Brash Fracas

Well - what a crazy couple of days for the Brash family, huh.

It appears that Don has been unfaithful again, but the question to pose is: of what import really is it? The general public's prurient interest comes out to play again...

First of all, I think it is entirely reprehensible that Labour brought it up in chambers, but then the shit-slinging free-for-all by both Labour and National over the past few weeks has been a joke and a disgrace. Using marital infidelity as a red rag for the media to distract from the overspending issue is low. This is not, of course, to say that National's own rhetoric has been particularly laudable.

What right do we have to pry into the Brash marriage at this point? I would say on personal principle 'none' - but this is unfortunately qualified by the fact that Brash has gone out of his way to make 'mainstream New Zealand' nuclear-family values a cornerstone of the National Party ethos, and as the figurehead of National, he has to be judged by his own standards.

To restate: I think it is reprehensible and shames our parliamentary system that this bit of news has made it out into the public arena. Having said that, now that it is unfortunately out there, Brash will have to suffer the consequences - he made this particular rod for his own back. He himself is the author of his own misfortune - not Labour, or Brian Connell, or anyone else.

He chose to cheat on his wife, and it is with her that the public sympathy should rest, until the facts are known. It is unfortunate that Brash should have his private life trawled out for the public to pick at like vultures, but it would have been easily avoided by not actually cheating on his wife in the first place - a bloody risky venture for such a public figure.