Omg. On one hand, it doesn't bear thinking about, but on the other, if we don't, we are REALLY screwed. Some days it feels like I'm living in the midst of the most cooked conspiracy theory that the foil-hatted would be envious of, if it weren't for the abundance of verifiable shittery that you, and others have been excavating and examining.
The Trump following in NZ is not surprising. I mean, look at us! We voted in this god-awful government and mysogyny is an easy go-to. The voting system in the USA is a weird system - the optimism with Harris is a glimmer of hope, but it's a scary, hard fight nationally.
We are going to have little impact on the policies of destruction this government has, but maybe we need to coalesce on giving media more immediate shit for unthinkingly biased headlines (aka copy & paste media release) that reinforce their narrative. The more time goes on I believe Luxon is the weakest link. He cannot stand the criticism and scrutiny. His ego is thin-skinned and he is easily shown to be inept, uninformed and a liar. The chink, the rusty weak spot in their armor. Apply salty water and the integrity of the structure is compromised. Hand me a bucket
I know what you mean Lynette. For a long time, I didn't even want to think about this stuff too. Why should we, and how bat-sh** does it all appear? But I was surprised, and really liked Bernie Sander's articulation of it - it's basically a play that has obviously been in operation in the States for a while.
And imagine the money behind it all -
Sanders:
"Right now, in the United States of America, three families control more wealth than the bottom half of our country, some 160 million Americans. The top 1% own more wealth than the bottom 92% and 49% of all new income generated today goes to the top 1%."
Imagine their anger at how NZ was going the liberal and "woke" way and how it kept shutting the development doors to rich foreign interests for far too long.
Well Covid really amped things up and gave them the perfect opportunity. Jacinda Adern was demonized in Murdoch papers - Fox, The Australian - and other right wing media for a long time and the messages have permeated through.
The resources the far right movement has is truly formidable. As I said to Susie today, what we have is numbers, but a lot of it will depend on us letting go of our innate complacency and laziness I suspect, otherwise there's really no chance to fight such wealth.
Re: Luxon, yes, he's weak and I don't think even that many on the right like him - I suspect he is a useful tool for now and if he becomes a liability they will merely swap him out closer to election time. I agree with you he's inept too, which is why him taking the face of the unpopular policies, may mean he has a longer term function.
Please excuse me if I have written about this before, but I can't emphasize it enough. I am reading a book called " The Invisible Doctrine" by George Monbiot and Peter Hutchison with a subtitle
'The Secret History of Neoliberalism, ( & How It Came to Control Your Life). It reads like the bible which this Government is following, step by step. That's why I like what Bernard Hickey intends to do. Instead of responding to all the shit being poured on us by the worst Government in my lifetime he is going to focus on the "what-ifs". Instead of despairing over the number of NZ'ers who support Trump let us focus on the fact that we are small enough to start sensible experiments which challenge neoliberal behavior and thinking. Both National and Labour are deeply committed to this ideology, and we need to support debate around sensible and serious alternatives. We have been challenged by the Royal Commission on Abuse in Care to rethink the Welfare State and our social contracts with each other. Instead of focusing on what a seriously twisted guy Simeon Brown is (and I find that hard to walk away from) we need to debate how we keep our villages and communities alive and inclusive and come up with answers to the questions raised by the Royal Commission. Businesses throughout NZ are struggling everywhere because of the orchestrated recession imposed on us by the Reserve Bank why not encourage a serious discussion between business and community leaders on how to promote local business and jobs and what alternatives there are to the Reserve Bank (another instrument of neoliberalism, imposed on us by the Labour Party). For 43 years I was a loyal Labour Party member and activist. I stood as a LP local government candidate 5 times successfully. I became a Life Member of the Party. I cut up my card during the term of the last Labour government. We have to find political alternatives, and this will only emerge from serious, intense, thoughtful, debates over a long period. In the meantime, National and Labour will continue searching for support parties to support their re-arranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.
Garry - I'd like to articulate a little further on my thoughts.
1. The National Coalition enjoy broad support in the electorate.
Why?
2. I'd contend they are skilful at exploiting narratives and self marketing
3. It's possible to preach to the choir, but it's much harder to bring larger swathes who are not in the activism or left camp along to render a new result
I'd say the work before us is a group and team tag effort - to work alongside each other whether in sharing information, forging solutions, or merely being willing/able to act with energy and momentum.
I have pondered new means for a while - but for now I still see my work as elevating awareness wherever I can.
They have mastered 'create a crisis', offer a (Oh, my it always seems to be privatised) solution. What I don't get is how weak the push back is, even when they fudge, misquote, make up, stats and figures that can easily be debunked. Today's news about Casey Costello denying the existence of, then releasing redacted with 'no known source' a document that directly translated (in parts almost word for word) into smoking health policy reforms is just astonishing.
Robin, I also searched for the Casey Costello news on NZME's NZ Herald earlier and again just now. Couldn't find it so if it is there, it's definitely not intended to be visible for their audiences.
(I'm pretty sure it's not even there or if it is, it's hidden away too well.)
Imagine the furore if this activity was someone from the Greens or TPM etc. indeed. When I look for old articles, they seemed to be constantly headlining with ACT or National attack lines. Not anymore.
Having watched some Parliamentary sessions, I think the opposition is on the attack, and asking reasonable, smart questions / providing good comment but it's not translating out for whatever reasons.
Money, reach, relationships, timidity - I suspect it's a bit of all that but mostly because the media doesn't have a lot of time for lines from the opposition.
Awareness, dialogue, but also a fundamentally resounding conclusion of NO to the status quo involves identifying problems' root causes, but also, I believe, identifying the patterns and tactics used to keep most of us within it.
There will be people along a spectrum of understanding, and I think it takes those who are farther down the line and/or creative and intelligent to establish new means.
All said, the power structures are formidable, so I think it will take something else to bring it all down too.
I recently challenged a journalist about their interpretation of Local Government. I said they were applying a Central Government lens to it. At a local Council table issues are debated issue by issue. Sometimes you work with an ally and other times you join with somebody who espouses quite different ideas. However, the common bond is caring about local issues and solutions. Local Government has much to teach NZ politically. It's about forming bonds with people who might say things in different ways but who agree on the essence of goodness and caring. That's our challenge right now and neither Labour nor National have any idea how to leave the path they have taken this country on.
Colonialism and patriarchy as well as white supremacy which is where capitalism has evolved from (PoC and females eradicated from history books to maintain the patriarchal status quo) are the main issues, the system is built for cis het white males to the exclusion of anyone else.
And then, if you're a white cis het female you're generally better off than anyone else who isn't white or doesn't generally fit into the conservative ideal (neoliberalism evolved from colonialism and capitalism and was never left, only far right and complicit with authoritarianism and fascism as well as white supremacy, look at who the three richest families in America are and also who the richest here are, they are all white and that is not by accident, that is by design.
The system is doing as intended, funnel money up, it is a giant ponzi scheme as well as a game of jenga, you can only take out so many bricks before it collapses, we are in the pre collapse stage, hence the rise of the far right and their puppeteers.
I have so many thoughts! A lot of which would probably be inflammatory to the anti-right, but I think, in essence, that's 'our' problem? The right/conservatives are kinda bonded in their pursuit of personal gain. The how may vary, but the goal has so many benefits, who cares how you get there? Luxon will be content for the mileage "I used to run a country" will provide outside of the country he sacrificed to achieve that. It is a continuance of centuries of the entitlement of power over others that they rely on. Being 'better' than others runs in the blood. They expect the rest of us to go along with that, be intimidated and kowtow to the power they have over us.
I think 'our' problem out here on the left (and I'm being brave now to say it out loud), is our pursuit of righteousness buries us from action. We seem to exhaust ourselves in the intellectual discussion and justification of our position. Yes, I am aware of my own contribution to this, and I hate confrontation, although not intimidated in person. But I also feel that the arrogance of the right (how on earth did they manage to secure that word!) enables them to gain so much traction.
I don't know where I'm going with this, apart from I wish we were less 'clever' and more visceral
A lot of what Sanders calls oligarchs are business men and women so to them I suspect it's really about knowing how to co-ordinate to achieve shared interests.
And yes you're right about Luxon. Like Liz Truss, people like this will try to ride their "resume" in the same way he uses his time at Air NZ to boast of something better, and to promote himself to higher levels of the echelon.
All rather vapid in my view, but what I do I know.
The left has many problems, and righteousness is probably one of them. I've been reflecting on how I wouldn't want to be a left wing government - imagine the expectations - and I hope those who care about what is happening, which I believe is many people in our great country, will find a way to unite and pool resources and voices before it's .. too late ?
Another very good read Tui. I certainly am very aware of the horrors of Seymour and his Atlas connection but it's not until one reads it all in one piece that one fully understands the insidious extent of the whole thing.
Thanks Cheryl, probably the hardest part of the work for me is translating what's obvious and instinctive out so it's possibly more cogent and clear to others reading. So thanks for this piece of feedback. I appreciate it.
Just did a rambling waffle about house fires & fire brigades, and how theirs is a team effort with not all being allowed to drive the truck but all of them are on board & alert to danger, with ALL being integral to success, and then POOF! the screen went blank... I guess I want to know who is our engine driver? More than willing to unfurl the hose, don breathing apparatus etc. but we have to GET THERE FIRST!
Acknowledgement there IS a house on fire is essential, but we need to put in the work to extinguish the smaller flames before they get to that stage, and train like mad to evict the arsonists when we get the chance.
Totally agree. I've been watching it gathering moment here since the rise of the Covid cookers. It is definitely here. NZ is being targeted by the same forces and under this current govt its being executed fast. Luxon is essentially christo-fascist. Seymour is just plain evil. Winston is a grifter who will take whatever he can. Its glaringly obvious now.
A provocative article. Where does Sean Plunkett joke about a pogrom happening here? It is hard to believe one could joke about that. And Seymour is looking like he has his own kind of ideology, that I dont agree with. Was he being interviewed at the time? I am thinking of challenging his opinion that children are racially colourblind. I like a good argument, and he seems the type who always has to be right.
Omg. On one hand, it doesn't bear thinking about, but on the other, if we don't, we are REALLY screwed. Some days it feels like I'm living in the midst of the most cooked conspiracy theory that the foil-hatted would be envious of, if it weren't for the abundance of verifiable shittery that you, and others have been excavating and examining.
The Trump following in NZ is not surprising. I mean, look at us! We voted in this god-awful government and mysogyny is an easy go-to. The voting system in the USA is a weird system - the optimism with Harris is a glimmer of hope, but it's a scary, hard fight nationally.
We are going to have little impact on the policies of destruction this government has, but maybe we need to coalesce on giving media more immediate shit for unthinkingly biased headlines (aka copy & paste media release) that reinforce their narrative. The more time goes on I believe Luxon is the weakest link. He cannot stand the criticism and scrutiny. His ego is thin-skinned and he is easily shown to be inept, uninformed and a liar. The chink, the rusty weak spot in their armor. Apply salty water and the integrity of the structure is compromised. Hand me a bucket
I know what you mean Lynette. For a long time, I didn't even want to think about this stuff too. Why should we, and how bat-sh** does it all appear? But I was surprised, and really liked Bernie Sander's articulation of it - it's basically a play that has obviously been in operation in the States for a while.
And imagine the money behind it all -
Sanders:
"Right now, in the United States of America, three families control more wealth than the bottom half of our country, some 160 million Americans. The top 1% own more wealth than the bottom 92% and 49% of all new income generated today goes to the top 1%."
Imagine their anger at how NZ was going the liberal and "woke" way and how it kept shutting the development doors to rich foreign interests for far too long.
Well Covid really amped things up and gave them the perfect opportunity. Jacinda Adern was demonized in Murdoch papers - Fox, The Australian - and other right wing media for a long time and the messages have permeated through.
The resources the far right movement has is truly formidable. As I said to Susie today, what we have is numbers, but a lot of it will depend on us letting go of our innate complacency and laziness I suspect, otherwise there's really no chance to fight such wealth.
Re: Luxon, yes, he's weak and I don't think even that many on the right like him - I suspect he is a useful tool for now and if he becomes a liability they will merely swap him out closer to election time. I agree with you he's inept too, which is why him taking the face of the unpopular policies, may mean he has a longer term function.
Please excuse me if I have written about this before, but I can't emphasize it enough. I am reading a book called " The Invisible Doctrine" by George Monbiot and Peter Hutchison with a subtitle
'The Secret History of Neoliberalism, ( & How It Came to Control Your Life). It reads like the bible which this Government is following, step by step. That's why I like what Bernard Hickey intends to do. Instead of responding to all the shit being poured on us by the worst Government in my lifetime he is going to focus on the "what-ifs". Instead of despairing over the number of NZ'ers who support Trump let us focus on the fact that we are small enough to start sensible experiments which challenge neoliberal behavior and thinking. Both National and Labour are deeply committed to this ideology, and we need to support debate around sensible and serious alternatives. We have been challenged by the Royal Commission on Abuse in Care to rethink the Welfare State and our social contracts with each other. Instead of focusing on what a seriously twisted guy Simeon Brown is (and I find that hard to walk away from) we need to debate how we keep our villages and communities alive and inclusive and come up with answers to the questions raised by the Royal Commission. Businesses throughout NZ are struggling everywhere because of the orchestrated recession imposed on us by the Reserve Bank why not encourage a serious discussion between business and community leaders on how to promote local business and jobs and what alternatives there are to the Reserve Bank (another instrument of neoliberalism, imposed on us by the Labour Party). For 43 years I was a loyal Labour Party member and activist. I stood as a LP local government candidate 5 times successfully. I became a Life Member of the Party. I cut up my card during the term of the last Labour government. We have to find political alternatives, and this will only emerge from serious, intense, thoughtful, debates over a long period. In the meantime, National and Labour will continue searching for support parties to support their re-arranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.
Garry - I'd like to articulate a little further on my thoughts.
1. The National Coalition enjoy broad support in the electorate.
Why?
2. I'd contend they are skilful at exploiting narratives and self marketing
3. It's possible to preach to the choir, but it's much harder to bring larger swathes who are not in the activism or left camp along to render a new result
I'd say the work before us is a group and team tag effort - to work alongside each other whether in sharing information, forging solutions, or merely being willing/able to act with energy and momentum.
I have pondered new means for a while - but for now I still see my work as elevating awareness wherever I can.
Tui
They have mastered 'create a crisis', offer a (Oh, my it always seems to be privatised) solution. What I don't get is how weak the push back is, even when they fudge, misquote, make up, stats and figures that can easily be debunked. Today's news about Casey Costello denying the existence of, then releasing redacted with 'no known source' a document that directly translated (in parts almost word for word) into smoking health policy reforms is just astonishing.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/in-depth/526139/revealed-politically-charged-tobacco-policy-document-that-nz-first-minister-casey-costello-tried-to-hide
Robin, I also searched for the Casey Costello news on NZME's NZ Herald earlier and again just now. Couldn't find it so if it is there, it's definitely not intended to be visible for their audiences.
(I'm pretty sure it's not even there or if it is, it's hidden away too well.)
Imagine the furore if this activity was someone from the Greens or TPM etc. indeed. When I look for old articles, they seemed to be constantly headlining with ACT or National attack lines. Not anymore.
Having watched some Parliamentary sessions, I think the opposition is on the attack, and asking reasonable, smart questions / providing good comment but it's not translating out for whatever reasons.
Money, reach, relationships, timidity - I suspect it's a bit of all that but mostly because the media doesn't have a lot of time for lines from the opposition.
Here is Casey saying Labour is too fixated on tobacco - https://mountaintui.substack.com/p/casey-costello-gaslights-labour-in?utm_source=publication-search
Did it get coverage? Not a dot out there that I found.
And I hope those efforts succeed, Garry.
Awareness, dialogue, but also a fundamentally resounding conclusion of NO to the status quo involves identifying problems' root causes, but also, I believe, identifying the patterns and tactics used to keep most of us within it.
There will be people along a spectrum of understanding, and I think it takes those who are farther down the line and/or creative and intelligent to establish new means.
All said, the power structures are formidable, so I think it will take something else to bring it all down too.
I recently challenged a journalist about their interpretation of Local Government. I said they were applying a Central Government lens to it. At a local Council table issues are debated issue by issue. Sometimes you work with an ally and other times you join with somebody who espouses quite different ideas. However, the common bond is caring about local issues and solutions. Local Government has much to teach NZ politically. It's about forming bonds with people who might say things in different ways but who agree on the essence of goodness and caring. That's our challenge right now and neither Labour nor National have any idea how to leave the path they have taken this country on.
Yes working with people for the common good is important. Thanks Garry.
Colonialism and patriarchy as well as white supremacy which is where capitalism has evolved from (PoC and females eradicated from history books to maintain the patriarchal status quo) are the main issues, the system is built for cis het white males to the exclusion of anyone else.
And then, if you're a white cis het female you're generally better off than anyone else who isn't white or doesn't generally fit into the conservative ideal (neoliberalism evolved from colonialism and capitalism and was never left, only far right and complicit with authoritarianism and fascism as well as white supremacy, look at who the three richest families in America are and also who the richest here are, they are all white and that is not by accident, that is by design.
The system is doing as intended, funnel money up, it is a giant ponzi scheme as well as a game of jenga, you can only take out so many bricks before it collapses, we are in the pre collapse stage, hence the rise of the far right and their puppeteers.
I have so many thoughts! A lot of which would probably be inflammatory to the anti-right, but I think, in essence, that's 'our' problem? The right/conservatives are kinda bonded in their pursuit of personal gain. The how may vary, but the goal has so many benefits, who cares how you get there? Luxon will be content for the mileage "I used to run a country" will provide outside of the country he sacrificed to achieve that. It is a continuance of centuries of the entitlement of power over others that they rely on. Being 'better' than others runs in the blood. They expect the rest of us to go along with that, be intimidated and kowtow to the power they have over us.
I think 'our' problem out here on the left (and I'm being brave now to say it out loud), is our pursuit of righteousness buries us from action. We seem to exhaust ourselves in the intellectual discussion and justification of our position. Yes, I am aware of my own contribution to this, and I hate confrontation, although not intimidated in person. But I also feel that the arrogance of the right (how on earth did they manage to secure that word!) enables them to gain so much traction.
I don't know where I'm going with this, apart from I wish we were less 'clever' and more visceral
A lot of what Sanders calls oligarchs are business men and women so to them I suspect it's really about knowing how to co-ordinate to achieve shared interests.
And yes you're right about Luxon. Like Liz Truss, people like this will try to ride their "resume" in the same way he uses his time at Air NZ to boast of something better, and to promote himself to higher levels of the echelon.
All rather vapid in my view, but what I do I know.
The left has many problems, and righteousness is probably one of them. I've been reflecting on how I wouldn't want to be a left wing government - imagine the expectations - and I hope those who care about what is happening, which I believe is many people in our great country, will find a way to unite and pool resources and voices before it's .. too late ?
Another very good read Tui. I certainly am very aware of the horrors of Seymour and his Atlas connection but it's not until one reads it all in one piece that one fully understands the insidious extent of the whole thing.
Thanks Cheryl, probably the hardest part of the work for me is translating what's obvious and instinctive out so it's possibly more cogent and clear to others reading. So thanks for this piece of feedback. I appreciate it.
Just did a rambling waffle about house fires & fire brigades, and how theirs is a team effort with not all being allowed to drive the truck but all of them are on board & alert to danger, with ALL being integral to success, and then POOF! the screen went blank... I guess I want to know who is our engine driver? More than willing to unfurl the hose, don breathing apparatus etc. but we have to GET THERE FIRST!
Acknowledgement there IS a house on fire is essential, but we need to put in the work to extinguish the smaller flames before they get to that stage, and train like mad to evict the arsonists when we get the chance.
I love this, like I love nearly all of your comments. Your comment gives me a few ideas and I'll write more about that tomorrow.
PS Sorry you lost your work - argh, but I think your analogy is perfect.
Have been saying this since last year, trans people (I am trans) are the canaries in the coal mine and the genocide has already started against us.
I thought of you when I wrote this, and I remember my point was:
1. Meeting extremity with extreme speech may not render the result we desire and
2. It matters how we articulate and explain too
Having said that, I am more of your view now in terms that there are authoritarian tactics being employed.
Thanks kiera.
Totally agree. I've been watching it gathering moment here since the rise of the Covid cookers. It is definitely here. NZ is being targeted by the same forces and under this current govt its being executed fast. Luxon is essentially christo-fascist. Seymour is just plain evil. Winston is a grifter who will take whatever he can. Its glaringly obvious now.
A provocative article. Where does Sean Plunkett joke about a pogrom happening here? It is hard to believe one could joke about that. And Seymour is looking like he has his own kind of ideology, that I dont agree with. Was he being interviewed at the time? I am thinking of challenging his opinion that children are racially colourblind. I like a good argument, and he seems the type who always has to be right.