National Beaches Billboard To Be Unveiled Tomorrow

Tuesday, 31 May 2005, 6:17 pm
Article: Kevin List

A National Party billboard that is working a number of New Zealand internet political diarists into a lather is not quite kosher according to National Party Election 2005 campaign manager, Steven Joyce.

“It is somebody’s guess at what [the next billboard] will be based on is my picking. There is one along those lines, but there are some rather fatal flaws in that one,” Mr Joyce told Scoop late this afternoon.

Source Bhatnagar

The version circulating on the internet (see above) has the question “Who owns the beaches” running along the top. On the left side above a grumpy looking Helen Clark is the answer – Iwi. On the right hand side above a genial Dr Brash the answer on the internet billboard is Kiwi’s.

The add on the Internet has the words authorised by Steven Joyce on it. Mr Joyce jokingly threatened to ‘sue’ whoever had put together the ad.

It appears to have first appeared on Auckland based National Party supporter Aaron Bhatnagar’s internet diary. The ad has also appeared on Mark Blumsky’s campaign manager Mr David Farrar’s website. Reaction to the ad has not been universally positive from visitors to Mr Farrar’s site. A poster going by the alias dim wrote

“It freaks me out that the same people who thought this ad was a good idea might be running the country in a few months time. Maybe I will be holding my nose and voting Labour after all.”

However another poster thought the billboard was the height of good humour and anyone that didn’t find it hilarious must be wowsers.

“What a hopeless mob of humourless wowsers! Do you think we original citizens don't know how to laugh at ourselves? Its a bloody funny ad and a damned good one,” wrote a Mr Adolf Finkensein.

Mr Joyce told Scoop the real billboard, which is similar but different to the internet billboard would be up tomorrow morning.

ENDS

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