THE NEW WRITE

Official Newsletter of the New Zealand Young Nationals

19th March 2002

"No man is good enough to govern another man without that other's consent."
-Abraham Lincoln

1. CONFERENCE THIS WEEK
2. CLARK MIRROR
3. GOLLINS COMMENT – POLITICAL CORRECTNESS
4. HOT GOSS FROM PARLIAMENT
5. TOP TEN
6. WEBSITE OF THE WEEK

1. YOUNG NATIONALS CONFERENCE THIS WEEK

The most anticipated political conference of the year kicks off again in Wellington this week as the Young Nationals begin their annual conference. The high-profile conference takes place in the opposition caucus room in Parliament, from Thursday 21st to Saturday 23rd, and registration is still open for members.

Highlights include:

*Richard Prebble, leader of ACT, discussing the “First 100 days of the 2002 National/ACT Government”

*Ruth Richardson speech entitled “Redefining Realpolitik”

*Jenny Shipley on the role of the Young Nationals.

*Roger Kerr, Executive Director of the NZ Business Roundtable

*Michelle Boag, President NZ National Party, and Allan Johnston, Director General NZ National Party.

You can also expect vigorous policy debates, campaign planning, and the usual infamous social events, including a special guest speaker for the official dinner on Friday.

To register, and for a detailed agenda check out www.youngnationals.org.nz

"With delegates coming from around the Country this Conference will be a chance for Young Nationals to have final input into youth policy issues and contribute to National's innovative policies for a better New Zealand,” says NZ Young Nationals Chair Grant Tyrrell.

2. GET OVER YOURSELF, CLARK

National Leader Bill English is slamming PM Helen Clark over reports that foreign offices are replacing pictures of the Queen, New Zealand’s Head of State, with pictures of Helen Clark.

“The Prime Minister embarrassed herself and her country with her showing of bad manners at the recent State dinner at Parliament, but she now has gone one step further and shown an appalling lack of respect in having the Queen’s picture taken down to be replaced by one of her.

“Instead of worrying about getting the latest airbrushed shot of herself in some foreign country, the Prime Minister should start concentrating on what is happening in New Zealand where health is just about on life support and education is in such a mess. More than 50,000 pupils facing this years NCEA are at risk.

“My call to Helen Clark is to get real, get over yourself, stop looking in the mirror and start concentrating on the bread and butter issues that matter to every day New Zealanders, “says Bill English.

3. GOLLINS COMMENT – POLITICAL CORRECTNESS IN NZ

By Chris Gollins, Breeze FM political columnist

A week or so back I watched a television programme featuring recent television commercials from around the world that had been judged the world's best.

Around the same time newspapers reported that a British travel writer had described New Zealand as one of the dullest places on earth. You may wonder at the connection. I'm coming to it.

The British journalist, Ellie Levenson didn't actually say New Zealand was boring. She implied New Zealanders were boring.

She won't be the last foreign journalist to make that observation.

New Zealanders have taken political correctness to a level that thankfully would still horrify the rest of the world. That was abundantly clear watching what the rest of the world considered to be humour in television commercials.

Picture this. Japan's winning entry was for a photocopier, with a sorting attachment. A secretary, reaching for a high shelf slipped and fell, straddling the copier with its cover open. As she attempted to get off she pushed the start button - sending numerous copies of guess what into the sorter bin - just as her boss walked in. The look on his face carried the commercial. It was very clever humour. It was humour that in this country today would have prompted an outrage. Just as many of the other world-beating commercials shown would have.

I doubt if there's even a country on earth today that would come close to robbing New Zealand of the title of world's dullest.

It used to be that you had to attend a dinner party in Hawkes Bay to find the truly boring people in this country. Adults whose conversation, on a wild night, could soar to heights of where their children were going to school.

Now it's scattered far from Hawkes Bay - it's a national epidemic. As a nation we're afraid to laugh at ourselves. We behave as though what morons like Jeanette Fitzsimons think actually matters. We're afraid to tell the truth in any business or social situation for fear the Human Rights or Privacy Commissioner will strip us of all worldly possessions.

We're a nation increasing dominated by the warped thinking of a cadre of feminazis who have skillfully convinced much of the country - many of them weak males - that their politically correct dogma somehow benefits this country.

It's as if New Zealanders have all but forgotten that the single most significant pillar of any democracy is freedom of speech.

Ellie Levenson probably didn't intend it, but in writing her column on boring New Zealand she was pointing out just how little freedom of speech we still retain.

It's ironic that the great milestones of our history - the welfare state, universal suffrage, the 40-hour week and others were largely won by orators like Harry Holland, Michael Joseph Savage, John A Lee, Walter Nash and others. Labour politicians who used freedom of speech to huge effect.

How they would cringe today - to see that same freedom being eroded by stealth by women like Wilson and Clark who claim membership of the same political party that once bore the badge of liberty and freedom for all New Zealanders.

4. HOT GOSS FROM PARLIAMENT

*Tariana Turia, the radical Maori Minister who seems to forget that she is also half-American, has been told off again by the Prime Minister. In her latest offensive speech, Turia said that because she is a Maori, Pakeha journalists should not question her.

“Given that I am in public office, that I am a Crown Agent, that I am tangata whenua, I do expect to be attacked by a media, that itself is not an indigenous media,” she said.

*Labour MP Tim Barnett has written a column for a gay magazine with the interesting title, “I’m A Social Worker Who Goes All The Way.” The mind boggles.

*Eager students wanting to join the Alliance Party this year were confused during clubs days held at universities. The Alliance and the Democrats, who are actually part of the Alliance, both had separate tables and refused to speak to each other.

*An un-named Labour MP almost did a Wynona Rider this week, by shoplifting a coffee from Bellamys. The MP thought staff would recognise him as an MP, and automatically charge it to his account. The MP, nursing his pride, had to explain to staff who he is.

*Last week saw the annual Parliamentary Shield cricket game, where a team from Parliament took on a team of overseas diplomats. There were many highlights. NZ First MP Brian Donnelly was almost killed by a ball he never saw coming, while the captain, MP Eric Roy, injured his groin warming up.

The editor of this fine publication scored a sparkling 30 runs, but was eventually bowled out, losing an exciting game by one run.

*A former Northern Territory Labor Government advisor has admitted having sex in the chamber of Parliament House in Darwin, after Friday drinks two weeks ago.

The former media adviser is believed to have taken his female partner into the chamber to have sex on the Speaker's chair. Apparently uncomfortable in that position, the couple then shifted their activities to a nearby bench.

The clerk of the Legislative Assembly, Ian McNeil, says security records are being looked at to gather more information. "Video cameras record some of the ingress and egress from the main entrance and the rear entrance," he said.

5. TOP TEN LESSONS FROM ZIMBABWE

New Zealand should offer immediate residency and nationality to the entire Zimbabwe cricket team.

With the mess in Zimbabwe, Phil Goff has discovered an entire new continent of foreigners he can yell at.

The left, having been telling us for years that real sanctions against Iraq don't work, have been strangely silent when it comes to "smart" sanctions against Zimbabwe.

You simply can't trust anyone from the Nigerian government.

It's hard to blame rigged elections on colonial oppression.

The crowds of Mugabe supporters all wore the same t-shirts, so was this behind Trevor Mallard's decision this week to cough up $10,000 or t-shirts for an entire Northland school?

It's a lot cheaper to give Chris Laidlaw a local car and a chauffeur than a book of taxi chits.

Keith Locke, who generally has an opinion on every injustice in every developing nation, suddenly goes very quiet when it's a black,
anti-colonial, left-wing dictator stealing the election and curbing human rights.

Sir Robert Muldoon was actually right when, back in 1980, he described Mugabe as someone who had recently been walking around in
the bush shooting people - a statement that the Labour Party
criticised him for at the time as being racist.

The Commonwealth can be exactly as effective as the United
Nations or the Organisation of African States when it comes to
getting meaningful change in Zimbabwe.

Courtesy of St Molesworth
www.geocities.com/stmolesworth

6. WEBSITE OF THE WEEK

www.whitehouse2001.org/

An academic website, but lots of very interesting stuff about how the American’s President’s office is organised. A good background if you like “West Wing”.

Any views expressed here are not necessarily those of New Zealand Young
Nationals, or the New Zealand National Party.

Contributions, feedback, articles and subscriptions welcome. Email
newwrite@national.org.nz

Editor: Phil Rennie

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