It must be election year.
It must be election year, because every political party has just started blowing an anti-immigration dog whistle.
It started with scare stories of “boat people,” “revealed” by a Sunday Star Slime as desperate for readers as David Cunliffe is for voters, and before we knew it the blame for the economic downturn, hospital waiting lists, souring race relations and the housing crisis were all being laid at the feet of those dirty migrants.
“Maori have a unique position in New Zealand and advancing their cultural and social needs must be put ahead of the needs of immigrants,” said Maori Party leader, Te Ururoa Flavell, responding to a poll showing Maori dislike Asian immigrants more than any other group of New Zealanders.
National's Immigration Minister Nikki Kaye just sent home to die a young Fijian man on dialysis, despite having a family here ready to donate a kidney and a community raising money for the transplant. “He was here unlawfully,” said an unregretful Kaye.
Mana’s John Minto suggests we yell 'Buggar off' (sic) to foreign investors and foreign workers. It’s about 'self-respect,' says the man once opposed to Racist Tours.
Labour’s Phil Goof has a member's bill to be debated in the coming weeks which would tighten the rules for foreigners buying farm land.
And now Labour leader David Cunliffe has taken his party’s hardest line yet against immigrants. The former Immigration Minister blames them for the house crisis, with the Greens’s Russel Norman quietly saying “me too.” Immigration levels are a 'bubble', Cunliffe told Radio NZ this morning, using words without any reference to their meaning.
How on earth can immigration be in a 'bubble'? A bubble is something that keeps inflating because it keeps inflating, attracting more and more buyers as prices climb due to new buyers. Bubbles are usually due to bad policy and cheap money – like the Tulip Bubble or the South Seas Bubble. Or the housing bubble. This year’s immigration is not a bubble, it’s a blip. It’s up because net immigration is higher now – higher mostly because fewer NZers are leaving for a now-limping Australia – which doesn’t make it unsustainably, uncomfortably or irrevocably high.
And it doesn’t make them to blame for our bad housing policies. Nor does it make them a source of our misery – migrants who, for the most part, are coming here not to bludge but to live, and produce and invest. Who might just help make us richer.
Migrants who, unlike Cunliffe, Kaye and their ilk, are not parasites, nor intending to be.
Here’s Christy Moore:
11 comments:
So what's the libertarian/leftertarian prescription?
open borders, free movement of people, and the currency beyond the control of national politicians?
in other words: the Eurozone.
I think I saw this movie a few years ago, isn't there also a sub plot about nasty Americans with lots of cash?, also the dreaded yellow peril, but not to worry, Winston will save us!
B. Whitehead
This blog should be renamed 'Not PC (except when it comes to immigration)'
You're anti-immigrant, Barry?
I am reluctant to strongly attack New Zealand First supporters.
(If I wasn't married to one I would be using terms like "brain damaged" or "halfwits" or "dickheads", but these days I have to tone down the vituperation hahahahaha!) -
All I would say is that when Winston First was campaigning in 1996 - (and some people weren't even at play centre) - immigration was the issue and top of the agenda.
Between 7:01pm on election night 1996 and 1998 when Winston First was Deputy Prime Minister he did nothing about it.
Fancy that!
Could it have all been a con trick simply to get votes? could it be he is doing it again (with Cunliffe and everyone else joining in?)
The hysteria about immigrants from the Orient is not only misplaced, but it annoys me that so much discord gets stirred up over this issue.
My Father witnessed a similar sort of thing in Mississippi in 1963/64 - (what is known as 'Mississippi Burning') - with politicians setting one group of people against another in order to get votes, and create divisions which were unnecessary, preventable and where there was absolutely no prospect (or intention) of actually doing what they stirred everyone up about.
Now it is happening here and I am disgusted.
"You're anti-immigrant Barry?"
It's just asinine to try to pretend immigration is an anti/pro black or white issue. Politically correct bleeding heart immigration policy just makes the host country more like Somalia, China etc in direct correlation to how many you let in.
Therefore most countries have a common sense immigration policy, selective about who they let in and at a rate current infrastructure can handle.
Asinine to suggest this is a black/white issue?
Oh really? really? really? pretty please really?
Barry - let's be honest here shall we?
If 2,309,882 white, anglo saxon, decent, respectable, salt of the earth, people from the British Midlands moved to New Zealand at 9 o'clock tomorrow morning - you would not be complaining. (Magically, the ability of our infrastructure would rise to the occasion and "handle" them)
What you mean is "immigrants from the Orient".
You would gain greater respect if you were honest about it; you are meaning - as all Winston First supporters mean - ASIANS (or "people from the Orient" as I prefer to call them)
Barry - this is a free country (no, really! seriously!) and so even though lots of folk from the Orient may move here and try to make it in our great nation....guess what? ....you do not have to 'invite them to dinner'.
Seriously.
Truly.
Freedom also means your freedom to free association; consequently you don't have to invite any of these buggers to dinner (and pretend to be happy about it).
Yes. Truly. Yes yes yes! (how many times do I have to say it?)
But when you dress it up ....trying to pretend you have enormous concern about those bloody immigrants from Chad....(!)....it diminishes your credibility and encourages the 'adults' to simply ignore you.
Say what you mean and mean what you say - as Lindsay Perigo says on his website.
Your reading comprehension is terrible Mr Lineberry. 2 million+ British Migrants moving here tomorrow would be insane which is why no country has a daft libertarian immigration policy that would allow that to happen.
The UK tried a politically correct immigration policy and now they have a huge problem with Muslim ghettos. British residents in these areas are free, like you said, to not invite them to dinner. I doubt you could find a single one who regards this as any consolation whatsoever. That is how detached from reality you are.
If you actually thought for yourself instead of being told what to think by nutters like Perigo and the ARI maybe you would have a more rational worldview.
Barry - the funniest thing about attacks on Chinese and Muslim immigration to NZ, is that few people realise (in their ignorance) the original Chinese immigrants in the Otago goldfields .....were muslims! HAHAHAAHAHAHAHA!!!
A century and a half later and guess what? they haven't blown anything up, or converted anyone, or caused too many problems (the rogues!), but why let facts get in the way of a good hysterical rant - "we are under threat from Asians and Muslims"
Right, so some Chinese immigrants, who were Muslims, came to NZ 150 years ago and didn't cause any trouble.
Therefore, according to you we should have unrestricted Chinese and/or Muslim immigration.
Your logic is absurd.
In my personal opinion I have no particular problem with anybody who wants to live in NZ being allowed to do so; we are not exactly overcrowded! haha!
Why large numbers of Brits continue to live in dreadful places like Merseyside or Glasgow or Brent; or Australians in Cronulla or Blacktown or Brisbane, and are not moving to NZ is a great mystery to me.
I happen to have a lot of time for Muslims, as I have said before they have the right idea on many things - no alcohol, circumcision, no women drivers, no pop music on the radio, male dominated cultures (sounds good to me!)
I also have a lot of time for Chinamen - hard workers, enterprising, a strong self help ethic (sounds good to me!)
But I suppose we will never agree on this Barry.
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