October 3rd 2023: Politically farcical

I'm not convinced we've got this whole political thing right in New Zealand. And believe it or not I'm not even talking about the ridiculous comments that come spewing forth from would-be leaders as election campaigns reach their crescendo. Seriously has anyone thought about addressing the issues rather than scoring points in this banter-like manner that we'd normally expect to see in a poorly run schoolyard?

Nope, I'm not talking about the personal slates, the character assassinations, or the bleak rhetoric being lobbed like hand grenades into the different parties' camps. I'm talking about the physical structure of the three-year term and the desperation for politicians to remain in power at all costs. It reduces to our politicians and leaders thinking in blocks of three years. That's not what we need. We need to have one eye on 2100 and one on 2500 ... and beyond. That's also known as the future and decisions made today are decisions that will directly affect the future.

Instead of setting the course to an incredible future for New Zealand (and really, we have all the odds stacked in our favour with that goal), we seem intent on taking two steps forward and then two back. Short-term goals should feed into longer-term goals, but that falls apart when the short-term goals are focused on placating voters with incongruous promises. Or, even worse, just spouting whatever politicians think voters want to hear to get them on side.

It's pathetic. It holds New Zealand back.

Or we could do what Iceland did. A few years ago now, a punk rock band decided to run for government. Their campaign was meant to be a bit tongue in cheek – a bit of a laugh. Well they got in. As the story goes, it stepped Iceland well forward. The punk rock band just fixed all the problems they could see with the country. They ran roughshod over all the naysayers and red tape sticklers. They just made it happen. They didn't care for another term, so weren't trying to walk delicately through the eggshells of parliament. They punk rocked Iceland.

Maybe that's what we need here in New Zealand. Or at least make sure your vote is a vote for our future.

See you at the beach ... Derek

PS Years ago I would pause on my walk out to Indicators to watch Geoff Hutchison surfing at Raglan. He was one of the best at the time. So it was particularly cool for me to publish a story on his son Taylor Hutchison on New Zealand Surf Journal this week. In his feature story Taylor talks about growing up with a dad who rips in the surf and is one of the leading surf businessmen in New Zealand – he's the guy behind Backdoor, which will open its first store in Dunedin shortly. Taylor also talks about his competitive life and opens up about his mental health struggle. All good stuff from an incredible human.