Commentary 7 - Waitangi Treaty Day 2021

 WAITANGI TREATY DAY

(Thought piece written by warren Maloney on 6 February 2021)

181 years ago the British in New Zealand signed a treaty with Maori Chiefs (540 in all) to share Sovereignty in New Zealand. 

 

Today the Treaty and the Understandings of sharing are still important in New Zealand. PM Jacinda announced yesterday that as from 2022, Waitangi Treaty Day would become a Public Holiday and that Maori will be taught as a 2nd language throughout Primary schools. 

 

Sharing is a difficult concept of FREEDOM for most of us. We like to substantially Influence and Control. We like to OWN land, title, space, employees, servants, children. We like to pass on that OWNERSHIP to whomever we choose.

Those feelings are not the province of one race but of most races.

 

On top of that we impose the pecking orders we have of Gender or Royalty or "Election", but especially the pecking order of HAVE against Have Not.

 

if all the above is too general for you, let me use an example. Nearly all Democratic Elections are Referenda about Tax. One side wanting more tax the other wanting less. In Australia, this has resulted in 60% of Elections being won by the Conservatives (less tax). And yet the Economic History of Australia has continually shown that 10%-13% of Australians live below the Poverty line (and of those 75% are Children). Furthermore, the fact is that of those who start below the poverty line, only 20% manage to finish above it. 

 

So we are clearly showing with our Electoral Vote that we are comfortable to keep 10%-13% below the line - to not SHARE with them. We know the ways out of Poverty - Jobs (Distribution of wealth), Health, Housing, Protection, Education - but all of them have a tax cost. Incidentally, during COVID 2020 we took c. 750,000 Australians out of Poverty with the special allowances, housing for homeless, mortgage payment freezes, and free childcare & extra schooling support. Now that we see a Vaccine-End to the Pandemic the Conservative Government is ceasing those initiatives over the next 3 months. So ....

 

SHARING and FREEDOM are difficult soulmates for most of us. 





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