Sound advice

Ani O’Brien writes at Stuff:

New Zealand, the nation of the Springbok Tour protests, anti-nuclear action, and Dame Whina Cooper’s hikoi, has apparently undergone a cultural transformation and no longer tolerates political protest. 

In the last few weeks, a small group of Kiwis led by a 66-year-old Christchurch man has been quietly turning around books and magazines featuring our Prime Minister in stores around the country.

They contend that she spends for too much time on photoshoots and fluff pieces and not enough time working on the eradication of child poverty, homelessness, and the housing crisis.

Fair enough, right? We don’t necessarily have to agree with this, but good on them for peacefully demonstrating their political discontent with our Prime Minister and her Government. 

Wrong! Oh how wrong.

What should have been a flash-in-the-pan, barely noticed protest has now made not only national headlines but it has also been featured in international press.

I suspect the guy who started this can’t believe his luck – the pile on by opponents has meant his silly little campaign has got through to almost every voter in NZ. And while many would agree the campaign is silly, his underlying message of the PM not succeeding with the hard problems is not one the Government would want this much focus on (as it is so obviously true).

This is thanks to the characteristically hysterical response of the increasingly militant and intolerant section of the Left who are determined to attribute the most horrendous of social crimes to anyone who holds opinions contrary to theirs.

The founder of the #TurnArdern movement has had his private and business information published online, been threatened, and – along with all who have participated – been labelled a misogynist, racist, white supremacist extremist.

Now, I do not know the people involved with the protest, but as far as I can tell turning books around is about as benign as political objection can get.

Exactly. When I first heard about the campaign, I thought those involved were a bunch of stupid dicks. But you know what. Because of the hysterical response to it (the highlight being Ardern’s biographer comparing it to the Salem Witch burnings) it’s almost (key word almost) has made me want to join the campaign.