Since it opened around 25 years ago I’ve always referred to the Museum of New Zealand on the Wellington Waterfront not as Te Papa but as “Milo Mama” (geddit? milo/tea?). Inside that underwhelming tomb of cultural cringe, there are numerous displays, videos and ephemera paying homage to such things as
1. Art union tickets
2. The Morphy Richards hairdryer
3. Morris Minor cars
4. Selwyn Toogood quiz shows
5. The Lyn Massey jumpsuit
6. The Steamer Express ferry (Lyttelton to Wellington)
7. Fluffy fur-covered slippers
8. Errol Flynn movies.
(You get the general idea)
Next month I will be in the capital undertaking a business matter. I will have my son with me and we’ll head along to Milo Mama now he is old enough to appreciate it. As we are going around the various exhibits mentioned above he may well ask, “Is this the past Daddy?” – and I hope I don’t have to reply, “No son: this is the future.”
In the MMP era of politics we have seen National promise a ‘better status quo’, ACT promise a ‘better tomorrow’, and various left-wing nutter parties promise ‘better socialism next time’.
All of this has led to New Zealand being woefully misgoverned during my lifetime. The longstanding problem I have with Winston is he seems to have spent the last four decades promising everybody a ‘better yesterday’ (if I can put it like that).
I followed the New Zealand First conference in Christchurch last weekend as my ‘dearly beloved’ was there as a delegate. I was most impressed at the ‘fair and balanced’ coverage they received from TV3 news on Saturday night. The party appears to be debating a wide range of remits from its membership and allowing a variety of viewpoints to be expressed. They are in good spirits ahead of the 2023 general election.
And good for them as I fully support having half a dozen NZ First MPs inside Parliament seeking to repeal some of the madness of recent years. I can certainly see a dollop of conservative traditional Labour voters – horrified at contemporary New Zealand – rationalising that a vote for Winston isn’t ‘voting Tory’, chipping away even further at socialist support.
But a few questions remain ‘Better Yesterday’-wise, and I do not forget that this is a party which has been in coalitions on three occasions, and held the whip hand on two occasions.
When can we expect the following to actually occur:
1. A substantial reduction in Asian immigration (remember that from 1996?)
2. Binding referenda?
3. An anti-corruption commission?
4. 99 MPs?
5. Repeal of the anti-smacking law?
6. Abolishing the Maori seats?
Needless to say, nobody is holding their breath for any of these ‘bottom line’ principles to be government policy, considering they never were when Winston had the opportunity, which is why I always say it’s about a ‘better yesterday’ rather than governing for the future.
Considering the Thelma and Louise crisis engulfing New Zealand at the moment, the time for playing games is over. New Zealand First needs a serious set of policies and a desire to work with other parties (National/ACT) to implement them ASAP after the 2023 general election.
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