And do we truly believe all 23-year-olds who make bad choices are irredeemable? Some think Metiria should have been denied the opportunity to spend 15 years working to improve the wellbeing of our people and the environment because of her past mistakes.
I think her presence created a more diverse Parliament as an antidote to the mainly male, rich successful business people who regularly put themselves forward and are admired by many as representing all of NZ's population. This is clearly not the case.
Morals and laws move and change according to people's situations e.g. in response to a lack of power or those in power denying people the means to do more than just barely exist.
People have at times (including the present) been sentenced to deportation, hanging, having hands chopped off or imprisonment for stealing a loaf of bread - many citizens happy that others receive those punishments as they disobeyed the Law.
It's time we realised there are unjust laws that do penalise thousands unfairly. For example, at present, secondary tax is charged for those working two part-time jobs or supplementing a benefit with extra income to try to pay ever increasing weekly bills . If they choose to work part time for cash instead, they are in breach of the law.
This at a time when employment is scarce due to new technologies creating many redundancies and a lack of funded training that fits present and near future job requirements within NZ.
There is also little state appreciation or assistance for people whose talents lie outside of immediate economic value such as artists, philosophers and nurturers who keep communities together and whose endeavours progress creativity, harmony and innovation.
A rise in mental and physical ill-health and crime being acted out in our communities is a direct response to these "economics first" policies that leave out those unable to contribute to our GDP. This, combined with barely controlled immigration, low wages and skills importation, leaves a growing number of both employed and unemployed NZers without a living wage or a place in our country.
The poor are always with us - it's how we treat them that counts. Elderly, disabled, carers and those whose job is to raise their children need active state help with educational and social problems and a roof over their heads rather than punitive measures like fining parents of out-of-control youth, boot camps and the offer of Foodbank Weetbix donations.
Metiria's success in highlighting the ongoing tragedy that is NZ's wilful ignorance of what thousands in our population are grimly going through exposes this neglect and denial by the current regime and an acquiescent population towards the plight of the dysfunctional, weak and most vulnerable amongst us.
Effective solutions are known. What is urgently required is governmental will and action to tackle the root causes and implement new approaches to identified problems.
My hope is that there is a growing desire amongst our population to bring back our caring Kiwi society and that we are generous enough to vote outside of narrow self interest.
At the risk of sounding politically correct and banging on, I believe now is a good time to move away from government that promotes the creation of fewer and fewer extremely rich people and their corporations with the associated growing social and environmental problems. Instead we could champion any and all efforts to create equality and real progress for all people within Aotearoa/NZ.
Not to mention the environment.
Sharleen Baird worked for many years in Mental Health, Public Health and Maori Health. Views expressed here are the writer's opinion and not the newspaper's. Email: editor@hbtoday.co.nz
