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David Rees's avatar

There was a presumably satirical piece in the Spinoff yesterday about umbrella man which triggered me something awful even though the rational part of my brain was telling me Toby Manhire was taking the piss. A reader suggested Nancy used ChatGPT for her post lol and this readers comment sums the whole thing up nicely:

"How wonderful to have a Prime Minister who understands that when the country is flooded because of climate change, the roads are blocked because we denuded the hills of native trees, and the foreshore in Wellington is drowning in shit, the solution is to announce the holding of an incomprehensible Australian sporting fixture in which we are not involved is to be held in an Auckland stadium at the expense of the New Zealand taxpayer. The man's a hero!"

Brian Rathbone's avatar

David you’ve summed up the pretend PM in one 👍

Karen Griffin's avatar

You know who my real heros are? The local marae's around the country that step up when people are flooded out, or stranded or just need a cuppa and a place to charge their phone 💜

Brian Rathbone's avatar

Yes Karen, marae offer us all so much…collective consciousness; a culture of care and mutuality.

They do it all not for the baubles of power; not for a knighthood; not to cling onto a position because they are desperate; not for a sound bite or television appearance; not for pectoral muscles to be puffed outwards; not to say ‘look at me, look at us’…

…but out of goodness, kindness, aroha, and a recognition that those without can (and will) be lifted up.

Karen Griffin's avatar

I so agree Brian.

They cut through all of the political bs and show us all that caring for each other is what really matters 💜

Brian Rathbone's avatar

Yes Karen, it makes me proud of my Māori ancestry. People who notice others; who have expectations of others (and themselves)…to pitch in and contribute; to learn alongside not allow people to miss out or be ostracised. Tamariki and Rangatahi grow up well-versed in what is needed; what is required; what matters.

All cultures have challenges and yet, we all benefit from living with and immersing ourselves in the best of what different cultures show us is possible.

To turn away from this by adopting racist and colonising attitudes; by not valuing diversity; by being afraid of another’s culture…even afraid of a taonga like language…is not only ignorant but will deplete the person doing this (those who turn away).

Turning towards collective ways of living and being seems so much healthier than an individualised, ‘what’s in this for me’, extractive ‘I’ll take this because I can’ mindset.

And this coalition government are definitely choosing to turn away. So often they choose not to engage properly with any of us, including Māori. They prefer not to show their face. They prefer to impose, talk at, pretend to consult and listen, but never hear what is being said. The answers they give never tell the full story. They hide behind policies that we have never consented to. And they do not seem to care.

Would that behaviour be acceptable on the marae? I think not.

I suggest we need people in government who are people first (who can engage kanohi te kanohi) who seek first to understand, listen and be fully present. Then, once so engaged and informed, and find the will and courage to choose to govern for us all (to-date I believe they have fallen well short on this) perhaps they could then earn the respect and trust from us that we could give.

I am not ready to give them my trust or respect yet. Because they refuse to earn it.

Kathyvoyles's avatar

I have absolutely no idea why we are paying to have a sports team (is it a football team?) from Oz come to play in here. What or who are State of Origin and why must the city ratepayers pay over 2 million dollars to get them here. Who is the man with the hairdo that the PM had to protect and does Nancy understand climate emergency, sewage problems, and bed levies? I don't think these people should be in charge. Please can we have mandatory voting so it's not only the over 60 year olds voting, and can we have fish back in our rivers! And people in houses. And food to feed our kids. The State of it!

Nick Rockel's avatar

The Garfunkel/Baldrick-looking fellow is Gary Weiss.

Kathyvoyles's avatar

Is he the Chair of Coast Entertainment holdings net worth 41 million perchance? A corporate bulldust detector? A corporate raider with a hear of gold (well yes, he's got loads of dosh)? What a load of tosh. Loving the Spinoff article by Toby Manhire.

Pauline Arnold's avatar

Looks like a Zionist out of a cartoon.

Kim Shaw-Williams's avatar

Spot on, Pauline....perhaps very apt, given who he is...

Annie Blackwell's avatar

But...here's an over 60 ...and believe me, you want me to vote!

Kathyvoyles's avatar

I am over 60 too, but there's too many young ones who are not voting. We saw that in the local body elections last year. We have to engage them and get the vote out there. We so, can't have this lot running the country. They are just not up to it!

JudithRobyn's avatar

I am over 80 and I am hanging in there until november 7th!

Diana Coleman's avatar

Ditto. I believe there are quite a lot of socialists in the 60+ bracket 😁

Heather & Alan Titchener's avatar

Well a certain previous govt had a plan to work cooperatively with local bodies and share the cost. But no not this lot. That plan which was being fine tuned by Keiran McNulty into a really good workable solution was dumped by this current lot and a plan that is going to cost more. Dumb and dumber

Dave's avatar

Although it's laughable, there is something depressing about having a Prime Minister who gets excited about rugby matches and road cones when there is a country to Govern.....always fail to understand why this approach is not constantly ridiculed by all media outlets.

Brian Rathbone's avatar

Exactly Dave, Luxon never fails to lower my mood.

Diana Coleman's avatar

I wonder if he realises that rugby league is a working class sport?

Dean Reynolds's avatar

The best part of the Nicola Willis cartoon is that she's being sprayed with human waste from Moa Point!

wikitoria's avatar

Three years ago, a local community agency in our small town advertised a presentation on how to prepare for a climate disaster.

We both thought, best put our names forward, it will be standing room only!

We were the only two who turned up! Sad!

It was a great presentation, we came away with some good useful information.

Disaster Preparedness? Hardly. Rather than being proactive, we'll resort to being reactive??

David Godfrey's avatar

Un fucking believable but goes with taking Kids Fattening Centre food by helicopter to victims of climate disaster on the East Coast.

Cheryl Johnstone's avatar

He did make sure the KFC label remained on display at all times. Credit where credit is due. (Joke)

John Farrell's avatar

Nancy Lu's encomium has the stink of AI about it...perhaps it hallucinated "no cameras called"?

wenz99's avatar

OMG..a rugby league game is going to save the nation ..

Darien Fenton's avatar

Even with the Verian poll out last night which had the CoC ahead of the Left Bloc, Nancy Lu will not be an MP come November. On that poll, National loses 6 seats and that leaves almost no room for list MPs. Nicola is top of the list of course, and then there's dear old Gerry. That will be their lot. They won't win any new seats either, but rather will lose some. I heard somewhere that National are going to stand Nancy in the old New Lynn seat, now Waitakere. Just happens to be my electorate hahaha and totally winnable by Vanushi Walters. BTW Labour gets five more seats on the poll, Greens lose 1, ACT stays the same and NZFirst picks up four new cooker MPs.

Nick Rockel's avatar

Surely Gerry will retire? He's been there a long time.

Christine van Beurden's avatar

Why? He does b*gg*r all, only has to sit there and pontificate, hardly a stretch

Darien Fenton's avatar

You would think so.

Jeff Dougal's avatar

Luxon...... Words fail me! He's beyond a joke now.

Diana Coleman's avatar

He’s been beyond a joke for some time now. So embarrassing, and as for the cringe worthy Ms Lu, she just one of many who seem hypnotised by the great egg.

Nigel Russell's avatar

Nancy Lu was probably hoping to improve her list position with Dear Leader and extend her stay in parliament with that post

Diane Shaw's avatar

Nancy's attempt at comedy - she's preparing for life post 2026 elections😀

Annie Blackwell's avatar

In my future, I see t-shirts emblazoned with: Where are the brollies for the rest of the country? ...well put, Nick xx

Jeremy Coleman's avatar

I don’t think Nicola and Luxo could have picked a more perfect time to cancel Labours $6 billion disaster resilience fund, showing yet again how their “financial responsibility”goes against everything sensible and leaving themselves and the coalition open to justifiable admonishment. I’m waiting with bated breath to find out how the Coalition will weasel talk their way around the billions our current climate crisis will cost, far above anything they’ve had to deal with so far. I reckon they’ll wish they hadn’t been so desperate to make Labour look like the prodigal son, once the bills start rolling in. Luxo will probably remember that he’s meant to be in a foreign land, begging for trade deals, so has to be out of touch for a month or so.

Maybe they could just take the same approach to that they had about Covid. The PM’s post disaster speech. “Let’s let nature take its course. Everything will dry out eventually, we may lose a few farms, roads, hick towns and anything else that’s not of “National” interest. Six months on nobody will notice the difference. Half of them will probably have buggered off to Australia anyway, and the Economy, the glorious Economy, will be saved. Over to you now Nicola””, try not to fuck it up this time”

That’s enough about them, now to the other “Original” matter.

I coincidentally sent the letter below to the Herald yesterday afternoon. It seems that we always have to attract foreign “stars” in whatever field their talents lie, rather than encourage the locals to show their own, homemade goods.

Subject: State of Origin

I’m finding Christopher Luxon’s, (and others’) enthusiasm to have a State of Origin League game played at Eden Park somewhat baffling. He says it will encourage New Zealand youth to get involved and grow the game, along with the economy, throughout the country. In case he hasn’t noticed, League, as well as SoO fixtures are already huge here among sports fans. I’m Australian and have followed these games since their inception, both in Australia and here, also along with many Kiwi friends.

Surely the money it will cost to hold the event at Eden Park would be better spent in investing in an Island of Origin three match competition for players already here who want to further their careers?

I don’t know how Louise Upston has worked out that the local economy would benefit by around $17 million, attracting 10,000 Aussie tourists, either. Most Aussies have TV’s and would be quite happy to watch the game with friends around for the evening. It would be a lot cheaper and it would also be closer to the fridge. (that’s very important!) I’m sure the ARL would want a healthy incentive to forgo the take at either a Brisbane or Sydney stadium, to help stage the event in Auckland. Apart from that, Eden Park has nothing to offer except being a great venue to showcase how sports grounds used to look in the early years. It’s long past its use by date, should be demolished and replaced by something worthy of the title of New Zealand’s national stadium. Yes, it has a long history, but no sport lives in the past.

Rugby is fast losing its attraction, League and Football are much faster and exciting games which need more attention.

To borrow an old motto from Greenpeace, “Think globally, act locally.