I also have been involved in a lot of protests over the years starting with marching against the Vietnam war when I was 18yrs old.I havealso been involved in putting together a lot of petitions, especially in the "response to family violence "area, As a feminist, violence towards women.and children under patriarchies around the world has been a focus of a lot of my energy. Unfortunately I can't say that has changed much-it seems to go around in circles. I was shocked at the personal abuse and misinformation aimed at Helen Clark when she became PM. I was even more shocked at the vile abuse of Jacinda Ardern. I had rarely been on social media but started to read the Stuff commentary and contributers. I believe the Young Nats used to have quite a presence there before Stuff changed ownership and now there is a level of moderation. I had voted Labour in 2017 -didn't split my vote that time because I did NOT want Bill English with his intent to privatise our Health system to be our ongoing PM. The proposed new Dunedin hospital to replace our run down public hospital was going to be a public/private arrangement driven by Whitehouse (whose background is in private healthcare) and English. Dunedin people said no thanks. I had already experienced the beginning of privatising healthcare under ruthless Ruth Richardson. In 1993 my husband had a severe stroke. i was sent a bill of $500.00 as part-payment for his week in Dunedin public Hospital. Richardson had introduced a part-payment system into public hospitals. Helen Clark overturned it when she was voted in.
What I found from the awful comments about Jacinda Ardern as our new PM was that I became more entrenched in my views, and loyalties. Things I might have challenged the government about I talked about in safe circles- I didn't want to give the trolls more ammunition. A big difference between the protests I have been involved in (including protests led by Grant Robertson) was that we always aimed for non-violent protest. Violence was often the response- marching for Homosexual Law reform along the main street of Dunedin we had beer poured on us and various missiles tbrown at us along with abuse, and name calling. But our actions were always to be non-violent. Unlike the current rounds of various protests where violence seems to be at the forefront. I could never imagine talking about erecting gallows, and hanging somebody.
As far as Ufindell and Sharma are concerned , I did think of his victim. Of course he is the person who spoke out. The thought of a young boy being dragged from his bed and being beaten up by four males several years older and a lot bigger- just look at the size of Uffindell- upset me. The compounding factor is that no police were involved- it was swept under the carpet. Sure- he was kicked out of Kings but immediately enrolled in a brother school to Kings-St Paul's in Hamilton- another Anglican private school. The information that has come out about Uffindell's flatting situation at Otago uni.is gross- especially the womens underwear trophy display. I have sons who flatted while studying at Otago ,and they didn't behave like that. As for Sharma- he seemed to have absolutely no empathy for his staff. He just dismisses that they have any rights, making the comment they wouldn't do as he said/wanted. He certainly has shown signs of narcissism. The timing of his public announcements was interesting!
my best friend and his family live on the GC, his wife is a midwife , and a rabid anti vaxxer - only as far as Covid is concerned I must add, to keep working she has so far paid 3 lots of AUD 350.00 for the necessary fake vaccine certificates , this has put a hell of a strain on a near 40 year friendship - we are all vaxxed to the max I might add and so far I am the only member of our family not to have caught the foul virus.
What i counter comment usually on anti vaxxers : "you prefer to follow some conspiracy theory started by 2 Americans living in Philippines as QAnon is, or the millionaires antivaxxers from USA who really made millions from podcasts and books spreading unfunded falsehoods, prefer to listen to foreign interests, follow far right white supremacists Neo Nazi, to the place of epidiemolgists and doctors? Prefer to think our PM is somehow rulled by a lizard, again QAnon, ?plus the commies stuff : go to Israel in a kibutz which is based on communism . Or Google what socialist economic policies are. Welfare is not one of them. "! I grew in a dictatorship: changed from socialism to it. In Roumania, we had a good education, university free, housing, free medical. It was safe in the 60 to 70th. 80th started to change. I left in 1984. I was lucky . Yes , Labour is making huge mistakes . 3 Waters as we know is needed it, in fact a National policy same with the GST on Management fees on Kiwi saver . My comments pointing out on Luxon site were all deleted!
yes. hold the mocking. instead lets talk about the underlying issues. like 40 years of cruel economic policies and the blame-worthiness of the economics profession for much misery.
"the class of university-educated experts who claim that their mastery of fashionable abstractions makes them uniquely qualified to run the world—hasn’t actually been in power for very long."
I also have been involved in a lot of protests over the years starting with marching against the Vietnam war when I was 18yrs old.I havealso been involved in putting together a lot of petitions, especially in the "response to family violence "area, As a feminist, violence towards women.and children under patriarchies around the world has been a focus of a lot of my energy. Unfortunately I can't say that has changed much-it seems to go around in circles. I was shocked at the personal abuse and misinformation aimed at Helen Clark when she became PM. I was even more shocked at the vile abuse of Jacinda Ardern. I had rarely been on social media but started to read the Stuff commentary and contributers. I believe the Young Nats used to have quite a presence there before Stuff changed ownership and now there is a level of moderation. I had voted Labour in 2017 -didn't split my vote that time because I did NOT want Bill English with his intent to privatise our Health system to be our ongoing PM. The proposed new Dunedin hospital to replace our run down public hospital was going to be a public/private arrangement driven by Whitehouse (whose background is in private healthcare) and English. Dunedin people said no thanks. I had already experienced the beginning of privatising healthcare under ruthless Ruth Richardson. In 1993 my husband had a severe stroke. i was sent a bill of $500.00 as part-payment for his week in Dunedin public Hospital. Richardson had introduced a part-payment system into public hospitals. Helen Clark overturned it when she was voted in.
What I found from the awful comments about Jacinda Ardern as our new PM was that I became more entrenched in my views, and loyalties. Things I might have challenged the government about I talked about in safe circles- I didn't want to give the trolls more ammunition. A big difference between the protests I have been involved in (including protests led by Grant Robertson) was that we always aimed for non-violent protest. Violence was often the response- marching for Homosexual Law reform along the main street of Dunedin we had beer poured on us and various missiles tbrown at us along with abuse, and name calling. But our actions were always to be non-violent. Unlike the current rounds of various protests where violence seems to be at the forefront. I could never imagine talking about erecting gallows, and hanging somebody.
As far as Ufindell and Sharma are concerned , I did think of his victim. Of course he is the person who spoke out. The thought of a young boy being dragged from his bed and being beaten up by four males several years older and a lot bigger- just look at the size of Uffindell- upset me. The compounding factor is that no police were involved- it was swept under the carpet. Sure- he was kicked out of Kings but immediately enrolled in a brother school to Kings-St Paul's in Hamilton- another Anglican private school. The information that has come out about Uffindell's flatting situation at Otago uni.is gross- especially the womens underwear trophy display. I have sons who flatted while studying at Otago ,and they didn't behave like that. As for Sharma- he seemed to have absolutely no empathy for his staff. He just dismisses that they have any rights, making the comment they wouldn't do as he said/wanted. He certainly has shown signs of narcissism. The timing of his public announcements was interesting!
my best friend and his family live on the GC, his wife is a midwife , and a rabid anti vaxxer - only as far as Covid is concerned I must add, to keep working she has so far paid 3 lots of AUD 350.00 for the necessary fake vaccine certificates , this has put a hell of a strain on a near 40 year friendship - we are all vaxxed to the max I might add and so far I am the only member of our family not to have caught the foul virus.
"Do you think perhaps we’ve lost sight of what is important somewhere along the way? And focussed on things that really aren’t?" Yes, I do.
Nick Rockel interesting article and pertinent for me right now because I am in day 2 of a 7 day stint in Facebook jail.
What i counter comment usually on anti vaxxers : "you prefer to follow some conspiracy theory started by 2 Americans living in Philippines as QAnon is, or the millionaires antivaxxers from USA who really made millions from podcasts and books spreading unfunded falsehoods, prefer to listen to foreign interests, follow far right white supremacists Neo Nazi, to the place of epidiemolgists and doctors? Prefer to think our PM is somehow rulled by a lizard, again QAnon, ?plus the commies stuff : go to Israel in a kibutz which is based on communism . Or Google what socialist economic policies are. Welfare is not one of them. "! I grew in a dictatorship: changed from socialism to it. In Roumania, we had a good education, university free, housing, free medical. It was safe in the 60 to 70th. 80th started to change. I left in 1984. I was lucky . Yes , Labour is making huge mistakes . 3 Waters as we know is needed it, in fact a National policy same with the GST on Management fees on Kiwi saver . My comments pointing out on Luxon site were all deleted!
yes. hold the mocking. instead lets talk about the underlying issues. like 40 years of cruel economic policies and the blame-worthiness of the economics profession for much misery.
you might enjoy this longer term perspective:
https://www.ecosophia.net/the-great-rehash-part-four-a-hill-to-die-on/
"the class of university-educated experts who claim that their mastery of fashionable abstractions makes them uniquely qualified to run the world—hasn’t actually been in power for very long."