Beehive fickle friends
Kevin Norquay writes:
We all know them: “friends” who say they have your best interests at heart, then run off with your girlfriend, dive into your fridge and quaff the champagne you were saving for your wedding anniversary, or tell you they know someone dying of the very disease you have.
If you respond with annoyance at such betrayal or absence of feeling, you’re the problem, not them.
“What is it with you man? She wasn’t right for you, I did you a favour,” or, “alcohol is bad for you, jeez” or simply a forlorn head shake that implies you’d best hurry off and get your affairs in order.
Which brings us cheerfully to our friendly “be kind”, “listen to the science”, “we’re so transparent” Ardern-Robertson government, which seems to be now acting like a “friend” who would like you to look the other way, so it can get on with what’s good for it, such as getting re-elected.
A great analogy – they are the friend who screws you over and then can’t understand why you are not grateful to them for it!
In 1863, US President Abraham Lincoln called democracy “government of the people, by the people, for the people”. In 2022 NZ, it’s starting to look more like “of the people, by the party, for the party.”
How else to explain health officials in November telling the Government MIQ was “no longer justified”, yet having the Government keep inbound MIQ in place for another 15 weeks, then trying to avoid releasing the details publicly?
“Listening to the science” now carries a taint, as decisions made could be seen as party political, rather than public health related.
It’s an erosion of trust. Why cover up things that are supposedly done in our best interest?
They fought to keep it hidden for four months.
Robertson echoed that, adding: “I continue to believe MIQ did a significant job in keeping New Zealanders safe and in saving lives.”
There’s that “friend” again, telling us all the secrecy was for our own good. Whether MIQ did a good job is not the point here, it’s when that good job might have ended.
You could argue “we listen to the science” remains accurate, with the coda “but our decisions are based on the politics”, but transparency was always a fiction written boldly on a blocking PR wall.
What’s the next slogan: “You’ve got to be cruel to Be Kind?”
I think their next slogan is “We’re tweaking democracy”