Caption Contest

Ah, the internet. Oh sooo good in sooo many ways! But can we do better than the caption already there?

Racist Labour?

Liberty Scott blogs here about Ruth Dyson's latest press release in her capacity as Labour's Health Spokesperson.

He laments the fact that Labour seem to believe that people simply cannot think for themselves. That without government there to enforce some dietary regime through whatever programs might be necessary, people simply couldn't grasp the idea that a better diet and exercise might help them lose weight.

I'm astonished. Changing your diet is impossible without the government. The carefully hidden knowledge that eating mostly vegetables, fruit, lean meat, fish and cereals, and avoiding high fat and high sugar foods helps you lose weight is something that almost nobody knows surely. In addition, without the government how COULD people go to the gym, or go for a walk or swim?

However, I'm interested in the fact that in the full press release Ms Dyson singles out Counties Manakau as her example. Is it these particular people that can't think for themselves, Ruth? And why would that be? Is it because Counties Manakau has a very high proportion of Maori and Pacific Island residents?

Ms Dyson says in her press release that it is because oh the propensity for the population towards Type Two Diabetes? Could be. Diabetes is slightly more prevalent in Counties Manakau than other places in New Zealand (116 hospitalizations per 100,000 people versus the 92 per 100,000 average across the country) but then again - no where near the record 246 per 100,000. So why Counties Manakau? According to the Counties Manakau District Health Board, there are at least 13 different, if not equal or greater health challenges to it's populace.

Before going too much further, I don't think that Ruth Dyson is a bad person. I believe that she is doing the best she can with what shes got in the Labour framework that she has chosen to inhabit.

And there lies the rub. Labour's condescension towards people - and Maori and Pacific Islanders in particular - is evident in their thinking, as Ruth has demonstrated. Labour seems to believe that they need to talk to Maori and Pacific Islanders as if they were children - sometimes wayward children - as demonstrated by their boorish and rude approach to morehu at this years Ratana service described by this article on Young Labour's website.

Labour clearly believe that this population segment cannot think for themselves. They obviously have no aspiration or intelligence and what they so firmly need is a clear and fatherly guiding hand. A Micky Savage-like figure to dispense justice, wisdom and to be told what to do. Why else would Ruth nominate Counties Manakau as her example? Why else would Shane Jones castigate Maori so for daring to rise up with their own representative voice? After all, says Phil Goff, they are only ordinary people, not intelligent freethinking individuals in their own right who have goals and desires and who, given the opportunity, would work tooth and nail to achieve them.

Labour just don't get it. They still can't work out why they were thrown out at the last election and this is a reason why. Their evident racism and condescension towards these "ordinary people" was wearing thin and people wanted someone who believes that we can all do well - no matter what race, colour or creed.

I keep on saying it: we need a coherent and responsible opposition in parliament for our democracy to work. At the moment, the Labour Party is neither of those two things.



Hat Tip: Kiwiblog, Liberty Scott

Statistics: CMDHB Website, CMDHB Health Profile, May 2001

Goff gets something right!!!

For the life of me but I can't think as to why this guy has not been Prime Minister before? And then this timely reminder.

Goff says "You'll just have to put up with me".

Ha! You know it, Phil! In fact Phil, please refer here to see why there is an extremely small chance you will be. Relevant, that is.

Bless the Beasts and......... the Firefighters?

Awesome.

Just when you think the Americans are all about the dollar, they go and spend thousands on 50 firefighters and various resources to rescue.......................a dog. Some say you can judge a society on how well it treats those who have no voice.

Good on'em I say.

Flying a True New Zealand Flag

John Ansell and Kenneth Wang have a fantastic idea here at John's blog - instead of waiting for referenda ad infinitum, take a leaf out of Nike's page book and "Just Do It".

Their idea is to literally fly a true  representative New Zealand flag (and not someone elses idea off what a flag should look like) over the Auckland Harbour Bridge on Waitangi Day using a helicopter.

You can donate to the cost - about $20,000 - by emailing John at john@johnansell.co.nz

Unleash the Cougers!

Ladies and Gentlemen,................... I am distressed!

I have just read Stuff's take on Air New Zealand's fantastic viral campaign to Save the Cougar. With contributions from eminent and distinguished people such as Rosemary McLeod (Huh?), Victoria University associate professor Delores Janiewski (that is more like it) and, finally, the comedienne Penny Ashton (I thought I wrote eminent and distinguished?), this piece must surely be authoritative and informative.

Bollocks, bollocks, bollocks.

Firstly, Prof. Janiewski weighs in and says " the ad was funny and cheeky". Then the Professor moderates her comments a little and says:

but it was hard to tell whether the ad was encouraging or denigrating single women.

Mmmm. Thanks for that, Professor. She obviously have a funny bone however is too scared to admit it in public lest she have her job ripped away from her by being painted a "sexist cow" for making comments that might seem to offend 0.2% of the population.

If the Professor's comments couldn't help you formulate your opinion then have no fear. That towering intellectual heavyweight, Penny Ashton is here to set things right!

However, Auckland comedian and poet Penny Ashton said the ad was sexist, and painting women as predators and men as their feeble prey "incensed" her.
"Men are not helpless. Surely if you say no a couple of times it should work?"

Sexist, eh? Incensed, you say Penny. Poor woman! Someone who knows Penny please call 111 immediately!  No doubt the girl is a slobbering, catatonic mess on her kitchen floor and requires medical attention after this vicious assault on her senses. Oh, the horror.

Lastly, "Dame" Rosemary McLeod chimes in to ad her take. She said the ad was "lame" and that:

"I think older women should think very carefully before tackling young men in gay bars, as disappointment is bound to follow."

And this is why Rosemary McLeod should be knighted - or at least tapped on either shoulder with a large stainless steel spoon . She doesn't really care for the ad yet Rosemary doesn't let that get in the way of a bit of humour and more to the point doesn't let something she doesn't particularly like overwhelm her.

Personally, I thought the ad was extremely good, not only for the content but for the style and manner it was delivered. Well done Air New Zealand! Innovative advertising, eh? It's no wonder you were voted the worlds best airline. Really, this piece by Esther Hayward in the Sunday Star Times couldn't have played out better. I think I will fly with you all the time now and thumb my nose at the others. Job done!


I suspect, however, Penny may not be overly happy and unless someone else is making and paying for any travel arrangements (a performers preferred travel option), Air New Zealand could well be on her shit list. Poor Air New Zealand.


C'mon Penny - harden up!


Is your poor ego really that fragile as to let a viral campaign on the internet completely defrock you (or should that be unman)? This is a funny ad. I'm not really sorry that you don't like it - there are ads out there that make men out to be complete and utter, bumbling oafs (think any washing powder ad with a male in it) but I don't get "incensed". It's comedy - surely you must recognise that. Apparently, along with poetry, that's your profession.

And this, Ladies and Gentlemen, is what distresses me. Where has New Zealand's ability to laugh at itself gone? Gosh, we take ourselves so seriously. That "cougers" are out there, there is no doubt. With the emancipation of woman this was always going to happen - a woman was going to go out and get her some lovin! Fantastic. And it is a funny situation. If you've ever seen an older woman seduce a younger man (cue: Simon and Garfunkel music) you will chuckle all night long.


So, for Christ's sake, live a little NZ. Chuckle along instead of trying so hard not to offend the minority of one. Sunday Star times - please don't give Penny anymore airtime. Having been to one of her shows, she is perfectly capable of spreading her opinion with her voice alone. And Penny, in between poetry readings and your other funny stuff, please go see Dame Rosemary so she can instruct you how to harden up.


In the meantime, watch it all again and laugh. I did.

An Open Letter to John Minto

Hi John,

This is a personal appeal.

Stop.

Think.

It was interesting to watch your progress to South Africa on TV not so long ago. I couldn't believe that you had protested so loud, so long and so vociferously against something that you had no experience of.

As a youngster at the time of the Springbok tour and at the height of HART, I had no opinion beyond that which was given to me by my parents: i.e. Let sport be separate from politics. In succeeding years as I developed my own opinions, I was proud of the way that NZ had "contributed" to the downfall of such an abhorrent regime. 

Then I traveled to South Africa - first in the time of De Klerk, just after "reconciliation"  - then later under Mbeki and I found out what the issues were and realised just how ineffectual and off the mark HART was.

You had no idea what was going on.  You had no idea what life was like in South Africa. You may have known some South Africans but you certainly didn't know South Africa.

And when, on that TV program I saw your attempts to "rally socialism in a true marxist spirit" amongst the black people, I realised that you are not fighting for those people at all. You are fighting for your own selfish beliefs - USING those people as an excuse to further your own agenda - impinging your own ideals on faith and cultures that you have no knowledge of.

John, I've seen the devastation that war between Israel and Palestine has caused. I have lived it and seen with my own eyes the impact of daily violence on ordinary humans and, like you, am aghast that it happens in the modern age. We should, given our past history as a species, have learned the consequences of such behaviour.

Yet in the midst of this media age where our views are served to us by outlets with agendas (sorry - did I say Fox Network out loud?), there has been and never will be any excuse for being there and truly knowing.

John, your credibility is slightly shot.

You have no moral right to protest over things you know little to zip about.

Sure you will probably say you have "friends" that feed you information. You may have even "stopped off" in the area once.

But you have no idea really. You don't know what it's like to walk a mile in Shahar Peer's shoes. Or a Palestinians for that matter, I wager.


Do what is right, John and live up to at least one of the principles that New Zealand was created upon: egalitarianism.

Be fair. Because at the moment, you are displaying the worst aspects of racism and cultural jingoism that for so long you opposed.

And hypocrisy is a bitter pill to swallow.  

No Helmet Hone

This from Stuff.co.nz:

The motorbike incident happened two months ago, when he met a group of anti-violence demonstrators on the forecourt and took a short ride on one of their bikes.

It was pointed out at the time that he wasn't wearing a helmet, but he laughed it off.

TV One News reported tonight that a couple of viewers had complained to the police.

Now this is just getting silly. I agree that if it was anyone else that someone would have complained and not targeted at Hone but, FFS, this is just pathetic!

It's like New Zealand has become a nation of Patricia Bartletts. Lets complain about anything and everything. No harm no foul, I say.

C'mon New Zealand. Get your shit together.

Where is Annette?

I just commented over at Chris Trotter's blog Bowalley Road about a post on Grant Robertson when the question rose: Where is Annette King?

Granted that they probably want to keep the focus on Phil at the moment however Robertson taking Goff to task over the Nationhood speech lead me to ask where  is the communication between Goff and his caucus. I would have thought Annette, being the capable communicator (the EFB aside) would be busy doing the deputy's job and calling the indians around the fire for a pow wow.

Yet we haven't seen Annette at all over the past fiew months.

What is Labour's deputy doing?

A bad job, some might surmise, after the Robertson affair.

Sod it..... Lets Get Morbid!

I didn't know Annie Woolf at all bar what she presented to us on her blog.

Don't get angry about this but it's like a celebrity such as Princess Diana dying (I hope Anna is chuckling away wondering where this analogy leads). We saw Diana from afar - more in publications and perhaps TV than anything. Few got to meet her. Fewer still got to speak with her. And yet when she was killed, we were affected. We felt connected by the fact that we saw something in her that we had in common. I'm not sure what it was - she seemed a most singular woman to me - yet she never failed to make an impact.

Annie Woolf has managed to achieve a bit of that as well.

I learned of her death by the blogosphere. That nebulous mass of people who, somehow believe, that people want to read what they write. Or write for the hell of it. Or any manner of reason. And that is the thing that I had in common with her.

Her life (and death) are worlds away from mine. Apart from some basic trivialities such as we are currently living in New Zealand and English appears to be our first language (after a few drinks, I suspect it becomes my fifth!), we had little else in common.

Now she has died and the only thing that strikes me is: today Anna died and someday I will die too. People have been busy leaving messages and posts about Anna on Not PC's site. Predictably, the mood is sombre and reflective. Sad that Anna has gone and the common thread is missing a stitch.

Today wasn't an everyday occurrence. And suddenly we all feel a wee bit vulnerable. Cause the other thing we have in common is going to happen too. You know, the "D" thing. Bugger. On the flip side, though, probably not today.

And that is Anna's legacy to us. For over a year, she shared with us what was happening to her all the while  still railing against the same things we, as bloggers, do: life, love, politics and bad food. All  said with grace, charm and delicious wit and all the while adding her comments on her Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma like it was a normal everyday occurrence.

But thats the point. Anna talked about it in the midst of strident comment and invective thrown around at Kiwiblog or prickly, acid commentary at Cactus Kate. Ranting madness at Whoar or barracking over at the Standard. All the things we bloggers go on about. All the while someone was dying.

Anna's death binds our community. This is a good thing. Like Diana's death perhaps. I know all the bloggers at the Cavalier tonight are finding out that we have more in common than an internet connection and a willingness to expose our thoughts.

So next time bloggers you're about to go ape on someone that has annoyed you or are about to get personal, take a moment to think about Anna Woolf. Someone who was facing the biggest and baddest challenge that all of us will face. Remember her grace and style in the face of the fact that she wouldn't be writing her blog the next day. Then remember how lucky you are to have the opportunity to do what we do.