Rushing to judgement

Police on the beat in Kaitaia in their Covid-19 outfits. Picture / Supplied

The dearth of televised sport, and even the strictly amateur variety, has created vacuum that seems to have been filled by a new code. One that the whole family can play, and for which we seem to have a great deal of natural talent. It's called Rushing to Judgement.

You don't even have to go outside your bubble to play it, but best results, and no doubt greatest satisfaction, are achieved by those who do, enabling them to take offence at others who pass anywhere near their orbit. In fact the real experts go looking for grounds for offence, and for the heaping of abuse.

The Far North might be a little off the pace, in that the district has not yet produced a national headline-grabbing instance of someone who might, or might not, have been breaching the lockdown rules being roundly scolded, without any understanding of their particular circumstances. There have been some crackers elsewhere, but our only contribution thus far seems to be Dr Lance O'Sullivan's claim that the traffic in Kaitaia's main street one day last week clearly indicated that the lockdown was not being taken seriously.

Kaitaia's main street these days generally looks like a reasonably busy Sunday, but that doesn't mean people are flouting the lockdown rules. Certainly 1News had no trouble finding a couple of idiots, one whom reckoned he and others were partying every night, but there can be valid reasons for people travelling. For a start everyone has the right to go to Kaitaia's supermarket, pharmacies, or presumably laundromats (both of which remain open for business), which for many people means driving through the town. And anyone in their car can hardly be accused of breaching their bubble. Of itself, traffic means nothing.

Of greater concern was the road blocks that were set up by various iwi and others. There is no doubt whatsoever that some people found the checkpoints offensive, not least on the grounds that some of those who were stopping traffic were not following basic Covid-19 safety measures, while others were genuinely frightened. Some roadblocks, such as at Te Hapua, attracted no public disapproval at all, while others sparked scathing criticism, the difference possibly being Hone Harawira.

He tends to be a polarising individual, but in this instance it is difficult to question his motivation. As the frontman for much of the road block exercise, his logic was compelling - keeping all but those who live in the Far North away should keep coronavirus out.

The writer is unaware of any display of overt aggression on the part of those who were stopping traffic, and while it is fair enough to question who has the right to restrict freedom of movement, and the checkpoints were undoubtedly illegal under the Transport Act, it was not an unreasonable response to these extraordinary circumstances, given that authorities with the power to block traffic were unable or unwilling to do it.

The checkpoint critics do have a point though. Now more than ever, the rule of law must reign supreme. Politicians need to remember that too.

The Prime Minister took us from the sublime to the ridiculous when she vowed to take action against supermarkets over the price of cauliflowers. If the checkpoints are a worry for some, this should be a bigger one. Rob Muldoon was a believer in price freezes, but no politician in this country has the ability to dictate what anyone charges for any commodity, and nor should they.

Cauliflowers were selling for $6 in Kaitaia late last week, down from $8, not bad for a vegetable that is barely coming into season and is reportedly in shortish supply thanks to the drought. But if they were ten times that price, Ms Ardern has no right to suggest that she can do anything about it. If she believes she can, then we really need to talk about what sort of society we want to emerge from this pandemic, and just how much control we are prepared to give the government over our daily lives.

If the PM can decide the price of any commodity, why didn't she do something about the selling of $2 facemasks for many, many times that sum in the early stages of the Covid-19 alarm? Will she control hotel tariffs next time we host a major sporting event? And why doesn't she undertake to do something about the extraordinary sums some people are being charged to fly home from New Zealand?

Last week we heard of a UK couple who were trying to get home from Christchurch. They had booked four flights, three of which had been cancelled. They received vouchers, but were not entitled to refunds. The last flight, which they had been unable to catch in Auckland because their flight from Christchurch was cancelled, had cost them $30,000 each. The one before that had cost 7500 pounds each.

Those fares might not be unreasonable, if airlines are flying near-empty planes. Or perhaps they are making hay while the sun shines. Whatever the explanation, Ms Ardern has not been moved to criticise them, let alone threaten to take action against 'price gouging.'

Whether it's cauliflowers or air fares to London, if you don't want to pay the price, don't. That's tough if you're on the other side of the world from home at this moment in time, but the last thing we want is a government that gives itself the authority to set prices. That's not how a free and open society functions, and that must not be jeopardised by this crisis.

Maybe this was just another example of virtue signalling. It's been more than a week since Ms Ardern said the process for dealing with complaints over prices for products including cauliflowers, hand sanitiser, bread, meat and garlic, was being worked through, and "we will involve traders so they have a chance to respond." Presumably that was not to include the people who supply those products. Ms Ardern clearly suspects that supermarkets are screwing down their suppliers whilst ripping off their customers.

Hopefully some of the higher prices, if they are in fact higher than they were or should be, is going to the people who produce the meat and veg in particular. Who would begrudge them that?

The PM might have decided that she and her government have bigger fish to fry, but hopefully, as the lockdown continues, we will also see some of the more bizarre decisions reviewed. Like the prohibition on selling fruit and veg online but deeming alcohol and tobacco essential, and able to be delivered to the customer. Like golf club greenkeepers not being allowed to maintain their greens.

Perhaps we should forgive a little madness in these strangest of times, but we need to be assured that the madness, like the lockdown, will be temporary.