... and the loser on the day is Whanganui

Sorry, Wanganui! You’ve contributed about $100 million in rates over the last three years (not to mention your contributions to John Maslin’s salary) funding Michael Laws’s re-election campaign.

Many of you have, however, fought the good fight and you’ve helped emasculate the party platform that has allowed the Mad Mayor to trample democracy and decency into the Vision mud.

His loyal lieutenant Murray (‘dishwasher’) Hughes has been consigned to the scrapheap and we now wait to see how long it takes for Rangi (‘I forgot to put my hand up’) Wills and the very strange Rana (mad-dog) Waitai to bed down with Vision. With luck Mr Waitai’s tenuous provisional margin will disappear and the independence of this council will be strengthened by substitution of that courageous campaigner Allan Anderson.

With even more luck, the pathetic Randhir Dahya will put the shenanigans of the past three months behind him and realise he’s got as much chance of getting the mayoralty when Mickey runs off to give birth to Vision First next year as Marty Lindsay has of being minister of broadcasting (actually, Mickey, why not take the whole lot of them with you to national ignomy – ed). To the Warburtons, Rewitis, Harknesses, Roses et al, may you drown in the toxic swamp you have personally created at Guyton St.

Congratulations to all those brave non-Vision souls (especially very high pollers Stevens and McGregor) who put their heads above the parapet and were rewarded with a very respectable number of votes from those who believe Wanganui has a future. Kia Kaha to all those who find themselves now in a position to pull back a smidgeon of respect for the democratic spirit.

10454 LAWS, Michael Brian

7044 MARTIN, John Bruce
1082 DAHYA, Randhir
270 FLEMING, Russell William

249 OSBORNE, Chandra Michelle

Blank 238

Informal 43

McKINNON, Dorothy Margaret (Dot) 10400

STEVENS, Raymond Mark (Ray) 10375

McGREGOR, James Roland (Don) 10269

DAHYA, Randhir 9359

BULLOCK, Barbara Lynn 9290

BAKER-HOGAN, Philippa 8911

LINDSAY, Martin Graeme (Marty) 8262

HIGGIE, Nicole Andree (Nicki) 8205

WESTWOOD, Susan Moya 8106

JONAS, Danny Ronald 7484

WILLS, Rangi Marehua 7445

WAITAI, Rana 6984

ANDERSON, Allan Royce 6978

HUGHES, Murray John 5976

EDMONDS, Matthew Lyle (Matt) 5960

MITCHELL-ANYON, Ross 5760

MOORE, Robert Joseph (Rob) 5475

SIMPSON, Kirsty Nicole 5423

BROWN, Ian Grant 4923

FLEMING, Russell William 4319

KEELTY, Gordon James 4064

SMITH, Rory James 3925

FORLONG, Shaun Graham 3922

MILNES, John Ingham 3898

OSBORNE, Chandra Michelle 3405

McNABB, Andrew 3102

SEARS, Victor Frederick 2686

HUDSON, Phillip Edward 1950

STEVENS, Gary John 1875

JANGO 1676

LITTLE, Ian Paul 829

Blank 215

Informal 78

AND IT’S THE MICKEY n CLIVE SHOW AT THE DHB:

SOLOMON, Clive 6717 1

LAWS, Michael Brian 3941

BAKER-HOGAN, Philippa June 2870.75

FAUMUI, Penaia Albert (PJ) 2848.24

ANDERSON, Allan Royce 2689.08

STEWART, Ailsa Crawford 2627.91

WAITAI, Rana 2494.04

DOUGLAS, William John 2340.34

The Walking Dead

Those of you who have followed LawsWatch through 367 posts over two years will know that we Watchers are seldom lost for words. We sometimes think we’ve seen it all, like the world weary forensic pathologists on our favourite television gore-fests. We’ve often felt in danger of becoming inured to the unspeakable horrors revealed by our weekly dissections of the rotting remains of the walking dead around His Worship the Mayor of Wanganui Michael Laws.

We’ve gasped and we’ve raged at the ghastly crimes against truth, justice, democracy (and most recently the sanctity of the Prince Edward Auditorium at Wanganui Collegiate) committed daily by the Beast of Taupo Quay, aka John Philip Maslin! We’ve cracked our cynical medical jokes at the ineptness of the Foolish Felons operating under the Sign of Vision! We’ve even developed a grudging respect for the ability of the Devilish Doctor Warbottom and his Guyton St Gang to evade the Bungling Cops in Wellington!

But we have to confess, Dear Readers, that events of the past three months have left us wondering just what deadly pathogen has infected the Wanganui body politic and its parasitic media. Since this vile disease called Election Fever was unleashed three months ago we’ve seen sights that have turned the stomach of even the most seasoned Watchers.

But nothing to match the appalling sight on page ten of the October 4 issue of the tacky and thoroughly corrupt little rag called River City Press. There, Dear Watchers, you will be shocked to see the grinning skulls of Dr Warburstein and his very own creation Julian Harkless proclaiming they ‘have their fingers on our council’s financial pulse’ and that everything – believe them – is hunky dory!

Debt is good! Debt is great! says Dave. We’re doing a terrific job! says Julian. Watch their lips … VOTE VISION!! Their jobs depend on it, and the financial genii at the River City Press aren’t in the mood to argue. Like the rats down the drainpipe at Wanganui’s decaying morgue, they’re happy to feast on whatever comes their way.

MEANWHILE, BACK IN BLOGSVILLE …

We’ve been amused in the last few weeks by the emergence of a couple of Wanganui wannabe blogs which have fizzled and faded like soggy sparklers on a wet November 5. The first was the curious case of http://wanganuigossip.blogspot.com which set itself up as an alternative to LawsWatch, professed to be seeking the dirt on (night)mayor Mickey and attracted about five desultory comments before disappearing mysteriously into the blog fog with an announcement that:

This blog is open to invited readers only.

AND THEN

… there was the curious case of the newbie blogger at http://whanganui.org who lasted only a couple of posts after erupting with a hiss and a roar on September 17 with these promising gems …

Many feel that Michael has done God’s work but that it’s time for a rest from the politics of aggression and intimidation and for a bit of co-operation.

The Vision team bear an uncanny resemblance to Czarina Helen’s ministers: what the head prefect says goes. There’s one person making the decisions and we all know who it is. Supporters of Rob Muldoon and Maggie Thatcher will be suffering severe déjà vu.

I’m open to persuasion, but my feeling is that Wanganui folk are ready for some decorum and unity.

OF COURSE

The RIGHTeous Blogmeister turned pollster David Farrar boasts nothing if not longevity with his KiwiBlog. Mr Farrar, famous in his own lunchtime for the fact that ‘Michael got me arrested 13 years ago’ very kindly includes a link to LawsWatch on his very well-read site which recently discussed his polling pranks on behalf of the Wanganui Chron(ic).