New Zealand still deserves better than marketing
No the problem isn't the Treaty, it's integrity, fairness, and competence
In 2024, I wrote on my Substack "New Zealand deserves better than marketing".
Unfortunately this government never stopped its cheap tricks and deceit.
When gang numbers surpassed record highs, they downplay it and that’s even with them culling the list. But when Labour were in power, with the numbers much lower, we saw Mark Mitchell in the NZ Herald declaring constantly there's a "crime crisis".
Now as sexual assaults, murders, drug related crimes, domestic violence, and poverty driven crime climbs under their watch, there's silence and all they do is refer to ram raids which had already peaked and were already coming down under Labour.
As jobseekers climb to over 223,000 - a 21% increase since Labour, National are strangely quiet too, while claiming they are doing an "excellent job" for Kiwis.
In 2023 Louise Upton said it was too bad people were leaving NZ amidst the government's cuts, and while brain drain was regrettable and “it may well mean that we lose a range of people, including some of our best and brightest', she claimed it was a necessary price to pay!
Now almost ~3% of the population has gone outbound in 2 years.
Brain drain has turned into demolition.
Meth use is also up 200-400% precipitating a mental health crisis while National ignore 30% mental health vacancies across regions, but happy to fund private corporations like Cecilia Robinson's Tend Health (now known as Arataki Health)
And as homeless doubles and triples the entire country, their only plan is to move the homeless out of cities.
National is really banking on "out of sight, out of mind"
Just control the headlines, the narrative, the PR spin.
It's also the outright lies that disturb. For example, too many Kiwis still believe that "We have no oil and gas because L1Eb0uR CaNCelLed IT!"
But the fact is Labour only stopped new offshore oil and gas permits.
Existent permits still exist.
As Newsroom reported, the fossil fuel / gas industry has spent more than $1.5 billion drilling 53 wells since 2020, with little to show for it.
There's just nothing around and certainly nothing commercially viable because it's a sunset industry - fossil fuels aren't unlimited and never were.
This is why so many are telling National that their LNG plant plan - which ordinary Kiwis and businesses will have to pay for - is a bad idea.
Not only are we not following the lead of Australia, Norway, China, Canada and others in recognising fossil fuel is a sunset industry and we need to invest in renewables to reliably and comfortably meet the future, we are doubling down on a dying industry and supplementing them when other countries choose to reduce and diversify intelligently.
And the government knows this - they have been told over and over and again in every official paper and advice they have received.
And as Luxon admitted this week, no-one outside of the fossil fuel industry thinks it’s smart.
So why aren't they listening?
Today news comes that National - against everyone's advice from all corners of the political spectrum - is going to go ahead and build the LNG plant bypassing every single democratic process and procedure
They're not even going to use their Fast-track process, a process that was put in place despite Chris Bishop being warned it broke Parliamentary rules (Don't worry, among that awkward situation in Parliament, Bishop got Gerry Brownlee to come down to overrule everyone else, how's that for due process, folks?)
But even their own Fast-Track is now too much for them!
Aotearoa New Zealand deserves better than marketing and PR spin - I said it about 2 years ago, and I'm repeating it now.
On energy again - as Marc Daalder wrote, once LNG becomes our primary source of gas, then our gas prices jump overnight for every single pesron and business. We also immediately become susceptible to international volatility - for example, the Russian invasion of Ukraine prompted LNG prices to double in 12 months. And where we were OK before, we will no longer be free from such pressures.
This is the problem of PR over science, lies over reality.
Yes they can rope in voters and many, too many, believe their lies thanks to the likes of Newstalk ZB, Hosking, Taxpayers Union and other right wing affiliates, but ultimately the person who pays is you, us, this beautiful country and the division that now ensues as realities split and corporate media dominates.
Choose wisely, enrol to vote, and make sure your friends and family are too.
They will energise their base - lies and all - it's time we do it to ours.
Thanks for reading! This post is public so feel free to share it.
Mountain Tūī
