Originally published at: New Zealand Maori leader Rawiri Waititi ejected from parliament chamber for wearing a Maori greenstone pendant instead of a necktie | Boing Boing
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And if the history of colonialism has taught us anything it’s that you can always trust those white folks to abide by the terms of a truce with indigenous peoples.
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NZ is not Australia…
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Ties suck
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It’s something tied around his neck and hanging free, that sounds like a necktie to me!
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Like a french scifi book. Life didn´t change much since the 1940´s
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This take on events is … well it’s a take on events.
The Speaker canvassed the House earlier in the year about whether to keep the tie rule. Most MPs - including Waititi - didn’t bother to respond. The speaker was keen to be rid of them then, but faced with a majority of those who responded in favour of ties, and apathy from the rest, he left the rule in place.
Waititi was not asked to remove his hei tiki - it’s fine to wear it in addition to a tie, including a bolo if he’d chosen to and which at least one other MP wears. He was asked to abide by the workplace rules he agreed to and had had an opportunity to amend.
But, you know. Yay. His grandstanding got the rule changed. He could have had it changed without the grandstanding, but where’s the fun - and leadership - in that.
FTR I routinely wear a toki in place of a tie with the suit I wear daily. I think the rule change in parliament is a good one, I think the way it was done is [dumb].
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Maybe there was some kind of global problem happening that was dominating everyones attention?
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Not here. And if it was, maybe he could have kept his ego in its box until after the problem passes?
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Do you think that NZ managed COVID better than most of the rest of the planet by doing nothing?
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I would invite you to please reconsider the last word of your post. There’s no need for slurs.
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Good news, then, from the NYT article:
The necktie, which has its origins in the 17th-century cravat once worn as military garb, appears to be falling out of fashion in many parts of the world. In 2006, the Men’s Dress Furnishings Association, a 60-year-old trade group representing American tie makers, announced that it would be disbanding amid declining sales.
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No, but I am certain Waititi had nothing to do with it, and doubly certain that the vexed issue of ties will not be part of the resolution.
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Yes, yay. He cut through the apathy, got rid of what we can all agree is a stupid rule, and emphasised the importance of Maori culture in NZ. His single vote, had he cast it earlier, wouldn’t have achieved those results.
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Sure, but the apathy was his own apathy. MPs modelling behaviour that boils down to “voting is silly so don’t bother and just throw a hissy fit till you get your way” is such a great example to us all. He played a stupid game, so he gets a stupid prize. Congrats.
I’m not sure how you come to this conclusion. The end result wasn’t “pounamu worn around the neck is formal wear”, it was “screw it, wear what you want”.
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Any time someone in a workplace manages to get it to throw out a necktie dress code it’s a pretty awesome prize as far as I’m concerned. So yes, however he achieved it, congrats.
The end result was “screw it, wear what you want, and I’m going to wear something that represents a significant aspect of this country’s culture and that was once deemed unacceptable by the tie-wearing white members of this chamber.”
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That was almost Dr. Seusian! You’re a poet and you don’t even …
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Oof, do NOT read the responses to the Reuters tweet.
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It looks like two strings away from being a large bolo tie. Glad they changed the rules to be more inclusive.
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