So you get somebody at TVNZ endeavouring to engage in a nice gesture (which, again, I *do* think is a pretty cool intent here – and should be lauded, up to a point), on grounds that they’ve heard that Auckland City Council is holding a “Diwali” event, and therefore without doing the proper research, they just kinda assume … and ‘get onboard’ by wishing us all a “Happy Diwali” two weeks early across multiple channels.
There are several things that need to be said on the most recent development with everybody’s favourite Botanical bete-noir.
Now while, to be sure, it is possible that this may have been meant as a direct comment on how National’s two Indian MPs are seen within the party as individuals … I think given the surrounding context of the conversation that it is quite clear the National Party does not see the Indian communities within New Zealand in a particularly positive light.
It is a curious thing. By the end of last week, a pretty appreciable portion of my newsfeed were discussing Clayton Mitchell’s “NZ Values” proposal. Or, at least, that’s what they *thought* they were doing.
There is an anecdote about how, in Stalin era USSR, everything would somehow be blamed on Trotsky. Soviet economy didn’t meet 5 year plan output targets? Trotsky’s fault. Collectivization of agriculture has unintended effects on food supply? Trotsky’s fault. Building collapses? Trotsky’s fault. Factory machinery stops working? Trotsky’s fault. Fall down the stairs? Trotsky’s fault. Etc.
Er … they want to do what? Potentially deport people for, among other things, not being in favour of recreational access to alcohol?
So now the dust (or, perhaps, some measure of the ‘fog of war’) is starting to clear over Monday’s events in Syria, it’s probably prudent to reflect on what Putin can and should do in response to what has occurred.
Over the past year or two, I’ve endeavoured to popularize the concept of “Jihad Vs McWorld”. If you want a really tangible demonstration of “McWorld” in action, look no further than the McDonalds workplace policy brought to light by Newshub this evening – wherein Maori staff responding to Maori customers attempting to place an order in Te Reo Maori, was firmly clamped down upon by McDonalds’ management, on grounds that “English is our McLanguage” .
You know, it is the most curious thing. I opened my newspaper earlier in the week (not in a web-browser,…
It is worrying in the extreme that a situation of unjust imprisonment may be welcomed ‘just because’ it may make somebody else feel a little bit safer – indeed, it is tantamount to starting down the greased incline of asking whether certain segments of the population ought be ‘walled off’ for the general protection of the rest of us even regardless of whether they’ve actually been proven to have committed any crime.