Our 2023 Summer of Discontent

By
Martyn Bradbury
-
44
1819

Many of us on the Political Left had hoped a Summer holiday would take some of the stinging animosity towards Jacinda out of our collective system in time for the 2023 election.

Unfortunately I think it will make things worse.

After coming back from my Summer holidays, I can attest to the appalling service shortage our reliance on a low wage economy has caused, I saw the potholes as our roads struggle to cope with the extreme weather events climate change is causing, I saw the madness of the one lane bridges in the Coromandel and I saw the insanity of Waka Kotahi’s decision to close off passing lanes.

The sheer scale of dysfunction across the country’s roading network and holidaying infrastructure will have reinforced for many that there is enormous break down and on top of the ever worsening climate extremes combine to create the perception of outright entropy.

Little of this is the Labour Government’s fault, indeed they are desperately attempting to upgrade the roads after National underfunded repairs for almost a decade, but the experience of these problems will all still get sheeted to the Government because the animosity towards Jacinda hasn’t dissipated.

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44 COMMENTS

    • We arrived in Auckland 26 years ago from overseas, only to face exactly the same weather: A series of spent tropical storms rolling down from the NE corner of Aussie. I thought we’d moved into a washing machine! So, in this respect nothing has changed. It’s just part of a long-term cycle.

  2. Going through Auckland Airport is another 3rd world journey back in time. Contrast to Sydney where it took less than 30 mins as opposed to over 2 hours and we look well and truely backward.

    We drove from Sydney to Gold Coast – duel carriageway with barriers in between, large and consistent rest places and surprise, surprise no white crosses.

    Australia ain’t perfect however they do understand infrastructure whereas the woke bureaucracy of New Zimbabwe don’t.

    • Frank are you seriously saying that woke bureaucrats are the main reason we have underfunded infrastructure for years? Like before woke was even a word we have been creating this problem. The usual we need to run the government like “a business” bullshit.

        • So Werner, based on your breathtaking reasoning, Luxon, a toothpaste and shampoo salesman, should never come within a bulls roar of Air New Zealand nor should’ve the current CEO.
          Could you inform us how the IT specialist, the legal specialist, corporate affairs need to know anything about roading. Granted there are systemic issues at WK but they existed long before the formation of the current entity.
          The question you should have asked is how the comms person who wrote the biographies got a job.

          • Kiwijoker
            I don’t think Werner has used the term ‘generic’ management practice. That’s the idea that with the proper tertiary or similar credentials anyone can manage anything without specialist, or in-depth knowledge. That sounds exaggerated but is I understand the basic idea that Werner was commenting on unfavourably.

          • Yes that board is all corporate affairs, public affairs and engagement which would imply road building and maintenance is off the agenda.

            As for “Luxon, a toothpaste and shampoo salesman, should never come within a bulls roar of Air New Zealand”, agreed same goes for leader of Govt New Zealand.

        • Again I would point out we have been underfunding all kinds of infrastructure for years . It’s not a defence of the current credentials of anyone in NZTA. To say we got where we are today because of “wokeness” is rubbish. I wouldn’t call Helen Clark, Key, English etc woke but it didn’t stop them underfunding things.

      • If he’s not saying it wheel, then I am. As much money spent on spin as road maintenance, “road to zero” bullshit with a rising road toll and lowering speed limits to increase driver frustration.
        The actions of anti car ideological zealots in the bureaucracy are actually costing lives.

      • It is the main reason no traction has been made and the largest impediment to improve the situation. For example roads are deliberately not being funded nationally and locally due to ideology. LOL the road to zero.

    • It took the Wall Street neoliberals much longer to deindustrialise and union-bust in Australia. Full local production in the auto’ industry lasted until 2016, and the apparel industry lasted until the early 2010s. The mining boom also helped.

      As a result there was a lot of domestic income that could be taxed. Although high speed rail and tramways have fallen below par, standard heavy rail and the new underground metros are in good shape.

      There is no real anti-rail lobby to speak of.

      Urban motorways need expanding and are behind schedule, but regional and interstate highways are in reasonable shape (considering the population).

    • Hi Frank, to be fair we drove GC to Sydney in November just gone, and did see one white cross/shrine setup.
      And 2 dead ‘roos.

      Will do the drive Sydney to GC in November this year after a cruise Akl BOI Syd. Very much looking forward to that!
      Arriving by sea into the Bay of Islands totally suits my NZ history interest.

  3. Blame Stephen Joyce for the condition of our roads. He was the one who increased the single axle truck weight limits from 44 tonnes to 53 tonnes?  

  4. New Zealand has gone from a make work scheme for the illiterate to a make work scheme for the incompetent. At least the former gave us workers, the later just gives us numpties.

  5. Many of us on the Political Left had hoped a Summer holiday would take some of the stinging animosity towards Jacinda out of our collective system in time for the 2023 election.

    REALLY!

    I am 74 have always been on the left, my parents were on the left, my siblings are all on the left.
    But frankly the woman who got into politics because of child poverty and then became the PM and the minister of child poverty is a failure for all those living in poverty and all of those at the bottom of the heap. But no doubt south auckland will vote for Labour again, they never ever get looked at, their living conditions never ever change, but why would Labour concern themselves with this, they will still vote for them, and the middle class don’t like the poor and dispossessed to get anything. That is exactly where Labour aim themselves.

    At least with the other lot we will know what we are fighting and all those stupid Labour Tribal people will be out in their drives hating what the Nats do although Labour could have likely done exactly the same thing and the Tribal Labour lot would have sat on their hands.

  7. New Zealand’s first motorway, north from Wellington, opened in 1950.

    Will it reach Palmerston North for it’s centenary?

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