NOVEMBER 5 2016 http://www.listener.co.nz 13
CHRIS SLANEcruelty rather than the ministry is further worry-
ing evidence of inertia. Even those whose sense of
humanity can shrug off needless animal deaths and
suffering may like to pay attention to the economic
peril to which such malfeasance exposes us. In the
premium markets our primary products seek to
command, consumers are intolerant of environ-
mentally and ethically bad practices. It seems the
simple message “Bad rep, less money” is not com-
pelling enough to get compliance from the farming
sector without a credible threat from the ministry
of prosecution and penalty.
AVERT EMBARRASSMENT
Still, knowing when to leave is one thing; actually
being able to may be another, as Prime Minister
Not even John Key’s heroic
understatement – “It’s a
bit suboptimal” – could
avert embarrassment
beyond our shores.
John Key and his entourage found
this week when their ailing air force
jet stranded them in Townsville the
other day en route to wheedle out a
free trade deal with India.
Unhappily, it was a slow news day,
so not even Key’s heroic understate-
ment – “It’s a bit suboptimal” – could
avert embarrassment beyond our
shores, although luckily only the
Townsville Bulletin made our shame
global.
It’s impossible for a lay person to
judge whether this breakdown was
a symptom of incompetence, the
result of short-sheeted defence force
funding or just one of those statisti-
cally inevitable things. It may even be
that, because our forces no longer see
much active service, their kit doesn’t
get used enough to keep it in optimal
working order.
There is already, legend has it, a
soldier whose daily job is to rev up
the stationary white-elephant fleet ofmore than 100 light-armoured vehi-
cles to keep their batteries alive.
The Jetstar-esque delay sparked
the inevitable voter outrage about
why politicians and hangers-on swan
about in comfy military aircraft rather
than flying cattle class like the rest
of us.
Although we probably, on balance,
don’t want our politicians tumbling
crumpled, under-slept and irascible
into economically crucial talks with
foreign powers, we do need to keep
our military planes in the air or they
will deteriorate. You can’t just rev ’em
up on the tarmac like LAVs. Trade
missions are a pretty good use for
them, given that we feel the need to
maintain an air force at all.
And at least, given we’ve no actual
strike force, when an RNZAF plane
lands unheralded in Australia, even
the likes of the Murrumbidgee Irrigator
knows we come in peace and prob-
ably only want a sandwich. l