Capitalist
There is a marvellous song called “Overkill” by Men At Work, an Australian band from the 1980s. Unless I am very much mistaken, the first verse – “I can’t get to sleep/I think about the implications of diving in too deep/and possibly the complications” – seems to sum up Christopher Luxon’s view of the world.
Mr Luxon is up to his old tricks again, living up to my essay a couple of weeks back (I know he reads all my BFD posts, and Chris, honey – it was a criticism, not a ‘how-to’ guide!). His response to a jolly good telling off by various toxic Marxists in the Labour party, Radio New Zealand, the Council Of Trade Unions (and the Young Nats?), has been to confirm some silly nonsense called Matariki will be entrenched as a public holiday if there is a change of government.
I asked my dearly beloved, a Maori, what exactly this Matariki caper is. ‘Golly gosh, I am unaware of such a thing,’ was the response (actually, the response was stronger, but The BFD is family friendly so a spot of paraphrasing is required). A hasty phone call up north was met with equal bewilderment; various in-laws all have a different interpretation of Matariki, from Maori Christmas to another scam to maybe Easter to yet another NZ movie that flopped. Clear as mud. But since my in-laws are not part of the gravy train Maori elite, it’s not too surprising.
One can only speculate about the results of asking, for example, 5,000 people from the 27 per cent of foreign-born New Zealanders for their definition of Matariki. Presumably the response from hard-working Indians, Fijians, Chinese, Ten Pound Poms, Australians (who have fled debt collectors and writs), American billionaires and Filipino labourers would be along the lines of ‘We’re too busy working to know what such nonsense means’, but who knows…
Yet it will cost businesses $450 million to have it as another public holiday. What’s $450 million of other people’s money between friends if you are trousering a taxpayer-funded salary and can ponce about at socialist cocktail parties feeling morally righteous?
If all of this isn’t bad enough, do I need to point out ACT’s deafening silence to this latest spot of moral and political cowardice from the National Party leader? Are you surprised?
The very concept of status quo in our (once-great) nation now goes something like this: Labour introduces something really wicked; National cowardly slinks into compliance promising to entrench it, ACT vigorously nods its head and the only losers are you and me, dear reader – the honest hardworking folk of New Zealand.
David Seymour has perfected the art of slinking out of trouble with a glib one-liner which goes something like ‘There are more important things in the world than ____________’ [whatever issue you happen to raise with him]. He uses this trick several times per day. Granted, taken as a single issue, that is probably correct, but you can say the exact same thing about almost anything. I am certainly looking forward to the 28th when Mr Seymour is ‘appearing live in person’ in Dunedin.
