The 5 images that best sum up the Current New Zealand Government
One of the the things that the new Government has managed to do so far is create images that seem to capture the new values of this generationally shifting Government in amazing clarity.
While there is much work to be done in NZ, this new government have managed to create moments that lift us with a rare hope.
Here are this Government’s top 5 images that provide that vision of hope.
5: THAT Buckingham Palace photo
It all started with this incredible image. It took our collective breath away, Clarke looking roguishly handsome and Jacinda just glowing pregnantly with that beautiful feather cloak. Amongst the splendour of an old Empire, our first couple provided a breath of fresh nationhood and a modernity that stood with grace and Mana.
4: Hope on the International stage
Here is Jacinda once again sparkling on the International Stage. The once universally revered Aung San Suu Kyi is one of the great current disappointments of foreign relations. Her blind indifference to the genocide being waged by the military inside her own country has seen her this week stripped of her Ambassador of Conscience award bestowed upon her by Amnesty International. Jacinda offering to reach out to a once great figure who is now quickly becoming a pariah with an offer of help is real evidence of the politics of kindness that Jacinda is attempting to channel.
3: Pike River Mine re-entry
It is difficult to look at this image and not feel a lump in our collective throats. The pain the whanau of the Pike Mine River dead have had to endure has been 8 suffering in the making. The Government’s desire to fulfil that promise and re-enter the mine when National wished to just concrete over it shows a stark difference of priorities and values. The open face of Andrew Little who has championed this shows a humbleness of responsibility that speaks of all that is good and right about us as a people.
2: Neve at the UN
Remember how the right wing pundits and National Party hacks screamed that Jacinda appearing at the UN was meaningless and why were we paying for those images?
Here are the stats.
Most viewed speech of any world leader on the official UN channel and those pictures viewed 195million times eh? Sounds like the first use of taxpayer money that actually did some good for our public image.
Those images of Jacinda at the UN with Clarke and Neve have given us more value for money than the entire Hobbit Trilogy.
It’s a reminder that friends don’t let friends hate babies.
1: The image that most sums up the vision of hope this Government represents
In an unprecedented move, Jacinda decided to spend 5 full days at Waitangi this year and this image of her cooking Waitangi Day breakfast at the Treaty grounds spells out better than anything else the politics of kindness and service to the people that her Government wishes to espouse. If she makes this a regular tradition it could more to reinstate Waitangi Day mana than any other single thing.
Some will argue that only substance over style matter, but it’s difficult getting substance passed if people don’t have the vision of hope to disrupt our disposable fortitude to reach for that level of real change.
Jacinda and Clarke are the world’s first hipster first couple which no one yet has noticed
For most people they’re receiving ones and three percent pay increases per year while productivity is up $1 billion to $168 billion. So that’s about 1% wage growth while the economy is growing at 4%. With 6000 new youth placements in training and apprenticeship roles could boost growth by another 1%. One more up tick and it would be pretty difficult arguing against moving the work force from survival wages to some more decent.
Agreed on your last paragraph, which could arguably imply that the contentious move to refurbish WINZ’s offices ahead of overhauling their systems themselves is also worthwhile.
Yeah Jacinda is probably too nice for politics, and much of what she might personally want is more than likely is being stymied by either her own party or Winston. Even then, just about anything is better than another term of National.
The BBQ image is such a contrast to the image of John Key entering Nat Party HQ on election night 2009 surrounded by a phalanx of goons.
Are you serious? This is absolute drivel.
America is on the cusp of falling.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7vqAQJm6sA
Then what for NZ?
Trump and Ardern are our distractions.
That shot of Jacinda and Nobel Peace Prize winning genocide enabler Aung San Suu Kyi is definitely one for the “What the fuck was she thinking?” file.
Wayward figures sometimes need a gentle tap on the arm to remind them that they are the object of hope for their people.
Jacinda did that. There is a lot Aung San Suu Kyi can do to keep her people focused on hope.
You seem to forget that the military control that country, SimonM.
As far as I know, the military is not controlling NZers, so we have a little more freedom to share our values internationally.
Next time I hear about another mass slaughter of Rohingya, I’ll let them know Aung San Suu Kyi is an “object of hope for their people.” I’m sure that will be of great comfort to them.
Marshal Law is a pen stroke away for Americans https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRG1vjPDc-4&feature=em-uploademail
As part of the TPPA, share and share alike. NZ next.
All are great images, but 3/5 are international, Pike river is based on a disaster so it’s bitter sweet, likewise the treaty image and ongoing issues that have not been resolved for Maori in particular aka all the worsening statistics for health, education, housing and on-going issues like water and assets sell offs to overseas interests and TPPA which will almost certainly be a stab in the back for progress for Maori going forward.
Remember Trump won with the slogan, ‘Make America great again’, unlike the Democrats who loved the international media lens, film and media industry loved them, but the people were sick of being betrayed and the democrats lost the election.
Natz lost because they also concentrated so much on immigration and selling off assets and people had had enough.
Labour limped in, and are doing a better job than Natz, but their interests and progress as shown by the photos are international in focus, and the locals are not exactly taking up most of the photos that symbolise the hope they have.
Tellingly even with the excitement when apparently Mike Pence wanted to sit next to Arden, did she use the moment to discuss her supposedly nuclear free moment of climate change or urge US to uphold the Paris agreement and help the environment, nope instead it is reported that she focused on unsuccessfully pressing New Zealand’s case for an exemption on US tariffs on steel and aluminium which are mostly foreign owned multinational companies.
So who would even benefit from the lift of US tariffs on steel and aluminium – well mostly the profits of overseas firms.
Who owns NZ steel, well BHP, formerly known as BHP Billiton, is the trading entity of BHP Billiton Limited and BHP Billiton plc, an Anglo-Australian multinational mining, metals and petroleum dual-listed public company headquartered in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and owns significant amounts of the formally known New Zealand Steel.
The raw material for NZ steel is ironsand which is disappearing fast around the world and can not be replaced and has virtually zero studies on the long term effects on the eco systems.
The future of sand mining in NZ
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/104065329/the-future-of-sand-mining-in-nz
Who owns NZ Aluminimum, NZAS is 79.36 per cent owned by Pacific Aluminium which in turn is owned by Rio Tinto Group an Anglo-Australian multinational and one of the world’s largest metals and mining corporations and 20.64 per cent owned by Japan’s Sumitomo Chemical Company.
So when our politicians have the ear of world leaders are they really thinking of the people of NZ or international peace and well being and climate change and environmental issues, or just promoting the short term profiteering of multinational big business???
It seems clear to me where Labour’s focus is, either intentionally or unintentionally!
NONE if this impresses me one bit, sorry.
She has to do something. Pictures mean little.
When I heard that Jacinda had offered Aung San Suu Kyi help to fix a big problem, my imagination took off. Exactly what sort of help was on offer? I imagined that ASSK was mildly insulted that this young upstart was upstaging her. I can’t tell from the photo.
That one of her hapu in cloak id havd large and framed on my wall. So cool
Punchy brilliant comment Simonm. Adding to mine – looking at that strange photo, Aung San Suu Kyi looks subdued while St Jacinda looks mightily pleased with herself. Another weird moment in the short life of the current government
Another really nice article Martyn and then comes the static
blah blah blah . Haters gonna hate .Ew !