Team of 5M?

Good Morning and Welcome to this week’s Gospel and Culture update, by Alan Vink
Team of 5M?
Monday 21st February 2022

Team of 5M?

Quite a bit has changed in the last 7 days concerning the Protests especially the one at Parliament grounds as far as public sentiment is concerned. A whole lot more appears to have changed since the outbreak of Omicron in late November. Some media commentators have suggested we are no longer a Team of 5M.

Here’s what’s changed and is changing.

1. Some polling last week suggest a third of adult NZ’ers support the current protests in some way, namely ‘end the mandates’.
2. We have peak immunisations in NZ. 95% of 12 year olds and older are double vaxxed. We have been assured over and over again that this is our best response/weapon to beating this virus.
3. Most all of us know someone either directly or indirectly who has had to resign from their jobs because of the mandates. Many of these people have given a lifetime of excellent service. These are very sad stories.
4. There are now other ways we can keep people at work with RAT’s, working from home, working away from the public not to mention exploring new and creative ways to offer employee’s mid-long term ‘leave’ arrangements that don’t require loss of jobs.
5. The application of the traffic light red setting seems inconsistent at times and certainly is confusing to many people.
6. Already some businesses and organisations are lax when it come to showing your vax pass and customers are lax to register their presence when entering a shop or building of some kind.
7. Other countries in the Northern Hemisphere are already beginning to relax the mandates.
8. Tow companies are not prepared to assist the Police to remove cars illegally parked in Wellington.
9. Most NZ’ers thought that Trevor Mallard’s turning the sprinklers on at Parliament grounds and playing irritating music was beyond childish it was pathetic. It was also needlessly provocative.
10. And finally the clincher, for me at least, came last week when according to Dr Bryan Betty who is head of the Royal New Zealand College of Practitioners, who is calling for a “change in mindset” in how the country lives with Covid-19 – and to also “focus on other health issues and illnesses that are waiting in the wings.” You can hear him interviewed here and read his comments here.

POV. I am double jabbed. I have supported the public health measures and will continue to do so. I will be boosted in the next week or so. I will happily show my vax pass and wear a mask when out and about. No problem. I fully support vaccinations as our best line of defence. However, I am wondering now if the current mandates are to blunt an instrument? When the mandates were first mooted for teachers (my stomping ground) in around September last year I remember thinking, “Crickey,is that the best we can do?” Though I have supported them to date I am now wondering given what we now know about the severity of Omicron and what is available to us in fighting this virus if we couldn’t review the policy settings on mandates?

This is a very challenging issue. If an otherwise healthy person chooses not to be vaccinated then that decision has some negative consequences as far as where they can go and what you can do etc. Fair enough, I agree with that. But is losing your job one of them?

Perhaps it’s time for some new and creative thinking about this question?

Finally, here is an excellent article written by Steve Maharey, formerly the Vice-Chancellor of Massey University and a Labour Party Cabinet Minister titled, ‘Democracy must find a better way than this’

Alan Vink is currently the Executive Director for LeadershipWorx. Prior to this role he has been the Executive Director of Willow Creek Association NZ (WillowNZ), a Baptist pastor (23 years), Bible College teacher, and church consultant.