tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post4059007474002345188..comments2024-03-26T10:03:51.827+13:00Comments on Karl du Fresne: When political journalism morphs into crude emotional blackmailKarl du Fresnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05054853925940134404noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-8975019404092374952022-10-06T10:03:05.657+13:002022-10-06T10:03:05.657+13:00Right wrong or indifferent. The attack on Sean Pl...Right wrong or indifferent. The attack on Sean Plunkett is evidence of the fact that the extreme left, wokesters, adherent to the thoughts of Chairman Ardern, are rattled. Free speech or exchange of ideas or opinions fly in the face of the controlled media Ms Ardern strives for. <br />I believe the generally lethargic NZ public are finally waking up to the fact that we have a dictatorship in sheep's clothing. " A kind government Yes! but what kind ? Carl Kentnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-75779775709851251312022-10-06T04:16:01.352+13:002022-10-06T04:16:01.352+13:00Incisive analysis ... spot on. Said it before &...Incisive analysis ... spot on. Said it before & I'll say it again ... Wokedom bears little resemblance to the Social Democratic left I was brought up with. More an elitist <i>Vanity Project</i> underpinned by a remarkably crude distorted worldview, a highly selective morality & a marked authoritarian bent - the latter a corollary of the professional-managerial class's ruthless self-interest.swordfishnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-34514854560497439312022-10-04T17:07:05.685+13:002022-10-04T17:07:05.685+13:00My understanding of this manufactured saga is that...My understanding of this manufactured saga is that it originated with Sweet Cindy's "Christchurch Call" diatribe at the UN. Sean Plunkett followed up with an attempt to determine what this "call" means, and to debate the definitions of "terrorist" and "mass murderer". And yet still avowing that Tarrant was a nutter with a gun who committed a horrible act. Lynch's response was no more than I expected from New Zealand State media.<br /><br />The barely veiled threat to any politician who has the temerity to have a an interview with Plunkett on his show is a disgrace to journalistic integrity. It exposes Lynch to charges of incompetence in that she doesn't understand her role as an objective reporter in a liberal democracy. Clearly the Public Interest Journalism Fund is working to plan.Grahamnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-24703731670792179982022-10-03T10:11:44.987+13:002022-10-03T10:11:44.987+13:00Bill Moore said:
Having long ago abandoned the po-...Bill Moore said:<br />Having long ago abandoned the po-faced crew on TV One I am stuck with Three to feel my addiction to a 6pm dose of TV news but its political coverage is dire, not only because of frequently bizarre news judgments, but also the pronouncements of Jenna Lynch and others. Both are obvious in the appalling item you have dissected. Like Tova O'Brien before her, Lynch has apparently been granted permission to set reporting aside to make time for telling New Zealanders what to think – and now to warn politicians to be on their best behaviour or face the consequences. Whoever is in charge of her ought to be ashamed, but won't be unless the ratings plunge. <br />If Lynch wants her opinions to be front and centre she can always follow O'Brien and Sean Plunket into the talkback world, where the job entails saying dumb things, and listening to others say them too. What fun. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17189581810627948327noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-25658850698796185532022-10-03T09:14:29.267+13:002022-10-03T09:14:29.267+13:00I see that Jenna has moved on from Sean and is now...I see that Jenna has moved on from Sean and is now after Wayne Brown for somewhat accurately describing Simon Wilson as a bit of a prick.<br /><br />Like the Platform Brown, will probably get more customers (votes) from the publicity.Russell Parkinsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01998289720002196469noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-41798708466129650552022-10-01T16:25:08.925+13:002022-10-01T16:25:08.925+13:00@Papayan
Afganistan, Iraq, Syria, Libya...
Are ...@Papayan <br /><br />Afganistan, Iraq, Syria, Libya...<br /><br />Are you sure?<br /><br />Kylenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-31384468119416987722022-10-01T11:57:51.455+13:002022-10-01T11:57:51.455+13:00Our inability to legally read and dissect Tarrant&...Our inability to legally read and dissect Tarrant's manifesto largely inhibits rational debate in on this issue. I don't think banning the document from the public discourse helps anyone, it creates a vacuum which is then filled with conjecture.<br /><br />Sean's viewpoint is, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, entirely valid.<br /><br />It conflicts with the narrative the PM would spread with the help of compromised mainstream media.<br /><br />Plunket is a threat because he is playing with a straight bat and offers a platform for contrary voices with legitimate positions.alloyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14783736120945709360noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-91843738930424599302022-10-01T11:22:27.769+13:002022-10-01T11:22:27.769+13:00I enjoyed reading through the opinion piece from K...I enjoyed reading through the opinion piece from Karl and the comments which followed. Standing out for me were:<br />1. Tarrant's confusion between fantasy (video games) and reality. (During my military training, I once had the thrill of successfully bursting automatic weapon fire from a GPMG on distant board targets and it was an exciting time. However, I doubt if killing real people would give me the same pleasure.) <br />2. The western press, particularly in UK and Europe is frequently downplaying 'terrorist attacks' as isolated acts of rage. (Should we continue to do downplay acts by 'Muslims'? Is the west being too fair? Paul Joseph Watson claimed that non-Muslims killed by Muslims outnumbered Muslims killed by Non-Muslims by 100 to 1. Was Tarrant trying to correct the alleged imbalance?)<br /> Papayanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17351809070833048234noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-27781844637811575532022-10-01T09:45:52.674+13:002022-10-01T09:45:52.674+13:00Doug Longmire - a "mental health issue" ...Doug Longmire - a "mental health issue" is not necessarily an obfuscation.Andy Espersennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-28957384752580952842022-10-01T08:40:27.278+13:002022-10-01T08:40:27.278+13:00Yeah, good point.
I think the poster some commen...Yeah, good point. <br /><br />I think the poster some comments above is correct in stating that terrorism is an act committed in the name of or by someone connected to a designated terrorist entity.Kylenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-41494575794343417352022-10-01T08:30:34.246+13:002022-10-01T08:30:34.246+13:00It is a matter of context or interpretation as to ...It is a matter of context or interpretation as to whether this was "mass murder" or "massacre" or "terrorism"<br />It obviously was mass murder (like Port Arthur etc), but the targeting of a particular religious group gives rise to the label "terrorism".<br />Fair enough.<br />However, I note that in England and Europe, whenever an Arabic person goes on a killing rampage shouting "Allah Akbar" the authorities very often go to great pains to state that this was not "a terrorist attack". It's often put down to "mental health issue" or some such obfuscation. <br />The issue here though is the outrageous targeting of Sean Plunket for merely stating an opinion. This sort of vindictive attack by Alt-Left journalists of individuals is outrageous.Doug Longmirenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-73889980723864992362022-10-01T07:41:16.503+13:002022-10-01T07:41:16.503+13:00Like Jenna’s story on the Mahuta family government...Like Jenna’s story on the Mahuta family government contracts that they finally had to cover as it got to a point they couldn’t ignore it anymore. She made out like it was some conspiracy bubbling away in right wing racist social media. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-14100857170187771152022-10-01T05:27:06.640+13:002022-10-01T05:27:06.640+13:00This was clearly a hit job on Sean Plunket. Karl, ...This was clearly a hit job on Sean Plunket. Karl, you were 100% correct in your assessment. Well done! The absolutely critical thing for me was that (rightly) Sean didn't back down. Never back down. It's only feeds the ego of the journalist and the media mob.Julian Batchelorhttp://www.stopcogovernance.kiwinoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-51036683501404638022022-10-01T05:06:08.635+13:002022-10-01T05:06:08.635+13:00Is a murderer mad or bad? A question that is often...Is a murderer mad or bad? A question that is often asked – very particularly with murders that don’t quite make sense to ordinary folks. In the very old days, of course. things were easy : if you killed somebody intentionally you would lose your own life – irrespective of your mental state. Then society became more enlightened and realised that many murderers are psychotic and do not realise what they are doing. It then became a question whether the murderer should be locked up for life in a mental institution or in a prison. <br /><br />Sean Plunket compares Tarrant with David Gray, the Aramoana killer – and is unsure about where to place him. I agree with Plunket – I am unsure whether he can be described as a terrorist. I suggest we should return to putting such controversial cases before a jury to decide in a court of law. Since the 1992 mental health legislation change, sentencing courts must defer this to psychiatrists to determine. And these are bound by legislation to decide this exclusively on the question whether, at the time of the murders, the accused was aware that his heinous action was illegal – the question of his volition. In my opinion this is far too narrow consideration – and one the murderer himself would mostly disagree with. <br /><br />Most people think such murderers want to be acquitted because of mental illness – but that is rarely the case, I believe. However, to be fair and just while sentencing murderers we must disregard the murderer’s own opinions of himself and his actions. Lionel Terry (described in Wikipedia as a white supremacist, q.v.). was furious that he wasn’t hanged – but committed to Seacliff Hospital for the rest of his life. Anders Brevik likewise (so I have heard) would not hear of it. Tarrant wouldn’t either, I presume (??).<br />Andy Espersennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-43811383048747273192022-09-30T21:55:27.441+13:002022-09-30T21:55:27.441+13:00Thanks for posting the link to Ardern's UN sp...Thanks for posting the link to Ardern's UN speech Don. All New Zealanders should view it. She is clearly a megalomaniac who believes she is the sole arbiter of truth. Very disturbing indeed, as many overseas commentators have noted .<br />Trev1https://www.blogger.com/profile/00271717267778957672noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-1406426972649759592022-09-30T18:55:12.184+13:002022-09-30T18:55:12.184+13:00The fact that Lynch mentioned Plunket's name a...The fact that Lynch mentioned Plunket's name and that of The Platform to a large number of people who have possibly never heard of him is a huge own goal for Lynch and will have done Sean an immense lot of good - akin to free advertising. I am sure many now will have found his website and channel and be avid listeners. Rod Lawrencehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13100691494426072257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-68854156776388577782022-09-30T18:53:51.000+13:002022-09-30T18:53:51.000+13:00The UN speech mentioned above is worth a look :
ht...The UN speech mentioned above is worth a look :<br />https://twitter.com/ggreenwald/status/1575188754071171072?ref_src=twsrc^tfw|twcamp^tweetembed|twterm^1575188754071171072|twgr^17c41582c4ff91d6990fbe922c4b821deb2e7244|twcon^s1_c10&ref_url=https://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/ <br />Don Frankshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17801999410940938418noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-23975841634190759752022-09-30T18:32:31.072+13:002022-09-30T18:32:31.072+13:00It was an act of domestic terrorism but it wasn...It was an act of domestic terrorism but it wasn't an act committed by a terrorist organization. That is: A known and committed hierarchical body set up with the sole purpose of spreading fear and uncertainty amongst civilian populations as a means of disrupting the political power balance.<br />I'm sure Ms Lynch is a lovely lady but if a journalist is dictating who should or shouldn't appear on radio or TV, doesn't that make them a useful tool, not a journo? <br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-50583403825378027022022-09-30T17:42:16.088+13:002022-09-30T17:42:16.088+13:00@Gary Peters
I tracked down Tarrant's posts o...@Gary Peters<br /><br />I tracked down Tarrant's posts online under various handles shortly after the event. He was a pretty pathetic individual, always reaching out but not connecting in various forums, from investment forums to the Lonely Planet. <br /><br />I can't check now, obviously, but I feel he at least presented himself as believing that all nations, as defined by ethnicity, should stay in their own countries. At the extreme end, that seems to come under the banner of identity extremism, and provides a political motivation. Sadly, we cannot be sure, however. That's wrong. It means everything written about the event and him is largely speculative, and more easily manipulated to a political purpose itself.<br /><br />Like I wrote, much of what he write was supposed to be funny (it's not), but I somehow felt he might have been sincere in respect of this one, in the context of his comments while in Pakistan on social media like Facebook (which I caught before they were taken down) and other comments he made. <br /><br />I haven't seen the livestream, except for the beginning when it was playing automatically when you scrolled through some social media immediately after. And I would never watch it.<br /><br />I've met people who were there that day and that is enough for me. There's something odd about the whole thing, but those people definitely died. I find the contention that they didn't very upsetting. Calling people who went through that liars is horrific. Again, I blame the general gag order, the extraordinary gag order, which still has not applied in respect of similar event elsewhere. Why not? Isn't it a new standard? Why only here? And only in respect of this event, not, for example, the Auckland stabbing?Kylenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-89699019799137418672022-09-30T17:40:06.674+13:002022-09-30T17:40:06.674+13:00@Gary Peters
I tracked down Tarrant's posts o...@Gary Peters<br /><br />I tracked down Tarrant's posts online under various handles shortly after the event. He was a pretty pathetic individual, always reaching out but not connecting in various forums, from investment forums to the Lonely Planet. <br /><br />I can't check now, obviously, but I feel he at least presented himself as believing that all nations, as defined by ethnicity, should stay in their own countries. At the extreme end, that seems to come under the banner of identity extremism, and provides a political motivation. Sadly, we cannot be sure, however. That's wrong. It means everything written about the event and him is largely speculative, and more easily manipulated to a political purpose itself.<br /><br />Like I wrote, much of what he write was supposed to be funny (it's not), but I somehow felt he might have been sincere in respect of this one, in the context of his comments while in Pakistan on social media like Facebook (which I caught before they were taken down) and other comments he made. <br /><br />I haven't seen the livestream, except for the beginning when it was playing automatically when you scrolled through some social media immediately after. And I would never watch it.<br /><br />I've met people who were there that day and that is enough for me. There's something odd about the whole thing, but those people definitely died. I find the contention that they didn't very upsetting. Calling people who went through that liars is horrific.Kylenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-46497837521929222972022-09-30T16:46:37.872+13:002022-09-30T16:46:37.872+13:00Haven't read it Phil. I carefully ration my ex...Haven't read it Phil. I carefully ration my exposure to anything likely to create vexation.Karl du Fresnehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05054853925940134404noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-54222071229991450022022-09-30T16:35:23.677+13:002022-09-30T16:35:23.677+13:00Karl,
On a different topic I have noticed a coupl...Karl,<br /><br />On a different topic I have noticed a couple of news items in international media sites this week condemning Jacinda Ardern's speech to the UN. Jacinda apparently describing the internet as a weapon of war and calling for state censorship. Any thoughts?Philhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05289240834173890159noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-12154406666914381372022-09-30T16:02:59.677+13:002022-09-30T16:02:59.677+13:00"Think of how generally content and happy we ..."Think of how generally content and happy we were as a country on 14 March 2019 and then step back and look at us now."<br /><br />Think how generally content and happy we were as a country until 23 September 2017 when "what's in it for wynston" decided to go on a bauble hunt.<br /><br />A country so content that they gave the leading party almost enough to continue to govern but a rabble of disjointed fools took the benches instead and look where we are today 😢Gary Petersnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-24571887681712806392022-09-30T13:58:48.890+13:002022-09-30T13:58:48.890+13:00I haven't read the "manifesto" mainl...I haven't read the "manifesto" mainly because it doesn't interest me.<br /><br />I also turned off the live feed when it happened (I can't remember how I got it in the first place).<br /><br />I agree with Mr Plunkett.<br /><br />If what I read immediately after the event what Tarrant did was not "terrorism" but, in fact, the reverse.<br /><br />Terrorism is someone attempting to change the actions of others through fear of violent consequences if the change is not made.<br /><br />This contrasts, for right-wingers at any rate, to the normal process of convincing people by political means that your way is the best way. The disgraceful treatment of Philip Arps suggests it is only the right in New Zealand that are prepared to use this measure.<br /><br />Tarrant was reported as attacking the mosques in an attempt to get muslims to create terrorism in retribution, not to create fear induced change in anyone.<br /><br />The exact opposite of terrorism.<br /><br />Phil BlackwellTinmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02749937729383913466noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8442430064359197279.post-87489487246450053332022-09-30T13:43:43.616+13:002022-09-30T13:43:43.616+13:00I would consider Tarrant a terrorist because he pi...I would consider Tarrant a terrorist because he pitilessly killed many innocent people and sowed fear and division among New Zealanders which Ardern, the Greens and the media almost immediately began to feed off, and which they have sought to use to deprive us of our basic democratic freedoms. The Woke are in effect the beneficiaries of Tarrant's terrible actions which they have used to accuse thousands or ordinary New Zealanders of "white supremacy" and "hate speech". Who knows, Ardern's rabid attack on free speech ("a weapon of war") in her UN General Debate statement last Friday may well have allowed the terrorist a silent smirk of satisfaction in his sparsely furnished cell. Think of how generally content and happy we were as a country on 14 March 2019 and then step back and look at us now.Odysseushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04745489060434244478noreply@blogger.com