Colinxy: The Political Cruelty of Kindness - How Sentiment Became a Soft Authoritarianism

Jacinda Ardern’s political brand was built on a single, endlessly repeated injunction: “Be kind.” It was the slogan that launched a thousand puff‑pieces, the mantra that turned a mid‑tier Labour politician into a global celebrity, and the emotional adhesive that held together the most intrusive, divisive, and centralising government in modern New Zealand history.

But kindness, when wielded as a political doctrine, is not kindness at all. It is sentimentality weaponised— a velvet‑textured form of coercion that punishes dissent while congratulating itself for its gentleness.

Yvonne Van Dongen: The Bogus Promise of Kindness

New Zealanders wondering what happened to the leader who walked away 18 months after a landslide victory have had their questions answered in a soft article in Elle Magazine this month. The ‘be kind’ leader, Dame Jacinda Ardern, has turned her edict to the Covid-ravaged public into a global profession.

Point of Order: The PM goes batting for democracy while her Maori ministers announce more Budget boosts

Oh, look. More goodies from the government.

Today we learn of a $10 million boost for landowners, a $27.6 million investment over the next four years in research and innovation and a $30 million investment for primary and community health care providers. Budget 2022 is the budget that just keeps on giving.

But those announcements are competing for media attention with news that an independent assessment of stewardship land on the West Coast is delivering recommendations for revised land classifications.