There are occasions when you can only but shake your head in disbelief at the antics played out in our media.
Take for example the reaction by the majority of the media to the suggestion by ACT MP David Garrett that there might be some value in considering paying ‘bad parents’ $5000 if they agreed to be sterilised.
The media went berserk, making it the leading news item of the day. Politicians and every sort of self appointed social or liberal commentator climbed into the debate. Someone even managed to manufacture a link with Hitler.
You could be forgiven for believing that the suggestion was on the verge of becoming law rather than the musings on a blog by a MP who was unknown to the majority of us.
The most poignant comment that I saw was that from the Herald’s Fran O’Sullivan, who quietly pointed out that many middle class parents pay for their own sterilisation once they have completed their families.
Shame on you Fran for effectively killing off the debate when your colleagues were just getting started! And shame on the middle class for following the teachings of Hitler!
Having recovered our breath we then moved on to the Destiny Church’s ‘cash cult’ expose. Not to worry that we have heard it all before, including stories about the extravagant living style of its leader Bishop Tamaki.
It all started because part of the Brisbane congregation did what every right minded person would do if they disagreed with the ‘cult’s’ requirements around tithing and gifting – they walked out.
The only nugget I gathered from the coverage was that TV3’s John Campbell has now adopted the practice of gate crashing other presenter’s interviews (Willie Jackson’s) to get a story if anyone dares to decline his demand that they appear on his show.
Can we now look forward to the day when Willie gate crashes John’s programme?
To mimic the words taken to the world by the late Paul Fuemana, ‘how bizarre, how bizarre’.
The Government’s handling of the tax changes to be announced in the May budget show a masterly understanding of managing long term communications.
Annual industry conferences are key communications events for most sectors. The opportunity to hear directly from people who have particular insight or influence in your sector is a particular draw-card for delegates and sector commentators alike. With this in mind,
The ability of the media to ‘spark’ a controversy, and that of social media to ‘fuel it’ has rarely been better illustrated than the histrionics raging in Australian over the comments made by the new Leader of the Opposition, Tony Abbott, when asked the question: what advice would you give your daughters about sex before marriage.
When a child does something they know is a bit naughty and are likely to get found out, we call this attention seeking behaviour. So could it be that the Hon Rodney Hide was seeking more than a suntan when he took his partner on the now contentious trip overseas?
The Greens fess up to “making a mistake” in the way they used the accommodation subsidy for the benefit of their communal super fund; and Labour colleagues again rush to the defense of fellow MP Chris Carter over the largesse of his and his partner’s travel costs.
Phil Goff has surely got the worst job in New Zealand politics right now? Taking over the leadership of a party that was soundly trumped in an election is bad enough. But inheriting this role from St Helen, whose new position in the UN only serves to entrench her legacy as PM, makes his situation even more difficult.
I have a blended family, a blended cat family. For a whole raft of legacy reasons I’ve ended up playing den-mother to four cats, which is odd really because I’m not that much of a fan.
A propensity to blame others and our environment while avoiding personal responsibility has become a national trait. It now appears however, that we do not have this on our own…
Given the public discussion around the Kelston Boys vs. Auckland Grammar rugby game brawl it has been interesting to see the marked difference between how the two schools have reacted through their communication with their pupils and the wider public.