Question Time focused largely on the Treaty Principles Bill. There was a growing angst, Gerry Brownlee the Speaker spent far too much time calling for order, it was low rent, which isn't unheard of, but full of needless aggro.
Then came the so-called debate.
There were 11 speeches, lead off by architect of the bill David Seymour who spoke, as he has through this whole shambolic process, very eloquently.
He was followed by Willie Jackson, who also spoke very passionately, until he called Seymour a liar and got booted out of the House.
Most of the rest of the speeches were boring and said what you thought they might say, depending on what side of the House the speaker came from.
National were in the invidious position of defending their position while not defending the bill. They can blame Christopher Luxon for this because how he let it find its way to the place it has is beyond me.
As a coalition deal you either let it ride or kill it before you sign a deal in the first place. But this half-way House is the worst of all possible worlds, and it looked like it, as he was on a plane to South America and the poor sods, he left behind had to do their best.
The whole affair, sadly, was not what you might want, or expect, from our House of Representatives.
Beyond anything else, we appear to have lost the ability to debate cordially, to agree to disagree, to listen to other views, to be mature, to be adult and to accept that we don’t all have to be on the same page.
By the time the Māori Party burst into a haka and wrecked it all, Gerry rolled his eyes and suspended proceedings for the day.
I caught up with the fall out on Sky TV. God knows what the Australians make of it. This sort of stuff also goes global, so more embarrassment there as well.
We look ridiculous. We look like amateurs, we look like petty, little children b*tching at each other.
We look like Kamala Harris supporters on TikTok.
I think, and hope, we are better than this. That lot yesterday in the House of Representatives is not us. It's not representative.
Because if they are, we are buggered.
Mike Hosking is a New Zealand television and radio broadcaster. He currently hosts The Mike Hosking Breakfast show on NewstalkZB on weekday mornings - where this article was sourced.
He was followed by Willie Jackson, who also spoke very passionately, until he called Seymour a liar and got booted out of the House.
Most of the rest of the speeches were boring and said what you thought they might say, depending on what side of the House the speaker came from.
National were in the invidious position of defending their position while not defending the bill. They can blame Christopher Luxon for this because how he let it find its way to the place it has is beyond me.
As a coalition deal you either let it ride or kill it before you sign a deal in the first place. But this half-way House is the worst of all possible worlds, and it looked like it, as he was on a plane to South America and the poor sods, he left behind had to do their best.
The whole affair, sadly, was not what you might want, or expect, from our House of Representatives.
Beyond anything else, we appear to have lost the ability to debate cordially, to agree to disagree, to listen to other views, to be mature, to be adult and to accept that we don’t all have to be on the same page.
By the time the Māori Party burst into a haka and wrecked it all, Gerry rolled his eyes and suspended proceedings for the day.
I caught up with the fall out on Sky TV. God knows what the Australians make of it. This sort of stuff also goes global, so more embarrassment there as well.
We look ridiculous. We look like amateurs, we look like petty, little children b*tching at each other.
We look like Kamala Harris supporters on TikTok.
I think, and hope, we are better than this. That lot yesterday in the House of Representatives is not us. It's not representative.
Because if they are, we are buggered.
Mike Hosking is a New Zealand television and radio broadcaster. He currently hosts The Mike Hosking Breakfast show on NewstalkZB on weekday mornings - where this article was sourced.
7 comments:
SBS in Australia will report it as demonstrative of the effects of colonialism. Others will tout it as the fundamental importance of a treaty. No one will call it for what it is - disruptive thuggery by spoilt part Maori brats. My comments will no doubt be called out by some as racist - the name that cloaks those who have no other excuse.
The real scary thing about this sort of carry on by the Maori party is that these people want to govern the country.
Imagine that if you will.
Whilst it was very bad in Parliament, and the hikoi mob are doing their intimidatory thing (promoted by some of our media), on the plus side more and more folk will be sitting up and paying attention to what David Seymour has been saying. The more the mob threaten us and insist that we, the rest of NZ, musn't consider and discuss the Treaty articles, the more we will. C'est la vie.
Its not going to stop!!! TPM are their supporters want everything that they want, they want it now, they want it their way. They are not going to back down and have the next generation trained up already to take over should either or both of them need replacing. Everyone is sitting by thinking it will all die down and its not going to. Luxinda is wrong in thinking that this isn't important. I wonder how he'll see it when it all blows up in his face. I repeat...they will not stop until they get their way!!!
As the old saying goes, ‘never interrupt your opponent while he is in the middle of making a mistake’.
These clowns are only embarrassing themselves; they are doing more for this Bill than any public submission process ever could.
They claim they are ‘just being Maori’, claim superior knowledge of the TOW while simultaneously proving they are demonstrably ignorant of our history, the foundations of our democracy & their own hypocrisy.
To paraphrase Jerry Falwell of the 1985 Oxford Debate, TPM have been & are more than happy to snuggle up to colonisation & to not only live in the peaceful shadow of its resulting democracy, but happily pocket the perks. Yes, we all remember Shane Jones’ stint as the Minister of Porn, but let’s not forget that Waititi enjoyed a luxurious trip to Paris at our expense, happily scoffing macaroons made by the French who, if the British hadn’t stopped them, would have wiped Maori from existence. The French didn’t do Treaties, they killed & conquered.
Our TOW is a very special, but historical document that was assigned to the history books when we became a democracy.
Democracy precludes racial privilege & a Sovereign Crown never enters into a partnership with its subject. These are facts.
TPM are making mockery of the culture they claim they are trying to protect. It is time we stopped enabling & paying them for such idiotic & treasonous behaviour.
A picture perfect snap shot of " Aotearoa" governed under tribal rule as proposed by He Puapua by ( or before) 2040. NZers were given a very sobering lesson regarding life in the country for the coming generations ( if anyone with any common sense stays here). The PM did himself no favours by his response to the Treaty Principles Bill - both absurd and alarming. The tragic demise of NZ is almost complete.
The TVNZ news boss sent on leave to join the Hikoi.......................biased news?? You bet.
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