Wheeler’s Corner
“Connecting Citizens Who Care“. Every Monday
at 4 pm on Access Manawatu 999AM” Join Peter’s blog http://wheelerscornernz.blogspot.com/
11 18th March 2018
1. What a week, so much has happened according to our media.
A: The Defence Chief admits
indirectly that he lied about deaths in Afghanistan. B: The Labour Party
responsible for 20 year old sexually attacking four 16 year old females. C.
Winston Peters is pro-Russian according to the Nats. D. Crusher Collins is made
spokesperson for crushing state housing stock. E. A mercenary [who was a dog
handler later turned body guard in private army] is now spokesperson for Justice.
Intertwined with all this local NZ news the
media has had a field day reporting on the sackings by Donald Trump and his
billionaire backers, His love affair with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and
his cuddling up the Philippine Dictator who murders drug addicts.
Trump
sacked the US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson by tweet! How’s that for
ignorance personified… "We disagreed on things," Trump told reporters
at the White House - a diplomatic take on a fractious relationship that
included reports that Tillerson had privately called the president a
"f...ing moron".
[A]. who did carryout the killing
of civilians in Afghanistan?
The media went out of its way to
play down the finding that the NZ Defence Force failed to tell the truth in
regard to the infamous raid on a tiny village. http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/352453/nzdf-admits-afghan-village-raid-same-location-as-in-hit-and-run
Here is a message I received on
the subject:
“It looks like Defence is getting pulled out into the daylight, kicking
and screaming.
I think it's boiling down to a case of 'not what they said, but more of what they haven't said'
The fact they called the Yanks in with helicopter support, supports Hager's views about civilian casualties. The raid was carried out in the dead of night. Who could possibly know
anything about the presence or otherwise of civilians?
The Yanks have absolutely no respect for the lives of the people they are supposed to be defending. The slaughter they carried out in Fallujah, in which they all but wiped it off the face of earth, was a case in point.
How much actual involvement would Keating have had? I imagine at that
hour he would have been safely tucked up in bed!
It's very unlikely he will ever own up to the deaths of civilians. From other reports I have read it seems NZ has a pretty poor record in that respect.
I think it's boiling down to a case of 'not what they said, but more of what they haven't said'
The fact they called the Yanks in with helicopter support, supports Hager's views about civilian casualties. The raid was carried out in the dead of night. Who could possibly know
anything about the presence or otherwise of civilians?
The Yanks have absolutely no respect for the lives of the people they are supposed to be defending. The slaughter they carried out in Fallujah, in which they all but wiped it off the face of earth, was a case in point.
How much actual involvement would Keating have had? I imagine at that
hour he would have been safely tucked up in bed!
It's very unlikely he will ever own up to the deaths of civilians. From other reports I have read it seems NZ has a pretty poor record in that respect.
But a much more important question
is ‘since John Key directly approved the illegal raid by the SAS is he not the
real villain…was General Keating meant to disobey a direct order by his
boss…the situation was serious enough for him to seek approval from above.
[B]
Now the Young Labour Party
according to the right-wing media clowns failed to act responsibly during a
youth gathering. It would appear that one twenty year old male assaulted
sexually four sixteen year old females. And it would seem that one of the young
women has laid a complaint to the police. Of cause the main stream media rushed
headfirst into the blame game, which I might add they are good at. I think the
Labour Party has been open about the event and will seek answers.
But when I compare their reactions
with the National Party response when John Key was going through his ‘hair
pulling episodes’ or the mistreatment of the elderly woman in the Southland
branch when she had her phone bugged.
The media made all the excuses
possible to justify Key’s obnoxious sexual behaviour toward young women with
pony tails. And remember that his police protection team had warned him, along
with his wife to reign in his behaviour. But he continued until that brave
young woman told him to stop it or she would punch him in the face.
As we all know Key has never been
very brave so he backed off. And if you remember the NZ Herald gave the young
woman worker a hard time. In fact only after it became public knowledge that the
reporter lied, she was later sacked.
[3] Winston Peters according to
the Nat’s loves all things Russian…according to them this makes him anti United
States…did you know that the Nats supported the US drone programme that has
murdered thousands of people in third countries that the US is not even at war
with…they supported and ordered the killing of innocent men women and children
to assist dictators take over, they rig elections around the world and
especially in the Americas, arm rebels and other nasty villains. I think
Winston is right to doubt the British PM word after all she has lied so many
times before. Still with Trump as her model of democracy what else can you
expect?
Items D and E didn’t rate any
media coverage or investigative journalism other than praise from Matthew Hooton
for the courage of new Nats leader in taking such bold steps…have a listen to
his PR dribble, it’s absolutely creepy at best…how Radio NZ still gives this
chap air time beats me. Mind you the ex-president of the Labour Party Mike
Williams is so right-wing that he makes Hooton look like an alt-right nut case.
2.
It’s Our Future Manawatu is gearing up to head to Wellington to play
its part in protesting the Oil industries plans to search for oil and gas both
on shore and off shore.
Watch this short item to explain
what its all about: https://www.facebook.com/OilFreeWellington/videos/1645966675485323/
It is often said that protesters
don’t know what they are about, but these days nonviolent behaviour is the only
way to get your message across. Just look at the world today, school children
in the US walking out of their class rooms to protest the stupidity of US gun
laws. Here in NZ we too are confronted with fork-tonged past leaders who say
one thing but do another.
Collective non-violent activity
sends a real message. The membership of It’s Our Future Manawatu, like all the
branches around the country is made up of caring individuals of all ages and
backgrounds, Doctors and Lawyers, husbands and wives, Teachers and students, you
might like to consider joining us.
3.
One last item: This is from Laura
a member of the 'Action Team'…if this doesn’t touch a nerve…nothing will:
Dear Peter,
Yesterday was International Women’s Day and to
celebrate I’m going to ask you to imagine that I am a 29 year old Māori woman
(I am) but its 100 years ago and we’re living in 1918.
Ready? Here goes:
My name is Laura. I was born in 1888.
I have six siblings, but four of them have passed
away. A common story for my people, really. 50% of Māori girls like me die
before they turn seven, so I know I’m lucky to even be alive. The average life
expectancy for Māori women is 30–35. It’s 60–65 if you’re Pākēha.1
Lots of people are dying because of something
called “influenza”. I read that in Māori communities’ influenza is causing 50
deaths per one thousand people. For Pākehā, it’s around six deaths per 1000.2
When I was younger, I went to school for five years
between the ages of seven and 13. Secondary school was mostly for wealthy
Pākehā boys whose family could afford it.3
I was taught only in English and speaking Māori was
not allowed. I’ve heard lots of stories about kids getting the strap if they
spoke te reo in school. Some of the people in our community think there is a
strategy to rid us of the language and culture.4
There has been some positive progress during my
life though. When I was younger, the suffrage movement won women the right to
vote in the Westminster system. Though, women still can’t stand for Parliament.5
In our culture, wāhine rangatira (women of chiefly
status) have always had decision-making power, but with the new European system
in place we are having to look for new ways to make our voice heard.6
I don’t have kids yet, but I feel it’s my duty
because the Māori population has been in decline by about 50% since Pākēha
came. The trouble is, I’m actually attracted to women. I’ll never act on those
feelings though. It’s not illegal for two women to have sex or be in love, but
it is for men and that makes me afraid. 30 years ago, men would get the death
penalty for being gay. Nowadays, it’s just flogging, whipping and hard labour.7
Three years ago, the first Māori contingent went to
fight alongside Pākehā in the war. Some of our people believe this will
strengthen our call for equality. Others believe it is fighting a white man’s
war. I hear that when men refuse to fight, they are taken to a military camp
and fed only bread and water.8
This is what life would have been like for me if I
was born 100 years ago.
Sometimes I wish I could travel back in time to
tell the 100-years-ago-me that life gets better.
She'd be sad that I can’t speak Māori , but pleased
that at schools all around the country kids of all ethnicities sing songs loud
and proud in te reo. She’d love that Māori is now recognised as an official
language and that when we sing our national anthem we do it in both Māori and
English. She’d be proud that the haka is revered around the world.
I’d tell her I have a girlfriend and that it’s
legal for us to get married. I’d tell her that men can marry men and that when
they leave our shores to fight in a war — it’s by choice, not conscription.
I’d tell her that there is less war and conflict in
the world today than ever before.9 I’d tell her that not only can
women vote — we can be Prime Minister. I’d tell her that we have the largest
number of wāhine (female) Māori in Parliament that we’ve ever had.
I’d tell her that when our people get sick, we have
public hospitals they can go to.
I’d also tell her that none of this would have been
possible without people like her taking action, so that people like me, and
you, and all of us, can continue in the mahi (work) of leaving the world a
better place than when we found it.
It can be hard to see whether or not we’re closing
the gap between the world we have now and the more beautiful world most people
everywhere want. But as I look back over the past 100 years, and give thanks to
those who came before me for the progress we have made, I feel better about the
part we get to play in laying down the foundations for the next 100 years of
progress to take place.
The problems we face are enormous, but the problems
they faced 100 years ago were enormous too. It’s about chipping away at
change — bit by bit.
Peter J Wheeler
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