Unless it's a mass debate, what's the point? (Patreon)

Last night we all lost. It wasn't even a debate. It was two men who seem to think the same just answering questions. If you're going to have a debate then do what Lange and Muldoon did and have them sit at a table and actually argue points with one another. That would be worth something to the viewer.

Or, and hear me out here, we stop pretending there are only two parties and we recognise we have an MMP parliament. Have all the leaders sit round a table, let them argue among themselves with an MC to only jump in if things are getting racist/out of hand/long winded.

Instead we've co-opted this US presidential style which is dumb, because we don't elect Prime Ministers, we elect parties who elect Prime Ministers. And these quick-fire rounds are so dumb, where we bully individuals into making commitments that aren't necessarily party policy but bloody well become so.

The format is so flawed. And also it was boring. Luxon probably won by virtue of not shitting his pants on stage. Chippy needed to go after him. He had his best parts when he started going after Luxo on his weird views around the Māori Health Authority. Even Jess Mutch McKay had a crack at Luxo on this point, asking whether winding back the Māori Health Authority was just a waste of money. But it's actually one of two things: racist, or ignorant. Chippy focused on it being ignorant but I think he should have just gone at him and called him racist. That would've grabbed the headlines: "Christopher, New Zealanders aren't racist, so stopped peddling your racist crap". Something like that. Would've been what people talked about.

There was a part where they were asked if they trusted the other, Luxo said he did trust Chippy, Chippy said he didn't trust Luxo's numbers. But fuck that. Just say you don't trust him because he lies and he hides things.

Labour is losing. So they are the ones who need to do something to upend the status quo and Chippy missed just about every opportunity to do so last night.

But my point about MMP stands. Get Seymour, James Shaw or Marama, and Rawiri or Debbie. Yes it's unlikely one of them will become PM at this election, but if we keep entrenching the status quo that will never change. Show people they have a real choice of who to vote for, instead of milquetoast white men in suits. It was so bad that there was analysis of the ties they were wearing as though that said something. God help us.

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If any TV production companies are reading, I pitch myself to MC a debate with all leaders. Get them all sitting in a conversational pit, I'll have an oversized gong that I'll use sparingly. And then I decide who won and give them a hug (consent pending).