tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post2080274985055045128..comments2024-03-29T17:12:19.648+13:00Comments on Bowalley Road: The Judith Collins-Led National Party: Be Scared – Be Very Scared.Chris Trotterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09081613281183460899noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-29945114332841312012020-07-25T23:00:34.240+12:002020-07-25T23:00:34.240+12:00Wasn't Jeremy Corbyn's style to be anti-se...Wasn't Jeremy Corbyn's style to be anti-semetic and a supporter of Hamas terrorists? I believe he called <b>them</b> his "close friends... rouppehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07446734587426078093noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-58238819396531552652020-07-17T19:37:58.538+12:002020-07-17T19:37:58.538+12:00Chris
I read your blog and comment occasionally b...Chris<br /><br />I read your blog and comment occasionally because it's important to be informed by voices that are intuitively contrary to what you hold to be true, even when there is some overlap in worldview. <br /><br />You are a person of the left, insightful politically astute, but like all of us still weighted with your personal blind spots. You said: "If Jacinda is able to embarrass her opponent severely, then there is every chance Collins will reveal her dark side. That would be “Game Over”. The second way to counter Collins’ attack-lines is for Labour to give Jacinda a comprehensive and popular recovery package to defend."<br /><br />I have some empathy for Jacinda. She is a young mother cast into the most important political role in our country, and for the most part proving to be empathetic but completely out of her depth. What is worse, she is surrounded by fellow travelers whose competence is not about to disturb the Richter scale. She is doing her best with what she has to hand, and she should be acknowledged for that. This doesn't make her re-electable.<br /><br />She may be able to embarrass Judith with her rhetoric, but it's unlikely, and I doubt most voters care about political point scoring. Your second hope of Labour providing her with a credible economic recovery package is even less likely given their lack of intellectual heft.<br /><br />Does this mean that Labour cannot win the next election? No! of course they are in there with better than average odds. But can we really afford another three years of an inept government characterized by Kiwi Build failures? Even Labour voters in the deepest recesses of their hearts must believe we deserve better.<br /><br />The lesson to learn from Labour's failures in office is that we must start to move away from believing that politicians hold the key to our economic and social prosperity. I have never believed that, not for one moment, but their systemic incompetence ought to be a warning to us all. And in that description I include the National party.<br /><br />There is no salvation to be found in the beehive regardless of who owns the top floor. Let's widen our gaze, and begin to look for those commercial and social entrepreneurs that are able to make a difference. Those who don't look for funding from the State, but whose ideas and passion gather support from the investment and wider community, those who are prepared to risk their capital for social and economic improvement for all New Zealanders. Those people are out there, and their investment is far more likely to 'lift all boats' than an exhausted and bankrupt political class regardless of label. <br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /> Brendan McNeillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02741263914308842497noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-69354012715394038852020-07-17T14:12:40.295+12:002020-07-17T14:12:40.295+12:00” Boldness and imagination is not to be expected f...” Boldness and imagination is not to be expected from this government – and Judith Collins knows it….With considerable justification, however, Collins is betting that such a recovery plan is beyond the capacity of the 2020 Labour Party.”<br /><br />Labour 6.0 have painted themselves into a corner using the Politics of Fear.<br /><br />Their gambit in confronting the Collins Train? <br /><br />“Regional lockdowns on cards…A role for the military”;Checkpoints, soldiers, door-to-door testing: NZ’s new Covid outbreak plan!<br /><br />More fear!<br /><br />Oh, unless you count Space Jobs for Invercargill! Without boldness and imagination, Labour can only go authoritarian and try to scare us into voting for them. Who should we be more afraid of?Rickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06315796390662297759noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-690517115005169512020-07-17T09:38:25.166+12:002020-07-17T09:38:25.166+12:00Chris I really admire your willingness to publish ...Chris I really admire your willingness to publish personal criticism and to admit when you are in error.Well done.Simon Cohenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06202401809274517356noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-53917002681702526122020-07-17T02:20:58.155+12:002020-07-17T02:20:58.155+12:00'Don't let the past remind us of what we a...'Don't let the past remind us of what we are not now' - Suite Judy Blue Eyes: Steven Stills<br />(written about the other Judy Collins)<br />In politics, timing is everything. Right wing populist bullies came to power in the UK and USA. A core group of Nats looked on enviously. They had their own, if only they could get her to the leadership. She would sort the wimpy empathy the NZ PM showed after the Christchurch Mosque and White Island. Then came Covid19. The world changed and the Trumps and Johnsons were exposed. The leadership shown in New Zealand became the envy of the world.<br />Tone deaf to the change, the Nats regathered themselves, after the footnote that was Muller, and put in place Judith Collins. Should we be scared? It is difficult to have total confidence that the shift in politics under Jacinda is seismic and lasting, but the likelihood is that NZ don't want to go back to the style of politics Collins offers, which may just come across as dangerous and dated.The Post-Covid, BLM world may well move past the Rights infantile need to be dominated and opponents belittled. <br /> The Barronnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-73084608774778672322020-07-17T00:19:21.156+12:002020-07-17T00:19:21.156+12:00In response to comment by Trev1: Definition of neo...In response to comment by Trev1: Definition of neoliberalism: <br /><br />https://www.investopedia.com/terms/n/neoliberalism.asp<br /><br />In the NZ context: Rogernomics as practiced by both Labour and National (E.g Ruth Richardson)can be described as neoliberalism in action. <br />Dr Whonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-81616174837012331852020-07-16T22:06:54.045+12:002020-07-16T22:06:54.045+12:00To: Lindsay Mitchell & Simon Cohen.
The last ...To: Lindsay Mitchell & Simon Cohen.<br /><br />The last British general election was on 12 December 2019, Lindsay. Corbyn was replaced by Keir Starmer in 2020.<br /><br />I stand corrected, Simon. Corbyn achieved a net gain of 30 seats in 2017 - a marked improvement on his immediate predecessors. Not a patch on Tony Blair's effort in 1997, however. Full credit to you for taking the time to check. Clearly, I was misinformed - almost certainly by the socialist press!Chris Trotterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09081613281183460899noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-84224512198330018892020-07-16T18:04:12.181+12:002020-07-16T18:04:12.181+12:00Corbyn bombed in 2020. Your 'maybes' are a...Corbyn bombed in 2020. Your 'maybes' are as useful as the NZ Right's 'maybes' over 'if Winston hadn't picked Jacinda...' What the electoral system delivers is final. I don't read the 'Tory Press'. I followed the UK Election live and watched the northern counties turn blue. Lindsay Mitchellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04437693272797130833noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-57733310881155880442020-07-16T17:39:23.785+12:002020-07-16T17:39:23.785+12:00Chris,you mention the propaganda pieces of the Tor...Chris,you mention the propaganda pieces of the Tory press.Perhaps you would be wise to think about whether the term propaganda might be applied to what you write.I do not hold any brief for Judith Collins but I abhor inaccurate statements made in support of a point of view.You say:<br />Jeremy Corbyn presented his "For the Many, Not the Few" manifesto to the British people in June 2017. He won more seats for Labour in that election than any Labour leader since Clement Attlee.<br />Perhaps in the light of that statement you would like to comment on the following which is a list of all the elections since 1951 [when Clement Attlee was a wonderful Prime Minister who I remember very fondly] when Labour have won more seats than the 262 they won in 2017.<br />1955. 277<br />1964. 317<br />1966. 364<br />1970. 288<br />1974. 301<br />1974. 319<br />1979. 269<br />1992. 271<br />1997. 419<br />2001. 413<br />2005. 356.<br />From this it can be seen that Corbyn's 262 seats in 2017 and 203 seats in 2019 highlight his position as probably the most unsuccessful leader of the Labour Party [with the exception of Michael Foot]since the second world war.<br />And this is not propaganda from the Tory press !!!!Simon Cohenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06202401809274517356noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-79560580008108360982020-07-16T15:22:27.898+12:002020-07-16T15:22:27.898+12:00My understanding of neoliberalism is markets rulin...My understanding of neoliberalism is markets ruling across social boundaries. Harcourts Shanghai. Ha-Joon Chang in <i>23 Things They Don't Tell You about Capitalism</i> argues that markets are political constructs? John Hurleynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-48243844483826179472020-07-16T13:49:02.316+12:002020-07-16T13:49:02.316+12:00To: Lindsay Mitchell & Simon Cohen.
Jeremy Co...To: Lindsay Mitchell & Simon Cohen.<br /><br />Jeremy Corbyn presented his "For the Many, Not the Few" manifesto to the British people in June 2017. He won more seats for Labour in that election than any Labour leader since Clement Attlee. If his predecessors in the job had been able to position Labour a little nearer the FPP finish-line, then he may even have become Prime Minister.<br /><br />But, as Paul Keating so rightly observed: "A souffle doesn't rise twice." Corbyn's failure to lance the antisemitism boil and his refusal to back the judgement of Labour's most loyal voters over Brexit set him up for the Gotterdammerung of December 2019.<br /><br />It is often helpful to read more than the propaganda pieces of the Tory press. History - event very recent history - usually has great deal more to it than the headline writers are willing to admit.Chris Trotterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09081613281183460899noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-15679436477582625082020-07-16T11:17:00.336+12:002020-07-16T11:17:00.336+12:00Jacinda's achilies heel is when she says she &...Jacinda's achilies heel is when she says she "leaves issues about [Hamilton] statues to the community". As though the community (Christchurch) had any say in a library that turns it's face away from the people who represented 98% of the city for it's first 121 years. That's her pit bull. And the snide people who tweet that Christchurch "too often feels very white at times" (while advising Age Concern and National Health Foundation). And NZ On Air whose documentary making seeks to "disrupt the colonial narrative". And RNZ where Guyon Espiner "loves winding that sort up" (and Steve Maharey agrees "there's going to be a lot more of it"). <br />https://merionwest.com/2019/12/17/the-best-kept-secret-of-our-political-divide/?fbclid=IwAR0quEjI_4d5qxuNgg-M1O4hFlbjAqoO6BuBQvFXXOx6YDiNjkH4ttzGR3oJohn Hurleynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-92202599950174643092020-07-16T10:26:42.222+12:002020-07-16T10:26:42.222+12:00On reflection, would not the most successful Parli...On reflection, would not the most successful Parliamentary Opposition be in not just only criticizing and opposing, but in utilizing every opportunity for publicizing what it considers a more promising and successful alternative or future, and agreeing (with possible amendments) and even supporting the govt. in emergencies ?<br /><br />If so, then Collins' most promising prospect might not be in strengthened neo-liberalism, but in resurrecting emphasis on the "property owning democracy" vision with a systematic effort to achieve adequate personal wealth ownership potential for 100% of citizens eventually. <br /><br />Since Labour is unlikely to respond to that with totalitarian State Monopoly Capitalism, and wealth redistributing welfare is always limited by the economic capacity to deliver, we then would achieve an economically very positively competitive political culture.Jens Mederhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17304734497662325275noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-64533750059811851812020-07-16T09:48:12.084+12:002020-07-16T09:48:12.084+12:00Of course, if Jacinda was able to laugh Collins of...Of course, if Jacinda was able to laugh Collins off the stage and argue passionately for a Jeremy Corbyn-style “For the Many, Not the Few” election manifesto, then Labour’s leader would be unstoppable.<br />I just wonder Chris why you believe that this would be unstoppable.It was hardly a success in the United Kingdom.Simon Cohenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06202401809274517356noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-91368886827057125062020-07-16T09:36:41.151+12:002020-07-16T09:36:41.151+12:00Following the sinking of the SS Shambolic and the ...Following the sinking of the SS Shambolic and the disappearance of Kapt Muller a new but old attack vessel left the crumbling National party dock to hunt down the HMS Labour. With a hiss and a roar the SS Death Star with the cunning Countess Collins at the helm and a few less rats aboard caught the last wave on the outgoing tide. Things were not right though, the SS Death Star had already developed some leaks along with a noticeable list to starboard. The loose cannons aboard the SS Death Star had been shackled but the balls were rolling and the powder had become wet.<br /><br />Meanwhile aboard the HMS Labour Admiral Ardern gave a wry smile poured herself a single malt and continued reading...... "Strange women lying in ponds, distributing swords, is no basis for a system of government!" ..... Katnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-19177563046803666172020-07-16T09:07:13.141+12:002020-07-16T09:07:13.141+12:00Time to frighten the children with that hoary old ...Time to frighten the children with that hoary old monster "neoliberalism" again? If personal responsibility and self reliance are "neoliberalism", then I want some. If valuing diversity of thought over diversity of skin colour (as Collins quipped yesterday) is "neoliberalism", then give me a double helping please. How refreshing.Trev1https://www.blogger.com/profile/00271717267778957672noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3753486518085091399.post-49565015140732503612020-07-16T07:40:43.091+12:002020-07-16T07:40:43.091+12:00"Of course, if Jacinda was able to laugh Coll..."Of course, if Jacinda was able to laugh Collins off the stage and argue passionately for a Jeremy Corbyn-style “For the Many, Not the Few” election manifesto, then Labour’s leader would be unstoppable."<br /><br />The way Corbyn was "unstoppable"?Lindsay Mitchellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04437693272797130833noreply@blogger.com