Category: Climate Change

Before our eyes, the climate change movement is morphing into totalitarianism. With the State intruding ever deeper into our private lives will New Zealanders stand by and let them take more control, or, as a nation, will we too push back to defend our freedom and way of life?

Given that the CEO of Transpower has warned us of the risk of blackouts this year, when the lakes are full, it seems to be inevitable that if it was a dry year, we would be in serious trouble. Quite obviously, the electricity market is unable to ensure an economic and reliable supply.

A kind interpretation of Jacinda Ardern’s tenure is that she was naive and impressionable, and those weaknesses were manipulated, especially by the Maori caucus to advance their agenda for Maori rule. Other interpretations are much less kind.

One of the last things Jacinda asked of us in her valedictory speech was that we “take the politics out of climate change”. Let’s see this request for what it is. It’s a play to get good international headlines, and a bad idea that we should all ignore.

The three pillars which underpin our way of life are: Democracy, the Market Economy and The Common Law. These pillars are being eroded by the present government with the push for a tribally based society and the backlash which has forced a Prime Minister from power and replaced her with a trick cyclist who is displaying impressive skills of back peddling.

Labour has pushed the country too far down the climate mitigation rabbit hole, and that what the cyclone and the floods have shown us only too clearly, is that as a nation, our focus instead should be on adaptation, so we can build greater resilience to the natural disasters that will undoubtedly confront us in the future.

It is unimaginably stupid for National to find itself in this position over such a fundamental matter as freedom of thought. The election is theirs to lose, very few voters want a return of the tribal Marxists but neither do they want such a heavy-handed medieval response to freedom of speech in such a contestable matter.

Cyclone Gabrielle was a tragedy that exposed life-threatening frailties and failures within our infrastructure network. Once the immediate problems have been addressed, a comprehensive review will be required to mitigate the effects of potentially damaging natural events in the future.

Net Zero is a dead man walking. Professor Roger Pielke’s Iron Law of Climate Policy - when policies focused on economic growth confront policies focused on emissions reductions, it is economic growth that will win out every time - will inevitably prevail in democracies.

On behalf of the New Zealand Centre for Political Research I would like to say a huge thank you for your on-going interest and wonderful support over the last 12 months - and wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year!