Nearly done

Spent three hours in the cool of the morning, stopping when my pile of reusable small pavers reached 240. In addition to those, and the few more still in the pile I've been working on, there is an uncounted number which had been moved earlier. Altogether we should have more than enough to provide an edge for the planned garden(s).

The people of Aotearoa/New Zealand celebrate Waitangi Day (06 February) in multiple ways in many different places in the country. This year the Prime Minister chose to not attend the celebrations at Waitangi. Instead David Seymour attended despite being asked (by his Iwi) to not do so, and he spoke on the 5th, again despite being asked to not do so. He was treated to polite rejection. First, the microphone was removed, only to be replaced. Then, many in the audience turned their backs on him; a traditional way of expressing opposition to a speaker.

I have yet to see a full transcript of his speech but i understand that (in essence) he was laying responsibility for the ills experienced by Maori families on them, rather than the consequences of colonisation, and the deliberate failure of many Governments in NZ to address the problems. Our history may be better than some other countries; but it is not something to be proud of.

Seymour is leading the present attack on attempts to redress at least some of the wrongs done. He is trumpeting that everyone should be treated the same. Leave to one side the fact that the wealthy are not treated the same as the poor; the wealthiest in this country apparently pay just 9% tax on average, for instance. Maori are beginning (AT THIS POINT) at a seriously great disadvantage in almost every demographic. 

Being treated equally now will lead to them falling further and further behind the average, let alone the top. EQUITABLE treatment  of all our citizens would result in the wealthy actually paying a fair share of the tax burden. We are told that they will leave if we do so. Any who would do so would not be missed. 

The provision of school lunches is currently a major issue. Local providers were cancelled by this Government to enter a contract with an overseas based provider which is supplying meals that so far are unappetising, cold and there were major delays, with some schools not getting the lunches until after school was over for the day. All this is excused by Seymour who oversaw the new contract. I do not know if the overseas provider has links to the Atlas Network, but I think it probable that there are such links.

We must oppose this Government in every way possible, and not let them try to take us into such a future that is being developed in the USA. This is what my father and his generation fought against in WWII