Tall and rangy and has a way with a pinstripe
Noelle McCarthy lamented during the weekend that she is sick of politics and especially New Zealand politicians. But she did point to one who isn’t ‘fatuous’, ’slimy’, or ’self indulgent’:
Russel Norman is looking good. Call me old fashioned, but there’s something satisfying about a politician who actually answers a question.
Doesn’t prevaricate, doesn’t bluster, and doesn’t fall back on the tried and tested strategy of blaming the other crowd when things get sticky.
Last Sunday I was part of the panel who got to interrogate Norman on Bill Ralston’s Campaign 08 show on Prime.
Viewers would have seen a man who didn’t have all the answers, or none that we wanted at least, but who tried, nevertheless, to be as frank and honest and fluent as possible in his responses. He couldn’t have known, of course, that I’d come away unfulfilled.
My current disenfranchisement precludes any sort of meaningful engagement with an elected representative. I was always going to be disappointed, but that’s my problem, not Russel’s.
As disappointments go, he was one of the more effervescent. There was a moment when I actually admired him, I swear. It helps that he’s tall and rangy and has a way with a pinstripe, of course.
Until he came into the boardroom afterwards and started talking the most awful nonsense about fairy terns in Whangarei that is.
Can I just leap to the defence of the fairy terns or tara iti. OK, they may not seem as important as this week’s tax cuts, but they are an important part of our biodiversity. They used to live around most of New Zealand but are now confined just to pats of Northland. Fairy Terns are currently ranked as nationally critical – which means they are species with a very high risk of extinction. One of the biggest threats they face is ‘habitat degradation’ - their sand dunes are being ruined by residential development, the planting of pine plantations, and pastoral farming. According to Te Ara their population in 1999 was around 30 birds. In the 2000s it was New Zealand’s rarest breeding bird, and its survival remained in doubt.
September 29th, 2008 at 12:26 pm
i agree Russel presents well and is straight up which is a refreshing change for politicos in NZ, in fact the greens would absolutely get my vote…but i just wish Russel would apply his intellect and principles to cannabis law reform and repairing NZ’s law and order crisis, instead of strategising the cone of silence (oh dear, there goes your cred Russell). So here i am again saying i cant vote green…(and im not the only one who wont vote green because we feel shafted over cannabis law reform)
The cannabis law reform arguments are quite winnable and the law reform will save NZ untold heartache, but green party advocacy hasnt been tried for some two parliamentary terms now…prohibition is winning by default….
I also have some regard for Noelle despite this waffly bit of journo-filler in the Herald, haveing got used to her nice accent filling in on Jim Moras afternoon show on radio NZ…not a bad looker either.
September 29th, 2008 at 12:30 pm
“Doesn’t prevaricate, doesn’t bluster, and doesn’t fall back on the tried and tested strategy of blaming the other crowd when things get sticky.”
good, I’ll bet the same doesn’t apply to Sue Bradforsd and Kieth Locke.
I heard Kieth Locke on agenda and he made the point that if the police were harsh (ie using tasers) the public would turn against them….. That got the woolly award from me…… There is something to the argument but we are a long way off that. Even my old ex policeman Granddad scoffed at the police dealing with people running on to the field on the b&w TV.
September 29th, 2008 at 1:35 pm
Couldn’t catch that show - and it doesn’t seem to be on line either. Good to see Russell getting points for not being a prevaricator - but sometimes comes across as too tense/serious.
I know it’s not easy being in front of camera and being put on the spot but last weeks Back-Benches didn’t show him in the best light. Mind you, it’s probably hard to look relaxed and charming when responding to sniping from people like Ron Marks
September 29th, 2008 at 3:50 pm
It is online, at http://www.campaign08.co.nz/default.aspx?page=videos.home
Episode 2