Surely it’s way long overdue for legislation to prescribe the role of local government. Currently, it’s seemingly carte blanche as reflected by a recent extraordinary action by the Wellington City Council. Specifically, it (or some of its Councillors) decided to become involved in international politics.
They want the Council to formally recognise the state of Palestine, to light up the Town Hall in the colours of Palestine on its anniversary day and set up a bullshit sister city relationship with the Palestinian capital, all of this contrary to the very strong and wise advice from the Council’s staff to desist.
All of this illustrates the greatest problem of democracy, namely participation is left to totally non-descript folk, capable people being fully engaged in commerce and the professions etc. There are some exceptions, reflected by candidates who constantly get re-elected, but the vast majority come from obscurity and duly return there.
Since Kerry Prendergast’s mayoralty a dozen years back, the capital has had four totally no-hoper one term mayors, each worse than their predecessor.
The current incumbent, Tory Whanau is certainly history. I’d heard lots of negative stories about her arrogance, but she certainly committed political suicide with her recent drunken episode in a restaurant, committing the ultimate sin of “Do you know who I am?” to a waiter and walking out without paying.
This is a global problem, never better illustrated by the world’s largest economy offering Biden and Trump as leadership options. And so, sadly the lights are going out everywhere with democracies and their replacement by authoritarian governments to varying degrees.
Enoch Powell certainly got it right with his famous “All political careers ultimately end in failure” adage.
In the interim we can hopefully look forward to more pronouncements from Tory such as ordering an immediate cease-fire in the Ukraine. She’s reminiscent of the wonderful editorial in early 1914 by a tiny West Coast newspaper, in which it issued a final warning to the Kaiser. Sadly, he chose to ignore it.
8 Comments
So, we as a society, need to learn from these mistakes and not vote these inadequate people into their position of irresponsibility. Younger folk voting could be the problem? Younger people being voted in could be the problem. I recall councils and central government being better when seasoned people with apt life experiences were promoted to these controlling positions, on the basis of their standing in the community, and not by some blurb written by a marketing company on a glossy electoral flyer. Democracy needs some serious adjustment.
Doug.
Absolutely 100% brilliant .
Probably take our liberal nut house of a country another 100 years to realize we’ve forgotten what wisdom is and how it “generally” comes with age.
Can’t believe we’re actually stating this basic fact. Fundamental to evolution and completely ignored by an insane woke left agenda.
I don’t care if your, (‘the hipster reader’) precious wonderchild has an IQ off the scale . They can wait with the rest of us “average people” in order to fully appreciate the realities of an average life.
Wisdom is part of the aging process. It may not come to all, but does to many.
These people should be our leaders.
Biden and Trump as the leadership options of the worlds largest economy is certainly depressing and dangerous.
But there is a young 69 year old who seems to be entering the ring and from what I’ve heard R.F.Kennedy Jr say so far, with his gravelly voice, I feel a cautious optimism returning.
Democracy may survive, battered and bruised but with a stronger more compassionate heart.
It still amazes me that such a vibrant and utterly enjoyable country like the USA could only find candidates like Clinton, Trump and Biden.
Then again, I look at the entire labour caucus and wonder the same.
The tail is wagging the dog – bloody crazy!!! Maybe we might get a better turn out at the next local body elections???
It is a shame sister cities are always so far away. Imagine the clamour of councillors and officials to get into the touring week-long fact-finding delegation if the sister city was Wanganui.
Hopefully the swing voters will give the other lot a go.
Enoch Powell was right about a lot of things.