Wayne Mapp And The Tyranny By Majority
Differences in perception, as well as a possible lack of organisation post-election, have become apparent within the structure of the National Party, in light of the words of MP Paul Hutchison appearing to be a direct contradiction with those of the newly-appointed Political Correctness Eradicator, North Shore MP Wayne Mapp, who was placed into the new position yesterday by Don Brash. Our dear friend Rodney did well to highlight the overbearing tone that was present in Wayne's speech that lead to his inauguration, going so far as to nobly concur with Deputy Prime Minister Michael Cullen's comment that the title of the new role is "chillingly fascist-sounding."
When one hears this sort of thing coming from someone such as Rodney, who is a vehement opponent of the alleged threat of political correctness, one can find themself becoming aware that this is a particularly exceptional circumstance that National has introduced. However, Rodney has pointed out a deeper aspect of the situation that is important to take into account. The speech made by Wayne that lead to his appointment would certainly serve to suggest that he is not just opposed to political correctness, but he is a forthright proponent of majoritarianism. Needless to say, majoritarianism is not a good thing, particularly in this situation, because as Rodney states, "The antidote to PC-ness is not a politician setting out to eradicate it as an idea but rather free minds, plain speaking, and the critical testing of ideas against the real world, not political ideology."
Wayne's words certainly make it seem as though he wishes to sideline minority opinion altogether -- as opposed to engaging in intelligent discussion with its proponents -- which would definitely not be a positive occurrence in a supposedly democratic society. Of potential further detriment to Wayne's credibility after making these statements is the fact that MP Paul Hutchison has laid out a buffet of apparent contradictions in saying that "The Clark/Peters Government must act on the recommendations of a Human Rights Commission report and improve access to public transport for the disabled." These words contrast greatly with those of a National Party member heard on Newstalk ZB this morning, saying that he wants us to be able to call disabled people "handicaps again." It all certainly appears to be in a bit of a mess at this stage, especially given the somewhat disconcerting use of the word "eradicator" in the title of the position that Wayne has been placed into.
What I thought was a surprisingly unashamed incidence of partisan journalism, being expressed in regards to this issue, was exhibited on TV3's six o' clock news yesterday. In an interview with Don Brash, in an action decidedly reminiscient of his frequent "My wife is Singaporean" catchphrase, the leader of the National Party pointed out that Wayne "is actually married to a Maori person." The reporter presenting the piece immediately cut in, providing a voiceover that placed heavy emphasis on what he would allege to be Don's attempt to put across the impression that National are not bigoted. "What was that? Not just a Maori woman, but a Maori person?" the reporter said. In doing this he was effectively commenting on the apparent political correctness that existed within Don's statement, citing in particular the avoidance of sexist language. The idea that was projected upon this viewer was that the reporter was pointing out Don's use of the "some of my best friends are brown" card. I must say I was somewhat surprised to see this sort of informal carry-on happening on the evening news.
When one hears this sort of thing coming from someone such as Rodney, who is a vehement opponent of the alleged threat of political correctness, one can find themself becoming aware that this is a particularly exceptional circumstance that National has introduced. However, Rodney has pointed out a deeper aspect of the situation that is important to take into account. The speech made by Wayne that lead to his appointment would certainly serve to suggest that he is not just opposed to political correctness, but he is a forthright proponent of majoritarianism. Needless to say, majoritarianism is not a good thing, particularly in this situation, because as Rodney states, "The antidote to PC-ness is not a politician setting out to eradicate it as an idea but rather free minds, plain speaking, and the critical testing of ideas against the real world, not political ideology."
Wayne's words certainly make it seem as though he wishes to sideline minority opinion altogether -- as opposed to engaging in intelligent discussion with its proponents -- which would definitely not be a positive occurrence in a supposedly democratic society. Of potential further detriment to Wayne's credibility after making these statements is the fact that MP Paul Hutchison has laid out a buffet of apparent contradictions in saying that "The Clark/Peters Government must act on the recommendations of a Human Rights Commission report and improve access to public transport for the disabled." These words contrast greatly with those of a National Party member heard on Newstalk ZB this morning, saying that he wants us to be able to call disabled people "handicaps again." It all certainly appears to be in a bit of a mess at this stage, especially given the somewhat disconcerting use of the word "eradicator" in the title of the position that Wayne has been placed into.
What I thought was a surprisingly unashamed incidence of partisan journalism, being expressed in regards to this issue, was exhibited on TV3's six o' clock news yesterday. In an interview with Don Brash, in an action decidedly reminiscient of his frequent "My wife is Singaporean" catchphrase, the leader of the National Party pointed out that Wayne "is actually married to a Maori person." The reporter presenting the piece immediately cut in, providing a voiceover that placed heavy emphasis on what he would allege to be Don's attempt to put across the impression that National are not bigoted. "What was that? Not just a Maori woman, but a Maori person?" the reporter said. In doing this he was effectively commenting on the apparent political correctness that existed within Don's statement, citing in particular the avoidance of sexist language. The idea that was projected upon this viewer was that the reporter was pointing out Don's use of the "some of my best friends are brown" card. I must say I was somewhat surprised to see this sort of informal carry-on happening on the evening news.
posted by Gary at 9:51 am
2 Comments:
Overriding the sort of political correctness that you speak of is high in the National Party's list of priorities. However, the speech by Wayne Mapp that Don Brash cited as the reason he elected him to the position of "Political Correctness Eradicator" serves to indicate that Wayne himself is interested in the suppression of minority opinion altogether in addition to furthering the regular National Party ideas on political correctness.
Shuddup foo!
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