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Monday, May 9, 2022

Mike Hosking: The Govt's knee jerk reaction to crime and ram raids is embarrassing


So let me get this straight, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says we don’t want a knee jerk reaction to crime and ram raids.

The Police Minister says the accusation that they are soft on crime is a sexist comment, crime is all about the gender of the minister.

The Police tell us repeatedly they have the resource they need.

And yet, all of a sudden, we have half a billion dollars for crime, $100 million of which is for the gangs. Another group of which we are told are not remotely as bad as has been reported.

Go figure.

And that in a nutshell is this government - they are unable to see trouble, they are unable to accept a problem, they are unable to apologise and they are unable to recognise a problem brewing and act in advance.

What they do is deny, ignore and stick their fingers in their ears.

When the poll comes out as it did last week confirming beyond any shadow of a doubt we have a massive crime problem, the Minister, Poto Williams, goes out yet again and denies it all.

Until - she gives out half a billion dollars.

The inability to read middle New Zealand is the thing that has brought them down, it's why they have tanked in the polls.

They haven't got the slightest clue what the average person thinks or is feeling.

They have never by in large been part of the regular world.

They are in a Wellington, come union, come university, bubble.

They know best, you don't. Until it becomes so unbearably obvious, they then panic and do the only thing they know how to do.

Spend money.

Half a billion may or may not be the answer to the problem.

The Police might not have the resources they need, and if they don’t, the interesting question would be for old Cuddles Coster - why do they keep saying they do?

Is it the justice system that lets them down? Is it the welfare system that encourages laziness and entitlement? Is it the lockdowns that has led to so much violence?

A lot of questions that money may or may not address.

But what we know, because we have seen it now so many times, once the denials don’t cut it, and once the incompetence and ineptitude are exposed, out comes the money.

Mike Hosking is a New Zealand television and radio broadcaster. He currently hosts The Mike Hosking Breakfast show on NewstalkZB on weekday mornings.



2 comments:

Anonymous said...

why not pass a law holding parents responsible for the losses? if the child was in the custody of the state, then the state should be responsible. since this is seen as a victimless crime (thankfully there are no casualties to date), with the understanding that the insurance takes care of the loss, there seems to be no urgency to act.
the sad part is that this might end up justifying vigilante justice meted out by some shopkeeper who has nothing to lose :(

Anonymous said...

another dumb appeal in RNZ today asking for funding to 'educate' and 'support' the youth. what are they going to do? teach them how to do more damage more quickly? does anyone really think that these kids are dumb?