On Matthew Hooton Against Winston Against China

By
Curwen Ares Rolinson
-
30
2124

There was something odd about Matthew Hooton’s NZ Herald piece this morning castigating Winston for his remarks about the People’s Republic of China. Namely, in a piece that was significantly about NZ’s stance on Taiwan rejoining the WHO … he did not use “Taiwan” once. Instead, it was “Chinese Taipei” all the way through – and in a manner that seemed almost calculated to emphasize that name. Which is, if you were unaware, the PRC’s preferred way of talking about its “renegade province” on the international stage.

The only time Hooton came anywhere near saying “Taiwan”, was when he was comparing “”Taiwanese Splitters”” [in scare-quotes, presumably because he’s quite keen to kow-tow not only to the PRC’s preferred proper nouns, but also to try and make out that Taiwan’s divergence from the PRC isn’t really a real thing, either, whatever the nomenclature under which it occurs] … to the Chatham Islands pretending to break away from New Zealand in a bid to get the rest of us here in Kiwiland empathizing with Beijing upon the matter.

Now I know Hooton’s no fan of Jacinda Ardern, but I somewhat suspect that obliquely insinuating she’s Chairman Mao circa the late 1940s, is more than a few Bridges too far.

There’s legitimate space to discuss Winston’s remarks pertaining to the PRC recently – that’s one of the benefits of a free and democratic society, we can have free and democratic conversations about what our elected representatives come out with upon all of our collective behalves.

And while I do think that Winston is, in effect, coasting towards mixing metaphors by playing bull-rush in a China shop by openly disclosing that the PRC attempted to get us not to enter Lockdown, or asserting that Beijing wouldn’t impose significant trade-penalties upon us for supporting the Australian call for independent inquiry into the origins of Covid-19 etc. …

… that doesn’t mean I think he’s in the wrong for doing so. He’s standing up for New Zealand’s interests and independence.

Hooton’s perspective, by contrast, appears to be that letting China have its way – and at least as importantly, being seen to do so – is the best way to support New Zealand’s interests. I’m not sure if he’s to bothered about the “Independence” side of that equation.

Still, look on the bright-side. If Beijing chooses to make good on Hooton’s implied threats to stop accepting our exports, etc. …

TDB Recommends NewzEngine.com

… perhaps that means they’ll also stop buying up our politicians and newspaper columnists.

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

30 COMMENTS

    • That makes ZERO sense

      For starters

      Resident visa holders can return to NZ, they just have to be in govt quarantine for 14 days.
      The borders are not closed to resident visa holders, or to citizens.

      All this is a case of, is chinese voters swinging their support to the ruling party as they do. Chinese voters care not a jot about the long term aims of a party. All they care about is being “on side” with a “ruling power’

      Labour is the ruling power. Ergo, chinese voters in NZ now want to side with the ruling party. It’s a well understood trait of chinese voters.

      The only true way to stop the rort is by limiting voting for central government to citizens only.

      • @James thrace,

        There are less foreign nationals in NZ – although technically some can return there are a lot of reasons they have not – the poll reflects the views of who is CURRENTLY residing in NZ and with less foreign nationals eager to become NZ’s next exploiters and make a bundle from the scheme being polled, National is down on the votes…

        It has also disrupted the tens of thousands per month of new residents coming to NZ on the ponzi visa schemes…

        People could take a breath of fresh air, literally, with less pollution when the poll was taken.

        Totally agree that they need to stop the rort is by limiting voting for central government to citizens only. And also make it 10 years to become a NZ citizen not 11 days Peter Thiele style.

  2. China have gone deranged.
    They have already slapped 80% tariffs on Australia’s barley.
    What this demonstrates is that the hubris within the PRC is such that they think they can act this way towards the whole of the western world with impunity.
    Picking a trade war with US is pretty bad. If they escalate this to UK, Europe, Canada, etc they will be fucked.
    Chinese debt is a deeper hole than the American’s and the effect of being isolated by the west would send them back 20 or 30 years.
    The PRC deserve this, unfortunately the every day Chinese do not.
    Perhaps this will be the price they pay for ridding themselves of a totalitarian regime?

    • China states that they welcome and have requested an inquiry into covid19, but by the WHO, and definitely not by Australia, USA and cronies.
      An inquiry needs to be done by an international pool of scientist and definitely not politicians not influenced by politicians.

    • …’ Picking a trade war with US is pretty bad. If they escalate this to UK, Europe, Canada, etc they will be fucked’…

      ———————

      In a nutshell.

    • China’s debt is not as much of an issue as the Presstitute media would have us believe. It’s currency (n.b it is NOT money since 15/8/71) is highly likely backed by a LOT of Gold, PLUS they manufacture stuff.
      The USA has huge debt and most probably non or bugger all Gold to back it up, AND they don’t produce much any more. (The West/) Europe are as per the USA but without a big gang to make stuff happen they way THEY WANT (think armed forces or the Mafia).
      So China will struggle no doubt about it, but ‘the rest of the world’ will hurt a hell-of-a-lot more and the ROTW are not used to struggling (we’ve become soft), so are sadly in a much weaker position. Think of Last man standing or game theory.
      I include NZ/OZ in with the Western world for simplicity.

      The American empire is over and assuming they don’t start WW3 which they are trying bloody hard to do, then an Asian power block will ‘control the world’ after many centuries of a Western power block doing so.

      Or America could start a revolution in China as it has done in 10’s of countries around the world since WW2 to get what IT wants and save its crumbling empire. Britain was as bad in it’s day and I’m sure France, Spain, Netherlands, Portugal, Roman etc did too.

      p.s. I’m, NO fan of China, but these would most probably be the realities today.

      • No a bad summary.
        Corruption is a human problem where ever there is money.
        Which Governments in the world today act for there people rather than the rich.

  3. It’s interesting how the PRC has worked out that the best way to gain influence in a foreign country is to buy that influence. The best route is via the Right, them being for sale.

      • No that’s unfair on Labour because as we have seen one of the main issues ripe for nationalisation is PPE. One of the issues involved in having objective stocks of medical resources in reserve is that all got placed in private hands and we ran out pretty quickly meaning the government is going to have to implement contingency plans, the public won’t accept anything less.

      • SADLY I would have to agree.
        Labour are NOT left wing. They are just more left wing than NACT.
        And we’ve yet to hear about the Chinese influence in the Labour party. Hopefully ‘the bought and paid for MP’ isn’t a spy !!!

  4. Well said Curwen

    “Still, look on the bright-side. If Beijing chooses to make good on Hooton’s implied threats to stop accepting our exports, etc. …
    … perhaps that means they’ll also stop buying up our politicians and newspaper columnists.”

    Yes China knows money buys power and they are just another gang like Mafia was.

    • Well China own and control most of the NZ/Chinese exports anyway aka Silver Fern Farms – 50% owned by Chinese company…. also in receipt of $42,465,934.20 NZ wage subsidy.

      So I guess if they try that in NZ, then they are hurting their own companies as much as the NZ ones…

    • And the USA is today, with minor (call them ‘made men’) players being the UK, France etc

  5. …And dairy farms and factories and meat companies and water but it does.t seem very likely does it!

    D J S

  6. Hooton’s standing up for his interests and independence by not using the word ‘Taiwan.’ He’s probably made that decision based on some deep considered knowledge and perspective and coincidentally his respect for those who don’t want to call the country Taiwan matches that of others. Including China.

    He could quite easily have decided to go with what the Taiwanese call their home. (I wonder if that hill on the west side of the North Island is Mount Egmont or Taranaki to him.)

    The Hooton story online was banner headlines last night. Maybe it was a poll distractor.

    A really interesting story would be for Hooton to tell us how he sees things. Does he want New Zealand to have nothing at all to do with China? Does he want us to have untrammelled dealings with China and them with us. Do we never refer to or acknowledge any reservations we have about human rights or any other issues in China? If China expects us to see Taiwan as the enemy for China do we have to agree? If China tells us to have no dealings with Taiwan do we abide by that?

  7. More ‘dog whistling!’ Didn’t you know that theres an election coming!

    With the New Conservatives, Act & the fringe National party nutjobs and the Alt Right Agenda 21, anti-5G, anti 1080,Chemtrail voters all been chased by all the above. The competition is brutal!

    Remember, Australia just had a poke at China and they poked back with a hick up in beef trade of $30b.
    That about the same as all trade NZ has with China.
    Do you wanna risk losing that now when there isnt anyone to fore full those comments?

    Hes been an egg!

  8. China did not object to a review or investigation of what happened. They have backed the statement released at the WHO meeting.

    Rather China objected to the manner in which Australia politicised it –particularly drawing the analogy to ‘international weapons inspectors’.

    Whether Morrison did this on purpose or inadvertently is irrelevant. He was either being a dick or is totally ignorant for a man in his position.

    Anyone with even a minimal knowledge of Chinese history, will understand that Morrison’s call in its original form was red rag to a bull, given the historical, if not personal, memories of Western imperialism in China, and Chinese humiliation at the hands of the eight allied powers ( 八國聯軍 )

    • Don’t go seining your balls in my face, son, I’ll make you drop them. That goes doubly for any yank apologist. Do you lot want a gold medal or something?

  9. The CCP has virtually complete control of the national party and it’s fanboys.

    What a sad state of affairs

Comments are closed.