A leading thinker speaks out: “Slaughter’s never something to be recommended.” (Dec. 18, 2015)

18 December 2015 at 1:25 pm

A leading thinker speaks out:
“Slaughter’s never something to be recommended.”
PAUL HENRY, TV3, Friday 18 December 2015
Alison Mau, Hilary Barry, Jim Kayes

As noted a couple of days ago, the egregious breakfast show PAUL HENRY has been markedly improved by the temporary absence of …. Paul Henry. His temporary replacement, Alison Mau, is far more intelligent and serious—and a nice person as well. This puts others at ease; Henry’s slaves Hilary and Jim are notably more relaxed and have been smiling and laughing this week rather than grimacing as Henry makes one of his ignorant and brutal comments, cringing as he grovels to a National Party politician, or forcing out an uneasy snicker at one of his mirthless jokes.

However, Alison Mau is still at the mercy of the show’s producers. So she had no option but to talk to the discredited former ACT führer Jamie “Lock Up His Sisters” Whyte, who was one of the guests on the “Panel” segment after the 8 o’clock news. The other Panel guest was the 21 year old blogger Verity Johnson. She did not even try to disguise her contempt for Whyte.

First item up for discussion was the decision to allow Rugby League player Russell Packer, convicted of serious assault, to remain in Australia. Whyte started by making a Paul Henry-standard joke: “It’s a severe punishment to have to stay in Australia,” he quipped. Nobody laughed. Then he embarked on a long and wandery homily about how equal treatment of offenders is unfair on the rich, who suffer unduly because “they have more to lose.” This led him on to some even more confused remarks about the love life of Brad Pitt, and then another awkward joke about how he loves alcohol.

As Whyte rambled on, Verity Johnson looked hard up and to the right, to a spot as far away from Whyte as possible. She also fought to stop herself from laughing out loud. Even Jim and Hilary, accustomed to listening to bizarre monologues every morning, were clearly uncomfortable….

JAMIE “LOCK UP HIS SISTERS” WHYTE: I’m a very jolly chap, especially after a certain time of night. … It’s been a very boring year. the highlight was the Free Trade deal. It was bloody great. Cons? I suppose all the slaughter. Slaughter’s never something to be recommended.

ALISON MAU: But there are legitimate concerns about the TPP. Even Tim Groser admits that.

JAMIE “LOCK UP HIS SISTERS” WHYTE: [speaking as slowly as possible to convey how serious he is] People don’t like companies suing governments. That’s a feature I LIKE because it constrains government. And I like government to be constrained. Ummm….

As Whyte bored on, the camera cruelly pulled back to show Verity Johnson shaking her head and rolling her eyes, Jim and Hilary wincing, and even the technicians and studio crew shaking their heads in disbelief.

After Whyte was gone, Jim and Hilary made a few light-hearted remarks about the absent Henry enjoying his overseas holiday. Ali Mau then uttered what might have been an even more nonsensical statement than anything by the hapless ex-ACT führer….

ALISON MAU: Paul DESERVES a holiday! He’s worked EXTREMELY hard all year….

More on Jamie “Lock Up His Sisters” Whyte….
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-07102015/#comment-1079367