I’m pretty new to this social media stuff. Blogging on Red Alert for six or seven months and got into facebook in November while I couldn’t sleep in the UK. Can’t see the point of twitter for me yet.
My facebook friends are mainly local, mainly much younger than me, some sportspeople and followers and a relatively small number interested in politics. That group includes some Nats, some Act and some Greens but mainly Labour. Bit over 3k. I turn down a fair proportion of requests if they don’t meet my criteria and am pretty ruthless at dumping people mainly for using bad language, having links I don’t like or repeatedly putting game or quiz type things on my profile.
Last Wednesday night Metiria Turei used my status to attack Labour. Of all things it was on our record on the minimum wage – probably one of the best areas of progress the last government – but the subject doesn’t matter.
As I said above I’m new to facebook. I regard my page like my home. I chose who is there. While there are lots of discussions initiated by constituents I decide whether they run or not. But the idea of politicians using the comments section of my status to attack me just doesn’t seem right.
Metiria has her page and her blog to attack me. She can comment on Red Alert all she wants to.
So I unfriended her. She is all hurt. She says she will ask to be my friend again. She hasn’t yet. I will say yes. But I will watch her manners carefully.
ps I found Rod Donald and Sue Bradford good to work with (and Jeanette but only for a short time) – so its not a green allergy.
Pretty much sums up what that once-principled Party has become when, mintues after the resignation of the wonderful MP who she replaced as co-leader, she neither thanks Jeanette for her contribution to New Zealand nor congratulates their new, young MP. Instead posts snarky comments about Labour. Sigh.
Nicola – to be fair to her, by last night I meant Wed night – before the announcement – though I wonder if it might have been an influence.
Metiria doesn’t get facebook, evidently, and its hard to see how she gets politics if she thinks it is a good idea to attack Labour for not doing more than they already did, in an area where Labour did really well. Does she want the Greens to have friends, or is she just trying to be clever? Or can she admit she made a mistake? We’ll see.
Ah right sorry – may just be because facebook comes up weirdly on my cellphone. Made it look like it was about ten minutes after the announcement!
Trev, despite how new you are to Facebook, I think you are using it far better than any other politician in New Zealand. You are actually using it to connected with people outside the political bubble. Nice one.
Trevor,
Maybe I don’t understand FB etiquette, but it looks to me that Metiria was doing some posturing – maybe a bit tacky, but not offensive.
I’d suggest that your comments were unnecessarily combative and that you overreacted.
Having said that, I guess you can manage your FB page however you like.
So what do you use Facebook for Trevor? Catching up with old friends?
Delightful exchange between two hard-working politicians.
You can almost hear the Yeah Right coming.
Keep it up Mr. Mallard, you’re a source of endless entertainment.
[...] Mallard hits back at Metiria Turei after she highlighted how he had unfriended her on Facebook: Last night Metiria [...]
Metiria has her page and her blog to attack me. She can comment on Red Alert all she wants to.
Oh, dear, what a perfectly executed on-line flounce.
I understand wanting to limit your facebook to certain people but people do get quite offended when you delete them so you should be careful with who you do. A better way if she does something like that is to simply delete her comment and ask her not to post things like that on your facebook page. With all hope it might stop her attacking other MPs on their pages as well.
Hi Trev
Its the passion , I like !!! You have been a politican who has been over the years passionate about your portfolios , both within government and in opposition .
When discussing the minimum wage it is imporant to assess Labour’s success from beginning to end . The fact is ( and perhaps this is forgotten ) that Labour inherited a $7 minimum wage from the shipley government .
I appreciate where Meteria is coming from and what she is trying to acheive , however we need solid public agreements from political parties who actually CARE about families on low incomes . In other words have those debates in house !
Alternatives can be see when policies are released
You have always been a hot head, which is ok.
You have always blustered and looked like a bully, not so ok.
Now you praise the dead and retired, but not the living and relevant. Pity that.
Since Labour’s record on the minimum wage is defensible, why didn’t Trevor defend it? Instead he got personal and snarky.
Sigh.
peace
W
honestly? I think you may have overreacted a tad, especially when (according to Metiria’s posting) you made comments about Russel cuddling up to tories right up front. Not that I disagree with you on that point at all, but it probably wasn’t necessary to the debate.
I do agree with you, that Labour did GREAT on minimum wages, and worked well with Sue B to get rid of youth rates.
Rather than unfriending Metiria I think the better approach is to take the opportunity to explain your side of the story / rebut her arguments.
and ps: what Patrick said.
Dude seriously, having a spat on facebook makes you look like a petulent teenager
Ok you are new to facebook HOWEVER as a seasoned mp surely you’re aware of the importence of perception (at this point I’d like to say I’m neutral in this as I vote National/Act) and in this instance she sounded reasonable and you sounded like you were attacking her
Not a good look
Personal and unnecessary Clare. Facebook is supposed to be fun, no point having negative Greens taking the social out of social networking!
If you can’t have a rational discussion about your last government without resorting to hysterical, patronizing stuff like this, with all due respect, please just retire already Trevor. It’s so embarrassing that a representative of the Labour party cares more about throwing their weight around than sticking up for working people. Would Mr Goff b happy to see the news about his (very good) speech replaced by an MP throwing their toys..?
@Peter Martin – do that too – use inbox – contact reminders useful for that.
Just added you on FB Trevor, I hope that I am allowed to join your page
Good on you for sticking it to the Metiria, who quite frankly puts the rest of the (as Nicola said) “once principled party” to shame. Do the Greens not realise that they will gain nothing from cuddling up to the tories as you so humorously put it, the only way they they will have environmental protection and a center left Government is with Labour. It appears John Key’s moderation act has not only fooled middle New Zealand into supporting him, it might just have done enough to trick the Greens. More fools them!
‘Do the Greens not realise that they will gain nothing from cuddling up to the tories as you so humorously put it’
What did they gain from Labour in the three elections it was the major political party in Govt?
Trevor, I think Metiria was quite right to be critical of Labour’s track record on the minimum wage.
The Greens have been principled and consistent over the years in advocating a higher minimum wage than Labour – they were calling for $12 an hour in 2005 and Labour didn’t get to that figure until 2008.
And I think it is fair for Metiria to remind people that Labour’s commitment to $15 an hour has come somewhat belatedly. At the time of the last election Labour was saying:
Good to see Labour now talking $15 too.
The Center Left achieved an equal minimum wage, the ETS, lowest unemployment in the OECD, minimum wage rose by 71%!!!!! and so much more.
The National Party will not create a society that cares for those that cannot help themselves, yet the Greens claim stances like this as a pillar of their party, so why attack the ONLY party that would realistically put those philosophies into Government! That is the thing about the new Greens, they have made it about them and not about their cause. They as a party may not have been in cabinet, but their “cause” advanced so much. They were able to have practical impact on the Government. They have forgotten that.
Great to see these two minor parties self-distructing and eating each other at the same time.
Sounds like bebo is actually more your style Trev..
Hey trev, on fb you can have a person page and a fan page. Maybe you should set up a fan page to have policy debates and host anybody who wants to chat to you about policy, and keep your personal page to your personal friends?
So, you don’t post anything of a political nature on your Facebook page then Trevor?
I’m a bit surprised though trev that key and the maori party have wished Jeanette well, but the labour party haven’t. On the day jeanette said goodbye nanaia came out attacking the maori party and you attack the green party. Does labour not want to have any friends?
Very funny!
Facebook is not your home – unless you live in Animal House.
The Wall goes back to Facebook’s beginnings as an undergraduate networking application. So while you might hope that your friends are going to write on your wall to tell the world how clever you are and how sexy you look in your photos but inevitably that some of them will also think that your wall is there for them to pee all over it.
You can delete her posts, you can use the privacy functions to play peek-a-boo with her, you can take it to another site where you have more control (which you’ve done here), you can retaliate in kind, but unless you block her you can’t stop her from posting to your wall unless you stop everyone else from doing that too.
Think ‘undergrad’.
And better check that she hasn’t tagged you in any photos.
Can you cuddle a torie? Be a bit prickly wouldn’t it? (I would think going to bed with a snake would open oneself to be bitten by said snake…)
Why didn’t Labour raise the minimum wage when they had the chance? after all they are supposed to be the workers party. It would appear that since they became the opposition the policy has been to complain about everything, common sense and practicality’s obviously don’t come into the equation. Interesting how the shambles and lies of the past few years can be ignored so blatantly.
This is the funniest thing I have read on Red Alert EVER!! I wonder if this will make sideswipe……
@ Rob Carr
Good advice!
Also, the problem with blocking someone on Facebook is not that you might offend them.
It’s that when they’re blocked you can’t see what they’re getting up to with all of your own friends.
This is ridiculous. Metiria and Trevor should do some work instead of having a facebook battle. How juvenile. Stay on bebo guys.
I get the impression that the Greens are still smarting over Labour’s decision to go with NZ First and United Future in 2005. They consistently overlook the fact that Labour had no choice because of the way the voting public dealt the cards.
What did the Greens want? A Brash government? No, of course not. Metiria Turei does not seem to have properly thought through her criticism of Labour’s record on the minimum wage. I’m not surprised Trevor was very annoyed.
Can you cuddle a torie?
Nah, Tories are a bit like those ergonomic pillows with the firm inside – you’ve got to lie down with it just right (pun intended) to get comfy.
On the other hand, most lefties are like airbeds with all the air let out.
Deleted. Nice try Clint, but repeating it does not change it. Its personal abuse, and thats not what we want here. Grant.
I know damm all about Facebook, but maybe Rob Carr and Huginn are right. Trevor might have been better to have just deleted Metiria’s comments etc. He has confessed he is new to Facebook and – like most of us – the best way to learn is by making mistakes.
Well I see the Herald has picked this up. Not the best look. Hope you are happy. This does not make either you or Metiria look great. Time to move on to something more important perhaps? Giving greater support to the Unite Campaign, starting your own campaign, or moving on to develop some fresh ideas for employment in this country, plenty to choose from.
story just made it to 5pm ZM radio news. Just shows how pathetic the media are really. Unfortunately was not a good look for both of you. Seems to have blown completely out of proportion.
Mark I think it would be better if you rephrased that. Clare
Metiria and I are friends again – lets see how it works out.
Clare, I disagree – I was merely being honest yet robust at the same time
So “rephrase” … ok… What vexes me somewhat is that 39% (or thereabouts) of my income contributes in a minor way toward your remuneration. Yet, funnily enough, both Mr Mallard and Ms Turei are individuals I find singularly disagreeable, what what.
Better?
Better. Clare
Someone asks a question about the labour party, so they get deleted..
Democracy fail?
“cuddling tories”?
Funny, I dont recall reading Green Party press releases calling for tax cuts for high income earners, ‘flexible labour markets’, free trade, school vouchers, higher tertiary education fees and the sale of state owned companies?
I want what youre on, Trevor.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
One wonders what some of the old politicans would have made of facebook….
15$ per hour is warranted this year as it was last year and the year before The Greens position no less
Irrelevant. Clare
Boy Clint, youre not having a good day’s posting arent you?
Remember me? studentz.co.nz forums? 2001/02? (the good old days)
That’s really childish Trevor, kicking someone out of your house because you can’t stand to face a debate. Please don’t be so closed minded. And “We might make mistakes but we will make other things too” – Michael Joseph Savage