Sunday, February 15, 2004
The best form of defence is attack, shoot the messenger and make it personal.
Rather than justifying their policy, or focussing on the issue at hand, Labour have launched their own form of ad / information campaign about their policy on race relations to counter National's "Separatist" ads. The only difference is that they get to do it on the front page of the Sunday Star Times; presumably they didn't have to pay for it either.
There has obviously been a lot said on that Brash speech, especially in blog land, and the one thing that everyone seems to agree with is that the standard of comment and debate has been simplistic, alarmist and generally atrocious.
Russell Brown is indeed "entitled to the view that the "debate" has already become stupid and debased to an alarming degree". I will be very interested to see what Russell thinks of the SST being so breathtakingly transparent about its politics. I don't see how anyone could see that article as journalism, it is, to further torture the phrase, Brash-bashing.
Elsewhere, NZPols is typically balanced in his slamming of Joris de Bres, the race relations commissioner who can't help himself from wading in where public officials should fear to tread.
So lots of hysteria, and inflammatory statements denouncing other people's inflammation, but precious little constructive dialogue. Here's hoping the name calling takes a back seat, and the media give air time to those who take the time to explain their positions. Once that has been done, take another poll.
