1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:02,840 Speaker 1: Now Patrick Smelley, Welcome home. Patrick. Patrick Smelley is a 2 00:00:03,200 --> 00:00:06,680 Speaker 1: regular contributor to the show, and he's just back from 3 00:00:06,720 --> 00:00:10,479 Speaker 1: his long European sabbatical and he reckons we need to 4 00:00:10,560 --> 00:00:13,360 Speaker 1: cheer up. He's written a piece for Business Desks saying 5 00:00:13,400 --> 00:00:15,600 Speaker 1: the headlines that he's seeing here in New Zealand suggest 6 00:00:15,640 --> 00:00:18,040 Speaker 1: we're as miserable today as we were back in the 7 00:00:18,079 --> 00:00:22,280 Speaker 1: early nineteen nineties when Ruth Richardson had Ruth Richardson's recession 8 00:00:22,320 --> 00:00:23,919 Speaker 1: back then, and he points out that actually in all 9 00:00:23,960 --> 00:00:25,880 Speaker 1: of the nine countries that he had visited when he 10 00:00:25,960 --> 00:00:28,560 Speaker 1: was over in Europe, they all had the same problems, 11 00:00:28,720 --> 00:00:34,120 Speaker 1: race relations, violent crime, failing, infrastructure crises, countless crises. Their 12 00:00:34,159 --> 00:00:36,599 Speaker 1: country is going backwards, but they were dealing with it 13 00:00:36,800 --> 00:00:40,320 Speaker 1: without the same sense of fatalistic despair that we have 14 00:00:40,440 --> 00:00:42,640 Speaker 1: over it in New Zealand. I've thought about this a 15 00:00:42,680 --> 00:00:47,440 Speaker 1: lot overnight, because one hundred percent we are extremely gloomy. 16 00:00:47,880 --> 00:00:49,720 Speaker 1: And I'd be the first to tell us to give 17 00:00:49,720 --> 00:00:53,120 Speaker 1: ourselves an uppercut if I thought we were being unreasonably miserable. 18 00:00:53,200 --> 00:00:56,080 Speaker 1: But actually I think that we are justified in feeling 19 00:00:56,080 --> 00:00:58,240 Speaker 1: as miserable as we do. Right now because look, I 20 00:00:58,240 --> 00:00:59,760 Speaker 1: can't speak for other countries and I don't know what 21 00:00:59,760 --> 00:01:02,640 Speaker 1: they're experiences are, but we have gone through a massive 22 00:01:03,040 --> 00:01:05,120 Speaker 1: shift in the last few years. We went from being 23 00:01:05,160 --> 00:01:09,240 Speaker 1: the rockstar economy, prosperous and riding the wave of Chinese 24 00:01:09,520 --> 00:01:13,480 Speaker 1: like ever increasing Chinese demand, to suddenly not having that 25 00:01:13,880 --> 00:01:17,479 Speaker 1: Chinese demand has fallen. We've had three recessions in two years. Now. 26 00:01:17,560 --> 00:01:19,920 Speaker 1: Name me another country that we compare ourselves to that 27 00:01:20,000 --> 00:01:23,959 Speaker 1: has had three recessions in two years. That is a 28 00:01:24,000 --> 00:01:25,639 Speaker 1: tough thing for a country to go through. And Patrick 29 00:01:25,680 --> 00:01:27,959 Speaker 1: himself admits it's bad. I mean, he says, as he 30 00:01:28,000 --> 00:01:30,880 Speaker 1: points out, we've slipped in a comprehensive un measure of 31 00:01:30,920 --> 00:01:34,240 Speaker 1: everything from life expectancy and education to economics, like it 32 00:01:34,240 --> 00:01:37,240 Speaker 1: looks at the whole thing. We have gone down seven 33 00:01:37,280 --> 00:01:40,280 Speaker 1: places just between last year and this year. That is 34 00:01:40,319 --> 00:01:43,039 Speaker 1: how fast things are going backwards for us. We've gone 35 00:01:43,040 --> 00:01:45,119 Speaker 1: from being the safe place that you want to raise 36 00:01:45,120 --> 00:01:46,959 Speaker 1: your kids in and that you can raise your kids 37 00:01:47,000 --> 00:01:49,640 Speaker 1: in to what eleven or twelve homicides in the North 38 00:01:49,640 --> 00:01:52,520 Speaker 1: Island and just over a month, including a body found 39 00:01:52,520 --> 00:01:55,280 Speaker 1: burnt out in a car somewhere. Today, I think what's 40 00:01:55,320 --> 00:01:59,280 Speaker 1: made us gloomy is just the size of that shift. 41 00:02:00,280 --> 00:02:02,760 Speaker 1: May be experiencing what we are, but I'd be surprised 42 00:02:02,800 --> 00:02:05,400 Speaker 1: if they have had the swing from one extreme to 43 00:02:05,440 --> 00:02:07,800 Speaker 1: the other quite to the same degree that we have. 44 00:02:08,200 --> 00:02:09,919 Speaker 1: And I think that's what makes us feel as bad 45 00:02:09,960 --> 00:02:13,160 Speaker 1: as we do, because it was so good before and 46 00:02:13,200 --> 00:02:16,080 Speaker 1: now it is so bad and the difference is so extreme. 47 00:02:16,160 --> 00:02:18,959 Speaker 1: So yes, we're gloomy and yep, like Patrick, I'm looking 48 00:02:19,000 --> 00:02:20,519 Speaker 1: forward to us coming out of this, but I don't 49 00:02:20,520 --> 00:02:22,360 Speaker 1: think we're being dramatic and how we feel about this. 50 00:02:22,440 --> 00:02:24,959 Speaker 1: I think it's totally justified. And I actually think it's 51 00:02:25,000 --> 00:02:27,120 Speaker 1: good to be as gloomy as we are because it 52 00:02:27,160 --> 00:02:29,280 Speaker 1: means we don't accept it, and it means that we 53 00:02:29,320 --> 00:02:33,200 Speaker 1: are motivated to change it. For more from Heather Duplassy 54 00:02:33,280 --> 00:02:36,079 Speaker 1: Allen Drive, listen live to news talks. It'd be from 55 00:02:36,160 --> 00:02:39,800 Speaker 1: four pm weekdays, or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.