Deconstructing Headlines

…we are now into phases 2 and 3 of the stock standard response. The ‘suspected weapon’ and ‘shooting victim had it coming’ phase. Here the Police aggressively defend their actions, demand thoughts and prayers for the poor police who had to unload an entire clip into whatever mentally unwell person they’ve gunned down and then tend to start phase 4 where they demand more guns as a response, 

The Oil Industry has known for decades that their product caused catastrophic climate change and they actively used propaganda to pretend climate change wasn’t to blame the way the tobacco industry used quack science to pretend smoking and cancer weren’t connected. Petrol needs to be hit with taxes the same way we hit tobacco and these taxes should be used to transition completely away from big oil.

The sugar industry, landlords, private education, private health and the wealthy who profit will not be so blind. They will understand the enormity of the change the new government represents. No Government crosses industries as powerful as oil and roading if they don’t mean it and those who haven’t been challenged yet will be frantically and desperately clambering together in private rooms and company offices to demand an end to this roll back of their power and influence.

Many Aucklanders had no idea how severe the storm was going to be, rather than blaming Aucklanders perhaps those tasked with ensuring we get warned need to find better ways of communication rather than shrugging.

When will we see a mass expulsion of Israeli diplomats for the continued murder of unarmed protestors?

As citizens who are responsible for our soldiers in Afghanistan, we should all feel shamed by what has been allowed to go unquestioned for so long and our media have once again disgraced themselves and their profession.

With all the focus on mocking Jacinda for not finding Russian spies, the fact a Chinese spy is still allowed to openly be a member of the National Party Caucus demands far more scrutiny. 

…mispronunciation of Māori words, profiling and being asked if he was a glu-sniffer are pretty mild examples of racism in NZ, yet for some it’s been like a black flag to a Klu Klux Klan bull…

Two very simple visual reminders that Taika Waititi’s ‘Racist as f**k’ comment is on the money.

Last time National believed their attack on the NZ Actors Union and ability to frame the story as National saving the Hobbit film being filmed here was a major political win.