Hi Joe,

What destroyed the small community from whence I came was the eventual lack of employment opportunities. Firstly local jobs on properties disappeared, properties grew larger (my grandfather firstly ran sheep for wool successfully on only 250 acres, later 750 acres, not possible today, 2000 acres would be to small), along with government work, such as the railways (a big employer in the days of steam). Work in towns at the abattoirs (another big employer) and other kinds of work. The old hands passed on, the younger people gravitated to the cities, or the large regional towns. Firstly the shops went, and eventually everything else went, including the people.

Dear Paul,

I think the following link is worth a read:

http://www.theconversation.com/rough-seas-ahead-why-the-governments-james-cook-infatuation-may-further-divide-the-nation-110275

Paul,

Your response to my comment exposes you as an unmitigated liar with the ethics of a sewer rat.

My statement of opinion:

"According to Paul all national leaders are warmongers, all soldiers are murderers and hunter gatherers with an expected lifespan of 30 were superior to western culture."

Was based on your wildly expansive definition of "warmonger" to essentially include any leader of a country with a defense force that has or may be prepared to use them and deliberately ignored your meaningless caveat of "majority". PS 100% is a majority.

Shadow Minister,

There is no qualification to your statement that it is your "opinion", you present it as "fact". I'll give you 24 hours to provided the evidence or apologise. I received a long suspension for a comparable comment, and failing to provide the evidence. If this forum is balanced then you should find yourself in the same boat, if you fail to provide the evidence.

BTW; New Zealand has a standing army, I do not, and have never said, I consider the New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern a warmonger. The sovereign nation of Tuvalu has no standing army, therefore in no way can its leadership be considered warmongers. There is just two off your 100%. Nor do I consider ALL soldiers of the world murders, the vast majority are not engaged, and are never likely to be engaged, in acts of war. Nor did I ever say I considered a hunter gatherer existence superior to western culture.

Happy Armistice Day.

Dear Paul,

The celebration of Captain Cook's landing, the
millions of dollars that the government has assigned
to be spent next year to this celebration would
be better allocated to the major, and ever increasing
disaster of Australian bush-fires. There have been
many proposals and suggestions for the preparation
of future fires. Do we really need to spend so much
to celebrate a historic event - for a person who
already has been honoured by so many memorials?

As for the date of Australia Day (Captain Cook's landing)?
Does the date really matter? It's not historically
accurate - we don't celebrate the Queen's Birthday on her
actual date.

Australia Day should be celebrated on the day we became
a Federation - or better still the day we become a Republic.

Just a few thoughts.

Paul,

Here's your proof. According to your criteria Jacinda is just as much a warmonger as pretty much anyone else.

https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2018/09/jacinda-ardern-s-u-turn-on-pulling-troops-out-of-iraq.html

The Labour-led Government is extending New Zealand's deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan despite promising in Opposition to pull troops out.

It was former Prime Minister John Key who sent troops into Iraq, but it's incumbent leader Jacinda Ardern who's keeping them there.

New Zealand Defence Force personnel will now remain in Iraq until June next year, although the number of troops will fall slightly from 143 to 121.

"ISIS remains a threat," she says.

That you got this wrong is clear, and as to your penchant for porkies, your record stands.

One of your best is describing GetUp as something like a concerned citizen group. You knew that was BS before you typed a word, and that is but one of many.