Just Let Them Walk All Over You
Jenny-May freezes like a possum under the glare of David Seymour.
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Just let them walk all over you
Laugh through the punches and the pain
Let the life-blood drain away from you
They're right, you're wrong
And you can see it in the way they look at you
Feel it in the way they treat you
Always the last to know
Always the first to leave
Between Two Points by David Gilmour
I’m still trying to comprehend what happened in the US this week. As Desi Lydic said in the clip below from yesterday's Daily Show, America has elected its first criminal president ahead of its first female president.
Think about that for a moment and the voters, in particular Latino men, who would rather vote for a crook who badmouths and threatens them than elect a woman. That is a bloody disgrace, any way you look at it.
Desi says, “I don’t really care why she lost; I care why he won,” which I thought was an excellent point.
Yes, the Democrats, like the left here, must examine why the public turned away from positive messages and, in both cases, from good, perfectly defendable track records to opt for change.
In both cases, people stopped listening and opted for the man who would solve all their problems even when it was blatantly obvious that neither Trump nor Luxon gave a rat’s bum about anyone who wasn’t wealthy, beyond their votes.
The bigger issue is why people vote for someone who seems to offer nothing beyond trashing what is already in place—as a goal in and of itself. The solution has to be more than moderating the policies of the left.
Let’s be honest: people aren’t voting against policies - they probably don’t even know what those are. They go on how they’re feeling and who they think might improve things.
It suits those who have been elected to poison the public against experts, scientists, and the media—to see those who represent knowledge and understanding or those who seek to ensure our politicians tell the truth and operate to certain standards as the enemy.
Everyone likes to complain about the media. Have they informed us well enough? Were they balanced? The truth is they do okay; good journalism is being undertaken. The problem is that not only can we not lead the horse to water, but those who don’t wish the media to be heard accuse them of poisoning it - and people believe them.
Besides, with how things are going, there won’t be any media left soon for people not to watch. TVNZ is the latest organisation to consider redundancies and shrink its services. However, judging by an interview I saw this morning, I can think of at least one person they could lose.
Following the introduction of the contentious Treaty Principles Bill at parliament yesterday, which was accompanied by protest, our state broadcaster had the chance to speak with its architect, David Seymour, and get some answers.
What followed was an absolute debacle. Seymour, who had obviously gone intending to sabotage the interview, went on the attack, painting the media as misrepresenting things. The presenter, Jenny-May Clarkson, sat there slack-jawed and hopeless. You can watch it here.
If this is the quality of journalism and political interviews that TVNZ can manage at a time when the minor parties in this coalition are threatening their funding, then maybe it’s not much of a loss. Not if they are going to sit there while he walks all over them; someone should be holding him to account. Bring back Anna Burns-Francis, I say.
This topic is too important to have someone who cannot undertake an interview. Seymour made Clarkson look poorly prepared and made it sound like the media are deceiving the public by stating that there is division and opposition to the bill.
Evelyn was disappointed - “I would have liked him challenged on equality in preparing the bill; surely equality would mean Maori to be a party to any writing.”
Renee was grateful - “Thank you for watching so that we don’t have to. Honestly, the mere thought of watching the bumbling incompetence that passes itself off as journalism on Breakfast is just so awful.”
Debbie saw the fault elsewhere - “I thought he was an arsehole. Rude and arrogant. I'm going to go against the grain and say that while I thought her interview was lacking in holding him to account and pushing him on some things, I thought under the circumstances of him being the arse he is, she did ok. I think he took the wind out of her sails, and she was possibly treading a fine line between trying to be 'professional' and wanting to rip him a new arsehole.”
There is some validity in that Seymour clearly intended to derail the interview from the get-go, but I still tend to agree with Valerie, who said, “I am glad someone has posted this. It was a triumph for David Seymour. What a car crash interview from her. He absolutely nailed it in his calm, courteous and fact-based responses.”
Interviewing someone who doesn’t want to give answers is a hard thing to do. There is a reason that we love people like Kim, Susie, and even Jack on a good day. It’s just not something Jenny-May is good at; she needs some of that competitive spirit she brought to the sporting arena.
It’s quite convenient for the government to push this through when all the real political journalists are overseas. Maybe Jenny-May could’ve done the piece to camera in the US, and they could’ve left Jack Tame to cover domestic politics.
Over at Stuff, I don’t imagine they have the budget to send a lot of people over to the US, but they were doing some actual journalism and covering the story yesterday pretty well, I thought:
This is a massive story, Seymour knows it, and I’m sure Luxon knows it, which is why he has yet again fled overseas rather than actually man up as the leader of the country as his vile turd of a coalition agreement befouls the nation.
Yesterday afternoon, Labour, Te Pāti Māori, and the Greens united in opposing the bill. It was great to see such a united front for something that should offend all but the most small-minded.
I posted, “Very pleased to see the Greens, TPM, and Labour standing united against this disgraceful bill. C’mon Luxon, you coward, grow a pair and do the right thing instead of pandering to that little worm.”
I won’t be holding my breath for Luxon to act with any decency; that seems beyond him as he lurks in the shadows, allowing Seymour to have his pulpit to convince enough people to support him so that the PM can change his mind and support the bill beyond the first reading due to alleged public support.
He would be better served to listen to the words of Helmut Modlik, who, along with other members of Ngāti Toa, walked out of parliament in disgust yesterday.
I met both men when I attended the Working Group debate on the Bill recently. I found Seymour slick. He is good at steering the conversation to his point while taking little interest in others' views other than to rebut them.
On the other hand, I found both Helmut and his wife thoroughly pleasant people. They were intelligent, well-spoken, and had more mana than Seymour could imagine.
As he stood up and walked out of parliament yesterday, Modlik made a motion as if he were brushing dirt off his shoulder. “You get temporarily covered with dust, and that’s what you do with dust, and then it’s gone ... I just wanted them to know that’s what I think about what you’ve just had to say.”
He told the Herald, “I could not stand to sit in the house today and listen to a question, a straight question asked, ‘Is the relationship between the Māori community and the Government better or worse today as a consequence of yours ...’ – and the answer that was given was so dishonest, duplicitous and dishonourable.”
I’m not suggesting Jenny-May should have walked out, but if she isn’t going to challenge Seymour when he acts just as Helmut describes, then what is the point of her being there?
Yesterday, Seymour said he welcomed the bill's introduction as a national conversation about the place of Te Tiriti in our constitutional arrangements. So far, it doesn’t seem like much of a conversation—just David saying what he wants and attacking those who disagree.
And Jenny-May freezes while Luxon hides. But a mighty protest is coming that they will struggle to ignore.
I included this song when it was released, but this live performance is something else. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Have a great Friday, all you lovely people. 🙂
I have been enjoying the absolute and literal radio silence these last couple of days. I am aware of what is happening, but there is nothing to be gained from the endless, pointless, analysis and opinions causing me to yell and swear. Seymour is an absolute coward, because he won't front up the rnz to be asked the questions he doesn't want to answer. I would actually like a head-to-head between Seymour and McNaulty, because I know which one is intellectually superior and would expose the truth better than any journalist interested in gotchas. Luxon will fold, like the sun will rise.
Jenny May really isn’t up to the task of political interviewing. Seymour is a clever wee b*stard adept at twisting the truth to make it sound perfectly reasonable. Breakfast should be putting their heaviest-hitting interviewer on him.