. Help and support each other and stand up for what we feel is fair kind and for our betterment and environment.
I’m from the U.S., we’re ahead of you Kiwis in this swirling vortex towards the drain. I had to give up on that kind of optimism and turning of the cheek these last couple-3 decades there. To have faith, optimism and hope SLAPPED down year after year after year after…trains one to set their expectations dreadfully low. It’s too painful otherwise. ‘Hope for the best? PLAN for the worst’ is how many of us survive it now. And we regard the Hope as an opioid to be wary of getting hooked on.
When someone tries to shoot your last President in the face and HALF the population of the nation says, “he MISSED?! WTF?!” You know you are well beyond ‘believing in the goodness and sense of community that we have.’
The last hope I have left is that maybe by speaking up I can help a few Kiwis avoid what most of the N. Hemisphere is doing now…
Heather Cox Richardson is worth following, explains daily happenings in detail with historical context (being a historian)
Yes indeed thanks to the internet we aren't buffered from the insanity any more :/ - to my mind it started with the insidious creep and influence of the media cancer that is Rupert Murdoch.
I haven't heard of "Autocracy in America" Mark - will check it out - I follow Heather Cox Richardson plus Noel Casler's sub stack and watch daily the Meidas Touch Network, Brian Tyler Cohen and the always excellent Glenn Kirschner who translates the legalise so well.
This is one hell of a read. Now I’m going to stretch my meagre digital knowledge and try to save it. Thanks again Nick and you too Mark Behnke for your insight.
Great comment Mark.
Well said 👏👏👏👏👏
No portfolios and isn’t across any of the detail of what’s happening in cabinet. All his brain power must be going into running a tight ship in his Botany electorate. He’s unaware, and the rest of us need to be very aware, so we can get rid ASAP
I was unaware of the magnitude of his lack of awareness - that list should be in an ad on the front page of some money hungry newspapers… Someone could get a givealittle going…
What the hell does he actually do?
Bit of travel, some Tiktok, photo ops, hard to know where all the time goes...
Yep, plenty of travel around the world, embarrassing us!
Smooth the path for Atlas.
Get his ego stroked and take multiple Asian holidays while we pay to fly him around in his very own 757 appearing as royalty.
In corporate land Luxon’s lack of performance and awareness would have HR all over him, facing close supervision and a Performance Process and well….dismissal. This guy is the employee from hell, he is taking the piss and stealing his salary. Normal workers get dismissed for less! So disgraceful.
That is what happens to the grunts & low level managers. The C-suite can do no wrong.
Well done Stray Dog when key was pm someone kept a list of his lies. It was a sizeable list.
Although cluxon sounds like an android (human like robot) he ain't one, if he was we could send him back to the factory to reprogramme him, and a bunch of his lieutenants, with some basic intellect and empathy.
I remember that - the big list of John Key's lies. There sure were a lot.
I read recently that Wales was bringing in a law that would prosecute lying politicians. We should do that here.
I totally agree! Lying daily as a normal behaviour, gives the populace the mandate that lying is okay! It should never be, there should be a law here as well.
I believe he does know and that he lies as his default mode. Would explain why so many others in this Govt take the same approach. After all the boss sets the tone for any enterprise surely. What a sad day it was when so many in the country voted for this train wreck. As an aside Jacinda received a small para on page 7 of today’s paper reporting her receiving her Damehood?? from William. From the ridiculous to the sublime.
OMG Nick...looking at that list of 'ignorance' you just have to wonder what the guy does all day! He even gets a few hours up his sleeve jetting off around the planet! Isn't it proof that he is just a mannikin, a figure that the gullible chose to vote for.....meanwhile the Wild West outlaws are running and ruining the country!
I sent a (quite long) diatribe to Cluxon last week...re Casey Costello mostly. I'd better send a follow up to apologise re my assumption he knew what I was referring to, and that he is always welcome to come to me and ask if unsure:).
Can't believe this wobblehead is our PM. Plus.......I'm feeling very very angry that he chooses to take the piss out of us like this!
I did share this as it's such good info. Thanks Nick....I hope you have a nice coffee in front of you and a lovely Sunday ahead!
Thanks Katie, I had two coffees - rare for me. It was a pretty late one and early start. Might have a nap a bit later. 😂
I do like the term "wobblehead".
Thanks Nick.....words failed me (like they do every day!) and then the image of those silly thigs you stick on your dashboard came to mind! Maybe we could re-instate them with crazy caricatures of the CoC.
Yes a wooden doll.
luxon's legacy is going to be shameful, I will say it again, he will be remembered as the worst PM in living memory.
He will be the only person who wasn't made aware of this.
🤣 nice one!
yep....
The Governor General has the power to dissolve parliament, does anyone have her number?
Thanks Nick. It appals me how he gets away with knowing and doing so little. How can anyone take him seriously?
Wow just wow. I think this is a goodie to share wide and far. Then those who are less aware, may have a reason to watch and pay attention
Thanks Nick I will use this information well
Once again Nick thanks for doing the heavy lifting and keeping us all aware. The reason we have this sneering idiot and his vile sidekicks all shitting in the nest is precisely because so many in this country are unaware. And too many willfully so. Aided and abetted by a corporate funded media who do everything in their power to keep it that way.
I move that Luxon is henceforth referred to as "I know nothing" Schultz from Hogan's Heroes. The physical resemblance is also uncanny.
His belief that running the country is like running a business is so deeply flawed, not least that the days of CEO's being able to put forward a case of deniability to avoid liability are well and truly over. He might like to chat to the other previous PM, Jenny, about how that went #cough# Mainzeal #cough#
Yeah nah Lynette - Schultz had kind eyes, there's nothing at all kind about Luxon's eyes or his psyche!
Jeepers when you see it all listed here he is amazingly out of touch with what’s going on. Terrible leader. As you say who the hell voted this lot in.
You’re not wrong. But we have to be careful not to demonise them. If that happens, I can see Winnie and Seymour copying the Trump playbook even closer.
You're right. Many I'm sure just believed the hype in the hope of something better.