Labour have screwed the scrum for the last three years with Wilson and I fail to see why Key and the Nat’s should not do the same now they are in power.

I’m going to risk the wrath of grapes here and suggest the Speaker should be Michael Cullen!

Before everyone stabs me in the chest, think about it.

1. He is a man who loves Parliament
2. He has an excellent grasp of Parliamentary Procedure and Standing Orders (ask David McGee!)
3. His repartee is infamous, and would stand him in good stead in the Chair
4. He would have to clearly demonstrate impartiality to attain any on-going respect as a person (he’s lost it already as a finance whizz)
5. He knows all the skeletons of the ‘clever’ Labour parliamentarians, and so might be able to achieve “order’” in a house where the New Right members are open to some scathing and scratching by the pussies of the left.
6. He wouldn’t be able to scathe and scratch from the back-benches himself!
7. For as long as H1 remains a member (not too long I wouldn’t think) it will prevent them from ganging up and trying to maintain their control of the Labour Party – which should spend the next year at least dealing with in-fighting!
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NB Like many others, I understand the wrath of people who have indulged in the goodness of the grape!

The surviving Labour MP’s have a lot of questions to face that require answers.

Substance and competence should certainly come first. But I am still pleased by the increased representation of Maori, women, and ethnic minorities in Parliament, and most pleased because most of them ARE people of substance and competence.

People like Nikki Kaye, Sam Lotu-Iiga, Paul Quinn, Hekia Parata, Rajen Prasad, Kelvin Davis, Raymond Huo and Amy Adams are not there because of race or gender. They are there because they are able people who have a lot to contribute.

Having a Parliament that better reflects our community is a good thing in itself – not least because of the inspiration if provides to people – especially Maori and Pacific – to strive toward greater achievement,. That greater representation also helps build the cohesiveness of our society. It shows members of all communities that they are valued and embraced as part of the whole New Zealand community.

We have seen some tokenism in the past. But the people we are getting now are not that. I am really thrilled that we are getting both great people AND a Parliament more representative of the broader community.

Could you perhaps tell us why, if the only basis for selection was talent, parliament shouldn’t roughly match the demographics of the population as a whole?

You try my patience, but here is your answer:

Life is not statistics, statistics are a distortion of real life. If statistics were true we could, for example, find and lock up criminals before they committed crimes, treat illnesses bfore they manifest, stop car accidents before they happen. How many more examples do you need? The idea of course is ridiculous, just as saying: “hey, there are roughly 30% blue eyed people in NZ, why aren’t there 30% blue eyed people in parliament? ”

Why aren’t there more women in the construction industry? Why aren’t there more moari in retail? Why can women serve men in a mens clothing store but men can’t serve in women in a womens clothing store? And why is there about an even mix of ethnicity in fisheries?

You’re looking for answers by creating patterns to suit your own persepective. Men actually do listen to women as much as other men. To state anything else is to create a stereotype for political gain.

Nine years in opposition and no one’s learned a fuckin’ goddamn thing, have we? This celebration and amplification of diversity crap is what got Labour voted out of power. Indulge it at your own risk. It doesn’t matter how many women there are in National if all they want to do is spend. Alternately, how many of you social liberal champions of diversity would want more women if they all behaved like Roger Douglas circa 1984?

Your reasoning is shallow and superficial. Mummy’s gone, and taken her finance bitch with her.

Merit – it’s all that matters.

Conventional wisdom would say Eric Roy, but if National want to be bipartisan Ross Robertson from Labour was an excellent deputy speaker in the last Parliament and would be a very good choice.

For a bolter how about Lockwood Smith?!!!

Sorry but what the hell has anyones race or sex got to do with their ability to do a job?

Its thinking like this that got Obama elected. Blacks turned out in droves to vote for him for no other reason than his skin colour. That same massive turn out overturned gay marrige in several places now you have gays calling balcks nigger while they respond with fag in public screaming matches.

So much for the “new world order” of the left. Bron form focusing on demographics rather than abilities.

Could you perhaps tell us why, if the only basis for selection was talent, parliament shouldn’t roughly match the demographics of the population as a whole? I don’t believe in “positive discrimination” by any means, and I don’t think we could accuse the National Party of that either. Case in point: Nikki Kaye, I don’t think there’s any doubt that she’s absolutely there on merit…

Helen was flanked by about 15 female relatives, with only 2 men, her father and her ‘husband’, both at the extremes of the stage. The shots of the crowd showed an over-representation of women in my opinion. Labour used to be the party of the working bloke. It has been hijacked by those pushing a more radical, feminist agenda and has strayed far from it’s roots.

I wonder what King Dick would have thought of the reactions to the loss.

National seemed to be a wider representation of the public in the audience. Having a family on the stage was refreshing. The Imagery there was more representative of the New Zealand most of the audience on this blog want.

As I suspected for some time now, the only racists and sexists left are those who “defend” women and ethnic groups against racism and sexism.

As one has already commented, a white man who has a job has got it because he’s white. Yeah right.

As opposed to abour – aparty telling people what to do.

Only guilt-ridden latte liberals put race and gender ahead of substance and competence.

Both parties have been putting race (white) and gender (male) ahead of substance and competence for some time. It’s good to see this changing.