Taking responsibility, National-style

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"The National Party is built on age-tested principles that reflect what is best about New Zealand. We are a party of enterprise; a party of personal freedom and individual responsibility; a party of family; an inclusive party; a party of ambition." -John Key, 27 May 2007

The National Party is built on age-tested principles that reflect what is best about New Zealand. We are a party of enterprise; a party of personal freedom and individual responsibility; a party of family; an inclusive party; a party of ambition.” – John Key, 27 May 2007

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"We also need to remember the enduring principles on which the National Party is based – individual responsibility, support for families and communities, and a belief that the State can't and shouldn't do everything." - John Key, 30 January 2007

We also need to remember the enduring principles on which the National Party is based – individual responsibility, support for families and communities, and a belief that the State can’t and shouldn’t do everything.” – John Key, 30 January 2007

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So let’s see how well Dear Leader and National  Does Responsibility…

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John Key blames burglary on drug addicts

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TDB Recommends NewzEngine.com

Blame: drug addicts

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Key blames production firm for DVD music woes

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Blame: music production company.

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Worth blames media for Key 'ticking off'

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Blame: the media (always a good flogging-post for polis in trouble)

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Key blames Labour for his Govt's wage gap failings

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Blame: previous Labour government, Recession

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Key blames Hubbard for SCF collapse

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Blame: Allan Hubbard. (Hubbard had not been convicted of any offense.)

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Bill English blames Labour for bad economic management

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Blame: previous Labour government (again).

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Govt refuses responsibility for credit downgrades

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Blame: previous Labour Government (yes, again),  Europe, and the United States.

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Key blames Wall St, Minto blames Key

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Blame: Wall Street (an industry sector in which Key used to work)

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Key blames popularity dip on election campaign

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Blame: election campaign (damned inconvenient, these “election” things)

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Key blames edgy policy for poll drop

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Blame: Polls, “edgy” things, state asset sales, and “lots of challenges out there”.

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Key blames messenger in Beckham comments

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Blame: “Somebody” (or anybody, whatever)

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Pike River - Key blames company for disaster

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Blame: Pike Rive mining company (which was following de-regulated safety laws enacted by National in 1991.)

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Govt blames global economy for jobless woes

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Blame: “global economic headwinds” (but not an excuse beneficiaries may use).

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Govt blames election, rugby on DPS blowout

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Blame: Rugby World Cup, the general election, and Diplomatic Protection Squad.

And when National has run out of people, institutions, countries, and things to blame – they can always refer to  the mystical realm,

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Parata blames 'karma' after Ministry of Education staff miss pay day

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Blame: Karma.

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And of course, there are the none-too-subtle attempts to blame welfare beneficiaries for not having the jobs that existed prior to 2007/08,

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Free birth control for beneficiaries

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Beneficiary drug testing plans unveiled

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Cost of beneficiaries $78b - report

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Taking responsibility, National-style – means someone else copping the blame. Or sunspots.

Are we all clear on this?

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Addendum

Clayton’s Responsibility – The Responsibility You’re Taking, when You’re Not Really Taking Responsibility,

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Kate Wilkinson resigns as Labour Minister

Full story

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Wilkinson’s resignation was almost on top of the public release of the Pike River Royal Commission of Inquiry report. She was the “sacrificial lamb”, with the deliberate  objective to short-circuit media and public debate over National’s culpability in the de-regulation of the Mining Inspectorate in 1992.

Wilkinson’s “resignation” wasn’t taking responsibility – it was a carefully-crafted exercise in damage-control.

Note that Wilkinson retained her other portfolios (at the time), along with her $250,000-plus salary plus Ministerial perks and allowances  (see:  ‘What have I done wrong?‘).

Indeed, any attempt by National to  take responsibility was watered down when Key said,

Under successive governments, since 1992, the influence and reach of the mining inspectorate was eroded.”

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Mr Key says the Government accepts there were systemic failures in the regulatory regime across successive governments.” – John Key, Govt responds to Pike River Royal Commission, 5 November 2012

So there you have it. Key’s comments attempts to spread responsibility as far as possible across twenty years of successive governments. Because, as we all know, if you spread responsibility – like margerine – as wide as possible, it becomes thinner and thinner until there’s bugger-all of it left.

The Nat’s spin doctors earned their tax-payer funded salaries that day.

Taking responsibility National style reminds me of that famous phrase from the 1970  movie, “Love Story“,

Love Means Never Having to Say Youre Sorry

For Dear Leader and his cronies, the sentiment is the same,

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John Key Power Means Never Having to Say I'm Responsible

Power Means Never Having to Say I’m Responsible.”

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Previous related blogpost

It’s official: Key’s mind is someone elses’ responsibilty

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[First published on Frankly Speaking, on 5 February 2013, and re-published here on The Daily Blog, for the benefit of our in-house, semi-domesticated, National/ACT supporters. Enjoy.]

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6 COMMENTS

  1. I’ve heard U.S. President Truman had a plaque on his desk stating “The Buck Stops Here”, perhaps our PM,”Lieman”, should be presented with a smilar plaque stating “The Buck Passes Here”.

    • Actually, such a plaque on our present PMs desk would read:

      There’s no buck here, I do not recall the buck and, anyway, it’s Labour’s buck

  2. A great compilation of fascinating facts Mr Macskasy! Thank you.

    Apparently:

    1. The Man is apparently heavily prone to brain fades.

    2. His policy for the advancement of the social, economic and political well-being of the country is by and large to simply stand back and mind the shop (to paraphrase an entirely appropriate phrase from Cunliffe), apart from occasional forays into looking after the interests of Uncle Sam and of local big-business.

    Therefore OF COURSE he has to blame someone else for his Government’s inaction on almost all fronts except those involving big business.

    In short, he apparently can’t remember what he and his colleagues didn’t do for the remaining 95% of us while he was busy looking after the rich and famous both here and offshore.

  3. Excellent work Macskasy

    Some other examples that come to mind:

    *The people protesting the disgraceful GCSB Bill are ‘misinformed’ – [despite one very public voice being the Law Society]

    *Ecan were being ‘inefficient’ [because they had doubts about the merits of the irrigation scheme] therefore they had to all be sacked and a non-democratically ‘agreeable’ group of yesmen installed instead

    *Amy Adams thinks the growers pressing for a GE free zone in the Hawkes Bay district are simply appealing to an unfounded ‘populist’ issue and again the implication is they are ‘misinformed’ for pressing for such.

    *The police weren’t breaching laws or corrupt with the Urewera Terror raids and recording of personal data – the law was wrong and thus required retrospective change

    *Labour ‘didn’t listen’ to the public on the referendum on smacking [despite it being National in government when the law was changed]

    It would be excellent if others added other examples of this blame-it-on-others-rather-than-be-accountable ”responsibility” – Nat-style; there are so many – it is difficult, yet good to jog our memories of them all.

  4. After nearly 6 years in power I am getting utterly sick of National continually blaming the countries woes on the Clarke lead Labour government. Good analysis Frank

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