The Marxist maligning MP
New Green MP Ricardo Menendez March said in his maiden speech:
I remember in 2011 watching the election results at the back of the cinema counter while the last film of the night was playing. I clearly remember seeing clips that night of the Winston Peters and Bob Jones of the world scapegoating immigrants for the housing crisis, for unemployment, and for inequality in general. While we were being blamed for buying up all the houses, we were also being blamed for bringing low-skilled, low-wage labour that didn’t contribute to the economy—or so they claimed.
Now it is certainly true Winston Peters has scapegoated immigrants. Not that this stopped the Greens from serving in a Government with him as Deputy PM.
But Bob Jones?
In 2012, Sir Bob wrote:
There’s an old boxing aphorism which speaks for itself, namely a hungry fighter is a good fighter. Make no mistake, those thousands of Asians – mainly Indians and Chinese, but also large numbers of Thais, Koreans, Malays and Filipinos – pouring into New Zealand are very hungry fighters indeed. The evidence confronts us daily.
Whether it’s the amazing 15-year-old Korean-born Lydia Ko or the annual secondary schools top scholars’ photographs published in newspapers which are dominated by Asian kids, or the corner shops with their Indian families keeping them open 19 hours a day, seven days a week, or so many of the new CBD retail business start-ups being Chinese, the energy of these migrants amounts to a huge boost for New Zealand.
So in fact the exact opposite of what the Green MP alleged.
Never before in history has there been as much mass migration as today. If, in many cases, they’re fleeing war-torn countries, the evidence is clear that host nations are ultimately enhanced by the contribution of different cultures, despite occasional teething problems. But most are economic migrants and we should welcome them to our welfare-sated nation. They bring with them an independent mentality and self-respect, sadly non-existent with a large section of our population.
The American expression of the melting pot is undoubtedly an important factor in that nation’s success. We should copy it and woo migrants from non-traditional sources. Aside from the very welcome Asians, we’re now getting heaps of Argentinians and Middle Easterners.
Sir Bob probably even supports migration from Mexico!
In 2013 he also wrote:
But what of our country? To date, our geographic isolation has provided immunity from the boat people. That won’t last, as the world abounds in cheap old ships and inevitably one laden with illegal migrants will turn up here, more so as that same isolation gives us an Elysian Fields imagery in the eyes of people enduring hardship in distant lands. It will be easy to send ashore in simple barges hundreds of migrants along, say, Ninety Mile Beach. By the time they’re discovered, the ship will be 500 miles away, off to pick up a fresh load.
As with Australia, the navy will be helpless dealing with this. Hobson’s choice will invariably see us accept them, resulting in ever more arriving. There’s no answer to this problem other than not viewing it as a problem and, instead, accepting a multi-race future; a miniature melting pot as lies at the heart of America’s greatness. The grandchildren of today’s 20-year-olds will all be part Asian, Arab and God knows what else, and be better for this infusion.
And here Sir Bob actually advocates for allowing in illegal immigrants and welcoming them. So in total Bob advocates for immigration with no restrictions due to the economic and cultural benefits to NZ for doing so. This is the polar opposite of what Menendez March claimed about Sir Bob.
I think Sir Bob is owed an apology by the Marxist MP for maligning him as someone who scapegoats immigrants. But he has already refused to do so on Twitter, with some nonsense about Sir Bob only sees immigrants as economic units.
More stuff he just invents. Sir Bob specifically cites the cultural benefits from immigration. So a sad start for an MP to use his maiden speech to smear someone just because he could.
Also worth noting Sir Bob provide scholarships to refugee daughters, so they can study at university.