Political analysis and commentary shaping the progressive debate in Aotearoa New Zealand, focused on power, policy, and accountability.
Despite what some are suggesting, there is little direct equivalency between the inadvertent Iranian shoot-down of Ukrainian International Airlines Flight 752 earlier this week, and the American shoot-down of Iranian Air Flight 655 in 1983.
So over the past few weeks, the Royal Family has ‘lost’ two princes. I mean, they’re still there, nobody’s been exiled nor beheaded (potential migration to Canada notwithstanding), but nevertheless two Princes (and one Duchess) have taken a step back from being “Senior Royals”.
The White House ceremony (it would be wrong to call it a press conference) in which the President gracelessly accepted the Iranian Government’s de-escalation of the international crisis which he, himself, had unleashed by authorising Soleimani’s assassination, was a vivid illustration of the new reality in world affairs.
As the missiles began to fall yesterday afternoon NZ time, I was struck by a few observances. Both of how much some things had changed – and, within those, how much yet disappointingly remained the same.
So, in response to Donald J. Trump’s .. desperate tweet from earlier this week, in which he threatened Iran with “CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. [sic]”; Major General Qassem Soleimani [a figure I have occasionally written about before, with some deserved degree of admiration] made a most interesting speech – the gist of which can probably be summed up in the following quote: “We are ready for you”.
It has been said, with some justification, that you either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.
The evolution of our shared human experience has been eclipsed by corporate tech algorithms designed to enslave & divide us for profit.
From the TDB whanau to you and yours.
I’ve just had a couple of days camping. Time to escape the jingles; the advertising invoking us to spend, spend, spend; the overconsumption and the manic traffic. Time to reflect on the end of the year, the end of the decade, and according to the Doomsday Clock, the end of the world.
Back in early 2016 I wrote a blog called “The problem with Jacinda…” at the time she was the Labour candidate for Mt Albert in the byelection created by the resignation of David Shearer.