I recently attended a medical conference hosted by the Christian Medical Fellowship of New Zealand. As the name suggests, it’s a conference of medical and health professionals who come discuss health matters, primarily from a Christian perspective. So think lots of doctors, nurses, carers, bioethicists, chaplains, medical students, and many more.
I see it among fellow conservatives too. Your other article about the coalition government’s rush to roll back the ill-conceived gender pay equity law did not pass the sniff test. A lot of your fellow conservatives (such that those on Cam Slater m’s Good Oil site, where almost all disagreed with you) thought that procedural justice does not matter when it is to undo damage. I think you have a point here and these fellow conservatives got it wrong.
Great article Simon and I agree that zealotry vs zealotry is a recipe for disaster. However in a world of TikTok and Instagram when we train our next generation (and ourselves) to have a 3 second attention span, zealotry is the only thought pattern available - there is no time for nuance. This is reinforced by news cycles and the decline of newspapers and Investigative journalism. However the bright point is the rise in podcasts and long form discussion in audio formats, which, as long as we step outside our online bubbles occasionally, will provide a diversity of views and opinions.
The next question is how do we merge this model of communication with politics at all levels, so that we can have deliberative decisions being made across the community?
I hope you are well, and its been a long time since Auckland Uni Fencing! Maarten
Lovely to hear from you Maarten and as soon as I saw your name, my mind return to AUF! I think you've hit an important nail on the head - the place of social media and how there is little depth. But as you also note, there are bright spots as people return to long form via the likes of podcasts. Keep well :)
The medical profession at large, lost the plot from 2020 onwards, with a total disregard to accurate information, or challenging MoH on fundamental issues blindingly obvious to anyone who knew how to research. And total disregard to informed choice, by and large. Yes, they were threatened with having their licenses removed etc etc... but the fact that THAT didn't appear to be a red flag to most of them, and the fact that the majority chose to protect the narrative, their profession, and even comply themselves, when they didn't want to, is another verboten topic out in the wider world. So it was good that seemingly, one tiny example of that, was touched on in the conference.
The question the conference hopefully came to grips with, is "What stance will we take on behalf of our patients and our own health, when another one of these "IQ tests" is forced upon us?"
Interesting post! In my opinion, too many people see everything as either left or right, progressive or regressive -- not just people who do this work for a living. How can you have a debate when you suggest all disagreement is due to political values and nothing to do with the truth? People are willing to read and consider opposing views, I do. Our divisive politicians, people in the media, and on social media, these people are not who we are. We can and do work together.
We also saw it with the Treaty Principles Bill, from not only the 'crazed opposition' but also National & NZ First, unwilling to debate the obvious manipulation of the wording & meaning of the Treaty by the 'Waitangi Tribunal' & other political, academic activists, & bleeding heart liberals!
Not just the Left who you would expect that from, but a willing National Party also to SPIKE debate, reasoned arguments, & what our democracy is meant to stand for, but largely doesn't! Pomp & ceremony, rituals, sceptres & despots in waiting is not DEMOCRACY!
Yet they will mouth platitudes & virtue signal about what is right, & yet the 'proof is in the pudding' with these hypocrites! Look at the evidence - our nation NZ!
Virtue signalling the poor & homeless, but both sides NOT doing anything 'real' about it, only to exploit & use them for political rhetoric & point scoring!
Without a strong economy you are very limited in what can you do, along with social policies which are designed to 'passively' 'maim & inflict harm' & make people victims, rather than people being encouraged to take personal responsibility for their choices & lives!
How many bills were passed that the majority of NZers opposed from the Homosexual Law Reform Bill, Same sex marriage, Anti-smacking Bill, Prostitution Law Reform Bill, but the politicians, just a handful of NZers in the great scheme of things, decided to pass them anyway!
Where was representative Democracy then! So we can't take any of these politicians seriously! There is no integrity, transparency, nor word & deed! We are subjected to a diet of sophistry, word salads & intellectual & premeditated dishonesty!
They pay lip service to Democracy, & act as tyrants!
Jesus said the "truth will set you free" .. only if we live it, not just read it in a book!
We have a great 'text book' in the Bible to teach us how to organise ourselves, our families & therefore our society & nation!
Why have Christians NOT grasped that fundamental point, & have allowed tares to be sowed into the field & false gods to be brought into the Temple, God's House, which is the nation!
It's because we have been lukewarm, Rev 3:1-3, 15-17 apathetic, & lacking the zeal & heart to do what Jesus & Scripture told us to DO:
Mt 6:33, Mt 6:9-10, Mt 28:18-20, Jn 17:20-23, Ezek 37:7-10 => Is 9:6-7, Dan 7:27 + Ezra 1, Hag 1:12-15 = Gen 1:27-28 = God's Kingdom!
Therein is the 'pocket book template' for what needs to be implemented in NZ!
Until we proclaim, declare God's Kingdom it won't come, even though that is what Jesus specifically told us to pray & DO as above!
Similarly: Mt 7:21-23, Rom 2:13, James 1:22-25, Lk 8:21, Rev 20:12
It's the DOER of the Word who will be 'justified', NOT the hearer'! James 2:14-26
Christians have downplayed 'works' & therefore taking responsibility for the world we live in, (Rev 3:1-3) through 'misunderstanding' Scripture, or worse, cherry picking it, but clearly those who don't ACT, Dan 11:32, may end up where they never imagined they would go! Mt 8:10-12, Rev 21:8, Mt 25:24-30
Christians are mandated by Jesus to unite & work together! Jn 17:20-23, Mt 12:25
Therein is the crux of the matter, & the real issue we must solve!
God has no one representing Him!
Rom 3:10 "as it is written:
“None is righteous, no, not one;
11 no one understands, no one seeks for God.
12 All have turned aside, together they have gone wrong;
no one does good, not even one.”
13 “Their throat is an open grave,
they use their tongues to deceive.”
“The venom of asps is under their lips.”
14 “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.”
There are only so many hours in a day & times that MPS can sit in Parliament so if they do have to act hastily, make it very clear beforehand, why you are taking the action you are taking, before the media & the Left fill in the blanks, & now you are on a mission to 'explain' which is losing right there!
Politicians should be smarter than that! Unfortunately the general public aren't either, giving into 'emotionalism & hysteria' as with the Treaty Principles Bill!
Of course Labour never told us about their plans for Co-governance, Three Waters, He Puapua, handing our country over to Iwi control! Similarly what RSE is, especially prior to the Coalition Govt being elected!
Plus, being prepared to force an untrialled MRNA Gene Therapy onto an unsuspecting public passing it off as a 'vaccine' which one of the co-inventors Robert Malone after trialling it for cancer on animals said don't use it as a 'vaccine'! Most of the animals they experimented on died!
Furthermore the real problem we have in New Zealand is no one is going into bat for God's viewpoint/worldview! The Conservative Party, New Zeal, also not having the courage of their convictions or beliefs!
They are confused also about what to DO!
Mt 12:30 "Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters"!
I see it among fellow conservatives too. Your other article about the coalition government’s rush to roll back the ill-conceived gender pay equity law did not pass the sniff test. A lot of your fellow conservatives (such that those on Cam Slater m’s Good Oil site, where almost all disagreed with you) thought that procedural justice does not matter when it is to undo damage. I think you have a point here and these fellow conservatives got it wrong.
Agreed; I don't think necessarily a left-right issue. Certainly a progressive issue and so can be on both sides of politics.
Great article Simon and I agree that zealotry vs zealotry is a recipe for disaster. However in a world of TikTok and Instagram when we train our next generation (and ourselves) to have a 3 second attention span, zealotry is the only thought pattern available - there is no time for nuance. This is reinforced by news cycles and the decline of newspapers and Investigative journalism. However the bright point is the rise in podcasts and long form discussion in audio formats, which, as long as we step outside our online bubbles occasionally, will provide a diversity of views and opinions.
The next question is how do we merge this model of communication with politics at all levels, so that we can have deliberative decisions being made across the community?
I hope you are well, and its been a long time since Auckland Uni Fencing! Maarten
Lovely to hear from you Maarten and as soon as I saw your name, my mind return to AUF! I think you've hit an important nail on the head - the place of social media and how there is little depth. But as you also note, there are bright spots as people return to long form via the likes of podcasts. Keep well :)
The medical profession at large, lost the plot from 2020 onwards, with a total disregard to accurate information, or challenging MoH on fundamental issues blindingly obvious to anyone who knew how to research. And total disregard to informed choice, by and large. Yes, they were threatened with having their licenses removed etc etc... but the fact that THAT didn't appear to be a red flag to most of them, and the fact that the majority chose to protect the narrative, their profession, and even comply themselves, when they didn't want to, is another verboten topic out in the wider world. So it was good that seemingly, one tiny example of that, was touched on in the conference.
The question the conference hopefully came to grips with, is "What stance will we take on behalf of our patients and our own health, when another one of these "IQ tests" is forced upon us?"
Interesting post! In my opinion, too many people see everything as either left or right, progressive or regressive -- not just people who do this work for a living. How can you have a debate when you suggest all disagreement is due to political values and nothing to do with the truth? People are willing to read and consider opposing views, I do. Our divisive politicians, people in the media, and on social media, these people are not who we are. We can and do work together.
Well said. We can use labels to an extent, but when it limits the ability to dialogue, we have a problem.
We also saw it with the Treaty Principles Bill, from not only the 'crazed opposition' but also National & NZ First, unwilling to debate the obvious manipulation of the wording & meaning of the Treaty by the 'Waitangi Tribunal' & other political, academic activists, & bleeding heart liberals!
Not just the Left who you would expect that from, but a willing National Party also to SPIKE debate, reasoned arguments, & what our democracy is meant to stand for, but largely doesn't! Pomp & ceremony, rituals, sceptres & despots in waiting is not DEMOCRACY!
Yet they will mouth platitudes & virtue signal about what is right, & yet the 'proof is in the pudding' with these hypocrites! Look at the evidence - our nation NZ!
Virtue signalling the poor & homeless, but both sides NOT doing anything 'real' about it, only to exploit & use them for political rhetoric & point scoring!
Without a strong economy you are very limited in what can you do, along with social policies which are designed to 'passively' 'maim & inflict harm' & make people victims, rather than people being encouraged to take personal responsibility for their choices & lives!
How many bills were passed that the majority of NZers opposed from the Homosexual Law Reform Bill, Same sex marriage, Anti-smacking Bill, Prostitution Law Reform Bill, but the politicians, just a handful of NZers in the great scheme of things, decided to pass them anyway!
Where was representative Democracy then! So we can't take any of these politicians seriously! There is no integrity, transparency, nor word & deed! We are subjected to a diet of sophistry, word salads & intellectual & premeditated dishonesty!
They pay lip service to Democracy, & act as tyrants!
Jesus said the "truth will set you free" .. only if we live it, not just read it in a book!
We have a great 'text book' in the Bible to teach us how to organise ourselves, our families & therefore our society & nation!
Why have Christians NOT grasped that fundamental point, & have allowed tares to be sowed into the field & false gods to be brought into the Temple, God's House, which is the nation!
It's because we have been lukewarm, Rev 3:1-3, 15-17 apathetic, & lacking the zeal & heart to do what Jesus & Scripture told us to DO:
Mt 6:33, Mt 6:9-10, Mt 28:18-20, Jn 17:20-23, Ezek 37:7-10 => Is 9:6-7, Dan 7:27 + Ezra 1, Hag 1:12-15 = Gen 1:27-28 = God's Kingdom!
Therein is the 'pocket book template' for what needs to be implemented in NZ!
Until we proclaim, declare God's Kingdom it won't come, even though that is what Jesus specifically told us to pray & DO as above!
Similarly: Mt 7:21-23, Rom 2:13, James 1:22-25, Lk 8:21, Rev 20:12
It's the DOER of the Word who will be 'justified', NOT the hearer'! James 2:14-26
Christians have downplayed 'works' & therefore taking responsibility for the world we live in, (Rev 3:1-3) through 'misunderstanding' Scripture, or worse, cherry picking it, but clearly those who don't ACT, Dan 11:32, may end up where they never imagined they would go! Mt 8:10-12, Rev 21:8, Mt 25:24-30
Christians are mandated by Jesus to unite & work together! Jn 17:20-23, Mt 12:25
Therein is the crux of the matter, & the real issue we must solve!
God has no one representing Him!
Rom 3:10 "as it is written:
“None is righteous, no, not one;
11 no one understands, no one seeks for God.
12 All have turned aside, together they have gone wrong;
no one does good, not even one.”
13 “Their throat is an open grave,
they use their tongues to deceive.”
“The venom of asps is under their lips.”
14 “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.”
15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood,
16 in their paths are ruin and misery,
17 and the way of peace they do not know.”
18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
sadly we do see the lack of nuance, debate, and discussion across the political spectrum.
There are only so many hours in a day & times that MPS can sit in Parliament so if they do have to act hastily, make it very clear beforehand, why you are taking the action you are taking, before the media & the Left fill in the blanks, & now you are on a mission to 'explain' which is losing right there!
Politicians should be smarter than that! Unfortunately the general public aren't either, giving into 'emotionalism & hysteria' as with the Treaty Principles Bill!
Of course Labour never told us about their plans for Co-governance, Three Waters, He Puapua, handing our country over to Iwi control! Similarly what RSE is, especially prior to the Coalition Govt being elected!
Plus, being prepared to force an untrialled MRNA Gene Therapy onto an unsuspecting public passing it off as a 'vaccine' which one of the co-inventors Robert Malone after trialling it for cancer on animals said don't use it as a 'vaccine'! Most of the animals they experimented on died!
Furthermore the real problem we have in New Zealand is no one is going into bat for God's viewpoint/worldview! The Conservative Party, New Zeal, also not having the courage of their convictions or beliefs!
They are confused also about what to DO!
Mt 12:30 "Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters"!
It's that straight forward!