Greens trash Labour’s chances in Northcote – with allies like this, who needs National?

1. The Greens might like to turn their brains on some time (if they have any) and focus on something that matters instead of playing politics.

   It’s probably too late to do anything about the long-term collapse of the environment as a consequence of this:

   April 23, 2018 412.37 ppm

   April 23, 2017 409.65 ppm

   but the Greens could actually try instead of ignoring the issue.

2. Yep oh dear here we go again…., shooting themselves in the foot is something the Greens are good at, starting with losing Sue Bradford. Where is James? He seemed to be holding the fort rather well after the MT debacle, but as soon as another co leader comes on board the stupidity starts again. Does each co leader have the ability to make unilateral decisions or have an ‘idea’ that they can run with no reservations ?..This just looks like inept self promotion. “hey, I know what will get some attention what about we stick our oar in a by-election we have no hope of winning, divide the left vote to ensure that the Nat’s win the seat again and make ourselves look like total dumbass pricks while we’re at the business of differentiating ourselves from Labour….

   • +100%

   • he created the MT debacle

3. Where’s the obligatory stab that it’s “Wellington” thinking that causes this instead of harking the blessed, enlightened minds of the real Capital, the people that really count, Auckland?

   • WHAT?

4. Agreed; it’s absolute lunacy. No enemies to the left, eh? And there’s TOP, still getting oxygen on this blog. WTF? Class. Economic Marxism. Haves versus Have Nots. Class. Focus on anything else if these are not sorted is as meaningful and left-wing as choosing the colour of the balloons at your party, i.e. not very “left-wing” at all.

5. I knew it would happen, more self mutilation is the only way forward for the Green Party.

   They will have us believe they’re principled and if you don’t believe that then its followed by naive village idiots.

   Cannot help but think that someone who is not so dumb within the Greens wants these fools out of parliament though.

   It will mighty tempting on this form for the Greens to vote with National against positive welfare reform.

   • Hardly, Greens are more ambitious for it than Labour.

6. I seriously believe the Greens are lining up to go with National at the next election. What with gifting questions to the Nats and now this, the Greens have lost the sense of their own purpose.

   • The parliamentary questions decision can be seen in the light of Green Party opposiiton in principle to the waka jumping legislation.

     While they are going along with the coalition on it, they have tried to signal their respect for parliamentary process with their gifting of the questions.

   • I agree Bert. Seems the Greens are going out of their way to make life easy for National.

     Since Metiria resigned, the NZ Parliamentary Greens have not been the same. She kept the party on an even keel. At least with her at the helm of the leadership, we knew which direction the Greens were going. But not any more.

     After Metiria’s departure, I felt a very slight seismic shift to the centre/right. I’m hoping Marama Davidson will bring them back left again. If she can’t do that, then I will definitely not be voting Green. Their actions are making me distrust them more and more.

     But like you, with their recent activities (questions to National and now putting up a candidate in Northcote, against coalition partner Labour), I too can see the Greens preparing to go with National next election. There’s a strong hint of murky blue beginning to emerge in the Greens.

     • The Greens are not a coalition partner, they have an agreement to support the Labour-NZF coalition.

   • Well that would certainly play into Heather du Plessis-Allan’s prediction that the Greens will be gone in a decade.

     Which coalition would you think more stable?

     Labour/NZF/Greens
     OR
     National/ACT/Greens

7. The usual reason given for the Green Party contesting electorate seats is for the promotion of the party for the purpose of the party list vote.

   Which hardly applies here. So I agree it is the wrong call in that sense.

   That said, will it really have any impact on the outcome? The Green electorate vote is below their party list vote and both are lower than the margin in this electorate of past years.

   I suspect the Greens did it to get some media oxygen, whether they will use it for a good purpose …

8. I know was talking about this with my folks this morning. All once voted Greens, all live in the Northcote electorate. None of us happy with this move.

   In Halbert, we have a guy who has worked hard to build relationships in the community and has a decent local presence.

   Still, hope he gets it but would have been better from him to have a clear field with no split on the left.

9. I make these criticisms as someone who votes Green.
   Then you are just fucking stupid, aren’t you Martyn.

10. Can we hope against hope that Greens voters in Northcote are smart enough to know what to do?
    Not based on the 2017 election results.

11. “.. they are still chequers players playing chess.” I’d have to agree with that one.

    Marama Davidson says the Greens want to ‘highlighting their points of difference’ yet they gave away their parliamentary questions to National!?

    At the next general election the Greens might find out they’re more trouble than they’re worth.

    • +100…they are untrustworthy politicians at the Parliamentary level…local Greens are ok

12. Unless the Green candidate comes out and asks Green supporters to vote Labour for a healthy strong and stable govt cos that’s what any intelligent Green candidate should be advising any intelligent Green supporter to do.

13. Here’s what I think based upon what I read.
    I read, on a sticker, on a white-baiters hut at the mouth of the Matau Branch of the Clutha River. ” The only true wilderness area left is the space between a Greenies ears”
    Who would stick up a sticker like that, much less have one printed?
    A national party voting farmer, that’s who. A bill english supporter. A todd barkley type.
    James Shaw. From The Green Party website.
    “ When he’s not living and breathing sustainable economics, James enjoys spending time in his local community”
    Then he’s missed out on fonterra fucking up Christchurch’s water supply for a start.
    Has shaw ever talked about our primary industry within the parameters of his public office? Ever?
    Would it be in the interests of our economy and our literal and actual survival if he did?
    Being a devoted post corporate environmentalist an’ all you’d think he’d be Hell bent on communicating with our primary industry wouldn’t you? Change them stickers to “ Fuck National!”

    “His diverse business experience and expertise, from working for multinational corporates through to local start-ups and community organisations, will enable him to lead the Green Party and New Zealanders towards a high-tech post-carbon economy and society.”
    Will it now? See? That, to me, sounds like Wank-lite.
    What if there are those who don’t want our primary industry to go high-tech and post-carbon?
    What if there are those who live in fear of that?
    How would they then deflect attention away from the Greenifacation of a primary industry that’s buried tits deep in artificial fertilisers, glyphosate’s, over stocking, and bankster manipulated red-neck right wingers? By parasitising an environment-oriented political party with a corporate confederate who then gives national their question time and by undermining the majority party that they, The Greens coat tailed in on in the lead-up to a bi-election?
    What the Greens are doing here isn’t stupid or in some way mystifying. It’s a tactic. It’s a strategy. And with the utmost respect, I think most of you are falling for the bullshit it is.
    The last thing National want’s is for The Greens to become popular with farmers. That’d just fuck them entirely. If The Green Party lured the farmer away from their abusers i.e the National Party, that very act would open up what I call The Great NZ Institutionalised Lie like a knife through the guts on a bloated cow. There’d be a massive shower of shit, a great blast of hot air closely followed by death and burials.
    Or, I could be wrong. Couldn’t I? Lets see shall we?
    There’s one way to find out.
    Have Adern and Shaw go to a Southland Federated farmers meeting, in say Gore, and offer to create a peer to peer Ministry to ensure primary industry economic security. Did I just hear michael fay jump out a high-rise window?
    It’s interesting to see peters wafting about the EU looking for trade like a fart in an elevator BTW.
    I swear to God, you guys need to realise what’s at stake here.

    • imo the Greens will never be popular with the mass of farmers…there will be individual farmers (usually small holders or very established long term generational farmers for whom the dollar is not paramount) who will vote Green and/or Labour and or / NZF…but they are the exception

      ….so imo the Green strategy to cosy up to the bankster corporate Nact Party which is the biggest trasher of the environment is muddying the Green environmentalist brand

      …and it is a contradiction and a betrayal

      …or else it is totally inept…and it is putting off would be voters

    • “His diverse business experience and expertise, from working for multinational corporates through to local start-ups and community organisations, will enable him to lead the Green Party and New Zealanders towards a high-tech post-carbon economy and society.”
      Will it now? See? That, to me, sounds like Wank-lite’

      Spot on!

      There is no such thing as a high-tech post-carbon economy and society. Almost every aspect of this society is dependent on oil and coal.

      However, such lies by the Greens do keep the scientifically illiterate voting for them.

      • “It’s probably too late to do anything about the long-term collapse of the environment as a consequence of this:

        April 23, 2018 412.37 ppm

        April 23, 2017 409.65 ppm

        but the Greens could actually try instead of ignoring the issue”

        “There is no such thing as a high-tech post-carbon economy and society. Almost every aspect of this society is dependent on oil and coal.

        However, such lies by the Greens do keep the scientifically illiterate voting for them.”

        180 degrees – attack em from the left, attack em from the right, just attack em … haters gotta do what needs to be done … by 2020.

14. This is all seems a bit silly to me.
    So what if Shanan Halbert could narrowly win the seat in 2018 by the Greens and NZF not standing?
    Doesn’t he promptly lose it again in the General in 2020 when Greens and NZF really must stand to promote their brand for the list vote?
    That’s exactly what happened to Peters in Northland.
    Where’s the value in that probable scenario?

15. Here is Marama Davidson describing herself as a “Deputy Musterer”
    https://www.greens.org.nz/candidates/marama-davidson-mp

    Is it the the green parliamentarians, the green voters or all voters she condescends to view as sheep?

    Or is this humour?

    Yes. “they are still chequers players playing chess”

16. Greens are trotskyite materialists who have no real concern for the world but only their own direct selfish interests.

17. I can’t understand such Green bashing from so called Green/left voters. Would Labour really have a chance of winning this seat -National gained 50% more votes than Labour in 2017-the Green vote had little effect on the result. Having the Greens in government is vital to having a half decent centre left govt and it’s pretty clear that the Greens need to carve out a niche spot to the left of Labour if they want to stay relevant and above the 5% mark. So don’t knock them for trying to do this.
    And Martyn- yes the Greens went from 16 to 5%-but a large part of that was having a Labour leader that was unelectable to having Jacinda-you can’t blame the Greens for that. Their vote over the years is around 7-10%-more than enough to be influential in govt.
    And celebrating successes- it seems pretty clear that the Seabed drilling thing was not Labours idea, and the same goes for the massive rethink on roading.
    We need a left leaning govt, and without the Greens it is not going to happen. There’s plenty to rip into National about without giving people an excuse not to vote centre/ left

    • Ummmmmmmmm.

      Is this your first time here Garry?

      The Greens went into meltdown from 15% to barely crossing the threshold because Green strategists fucked up Metiria’s brave declaration. Pointing to Jacinda was only part of the problem, not cauterising the ramifications of Metiria’s announcement was what fucked them up.

      And yes, Labour had a chance to win this off National, that chance is dead now the Greens are running.

      If you are seriously claiming that a by-election 2 years out from the 2020 election is what the greens need to raise their profile you sound like you work for the current strategy team.

      • No one seems to learn the real lesson of what happened to MT in 2017 – Green-Labour family in-fighting has consequences.

        • excuse me …who is doing the fighting?….it isnt Labour

18. Waste of time for Greens to run a candidate. They should instead send someone to support the Labour person so they are visible without being a vote splitter.

    Remember last election…

    Last election Auckland central Labour/Green candidates got 15,787 votes beating 13,198 Nicky Kaye. In Nelson Labour/Green got 22,198 votes beating 16735 for Nick Smith.

    Clearly those electorates would have preferred either a Labour or Green person but instead their votes were split so they got Natz.

    Many voters don’t want a Natz MP, but it’s hard to work out who to vote for as an electorate vote if you like both Labour or Green.

    They need to make it easier for people to know who to vote for for the electorate vote.

    • ha ha ….that spells it out so even a mentally retarded person could understand it….so what does this say about the Greens?

      …my guess is making trouble and duplicity

      • Yes but also maybe Labour has to offer something to the Greens in the electorate in return because Greens can’t always step aside for Labour….

        They need to sit down and have a discussion on what’s best for the Labour/Green block, voter wise.

        Remember if Greens go below 5% that could also knock Labour out next election…

        Whether they only run one Labour or one Green electorate person, in traditional or close Natz seats….

        • Only where Labour and Greens can govern alone (based on their party list vote) is there a guarantee of Labour being in government (the Maori Party and NZ First can and have gone with National).

          Those who think electorate seats are that important need only note the large number of electorate MP’s now sitting on the opposition benches.

    • Yes, that seems correct, pretty basic stuff for MMP and the Nat’s have been doing that for Act in Epsom the whole time, no big deal, its not as if its any secret.

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