Clive Bibby: We appear to be on our own but we have been here before.

While I am becoming increasingly cynical about New Zealand Farmers’ ability to influence their own destiny given the government’s dishonest representation of this country’s responsibilities to the rest of the world populations, there is good reason to believe things are about to change.

But it will be a while before kiwis finally realise our mistake of placing the country’s future in the hands of this bunch of destructive vandals.

The country is being deceived by its own leaders - and they’re not all politicians with a secret agenda. Newspaper editors are responsible for much of the misinformation that appears on the front page of the daily rag.

Oh really!  Well let’s take a look at the evidence.

I assume that recent editorial comment in our local newspaper is an accurate reflection of many other rural commentators who have lost sight of their main responsibility to their readers - most of whom depend on the rural economy for their livelihood. They appear fixated portraying farmers as leaches who are bleeding the National economy for their own gain.

The opposite is true.

One might expect that these rural editors would appreciate that the only way this country will recover to a position of economic viability is if the whole nation supports the farmers in their struggle to save the nation from itself.

Unfortunately, we have been fed a lie so l’m taking the opportunity to set the record straight.

There are other ways to achieve the government emissions reduction targets. But the government refuses to listen to reasonable argument, instead continuing to operate like a bull in a china shop. The result is endless chaos.

With the Tourism industry still in the early stages of recovery, the government’s commitment to the current reckless, politically motivated spending is a mistake that will mean further hardship for us all but it doesn’t need to happen this way.

So, how can we stop this needless carnage? Let’s start with the real culprits - those who are adding their voice to the false narrative.

The truth will out but it won’t be via the left wing media that is cravenly wedded to the lie. We deserve better from our so called independent journos.

It beggars belief that supposedly intelligent editors would continue to deny the facts that support the farmers alternative recommendation for recovery.

It isn’t as if the rural community is asking to be treated as a special case in the government’s plans for huge reductions in GHG emissions in order to achieve their Zero emissions targets by 2050. But it is understandable that they can’t accept measures that will destroy the industry.

It may surprise people to know that farmers have already accepted their responsibility for substantially reducing their own methane emissions even while the other main polluters throughout the country are not being asked to change the way they operate at all - l wonder why?

The government’s position is nakedly political and is in sharp contrast to the PM’s favourite slogan “ let’s be kind to one another.” Any seasoned observer would note the irony of that hypocrisy and most would suggest that government policy is more accurately described as “biting the hand that feeds you!”

It is as if rural communities efforts are being constantly sabotaged by 5th columnists.

Our local editor, apparently emboldened by the forces aligned against the farming community, has repeatedly demonstrated his support of government climate change policy - it’s worth noting that he, like many of his newspaper colleagues, is an ideological disciple of the IPCC mantra so no surprises there.

He recently pontificated that farmers’s political representatives, Federated Farmers, were out of step with other agriculture dependent agencies who have dutifully indicated support for the government’s draconian measures that, if implemented, will have catastrophic effect on the industry. It would mean the end for some of our most efficient producers who operate with high overheads.

Some commentators estimate reductions of farm incomes by as much as 25% and herd numbers by 10%.

As the large international humanitarian organisation Oxfam said “ the government  figures simply don’t add up!” Yet they push on in the deluded belief that their cause is in the best interests of the nation as a whole.

How long before the country wakes up to this betrayal of monumental proportions?

My guess is that we can only see an end to this deception with a change of government. There is no other way but it needs to happen at the first opportunity.

In the meantime it behoves every free thinking kiwi to rally behind the rural sector in defiance of these kindergarten measures which have the capacity to wreck our economy and destroy the trust necessary for a recovery based on equal opportunity for all. Unsurprisingly, most have decided that the time for false empathy is over.

We deserve leadership that is “of the people acting in the best interests of all the people”. The current bunch of imposters should be cast into the political wilderness.

Do we dare to think that this time it will happen?

Let’s hope so. 

Clive Bibby is a commentator, consultant, farmer and community leader, who lives in Tolaga Bay.