In December a news report from Auckland claimed the city was experiencing a massive increase in insects, this attributed to the record 2022 rainfall. That may be so but it’s certainly not the case in Wellington.

In my local newspaper a funeral director runs a half page advertisement with a single large type message. That is, “IS DEALING WITH A LOCALLY OWNED FUNERAL HOME IMPORTANT TO YOU?”

If Waitangi Day truly carried the significance for New Zealanders as the media presents it, instead of its reality, namely another paid holiday off work, then it would manifest itself accordingly with celebrations across the land. It does not. Instead a bunch of victims who by dint of their political career ambitions, feel obliged to turn up at Waitangi. There they adopt day long funereal expressions and walk very slowly behind fat people on to the marae where then are accosted by fat semi-naked men waving spears in their faces and poking their tongues out at them.

As I’ve frequently written before, ignore political polls. Their format simply no longer works, not just here but everywhere. They’ve been wrong for a decade now in 70% of elections and often dramatically astray.