Who cares? If you were able to watch it, you probably need a rethink about your state of mind and perhaps should consider counselling. I tried to do my civic duty by tuning in. I lasted almost thirty seconds watching the highly affectatious introduction from the arm-waving host with the terrible diction before kicking the can down the road. I decided my personal emotional well-being would be better served by reading about it later rather than letting it mess with my blood pressure. I wasn’t too keen to watch the two leaders either, to be honest. I think both of them are borderline useless, but somehow was hoping for a miracle. Turns out I was wise as the overall reaction seems to be that it was indeed a complete waste of time.
If this is the best we have on offer to lead the country, we really won’t be seeing a significant change after the election other than in personnel. Different faces, same garbage done slightly differently. Maybe an improvement in money management but unless there is some kind of epiphany in the leadership, it will be just more of the same.
Meanwhile, it is astounding the amount of media hype given to the funding of National’s promised tax cuts. Talk about mindlessly pushing the narrative. It’s understandable that Robertson and Labour would tackle the only thing they can tackle after running out of ideas long ago. With six years of zero achievements to talk about, all they have left is to challenge and chip away at whatever dregs they can find as they scrape the bottom of the barrel. They do so secure in the knowledge that their ever-loyal lapdogs in the media will join them at the coal face chipping away with equally misguided vigour.
They are totally misreading the room. Nobody cares other than them. The electorate doesn’t care what Labour, economists and MSM are incessantly banging on about. The squeezed middle in New Zealand wants to know who’s going to stop messing with stuff they were never asked to mess with in the first place and get the basics right. Here are the things I think might be more important to the electorate than whether National’s tax cuts are funded (in no particular order of importance):
- The economy – putting food on the table, reducing the cost of surviving (never mind living).
- Stop wasting money on the daily ever more discredited climate crisis – let the rest of the world do its share, then, with careful consideration, we might consider joining in if it’s appropriate (it won’t be), the science supports it (it won’t) and we can afford it (we can’t).
- Housing. Already a major crisis and will only get worse. Innovative thinking is urgently required .
- Knock crime and gangs on the head once and for all. Surely safety from crime is the first prerequisite of effective government.
- Get the police numbers needed and get them on the streets doing their job instead of hours and hours on paperwork (or computer data entry). Hire geeks to do that and free up the front line to do their job.
- Get rid of He Puapua and the insistence on forcing a language down our throats that more than 90% of the population do not understand nor want to. Put it to a referendum. That’s how democracy is supposed to work.
- Three (or however many they’re up to this week) Waters. Change is needed but it must be democratic by the true definition of the word (and not Willie Jackson’s racist one).
- Whoever thought mainstream Kiwis would give a toss about 10,000 new car chargers for EVs? (National still don’t get it, do they – and Luxon has bought into the climate crisis hook, line and sinker). Forget it. We need to feed our families and survive first. Waste of money for appeasing a few elites (see 2 above).
- Dump the current racist health policy immediately and instead of wasting money on consultants and a huge public service, invest it in health. Oh, and actually deliver on the mental health promise instead of paying lip service to it.
- And then there’s education where millions are squandered for nigh on zero result and the cracks kids are falling through are getting ever bigger.
- Men in dresses in women’s spaces. Surely not if you’re sane?
In case you’ve forgotten, here’s a detailed list of Labour’s achievements over six years in government. This would be a good time to remind ourselves and everybody we know. They have achieved only failures.
For six years, we’ve been blessed with the worst government in living memory. On 14 October we get the opportunity to change this, and we’d better hope that there is a change of personnel. We can’t afford the present for another three years.
Back to the headline: Who Won The Leaders’ Debate?
I repeat: Who cares? They are as bad as each other and the addition of Seymour will only marginally change things.
Whoever would have thought that yet again, it’s looking very much as though it will be the charismatic and ever so wily old fox that we’ll be looking to, not only to ensure a change of government but to apply the cattle prod to the glutes as needed while hauling on the handbrake of their worst excesses.
