Jack Tame, writing in the NZ Herald, has come to the conclusion that we are all hypocrites. I presume he included himself. I found much of his article’s narrative quite simplistic; in the sense that talk is cheap but the consequences of what is being spoken are often not thought through and can be, if implemented, very expensive.
Jack didn’t see any of the protests as he was in a plane and, after landing, had the time to indulge in a flat white. His take on the protests last Friday was that they were, for the most part, a good bit of theatre.
Jack is very big on climate change. He noted that while many on the West Coast have been displaced, the farmers are now back home. What he failed to mention was that in that areas out in the floods many of them would have been counting their dead stock.
If a person loses their job they immediately get government support. A farmer doesn’t have the option of losing their job when their livelihood takes a hit. Whatever the circumstances they have to keep working. In all weathers, through all adversity. It’s effectively a 24/7 job.
I can watch Tame on television for an hour and listen to him on the radio for three hours a week. Having worked in broadcasting I am aware there are some hours of preparation required but it’s hardly the life of a farmer.
Jack said that he eats meat a few times a week and that he realises his dinner doesn’t fall out of the sky. He wondered if farmers took to the streets to protest the millions of dollars in irrigation subsidies, or the drought relief subsidies or the flood relief. But he didn’t think to ask how much the farmers have been given compared to the Mongrel Mob.
Jack’s view appeared to be that the agricultural sector has been supported very well for a long time so a few extra compliance costs and a few thousand dollars tax on a ute would not be devastating or fundamentally threaten the farming community’s way of life.
What an ignorant little fellow. Nothing changes a farming community’s way of life. They have to battle on through thick and thin, rain, hail and snow, out in all weathers day and night, but it won’t be in a poncey electric ute.
Compared to his life of working luxury, farmers have it tough, really tough. Their dollars are hard-earned. They are the backbone of the country. I come from a farming family so I know what’s involved. Farmers don’t need a plethora of platitudes from the likes of Tame whose utterances illustrate his ignorance of the subject on which he is preaching.
Tame also picked up Simon Wilson’s mantra and told his audience that they all have to live in an apartment, ride a bike or catch a bus. It’s an insane and utterly unrealistic statement, especially for those of us living in Auckland.
To be fair, he did admit that many farmers are being proactive about adapting for the future and commenting that it’s up to the government and the rest of us to make sure they are supported as they continue to do so. Given the general tenor of his article, the hypocrisy becomes all the more salient.
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