From what are we being distracted by this contrived patriotism? Take your pick - economic collapse, World War III, mad cow disease, ponytails, government cock-ups leading to large compensation payouts at taxpayers' expense, or worse disasters from which we have been so successfully distracted that we have no idea what they are ... yet.
The groundswell for keeping the current flag embraces an unholy alliance of implacable John Key opponents, NZ First voting patriots, returned service people and monarchists.
Monarchy is an absurd anachronism but personally, if we require a head of state, I prefer a distant ritual costume farce with merely constitutional power (golden carriages yes, beheadings no) funded largely elsewhere (except for the odd royal tour) to creating an extra presidential level of republican government with actual clout (and limos, residences, spin doctors and travel allowances) at home funded by local taxpayers.
More government is the last thing we need.
Had I greater faith in the Machiavellian abilities of republicans among us though, I might suspect the recent royal visit by HRH Prince Charles and his lady - so underwhelmingly mobbed by crowds of three that he had to gatecrash the All Black victory parade to find an audience - was specifically arranged to dramatise the contemporary irrelevance of the monarchy in Aotearoa. Be that as it may, flag choices remain before us.
Unfortunately I can't approve any of the options unreservedly.
Red Peak looks like a road sign - an arcane hazard warning indicating a dangerous bloody mountain around the corner maybe - another to add to the counterproductively bewildering glut of roadside signage currently clogging highways.
The three ferns in various colour combinations all look like product labels - anyone for Chinese boneless chicken, All Black breast with a side dish of insurance or a red, white and blue rerun of the crusades? Eek!
Which leaves only the black and white koru.
Black and white is bold, elegant and with just the slightly renegade piratical air of insouciance an independent nation might aspire to.
The koru is the growing tip of the fern promising growth, the DNA spiral, kowhaiwhai, Celtic knots, and the Fibonacci sequence all dancing to the infinite music of the spheres.
The only thing not to like is the actual drawing. The proportions are wrong, it might be upside down, and the white space at the centre of the spiral is too skinny, but surely, should it be chosen, these design weaknesses could be tweaked?
