Alabama in Auckland?
October 15th, 2012 at 2:00 pm by David FarrarThe Herald reports:
Te Atatu MP Phil Twyford is crying foul over proposed public transport zones making it cheaper to travel to downtown Auckland from the North Shore than from other areas an equal distance away.
He claims the scheme discriminates against residents of lower-income western and southern suburbs, making it reminiscent of racially segregated “Alabama, 1955″.
I have no view on what the zone charges should be, but really I think the hyperbole is a but hysterical.
October 15th, 2012 at 2:05 pm
I think Mr Twyfor is obviously on P. Racial segregration in Alabama, had nothing to do with fare prices haha. Or is he saying that the increase in fare only applies to Maori and Polynesian residents from western and southern suburbs. Get a grip Mr Twyford, or is getting your name in the papers really that important.
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 2:13 pm
He has a habit of getting extremely incensed by matters in his portfolio. A bit like Pete Hodgson without the beard.
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 2:20 pm
Calm down everybody. The Twyford suckhole is just playing to his target demographic.
Vote:There are no labour seats in the North.
October 15th, 2012 at 2:22 pm
a *but* hysterical is right. He’s talking out of his a/hole. Why oh why do we get the politicians we deserve. Oh, I know, we vote for them.
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 2:35 pm
Grab your sheets boys
Vote:It’s Zone 3 bus pass holder lynchin time
October 15th, 2012 at 2:43 pm
oh man does this mean if i get on the bus, some prick is going to lynch me?
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 2:50 pm
LOL at emmess 2:35 pm !!!
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 2:54 pm
But hang on – the North Shore is disadvantaged because the trains don’t run there!
SEGREGATION!
And there’s no cyclepath over the Harbour Bridge, unlike the cyclepath that runs alongside the NorthWestern motorway. That discriminates against the lower-income people on the North Shore who can’t afford petrol for their cars or the bus tickets.
SEGREGATION!
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 2:54 pm
Given the North Shore is going to subsidise the south and west of auckland in perpetuity, I suggest he shuts his mouth.
Also parts of the north shore are effectively adjacent to the CBD, or at least much closer than the west and south – Northcote, Birkenhead, Takapuna.
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 2:59 pm
Twford’s hysterical and stupid analogy simply destroys any credibility his argument may have had. If Twyford is correct and the North Shore residents are getting a cheaper deal on a ratepayer subsidised transport system than someone from West Auckland that should be corrected.
But instead of being focussed the fares now everyone is focussed on the comparison with Alabama, credibility shot and confirmation that Twyford is an idiot.
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 3:04 pm
Another imbecile from the Labour Party. Surprise, surprise.
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 3:14 pm
**Given the North Shore is going to subsidise the south and west of auckland in perpetuity, I suggest he shuts his mouth. **
^^ heh.
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 3:22 pm
I was going to add that Twyford might call that the White Man’s Burden.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_White_Man's_Burden
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 3:23 pm
I’ve never been to Alabama, but the continued demagoguery of red state folk by New Zealanders pisses me off. I’ve met a lot more ignorant and illiterate bigots in New Zealand than I have here in Texas.
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 3:25 pm
Mark I think you mean destroys his credibility here. In his electorate its “alabama, whats that? oh labour … tick”
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 3:27 pm
@ BlairM,
Looking at demographic trends Texas will soon be a blue state .
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 3:37 pm
Having travelled around the US I would say the average NZ voter probably slots in at about the level of an Ozark mountain inbred with buck teeth. (A reasonable amount of the responsibiity rests with our misinformation spewing media).
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 3:41 pm
Mr Twyford would do well to pull his head out of his arse and contact the Beneficiaries Information and Advisory Service based in Glenfield. If he did, he might find out just how many genuinely poor people live on the North Shore. Not for them the luxurious mansions one sees in Te Atutu, Henderson and West Harbour.
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 4:17 pm
***(A reasonable amount of the responsibiity rests with our misinformation spewing media).***
@ Kevin,
Can you elaborate?
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 4:25 pm
What a idiotic statement to make!
If you look at the plan, the top half of the North shore does a slight advantage if you take distance into consideration. You probably could divide it up into two zones, if you think this is such a problem.
But the whole idea is meant to simplify the fares and encourage more people to use public transport, especially on the Shore.
BTW, South of Manukau enjoys a similar advantage (3 zones instead of 4) but that doesn’t seem to rile Mr Twyford at all.
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 4:27 pm
Yes Bob the level of discussion of national and international news and issues on TV, newspapers and magazines seems much better (or at least more available) than here.
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 4:54 pm
Well, in fairness you would expect a population that size to have more resources for media reporting.
NZ seems to have buried its political discussion shows early on weekend mornings.
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 5:20 pm
I have some friends who spent some time in Alabama, and the community spirity there is incredible – it would put any New Zealand town to absolute shame I recon.
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 5:55 pm
Twyford is unbelievingly stupid. Those bus lanes were paid for with decades of tax from North Shore residents. And we are still paying tax. Did you see the traffic this morning heading into the city? banked up to way past Oteha Valley Rd – all of that fuel wasted (tax wasted)
Vote:What a cock to compare it with Alabama. Of course the leftie media are all over it like flies on shit
October 15th, 2012 at 6:18 pm
Yes bob, and of course they are a well educated technological society who dont always believe everything politicians say.
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 6:21 pm
Keep those ‘westies’ out of the city, there are enough badly dressed pregnant 15 year olds with shit haircuts there already .
@ Kevin
Vote:but most of us and I’d wager a fair proportion of the Ozark population know what a trillion is, you appear to struggle.
October 15th, 2012 at 6:38 pm
Bob R – Texas will not be a blue state any time soon. Hispanics are diverse, and while they veer Democratic more than whites do, they are not a consistent voting block. It would take A LOT of Hispanics to turn the state blue. Call me in a hundred years – ’til then it’s not happening.
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 6:49 pm
Phil Twatford King: I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the zone of their bus pass but by the colour of their skin.
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 6:59 pm
Classic emmess
PEB, I see you used the word “wager”, is that a challenge I see before me?
How about a little bet between friends that the net worth of all the iwi is closer to trillion than a billion?
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 7:03 pm
Just show us how the Crown has given iwi 1000 Billion dollars, this is the wrong thread take it to GD
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 7:16 pm
err I didnt start it here PEB
Vote:October 15th, 2012 at 7:17 pm
I’m waiting over at GD to see your numbers, one trillion
Vote:October 16th, 2012 at 5:09 am
‘but hysterical’ sounds like an avant-garde gay doco.
heh to keep the Southern States theme – “Strange Fruit’ indeed.
(with apologies to Billie Holiday)
Vote:October 17th, 2012 at 5:04 am
I’ll tell you one thing that is true though- Auckland 2012/ Alabama 1955? Both racially segregated. Oh, it’s not you say? Really!!
But yeah… the Phil Twyford comment is really dumb.
I didn’t know Auckland had public transport. Really? And people actually use it? This is Auckland we’re talking about.
graham- I thought that’s why they invented North Shore? With some kind of moat-like body of water keeping out the riff-raff. And then they built a bridge and ruined the whole thing. Mind-boggling. Just quietly someone told me that the bridge became kinky so they gave it nipple-clips. Is that true?
Vote:October 17th, 2012 at 7:18 am
Left Right and Centre:
Oh dear. Is it REALLY your ambition in life to become the next philu? He used to make daft comments based on where somebody lived and his drug-coloured perception of that area (even though he admitted that he hadn’t visited said areas for years).
Vote:October 18th, 2012 at 3:57 am
I don’t know graham…. first off I had to look up what the hell ‘philu’ is to at least know what I might be aspiring to be. Ok, it’s someone with 13 000+ posts to catch up on. I’ll take a pass.
It’s called humour. Like… Auckland’s largest import from China is people. Hilarious satire!!
Well, I’ve worked as a truck driver and did a short stint driving recycling/ rubbish trucks so unlike philu I have visited my local areas in recent years to the point of having driven every last street in two local authorities.
So it’s blindingly obvious that folks do live with their own socio-economic kind in each, which equates to concentrated ethnicities in different suburbs. Fact. So… whether planned or not… it’s a form of racial segregation. Let’s face it… rich white folks aren’t going to build a flash house in Waitangirua surrounded by down and out cuzzies. So they live somewhere the cuzzies can’t afford to live. Like up the road at The Masthead Whitby. That’s not segregation? Of course not.
No, my ambition in life is to slim down further to 80-85kg and hope like hell that the modest stomach pouch disappears with the weight. That’s more realistic for me than hoping to board the ACC gravy train of 330 mandarins earning on average a cool $155K each. Yes I’m bloody jealous. 330? Geez… why don’t they just pay everyone at ACC six figures? $100K starting rate.
Vote: