Sav blanc is the new chardonnay socialism

I KNEW that it would be fun sooner or later with the Maori Party, forever shooting their mouths off, and here's a wee gem from Hone!

As a wee excercise, next time Hone or Tariana are in a debate (and they'll be in rather a few in the next year) with other mainstream parties, have a pen and paper handy and make a tick every time either one calls someone 'racist' (better make that a large piece of paper!).....it seems when they have no answer in a debate they just go on the back foot and call the person racist....it would be a good game to play if it wasn't real life and sad and unfortunately true!

Colin

"And because if you give Duncan an inch he will take a mile, he got the driver to drop Cullen off at his flat and then head back to the party to pick up a few mates before directing the Crown limo back into town to a late-night bar. Only in New Zealand."

Meanwhile the rest of us pay for our own taxis when we have been out paying for our own drinks. This kind of low-level abuse of taxpayer-funded resources leads to staggering abuse like stealing $800,000 of taxpayers' money to win elections. And politicians wonder why people think they are all on the take - well clearly they are.

Thanks for bringing this kind of contempt for the public purse to our attention.

Eddie: As another wee exercise, have a pen and paper handy and make a tick just as soon as the New National Party gets around to criticising Harawira's comments.

Your paper's still blank, isn't it? Why would that be, I wonder? First cab off the rank?

I seem to remember that Harawira actually likened Brash's stance as akin to Hitler's - which is rather outrageous and silly. As much as I disagree with him, however, about Brash and Hitler, it's good to see an MP actually saying something interesting and colourful - most are so middle-of-the-road and moderate, including the rest of the Maori MPs. Somehow I don't think Harawira is going to be able to keep to the stupid code of conduct he's signed up too. And who'd want him to? Politics is supposed to be about conflict, not all this false consensus and niceties.

This leads on to the next most interesting thing about Colin's post: the relationship between politicians and political journalists. The story about Duncan Garner's misuse of taxpayer resources is instructive about the nature of many of the gallery journalists who obviously have a unhelpfully and ill-advised close relationship with the objects they're supposed to be reporting on.

A few years ago I counted about 48 'journalists' (or 'media professionals') working for politicians. People like Mike Munro, John Goulter, Richard Griffin and Richard Long seem to see nothing wrong with jumping between journalists and party hacks acting as paid mouthpieces for politicians. Unfortunately, by also socialising so often with those they are supposed to be keeping in check, much of the Fourth Estate in this country is becoming pretty poor at their job.

I know Colin can't comment further, but I'd love to hear on this blog from others about who the 'Velcro MPs and journalists' are!

Bryce www.liberation.org.nz

I don't know about that Bryce...Labour only invites us out for dinner once a year...we do have to talk to them socially sometimes! As for offering Duncan a lift, well, it was raining last night. I thought it was jolly decent of Cullen. He was hardly misusing taxpayer resources, since the Crown cars are available for ministers 24/7.

It's true many journos do end up working for politicians...but they cease to be journalists at that point.

Colin - obviously the journalist/MP nexus is a complex one, and we citizens or media consumers can't expect Gallery journalists to live completely separate lives to those in their workplace vicinity. Yet I still think the issue is fraught and should be recognised more often. So it's excellent to have a blog posting like yours today to show what does go on in the life of a Gallery reporter. Yet I don't quite buy the idea that you and your colleagues only ever socialise with MPs once or so a year, though. It's fairly common knowledge that MPs and ministers wine and dine journalists all the time. I don't want to try and tar all journalists as being compromised (!) but there are certainly those who can usually be found propping up the bar at the the 3.2 Pickwicks Beehive lounge with all the party 'media professionals' and MPs. At the other end of the spectrum, I appreciate that highly professional journalists like Audrey Young keep right away from this scene.

I could be out of touch with voter attitudes, but I would have thought the vast majority of people would see Duncan Garner's personal and partying use of ministerial vehicles as totally inappropriate - both from a 'proper use of taxpayer resources' point of view and a professional journalistic standpoint. I'm surprised that you see this as fine/'decent'. I guess this sort of thing happens all the time amongst the 'political class'.

Bryce www.liberation.org.nz

"I would have thought the vast majority of people would see Duncan Garner’s personal and partying use of ministerial vehicles as totally inappropriate"

Oh good grief. Most people would say "get a life, Bryce".

A thoughtful minority might consider the value in making sure someone didn't drink and drive. Responsible hosts and all that.

Sammy.....the Maori Party may well have as many as 7 MPs in Parliament next year, why would you alienate them...our dear leader only commented that Mr Howard was a friend to NZ, she didn't condemn Hone either, welcome to MMP and just over a year to go till elections. This is only the start of the rants and raves of the Maori Party. Remember they have said publicly that they agree that their people are welfare-dependent under Labour and like the Nats' view of getting them off that cycle!

Don is on to it. The "political class" as identified by Bryce can justify host responsibility for using a Crown limo to run a few friends around town. The rest of us just dip into our own pockets for a taxi.

Colin, having just completed a round trip of Australia where most of the time was spent in Western Australia and Northern Territory I can tell you that Kiwis know absolutely nothing about how the Aborigine community lives and what they have become.

I saw with my own eyes the rampant alcoholism and destitution that drink has caused. You cannot imagine how bad it is until you actually experience. We just have got no reference point to compare, none at all.

In Hall's Creek the motels and the entire town are behind barricades and barbed wire. We were locked in at 9pm for our own safety. I am no racist but I couldn't believe what I was witnessing.

To sit here in New Zealand and apply our collective experience to Australia is plainly silly. Let me say again, until you have been there and seen it with your own eyes you cannot fathom the damage that has been done through 50 years plus of creeping socialism and apologist behaviour.

Howard has done the right thing for Australia and for the Aborigines, but there is no way that solution would work here or indeed be necessary. The worst parts of South Auckland are absolute luxury compared to the outback communities of the Northern Territory.