It’s been a tough week for Labour and a timely reminder that the mainstream media are there to see through the vested interests of their corporate masters, it sure as hell isn’t there to serve the interests of the least powerful in society.
Remember, the ONLY reason why the mainstream media picked up the plight of the poor was because Checkpoint focused on the AAAP beneficiary clinic 5 months ago after Waatea 5th Estate did a 3 part special on it.
The mainstream media didn’t just wake up and grow a conscience and decide to highlight Kiwi’s living in cars, they did it because far more progressive elements in the media (Waatea 5th Estate and Checkpoint) were uncovering that story. The millisecond the media could turn back and attack Labour they did and look at the bullshit they decided to do it over, Stuart bloody Nash wanting to have a public event with a venomous snake like Phil Quin.
How is it that in the week Labour/Green bloc finally gain level pegging with National after 8 years, that the corporate mainstream media chose to focus on Stuart Nash not getting his own way?
Here’s Stacey Kirk putting the boot in, Tracey Watkins, Steve Braunias, Tracey Watkins again, and even the brilliant Andrea Vance had a go.
This in the week we found out fight clubs were weekly in Serco, housing affordability continues to be out of touch with reality, our Australian neighbour is torturing people in detention camps, NZ prisons are tying prisoners to beds and National is misusing process to debate fucking luggage. But what gained the most attention? Andrew Little not wanting a senior member of his team turning up to a debate with speakers like Phil Quin who have been poisonous in their attacks on Labour?
It would be like entering a celebrity debate with Cameron Slater or Simon Lusk.
What Andrew was doing was stamping his authority on the Labour Party so that the factional bullshit that has plagued Labour for such a long time doesn’t and won’t grow. The issues at hand are Housing, Jobs and Poverty – not whether the Right wing of Labour are being treated fairly or not.
Labour has had its factional fights over the last 8 years. The Left took out David Shearer’s leadership and the Right destroyed Cunliffe’s election chances, an uneasy truce has broken out under Little because both sides are too exhausted to continue fighting.
Little has brought an iron discipline to Labour and it has been on target with Housing. This annoys the hell out of activists who want a huge range of issues to be debated, but that mentality ignores the reality in NZ.
The fundamental problem for Labour is they are facing an electorate who despite dirty politics and mass surveillance lies, flocked to Key to protect their untaxed capital gains at the last election. The only way Labour and the Greens beat that is by bringing in those who aren’t gaining from the property bubble to the cause and to date this is working, but Labour can’t believe for one second that the mainstream media will ever give them a fair hearing.
The lesson is stick on message.
Yes, so Andrew Little gave a knuckle rap over an errant child’s hands for misbehavior. And commentators all crowing over a ‘ purge’…
So what ?
That’s right . So what?
It all depends how you perceive it.
For 32 years Labour has been infested by right wing neo liberals that should never been there in the first place. That’s common knowledge. And for 32 years people of all stripes have been waiting for a clearing out .
You can either see it as a timid approach ( depending if you have right wing leanings ) or you can see it for what it is : a leader who wont mess around with words and give time to a fractious group to get publicity – but prefers instead to deliver a warning shot to divisive members and at the same time fire a broadside at the right wing.
And as for a purge?
That’s common knowledge as well , – even in the public perception. And has been advocated by the public for decades. Most who have any knowledge of the divisive effects of the neo liberals within Labour are well aware of the need for a purge.
So its less a matter of if and more a matter of when.
And it looks as if it is starting now , particularly in light of the MOU.
You either join up and play the game – or out the back door you go.
Why,… does the Labour party have to suffer the indignity of being a labelled a broad church ? , – a cliche that implies it should have all manner of division and outright subversion’s going on inside the party?
John Keys party is never referred to in this light ,… oh no … they are always ‘ unified’ when referred to in the MSM. And what are they unified in? That’s right , – personal enrichment of themselves and their corporate/ banking / speculating mates. At the EXPENSE of the working and middle classes.
And we don’t need more of that ilk polluting the Labour party at all.
So in fact , we could do with a lot more of the right wing screaming bloody blue murder in the media , – that would give Labour a platform to attack the neo liberal far right wingers for their duplicity for the last 32 years and strengthen public knowledge of the new Labour party’s unity and policies.
And the housing issue is just one of them.
A public statement such as ‘ Certain elements within the Labour party have been endorsing policy’s that run contrary to official Labour party policy and indeed core Labour party ideology , and we are now seeking to rectify that matter’ … could be the opening shot to a ‘ shift’ in personnel ….
Then let the purge begin.
And it would be old news well before 2017 – and a dead issue.
Add Duncan Garner to the list of puppets working for the neo-liberal establishment.
You can add Jessica Mutch to the list, doing it in a more discrete way, by having David Shearer on Q+A, and after seeking his views on the scandalous incidents at the Australian run camp for refugees, ask him also re the internal “divisions” within Labour.
Then on Q+A they had one of the mentioned persons himself sit on “the panel”, that was Mr Quin, alongside guess who? He was joined by former ACT MP Heather Roy and also Bryce Edwards, and they did then also give their “views” on what Little said and did, or was alleged of having done, re Leggett et al.
Quin had to criticise Little for attacking Leggett, instead of Nick Smith, but he simply did this to also add to the perception that Little is “Angry Andy” and not up to being leader. So here we have the right leaning, neoliberal forces within and outside of Labour join forces again, to prepare the next leadership challenge.
Talk about divisions, those on “the panel” are all known to have their own personal bias, so does apparently innocent looking Jessica, who is now leading questioning and commentary on Q+A, as it seems.
Yeah Mike Q+As only purpose is too provide a platform too trap and bully Left wing MPs into saying or doing something that will incriminate them and give the Right an excscuse to destroy their credibility and provide a negative sound bite for that nights news.
Labour and Greens should be wise too this stunt after all why would the pig want too step up too the spit too get roasted and eaten.
It is another example of how the Right has dominated and controlled the news and what we get told and the tactics used like the headline and the clever use of words and phrases aimed at the publics consumption and if One news are telling me there is division in Labours ranks it must be true and the effect is damaging too their perception.
These tactics are used at every election cycle but not where Mr Key is concerned as his and the others questions are carefully vetted before he is asked anything incriminating.
The media is NOT here to inform us truthfully and with no bias they nailed their flag too the National parties pole some years ago and are doing their bidding and the public cannot see that.
I think it will be many years away before we see another Labour govt in New Zealand again.
Jessica and the others are having too much fun at the John Key SPIT and BBQ.
Seems like the people in the so called LABOUR party that once had working peoples interest at the for front of what THEY STAND FOR and a alternative to the vicious nasty tory alternative have forgotten why they joined in the first place and have learned nothing in the last 8 miserable years.
Fine Little is stamping his authority but should he be having too?
This Nash issue should never have even been a club with which a grateful right wing press will happily beat them over the head with, i thought he was bright but i have changed my mind!!!
They will be beaten next year because they are not ready to be in government and that means standing as a unified strong LABOUR party not with left or right factions there is no place for that in a modern social democratic party.
There are thousands of kiwis waiting to VOTE for a strong decent alternative that WILL stand against the forces that have a stranglehold and a boot on the head of good kiwi people.
All labour MPs should be on the same page about WHAT they stand for and against and how to articulate that.
It seems to me that Rogernomics is not finished destroying the Labour party and its been left too the Greens as principled as they are too take up the fight but they need Labour too step up and shout with one collective unified voice and mobilize New Zealanders to the cause.
The only term that Key and his government should be getting is a prison term…… serco style.
Attention Labour Party and Andrew Little
There’s a lot of anti-neoliberal sentiment here at TDB Andrew, and it’s tempting to try and get rid of these traitorous, treasonous shits immediately. Better to keep them inside the tent pissing out, than outside the tent pissing in. Especially given the “mistakes” made this week and how the MSM will seize on anything to deflect from the 44%45% 10% splits.
After the next election, with a LabourMOUGreen coalition, there’s a 6 step process Labour should take to get back to its true roots.
Call a Labour caucus meeting (neolibs’ presence mandatory or expulsion./li>
Have proforma resignation letters ready and waiting
Rent neolibs a Red Pen/Biro/Pencil (after all it’s user-pays)
Neolibs sign letter and resign (or be expelled).
Neolibs Form their own NEOLIB party OR ( a party of neolibs whose policies are rolled in glitter and rebranded as centrist)
Join ACT, National, NZ First (under Shane Jones) United Future or Maori Party./li>
Neolibs outside the tent with ACT, National, Maori Party, United Future (and ACT under Shane Jones) SORTED
Oops – I meant NZ First under Shane Jones (my apologies). Sorry Andrew, sorry See-More.
Fairfax are going all out attack on Labour. As the polling gap closes, Dirty Politics strategies are about to go nuclear.
Yep, exactly right
Andrew Little will fail again and keep failing because he still has entirely the wrong agenda. (He was told 5 years ago what he needed to do but just won’t do it.)
What is the wrong agenda? and what was Andrew Little told 5 years ago?
Purge the Labour party of its neolib MPs.
Well said Martyn Bradbury !!
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