WHEN IT COMES TO RATINGS, Mike Hosking is a winner. He knows it, his employers know it, and, if theyâre honest with themselves, the Daily Blogâs firebrands know it too. What he says to Newstalk-ZBâs listeners is, for the most part, well received. Which is why Newstalk-ZBâs breakfast show is the most popular product on commercial radio. Seven Sharpâs viewers, likewise, are insufficiently offended by Hoskingâs opinions to change channels. And thatâs all anyone has to do, FFS â if they donât like or approve of Hoskingâs shtick â change the bloody station or switch channels. Their forbearance, in the case of Seven Sharp, is what made the programme roughly twice as popular as Campbell Live.
Though it pains the Left to admit it, Campbell Live was a vehicle for values shared by fewer and fewer New Zealanders. Thirty years of neoliberal hegemony will do that to a country. The social-democratic culture in which Kiwis over 50 were raised, while very far from being dead, can be accessed now only through the indistinct portals of nostalgia. By contrast, the culture which succeeded it, whatever people choose to call it, is everywhere you look. Love it or hate it, this is the culture we are all required to move and function in: the culture that counts.
Mike Hosking is perfectly suited to this new, market-driven, culture. The social-democratic values that permeated the old state broadcasting system was never one in which he felt comfortable. It was too sedate, too elevated, too wedded to the Reithian ethic for a broadcaster of his voluble and quicksilver temperament. [Reithian: Named for John Reith, the first Director-General of the BBC, who held that the role of a public broadcaster was to âinform, educate and entertainâ its listeners and viewers â C.T.]
The Hosking personality: self-confident, thrusting and ambitious; scornful of those who cannot reach conclusions quickly and definitively; and unshakeably wedded to the idea that if success is not recognised by, and reflected in, increased material wealth and higher social status, then it isnât really success; was, however, supremely well-adapted to the new world ushered in by the changes of the fourth Labour Government.
Who could forget the Hosking interview with a Labour Cabinet Minister during which the hapless politician was incautious enough to ask the, by now extremely well-paid, broadcaster how much he earned. âMore than you do!â, Hosking snapped back without missing a beat. Seldom has a Cabinet Minister looked so crestfallen. It was vintage Hosking. In the new era, ushered in by Rogernomics, human worth was measured by the quantum of an individualâs income. If he earned more than a Cabinet Minister, that could only mean that he was better than a Cabinet Minister â and Hosking wasnât the least bit afraid of letting Cabinet Ministers know it.
The Left, of course, rejects Hoskingâs world view as utterly repellent, and condemns it as antithetical to everything they believe in and want for the world. From their perspective, it is morally indefensible that such a person should be accorded the privilege of daily addressing hundreds-of-thousands of their fellow citizens. But the corruption they believe his unabashed worship of wealth and status is bound to work in the body politic was already dissolving âOldâ New Zealand long before Hosking took possession of Sir Paul Holmesâs prime-time batons.
The sad fact is that Hosking is not the problem, merely its artfully tousled personification. His high ratings among 18-35 year-olds is explicable only if we accept that, in the eyes of those who have grown up under neoliberalism, being rich and famous is the indisputable desideratum of twenty-first century life. These youngsters have no wish to tear Hosking down, on the contrary, they want to be just like him. Wealth and fame have become the markers of a life well lived. By this reckoning, reiterated over and over again in Hoskingâs speeches and columns: success is well-earned, by definition; and failure is merely Natureâs way of delivering her pink slip to those unfortunates on the wrong side of the Bell Curve.
If this is âright-wing biasâ, then the whole era through which we are living must be adjudged in precisely the same terms. Hosking is not a megaphone for neoliberalism, he is its bright and shining mirror. And those who accuse him of being John Keyâs âstoogeâ simply do not appreciate the chemistry at work between them. Mike Hosking might earn more than the average Cabinet Minister, but all his thrusting ambition has not come close to earning him a fortune of $55 million. To the Hoskings of this world (and there are many more of them than the Left would like to think) Keyâs fortune is proof positive that the Prime Minister is a superior human-being.
Mike Hoskingâs heart of gold: cold and glittering as any precious metal; goes out to the ubermensch born in a state house. When God and Mammon have become one and the same â where else would it go?
It’s so ironic that in this “fuck you, get out of my way, it’s all about me me me and my shiny assets” shit, Hosking goes out cup in hand collecting for the SPCA. Suddenly we all need to come together and muck in like Kiwi’s of old, something needs OUR help. How ghastly, how gauche! Amazingly, is it not, that the arsehole ZB mantra of getting an education, working hard, growing your own vegetables and having a “can do” attitude fails to cut it!
For the true Hosking/National Party believer, charity starts and finishes with number 1!
However I am impressed that part of the carefully crafted Key mythology has taken root and that it is now fact that he is worth a paltry $55 mill. Was that not the figure focus grouped to be at the upper limit of acceptance to the moronic masses?
Quite right XRay.
Also Key’s been stuck on $ 55 million for 8 years now , which means since exiting the Merryll Lynch ‘Ponzi scheme’, he hasn’t , ( despite all his connections) ,got a clue how to advance his wealth further.
Either that or he lying….hmmm.
As far as Hoskings so called popularity is concerned, one should bear in mind ,(and the same applies to Paul Henry and Key for that matter ), the relentless advertising program and saturation coverage that they are afforded.
Does anyone else get this luxury ? No They don’t!
It should come as no surprise that they can bend peoples minds, because let’s face it , none of them are exceptional.
In fact if you peel away the layers of fake and faux you are left with little more than 3 shallow selfish snake oil salesmen.
Nothing sums up Hoskings ignorant uneducated glibness more than when doing an interview on TV1s Breakfast show a few years back.
He looked down his nose at the famous female Spanish Climber Edurne Pasaban Lizarribar who had just climbed Everest, and asked her if she was sure she did it on her own because she looked too small to carry her own pack.
This is the woman whose ‘free rock’ climbing achievements are legendary and went on to become the first female to climb all of the 14 eight-thousander peaks in the world.
The look that she shot back at him was priceless, but of course went straight over his head.
As he glanced down at his new gold cuff links, he had already convinced himself that he was right!
My favourite memories of Hosking are when he was interviewing Kenny Baker, the actor of R2D2 in all the Star Wars films.
Hosking asked Kenny, “Were you a fan of Star Wars before the movie?”
Kenny’s face as he recovered and politely, in his London accent, informed Hosking that “..there was no Star Wars before the film.”
“Wasn’t there? Oh well.”
Zooom. swing and a miss.
And the time Jim Rose of the Jim Rose Freak Show was on and in front of the nation duped Hosking with such a simple carnival trick, much to Hoskings amazement.
I wish I could find the footage.
I used to laugh so much as I thought this was Kiwi humour I’d heard so much about ….
..until I realised I was the only one laughing.
The same thing has happened in recent Italy. For years the masses followed Mr Berlusconi, self made, richest man in Italy, as he bled the country dry of its social and civil amenities.
How did he do it? By owning and controlling the media. Every TV channel beamed into every home reiterated the same message- we are all having a party and lets wave the flag of happiness.
Only the internet saved the ‘thinking’ Italians when they read the truth, as observed by the international press.
– C.T.Haha, so true!
I have been unfortunate enough to have worked with the man and I made the mistake at one point of not reaching a conclusion quickly and definitively.
I made the mistake of being polite and conversational.
I can tell readers right now that should I be unfortunate enough to work with the man again I will not make that same mistake.
So as to to not be accused of not reaching a conclusion quickly and definitively I will immediately say, “Hosking is an ignorant arsehole.”
I hear you brother.He is the shining example of what we all should not be.
Mike Hosking is the arch, the ultimate member of tribe North Shore – a true North Shore role model.
http://www.8tribes.co.nz/tribe-summary.php
The 8 Tribes book is well worth a read – at the end it has a very perceptive analysis of the battle between Grey Lynn (ideology & principles) and North Shore (materialism and fame) for control over NZ society. In short, North Shore is winning.
Hey – I grew up on the North Shore – an old Bay’s boy! Moved away in the early 80s, came back in the late 80s……..Hells teeth, what a shock! The place had turned into a shithole! It would suit Mr H and the thousands like him right down to the ground!
Far more pleasant, people wise, in outback Western Australia these days……….
Mike Hosking doesn’t affect me as I don’t watch TV anymore.TV NZ is not the dominant media it once was. The Tories will probably sell off Radio NZ then I will be angry. (Obviously the right wants to own all media outlets).
i would argue that traditional media is a sunset industry. when i see the broadcasting infer structure there is nothing that cant replaced with an Internet connection.
Russell brand is good example his truths show filmed in his apartment with go pros has more viewers than a magnet like hoskins will ever get. but the point is the likes of media works, news corp the distribution control monopolizes they once enjoyed have been disrupted by technology the choice we enjoy to vote with our pcs ,smart phone i pads over time will put the hoskins out to pasture a dinosaur ranting and raving to blank screens .
By being so black and white Chris confuses the worldviews held by Hosking and Campbell with their broadcasting personalities or professional delivery.
One can (or can not) despise the world view but appreciate (or dislike) the personality delivering the message.
Speaking for myself, I abhor both aspects, the personal delivery and the bias, as delivered by Hosking. But although I generally admire Campbell’s professionalism and most certainly believe he is very valuable if only because he represents the last of his kind on NZ television, I still find his screen personality mildly irritating. If Campbell had faced any professional competition with ethics on TV, for example K Hill or other good journalist/presenters, Campbell wouldn’t necessarily be top of my viewing list.
Chris Trotter draws a long bow.
hill was tried and failed
@ LLOYD JORDAN. ” Hill was tried and failed “. Yes, yes she was. And that’s exactly what âtheyâ wanted her to do . They put her in front of a tv camera, watched her struggle with poor material on a graveyard shift then removed her to a Saturday morning show where she had no chance to rub crooks up the wrong way.
I listened to Kim Hill peel roger kerr of the round table like a grape. He stuttered and struggled against her formidable intellectual and well informed onslaught and I remember saying out loud to myself at the time. â Well, thatâs the end of Kim Hill on nine to noon. â
@ Chris Trotterâs dead right re the tousled titmouse . C.Tâs also dead right re the neoliberalisng of Nu Zillind.
I like The Game of Thrones approach to annoying and potentially dangerous little men who spend their lives compensating for their modest appendages. And usually by bullying, wealth collecting and big car driving.
Draw a sword and cut their fucking heads off. Right or Wrong? Who gives a fuck ? Cut their heads off. Moving along now . Nothing to see here.
Sadly, I can only fantasise about such things. One can however metaphorically remove his greasy cranium from his narrow little shoulders. And perhaps by stealth?
Hoskings The Hoik is only there because he was groomed to do his job. And that was, as @ Chris Trotter ably pointed out, to fill the empty hard drives in the heads of the hoi polloi with Right Wing drivel. Why ? Because to get extremely rich one needs a lot of help. And poorly paid yet braying pseudo right-wingers deep in debt is a perfect resource. One can work for $20.00 and hour for ever and never get past a few grand, an average house, a second hand car and a couple of scruffy kids. A boy and a girl perhaps . One that sounds like a Detroit gang banger and wearing mutant trousers which are all arse and no legs and the other looking like Miley Cyrus practising waving her arse about like a flag at a boat race. Have you seen the quality of the magazines at the supermarket check outs? If a wonderful witch turned hoskings the horrid into a book heâd be one of those bleak rags and if you looked closely ? You can see the poisons and toxins dripping down through the racks and onto the floor .
Whoâs behind hoskings ? Thatâs the head that needs to fall. Thatâs where to start . Just like I now know who my enemy is ; Bryce Wilkinson. The architect of neo liberalism. If his bud had been nipped ? Would we now be in this terrible situation? A population of people who must now doff their caps to tricksters .
It doesn’t change the fact John Key touches himself because he has 50 million dollars. Maybe he’ll give a million away to be a good human being. These are the things we are moving away from when power consumption drops. When people don’t buy electricity the cost of human interactions become free in a frictionless economy of poverty.
Hosking is so lightweight I can hardly be bothered hearing him finish a sentence – he’s the human equivalent of beige or elevator music. One shouldn’t imagine that he persuades anyone – folk just go along with the twat while they’re too busy to think for themselves.
I can feel it coming in the air tonight, oh Lord
And I’ve been waiting for this moment for all my life, oh Lord
Can you feel it coming in the air tonight, oh Lord, oh Lord
Well if you told me you were drowning, I would not lend a hand
I’ve seen your face before my friend, but I don’t know if you know who I am
Well I was there and I saw what you did, I saw it with my own two eyes
So you can wipe off that grin, I know where you’ve been
It’s all been a pack of lies
………………………………………………………………………………………..
There is no excusing him …it was his choice to act like this.
And he did it not out of any inherent idealism but simply because he rides the current waves of temporal status , assumed wealth , …..being backed up by truly wealthy benefactors who pay his salary.
His shallowness being exposed by Dr Jane Kelsey for all to see… ,…his diatribes sounding so convincing until backdropped against a person of superior intellectual insight , wit and expertise…
The Archilles heel of all pretenders is exposure …when on that awful day someone calls their bluff…and they are found wanting.
This time is only for a season…he is more a product of someones else’s design….therefore a willing puppet…and yes…someone else’s stooge.
He is NOT his own man. At all.
One could say he is merely a construct. And like any construct…he serves a purpose…someone else’s purpose. That he is a benefactor of that someone else is less of his own machinations but there purely to serve as a willing tool …in this case as you say a mirror…
These types are called apologists….opportunistic apologists for a system of beliefs that run contrary to the well being of the general populace and therefore need a front person to bolster it up , sanitize it , and popularize it.
This the willing fool does well.
But the question is…when Key departs – and he will – what becomes of Hosking then ?
In fact …extrapolating the idea…just what becomes of the current crop of Key’s media sycophants?…this whole edifice without their talisman to focus all this energy on…?
Therefore we see…that it is neo liberalism and its proponents that create these types …and their total obedience …much like dogs that have been well trained to perform tricks to receive their food…
But like dogs…they will only perform …so long as food is offered. But it would seem that so long as there is a successor to Key that offers them their food they will continue in this trained dog manner….failing that …these types will perform for anyone throwing them scraps…
And that would include a Social Democratic govt if it offered them morsels.
As I say…these are no more than trained circus dogs who perform tricks for food. Nothing more.
surely whore is a better description
What do a gigolo (My Cosking) and Don Key have in common ?
He whore, he whore
Actually Lloyd, I like Chairman Mao’s expression:
Running Dogs!
And yes Pungawerewere, you are right; all things must pass; all things are just seasons…
Thank-you, Chris!
You have just explained to me why I DESPISE Hosking so much, and everything that he stands for, because I also DESPISE the greedy, selfish, uncaring, sociopathic, psychotic society that we have become, thanks to “30 years of neoliberal hegemony”.
We live in a SICK SICK SICK society, and Hosking is the pure embodyment of that SICKO society. Where it will end, God only knows, but one thing is for sure…. it is so SICK that it is unsustainable in the long run.
All this talk about $55 million.
That’s the number that’s been put out for years.
Hell, he’s not a very good investor and steward of his funds if after all those years he hasn’t increased it markedly. Be terrible if he were to be in charge of the Treasury benches.
Yes, I think that was a figure focus grouped to be at the upper limit of acceptance to the moronic masses.
Good analysis Chris, Mr Hosking tells it as he sees it – if you don’t like what he has to say switch-off.
Funny thing, Grant, is that many peoiplew switched on to view John Campbell. His ratings went up. TV3 still cancelled his show. Paul Henry’s ratings were lower than Sesame Street – and he stays on air. So, really, consumer action of the sort you describe seems meaningless.
Frank, interesting to read about Campbell in today’s DomPost. Broadcasting watchdog upheld another complaint against Campbell Live criticising the shows “overblown” coverage of the Eltham Buttermilk saga. Terms like the Campbell Live report “was inaccurate and unfair”.
This was the second ruling against the now defunct programme in two months, the other relates to the Canterbury earthquake anniversary.
In our house, Chris, this man you write about is simply known as Mike Hunt.
Mike Hosking is just one “media personality”, and ZB is just one among many radio stations, but it is hardly typical for the wider public. We have various audiences, and yes, some of us have to accept it, that the values that we believe in, are much less important to the younger generations, those under 40 and certainly under 30 years of age. ZB does not have that many young listeners, nor does Radio Live, and also do few young listeners follow Radio New Zealand.
Most will rather listen to stations broadcasting mostly music and light-hearted stuff. And Seven Sharp may have got more viewers since they took on Hosking and his rather subservient female co-presenters, but again, it will be more the older generation who bother watching TV One or TV3. John Campbell was also not the social justice advocate that some see him as, yes, he did stand up for causes at times, and did raise important issues. But also on Campbell Live there was much sentimental and trivial stuff shown.
It amuses me that the replacement show, “Story”, that was announced with great anticipation and hype, was desperately trying to create “stories” in its first week, so that feedback was not all that positive. Since then, I observe, they are desperately attempting to spend a bit more time and effort on certain topics, and they also use some reporters, who worked with John Campbell. So since last week, it seems they are again moving to a kind of format that is a bit more of the type that Campbell Live had. That is bizarre, as it raises the question, what was the point of ending Campbell Live then?
But I agree, the soft heartedness, the caring approach by John Campbell, that appears to be “out of fashion”. Indeed the three to four decades of “neoliberalism”, or whatever we may call it, the reduction of the state, of the community, the collective of society, to becoming a lot of more individually minded, more competitive, selfish people, that is evident. People have grown up knowing little else, so they look at everything in a purely utilitarian way. What is in it for me? What can I get out of that? What can I earn under these systemic changes? what opportunities are there for me? What app or gadget makes my life easier and do things faster? What use can I get out of the contacts I keep, and how can I improve my profile or status? These are questions most “modern” urban dwellers in a developed country like New Zealand ask themselves, and there is time for personal, private indulgences, but it is every one’s own choice, as to how to live these out.
Add also the modern technological changes, where so much is done within seconds, where people expect service and replies at the instant of a push of a button, and where complex analysis is alien to most, and we get people who behave and think accordingly.
Then the younger generation is the product also of their parents, who are generally in control of society, and that is, besides of the powerful elite that pulls the financial and other strings, the middle class, only really primarily concerned about their own well-being and security. Yes, they may care for and help their own kids, give them some help to get their first car or even home, but there is NO serious commitment to society as a whole, which has also become very culturally diverse, sharing is limited, or consists of superficial gestures.
So here we are, Mike Hosking is fitting the selfish breed of a person that so many are these days, and few seem to be having too many scruples to live like people in any other part of the globe, and walk past the beggars in the street, who some would rather see “removed” as they may be a sad reminder, or an “eyesore”, which many do not wish to see, those spending their day in clean, air conditioned, sanitised office towers, shopping malls and like places.
It makes me lose hope for the future, as I cannot see this society survive, as it is becoming alienated to the basics of nature and life. Any such society will become a future Babel, and one day collapse, in one way or another, and then we can start rebuilding.
Personally I find Hosking arrogant, insipid and representative of everything that is wrong in America. Being from the USA originally, I have watched and witnessed how small minded, self centered, arrogant narcissists and their sense of entitlement has ruined what once was a great country. I moved to NZ 15 years ago and have since watched NZ go down the gurgler thanks to such idiots. I have found it quite sad how Kiwis have frequently been very quick to point out all of the injustices and negatives about America to me and to act like NZ is so much better. What Kiwis do not realize however is that the more this American way of thinking that Key and Hoskings subscribe to is embraced by NZ, the worse things get here. Just look at the US with its huge social problems; the crime, the drugs, the violence and the selfish attitudes and ask yourself how much do I want that here in NZ? I have noted a market increase in these antisocial behaviors since I arrived in NZ and it just sickens me. Kiwis do not know how good they had it and now they are throwing it all away for a sociopathic fantasy.
“What Kiwis do not realize however is that the more this American way of thinking that Key and Hoskings subscribe to is embraced by NZ, the worse things get here.”
This is sadly oh so true! I totally agree with what you have witnessed, and how you feel.
Yes Pat, very true. I myself am an import as well (1966 from Britain) and have borne witness to the trends and changes you’ve observed.
And yes, there seems to be little memory of how it used to be when there was a sense of community and nationhood; something that no longer exists. It presents a stunning irony on the supermarket rush to the “new flag”. Whichever flag is chosen, it will be a symbol not of nationhood but of loss; the gap between rich and poor, the non-health system, the NCEA disaster, student debt, unemployment and failure to care for the unwell and very poor.
Not quite Dear Leader’s brave new world…
“Don’t it always seem to go
That you don’t know what you’ve got
Till it’s gone…”
The view personified by Hosking is not just “there like our lives” – it is heavily promoted, while alternatives are ridiculed, starved of publicity and side-lined. If young people as a whole were as reliably wealth-worshiping as you seem to be suggesting, then the message would not need the monitoring that it gets. You yourself have observed the panic in Britain when Corbyn’s alternative message somehow managed to bypass the monitors and reach an enthusiastic audience, largely made up of young people.
” – Natureâs way of delivering her pink slip to those unfortunates – ” will be in the form of the now unavoidable, and soon upon us, great extinction event. Global extinction event as last-word answer to the self-deluded materialists who fancy themselves masters of the earth. If not the universe.
Fortunately the natural world’s indifference to the continued existence of any species will be the self correcting mechanism by which the globe will shake us all off like so many fleas … including Mike Hoskings his Neo Liberal betters and those who lived more mindfully.
We have made our bed and will now lie down collectively and die in it. I derive cold comfort in the certain knowledge that the natural world will carry on as if we’d never even been.
Mike who?
Actually Rogaldo, I do take comfort from the self-correcting manner of nature.
I have no difficulty at all in understanding the emptiness of myself.
And it applies to every last one of us; Hosking included.
But your post is quite correct.
The same thing has happened in recent Italy. For years the masses followed Mr Berlusconi, self made, richest man in Italy, as he bled the country dry of its social and civil amenities.
How did he do it? By owning and controlling the media. Every TV channel beamed into every home reiterated the same message- we are all having a party and lets wave the flag of happiness.
Only the internet saved the ‘thinking’ Italians when they read the truth, as observed by the international press.
My favourite memories of Hosking are when he was interviewing Kenny Baker, the actor of R2D2 in all the Star Wars films.
Hosking asked Kenny, “Were you a fan of Star Wars before the movie?”
Kenny’s face as he recovered and politely, in his London accent, informed Hosking that “..there was no Star Wars before the film.”
“Wasn’t there? Oh well.”
Zooom. swing and a miss.
And the time Jim Rose of the Jim Rose Freak Show was on and in front of the nation duped Hosking with such a simple carnival trick, much to Hoskings amazement.
I wish I could find the footage.
I used to laugh so much as I thought this was Kiwi humour I’d heard so much about ….
..until I realised I was the only one laughing.
Yeah …Nah Chris. It’s not young people listening to this git. They’re all streaming ( for free) off the net and messaging on Social Media. Or watching doco’s online and checking out the blogs or chatting online . They don’t listen to dinosaurs like Hosking. Old greedy kiwis do. Schoolkids with stupid parents do. ( there’s a lot of them) There’s a lot of dumbarse rednecks in NZ. So what’s new?
I just can’t bring myself to trust anyone who does their hair like that.
Oh yes – that designer dishevelled look – I’m so fucking cool that my hair doesn’t need to be tidy except that I’m so fucking cool that I’m designer untidy.
Many of you commentators are jealous of John Key and Mike Hoskings, these guys do alot for charity, John Key gifts his salary to charitable causes and Mike Hoskings does a huge amount of work for charitable causes. Give these guys a break it is the NZ Tall Poppy Syndrome, these guys have come from humble beginnings in Christchurch and have both become leaders in their field both here in NZ and on the world stage.
What other leaders in the world gifts all his salary to charity, truely fine upstanding New Zealanders.
I have always considered the need for charities a failure of government.
a fine line in sarcasm there Jackâit is isnât it?
It was up to “truely fine upstanding New Zealanders.”
It was, up to “truely fine upstanding New Zealanders.”
Are you taking the piss, fine up standing new Zealanders, spoken like a true national supporter.
Pretty sure it’s satire, Mandz… (I hope it’s satire!)
No world leaders give all their salary to charity as far as I know, and that includes John Key – his comment at the time was that he gave “a portion” of his salary to charity – well a portion can be one dollar, or several hundred thousand, no one knows the exact amount. He never said he gave his entire salary to charity – that is a myth perpetuated by his fans. And after all, according to Mr Key, the National Party is a “charity”. Remember the golf game he played, when he said they played golf to raise money for a charity – the “charity” in that case was the National Party.
Where else in the world does the PM/President donate all his salary to charity, it just proves the character of our current PM John Key.
Mike Hoskings is also a fine supporter of charitable causes here in NZ.
Firstly, I’ve never seen evidence of Key donating his wages to charity (feel free to be provide evidence).
Secondly, charity is the problem, not the solution: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpAMbpQ8J7g
i think you’ll find even John keys PR team have dropped that particular lie.
But that wont stop loyal boneheads repeating it.
Jack – loving your satire.
Has to be satire.
It’s too slavish to be anything else.
You deserve your own blog, dedicated to the Dear Leader we all love and adore and obey without question.
We could set up a shrine to Dear Leader Key… demolish the war memorial in Wellington and set it up in it’s place. We can all pay homage, at least once a week (once a day?).
Anyone not complying will be considered anti-social and hostile to Dear Leader’s vision of re-branded New Zealand Inc.
Howzat?
Forgot the bit about paying homage daily into eternity through his new flag!
as Bob Dylan once said to Hunter S ThompsonââWe may not be able to defeat these swine but we donât have to join themââadd âdefeat them yetâ perhaps, so as not to get too defeatist
the shallow consumerist bastard spawn of Rogernomics would rather go to a hundred boxing day sales than be seen dead at a TPPA march but why give in and adopt the âmall zombie shuffleâ?
my take is the underlying class power relationships still exist and have to be dealt with so where ever you are in lifeâget organised; join a union, an advocacy group e.g. Auckland Action Against Poverty, join a movement like Mana or become involved in some local issue, but participate and fight back!
“well-adapted to the new world ushered in by the changes of the fourth Labour Government”
It’s time for the left to stop blaming the fourth Labour Government and start blaming the Fifth Labour Government. I wish Helen Clark joined the Iraq war because then the left would be more inclined to critique her ‘third way’ – which continues to be the problem.
Of course the fifth Labour Government was worse, but for many people like me, I was too young to remember them. It was the fifth who cemented neoliberalism and constructed this SOE model that allows people like Hosking to have a state sponsored voice.
To make matters worse, Labour continues with their failed ideology. I’m not surprised young people vote National. I’d be more surprised if young people were voting for Labour – I’d ask them why?
I used to be hard left.
Then I got a degree and a job, then a better job.
Then everyone was lining up to lean on my hard work and demand their share using guilt tactics.
I never used to mind sharing but when it’s demanded and when those doing the demanding aren’t willing to get off their chuff and do the hard yards themselves, left wing politics wears pretty thin.
The problem for the left is that there are now just too many people in NZ prepared to work hard and not enough troughers who just want to sponge off them. I want a NZ where everyone in NZ can be successful with a bit of effort but if for some reason you can’t there is a safety net for you. I find it really offensive that this world view is seen as “evil” by the left. I’m constantly referred to as a neo liberal pig.
Well everyone. If you want to know why the left is so run down and the right is getting so much traction in NZ. It’s simple. We aren’t going around calling people pigs and abusing people for their views. We congratulate those who are successful and encourage those who try.
For all those bitter people here, calling people names and labeling society as sick. How about taking a good hard look at yourselves first because that might actually help you to see why your world view is no longer shared by the majority.
@ Ricky Rogers . Ever hear of a logical fallacy?
Here’s the thing Rick. Ask your neo liberal mates to give me back my electricity, my public transport ( And rail freight ) my telco, my health, my education, my dental, my economy, my farmlands, my houses, my forests , my fisheries , my peace of mind, my tranquility, my safety , my Maori, my youth, my students who now MUST leave NZ to pay back loans and we can talk your can-do bullshit and your other freshly invented myths . Back to the script writer with you, whoever you are .
Being as highly educated and enlightened as you claim you are you would of heard of this fellow.
Chris Hedges . Another loser Pulitzer prize winning journalist and no doubt henchman to the Left .Â
âThose who fail to exhibit positive attitudes, no matter the external reality, are seen as maladjusted and in need of assistance. Their attitudes need correction. Once we adopt an upbeat vision of reality, positive things will happen. This belief encourages us to flee from reality when reality does not elicit positive feelings. These specialists in “happiness” have formulated something they call the “Law of Attraction.” It argues that we attract those things in life, whether it is money, relationships or employment, which we focus on. Suddenly, abused and battered wives or children, the unemployed, the depressed and mentally ill, the illiterate, the lonely, those grieving for lost loved ones, those crushed by poverty, the terminally ill, those fighting with addictions, those suffering from trauma, those trapped in menial and poorly paid jobs, those whose homes are in foreclosure or who are filing for bankruptcy because they cannot pay their medical bills, are to blame for their negativity. The ideology justifies the cruelty of unfettered capitalism, shifting the blame from the power elite to those they oppress. And many of us have internalised this pernicious message, which in times of difficulty leads to personal despair, passivity and disillusionment.â
â Chris Hedges
Ricky, I doubt you were ever “hard left”. You sound too set in neo-liberal dogma ever to have been a leftist, who, by nature are critical of capitalist ideology.
Now you’re an anti-capiutalist are you Frank? I thought you were a middle of the road Social Democrat who hero worships the Scandanavian model.
Well said, it amazes me how many of these lefties say they care so much for the poor yet all they do is vote for a government to take money off other people to pay for social welfare. For all there talk none of them work at soup kitchens, no far easy for them to simply wring their hands and every time an election happens just cast a vote for a party like Mana. The reason why they do this is because they are lazy plus a bunch of spiteful loses who are jealous of the success of others.
“yet all they do is vote for a government”
you know this how exactly?
Yes Stephen, we need that social welfare after your capitalist cronies destroyed jobs after the global financial crisis, and before that, sending jobs offshore to low wage societies where sweat shops are the norm.
If that is your vision of a “bright future”, I want no part of it.
I’ll continue to vote left at each election. Up till now, I’ve voted Labour, but after reading your rant, I’m voting for the Mana party.
And your welcome.
What amazes me is how you “succeeded” in life with such appalling spelling. Believe me when I tell you that I am in no way jealous of your ignorance
Nice one Ricky – you’re really showing your values.
Many on the left are well educated and could earn a shitload of money.
But some of us maintain our empathy when we become well educated and earn money.
I pity you.
the problem you have is making that steaming pile fit the fact that left leaning views are more readily found among highly educated and high earning people
I used to be left
But now im earning in the top tax bracket and are “net tax positive”
Im even further to the left
For some reason, Hoskings, Henry, et al brings Baghdad Bob (http://politicalhumor.about.com/library/jokes/bljoke-iraqinfominister.htm) to my mind. Therefore the less airtime given to our “opinionists” (Hoskings and co), the less I worry đ
The Left misunderstands the motivations of those to the Right of them. (This includes the vast majority of New Zealanders, including Mike Hosking.) The reason Mike is a success is because he resonates with the majority of us. There are various aspects to this resonance and I’ll list a few:
He is not forever manufacturing artificial crises in order to make headlines. His approach is more balanced and he is capable of looking on the brighter side of topics as well as the problems. The latest issue is the milk powder price. The mature view is that this is just part of the commodity cycle and we will weather this just as we’ve weathered similar things and besides dairy is only 20% of our exports. Well informed New Zealanders can see straight through Andy & Winston when they claim the sky is falling in: It’s just a cheap political shot which will blow back in their face when the price goes up again (as it seems it is). Just like the “Manufacturing Crisis” they invented last year.
He does not ‘pimp poverty’. By this I mean the typical Campbell Live tear-jerker, where they’ll interview say, a PI couple with half a dozen kids living on a minimum wage. We’re supposed to shed a tear for these poor downtrodden folk but the less gullible of us are shouting at the TV: “Why the f&^% did you have so many kids if you can’t afford to feed them!!!!?”. This is why Campbell Live failed. If he’d asked that question – the one we all wanted answering – then maybe he’d still be on the TV.
Next the Left thinks we don’t care about the poor but nothing could be further from the truth. We all want NZrs to be healthy & wealthy and live successful lives. But at the same time we note that some aspects of our welfare system are exacerbating the problem rather than solving it. This is why the changes to DPB and other schemes have been welcomed by us. The results are already promising with lower teenage pregnancy rates and fewer youth on the dole. We want to give them a hand up, not a handout.
Lastly, us to the right of you care about the environment too. But we recognize that a century of experiments in socialism always resulted in poor environmental outcomes so we have a firm belief that private ownership of land will give a better result than the collective option – government or iwi ownership. Private landowners today are protecting nature whereas iwi and DOC are mostly just growing gorse and possums.
Andrew – you are talking a huge amount of crap.
Do you know why the milk price went up Andrew? Very simple question. You are claiming Hosking looks on the bright side and you have held up the milk price going up as proof of that positivity you on the right so could you just explain how and why the milk price went up please Andrew?
Awaiting your answer (I promise to go into the rest of your sanctimonious and childish points right after you’ve answered the milk question Andrew).
Martyn, you call it “crap” but it is the view of the vast majority of New Zealanders right now. Your fringe Left view is maybe held by less than 1% right now.
Remember the results of the election? đ
Getting back to milk powder prices, it seems you didn’t read what I posted so I’ll go into a bit more detail:
The price of commodities go up and they go down, depending on supply & demand. Farmers understand this. Fonterra understands this. We’re a small nation in a large global market which is affected by a long list of factors, none of which we can control.
Various individuals and companies have chosen to invest in dairy and I’m sure the majority understand the potential risks & rewards. (I suppose if the farmers had been making a fortune, you’d have been whining about that instead. You’d be calling it “unfair” and requiring “redistribution”)
The issue I took was with Little Andy and Winston yet again trying and score a cheap political point. One which Hosking exposed for what it was. For the vast majority of us, it was miles off the mark because:
1/ We understand how markets behave and have a balanced view of the pros and cons of these ventures.
2/The decision to go into dairy was made by individuals and private companies, not the government.
3/ Dairy conversions were well under way during the Clark era and Labour actively promoted them, even to the extent of doing a trade deal with China. So Little Andy doesn’t have much ground to stand on, does he?
4/ Neither NZ First nor Labour have a better proposal. If we’re wrong to be investing in dairy, what more lucrative industry should we be getting into? (sound of crickets chirping)
If Labour wishes to ever sit on the Treasury benches again, they need to stop barking at every passing car and focus on developing some sound policies – not the half baked stuff we saw during the last election. They seems hypnotized by the idea of attacking John Key rather than getting their own house in order.
I’m currently not a Labour voter, simply because they have nothing useful on offer. However we do need a strong opposition if only to keep National on their toes. If Little can’t get his act together, I suggest the party moves him on and let someone else have a go.
No Andrew – this is bullshit.
You were attempting to claim that Mike Hosking is popular because he looks on the bright side of life, not like us lefty moaners. You hold up how right he was about dairy prices as proof positive, what you did not mention in your convoluted and overblown response Andrew is that Fonterra cut their supply down. That’s why Dairy prices went up Andrew, not because Hosking has some magical foresight.
Are you saying that the dairy prices went up because of greater demand for more of our product? Because it did not, so pointing to Hosking as some sort of wizard with amazing insight is just nonsense. He’s spouting politically biased views to counter the weight of criticism at this Governments decision to sell assets, invest in irrigation and put all our cows in one Beijing paddock.
Now let’s deal with the rest of this nonsense.
He is not forever manufacturing artificial crises in order to make headlines. His approach is more balanced and he is capable of looking on the brighter side of topics as well as the problems. The latest issue is the milk powder price. The mature view is that this is just part of the commodity cycle and we will weather this just as weâve weathered similar things and besides dairy is only 20% of our exports. Well informed New Zealanders can see straight through Andy & Winston when they claim the sky is falling in: Itâs just a cheap political shot which will blow back in their face when the price goes up again (as it seems it is). Just like the âManufacturing Crisisâ they invented last year.
Hosking is a pimp for the same type of vacant neoliberal aspiration that Key sells. He rates because a lump of coal at 7pm on TVNZ would rate. His radio show is number one (once you remove RNZ) only because all other commercial radio stations are shite. He reassures you that you don’t need to think too hard Andrew, and that suits National Party voters just fine.
He does not âpimp povertyâ. By this I mean the typical Campbell Live tear-jerker, where theyâll interview say, a PI couple with half a dozen kids living on a minimum wage. Weâre supposed to shed a tear for these poor downtrodden folk but the less gullible of us are shouting at the TV: âWhy the f&^% did you have so many kids if you canât afford to feed them!!!!?â. This is why Campbell Live failed. If heâd asked that question â the one we all wanted answering â then maybe heâd still be on the TV.
I’ve spoken to John Campbell about this issue, have you Andrew? I’m well aware that the desire to cut Campbell Live was political, it was not commercial. You are simply regurgitating right wing lies Andrew, at least be creative with it mate. ‘Pimping Poverty’ is the sort of disgusting Cameron Slater term used to attack anyone pointing out that inequality is soaring. It is a phrase that allows the person to feel good about not caring. People who use the phrase are callow and as hollow as the dead heart of a corpse.
Next the Left thinks we donât care about the poor but nothing could be further from the truth. We all want NZrs to be healthy & wealthy and live successful lives. But at the same time we note that some aspects of our welfare system are exacerbating the problem rather than solving it. This is why the changes to DPB and other schemes have been welcomed by us. The results are already promising with lower teenage pregnancy rates and fewer youth on the dole. We want to give them a hand up, not a handout.
I appreciate you tell yourself this as a means to avoid having to think. Poverty impacts many in different ways, and this ‘blame the poor for their bad choices’ is kindergarten luck egalitarianism. It avoids the hegemonic structures of society and how they impact individuals. It’s like you’ve only ever watch Fox News Andrew.
Lastly, us to the right of you care about the environment too. But we recognize that a century of experiments in socialism always resulted in poor environmental outcomes so we have a firm belief that private ownership of land will give a better result than the collective option â government or iwi ownership. Private landowners today are protecting nature whereas iwi and DOC are mostly just growing gorse and possums.
This is the biggest laugh – you did just see the National Party, your Party, just release a 30 year infrastructure plan that didn’t mention climate change once right Andrew?
The Right are selfish and have a fetish for the individual so that they aren’t obligated to think of the community as a whole. Key is as popular as he is because we have a media who are more lapdog than watchdog and people benefitting from property speculation more than their actual jobs.
This Government has abused political power more than any before it – you may have fooled many of our fellow citizens with your simplistic thoughts, but not all of us yet Andrew.
What makes me laugh hardest Andrew is that if Labour had pulled the kind of abuses of power National have you would be the first one screaming.
Well said – that deserves more than an uptick!
So did Hitler, Franco, and Stalin.
Mob preferences is not exactly a resounding reason to validate a person’s views, is it?
There are fewer on the dole because National’s new policies are pushing people off WINZ and into invisibility. Considering you’ve never had to navigate the maze that is WINZ, as per usual, you haven’t a damned clue what you’re wittering on about.
You see concerns about child poverty as “pimping”?
Really? And then you wonder why so many despise right-wingers and their bigoted selfishness.
Again, really?
I refer you to your comment about âpimping povertyâ.
Allow me to explain the ‘Pimping Poverty’ point I made.
By pimping I mean making political capital from it and perpetuating it.
Left wing ideology is all about failure and envy of those who haven’t failed. Thus the voter base of the Left is with the poor and those who feel angry over their lot in society.
OK so far?
Now, I see two types of people on the Left as regards this issue.
There are those who are genuinely concerned about the poor and think that left wing ideology is a solution. These people are either delusional (there’s no helping them) or the very young who haven’t had chance to read about the 100 year history of failed socialist experimentation and the misery associated with it. If they’re smart, by the age of 30 they’ll have figured it out by themselves and move to the political centre.
Then there is the ‘political class’ of the Left who mostly aren’t completely stupid and know that if they actually FIXED poverty it would be to their own detriment – those uplifted from poverty would become middle class capitalists and vote for someone else! So they want to keep the ‘natives on the reservation’ and the poor, poor. This group are sociopaths.
So the Left trots out suitably sad looking individuals to the media so that we can all duly say “ahhhh, isn’t that sad!” but never scratches beneath the surface to discover how that person came to be in that situation nor offer any practical solutions.
“Mike Hoskings does a huge amount of work for charitable causes.”
I heard him say everyone should pay the voluntary school ‘donations.’ Education is important and it’s a small cost. Parents have a responsibility to pay.
He happily told us how he’d paid $1,000 each for his two in their school.
A knighthood is not good enough for him. Eat your heart out Mother Teresa, when it comes to charity you got nothing on St Mike.
NZ is starting to resemble North Korea and Kim Jong Il.
Our indebtedness to the USA is heading us down that track.
Debt is used as an instrument by 1st world countries to control 3rd world countries like NZ.
I would be interested to know where Key and English have spent the $100
Billion they have borrowed in the last 7-8 years?
Anybody got any answers?
At least our Dear Leader is better than Kim Jong Il. (Nicer hair style.)
I’m a little curious Jack; you make constant reference to North Korea.
Are your politics stuck in the 1950s?
As for an answer…
Issue the lefties with AK47s and Semtex.
That would cure right wing foamers…
Paying welfare among other things.
Haha Just because you write it doesn’t make it True…. The only reason 7 sharp has become more popular over the past months is so obvious muppet…. Since CL was ousted all the viewers had 2 7 oclock options Shorty or 7 Sharp, hes a bloody muppet …. so I watch Shorty and the cooking Channel till some real programmes come on
The “wonderful” “Michael Noel James “Mike” Hosking IV” according to Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Hosking
“In 2012, Hosking was revealed to have received $48,000 in payments and perks from SkyCity Auckland Casino for doing regular work for them, while still working as presenter for TVNZ. During controversy over proposed taxpayer subsidies for Sky City building a national convention centre, Hosking wrote in defence of the subsidy, describing the convention centre as an “aspirational investment”.
In 2013, he was the master of ceremonies at Prime Minister John Key’s state of the nation speech, which he also endorsed. Hosking is a climate change denier, stating on Seven Sharp that he doesn’t believe in the IPCC report.”
And he is with his income and “worth” very “close” to the average Kiwi, I suppose (?):
http://celebrityglory.com/mike-hosking-net-worth-yearly-income-actor/
Celebrity Glory made a mistake with his age though, as he was NOT born in 1905 (of course), he was born in January 1965! But I trust the other figures are about right.
Thanks for telling me what I think Chris. As usual, you’ve got no idea.
To some degree it would be apparent that a good portion of Hoskings viewer numbers are due to fact he holds opposing or shallow views. We want to know what the otherside are thinking. Form an opinion on their opinion and just plain old ‘love to hate’ type characters, that’s entertainment. All other mediums mock Hoskings and his percieved world view in droves, the net, social media, music radio & that is where the young are. The young who are often blamed for the recent years of neoliberism hegemony push, loss of values & primarily selfishness. The next generation are not innately just less caring.
The youth have different pressures, they cannot afford to give as much for a start. They start adult life in debt, they will pay 4-10 times what previous generations paid for a home if they are ever that fortunate. They will pay for their grandparents , parents retirement in their taxes while saving in kiwisaver for their own, & don’t kid yourself with that many baby boomers that there’ll be enough left in the pot for super for them . They have no choice but to think about “Me” ” me, me,me ” in a terrifying panic !
Long gone are the days you dropped put of school, got a job straight away and that got you a interest free cheap home, wife and 3 kids. No worries .
And what age group, demographic now benefits from the neoliberalism , high prices, rock star salaries etc Not them it is the same accusational generation that imposed them . Our older people , baby boomers and 45+, you took the money not them.
My interpretation of your argument, Chris, is that you are basically saying the left should think “if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em”. If unprincipled sleaze and mind-dumbing fluff are the prerequisite abilities for news and information here, then I am one who will not sell his soul to the devil!
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/281847/are-media-bias-claims-anything-new
Wow, is that for real?
Life is good for Mike Hoskings, he is on $600-$700k paid by TV One and us as taxpayers.
Hmmm, that’s one very highly-paid political prostitute…
I hope Key is getting his monies worth.
Can we stop with all the Hosking blogs now…the man is a waste of space – if kiwis wish to waste their time listening to his dribble, then good luck to them. Their loss.
For the last 30 odd years NZ has been ‘fed’ the dumb down pill.
It’s high time an antidote was found.
Good morning all.
http://www.roymorgan.com/findings/6406-roy-morgan-new-zealand-voting-intention-august-2015-201508200049
So the anti-Chinese slur didn’t work either. Back to the drawing board!
đ
Just to repeat my message so you really get it:
1/ Don’t bark at every passing car: It’s making you look foolish.
2/ Concentrate on making your own parties more appealing to the voter rather than just attacking National. People mostly don’t vote for haters.
NOPE, dumbing down and propaganda financed by wealthy donors and sponsors works, even Hitler knew this and did it that way.
The left’s insistence on Ad Hominem attacks fascinates me! Read all the above replies and most are full of them and not just aimed at Key and co but at each other. Now I expect it of Bradbury but surely not most of you. For example “Don Key” etc? Clearly the guy has an excellent IQ that is bigger than most of his critics!
Andrew is right – most people don’t vote for haters.
No…Andrew is Right – and that’s just the problem . Hes an apologist for the far Right.
A troll
An apologist
A person who is quite happy with people being used as tools if it furthers his own bank account.
And because of this he is so very , very wrong.
Jaysus man, it’s untermensch who are born in state houses (which in and of itself is largely a myth nowadays -“It is estimated that approximately 13% of women (around 400 women in 2012) giving birth at home met the criteria for standard primiparae nationally (6% to 17% between DHBs). Work to expand the definition of standard primipara to accurately include births not at a maternity facility is under way.”)
Most recent figures 2012: http://www.health.govt.nz/system/files/documents/publications/new-zealand-maternity-clinical-indicators-2012-oct14-v2.pdf
The put-upon-from-birth state-sponsored untermensch birthing in state-housing has gone the way of the stratified working class of the author’s fervid imagination – it’s non-existent.
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