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The name suppression debate is heating up, what with parents trying to find out whether their kids’ teacher is the paedophile, the school trying to reveal his name so as to protect the other teachers, and all sorts of nonsense. Now of course I am not saying that Mr slightly balding middle-aged male primary school teacher is guilty, just suggesting that all other slightly balding middle-aged male primary school teachers may be feeling very irritated.
A few times now I have seen this quoted as a given. It is a severely tainted poll.
Of course if you ask anyone if the wanted their wages increased by 20% many would agree. If the poll had been for 40% there would probably have been a high percentage too. The poll does not attempt to look at any alternatives, nor consider the affects.
If the question was “Do you think the minimum wage should be increased to $15 which could result in unemployment rising to 20%” I wonder what the result would be.
[DPF: The poll was even more tainted. The *only* option it gave for people who want an increase was to $15. If they had given options of increases to say $13, $14 and $15, there would have been a massively different result]
The rather palish Malcolm Mulholland has a new book out,Weeping Waters. Muholland wants the name “New Zealand” changed, as well as a new flag and a new national anthem.
Stuff describes Mulholland as “author, academic and Hone Harawira confidant”. Earlier books by Mulholland, a researcher at Massey’s School of Mäori Studies, include State of the Maori Nation and a history of Maori rugby. Mulholland protest targets have included Fonterra, over alleged pollution.
Kiwiblog readers may remember DPF posting last June 20 about Winston Peters, in Peters’ column for Sky Sport Magazine, colourfully lambasting Mulholland’s Maori rugby book:
… Facts and words do matter and yet this publication disregards both, qualifying it more for the parliamentary press gallery than as an historic work on a great institution.
Grant Michael McKenna – “. . . just suggesting that all other slightly balding middle-aged male primary school teachers may be feeling very irritated.”
Where do you, Grant, get your information the man is a primary school teacher?
The victims are apparently both aged 16 years.
Name suppression
It would seem many young males are screwed up mentally and one emerging cause is the lack of male identities, particularly in primary schools, with a factor in the absence of males in this area being due to the ever present taboos on even natural behaviour, like attending to a young girl who has grazed a knee needs a female teacher as in no way should a male teacher touch a child.
So when a male teacher does act inappropriately I’d suggest more damage is done to their profession, with run-on consequences, than some other occupations.
And, in the case highlighted today, the stuff.co item gives six facts which should be enough to alert people of the school concerned, if the teacher taught their child or children last year, or was set down to teach from next week, but now may by court order not associate with people under the age of 16.
Rather than saying the man is a relative of a high-profile New Zealander, it would have been helpful to say if he is a primary school or secondary school teacher. The primary/high school information is less likely to identify him, I’d have thought, than the other fact, and would be more helpful to the general situation.
If someone is given name suppression should not all other relevant details also be suppressed,such as his/her occupation ..it would stop all the needless speculation.
David Horowitz writes the truth on one of the left’s mentors who died recently, Howard Zinn-
” Howard Zinn was a Stalinist in the years when the Marxist monster was slaughtering millions of innocent people and launching his own ‘final solution’ against the Jews. Put another way, Howard Zinn was helping Stalin to conduct those slaughters and to enslave all those who had the misfortune to live behind the Iron Curtain. Howard never had second thoughts about his commitment to leftwing totalitarians and never flagged in his political commitment to freedom’s enemies. In the years since Stalin’s death, Zinn supported every enemy of the United States in every war, and devoted his writing talents to every socialist tyrant including Mao Zedong who killed 70 million Chinese in peacetime because they got in the way of his progressive agendas.
When the Cold War was over and freedom had won — thanks to all the political forces and figures (e.g., Reagan and Thatcher) that Zinn opposed – Zinn continued his malignant course. He supported America’s enemies right to the end including the Islamic Nazis whose first agenda is to finish the job that Hitler started and then to impose a totalitarian theocracy on the infidel world.
Zinn’s wretched tract, A People’s History of the United States, is worthless as history, and it is a national tragedy that so many Americans have fallen under its spell. It is a political cartoon which even the socialist magazine Dissent described as an intellectual fraud, which it is. All Zinn’s writing was directed to one end: to indict his own country as an evil state and soften his countrymen up for the kill. Like his partner in crime, Noam Chomsky, Zinn was a wicked man and his life’s work was a pernicious influence on the young and ignorant, with destructive consequences for people everywhere. ”
mikeysmokes : “Has the Whaleman named who the kiddy fiddler teacher is over on the other channel yet?”
It would seem he has . . .
So I may be wrong thinking 16 year old victims implies it is not a primary school teacher.
And it is interesting to see what Whaleoil has done this time. Raises the question of whether discussion on one website can complete another website’s intent without either breaking the law?
In this and similar cases of name suppression the effect is to hinder the course of Justice. It is very seldom that the pervert is apprehended for the first or only offence. He may have committed similar offences at this or previous schools where the victims have not come forward because they fear they will not be believed. With publication of his identity any number of previous victims may come forward both to corroborate the type of offending and to resolve their own victimisation.
RED…re Howard ZINN……obviously a role model for Keith Lock.
So who is guilty
• stuff.com who provide 6 clues which fit the
• the name Whaleman gives, or
• the media for publicising Whaleman to the point that if he just posts ‘interesting name:’ Whoever or
• the court system for enabling the media to give the site such publicity which would not have occurred had the court given Whaleman name supression?
I’ve been thinking a great deal about poverty lately, specifically its causes as well as what our obligations are (both personal and societal) to alleviate it.
This is a dicey subject to address for two reasons. First, because of our current economy, there are many people who are a heck of a lot poorer than they were two years ago. And second, any time someone addresses the issue of poverty, except from a leftist position, they are automatically labeled as cruel, unfeeling, lacking in compassion, and the usual plethora of criticism – without consideration as to whether the arguments have any merit or not.
The reason this issue came up was because of a recent comment on my blog entry “The Ant and the Grasshopper.”
I had posted one of those humorous modern-twist rewrites of Aesop’s classic fable circulating around the Internet. Most of the readers got a chuckle out of it.
But someone took exception to our amusement and accused us of not being Christian because we preferred the original moral of the story (“Be Responsible for Yourself”).
This poses an interesting question. To what extent are we socially, morally and ethically responsible for others? At what point do the Ants share their hard-earned resources with the Grasshoppers? And is it ethical to force the Ants to distribute their resources to the Grasshoppers at the point of a gun? What responsibility do the Grasshoppers have in their own fate?
Let’s make one thing clear: In Aesop’s fable, what distinguishes the Ant from the Grasshopper is a work ethic. Nothing more, nothing less. The Grasshopper is not down on his luck while the Ant is busy storing food. He is not ill, or handicapped, or in debt, or out of work, or any other hardship an insect might face which would keep him from working toward a secure future for himself. The resources are freely available to both insects. Nothing – nothing whatsoever – is preventing the Grasshopper from getting his rear in gear and storing food for the winter – except an attitude problem.
Yet according to the critic, we should not presume to call ourselves Christian because the Bible admonishes us to love our neighbor as ourselves. The selfish Ant should share his food with the poor helpless Grasshopper regardless of what caused the Grasshopper to get into his predicament in the first place.
So, since I am clearly a flawed Christian unable to appreciate the finer points of loving my neighbor, I need to know to what extent the Grasshopper is called upon to provide for himself before the Ant steps in to keep him from starving in the cold of winter.
Is the Ant required to applaud the Grasshopper’s idleness, then uncomplainingly feed him during the winter? Does God smile upon the idle Grasshopper receiving the Ant’s hard-earned resources without requiring anything of the Grasshopper in return?
Perhaps. Certainly Jesus died for both the Ants and the Grasshoppers of this world. Not one single one of us – Ants or Grasshoppers – are worthy of such a sacrifice, but He did it anyway.
However I don’t believe that releases us from our obligation to try our best to provide for ourselves.
Many of us in this economy are poorer than we were before the downturn due to credit crunches, medical bills, unemployment, inflation, and other unavoidable situations. These people are not Grasshoppers. They are just down on their luck, something that happens to Ants and Grasshoppers alike.
I wish – oh how I wish – people could grasp this very basic concept: No one objects to helping others get back on their feet when they’re down. Most of us consider it a privilege, a duty and a pleasure to help those who are down on their luck.
But the Grasshopper is not down on his luck due to misfortune. He simply does not have a work ethic to match the Ant’s. Not only does the Grasshopper expect the Ant to help, but he refuses to help himself even when he can. Worse, our government then compels the Ant to help the Grasshopper at the point of a gun, whether the Ant wants to or not. That’s when the milk of human – er, insect – kindness starts to run thin.
To forestall the firestorm of criticism undoubtedly in the works by outraged readers, I’ll ask again: To what extent should able-bodied, perfectly-capable Grasshoppers be asked to provide their own resources for the winter? Or are Grasshoppers absolved from all responsibility for their own future?
And if the Ants are called upon to love their Grasshopper neighbors as themselves, why are the Grasshoppers excused from returning the sentiment? The Grasshopper, if he loved the Ant as himself, would get busy and store his own food so as not to be a burden to the poor hard-working Ant when the snow flies.
For those who accuse we Ants of un-Christian attitudes with regard to our neighbors, I’ll reference a few biblical passages in support of personal responsibility, the most succinct of which is 2 Thessalonians 3:10: “… If a man will not work, he shall not eat.” Note that it does not say “Can not work” but “Will not work.” Big difference.
It should be obvious to anyone with an insect-sized grain of common sense that government entitlements discourage able-bodied Grasshoppers from working. And on a larger scale, I’m concerned that as more and more Grasshoppers receive the resources which are forcibly removed from the Ants, there will be fewer Ants to support the Grasshoppers.
Since the Bible is ever a handy resource for life’s concerns, I’ll direct the doubtful to parts of Proverbs 6:
“Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! …it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest. How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest – and poverty will come on you like a bandit and scarcity like an armed man.”
The stats that are quoted recently about cigarette smokers say that 21% of the country say that 21 percent smoke and have an annual cost on the health system 1.5 billion dollars. If we do some math and estimate that each smoker pays 30 dollars per week then this collects 1.47 billion per year, its good to see that smokers actually do pay for tehm selves(pretty much). So yes a slight increase in tax is required.
Now we just need to get rugby players paying there way regarding there many life long injuries.
An what about alcohole, that cost 4.4 billion to NZ every year in negative costs, there should be a hefty weight of extra tax added to that also should there not?
Minimum wage should certainly go up, Im 32 years old and find my emplyers trying to pay me that shit, the ones that do and when i need any job always get left dam high and dry when its time for e to leave, i always wait to right moment to not turn up for work for when im done with them.
Probably because someone might make a comment that breaks suppression laws. Seeing as the post is the name of a person granted name suppression in a very recent case
It was not that long ago that the cost to the health system from those 24% of smokers was $300 to $400 million. It appears to have increased somewhat lately. This might be because the tax return from cigarettes is in excess of $1.5 billion and the gummint needs to justify this. Despite the Min of Health spending, or wasting, $1 million a week on tobacco control the actual number of smokers keeps increasing. Freaking useless.
Is anyone else wondering what sort of “emplyer” would want to give Menace a job?
Viking2, your post conflates Christians with lefties. Tut tut.
It’s not very insightful either, at least not to me personally, I’ve held the writer’s attitude since forever.
One thing the writer doesn’t mention is the Biblical concept of complete debt forgiveness every seventh year and the complete and total permanent ban on usury. It’s in Leviticus I think. For some reason, that concept wasn’t too popular amongst Jewish money lenders but perhaps they decided it didn’t apply because they were lending to goyim.
Pete George – I fully agree. The minimum wage is effectively a tax. Wealth isn’t created through regulations, so all the minimum wage does is make companies forgo their spending elsewhere. It must also contribute to inflation. One must feel sorry for the low wage earners however, but you must also wonder how many of those people are only in the early stages of their career, as I would guess most people have started of their adult lives working for a near minimum-wage level.
Has anyone started to wonder when national are going to remove the freaking rediculous school zoning laws? Zones only protect bad schools… zoning reflects labours attitude to education… schools and teachers come before pupils. I thought national was a center right government, why aren’t they acting on these rediculous laws, they have the mandate to do so.
CharlieBrown said, “I thought national was a center right government”
Not since about 30+ years ago. National is now moving from centre towards centre-left
- hence the ‘socialist-light’ moniker.
The only centre right party is ACT.
Ross Nixon – they were when ruth richardson was finance minister, and when jenny was running the country, and when Don Brash was the leader. However John Key seems to sit very close to Helen Clarke on the left/right political scale.
ACT is the only party you can count on to be center right, however I would like to see them pull out of this government and let national rot away as they have to rely on the racist maori party.
Jeezuzz Pete. You are so damn dense. I have on any number of occasions expressed the view that the way to repair NZ and turn back the destructive influence of the Progressives is to reform the National Party. That makes another occasion. Please don’t ever ask me that question again.
That’s exactly the view the brain damaged navel gazing dream world Progressives in the Democrats and the Republicans had a year or so ago too. You and your leftist mates don’t ever really know what is going down Pete.
I just posted this on Frog blog, If this is what voting National will do I won’t be voting for them next time.:
The Greymouth Star Reports that the Good councillor Ian Cumming and friends are frustrated at limited access to their mining licences covering the Grey River area, Cobden Island and the fisherman’s lagoon.
All these areas are smack bang in the middle of town and mere metres away from down town and the largest residential area on the entire West Coast.
Councillor Cumming said bitterly:
“we want to prove to council that there is good gold on Cobden Island. All we want is for them to have an open mind on it”
An open mind? An OPEN MIND!!! to mining out the centre of town?
To Put this in perspective look at this picture of the area in question:
The proposed area is the lagoon to the right, the entire river, and the entire green area in the middle (Cobden Island) AS WELL as the beach adjacent to the left hand break water, they were actually granted a non notifiable consent to do this!
Perhaps It is mr Cumming that needs to be a little more open minded about other uses of prime recreational land and water, however they have found gold and they are itching to dig!
It remains to be seen whether they will be successful.
Does anyone know if RIP has to be adjusted for 2010?
Because I saw in the options that 2009 was in the URL field… and mine seems to not be working at the moment
Viking2 the grasshoppers are much more valuable citizens for governments of this fair country. If we were all ants many of the aspirations of those who seek power and influence would come to nought. Look at how government falls over backwards to placate the grasshoppers. Grasshoppers in this country have one huge advantage over the ants, they vote. More grasshoppers equals more government.
The original example contained the kiwiblog URL with “2009″ built in. I pulled that when I first edited the option, so the new year has not been a problem.
In the box named “URL”, just substitute the following / edit-out the “2009″ to match this.
That’s exactly the view the brain damaged navel gazing dream world Progressives in the Democrats and the Republicans had a year or so ago too. You and your leftist mates don’t ever really know what is going down Pete.
You seemed obsessed with the US. It’s totally different here. No sign at all of anything like the government dysfunction, voter anger, Palin, or tea party type movement here. No Fox, no Limbaugh, because there are nowhere the number of nutters here to support.
1. PeteG, how do you equate a small increase in the minimum wage to 20% unemployment?
I look it it like this: we want to get people off welfare. That’s a laudable goal. But we have already cut benefits to the bone. A complementary approach now would be to increase the reward of work as a motivating factor. I don’t accept the crap about businesses closing down/retrenching because of it. All businesses operate in the same market as their competitors. A current successful export business by defintion is not labour intensive as those have moved offshore. Employers often fear a relativity campaign but history shows that that does not eventuate. And yhe inflationary effect is insignificant.
2. RB, you remain as vitriolic as ever. And you have ther cheek to accuse others of personal attacks yet you eschew debate for slurs. Anyway, it’s easy to understand why Zionists hate Zinn, he of Jewish descent. He understood the injustice visited on indigeous peoples by the West, including that done to Palestinians. That is not to say he is without fault, but I don’t think Horowitz is an unbiased source.
and viking2 if those kids fall off those tramps it’s the grasshopper that pays for the ACC that pays to fix them. Unless you want to abolish public health then they’ll just die at home unless they can afford the insurance.
ACT are lost. I think that they are like an expedition looking for El Dorado in the jungle. They have run out of food and the struggling survivors are fighting over their direction and leadership. If they don’t find a sign soon they will start eating each other or running off into the jungle in delirium.
And national won’t remove zoning because their voting base wouldn’t take a $50000 lose on their home value.
And a final note the last time there was a gap between rich and poor as big as today was in 1929.
No its not. (See, anyone can do assertions.) There is widespread and growing dissatisfaction with the political status quo. As I said, your kind (blind left wing doctrinalists) never know what is going on. Hence your description of anyone who you think might have an opposing view to you as a “nutter”. Its just so typical of you stinking leftist would be elitists.
More gutless smears. Mr. Farrar’s business depends on his results being accurate and dependable. There is no way he would be interested in a self defeating act like manipulating the data, as you suggest in such a cowardly manner.
If you were not so brain damaged, you would see what an absurdly irrational suggestion you have made. There are some disgusting commenters who frequent this place, but there are very few who come across as such despicable and amoral low life as you Mr. Hansen.
Do you honestly think business people of diffeent views politicaly would do business with someone who let their bias change the veracity of the information?
Redbaiter is a little off track there, I have never encountered any confused Progressive inside the ACT party. I don’t even know what angle you’re looking at ACT from.
January 31st, 2010 at 10:18 am
The name suppression debate is heating up, what with parents trying to find out whether their kids’ teacher is the paedophile, the school trying to reveal his name so as to protect the other teachers, and all sorts of nonsense. Now of course I am not saying that Mr slightly balding middle-aged male primary school teacher is guilty, just suggesting that all other slightly balding middle-aged male primary school teachers may be feeling very irritated.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 10:19 am
A few times now I have seen this quoted as a given. It is a severely tainted poll.
Of course if you ask anyone if the wanted their wages increased by 20% many would agree. If the poll had been for 40% there would probably have been a high percentage too. The poll does not attempt to look at any alternatives, nor consider the affects.
If the question was “Do you think the minimum wage should be increased to $15 which could result in unemployment rising to 20%” I wonder what the result would be.
[DPF: The poll was even more tainted. The *only* option it gave for people who want an increase was to $15. If they had given options of increases to say $13, $14 and $15, there would have been a massively different result]
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 10:35 am
Agree Pete.
Maybe the question could have been:
“In the current economic climate, would you prefer a $12.50 per hour job, or no job”?
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 10:40 am
The rather palish Malcolm Mulholland has a new book out,Weeping Waters. Muholland wants the name “New Zealand” changed, as well as a new flag and a new national anthem.
Stuff describes Mulholland as “author, academic and Hone Harawira confidant”. Earlier books by Mulholland, a researcher at Massey’s School of Mäori Studies, include State of the Maori Nation and a history of Maori rugby. Mulholland protest targets have included Fonterra, over alleged pollution.
Kiwiblog readers may remember DPF posting last June 20 about Winston Peters, in Peters’ column for Sky Sport Magazine, colourfully lambasting Mulholland’s Maori rugby book:
The Stuff report on Mulholland’s latest tome:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/3279292/Flag-anthem-and-even-our-name-under-fire-in-bookork on a great institution.”
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 10:44 am
Grant Michael McKenna – “. . . just suggesting that all other slightly balding middle-aged male primary school teachers may be feeling very irritated.”
Where do you, Grant, get your information the man is a primary school teacher?
Vote:The victims are apparently both aged 16 years.
January 31st, 2010 at 10:46 am
Has the Whaleman named who the kiddy fiddler teacher is over on the other channel yet?
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 10:47 am
Sad news today on the passing of Pauly Fuemana of “How Bizarre” fame.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/music/3279406/Pauly-Fuemana-dies-reports
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 11:12 am
Heres a handy tool for those who like deciphering obscure code and putting the hex on people.
http://home2.paulschou.net/tools/xlate/
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 11:18 am
Name suppression
It would seem many young males are screwed up mentally and one emerging cause is the lack of male identities, particularly in primary schools, with a factor in the absence of males in this area being due to the ever present taboos on even natural behaviour, like attending to a young girl who has grazed a knee needs a female teacher as in no way should a male teacher touch a child.
So when a male teacher does act inappropriately I’d suggest more damage is done to their profession, with run-on consequences, than some other occupations.
And, in the case highlighted today, the stuff.co item gives six facts which should be enough to alert people of the school concerned, if the teacher taught their child or children last year, or was set down to teach from next week, but now may by court order not associate with people under the age of 16.
Rather than saying the man is a relative of a high-profile New Zealander, it would have been helpful to say if he is a primary school or secondary school teacher. The primary/high school information is less likely to identify him, I’d have thought, than the other fact, and would be more helpful to the general situation.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 11:27 am
If someone is given name suppression should not all other relevant details also be suppressed,such as his/her occupation ..it would stop all the needless speculation.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 11:45 am
David Horowitz writes the truth on one of the left’s mentors who died recently, Howard Zinn-
” Howard Zinn was a Stalinist in the years when the Marxist monster was slaughtering millions of innocent people and launching his own ‘final solution’ against the Jews. Put another way, Howard Zinn was helping Stalin to conduct those slaughters and to enslave all those who had the misfortune to live behind the Iron Curtain. Howard never had second thoughts about his commitment to leftwing totalitarians and never flagged in his political commitment to freedom’s enemies. In the years since Stalin’s death, Zinn supported every enemy of the United States in every war, and devoted his writing talents to every socialist tyrant including Mao Zedong who killed 70 million Chinese in peacetime because they got in the way of his progressive agendas.
When the Cold War was over and freedom had won — thanks to all the political forces and figures (e.g., Reagan and Thatcher) that Zinn opposed – Zinn continued his malignant course. He supported America’s enemies right to the end including the Islamic Nazis whose first agenda is to finish the job that Hitler started and then to impose a totalitarian theocracy on the infidel world.
Zinn’s wretched tract, A People’s History of the United States, is worthless as history, and it is a national tragedy that so many Americans have fallen under its spell. It is a political cartoon which even the socialist magazine Dissent described as an intellectual fraud, which it is. All Zinn’s writing was directed to one end: to indict his own country as an evil state and soften his countrymen up for the kill. Like his partner in crime, Noam Chomsky, Zinn was a wicked man and his life’s work was a pernicious influence on the young and ignorant, with destructive consequences for people everywhere. ”
Abridged.
Full article here-
http://www.newsrealblog.com/2010/01/30/spitting-on-howard-zinns-grave/#more-27981
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 11:47 am
mikeysmokes : “Has the Whaleman named who the kiddy fiddler teacher is over on the other channel yet?”
It would seem he has . . .
So I may be wrong thinking 16 year old victims implies it is not a primary school teacher.
And it is interesting to see what Whaleoil has done this time. Raises the question of whether discussion on one website can complete another website’s intent without either breaking the law?
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 11:58 am
Yeah Im amazed its that simple to sidestep the law Yvette. What does Whaleman say? “Interesting names and then the offenders name” Its funny really
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 12:13 pm
In this and similar cases of name suppression the effect is to hinder the course of Justice. It is very seldom that the pervert is apprehended for the first or only offence. He may have committed similar offences at this or previous schools where the victims have not come forward because they fear they will not be believed. With publication of his identity any number of previous victims may come forward both to corroborate the type of offending and to resolve their own victimisation.
RED…re Howard ZINN……obviously a role model for Keith Lock.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 12:15 pm
Did you try that tool out mikeysmokes?
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 12:18 pm
No need to Johnboy
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 12:19 pm
So who is guilty
Vote:• stuff.com who provide 6 clues which fit the
• the name Whaleman gives, or
• the media for publicising Whaleman to the point that if he just posts ‘interesting name:’ Whoever or
• the court system for enabling the media to give the site such publicity which would not have occurred had the court given Whaleman name supression?
January 31st, 2010 at 12:19 pm
Tells you the school as well.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 12:25 pm
” RED…re Howard ZINN……obviously a role model for Keith Lock.”
Yeah most likely, and I believe that vile propagandist Luc Hansen wrote an eulogy to Zinn here on Kiwiblog too.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 12:34 pm
He tells you the guys name to johnboy
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 12:47 pm
j
Thought I would start the afternoon looney bin God bothers off today with this insightful post;
Ants, grasshoppers and God
Patrice Lewis
Worldnetdaily
Posted: January 30, 2010
1:00 am Eastern
© 2010
I’ve been thinking a great deal about poverty lately, specifically its causes as well as what our obligations are (both personal and societal) to alleviate it.
This is a dicey subject to address for two reasons. First, because of our current economy, there are many people who are a heck of a lot poorer than they were two years ago. And second, any time someone addresses the issue of poverty, except from a leftist position, they are automatically labeled as cruel, unfeeling, lacking in compassion, and the usual plethora of criticism – without consideration as to whether the arguments have any merit or not.
The reason this issue came up was because of a recent comment on my blog entry “The Ant and the Grasshopper.”
I had posted one of those humorous modern-twist rewrites of Aesop’s classic fable circulating around the Internet. Most of the readers got a chuckle out of it.
But someone took exception to our amusement and accused us of not being Christian because we preferred the original moral of the story (“Be Responsible for Yourself”).
This poses an interesting question. To what extent are we socially, morally and ethically responsible for others? At what point do the Ants share their hard-earned resources with the Grasshoppers? And is it ethical to force the Ants to distribute their resources to the Grasshoppers at the point of a gun? What responsibility do the Grasshoppers have in their own fate?
Let’s make one thing clear: In Aesop’s fable, what distinguishes the Ant from the Grasshopper is a work ethic. Nothing more, nothing less. The Grasshopper is not down on his luck while the Ant is busy storing food. He is not ill, or handicapped, or in debt, or out of work, or any other hardship an insect might face which would keep him from working toward a secure future for himself. The resources are freely available to both insects. Nothing – nothing whatsoever – is preventing the Grasshopper from getting his rear in gear and storing food for the winter – except an attitude problem.
Yet according to the critic, we should not presume to call ourselves Christian because the Bible admonishes us to love our neighbor as ourselves. The selfish Ant should share his food with the poor helpless Grasshopper regardless of what caused the Grasshopper to get into his predicament in the first place.
So, since I am clearly a flawed Christian unable to appreciate the finer points of loving my neighbor, I need to know to what extent the Grasshopper is called upon to provide for himself before the Ant steps in to keep him from starving in the cold of winter.
Is the Ant required to applaud the Grasshopper’s idleness, then uncomplainingly feed him during the winter? Does God smile upon the idle Grasshopper receiving the Ant’s hard-earned resources without requiring anything of the Grasshopper in return?
Perhaps. Certainly Jesus died for both the Ants and the Grasshoppers of this world. Not one single one of us – Ants or Grasshoppers – are worthy of such a sacrifice, but He did it anyway.
However I don’t believe that releases us from our obligation to try our best to provide for ourselves.
Many of us in this economy are poorer than we were before the downturn due to credit crunches, medical bills, unemployment, inflation, and other unavoidable situations. These people are not Grasshoppers. They are just down on their luck, something that happens to Ants and Grasshoppers alike.
I wish – oh how I wish – people could grasp this very basic concept: No one objects to helping others get back on their feet when they’re down. Most of us consider it a privilege, a duty and a pleasure to help those who are down on their luck.
But the Grasshopper is not down on his luck due to misfortune. He simply does not have a work ethic to match the Ant’s. Not only does the Grasshopper expect the Ant to help, but he refuses to help himself even when he can. Worse, our government then compels the Ant to help the Grasshopper at the point of a gun, whether the Ant wants to or not. That’s when the milk of human – er, insect – kindness starts to run thin.
To forestall the firestorm of criticism undoubtedly in the works by outraged readers, I’ll ask again: To what extent should able-bodied, perfectly-capable Grasshoppers be asked to provide their own resources for the winter? Or are Grasshoppers absolved from all responsibility for their own future?
And if the Ants are called upon to love their Grasshopper neighbors as themselves, why are the Grasshoppers excused from returning the sentiment? The Grasshopper, if he loved the Ant as himself, would get busy and store his own food so as not to be a burden to the poor hard-working Ant when the snow flies.
For those who accuse we Ants of un-Christian attitudes with regard to our neighbors, I’ll reference a few biblical passages in support of personal responsibility, the most succinct of which is 2 Thessalonians 3:10: “… If a man will not work, he shall not eat.” Note that it does not say “Can not work” but “Will not work.” Big difference.
It should be obvious to anyone with an insect-sized grain of common sense that government entitlements discourage able-bodied Grasshoppers from working. And on a larger scale, I’m concerned that as more and more Grasshoppers receive the resources which are forcibly removed from the Ants, there will be fewer Ants to support the Grasshoppers.
Since the Bible is ever a handy resource for life’s concerns, I’ll direct the doubtful to parts of Proverbs 6:
“Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! …it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest. How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest – and poverty will come on you like a bandit and scarcity like an armed man.”
Just a thought.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 12:49 pm
The stats that are quoted recently about cigarette smokers say that 21% of the country say that 21 percent smoke and have an annual cost on the health system 1.5 billion dollars. If we do some math and estimate that each smoker pays 30 dollars per week then this collects 1.47 billion per year, its good to see that smokers actually do pay for tehm selves(pretty much). So yes a slight increase in tax is required.
Now we just need to get rugby players paying there way regarding there many life long injuries.
An what about alcohole, that cost 4.4 billion to NZ every year in negative costs, there should be a hefty weight of extra tax added to that also should there not?
Minimum wage should certainly go up, Im 32 years old and find my emplyers trying to pay me that shit, the ones that do and when i need any job always get left dam high and dry when its time for e to leave, i always wait to right moment to not turn up for work for when im done with them.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 1:00 pm
Good three and a half minute video on Revolution that will have the decrepit progressives and hippies tearing what’s left of their hair out-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekthMw1Q1I4
Reportedly made by a 14 year old girl. Remarkable effort.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 1:09 pm
Wondering why comments have been disabled on one of Whaleoils posts -
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 1:21 pm
Probably because someone might make a comment that breaks suppression laws. Seeing as the post is the name of a person granted name suppression in a very recent case
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 1:28 pm
It was not that long ago that the cost to the health system from those 24% of smokers was $300 to $400 million. It appears to have increased somewhat lately. This might be because the tax return from cigarettes is in excess of $1.5 billion and the gummint needs to justify this. Despite the Min of Health spending, or wasting, $1 million a week on tobacco control the actual number of smokers keeps increasing. Freaking useless.
Is anyone else wondering what sort of “emplyer” would want to give Menace a job?
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 1:34 pm
I think poor Menace is merely a victim of the years of lack of accountability for teaching standards promulgated by the self serving teachers unions.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 1:40 pm
Mikey — funny how the schools staff list is off line getting updated for 2010
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 1:43 pm
Paulaeastbay, yeah and earlier this morning their was only one photo/teacher missing. Have they taken the lot off have they?
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 1:51 pm
Viking2, your post conflates Christians with lefties. Tut tut.
It’s not very insightful either, at least not to me personally, I’ve held the writer’s attitude since forever.
One thing the writer doesn’t mention is the Biblical concept of complete debt forgiveness every seventh year and the complete and total permanent ban on usury. It’s in Leviticus I think. For some reason, that concept wasn’t too popular amongst Jewish money lenders but perhaps they decided it didn’t apply because they were lending to goyim.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 1:53 pm
List all gone
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 1:55 pm
Pete George – I fully agree. The minimum wage is effectively a tax. Wealth isn’t created through regulations, so all the minimum wage does is make companies forgo their spending elsewhere. It must also contribute to inflation. One must feel sorry for the low wage earners however, but you must also wonder how many of those people are only in the early stages of their career, as I would guess most people have started of their adult lives working for a near minimum-wage level.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 1:57 pm
Geez Pauleastbay they might as well scrap name suppression, it aint that hard to figure out is it? Even without the whaleman goose blog.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 1:58 pm
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10623260
Has anyone started to wonder when national are going to remove the freaking rediculous school zoning laws? Zones only protect bad schools… zoning reflects labours attitude to education… schools and teachers come before pupils. I thought national was a center right government, why aren’t they acting on these rediculous laws, they have the mandate to do so.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 2:09 pm
Not since about 30+ years ago. National is now moving from centre towards centre-left
Vote:- hence the ‘socialist-light’ moniker.
The only centre right party is ACT.
January 31st, 2010 at 2:17 pm
Ross Nixon – they were when ruth richardson was finance minister, and when jenny was running the country, and when Don Brash was the leader. However John Key seems to sit very close to Helen Clarke on the left/right political scale.
ACT is the only party you can count on to be center right, however I would like to see them pull out of this government and let national rot away as they have to rely on the racist maori party.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 2:27 pm
anna are you really anna?
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 2:37 pm
menace is a good worker and has an above average iq, but you pay me peanuts and i act like a monkey.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 2:53 pm
” The only centre right party is ACT.”
ACT is full of confused Progressives. Its not the answer.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 2:58 pm
RB, if none of the current parties are the answer for you, what is? Where do you propose to get a party and enough suitable electable candidates?
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 3:05 pm
Jeezuzz Pete. You are so damn dense. I have on any number of occasions expressed the view that the way to repair NZ and turn back the destructive influence of the Progressives is to reform the National Party. That makes another occasion. Please don’t ever ask me that question again.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 3:10 pm
How and with whom? You seem to have an empty plan. Hope alone won’t do it.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 3:12 pm
That’s exactly the view the brain damaged navel gazing dream world Progressives in the Democrats and the Republicans had a year or so ago too. You and your leftist mates don’t ever really know what is going down Pete.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 3:14 pm
I like the ACT manifesto and policies.
Vote:The people, with only a few exceptions, are an embarrassment.
January 31st, 2010 at 3:35 pm
Ha! Seconded (sadly).
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 4:08 pm
The next lot of moaning nanny state moaner coming up. Kids shouldn’t play on trampolines.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/accidents/news/article.cfm?c_id=13&objectid=10623277
Trampolines take injury toll on kids
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 4:18 pm
It looks like John Campbell’s time at TV3 might be coming to an end.
Fantastic!
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 4:22 pm
I just posted this on Frog blog, If this is what voting National will do I won’t be voting for them next time.:
The Greymouth Star Reports that the Good councillor Ian Cumming and friends are frustrated at limited access to their mining licences covering the Grey River area, Cobden Island and the fisherman’s lagoon.
All these areas are smack bang in the middle of town and mere metres away from down town and the largest residential area on the entire West Coast.
Councillor Cumming said bitterly:
“we want to prove to council that there is good gold on Cobden Island. All we want is for them to have an open mind on it”
An open mind? An OPEN MIND!!! to mining out the centre of town?
To Put this in perspective look at this picture of the area in question:
http://www.nabs.co.nz/images/9021.jpg
The proposed area is the lagoon to the right, the entire river, and the entire green area in the middle (Cobden Island) AS WELL as the beach adjacent to the left hand break water, they were actually granted a non notifiable consent to do this!
Vote:Perhaps It is mr Cumming that needs to be a little more open minded about other uses of prime recreational land and water, however they have found gold and they are itching to dig!
It remains to be seen whether they will be successful.
January 31st, 2010 at 5:12 pm
Does anyone know if RIP has to be adjusted for 2010?
Vote:Because I saw in the options that 2009 was in the URL field… and mine seems to not be working at the moment
January 31st, 2010 at 7:59 pm
Viking2 the grasshoppers are much more valuable citizens for governments of this fair country. If we were all ants many of the aspirations of those who seek power and influence would come to nought. Look at how government falls over backwards to placate the grasshoppers. Grasshoppers in this country have one huge advantage over the ants, they vote. More grasshoppers equals more government.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 8:04 pm
nickb
The original example contained the kiwiblog URL with “2009″ built in. I pulled that when I first edited the option, so the new year has not been a problem.
In the box named “URL”, just substitute the following / edit-out the “2009″ to match this.
http://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/*
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 8:28 pm
You seemed obsessed with the US. It’s totally different here. No sign at all of anything like the government dysfunction, voter anger, Palin, or tea party type movement here. No Fox, no Limbaugh, because there are nowhere the number of nutters here to support.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 9:19 pm
1. PeteG, how do you equate a small increase in the minimum wage to 20% unemployment?
I look it it like this: we want to get people off welfare. That’s a laudable goal. But we have already cut benefits to the bone. A complementary approach now would be to increase the reward of work as a motivating factor. I don’t accept the crap about businesses closing down/retrenching because of it. All businesses operate in the same market as their competitors. A current successful export business by defintion is not labour intensive as those have moved offshore. Employers often fear a relativity campaign but history shows that that does not eventuate. And yhe inflationary effect is insignificant.
2. RB, you remain as vitriolic as ever. And you have ther cheek to accuse others of personal attacks yet you eschew debate for slurs. Anyway, it’s easy to understand why Zionists hate Zinn, he of Jewish descent. He understood the injustice visited on indigeous peoples by the West, including that done to Palestinians. That is not to say he is without fault, but I don’t think Horowitz is an unbiased source.
3. I’m picking Federer in 4 sets.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 9:23 pm
To much fox for ratbaiter.
and viking2 if those kids fall off those tramps it’s the grasshopper that pays for the ACC that pays to fix them. Unless you want to abolish public health then they’ll just die at home unless they can afford the insurance.
ACT are lost. I think that they are like an expedition looking for El Dorado in the jungle. They have run out of food and the struggling survivors are fighting over their direction and leadership. If they don’t find a sign soon they will start eating each other or running off into the jungle in delirium.
And national won’t remove zoning because their voting base wouldn’t take a $50000 lose on their home value.
And a final note the last time there was a gap between rich and poor as big as today was in 1929.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 9:33 pm
” You seemed obsessed with the US. ”
The US is where political trends begin,
” It’s totally different here. ”
No its not. (See, anyone can do assertions.) There is widespread and growing dissatisfaction with the political status quo. As I said, your kind (blind left wing doctrinalists) never know what is going on. Hence your description of anyone who you think might have an opposing view to you as a “nutter”. Its just so typical of you stinking leftist would be elitists.
Vote:January 31st, 2010 at 10:33 pm
thanks tomhunter
Vote:February 1st, 2010 at 12:43 am
apropos of not much, I just wonder about the validity of any Curia poll given the such obvious supporter status of National by the company’s owner.
And not to put too fine a point on said owner’s other various and well defined viewpoints…
Just thinking out loud…
Vote:February 1st, 2010 at 1:15 am
” Just thinking out loud…”
More gutless smears. Mr. Farrar’s business depends on his results being accurate and dependable. There is no way he would be interested in a self defeating act like manipulating the data, as you suggest in such a cowardly manner.
If you were not so brain damaged, you would see what an absurdly irrational suggestion you have made. There are some disgusting commenters who frequent this place, but there are very few who come across as such despicable and amoral low life as you Mr. Hansen.
Vote:February 1st, 2010 at 7:54 am
Just thinking out loud LUC
Do you honestly think business people of diffeent views politicaly would do business with someone who let their bias change the veracity of the information?
Vote:February 1st, 2010 at 10:53 am
Redbaiter is a little off track there, I have never encountered any confused Progressive inside the ACT party. I don’t even know what angle you’re looking at ACT from.
Vote: