JC: They Are a Sorry Lot

I’m referring to the excessive number of overpaid and mostly not very bright MPs that we vote for every three years to supposedly, in Donald Trump’s language, “Make New Zealand Great Again”. If you used the word Aotearoa, which would be a total misnomer, we could create our own MAGA movement in this country. I think we need to but first you’ve got to find the person fit for the job to lead it. That leader is not currently in any party today. There are a few MPs who are trying to make a difference but, on the whole and most notably on the left, they are a sorry lot.

JC: Ideas That Test My Strength

I’m talking about the latest collection of bird-brained ideas concerning supermarkets jumping out at us from political parties prior to the election. We are all only too well aware that the cost of living is the number one election issue. However, the ideas for solving the problem and help lower grocery prices speak more of desperation than reality. I realise there are people in voter land that could be sucked in with the rhetoric on display. But honestly, listening to what the politicians have on offer to solve the problem reveals they’re not very sharp either.

JC: I Know What’s Best for You

So, by his public utterances, says Christopher Luxon.

Well, no, you don’t. This article attempts to explain why he [Christopher Luxon] and a minority of his liberal henchmen and women are leading National to a poor election result and why the trajectory these people have put the party on must change. When I use the term ‘the party’ or ‘National’, I’m excluding those conservative MPs in the party who themselves are clearly not happy with the direction of National.

JC: The Writing Is on the Wall

‘The coalition has been returned to power.’ Two polls out this month, the Taxpayers Union/Curia and Roy Morgan, paint a pretty gloomy picture for the left. The Herald Poll of Polls paints a similar dismal portrayal of the road to oblivion or, perhaps more aptly, Damascus. The Labour Party is bad enough in itself but add in the Greens and the Māori Party and on top, unlikely, the Opportunity party. This is a recipe for disaster. If you look at the various policies coming from the parties on the left, they are a potpourri of either being unworkable or totally racist. Neither outcomes have much electoral appeal.

JC: Vote For What You Don’t Want.

Voting to keep the left out of power: there is one way, and one way only, that this can be achieved with certainty – tactical voting. Even within this framework you have to be careful how you cast your vote to create the maximum advantage for the right and maximum destruction on the left. I will attempt to explain the means by which this can be achieved.

JC: We Do Not Want This

And we did not vote for this.

It’s now official: Christopher Luxon has the political nous of a bedbug. Making membership of the Paris Accord non-negotiable in post-election talks can only be regarded by those on the right as traitorous behaviour of the worst kind. What leader of the right, in their right mind, goes trampling all over their party base and those of their coalition partners? This is nothing short of mindless stupidity.

JC: Opt for TOP

This should have been the front page headline in the Herald. They were keen to let their readers know they were on TOP of things last weekend, at least when they came to the Opportunity Party. I picked up the paper and there staring me in the face was another face, that of the by now all too familiar Qiulae Wong. At the bottom of the A1 half-page spread readers were invited to go to A10 to continue the fascinating read. They didn’t mention the furthering of the epic on A11. Suspect bias is one thing but blatant bias is quite another. This was completely ‘over the top’.

JC: Debating the Need for Debates

The Media Insider in the Weekend Herald contained a list of the election debates, when they would be held and who of the left-wing media (Newstalk ZB being the exception) stars would be hosting them. I will reference them in the latter part of the article so those with a masochistic streak can diarise them. I question whether we even need them and how many will actually watch them. If you are after a dose of fiction there are plenty of good books on offer. That to me is a preferable and more relaxing pastime.

JC: ACT Is in Tune With the Right

The release of party policy by David Seymour at the weekend showed ACT completely understands the wants, needs and desires of those on the right of politics. Not only was the policy itself impressive but David was too. Of all the party leaders, David is the best at enunciating clearly what the purpose of the policy is and why it is needed. There is no ambiguity about where the party stands on any given issue. Clear direction and choice is given to voters, especially those who might be still undecided when it comes to casting their vote.

JC: Media Love Snakes and Ladders

There are two reasons for buying the Weekend Herald. Both reasons sit in the Business Section and feature two contributors: Bruce Cotterill and Fran O’Sullivan. Their articles are always timely and many are related to politics. Fran’s articles are often more specific, while Bruce paints pictures with a broader brush. Both articles over two weekends were of the National Party debacle.

I first want to talk about the media, because it was Bruce’s article that gave me the idea for my headline, as it occurred to me that virtually none of the achievements he talks about are mentioned in the media. I am aware most prefer not to watch the six o’clock news and their reasons for not tuning in are pretty obvious, including having no interest in left-wing politics.

JC: She’s a Must to Avoid

Many reading this will be old enough to remember the Herman’s Hermits song, “She’s a Must to Avoid”. That is how the leader of the Opportunity Party, Qiulae Wong, presented in last weekend’s Q+A interview with Jack Tame. Mr Tame, who does not often inspire me, deserves credit for pushing to get to the bottom of what Opportunity stands for. This was no easy task, as Wong has an unflappable streak, where every criticism or query is met with a smile and is seamlessly brushed away. The interviewer therefore has to dig deep and press for answers that the audience wants. Tame’s ‘dog with a bone’ technique often frustrates me, but on this occasion it was necessary.

JC: Lose Your Principles, Lose Your Way

National, whether its MPs realise it or not, has shown the voters what utter brilliance they possess: a brilliance to engineer a situation where they have brought themselves down and, by association, the party. They are now in a sad and sorry state. Those involved in the debacle might be competent in their portfolios but that is not what they will be remembered for. They have portrayed themselves as lying cowards with huge egos. When voters go to the ballot box in November, that will be the picture that they have in their minds. They will be asking themselves what exactly National stands for. That is a very pertinent question.

JC: National Has Fouled Its Nest Big Time

The grossly unedifying spectacle of a failed leadership spill the National Party has just foisted upon the public is messy and stinks to high heaven; it makes Wellington’s recent problems with a large sewage spill look like a minor event. It is likely the this whole unpalatable debacle reinforces the perception among many voters that National is not fit to run the country.

JC: Media Have Got Their Man

The media in this country are a disgrace. There is nothing remotely professional in how they go about their business in respect of political coverage. They portray an unrelenting left-wing bias pure and simple. They might have the effrontery to tell us they are objective, but that is a falsehood and it is obvious to anyone with a masochistic streak driving them to sit through the six o’clock news hour that it is not the case. What emanates from the radio newsrooms is no better and a lot of what is written in the papers is nothing short of embarrassing.

JC: Time to Call a Spade a Spade

A couple of weeks ago I headlined my article ‘Mouthing Off is a No No’. Since then more examples have arisen. What is becoming very clear, at least among politicians, is that this is very much a generational divide. I wonder if the younger generation of current politicians in parliament have heard of the phrase ‘call a spade a spade’? They should have as it has been around since 1542. If so, they seem very reluctant to apply it to their everyday lives. The two politicians most likely to apply the phrase are Winston Peters (81) and Shane Jones (66). They are two of four politicians over 65 years old: the other two being Gerry Brownlee and Damien O’Connor.

JC: Fauci Forced To Plead the Fifth Amendment

Not once, not twice, not three times but 111 times. You read that correctly. It is not a typo: one hundred and eleven times. Through last week’s Senate hearing and his own self-incriminating diaries Dr Anthony Fauci has now been exposed as among the worst human beings ever to walk on God’s earth. The type of behaviour he engaged in is unbelievable on so many fronts. He makes Megan Markle look a saint by comparison. She might be a narcissist, but she cannot be held responsible for actions that led to the deaths of millions of people worldwide. Fauci can.

JC: Which Greens Are Good for You

The garden variety of course. They are packed with, among other things, essential vitamins, minerals and dietary fibre that support overall health. As my wife will be quick to tell you, they are not my favourite food, but she serves them up on a regular basis, bless her. I am regularly reminded a diet without them is not in my best interests. So, to ensure my good health I duly consume and, to be honest, my tastebuds are not averse to the flavours of most.

There is another variety of which the same cannot be said. These are the human/political specimens. The Green Party released their election manifesto over the weekend and a diet without what they are offering, I suggest, is in every sane person’s best interests.

JC: A Lesson Luxon Has To Learn

Christopher Luxon is not your consummate politician. Not by a long shot. And politics is nothing like running a business. The National Party, or indeed the coalition, is not Unilever. The MPs representing ACT and NZ First are not Luxon’s staff. They are more like suppliers adding products (ideas) to help sustain his business (government) and keep it profitable (in power). Unlike business, which vies with competitors for market share, in politics it can be an accommodation with competitors (ACT and NZ First) that attains and keeps the market share (percentage of votes). Luxon has failed to discern the difference.

JC: Impey Looks the Goods at RNZ

There is an app where one can rate a headline for, among other things, readability. Negative headlines do not score well. Positive headlines do. Finding a positive headline for an article with negative connotations requires some thought. The headline for this article reads, at first glance, as though the new chair of Radio New Zealand will do well in navigating the future of the organisation. Far from it. What I mean by my headline is that Brent Impey is ‘one of them’. He seems to think that RNZ, in its present form, is perfectly positioned to carry all before it. I don’t think so.

JC: How Can the Left Improve?

The answer is – they can’t.

In many ways that’s a nonsensical question, because the answer to bringing about the changes needed are not policies the left believe in. I will give you examples. The first is the fact that they have removed themselves from political reality. Their playbook restricts them from making the changes to once again become relevant. They don’t even run themselves – their outside paymasters, like the trade unions, do. “He who pays the piper calls the tune”.