Category Archives: National Identity

A lesson about community

Posted on 4th Mar, 2012 by Puddleglum

Who would have thought that, in the saga that is the ‘recovery’ of Christchurch, it would be the Anglican Church that would give us the clearest example of the emptiness of modern expressions of ‘community’? When push came to shove … Continue reading →

Posted in Earthquakes, Economics, Free Market, Human Wellbeing, National Identity, New Zealand Politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

What ground is ‘left’ when it comes to land, assets – and nationalism?

Posted on 29th Feb, 2012 by Puddleglum

It’s the issue that won’t go away [and here], so it’s probably a good time to ask “Where should the left stand on the land (and ‘our’ assets)?” “Stand in the place where you live” – so sang REM in what … Continue reading →

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ANZAC Day and Nationalism

Posted on 26th Apr, 2011 by Puddleglum

I’ve never been to an ANZAC Day dawn service. I’ve often tried to work out why. I think I now know.

Posted in Fascism, Freedom, Military, National Identity, New Zealand Politics | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

Who’s afraid of (the charge of) ‘elitism’?

Posted on 14th Apr, 2011 by Puddleglum

Is it elitist to advocate government funding of TVNZ 7 and, by extension, Concert FM, National Radio, the NZSO and the Royal New Zealand Ballet? I don’t think so. Michelle Boag, in her appearance on Jim Mora’s ‘The Panel’ on … Continue reading →

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The Key(wi) way to being ordinary – Part III

Posted on 19th Jan, 2011 by Puddleglum

In this final part of a series of posts on the value of ‘ordinariness’ in New Zealand I want to focus on the question I avoided right at the start: Why would someone from the left write such an apparently … Continue reading →

Posted in National Identity, New Zealand Politics | 3 Comments

The Key(wi) way to being ordinary – Part II

Posted on 6th Jan, 2011 by Puddleglum

In Part I of this series, I pointed out that there was something paradoxical about the way in which, in New Zealand, the idea of ordinariness is understood. It is encapsulated in the idea that ‘you can be anything you … Continue reading →

Posted in National Identity, New Zealand Politics | 8 Comments

The Key(wi) way to being ordinary – Part I

Posted on 5th Jan, 2011 by Puddleglum

In a recent column, left wing commentator Chris Trotter has written what appears to be a paen to Prime Minister John Key. (I’ll address this issue in a series of posts, this being the first.) Trotter argues that John Key … Continue reading →

Posted in National Identity, New Zealand Politics | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Are we all Hobbits now?

Posted on 2nd Nov, 2010 by Puddleglum

‘The Hobbit Enabling Act’ – the title alone should keep postmodern theorists in scholarly manuscripts for at least the next decade. Apparently, we’re all now enabled to be Hobbits – but is that what we want to be? Alternatively, if … Continue reading →

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