Regarding the flag referendum, I believe the vote was to not change the flag mainly because the push to change it came from the class that Ani described, not a groundswell of desire from NZers. And the irony of the previous referendum of overwhelming public opinion having been completely ignored was not lost on voters.
Wait, what? The Herald published that reply? Wow. May it be the start of much more to come (but still just a swallow & not summer tbh)
But a good piece, thanks.
I often ‘marvel’ (with a negative spin, so perhaps ‘stupefied’?) at how so many quite radical changes have been slipped into our society & become the default. Erroneous concepts like ‘treaty partnership’ (cos some judge twat used it once in his notes), a belief that ‘sovereignty’ is not held by the Crown, that ‘Fongaaaaray or Torpoo are real places in NZ, or wider examples of absurdity such as Israel’s ‘genocide’, or APGW. The ‘accepted’ starting point of conversation is now so far left that a conservative has to actually argue a case that one’s sex is fixed forever at conception. How did we possibly end up with so many people drinking so much Kool Aid? Is it simply true that Kiwis are generally nice folk, but ultimately really dumb with such an overly agreeable compliance that will see the end of our once great culture?
The pattern recognition point really cuts through the noise here. Most folks aren't pushingback against individual policies but the accumulating drift where every "optional" cultural shift hardens into expectation over time. I remmeber when DEI frameworks first showed up at my workplace as "guidelines" and within 18months they were defacto requirements for promotion reviews. What makes this tricky is the decentralised coordination without explicit conspiracy, just aligned incentives among credentialled gatekeepers who genuinely belive they're on the right side of history.
Yes indeed. It’s essentially that smart folk, (genuinely smart, not wankademic smart) recognise a slippery slope when they see one. Appease the clowns and they’ll never stop. Which is why the cultural grift continues. I suspect many folk actually do recognise that we are in fact now losing our culture (the NZ one - based on British democracy & Christian values) but they’re just too weak & cowardly to oppose the slide. Doesn’t help that our so-called leader is as weak as piss too.
He is a polarising character but Yarvin writes eloquently about this class under the moniker of " The Cathedral ". A key characteristic being its decentralised nature. There is no conspiracy or central command - it's more of a culture, and as such extremely hard to change, or even to know where to direct effort at change. Thus we have an imperial approach to cultural change in the US, in response to the failure of democratic systems to enact the will of the people. There are many examples of this failure here, not least of which is the failure of some politicians who were elected on a mandate of cultural change, but when in office have reverted to type. Sigh.
Bravo and thank you David for publishing and providing wise commentary on and enhancing Ani O'Brien's superb post.
I would add to some examples given by you and O'Brien, e.g.: “…Sometimes I also include HR departments in ‘big corporates’ as they tend to mimic the social behaviours…”:
HR departments are ALWAYS guilty as are “corporate” marketing ultra-woke. There are multiple others... and ALL our banks are guilty.
But the real menace are "mainstream media", especially taxpayer-funded TV One and Radio New Zealand.
The pro drugs headlines are appalling too. Wayne Brown and Chloe Swarbrick's Christmas video was basically an advertisement for them over summer. So WEIRD.
Soft power ? As one who believes National-ism and wealth-holders dictate the message; during the costly and wasteful national Flag referendum I and at least one other peacenik argued that NZ should lead the world by not having a flag - at the UN simply have the name Aotearoa New Zealand. "Soft power" imo is a non sequitur -meaningless - korekiko
Excellent thanks David.
IMO, Mr Parker is 100% right when he states:
"the strong reaction to the use of Aotearoa exists - not because people are confused, but because they recognise a pattern".....
Regarding the flag referendum, I believe the vote was to not change the flag mainly because the push to change it came from the class that Ani described, not a groundswell of desire from NZers. And the irony of the previous referendum of overwhelming public opinion having been completely ignored was not lost on voters.
But at least "the flag referendum" gave New Zealander's the opportunity to have a say!
No other (far more fundamental) treaty "settlements"; the use of "Aotearoa" and "Te Reo" as examples... changes have given NZ Citizens a voice...
Wait, what? The Herald published that reply? Wow. May it be the start of much more to come (but still just a swallow & not summer tbh)
But a good piece, thanks.
I often ‘marvel’ (with a negative spin, so perhaps ‘stupefied’?) at how so many quite radical changes have been slipped into our society & become the default. Erroneous concepts like ‘treaty partnership’ (cos some judge twat used it once in his notes), a belief that ‘sovereignty’ is not held by the Crown, that ‘Fongaaaaray or Torpoo are real places in NZ, or wider examples of absurdity such as Israel’s ‘genocide’, or APGW. The ‘accepted’ starting point of conversation is now so far left that a conservative has to actually argue a case that one’s sex is fixed forever at conception. How did we possibly end up with so many people drinking so much Kool Aid? Is it simply true that Kiwis are generally nice folk, but ultimately really dumb with such an overly agreeable compliance that will see the end of our once great culture?
The pattern recognition point really cuts through the noise here. Most folks aren't pushingback against individual policies but the accumulating drift where every "optional" cultural shift hardens into expectation over time. I remmeber when DEI frameworks first showed up at my workplace as "guidelines" and within 18months they were defacto requirements for promotion reviews. What makes this tricky is the decentralised coordination without explicit conspiracy, just aligned incentives among credentialled gatekeepers who genuinely belive they're on the right side of history.
Yes indeed. It’s essentially that smart folk, (genuinely smart, not wankademic smart) recognise a slippery slope when they see one. Appease the clowns and they’ll never stop. Which is why the cultural grift continues. I suspect many folk actually do recognise that we are in fact now losing our culture (the NZ one - based on British democracy & Christian values) but they’re just too weak & cowardly to oppose the slide. Doesn’t help that our so-called leader is as weak as piss too.
He is a polarising character but Yarvin writes eloquently about this class under the moniker of " The Cathedral ". A key characteristic being its decentralised nature. There is no conspiracy or central command - it's more of a culture, and as such extremely hard to change, or even to know where to direct effort at change. Thus we have an imperial approach to cultural change in the US, in response to the failure of democratic systems to enact the will of the people. There are many examples of this failure here, not least of which is the failure of some politicians who were elected on a mandate of cultural change, but when in office have reverted to type. Sigh.
Bravo and thank you David for publishing and providing wise commentary on and enhancing Ani O'Brien's superb post.
I would add to some examples given by you and O'Brien, e.g.: “…Sometimes I also include HR departments in ‘big corporates’ as they tend to mimic the social behaviours…”:
HR departments are ALWAYS guilty as are “corporate” marketing ultra-woke. There are multiple others... and ALL our banks are guilty.
But the real menace are "mainstream media", especially taxpayer-funded TV One and Radio New Zealand.
The pro drugs headlines are appalling too. Wayne Brown and Chloe Swarbrick's Christmas video was basically an advertisement for them over summer. So WEIRD.
Soft power ? As one who believes National-ism and wealth-holders dictate the message; during the costly and wasteful national Flag referendum I and at least one other peacenik argued that NZ should lead the world by not having a flag - at the UN simply have the name Aotearoa New Zealand. "Soft power" imo is a non sequitur -meaningless - korekiko