Its hard to think of anyone more out-of-touch with American values and beliefs than our former PM, Jacinda Ardern. How come? An influential view in economics these days is that the US system of relatively ungenerous welfare and low taxation is supported by the beliefs of ordinary Americans. Most of them believe in "The American Dream" - namely that effort is rewarded in the market place and that folks like Elon Musk deserve their wealth. Not just high income Americans, but low income ones as well, including Latin American immigrants. The flip-side is that 60% of Americans believe the poor are lazy, and as such, undeserving of high levels of welfare payments. These beliefs support the American equilibrium that many of us consider is behind that country's status as being the world's largest economy, with high rates of innovation and entrepreneurship, together with high inequality.
How Many Votes did Harris Lose by Hanging out with her Un-American Mate, Jacinda?
Not so Ardern. She doesn't share those beliefs, not in a million years. She believes the poor are totally deserving of more welfare - she can't stop talking about it. Its part of her "empathy" and "kindness" branding. Good for her, but it puts her out-of-step with the typical American. Earlier this year, Ardern burnt air miles flying to Chicago to attend the Democratic National Convention, dispensing advice. So much so that NZ political editor, Barry Soper, headlined an article saying, "Kamala Harris’ campaign promises echoes Jacinda Ardern’s". One News reported how Ardern was "backing" Harris for President. The two of them became mates, together addressing the European Union Parliament. But for Americans, Ardern's slogans & branding are nonsense. What does "kindness" mean in terms of their immigration & border policies? Does it mean there should be more border security & a wall, or not? What does "kindness" mean to Americans in terms of trade policy with China? Does it mean they should be kind to their own steel workers by tariffing Chinese steel, or kind to Chinese workers by allowing them to sell more of their steel to America?
Not so Ardern. She doesn't share those beliefs, not in a million years. She believes the poor are totally deserving of more welfare - she can't stop talking about it. Its part of her "empathy" and "kindness" branding. Good for her, but it puts her out-of-step with the typical American. Earlier this year, Ardern burnt air miles flying to Chicago to attend the Democratic National Convention, dispensing advice. So much so that NZ political editor, Barry Soper, headlined an article saying, "Kamala Harris’ campaign promises echoes Jacinda Ardern’s". One News reported how Ardern was "backing" Harris for President. The two of them became mates, together addressing the European Union Parliament. But for Americans, Ardern's slogans & branding are nonsense. What does "kindness" mean in terms of their immigration & border policies? Does it mean there should be more border security & a wall, or not? What does "kindness" mean to Americans in terms of trade policy with China? Does it mean they should be kind to their own steel workers by tariffing Chinese steel, or kind to Chinese workers by allowing them to sell more of their steel to America?
At a recent conference on capital taxes, I listened to Ardern's former colleague, David Parker, get stuck into Elon Musk - it seemed for being too rich. Now Musk stands alongside Trump as two of the people who the vast majority of Americans believe represent their values and who they aspire to be like. And what is wrong with that? Who are we to judge them? Americans don't want to hear the likes of Ardern lecture them about gun control, how she knows best how to stop terrorism, how she knows how to eliminate poverty, even though she never did, how she knows best what abortion policies countries should have, how she know best how to stop global emissions, how she knows best how to unite, not divide. What bunkum. Ardern turned vaccinators against anti-vaxxers, fired nurses whose personal beliefs led them to not want to take "the jab", ostracized from society those who didn't want to be part of her "team of five million", precipitated a violent occupation of Parliament, turned farmers against environmentalists, poor against wealthy & Māori against non-Māori. She attacked the fundamentals of freedom & civil liberties with her lock-downs, qualities that define the US. Ardern ripped apart NZ's hitherto socially cohesive society.
Hanging out with Ardern was one of the dumbest things Kamala Harris ever did. Ardern is Un-American and Harris's failure to recognize how her own fellow citizens bear virtually nothing in common with the likes of Ardern - and actively dislike her type - is proof that Harris was out-of-touch with her own fellow Americans.
Professor Robert MacCulloch holds the Matthew S. Abel Chair of Macroeconomics at Auckland University. He has previously worked at the Reserve Bank, Oxford University, and the London School of Economics. He runs the blog Down to Earth Kiwi from where this article was sourced.
Hanging out with Ardern was one of the dumbest things Kamala Harris ever did. Ardern is Un-American and Harris's failure to recognize how her own fellow citizens bear virtually nothing in common with the likes of Ardern - and actively dislike her type - is proof that Harris was out-of-touch with her own fellow Americans.
Professor Robert MacCulloch holds the Matthew S. Abel Chair of Macroeconomics at Auckland University. He has previously worked at the Reserve Bank, Oxford University, and the London School of Economics. He runs the blog Down to Earth Kiwi from where this article was sourced.
10 comments:
Hard to argue with those points and bravely asserted given the political nature of people who run Universities in New Zealand.
Thank you for explaining this Robert. You didn't mention the M. word Marxism but Ardern and Hipkins were strongly and subtly promoting this. Anti religion ,anti traditional family values , I believe would not go down in ordinary America, where a larger proportion of the population still have some religious beliefs.
I didn't know such a large proportion of US population believe the poor are that way because of laziness. I believe they are that way to a large extent but not entirely because of the present ghastly education system which selectively discriminates against low SES
children with ineffective teaching methods that the the higher SES can remediate with tutors or home intellectual resources, denied to the 'poor'.
Ardern and Hipkin's believed our education was on track but needed help with inclusion of yet more critical theory and DEI.which are Marxist.
This is so funny, I was thinking the same thing.
It was blindingly obvious that Garris wouldn’t win, she took advice from. Ardern.
And we all know Everything Ardern touches turns to shit.
The Ardern Midas touch strikes again 🤣
I think arden was just a free loader/passenger on the whole Demo gig. Just a personal PR opportuniddy.
I think Biden put the election on the losing path when he decided to run again.
I am always amazed, especially here in NZ, how many people do not understand the concepts of Socialism as espoused by Lenin, written by Marx - as being the end all of wealth & the embracing of collectivism. Also how these concepts, when placed before young people (Ardern?) specially within a University environment, by left leaning Marxist Lecturer's - who on the basis of those propaganda lessons, embraced what their role would be in the future world.
How many NZ citizen's are aware of what Lenin (then later Stalin) - did with both the secret police & army against firstly the citizens of Russia and later the Caucus Countries, this included Ukraine pre WW2 and afterwards.
This concept of "collectivism" also being embraced by Castro/Cuba, other South American Countries, and Africa - the end result - power to the Ruling Elite, the others don't matter, South Africa is the best, current example, as well as what is happening in Canada.
Not a good idea to get a photograph with her she'll make you look a bit short and dumpy and your mother will look small.
With ill fitting garments.
Do you seriously think anyone in the US, Democrat or Republican, apart from a few in the Harvard ivory tower, give a rat's **** what Jacinda says. Jacinda was not a speaker at the Democrat National Congress as our media reported. She was in Chicago for a different event.
Dont hold back will you Robert? Hard to disagree with a single word.
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