Offensive weapons allowed on Parliament grounds these days

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Forums › Politics › Offensive weapons allowed on Parliament grounds these days - one law for all?

amiga500

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#236052 15-May-2018 18:29

I can accept one Taiaha as part of a ceremony, but on the TV3 coverage it showed at least 20 or 30 of these guys brandishing these offensive weapons. I just wonder if a group of disgruntled Scottish or English people would be allowed onto Parliament grounds carrying swords like the one seen in Braveheart. I think I know the answer to that.

Here is a photo of some of them.

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Awrrr
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#2016452 15-May-2018 18:34

Can't have Maori brandishing sticks. They might hurt someone.

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MikeB4

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#2016626 16-May-2018 08:20

a non issue.

Rikkitic

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#2016658 16-May-2018 09:40

MikeB4:

a non issue.

Except for the racist undertone.

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Reciprocity

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#2016746 16-May-2018 11:32

Rikkitic:
MikeB4:

a non issue.

Except for the racist undertone.

It is not racist to observe that one particular culture may be getting treatment that another culture might not, and commenting on the fact.

It IS racist to observe such a thing and to insist that it is the natural order of things...

MikeB4

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#2016749 16-May-2018 11:40

clearly Parliamentary Services and the Police did not have an issue with it.

Rikkitic

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#2016764 16-May-2018 12:07

Reciprocity:

It is not racist to observe that one particular culture may be getting treatment that another culture might not, and commenting on the fact.

It IS racist to observe such a thing and to insist that it is the natural order of things...

There is overt racism and subtle racism. Subtle racists usually do not realise they are racist and they get very offended when that is pointed out to them. The subtle racism in this case is white resentment at something Maori are doing solely because they are Maori. Waving a bunch of sticks around is hardly an attack on Parliament. The criticism is just petulant resentment at perceived Maori 'privilege', which is absolute nonsense.

Scotsmen with swords are not a reasonable comparison. A better one would be Sikhs with their ceremonial daggers. They have agreed to give them up when boarding aircraft because of the special circumstances involved, but it is very much the question whether this would be the case during a protest at Parliament.

Andrew Little had this to say: 'Often Pākehā did not understand how deeply felt the issues of whenua and mana whenua were - and that was what was behind the passion shown at Parliament yesterday.'

Considering the history of this country, a little more understanding might not be such a bad idea.

Edit: I presented the Andrew Little statement above as a quote but that was a mistake. It was a description of what he said.

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amiga500

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#2016855 16-May-2018 14:12

If this news item had finished up on Stuff with commenting allowed,I predict that in the first two hours it would have attracted 147 comments. Of those comments there would have been around 60 comments broadly in agreement, about 60 disagreeing, with the rest like Walter Nash - neither for nor against! At least one commenter would have asked if I was a white immigrant from a small town in Alabama. Another would have suggested that tear gas and tasers should have been deployed. After two hours the moderating staff at Stuff would have closed comments on the story. Such is NZ these days.

Varkk

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#2016864 16-May-2018 14:23

Stuff comments are bad, everyone knows that so it isn't really relevant to the topic at hand.

But a group of protestors from a particular cultural group brandishing ceremonial weapons from that culture is not really the same thing as someone turning up with a modern weapon. To try to suggest otherwise shows a particular bias. A Scottish group protesting with swords would only be the same if they were doing it in Scotland and not NZ.

mrfte

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#2016970 16-May-2018 15:51

If it was a sword or a weapon with firepower, then probably yes, it needs to be stopped from entering the parliament incase someone gets hurt accidentally. But a bunch of wooden sticks is no more a threat than a bunch of walking canes or whips... etc.

A little common sense goes a long way.e

MikeAqua

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#2016988 16-May-2018 16:40

mrfte:

If it was a sword or a weapon with firepower, then probably yes, it needs to be stopped from entering the parliament incase someone gets hurt accidentally. But a bunch of wooden sticks is no more a threat than a bunch of walking canes or whips... etc.

A little common sense goes a long way.e

I have no issue with the use of ceremonial weapons at parliament. That includes blunt swords and small ceremonial knives like kirpans and dirks.

Looking at the pictures they are outside of the main security cordon. People regularly protest in that area including with banners supported by similarly sized pieces of timber.

At the end of the day police at parliament carry firearms, if something got out of hand a glock beats a taiaha.

I know of only one occasion in which a person using a ceremonial taiaha has attacked someone in a public place. From memory that was during the '90s or '00s.

Mike

MikeB4

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#2017008 16-May-2018 16:59

A few years back there was an incident in Porirua Work and Income office involving the use of a taiaha. The only casualties were a large number on PCs.

MikeAqua

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#2017458 17-May-2018 10:25

MikeB4: A few years back there was an incident in Porirua Work and Income office involving the use of a taiaha. The only casualties were a large number on PCs.

The incident I recall happened during an early morning procession to move artefacts or a waka or something like that. A guy in the procession with a taiaha attacked a spectator. From memory he lost his temper because the spectator made sustained eye contact with him. I'm pretty sure I was living in Dunners when this happens which means it was the 1990s.

Mike

amiga500

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#2017699 17-May-2018 15:03

(Re. the attack on the computers at the WINZ office.)

The only physical casualty maybe, but extremely traumatic for the staff at the WINZ Office. Just as bad as some thug threatening petrol station staff with say, a hammer, to get tobacco and cash.

And if the PC destroying guy did one of those ancestry dna test kits I wonder what it would show. Maybe if the results indicated that he had very strong links back to to England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, etc, as well as his Maori ancestry, he would start to question why he was identifying as Maori to such a strong degree.

This is the 'elephant' in the room regarding the treaty settlements that none of the politicians want to talk about likewise the media.

Rikkitic

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#2017700 17-May-2018 15:08

amiga500:

(Re. the attack on the computers at the WINZ office.)

The only physical casualty maybe, but extremely traumatic for the staff at the WINZ Office. Just as bad as some thug threatening petrol station staff with say, a hammer, to get tobacco and cash.

And if the PC destroying guy did one of those ancestry dna test kits I wonder what it would show. Maybe if the results indicated that he had very strong links back to to England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, etc, as well as his Maori ancestry, he would start to question why he was identifying as Maori to such a strong degree.

This is the 'elephant' in the room regarding the treaty settlements that none of the politicians want to talk about likewise the media.

I wonder what yours would show. What are you actually trying to say here? That people who identify as Maori are not entitled to because they have mixed blood? Maybe you should try walking in some of their shoes for awhile. I think you are being racist, but doing it in a kind of sneaky, implied way.

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amiga500

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#2017734 17-May-2018 15:29

Rikkitic:

amiga500:

(Re. the attack on the computers at the WINZ office.)

The only physical casualty maybe, but extremely traumatic for the staff at the WINZ Office. Just as bad as some thug threatening petrol station staff with say, a hammer, to get tobacco and cash.

And if the PC destroying guy did one of those ancestry dna test kits I wonder what it would show. Maybe if the results indicated that he had very strong links back to to England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, etc, as well as his Maori ancestry, he would start to question why he was identifying as Maori to such a strong degree.

This is the 'elephant' in the room regarding the treaty settlements that none of the politicians want to talk about likewise the media.

I wonder what yours would show. What are you actually trying to say here? That people who identify as Maori are not entitled to because they have mixed blood? Maybe you should try walking in some of their shoes for awhile. I think you are being racist, but doing it in a kind of sneaky, implied way.

https://www.gpforums.co.nz/threads/387620-What-constitutes-being-Maori/page3

There was a long and lively discussion on this forum, I think eight years ago. What I am saying is that now DNA kits are far more affordable and widespread in use, it might throw some light on the subject.

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