I've been thinking... In my last post, I was maybe a bit dismissive of the extent of the disruption caused by the protest. I failed to take into account that although WE know that the protest is very peaceful and loving, the people who have been frightened by media reports are genuinely scared. It's been brought home to me that there are possibly business closures because people feel unsafe, or others are changing their routes to work or school. So today I have been thinking about what could be done about that. Because packing up and going home is not the answer. More to come on that later, I hope.
I haven't been downtown today or even listened to the livestreams, but still bits of info have come my way.
Wellington towies are refusing to tow away the vehicles, but I saw a video of them towing away a police car. It was probably one that had broken down, but still, it was amusing.
The police have decided that the protest is no longer tenable and something has to be done. Businesses and schools have been affected. Someone has been appointed to... oh some bullshit I can't remember. Towies from further afield have been appealed to. I emailed the police commissioner suggesting that the way to reassure the businesses and schools would be to tell them the truth. And if they were still worried, provide some police personnel to patrol the perimeter and maybe escort some kids to school. I'm not expecting any useful response, but still, it's been said.
Gary Moller has given us a beautiful photo essay today https://www.garymoller.com/post/the-village-that-is-evolving-within-a-city-freedom-village and this is a brilliant piece of comedy on the situation
I still haven't summoned the energy to refute the nonsense that has come out of the mouths of politicians and media, such as the crowd are threatening us, there are nooses and baseball bats, it's not the right kind of protest, it's imported, and more. But I think Cam Slater covered it pretty well here https://thebfd.co.nz/2022/02/15/the-confusion-of-the-elites so I'm not going to bother.
I'd rather share some of my photos from yesterday that didn't fit in then, that demonstrate the positive vibe of the crowd.
The Hare Krishna area was a lot more settled and active now than the first photo I took a few days ago in the rain.
Their food tent was getting all set up too, and smelled delicious.
They, or someone, even had a recycling area set up. Something else that many have commented on is that there is no rubbish lying around. Squalor? I don't think so.
There's nothing like the joy of music and dance
One of my sidelines is exercise classes, mainly for seniors. The only one I can still teach one is on Zoom and is Spin Poi. Traditional poi adapted to be a full body exercise for seniors, children and the disabled. So I was thrilled to see someone celebrating the music with some poi.
Some awesome footage from the weekend of some more expert poi work, to that great NZ classic Poi E can be seen here https://www.facebook.com/LEnad96/videos/487906306236148
This picture sums up much of the feeling of the protest. One Love, for all, and remembering the sacrifice previous generations made for our freedom.
This made me laugh out loud, and when he saw I was going to take his picture, his delighted smile matched mine.
As Public Enemy said to us back in 1988 "don't believe the hype". If you want to see for yourself, with your own eyes, and feel with your own body and spirit, get your arse down here. My sister is coming to town tomorrow evening, and we're heading for Parliament, so see you then.