When it comes to newspapers my weekly routine is to buy the Weekend Herald. The variety of content makes it a better buy than its weekly counterpart. On the whole, the Herald is a shadow of its former self. On Tuesday, while at the Superette, in a moment of stupidity I grabbed one.
They should rename the paper The Fearald. The first seven pages were filled with scary talk from the usual suspects – Michael Baker, the lady with the pink hair who frequents Judges Bay, Te Punaha Matatini complex systems researcher Dion O’Neale (there’s a good Maori name), Ashley Bloomfield and of course chief fear monger Ardern. These people would have you believe Omicron, which is currently spreading along the lines of the winter flu is a near-death experience.
The Herald, prints ad infinitum the constant jabberings of these so-called experts holed up in their ivory towers. All they are achieving is to spread and instil unnecessary fear amongst the population. They are trying to spin a false narrative that Omicron is worse than the ordinary flu. I know, from people who have had it here and overseas, that it is not the case.
The fear that the mainstream media is spreading is extremely damaging to the economy. It is costing people their jobs, businesses and consequently their livelihoods. It is predominantly these people who travelled to Parliament last week. Due to our politicians’ inaction, the event has now grown to the point where some unacceptable fringe elements have tried to join in.
Back to the Fearald. They are still running with their 90% project. I thought we’d got there some time ago. That theme runs until page seven when up pops our old friend Simon Wilson. Before I get into his piece I want to congratulate him on coming up with a reason for the people being there that, quite frankly, is as bizarre as it is novel.
Simon alerts us, presumably in all seriousness, that the “Leadership of the far right is at stake and the good-hearted folk who are stuck in the mud and just want their old lives back are pawns in the conflict”.
What a bunch of silly billys we all are. Here we were thinking it was something to do with Covid, to do with jobs being lost, business closures and livelihoods gone. But no, it’s all to do with the “far-right.”
If Simple Simon had bothered to go to Parliament he probably would have met the pieman so well organised is the event. Instead, he takes the word of his like-minded colleague David Fisher that the crowd is full of anti-vax fascists. What an insult to all those genuine people who are there for the reasons mentioned above. This is disgraceful journalism by Ardern’s paid for leftie sympathisers. This sort of journalism really does prove that money is the root of all evil.
But Wilson and Fisher aren’t interested in those people other than to say they are pawns in a far-right conflict. The article is full of every little piece of evidence Wilson can find to denigrate and vilify the legitimacy of the reasons why most people are there.
According to Simon, these supporters are “garden-variety Kiwis”, encouraged to make common cause with the far-right by stooges like Matt King and the opportunist Winston Peters. What absolute twaddle.
According to Simon the playing of Barry Manilow by Mallard was an act of genius as it took the heat out of an ugly situation. Total tosh. It illustrates how far removed from reality Simon is. Perhaps we should label him far-left, something he’d probably look at as a badge of honour.
There is far too much of this shoddy, shabby, biased journalism coming from the MSM. It’s patently obvious from those writing on The BFD and others on Newstalk ZB who have attended the protest that the majority of the people are there to get rid of the mandates.
The media are largely spinning and fabricating a completely false narrative. Simon Wilson is an excellent example. He, the NZ Herald, and most of the media should be hanging their heads in shame.
Finding an honest journalist is like winning Lotto.