In Part 1 of this series, I blogged about the manifestation of an individual’s character during a crisis*. In Part 2, I make an attempt to spell out the character of the New Zealand government and its leader Jacinda Ardern.
What is a government and its role? There is endless discourse held and treatise written on this topic. As you can imagine, the answer to that question is not straight forward.
Anne-Marie Slaughter, President and CEO of New America, says that three “responsibilities every government has towards its citizens” are to protect, provide and invest. Similar to Ms Slaughter’s views, in today’s context, political scientists, scholars and critics seem to acknowledge that the main functions of a government should be to provide leadership to deliver on three fundamental areas. Security. Society. And economy. For the nation. Towards it people.
This is my take on how the government of New Zealand is doing on its duty to deliver on the fundamental functions since the COVID-19 pandemic hit the country just over a month ago.
The Kiwi Psyche
Aotearoa New Zealand is my adopted home. My views are based on my experience and observation since I moved here in 2005.There is a concept of no. 8 wire mentality in New Zealand. Wikipedia has a very short but accurate story about no. 8 wire. The Wiki content is written way better than I may try to explain. So I have taken liberty to copy paste it below.
Number 8 wire is a 0.16"-diameter gauge of wire on the British Standard Wire Gauge that has entered into the cultural lexicon of New Zealand.
As a consequence of the ubiquitous use of number 8 wire in New Zealand, remote farms often had rolls of number 8 wire on hand, and the wire would often be used inventively and practically to solve mechanical or structural problems other than fencing. Accordingly, the term "number 8 wire" came to represent the ingenuity and resourcefulness of New Zealanders, and the phrase "a number 8 wire mentality" evolved to denote an ability to create or repair machinery using whatever scrap materials are available on hand. New Zealand hardware and DIY store franchise Mitre 10 [One of the largest hardware chain stores in NZ] have adopted "Number 8" as their in house brand for generic hardware supplies and tools.
The Waikato Museum runs an art award named after the wire.
No. 8 also resembles infinity ∞. This resemblance may be a mere coincidence. Or not. It may be interpreted as how no. 8 wire may mean different things to different people. At the same time, it is a testament to the nature of how amorphous and ubiquitous this idea is. It is crazy but a cool idea at the same time. It is one of those things that is as Kiwi as it gets.
It may be easier to understand an ordinary Kiwi psyche if you have figured out how to measure the gauge of No. 8 wire approach. No. 8 wire is an ordinary piece of metal wire but it is a pragmatic tool to protect farms and properties, mainly across hinterlands. The idea of no. 8 wire is world famous in New Zealand since ages, as them “cool as” Kiwis say. There are probably hundreds of thousand of kilometers, if not millions, of the hardware on the fence lines all over North and South islands. The software of no. 8 wire, however, is more deeply rooted in the Kiwi worldview. It seems the idea has been programmed deeply into the psyche not only of an everyday ordinary Kiwi but also that of the communities and the society at large. If we cared to note carefully, we see manifestations of the no. 8 wire approach translated in actions everyday. From an individual all the way to the government.
The no. 8 wire approach is such a simple idea that it may sound ridiculous to some. But it is extraordinarily effective. Ordinary Kiwis have achieved extraordinary feats. Along the way no. 8 wire mentality seem to have had its wee bit of share. Let us look at some exemplary Kiwis, their feats, and the role of the no. 8 wire phenomenon that may be attributed to their achievements.
Hardwired to the No. 8 Wire Mentality
Sir Edmund Hillary is the best example of an extraordinary Kiwi. A beekeeper from Tuakau, South Auckland went all the way as high as he could get, literally. You can read in his autobiography to get an appreciation of how he trained for his climbing feats. It is full of the no. 8 wire philosophy.Have you ever given a thought to why the guy on the New Zealand's highest denomination of $100 bill is there? The guy with thick moustache and flat hair is Nobel laureate Ernest Rutherford. Born at Brightwater, near Nelson, Rutherford went on to earn many accolades, including the coveted "father of nuclear physics". There is only one Kiwi to earn an element to their name - rutherfordium. In the following information burrowed from New Zealand History, you can judge for yourself how no. 8 wire-ism was all over Rutherford's celebrated life:
Nicknamed ‘crocodile’ (because crocodiles always look forwards), he became known for his ability to make imaginative leaps and design experiments to test them.
In 1917 Rutherford claimed that he had 'broken the machine and touched the ghost of matter’. In his third major breakthrough, he had succeeded in 'splitting' the atom – making him the world's first successful alchemist. This research was published in 1919, the same year he became Director of the Cavendish Laboratory. There he proved a humane and supportive leader who never failed to let his students take credit for research he had mentored. (The latter character is an excellent example of the humble nature of Kiwis regardless of their status).
According to the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, "Rutherford was a not particularly successful relieving teacher at Christchurch Boys' High School ... Having failed for the third time to obtain a permanent job as a schoolteacher he looked to other avenues" in 1894. Today, there are many institutions, awards, buildings, streets, parks, schools and labs named after Rutherford. If you follow the orbit of his scientific feats, which includes moving to the UK and later to Canada, you will have a sense of the no. 8 wire radiation all over. Similarly, check out his countless scriptures written to his scientific feats and you will soon realise his experimentation, almost close to flirting, with the electron, proton, neutron and radioactivity.
Ironically for a country like New Zealand that vehemently protested against nuclear armament and nuclear aggression, Rutherford's discoveries, in some ways paved the scientific basis to the invention of nuclear fission, which in turn lead to the discovery of chain reaction adopted in making atomic bomb. Search Rainbow Warrior and you are set for a years’ worth of reading material on the serious side of the hippie era of New Zealand.
On a more lighter disciplines, Peter Jackson, Taika Waititi and Lorde are a few famous names in contemporary New Zealand popular culture.
Jackson’s epic storytelling of JRR Tolkien’s books in the triologies of the LOTR and The Hobbit have the no. 8 wire innovation to movie making printed all over. The Weta Digital, the extravagant sets, and the extraordinary special effects and prosthesis probably would not have been possible without a bit of the no. 8 wire concept.
Waititi’s antics and quirky sense of humour to movie making is contagiously beautiful and creative. How on earth can the same person make the home production of Boy, the hollywood smash blockbuster Thor, and then go on to make the Academy award winner Jojo Rabbit? I don’t know how you see it but I see a no. 8 wire creativity written all over Taika Waititi’s work.
Although raised at a posh suburb of Devonport in Auckland, Ella Yelich-O'Connor’s jerky electro moves in music video and live performances, and her lyrical ability to morph a simple daily act of playing tennis must have had some sense of no. 8 wire in them. Her extravagantly cynic take towards superficial people in her hit singles “Royals” is an unmistakable approach to no. 8 wire creativity.
Jacinda Kate Laurell Ardern
The latest in the “world famous in New Zealand since ages” list of Kiwis is the PM Jacinda Ardern. She is the incumbent leader of New Zealand showing the world “this is how you do it”.Just as the All Blacks are the fiercest when they are down during a rugby match, Kiwis tend to bring out their best when they face a crisis. This is true for Joe Bloggs of New Zealand. It is equally true for leaders of this country. The one person to whom it most accurately applies is in the case of the current leader of New Zealand. Jacinda Ardern. We have seen it during the Christchurch massacre of 15 March 2019. We saw it again during the Whakaari White Island eruption of 9 December 2019. We are again witnessing Jacinda Ardern at her best since the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded in New Zealand.
Image source: BBC
I may have an unconscious bias to talk up anything Jacinda Ardern. I may have continued to be swept across by Jacindamania. Here is a crash course about the Jacindamania phenomenon.
The term Jacindamania was coined during the 2017 New Zealand general election campaign. Andrew Little, the then Labour leader, stepped down in the aftermath of low(est?) poll rating. The baton was passed on to the then Deputy Leader, Jacinda Ardern, only a few weeks prior to the polling date. Jacinda Ardern became leader of the New Zealand Labour Party on 1 August 2017. It took her only a couple of weeks to turn “let’s do this” to “we did it”. Labour won the election on her leadership on 23 September 2017.
It seems only fair to say that the way she projected herself and the Labour party, and managed the election campaign in those couple of weeks in September 2017 was extraordinary. She pulled off an election winner from a near impossible position. Little did we know that what she managed to achieve then, in the prize of election victory, was only a trailer of the Jacindamania saga that was to unfold right before our eyes. We continue to witness the leadership of Jacinda Ardern at the best. I personally have a feeling that the best is yet to come.
Decoding the Symbols and Success of New Zealand’s Response to COVID-19
In terms of New Zealand’s COVID-19 response, numbers speak for themselves.Daily number of confirmed positive cases in New Zealand have gone down to single digits since last week. So much so, the Financial Times had to come up with an additional scale of 5 in the Y-axis log scale in their graphs to accurately display New Zealand’s numbers.
Notice Y-axis and New Zealand curve. The images are from 18 April and 25 April. Spurce: https://www.ft.com/coronavirus-latest
New Zealand has one of the lowest total cases and deaths in the Western World. What those numbers haven’t been able to capture, and the most important part, is how this all is done. What actions and how much effort has it taken to achieve those results. What the numbers won't tell you is how the government is making this all possible. The graphs won’t tell you how New Zealander’s feel about all this (If there is any credible survey about public opinion, I may have missed it).
New Zealand’s COVID-19 response in one graph. Source:Te Pūnaha Matatini**
At the beginning of Part 1 of this blog series, I started with the following quote from Paul PT Wong:
a person’s true character is often revealed in times of crisis or temptation. Make sure that you have what it takes to be your best in such times.
This, I think, applies to a leader and government of a country too. Jacinda Ardern and the New Zealand government makes me feel safe. I feel well looked after. I feel like the New Zealand government is taking care of me, my family and the entire New Zealand. I will be forever grateful that I am living in New Zealand during this crisis. There is nowhere else I would rather be.
At the beginning of this volume of the blog, I mentioned the fundamental functions of any government leadership. In the aftermath of COVID-19 generated chaos, it is my observation that Jacinda Ardern and the New Zealand government are doing the best they can to deliver on all three fronts on security, society and economy. They are doing this in all honesty and sincerity. They have succeeded to keep the country safe by taking timely measures to contain the coronavirus. So much so that the campaign that started initially a few weeks ago to suppress the virus has now evolved to being able to eliminate it. The government is looking after the entire spectrum of the society - from the richest to the poorest. The New Zealand government continues to implement one of the most generous economic relief packages that this country has ever seen.
The Sad Case of Cynicism
You will recall the cynics (the likes of Mike Hosking, Morgan Freeman and their posse) a few weeks ago when they were fiercely arguing why New Zealand must immediately close its borders right then to prevent the coronavirus from getting into the country.It was the initial days when New Zealand had not even introduced the four level alert system. The same cynics are now saying that Jacinda Ardern has overreacted and that she has crushed the economy. I have no words, only this emoji 🤦♀️🤦♂️ and this quote from Paulo Coelho, “my most frequent exercise these days is to shake my head in disbelief”.
The curve of the cynics. Source: internet
Two such over zealous citizens managed to sue Jacinda Ardern in the court***. Both lawsuit have already been quashed by the High Court Judge. Oh, and by the way, the pair apparently requested name suppression citing concerns about death threats. The judge kindly obliged with the name suppression request.
The same or similar cynics also seem to constantly troll in (anti?)social media people such as the Director-General of Health and the team of scientists who are working day and night to fight the virus and communicate about it to the general public. Winston Churchill famously said, you will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks”. The quote speaks for itself for the approach those busy at work should take or are taking.
How it All Comes Together?
So what is the relationship among no. 8 wire mentality, duties of a government, leadership and COVID-19?In the context of New Zealand’s response to the crisis of present and the recent past, there seems to be a tendency to burrow from the no. 8 psyche. I would have no clue if this happens by default or on purpose. I discussed in length above, how this applies to famous Kiwi icons. It also applies to Jacinda Ardern’s current approach to COVID-19 too, in my mind.
From what I observed how the government of the time and the respective Prime Ministers approached large crises (Christchurch and Kaikoura Earthquake, Christchurch shooting, Whakaari White Island explosion and COVID-19), both the government and leadership in all events acted responsibly, early and decisively. Response in each of those disasters were unique. The solutions the leaders offered were homegrown and pragmatic. Apart from a minor degree of margin of error, the leaders largely have over-delivered. In contrast they have successfully managed unrealistic public expectations by carefully under-promising. The focus consistently has been the delivery.
On top of all the broader matters, it seems people are kept at the heart of each of those responses. I understand this as this famous saying in action - He aha te mea nui o te ao. He tāngata, he tāngata, he tāngata (What is the most important thing in the world? It is people, it is people, it is people).
Politics is a tough job. It comes with its own underlying set of doom, gloom and ugly sides to it that is visible to the public eyes. It is like an iceberg. It is not only all it seems. There are deeper and larger hidden parts and parcels to it. If not equal, there would be more people who would be super critical of any step a government takes.
In addition to the affairs that may directly be relevant to us and our small bubble, we have to appreciate and acknowledge the fact that a government has to consider many and complex matters while making decisions. They have to think about the entire nation of all interest groups. And there are the forces and factors beyond the country’s border.
Regardless of the ongoing top performance from Jacinda Ardern, she has received multiple death threats, apparently. I touched on the twin court cases above. They may not have gotten one hundred percent correct all the time. That kind of performance is a myth and true in fiction. What Jacinda Ardern and her cabinet has managed to do in reality and successfully is strike a balance. They have managed public health by supporting the economy. They have acted for the masses. Their measures seem to have struck a chord with the majority of New Zealanders. For example, on a survey by Newshub conducted on 18 April among 44,768 Kiwis, just over 64 percent said New Zealand should not leave lockdown on Monday 27 April.
There probably is no set formula of success to respond to a crisis of national scale. COVID-19 is a global pandemic of a scale that our generation has never seen before. Depending on our conscious and unconscious bias, we may have different opinions about the degree of success and failure of the government’s approach and Jacinda Ardern’s leadership. That is fine. It’s OK. Looking at the way this Labour-led government is managing this pandemic, however, you can’t take one thing away from it. The Labour-led government and Jacinda Ardern’s leadership have fully done justice to all aspects of their fundamental duties of taking care of the security, society and economy of New Zealand, and that to take care of all New Zealanders.
* https://rajmaharjan1.blogspot.com/2020/04/what-is-your-character.html
*** https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/121269117/coronavirus-men-lose-lawsuits-against-jacinda-ardern-ashley-bloomfield-over-covid19-lockdown
Part 3 coming soon (approximately, about the state of affairs of the Himalayan Shangri-La and The Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave ...)
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DISCLAIMER
Please do not be a keyboard warrior. Be a man. Do the right thing. (2:30).
(Definition of keyboard warriror from urbandictionary.com and video clip courtesy Russell Peters Youtube Channel)
Keyboard Warrior
1. A Person who, being unable to express his anger through physical violence (owning to their physical weakness, lack of bravery and/or conviction in real life), instead manifests said emotions through the text-based medium of the internet, usually in the form of aggressive writing that the Keyboard Warrior would not (for reasons previously mentioned) be able to give form to in real life.2. The term is a combination of the word 'keyboard' (the main tool by which the person expresses his/her latent rage) and 'warrior' (due to the warrior-like aggression, tendency towards violence, headstrong nature and propensity towards brute force as a means of resolving conflict rather than more subtle means dependant on finesse).3. The Keyboard Warrior seeks to use the power imbued in his 'weapon' to effect death and destruction (in a strictly-metaphorical sense) upon his foes (other virtual identities he has encountered on the internet). In essence, the keyboard (ie. text input ability) allows the keyboard warrior to manifest his true warrior nature in a safe and removed environment, from which no real-life repercussions .
4. Keyboard Warriors are generally identified by unneccessary rage in their written communications, and are regarded as 'losers' by other virtual identities on the internet.
🙏🙏🙏
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