For around a century, and rightly so, New Zealand was governed with the farming interests foremost in the minds of successive governments; what rural interests wanted – went. This ended with the “War on Farming” initiated by the Lange Government, continued by the Clark Government, and most notably in recent years with the Ardern Government. A foolish case of cutting off your nose to make up for teenage bullying by rich farm kids of Douglas, Clark and Ardern perhaps?
If you analyse the history of New Zealand – no, the real history; what actually occurred – it becomes increasingly difficult to make a case that our nation was somehow misgoverned by seeking to keep its export sector happy, as commonsense was the order of the day. This in turn discredits various socialist lunatics and their policies over the last 40 years or so.
The main problem with New Zealand in recent years, and it predates the socialist Government being installed in 2017, is the country is run for the sole benefit of people living within a 5 km radius of Britomart in Auckland or the railway station in Wellington. No government policy is made with consideration for people living outside these two radiuses.
Whenever it is pointed out that some government initiative or other is simply wrong, provably so, it is dismissed as “Those racist rednecks in the provinces don’t know what is good for them; we know best”. Needless to say, having cosseted Wellington civil servants (who have no idea what they’re talking about) being asked by ministers for their advice on such matters as a labour crisis in Queenstown, or gang violence in Northland, or hospital staffing shortages in Timaru, or the cost of living in Hawkes Bay, you invariably end up with nothing much happening.
It’s outside the 5 km zone so doesn’t matter. Ignore the whiners.
This can be a source of amusement for (ahem) some of us when you get illogical, paradoxical, lip trembling, and (let’s be honest here) infantile responses to complex matters put forward by the drunk Karens and woke Wellingtonian “Ministerial Adviser” crowds.
Examples include:
1. We want high wages paid to staff
2. And will endlessly legislate to increase those wages
3. Greedy employers can pay those wages
4. They are all Tory voters anyway so stuff them!
5. But we want low prices
6. Oh and an endless selection of products
7. At increasingly lower prices
(Not making it up, folks!)
The latest incarnation of this “4-year-old-girl” logic in the Beehive, all thought up with a Mexican Wave in the Minister’s office by the civil servants, is the creation of a “Grocery Commissioner”. Can you imagine what went on in the meetings? Can you see it now folks? So embarrassing to think such people exist and that your next door neighbour voted for them.
That there is the slight matter of overheads for the businesses that sell groceries and their profit margin which is one of the lowest of any business activity – about 3% – matters not one jot. At the meeting everyone was in agreement: a commissioner is needed, and he’ll bring down prices. So there.
Oh and in case you think anything new is taking place; it’s not. The Socialist Kirk Government had a “Maximum Retail Price” scheme in 1973. (Do I need to continue? Do I need to draw you a picture of how well that worked out?).
