Remark
James Elliott looks back on a week dominated by people invoking divine vengeance in response to legal rights. And it wasn’t pretty.
Today is not a good day. And neither did yesterday. There haven’t been many good days lately. Covid is still deadly, inflation is now on the rise and there is even the prospect of Winston Peters and Brian Tamaki merging. Good days are few.
Last Saturday was a good day. That is, if your name is Simon O’Connor. We know this because I posted “this is a good day” on social media. It was the day the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Roe v Wade decision that recognized a woman’s constitutional right to abortion. And that’s why it was a good day for Simon O’Connor. He is against abortion. Very anti-abortion.
Sunday was an even better day for Simon O’Connor, despite the fact that his right to make that post was nullified and he, without a trace of irony, was ordered to end it by Team Blue leader Christopher Luxon. Better because Sunday night even more believers knew about Simon O’Connor’s thoughts on abortion rights and the destruction of Roe v Wade. Better because it was an opportunity to remind the faithful of what Simon O’Connor had said in parliament in 2020 against the passing of the abortion law bill: “The revenge is mine; I will pay, saith the Lord.”
“Vengeance is mine” has had its fair share of appropriation in popular culture too, most notably and for good reason, like the battle cry of the perpetually thwarted megalomaniac baby, Stewie Griffin, in Family man†
It’s a line from the Bible, a great resource if you’re looking for quotes about revenge. That particular claim to the right of vengeance comes from both the book of Deuteronomy and the book of Romans. I can only assume that Simon O’Connor didn’t combine it with “I will strike you down with great vengeance and furious fury” because that particular vow of revenge from the book of Ezekiel is too easily recognized as the pre-killing slogan used by Samuel L Jackson’s character Jules in the movie pulp fiction† Of course, “Vengeance is mine” has had its fair share of appropriation in popular culture too, most notably and for good reason, like the battle cry of the perpetually thwarted megalomaniac baby, Stewie Griffin, in Family man†
Anyway, Simon O’Connor’s point then, and presumably still is, is that divine vengeance for providing a legal right to abortion is coming. And according to the book of Deuteronomy, God is reasonably prescriptive as to the form such vengeance will take: “I will heap calamities upon them; I will spend my arrows on them. They will be consumed with hunger, devoured by plague and bitter destruction.” You don’t have to scroll very long through your chosen social media feed to conclude that God may have jumped a little over the revenge gun.
Chris Hipkins is already minister of Just About Everything Else, though he’s only pursuing a career in politics because he lost the movie role of the reverse aging Benjamin Button to Brad Pitt.
It can also be a gamble to assume that abortion rights in New Zealand may be under threat as a result of the US Supreme Court decision. Christopher Luxon has said repeatedly since the weekend that a Team Blue administration will not seek to change our abortion laws. He also said he is not interested in importing “culture wars” into New Zealand. I think he’s way behind that. As the man in a ‘Democracy NZ’ cap who abused me for wearing a mask in a St Pierre’s sushi shop earlier this week would probably say, “The culture wars are already here”. And if he wouldn’t say it, I would.
Not here is Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who has contributed to the print media industry in Europe by posing with other world leaders for photos that magazine readers can caption to win prizes. Her absence put Grant Robertson in charge as Acting Prime Minister. However, I tested positive for Covid late in the week so I’m not sure if he’s still the acting prime minister, if there’s another acting prime minister, or if there’s a new acting prime minister. My money goes to Chris Hipkins for both roles. He is already a minister of Just About Everything Else, although he is only pursuing a career in politics because he lost the film role of the reverse aging Benjamin Button to Brad Pitt. By my reckoning, Chris Hipkins still has plenty of time to become the youngest ever prime minister of a Westminster-style parliamentary democracy. William Pitt the Younger became Prime Minister of Great Britain at the age of 24, and Chris Hipkins is now 43 years old, so he has a good chance of becoming Prime Minister in 2042 at the record age of 23.
Many of you will no doubt see the obvious error in my prediction. Although Chris Hipkins will be 23 years old in 2042, it is less certain that New Zealand will still be a Westminster-style parliamentary democracy by then. Especially when our political class is dominated by people who invoke divine vengeance in response to legally mandated rights.
Have a quiet weekend.