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Kumara Republic's avatar

"Socialism for the rich & austerity for the rest" is another policy agenda that the Trump Regime is all too eager to reinforce, alongside the usual culture warpiggery. Here in NZ, both have already run into stiff resistance.

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Grant Duncan PhD's avatar

I was austeritied under the previous regime!

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John Maidment's avatar

How?

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Grant Duncan PhD's avatar

Downsized...

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Kumara Republic's avatar

Cutting & running isn't monopolised by those of a Reaganite bent, but it still has to be opposed regardless. I've come to realise that part of the way forward is to "tax the rich now, so that we don't have to eat them later". The French & Russian Revolutions followed the latter to its logical extreme, and more recently Luigi Mangione did it on a much smaller scale.

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Kumara Republic's avatar

And the resistance is already getting louder, with the women's pay equity issue gathering speed. I suspect culture war red herrings like bathroom policing can't distract from something potentially this big.

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John Maidment's avatar

And how far is New Zealand prepared to go down that rabbit hole? Will it do what it has always done: watch Australia, who watches the USA, before it decides? Wolves no - sheep yes. What does it take for New Zealand to have its own mind, or is it business as usual? Following is always easier than leading.

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Grant Duncan PhD's avatar

The last time NZ had a mind of its own may have been the Rogernomics era?

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Kumara Republic's avatar

Or during the Iraq War, when NZ made the right move in staying out of it. Rogernomics rode on the back of Reaganomics & Thatcherism.

Furthermore, Australia & NZ have far more guardrails for their electoral & judicial systems than the Americans do. And can we assume America still remains a unified nation in the future?

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John Maidment's avatar

Roger-nomics says it all. Those guardrails unfortunately do not factor in NZ's propensity to defaulting to 'it time for a change' even when that change is unjustified and unsubstantiated. Or other influences that include but are not limited to disinformation, scaremongering, unjustified denigration of political opponents, a biased media, (not least of which is granny Herald)..... Dominating NZ politics is easy pickings, providing the required leadership that improves the lot of all, is not.

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Grant Duncan PhD's avatar

We can't assume that. But I told myself not to make predictions!

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John Maidment's avatar

And its never looked forward since.

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