Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and Happy Kwanza to all ZooChatters! And to those who don't celebrate anything, have a good day!
~Thylo
~Thylo
Prime Minister John Key spoke to media outside a Rotary lunch in Auckland ahead of his State of the Nation speech this afternoon, during which he briefly addressed comments made by Man Booker Prize winner Eleanor Catton about his Government.
Catton made headlines yesterday when, at the Jaipur Literary Festival in India, she remarked that she was uncomfortable being an ambassador for New Zealand, as it was led by “neo-liberal, profit-obsessed, very shallow, very money-hungry politicians who do not care about culture.”
Key said he was “disappointed” by Catton’s remarks, but wasn’t “overly worried” as her book The Luminaries “wasn’t my cup of tea, anyway.”
He granted Catton that The Luminaries was “a pretty good” novel about “the moon,” but he had “read better.”
“I mean, obviously, look, yeah, I think most New Zealanders would agree that Eleanor did pretty well and we’re all quite proud of her,” he said. “But at the end of the day, they’d probably say ‘Look, I haven’t read the copy I was given for Christmas, and neither have any of my friends, and my kids thought it was boring because there were no dragons.’ And that’s just how it is, but all the best to her.”
Key said that, ultimately, there were “much better” and “more famous” pieces of New Zealand literature, such as “The Lord of the Rings” and “that one about the hairy black dog.”
“Look, to be frank, it’s just the Man Booker Prize, which we also have to keep in mind,” he added, upon being pressed further. “The best books don’t usually win that prize; it’s a prize for boring books.
“I’m fairly certain that there hasn’t been a Jack Reacher novel to win that prize, and The Very Hungry Caterpillar didn’t win one either.”
“I think if your prize hasn’t been awarded to The Very Hungry Caterpillar it says something about your prize,” he concluded.
The Prime Minister admitted that he had not read Catton’s book, but said that would be a “big ask” because, at 832 pages, it’s “very long.”
“I think most New Zealanders would agree that’s a few too many words.”
Asked about Sean Plunket’s aggressive comments towards Catton this morning, Key said that Plunket was “a radio host.”
no joke. Our Prime Minister is an idiot. I mean he is obviously clued up on things in a political and business sense, but for anything else (say, the arts) he might as well be chewing on a blade of straw.That is sooo funny! It must be a joke, so far none of the New Zealanders that I have know have been quite this nuts, and I have know at least half a dozen
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no joke. Our Prime Minister is an idiot. I mean he is obviously clued up on things in a political and business sense, but for anything else (say, the arts) he might as well be chewing on a blade of straw.
I don't know, The Very Hungry Caterpillar is a pretty damn great book.
~Thylo![]()
no joke. Our Prime Minister is an idiot. I mean he is obviously clued up on things in a political and business sense, but for anything else (say, the arts) he might as well be chewing on a blade of straw.
it has been pointed out to me that the article is in fact from a satirical site and therefore not actually true. Colour me embarrassed!! However it reads exactly as John Key would speak, so it fooled me.no joke. Our Prime Minister is an idiot. I mean he is obviously clued up on things in a political and business sense, but for anything else (say, the arts) he might as well be chewing on a blade of straw.
it has been pointed out to me that the article is in fact from a satirical site and therefore not actually true. Colour me embarrassed!! However it reads exactly as John Key would speak, so it fooled me.
If you remove the first two words from my quote above then I still stand by it though![]()
well we can both say "even the best of us make mistakes"....BUGGER!!!!
I repeated this to some workmates, one of whom is a Kiwi, and we gave him a hard time about it.
Now I have to apologise - and blaming Chlidonias just doesn't seem to be an adequate excuse (although I'll still give it a go anyway!).
BUGGER!!!!
I repeated this to some workmates, one of whom is a Kiwi, and we gave him a hard time about it.
Now I have to apologise - and blaming Chlidonias just doesn't seem to be an adequate excuse (although I'll still give it a go anyway!).
Hix
The prime minister's hair isn't the only shade of grey he's thinking about this week.
Prime Minister John Key has turned his mind to the Fifty Shades of Grey film, which is scheduled for release in New Zealand today.
But moviegoers shouldn't expect to turn to their neighbour in the cinema and see the prime minister - he'll be watching that one with just his wife, Bronagh.
Key said on MoreFM this morning he had seen the movie trailer but, as for watching the full film, "might have to restrict that to the TV at home, I think."
His expectations may have been lowered slightly by advance reviews of the movie, however.
"They said it takes 40 minutes to get to the first sex session."
Key seemed surprised that "the whole movie only includes 11 minutes of 'forbidden fruit'."
The prime minister claimed his interest in the movie was because he tried "to keep well-informed for the country."
"You know, I do my best for people. It's not always appreciated, but I do my best," Key joked.
It's been a week of unusual conversations for the prime minister.
On Tuesday NZ First leader Winston Peters accused Key of dying his hair, which Key yesterday responded to with "there's no dye on these locks, baby!"
Peters countered with "well, why don't the curtains match the carpet, then?"
The prime minister rose in the House to raise a point of order, good-naturedly taking offence "that the member is telling New Zealand that he's seen my carpet!"
So just relax and let whatever you want to say come out! Nothing inappropriate though please.
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it turns out Velociraptors aren't the only top predator which can open doors to get to the humans behind them....
Lion casually opens car door with family still inside vehicle, just to remind humanity not to get too cocky | National Post