Your Daily Ten@10 - 2025/6

This is edition 2025/6 of the Ten@10 newsletter.

Welcome back. It's 2025 and 20 years since I started writing about politics and anything else that took my fancy. Thank to my VIP members for making this site what it is today. In July we will be having a 20th birthday celebration. Stay tuned for more announcements.

This is the Ten@10, where I collate and summarise ten news items you generally won't see in the mainstream media.

Enjoy!

• 🇳🇿 Historical Purpose: New Zealand Day was originally meant to celebrate national unity, bringing together all cultures, not just Maori.
• 🗓️ Kirk's Vision: In 1974, Norman Kirk introduced New Zealand Day as a celebration of "one nation, many people" with all cultural groups participating in a pageant.
• 📜 Change in Focus: After Kirk's death, policies like the Maori Affairs Amendment Act and the Waitangi Tribunal promoted separatism, shifting the focus of the day to Maori grievances.
• 🎭 Loss of Unity: Waitangi Day turned into a day of political conflict and public abuse, especially at the Treaty grounds, which diminished the unity Kirk envisioned.
• 🏛️ Government Action: Successive governments pushed forward with Treaty settlements, but Maori acknowledgment of progress remained minimal, and tensions at Waitangi persisted.
• 💼 Cultural Divides: While many New Zealanders of Maori and other ancestries contribute positively, a vocal minority demands special privileges without utilizing available opportunities.
• 🤔 Call for Change: The author argues that unless the leadership of Maoridom embraces the vision of unity, the Prime Minister and other leaders should avoid participating in Waitangi Day events.