.
.
When I first read Patrick Gower’s comments on Twitter;
.
.
– I was gobsmacked.
For a moment I considered that his account had been hacked and hijacked by ACT-On-Campus agitators.
Then I read several further “tweets” from the TV3 journalist;
.
.
This was not the work of a “hacker”.
More like a hack.
Note Gower’s comments,
1.
“Lalia Harré – you make me feel sick by how you are rorting MMP http://www.3news.co.nz/Opinion-Hone-and-Dotcoms-grubby-deal/tabid/1382/articleID/346334/Default.aspx#ixzz334vE4jKO Same goes for your pals Hone, Dotcom, Minto and Sykes.”
I trust that Gower will not be surprised if Ms Harré declines any further interviews with him? After all, Laila’s compassion would not allow her to make poor Patrick “feel sick“.
2.
“No I’m not OK with it. It’s not OK. Rorting MMP is not OK.”
No, Patrick. A strategic alliance between two political parties is not a “rort”. It is making full use of the rules of MMP – as this current government has itself endorsed and used on at least two occasions.
Secondly, it is not a “rort” because the strategic co-operation is out in the public domain, for all to see. Including the voters of Te Tai Tokerau.
It is up to voters to determine if it is a rort or not.
I would add that this strategic co-operation was done more openly; more transparently than the *nudge,nudge, wink, wink* “cuppa tea” meeting between John Key and John Banks, in an Epsom coffee shop, on 11 November 2011. And far more open and upfront that the sham candidacy of National Party candidate, Katrina Shanks, in Ohariu in the 2011 Election.
Was the Alliance – set up in 1991 between the NewLabour Party, Mana Motuhake, Greens, and Democratic Party (a fifth party, the Liberals, joined later) – also a “rort”?
Or was it a what it was – a strategic alliance of small parties to adapt to the rules of the then-electoral system of First Past the Post?
The rules of MMP were not decided by Lalia Harré, Hone Harawira, Kim Dotcom, John Minto, or Annette Sykes. They can only use what they have been given.
3.
“I want coat-tailing to go. I want politicians to stop rorting MMP.”
Fine. But I really think you should take that up with John Key and Judith Collins.
They are the ones who decided to keep the “coat talking” provisions.
They are the ones who rejected the recommendations of the Electoral Commission to eliminate the “coat tailing” rule and reduce the threshold for Parties from 5% to 4%. But they refused. Why? Because the “coat-tailing” rule suited them very nicely.
When a governing party decides to preserve a provision in an electoral system because it increases their chances of winning more seats, or gaining seats for prospective allies – that is a “rort”.
It is also known as gerrymandering.
Blaming two tiny political parties who, between them have one seat in Parliament, and are using the MMP system as it has been presented to them – is just too asinine to take seriously.
Gower shows himself to be the village idiot, with an over-inflated sense of self-worth, is he does not understand this simple truism.
4.
“I fight those deals too.”
“Lets fight these deals together.”
Really?
And here I was, thinking that you were a political journalist reporting the news – not making it or judging it.
Aren’t you supposed to present the facts to us, and leave the evaluation to us, Joe and Jane Public?
Or are we too thick to be able to form our own opinions without journalists now telling us what and how to think?!
If you want to do a Campbell Live or Paul Henry style of story-telling – get your own show, Mr Gower. Then we can keep the differentiation between real reporting and advocacy journalism.
5.
“Nobody in politics will – all are too greedy for power.”
Really?!
Funny thing about that, Mr Gower – all those “greedy for power” were elected to office by us, the People. If you have a problem with that – take it up with the voters who put those politicians into office. I’d like to see Patrick Gower make a tweet, for example;
“Voters of Epsom – you make me feel sick by how you are rorting MMP …Same goes for your pals, the voters in Ohariu.”
I could see your employers having ‘kittens‘ if you tried to slag off tens of thousands of potential viewers with such a shotgun-style delivery of abusive criticism, eh?
What really annoys me about such a cynical state that “Nobody in politics will – all are too greedy for power” is that it is patently untrue. It is a generalisation based on nothing except your own personal experiences and cynical outlook on life.
Because, really, what is the alternative?
Democracy is be the worst form of political system – except all the others, as some famous bloke said a while ago.
By your cynicism you are simply perpetuating the feeling of alienation that pervades our society and helping to further voter disengagement rather than doing anything positive to improve the system.
Maybe I’m missing something here?
Perhaps trying to increase disengagement – especially with parties on the Left – is your real agenda?
6.
“It is about standards. Somebody has to hold the line”
I guess it’s easier to maintain “standards” and “hold the line” when it’s two small parties, with one MP between them – rather than the governing party in power, with fiftynine MPs, and the full force of the State behind them?
That’s the ‘trick’, Paddy, start small, on the little guy. And if you can beat him up, move on to the next little guy. But whatever you do – don’t take on the Big Boys, Paddy. Because you know they’ll kick your flabby arse from one end of this country to the other.
7.
“@RusselNorman Yes. But now it is time for the Greens to show some backbone and rule out working with the Mana-Dotcom rort. Why won’t you?”
Ah, and here we have it – the nub of it all.
This is not about “rorting” MMP. Or keeping “standards“. Or “holding the line“. Or any other lofty ideals.
Nah.
This is about keeping a Labour-Green-Mana-Internet Party(-NZ First?) coalition government from taking power post September 20th.
Because if the Greens (and Labour) were foolish enough to follow Gower’s suggestion – that would effectively lock out any chance of a new government forming, thereby throwing out Key and his cronies.
Bear in mind that when National did their dirty deal in Epsom with John Banks – Gower did not call on Key “ to show some backbone and rule out working with the Mana-Dotcom rort”. (If he did, I must have missed it.)
That is what this is all about. All this self-righteous, indignant chest-thumping – to keep National in power and prevent a left-wing government taking office.
How else does one explain the volume of hysteria associated with two tiny political parties that barely register 2% (collectively!) in the polls?
Answer? Because it threatens the established system and those who maintain it and profit by it.
Gower has seriously damaged any credibility he might have had.
By his own words, he has disclosed his agenda.
.
References
Twitter: Patrick Gower
.
Above image acknowledgment: Francis Owen/Lurch Left Memes
.
.
= fs =
Well put.
The man is a creep.
Shame on TV3 for providing him a platform to hide behind while he abuses his status as a political news journalist.
Progressive parties and politicians should shun him.
And call him for what is.
Front foot TV3 in live interviews.
Hanging around the backsides of those more important must be an ego boosting experience for Paddy, one that leads to such rantings of disgust for those trying to rock the political boat. At some stage most journalists think they are capable of influencing world opinion until a sub-editor gets hold of their work. With twitter not having such a safety net what you get is what he considers to be his raw power. Fail.
Gower, like National are now starting to self destruct.
However,these mad incoherent rantings are a very worrying sign for political journalism in this country and therefore the country as a whole.
The next 4 months are going to get very ugly and I’m picking if Gower continues in this vein, and I’m certain he will, he will not be standing at the end of it.
The problem is, he is a legend in his own mind and has lost all ability to think rationally.He is so deluded that he thinks he is New Zealands’ saviour.
He needs to be stepped down immediately and replaced with a journalist of true integrity,Michael Wilson!
At Grant.
Calling Gower a political journalist is gilding his lily way too much, the modern vernacular is ‘polishing the turd’.
Remora like Gower and Henry and Hosking and even Corrin Dann are political mouthpieces for their employers or their political puppet-masters. There is no political objectivity or integrity in NZ MSM.
In the first paragraph of their respective resignation letters should have the sentence, “Like Shane Taurima, I can no longer represent an unbalanced viewpoint in my political reportage, and so it is with regret I tender my resignation.”
NZ voters would accept a resignation tweet as well Paddy.
I couldn’t agree more.
What I really meant to say was “poor excuse for a political journalist.”He needs to be red carded for foul play!
Then banned for life for the sake of N.Z
We’re on the same page Grant. But why is it that only a few enlightened Daily Blog readers and contributors can see the shiite these muppets like Gower, Hosking and the other sorry excuses for political journos are spouting is so right-wing Tory tainted?
Because they are brainwashed and we are not!
Why are they brainwashed?
How long have you got?!
Where the hell has Gower’s hubris handbrake gone?
It is one thing for a journalist to think like this privately!
To publicly post and tweet like it while posing as one in an election runup is what is actually SICK.
Can’t Farrar or Slater give him a job at least the public could see his ‘lean’. Preferably NOW.
The immediacy of social media gives us an unmediated view of the real personalities of our politicians and reporters. Without the PR massage, the reality often seems pretty ugly and damaging. Collins may have been given “gardening leave” from twitter, but I doubt Gower will be told to stop editorialising and stick to reporting.
On his way to self destruction doing the job his employers expect of him, goodbye Patrick Gower
Seems Paddy is in a paddy, that’s good, I reckon he has picked up the angst from National, Act, United Past panics.
It can only get more interesting (dirty) from here on.
Rat boy is upset, oh dear how sad never mind…do your job rat boy, stick to your knitting, present the facts and only the facts and you should really try not to come across as so matey matey with all those in power who even greet you by your first name mate
Paddy, mate – watch this, it pretty well sums up how I feel about our chances for a new progressive govt in 2014 – it might make you feel better ! 😉
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=y6Sxv-sUYtM&feature=k
Me too Tim. Watching these so called journalists prattling on as if they mean anything in this world. They are MSM puppets, who sure know how to dance when their strings are pulled. Watching Nation this morning was another case of someone who couldn’t stop rabbiting on about the Internet Party dollars. It is surely bugging the MSM that Mana Movement are getting a financial leg up. Thank goodness we have the Daily Blog.
On the plus side, flying his true colours has somewhat weakened Gower’s influence as a supposedly independent journalist.
Paddy having a paddy on twitter. Lol. Well said Frank
Appalling and disgraceful. Worse than Fox News.
He has lost all credibility. Like Shane Taurima he should go.
Is Gower a “journalist” or an interfering, opinionated spin master, working for the right?
His tweets confirm to me, he is not one that TV3 should be proud of.
Comments are closed.