Entry 2259, on 2023-02-06 at 10:16:22 (Rating 4, Politics)
Well, today is New Zealand's so-called national day, Waitangi Day. The word "Waitangi" here refers to the Treaty of Waitangi, a document signed by indigenous Maori and British settlers in 1840 at Waitangi (a small settlement at the time), and alleged by some to be our founding document.
In recent times, to a large extent thanks to the extremely woke policies of our previous prime minister, Jacinda Ardern (AKA Saint Cindy), the country seems to have become a lot more divided than in the past. Waitangi Day has always been a problem, because it seems to have been increasingly dedicated to the minority party in the Treaty, the native Maori people, and has become very politicised thanks to activists from that part of society.
Note that in this post, and all others, where I might be apparently criticising Maori in general, and therefore leaving myself open to charges of racism (not that I really care about that), but I am really criticising Maori extremists and activists, and their allies from other cultural groups, including white New Zealanders.
As I have said in the past, I do spend quite a lot of time on-line discussing, debating, and arguing about politics, so I thought I might get a feel for people's attitudes to our "national day" by sampling a comment thread on the subject in Twitter.
I know, Twitter is often a fetid cess pit of crazy opinions, insults, and extreme rhetoric. That's one of the reasons I love it so much! Also, I might be being fed only opinions I might agree with, thanks to the algorithm. But I'm not pretending this is a scientific sampling of opinion, so remember that when you read the following material.
Anyway, here are the first page of comments on a news item asking people how they would celebrate Waitangi Day. It's not from an extreme right-wing source, or anything like that, so I expected to see a mixture of opinions. I included the comment here, minus the commenter's name, followed by my thoughts on it...
Comment: Snap..... Same. Work work work.
Thoughts: So nothing. Just another day. It will be similar for me; I have a heap of private IT work to do.
Comment: Just relax.
Thoughts: Again, nothing really related to our national day, but at least relaxing is better than working, I guess.
Comment: Movie with friends and lunch
Thoughts: And again, just he sort of thing you might do any other day.
Comment: Just another day in new Zealand
Thoughts: Not quite true. At least we get a day off work, but that's about all.
Comment: Bet on races, while drinking beer and eating hot pizza, wake up hungover, swear to never drink again. Have a slice of cold pizza, make excuses for not going for a walk, bet on more races, lose more money, swear about the "repeats", on Sky, go to fridge, realise I'm not that hungry, "ah screw it", I'll give up drinking next weekend"?
Thoughts: Oddly specific, and sounds kind of fun, but nothing I might associate with celebrating an important national day.
Comment: Try to stay cool here in Timaru! 32 degrees yesterday.
Thoughts: Yes, it has been pretty hot in many places, including here in Dunedin. But again, I see no sign of anything specifically relating to the day.
Comment: Cut my Lawn. Hasn't been cut for 2 weeks, it's a Scandal!
Thoughts: Indeed, that is terrible. In fact I would do mine too, but it is literally too hot to do much physical work.
Comment: Work.
Thoughts: Sure, why not. there's nothing to celebrate, is there?
Comment: Having my gallbladder out.
Thoughts: Well, that's a unique way to celebrate!
Comment: Stay as far out of it as possible
Thoughts: I'm not sure what "it" here means, but maybe it's as far away from any official "celebration" as possible, especially the main event at Waitangi itself.
Comment: Not much. Just chilling. Sorting the house out. Got carpenters coming in first thing Tuesday.
Thoughts: As I said before, just another day, really.
Comment: We went to witange [sic] last week. The trip was to [sic] enjoyable for all. We have share [sic] lunch and share culture with Maori people that was soooooo beautiful and special.
Thoughts: Finally someone actually celebrating in the recommended way - by virtue signalling! But I've go to say she doesn't seem the sharpest knife in the drawer, if you know what I mean!
Comment: Watch Hipkins make a fool of himself.
Thoughts: That's out new prime minister being denigrated there.
Comment: Avoiding interactions with people who take bets on death.
Thoughts: Wait, what? I have no idea what this person is trying to say, but it doesn't appear to be anything happy related to Waitangi Day.
Comment: Make sure I give the media coverage on this a big miss.
Thoughts: So avoid any coverage (or more accurately, propaganda provided by the media the government has bought off) of what is supposed to be our national day. How positive is that, but who can blame him?
Comment: Marching practice then bbq.
Thoughts: Sure, why not?
Comment: Staying home inside with air conditioning
Thoughts: Yes, a lot of the country is getting high temperatures, which is common for mid to late (Southern Hemisphere) summer, but maybe climate change isn't helping, I guess.
Comment: A few beers
Thoughts: Well, of course, but doesn't that apply to every day?
Comment: Nothing special as usual.
Thoughts: And that applies to the majority of opinions on the day: nothing special.
Comment: NOT TURNING THE BLOODY LOONEY [sic] LEFTIES GREENS LABOUR NEWS ON TO HERE [sic] YOU HAVE TO GIVE US MORE MONEY FOR THE ONE PERCENTORS [sic].
Thoughts: OK, no need to shout. But I know what he means... I think.
Comment: Nothing to celebrate for white kiwis.
Thoughts: Exactly.
Comment: To not listen to any Iwi racist talk
Thoughts: I think the Maori activists and elite are at least as racist as any white New Zealander I have heard of, so yes, I will be avoiding that too.
Comment: Reading a book with the news avoided so I don't get all the racism propaganda.
Thoughts: Again, the racism is primarily coming from those who claim to be the victims of it. But the propaganda from the media denies that, of course.
Comment: Remember the fun days and what it was like to be a Kiwi, when we actually believed in each other, more than we believed in the government!
Thoughts: Yes, before the toxic woke mob (lead by Cindy) started destroying the country.
Comment: Being anywhere but Waitangi.
Thoughts: That's right. Waitangi is where the activists are at their worst. I really don't know why politicians even turn up there and play the extremists' game.
Comment: Whats to celebrate for white kiwis? Celebrate getting screwed over!
Thoughts: The Treaty was primarily signed to protect some Maori of the time from being murdered in battles with other Maori. There is no doubt that the indigenous people weren't treated well by colonisers, on occasions, but if you mention the massive benefits they got from colonisation, you're a racist, apparently.
Comment: Play golf and try to innore all the pro divisive, pro co-governance, revised treaty propaganda and general anti colonial rhetoric.
Thoughts: The negativity felt by many towards Maori has been exacerbated by the government's insanely woke plan to give control to unelected people based on race. This clearly anti-democratic and racist policy has made the usual negativity felt towards Waitangi Day even worse.
Comment: Sorry what weekend?
Thoughts: Indeed. Apart form a day off, it might as well nor exist.
Comment: Sure as hell won't be doing anything related to Waitangi Day. Probably fixing computers, writing a blog post, writing controversial comments on social media.
Thoughts: And finally we come to my comment. Nothing to see here, move along.
So how negative, bitter, and just sad is that? What other country views its so-called national day in such a cynical way? But that's what happens when you have a government intent on carrying out the most woke, irrational, unfair, and insanely divisive policies. Even afer the evil tyrant (Cindy) has gone, things are barely any better, although, to be fair, this has been happening in a lesser form for many years now. But it really is getting to the point where something has to change.
Maybe it's up to you to make it something instead of just whining (something you object to others doing) about it.
Comment 2 by OJB on 2023-02-07 at 11:34:29:
Well, sure, that's what I already do with other days where the original meaning has no value to me, like Christmas. Because I'm not a Christian I think of that day as being a celebration of mid-summer (mid-winter northern hemisphere), which is actually the original meaning, before the Christians "borrowed" it. After mid winter there is a "rebirth" of life, so the imagery is obvious.
So yes, I could celebrate Waitangi day in a way which I see as being appropriate to a national day, but if everyone is celebrating something different, in a different way, it hardly promotes a sense of community or togetherness, does it? Like other countries, this one is becoming deeply divided.
Comment 3 by Anonymous on 2023-02-07 at 12:00:45:
It has always been divisive for a portion of the population - don't pretend this is a new thing (it really isn't). I'll agree that it is hard to celebrate Waitangi day, but then, I generally think of other holidays as days off work and nothing else (Queen's birthday for goodness sake!). Maybe it's unrealistic to expect people to feel anything other than relief at not having to work, unless you want the patriotic nonsense of the 4th of July, for example...
Comment 4 by OJB on 2023-02-07 at 12:08:56:
Yes, it is a proportion, but I was surprised that so few viewed it positively. I did acknowledge that this is nothing new when I said "...to be fair, this has been happening in a lesser form for many years now...", but we are more divided now than ever, I think. And sure, I am cynical about other holidays as well, like I said in comment 2, above. There is a middle ground between complete cynicism and crazy patriotism. We don't need to be at either extreme.
Comment 5 by Anonymous on 2023-02-07 at 16:26:29:
"We don't need to be at either extreme."
I don't think we are at an extreme any more than we have been in the (relatively recent) past (with the possible exception of the Camp Covid crazies - which were probably always there but have been emboldened by Trumpism).
Comment 6 by OJB on 2023-02-07 at 16:43:39:
We aren't extreme? What other country has such a miserable and pointless national day? Let's not get started on Trump here, just yet, OK? :)
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