The ones that survive are usually those who continue to tell the truth in spite of living through the tough times when their particular brand was unpopular.
In those circumstance, it is not unusual to see these brave political warriors increase their share of the popular vote - even going on to become the most popular party across all denominations.
Consequently, It is unsurprising to see a resurgence of parties who had languished for years at the bottom of the heap - barely attracting a handful of votes at each general election.
Some, like the Reform Party in the UK, even manage to overhaul the two major parties (Labour and Conservative) and are in a good position to become the leader of a future Coalition government.
Who would have thought!
And the Reform Party is not the only one enjoying a resurgence in popularity.
In Australia, Pauline Hanson’s One Nation is making a comeback ; here in New Zealand, New Zealand First is doing its usual “Lazarus” thing and in the US, Trump’s MAGA group has taken control of the Republican Party.
Again we should not be surprised at these dramatic changes in the political landscape - it is simply a reaction by millions of decent people to repeated betrayals by those who obtained their votes using duplicitous means.
While the US upheaval and the subsequent investigations include some of the best examples of corruption at the highest level, the Australasian scene is showing signs of similar political activities that are being exposed as the antithesis of honest government.
In Australia, the Albanese administration is struggling to justify their “Clean Energy” policy which is becoming the number one negative factor for everyday Australians.
Given the surge in power prices due to the closing down of coal and gas-fired stations with nothing in place to cover any shortfall, it is remarkable that Labor got a second term. But that’s politics.
Meanwhile here in NZ, we see New Zealand First leaders (Winston Peters and his deputy Shane Jones) climbing the political popularity ladder at a time when voters, who have been deceived for so long, are crying out for the truth.
We are sick of being lied to and force fed policies that are promoted as being in the public best interest when in fact they can’t be justified by even the smallest stretch of the imagination. It will be interesting to see what the Inquiry into the Ardern government’s massive overspend during Covid comes up with.
Unfortunately, it is unlikely that the former PM and her cohorts who oversaw that unprecedented abuse of power during the Pandemic will get more than a slap on the wrist with a wet bus ticket for almost bankrupting the country.
However, all is not lost.
We can and should learn from their mistakes. It shouldn’t be allowed to happen again and won’t if we are told the truth about our economic position at any stage in the future.
And, being an optimist, I reckon the signs are good for a much needed change on the Treasury benches. It will take time before the attitudinal change fully manifests itself - maybe another couple of election cycles but Kiwis are already tending to support policies that make sense and are within affordable (acceptable) guidelines.
Hopefully this trend will become the forerunner of a nationwide restructuring of the economy that supports programmes leading to improved health statistics and growth based on the sensible development of natural resources.
If we get it right, the prospect of a government we can trust and an environment in balance with our needs is more than a distinct possibility.
But it all depends on enough of us (particularly those who have been blessed with more) being prepared to do the hard yards while the building blocks for Utopia are being put in place.
We have done it before - we can do it again!
Clive Bibby is a commentator, consultant, farmer and community leader, who lives in Tolaga Bay.
1 comment:
I admire your positivity Clive. As long as we continue down the road of separatism to tribal rule, giving billions of dollars of NZ’ers assets away, thereby creating a system of royalties to Māori only, I fail to see how the country won’t continue to slide to a 3rd world status. A sad state of affairs.
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