Thursday, November 12, 2009

Shifting blame - getting it right and getting it wrong

Two examples that have caught my attention today.

1/ The Australian High Court ruled;

"Balancing the pleasures of drinking with the importance of minimising the harm that may flow to a drinker is also a matter of personal decision and individual responsibility.

"It is a matter more fairly to be placed on the drinker than the seller of drink."
Succinct and spot on. Hallelujah.


2/ Last night I watched Tariana Turia subtlety shift the focus of wrong-doing from Hone Harawira to the public response. Caught in print, but not as telling as her demeanour on screen,

While Mr Harawira's behaviour was "unacceptable", she had been flooded with emails which were "equally racist and abusive".

Sorry for the platitude but two wrongs do not make a right. Perhaps the Maori Party should however let the public be the judge of whether the e-mails are racist. The paper I wrote on Maori and Welfare was described as racist for instance. It was never explained to me why. I can only conclude that it is OK for Maori to talk about themselves as a group, and describe particular problems that disproportionately affect them as a group, but it is not OK for me to do it.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

but it is not OK for me to do it.

Didn't Hone explain this to you Lindsay?

You're a "white muthafucka who's been raping Maori for 200 years".

It really is that simple Lindsay.

Sus said...

2009 - Turia on Harawira's comments about caucasian NZers:

"Unacceptable".


2003 - Turia on Holmes's "cheeky darkie" comment about UN Sec-Gen Annan:

".. we have to stand up and say that racism is not acceptable in any form whatsoever. There is no excuse for it."

Ah, but I forget. Hone's just "a character", isn't he, John Key?

Anonymous said...

What a boring day it would have been without Hone.

Dirk

KG said...

If the day ever comes when I rely on some racist politician's comments to relieve the boredom, I'll shoot myself.