The Nasty Party

In 2004, the then-Chairperson of the British Conservatives, gave her party the unfathomably stupid label of The Nasty Party. In an address to the Conservative Conference, she said:

"Yes, we've made progress, but let's not kid ourselves. There's a way to go before we can return to government. There's a lot we need to do in this party of ours. Our base is too narrow and so, occasionally, are our sympathies, You know what some people call us: the nasty party," Mrs May told a stunned conference.

Now, I am not one to compare the New Zealand National Party to the British Conservatives. The kind of racist, bigoted, homophobic agendas that the British party has stood for over the years and the kinds of nasty, thuggish leaders they have entertained have not really been a feature of the National Party approach. National's problem has been an addiction to hard edged neoliberalism.

Sometimes, however, a creepy conservatism does win its way through. And while people here might see National as the "nasty party" for economic reasons rather than socio-cultural ones, it is a definite brand weakness for National that they are seen as tough and uncaring. This, combined with a bit of the more British descent into racism, is what simultaneously nearly propelled Don Brash to the premiership in 2005, but also meant he could not win at the end of the day.

So one of the main tasks of John Key (as for David Cameron in Britain) has been to put some distance between their new, fresh leaderships, and the unpopular bits of their party's past. Both have sought to reinvent their parties as sort of caring, softly softly parties - acknowledging that their societies have moved on from, in the British case, aggressive social conservatism, and in the New Zealand case, hyperliberalism and me-first attitudes.

The problem both leaders have, however, is that the past is not the past - it is the present, for their activists and for many of their Members of Parliament. Nothing sums this up better in the current New Zealand context than the unholy debate about Section 59.

Apart from a few outstanding individuals like Katherine Rich, who has bravely stood up to the more aggressive throwbacks that she shares her party with, the general tone of National MPs in this debate has been nothing but nasty and indeed sinister.

They have chosen to utterly desert their new-found attachment to the liberal centre, and to gallop off into true Nasty Party territory. They are supporting the likes of Destiny Church, "Family First", the Society for the Promotion of Community Standards, the Maxim Institute, etc, all to make an hysterical nonsense of what is really quite a simple issue about making kids safer.

National will come to regret this. They may have forgotten that they lost in 2005, at the end of the day, because middle, mainstream New Zealand is pretty liberal these days. To line up with a bunch of regressive child-hating, fundamentalist losers to lie to the public about an emotive issue and whip up totally underserved hysteria will fatally undermine the whole careful repositioning that National has tried to adopt since Key took over.

So in a way the longer this Section 59 debate goes on the better. I want the mainstream public to be really, really clear that most of the National Party -- including their so-called liberals -- have chosen to twist the truth seeking partisan gain, and have lined up with the fruitcakes of the far religious right to mislead Kiwi families about a simple issue of public policy.

Every single meeting I go to in the 2008 campaign, I'll be raising this evidence of National showing its true face as the Nasty Party. I hope others do the same.

Awww, I guess some of those bloggers are a bit thin-skinned... they can dish it out but can't cope with being criticised themselves. Personally I think it's all about taking responsibility for your decisions. If you decide to go into common cause with the kinds of people that make you look nasty, that's your problem. Not the problem of the people who are criticising you.

Comments

[tim barclay]

Except the nasty party is the Labour Party in NZ just look at the personalities. Don't get mixed up with policies it is the people. Just look at Clark, Mallard, Benson-Pope, Cullen, Hodgsen, Heather (shudder) Simpson, Mike (oaf) Williams, what on earth would you call that group.

[burt]

Jordan

"Now, I am not one to compare the New Zealand National Party to the British Conservatives. The kind of racist, bigoted, homophobic agendas that the British party has stood for over the years and the kinds of nasty, thuggish leaders they have entertained have not really been a feature of the National Party approach."

Followed by: "Every single meeting I go to in the 2008 campaign, I'll be raising this evidence of National showing its true face as the Nasty Party."

So now you are even contradicting yourself in a single post...

[sean14]

Jordan,

In your profile, you state that part of the purpose of this blog is to give you a forum in which to improve the quality of your political thought and writing. How does demonising people as "child-hating, fundamentalist losers" assist you in achieving what is obviously a sincerely held and laudable goal?

[anon]

"aggressive throwbacks"

You really are a prat. How on earth do you justify labelling anyone as being "nasty" when you spout this sort of rubbish with such regularity?

Tell me, does Trevor Mallard still think it is ok to make jokes about inserting beer bottles into people?

[rjs131]

"0want the mainstream public to be really, really clear that most of the National Party -- including their so-called liberals -- have chosen to twist the truth seeking partisan gain, and have lined up with the fruitcakes of the far religious right to mislead Kiwi families about a simple issue of public policy"

so are you including Chris Finlayson in this category. Surely if there is a liberal in parliament that is qualified to judge a flawed law it is him.

Thsi remains a conscience vote for the Nats - who are we to guess what the content of their inboxes are. At least they arent ignoring them like the labour MPs.

[they dont care about normal kids like me]

Jordan it is one thing to disagree with a groups views, its another to vilify them and attempt to ostracise them from social dialogue. Increasingly this seems to be the tactic of the Labour party when the going gets tough. It does you no favours. You will not win the debate by name calling and venom but by reason facts. There is nothing in your post remotely like that. You just come off sounding like a complete and utter A-hole. Nice going.

[Jordan (the other one)]

Honestly Jordan, I'm beginning to think you've lost the plot.

[Jordan Carter]

If you can't cope with your politics, why don't you change it? Whining about it being accurately described isn't really part of the deal in this game.

[Pita]

Jesus Christ Jordan...get a grip...just read what you write!

[David Farrar]

Oh yes "nasty" is such an intelligent objective term which can be rationally debated.

[James]

Having ya face up Clarks minge as long as Jordan has will send ya loopy eventually....and lying to yourself about economics and politics won't help either....

[AGJ]

Bad Poll day huh Jordan?

[Andrew W]

Sometimes people deliberately stupid and provocative things to gain attention, perhaps that's the case with Jordan.

[dad4justice]

What a croc of shit !!!

[Nicholas O'Kane]

It wasn't too long ago that you complained in a post on this blog (Nickers in a twist: Whale oil goes random on 16 February) about "toxic hate" being thrown from the right at the left. Given your comments labbeling national "the nasty party" addicted to "hard edge neoliberalism" whose MPs argue in "nasty and indeed sinister ways" your rheotic matches anything (apart from CYFSwatch) that I've seen from the right. You however manage to beat this anti-National rheotic with your description of the lobby groups opposed to banning smacking as "regressive child-hating" (never knew that the vast majoraty of NZ parents were child-haters) "fundamentalist loosers" who "lie to the public about an emotive issue and whip up totally undeserved hysteria" (if labour genuinely doesn't want smacking banned they could vote for the Borrows ammendment. The fact Labour plans to vote against it gives good reason to believe that the fears are not unfounded). you also accuse national of supporting the Destiny church amongst others (if this was really the case imagine what the media would do about it). It is important to note that this post does not once contain any arguemnt about the merits of the anti-smacking bill (sorry, Crimes (substitution of section 59 ammendment bill) other than that since Destiny or fundamentalist christians also oppose it it must be a bad thing. Nice arguement. I hope labour runs its 2008 election campaign in the same style of attack the person not the arguement as this post and let new zealanders judge for themselves whio the nasty party is.

[David Farrar]

Far from being thin skinned I think Jordan's post is the most damaging one he has done to himself. I've had phone call after phone call today asking me if I had seen his post, and not mainly from National supporters. I think it could win some sort of record for post most likely to drive away swinging voters.

Please Jordan make many more posts like these. I promise to try and link to each and every one.

[anon]

If you're angling for some sick leave, you're on the right track.

[sdm]

This is just another vilification in my decision to quit the labour party. I campaigned heavily for them in the last few elections and now deeply regret doing so.

Look, we can argue policy all day long. But being currently devoid of policy and out of ideas, Labour has decided that the only thing it has going for it is to attack the opposition by calling them names. Its something 5 year olds do at school. It is pathetic and I will personally do whatever it takes to get rid of the bastards next year.

So Jordan please go on calling the opposition names. I know you think it will work, you are after all dumbing the country down. You pass policies designed to create a socialist republic - 37% of the country now derives their main income from the government. But I do have a faith in new zealanders, i have faith that hopefully they will see through the bullshit to vote in a government who want to advance New Zealand, raising the average, rather than cutting down those who are sucessive.

[PaulL]

Well done Jordan. I see it as imperative that you spend the next election campaign reminding everyone which side of this debate Labour were on, and which side National were on. I am sure that National will be doing so - because spending an election campaign telling 80% of NZers that they were wrong is probably not going to help Labour get elected.

For a leader who is normally very astute with the polls, I really don't understand what Helen thinks she is achieving. Is she not planning to be leader going into the next election? I still don't understand when legislating an opinion became a good idea. Everyone seems to accept that this law change will not make any difference to genuinely abused children or the legal status of their abusers, so I am completely at a loss as to why Labour are expending so much political capital on it. If you were going to outlaw things that seem to have no benefit, and that many (even most) people and scientists think cause some amount of harm, wouldn't you start with cigarettes?

[Russell]

WELL, of course you could just campaign on your own parties success's and policies and ignore the opposition, as you know that your parties message is clearly better and will be chosen by the people... You see my friend that is why 'ordinary' People like myself who only take a passing view of politics dont like or trust politicans! Have a think about it, Smear campagns are demeaning to all involved, even if you think your side is morally and socially superior!

[burt]

There is plenty of scope for some rebuttal Jordan - you got the nous to take it on ?

[KA]

"To line up with a bunch of regressive child-hating, fundamentalist losers..."

Sorry, we will be winning when we throw your tosspot government out next year, that's for sure.

Just stop obsessing about us for one second, if you actually are capable of anything at all.

Or maybe you're just out to prove the Rainbow wing is all on a huge power trip in government just to stamp out Christianity... well, the problem is, you'd have to stamp out freedom as well, but you've tried pretty hard in the last 8 years on that score as well.

[KA]

See these people from Labour, when you get their backs up against a wall, they get pretty nasty and low, don't they? Starting to bite a bit is it, Labour taking a battering in the polls and in the courts of public opinion?

[KA]

"How does demonising people as "child-hating, fundamentalist losers" assist you in achieving what is obviously a sincerely held and laudable goal?

Posted by: sean14 | Tuesday, 03 April 2007 at 01:26 PM "

Don't you understand, that is their goal. Rainbow Labour are on a power trip, practically all their policy is based around using their governmental powers to bash Christians.

JUst go across to gaynz.com and look at anything written by Craig Young.

Like I wrote in my blog recently - the Exclusive Brethren are like a red rag to a bull where Rainbow's concerned.

[Shout Above The Noise]

Jordan, you often complain about the lack of decent policy discourse, but you ALWAYS instantly revert to being nothing more than a conduit of Pete Hodgsons spin machine. It amuses me however when I see social liberals such as yourself inadvertently exposing your own phobias and intolerances.

Pathetic.

[libertyscott]

So being propped up in government by United Future - which is Christian fundamentalism lite and campaigned heavily against Civil Unions, and now being propped up by Winston First - which has for years run a "us vs them foreigners/immigrants" campaign that around ten years ago was scaring many Asian immigrants, makes Labour the party of angels

Yes Labour is so fucking different from National - you're both political whores, and Clark did call Brash cancerous and corrosive.

The left is as nasty as the conservative right, both full of bullying born to rule, "we won you lost eat that" power hungry wankers. Think you know what's best for everyone else, how best to spend their money, how best to educate everyone else's kids, even whether they can choose to die when they are in agony.

Like school prefects who bully all the others, you think we are all children unable to take responsibility for our lives, our money and children - it's the arrogant conceit of true collectivists, you're either with them or they insult and belittle you as selfish - when all you want to do is live.

[dave]

Jordan, I must say that is the best post you have done. Ever. You need to write a lot more like this. I would ask that you get out of bed the same side as you did today - and every day. I thought Tony Milne had lost the debate on what makes kids safe, but you Jordan have gone further.

You've lost the plot. Totally. Well done. Keep it up, its much appreciated. I look forward to your next post.

[Clint Heine]

Wait one second Jordan, is this your cunning plan to try and avoid discussing the shocking increases in crime?

You almost got away with it, but you don't fool me - fool.

More please, I want to know why more about the deep intolerance within Labour in regards to christians. Pot. Kettle. Black.

[George]

Such bitterness in one so old!

[Shout Above The Noise]

And to think people, Jordan wants to be an MP!

Personally I'd rather have people with more talent represent me, like Alamein Kopu, Brian Connell, Deborah Coddington, Parekura Horomia or Jill Pettis.

[Karen B]

You, and people like you, and the entire Labour Party for that matter, are the only reasons I don't want to come back to NZ.

As a parent of young children who has smacked 5 times in 12 years, I find it offensive to be labelled a regressive child hater.

You and your ilk are "what is wrong with NZ". Your entire post made me want to simultaneously vomit and cry.

[chris]

Wow, what a hammering you are taking, Jordan. Starting to feel like this post may have been a mistake?

[Gerrit]

As I have said on another blog in conversation with you Jordan,

Review your sales and marketing department.

First rule of selling. "Never rubbish the opposition"

Always explain why your policies are better than your competitors if you want voters to buy your brand.

Repeat "Never rubbish the opposition". Telling your potential voters they are scum for voting National (or any other brand) and good guys if they vote labour has a tendency (a very very big tendency)to get their backs up.

One despairs at the lack of simple proffesional sales and marketing skill in the Labour party.

[Flashman]

Hi Jordan: One post from you like this humdinger is worth at least another 1000 swing voters going to National. Keep up this sterling effort, mate!

[dad4justice]

This man Jordan should be a tunnel support not a MP because his immature rhetoric is meaningless - childish rubbish . I can't believe how thick these liebore creatures are ?

[chris]

Where are all the Labour supporters coming to defend their boy? Perhaps they are hanging him out to dry?

[dad4justice]

Calling all liebore supporters , please aid the unfortunate Jordan , it's all done by mirrors silly person !!

[Clint Heine]

Don't worry they will come soon, we all got a great head start on them all. After all that time pissing about in Govt they have all got a little slow.

I don't think Jordan will care what we have said to him here, he will look upon this as more people wrong and will no doubt call us rabid right wingers, fascists, baby eaters...

[Gary]

Jordan has obviously done his homework - he is using the example given by his leaders. One can easily imagine these same words coming from the mouths of Clark, Hodgson, Mallard, Benson-Pope etc...

Jordan's credentials as a potential Labour MP are right on track.

[dad4justice]

May I suggest that the people of kiwiland are sick and tired of being told what to do by witches, weirdo's , weaklings , wackos and bogan's.

The public backlash over their wrongful social engineering has exposed the left's vulnerability to become highly stressed and agitated at times.

[dad4justice]

Parents remove pupils over "bias " Tuahiwi School , 22 kids in two weeks , care to comment Jordan ?

Be very interested in your answer or shall I ask Tony Milne ?

[Mark]

Labour in this country is the nasty party - you don't steal $800,000.00 of taxpayers money, have MPs assault protesters, have Helen Clark making bigoted, racist statements about people who disagree with her party, and have a MP that prey on the vulnerable which you attempt to cover up by hold a whitewash of an inquiry.

If you can't see that then you are exactly like the Labour party.

[dad4justice]

The labour party started in South Islands West Coast and Helen Clark called the residents feral inbreds in 1998 ? I don't understand how she could say that, as it hurt the children living in the region ! What kind of person says that about other New Zealanders??

[richgraham]

"...To line up with a bunch of regressive child-hating, fundamentalist losers ..."
How dare you write such filth about my people.

Your comments about the National Party Mr Carter illustrate why former Labour supporters like myself have turned against Labour. All that the Labour Party has left is abuse, abuse of the multitude. To think that Labour sprang from the working people of NZ and is now their worst enemy. To see how their representatives vilify anybody who disagrees with them disgusts me. No attempt to respond to questions, just puerile vilification and abusive name-calling. I now regard the Labour Party of NZ as being the lair of fascists - people who hate people, their own people, the citizens of NZ.
Betrayed is what we are, betrayed by our own representatives.
The filth you spout about the people of NZ wrt. this 'anti-smacking' law change is disgraceful.
So often we hear the representatives of your seedy political party prating on about 'diversity' and 'embracing diversity' - the truth is Mr Carter, like your Labour Party pals, you hate diversity, you hate difference, and therefore you hate freedom. Whenever citizens voice opinions different to yours, you respond with abuse and hatred.

Please Mr Carter, help the Labour Party of NZ, help the people of my country - emigrate, leave, and don't come back.