13 Comments

So many things in this to agree with and feel despondent over. The three waters debacle remains the most shameful example how New Zealand bought the racist lie that Maori were in some way being afforded special rights. 'Cutting off one's nose to spite your face' is so apposite as an explanation of outcomes of actions. I always enjoy when biblical writings expose the fraudulent inherently non-Chrustion behaviour of the likes of Luxon and Brian Tamaki. I'm reminded, always, of the passage regarding 'rich men, camels and the eye of the needle'!

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💯 Mike, it's a bloody tragedy all in all. There's a local guy in my town who is Maori and adorns his car with sovereignty flags and hand painted protest slogans who drove around for months with 'stop 3 waters' writ large across the sides of his vehicle. Unfortunately he was impossible to engage with due to his hauora hinengaro but had obviously, to me anyway, being taken in by the disinformation campaign. We are seeing that tactic used unrelentingly since this corrupt lot came into power.

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And they are continuing it. And so many Kiwis buy in and continue to - the media is also useless overall to battle this type of disinformation campaign from a NZ government.

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So true Mike!

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The Waitangi thing, it just shows how completely out of touch and just stupid this man is.

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Another good and thought provoking read. Many thanks

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The comments. Oh, the hell that is the comments of the propagandised and willfully ignorant. It seems that people just love being petty little hate machines when they're not busy being the dutiful units of work that the government is forming them into. Depressing...

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Renee what you say is poignant. I wasted some hours yesterday, feeling compelled to respond (very formally and courteously) to the comments on a Herald article (I got a VERY cheap sub). I am realising this is like Orwell's 1984. ("How many fingers am I holding up?") It is crazy to engage with. It is disinformation-madness, it seems to erase all memories, all direct experiences and replace them with monosyllables of propaganda.

Orwell called it doublethink. He said it was the most dangerous thing of all.

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It is - and what Simeon Brown and this government are engaging with is dangerous and damaging. All for power.

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I am proud to be a paid subscriber so I can digest facts, and come to my own conclusions! Deeply grateful to MT, Nick, Mr G and several others!! 👍🌟🍀🙏

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Thanks for the analysis. Just a note on Te Pāti Māori statement that they would revoke Fast Track Consents. Important to know that if the Regulatory Standards Bill passes, that would be insanely expensive for the government to do, as consent holders could sue the government for fair compensation for their property rights being taken (potentially all future profits would be included). Just one example of the vast implications of the RSB

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An outstanding comment. I almost can't believe how it's barely covered by the media.

It reminds me, Melanie, of how this government postulated that they would find ways to help oil and gas companies from any future governments, by for example, offering to pay them a fine if another government changed our oil and gas laws.

An extraordinary time and so little awareness, among Kiwis, writ large.

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Thanks MT, ignoble is a great description

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