Who knew Tracy Watkins was such a snowflake with low Millennial trigger thresholds?
Her latest pearl clutching column at Stuff has her fainting from the Labour Party using Handmaid’s Tale memes to highlight Luxon’s conservative knee jerk when it comes to Womens rights.
Let’s be clear. Yes, Labour are hypocrites for doing sweet fuck all for 6 years, but they have removed prescription fees, and Luxon being his usual Luxon self just rules out exempting women for contraception prescription charges because Luxon is clueless and doesn’t understand the political ramifications AND BECAUSE Luxon is an ultra right wing Christian who doesn’t believe in contraception in the first place!
THAT’S WHY the Gilead memes and Handmaid’s Tale references are perfectly legitimate here BECAUSE Luxon is an ultra right wing Christian and the only reason National are screaming foul is because THEY understand the bomb Luxon just detonated!
He’s just not very good at this.
He specifically ruled out women getting contraception prescription costs covered and drawing his conservative evangelical religious values as the conclusion why he’s decided that is perfectly legitimate!
Again, Labour – hypocrites for doing nothing for 6 years, but that doesn’t take away from the truth that what Luxon accidentally revealed about his conservative religious decision making values isn’t relevant going into the election!
His knee-jerk refusal to subsidise contraception for women was the exact same conservative certainty he had when he declared women didn’t get hassled much online…
Christopher Luxon initially ‘not sure’ if women face more abuse in politics, later admits they do
…He has history for saying this dumb shit and most times his first reaction is his most reactionary reaction which he then has to walk back 24 hours later!
It’s amazing how selective Tracy’s Outrage Olympics over dirty politics are, because if Labour using mean memes is a new ‘low for politics’, what the Christ was ‘Dirty Politics‘ and what did Tracy have to say about that when it was released in 2014?
Well, she downplayed the entire thing, air quotes ‘attack politics’ and ends up quoting John Key…
“Most people know that Nicky Hager is a screaming left-wing conspiracy theorist. He’s hardly an authority on these matters . . . I’m not terribly worried.”
…Hilariously Nicky was awarded for services to journalism in todays Kings Birthday Honours list.
So when Labour use a mean meme it’s the end of Western Civilisation, but when it’s National caught out, she ends her column with a quote from the Prime Minister attacking the journalist???
Police illegally searched Nick Hager and illegally took evidence!
The SIS illegally spied on Nicky Hager!
Remind me again Tracy what National did…
…and what else…
…Right.
But Labour using a Handmaid’s Tale meme, that’s the new low point in NZ politics is it?
Malcolm X said it best…
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martyn – Labour is starting to run out of media friends…interesting
If the press barons are shifting, the other corporate donors may also be shifting their dollars to the other side.
Kristoff R. – my thinking too
If you want an example of dirty politics you just need to think of Paula Bennett releasing info about beneficiaries who criticised her and Judith Collins getting rid of Nick Smith.
Uncle Tom Cobbly That was quite sinister, because it was privileged information to which the media would not have had access had National’s minister, Bennett, not disclosed it. At a crude level, it was bullying, but it was also a misuse of political power which should have seen Paula censured, but if I recall correctly, she gloated that she would do it again. And she did.
When Paula tried to smear Hurimoana Dennis, presumably peeved at the good work which he was doing for the homeless, unlike her, she was leaking information which he had preferred to her in good faith. Being a dirty politics sort of girl, she tried to use it against him for no good reason whatsoever, and then tried to deflect it on someone else, as they do. But her info leaking about the beneficiaries trying to better their lives looked like petty vindictiveness and punishment for using their voices, and a warning to others to zip it up.
Well put Martyn.
The Natzos were banged up to rights by Nicky’s “Dirty politics” and “The Hollow Men”. And he has cornered the spooks and NZ Defence over the years. He puts the official spies to shame really with his opaque interview techniques and information gathering that seemingly leave no trace.
Slater–Oil and Farrar’s fans went totally berserko on “Dirty Politics” because they were sprung! Caught with their blue real estate style cheap arse pants down around their ankles. Key’s “office” releasing OIAs to Slater–Oil first–where are you now Eade Et al?
People like Nicky Hager are in fact sincere defenders of this country’s honour and democracy. Labour’s using “Handmaids Tale” is totally appropriate. 50% of the population are women with uteruses, many of whom will not be impressed one little bit with Baldrick Luxon’s take on THEIR access to contraception.
The contraceptive story is a “Hollow Man” argument.
Straight from Nicky Hager’s book.
I wouldn’t worry too much about the perceptions of Tracy. Tracy does deserve an elephant stamp on the hand though, for her valiant effort to present Mark Mitchell as a wonderful humanitarian who scrambled around in the tragic devastated ruins of post-war Iraq to reunite cuddly dogs with their sad owners. And getting mighty rich. Mitchell, was he a Lusk product too ? Tracy saw Mark as being in the mold – or mould- of John Key, but whether this was meant to trigger a stampede of support for Mr Mitchell, or send everyone running as fast as poss in the opposite direction I suppose that only Tracy could say. Is Labour’s cultural appropriation really all that bad? Like stealing others’ music, or Russia’s splendid dancing Cossacks, instead of presenting facts ? Or sending dopey students down the CBD at midnight with the unrealistic hope of finding Winston Debonair Peters looking dishevelled, or asking prostitute besties to check whether Labour politicians have frequented their brothels ? That’s more pearl-clutching sort of territory.
All is fair in love and election tactics.
Handmaids tail….. straight out of “The Hollow Men”.
A “hollow man” argument.
Lacks integrity and devoid of honesty.
Johan, that does not excuse Tracy. You appear to be happy that everyone is devoid of integrity and honesty. Maybe you yourself are a bit of a Rightie – a man who excuses bad conduct because you consider yourself a man of the real world, whatever you imagine that to be? Not impressive.
Tracey shared her opinion.
She put her argument forward and it shows Megan and Little are Hollow Men.
It is now up to you to demonstrate that she is wrong through argument…. Or whatever means is available to you. Your argument will define you.
The fact is women will get access to contraceptives and a $100 tax cut per family in NZ is Hollow. Little knows it, TDB knows this and so do you.
It is just another Hollow Man argument. And there will be many more flying around in the months to come.
Johan- you did not specifically defend Tracy from Martyn’s critique.
All you did was to make the foolish claim that it was another ‘Hollow man’ critique, with no detailed explanation. Big fail, sorry.
the guilty complaining about dirty politics is in itself dirty politics
Natz bootlicker Watkins is still crying because her idol, Mr’ ‘white collar criminal’ Key, ran away when the heat got too much, and she couldn’t publish her sycophantic love notes about him any more.
Poor dear – I hope she’s found someone else…….
Elephant stamp on her hand LOL. Punishments for errant writers in various cultures:
Elizabethan England: off with his left hand! And if there’s a next time …
21st century Saudi Arabia: chop him up with a buzz saw and pack him out in a suitcase.
21st century Russia: slip him a dose of Novichok.
Mexico: feed ’em to the sharks in Acapulco Bay.
NZ: off to the zoo, and hold her down while Nelly the Elephant stamps on her hand.
Pope Punctilious 11. I was being kind, didn’t you know ? The inked rubber stamp on the hand was a reward for good children who knew their spelling or comprehension, but I expect that it’s been outlawed now – assault on a child, inappropriate touching, unfair to spelling or comprehension challenged children, confusing for elephants, possibilities of blood poisoning, religious or ethnic implications, other.
I was being kind to Tracy, because she gave me such a jolly good laugh in her interview with Mark.It could have even been a laugh alone in an empty room, on a Saturday. To be mean, I usually suggest that the offending one should have been shot at birth – quicker and cheaper than all your helpful suggestions, but thanks anyway.
Help! The elephant in the room stamped on my hand! Do you reckon I could buy an elephant stamp somewhere? Could inject some fun into otherwise tedious work meetings.
Pope Punctilious 11. I think that the $2.00 shops sell animal stamps for children to do things with and they also have lots of animal stickers. Warehouse Stationary may still make stamps to order; Auntie got one reading,” Return to Sender” to stamp on the back of letters from family members and they’ve nearly all died.
Be careful if you’re in a diverse workplace; elephants, monkeys and cows could cause offence to Indians; just about everything offends sexist Chinese males but don’t let that put you off; Brits have very respectful relationships with their dogs, but Sth Koreans could interpret them as a dinner invitation. Why not fish? Fruit ?
Very amusing discussion. Good advice from Aunty Snow White to keep in mind!
When Watkins became editor of the Sunday paper I cancelled it. Don’t need to read shit.