What would Fred Dagg make of the present situation and would he need gumboots to wade through the economy? Photo / File
What would Fred Dagg make of the present situation and would he need gumboots to wade through the economy? Photo / File
"If it weren't for your gumboots, where would ya be?" A quote from the iconic Kiwi character Fred Dagg, a national star, loved for his dry, satirical humour. Fred Dagg was created by comedian John Clarke (1948-2017) and first appeared on television in 1973. This typical farming bloke seemed simple, buthad a smart, surreal take on Kiwi culture and politics. He talked about political leaders as not making a hit, "They're ruining the country more than just a bit. If they keep on the way they are going, we'll all be in the ... so you'd better get your feet up yer gumboots."
In 2022, gumboots have again raised a focus on difficulties and need in our country. We have just had Gumboot Friday, raising money to help connect young people with counsellors or therapists. In these troubling times we need to be helping our young people not to always second guess everything they do, to find success, which often comes by doing things more than once and to live in a world where things change rapidly. A world where not everyone has the same things, opportunities, and experiences.
Poverty especially is one of the greatest challenges in the world today. It helps me to understand what poverty really is. My Angels counsel me to think in terms of absolute and relative poverty. The World Health Organisation says absolute poverty refers to incomes that fall below a line set by a given country. Below this line people are unable to meet their basic needs for food, water, and shelter. They also have no access to social services such as healthcare, education, and utilities. Relative poverty refers to incomes that are less than a certain percentage of the country's median income. In New Zealand, this is $56,160. I am aware of many people whose weekly income is much less than this. They live in poverty.
Add to this the United Nations Development Programme measure of poverty across three dimensions — health, education and standard of living. These three dimensions include nutrition, child mortality, years of schooling, school attendance, cooking fuel, sanitation, drinking water, electricity, housing, and assets.
In one of Fred Dagg's songs, he said, "Describe the global position, Bruce." Bruce said, "Fred, it's a mess." It is still a mess. The gumboot has survived from the 70s to 2022, with medium income from $40,000 a year to $56,000, but with growing costs, we seem to be going backwards.
My Angels say we are better off than in some countries and worse than in others and being aware of what is happening around us is our responsibility. Caring for others less well off than us is our responsibility. Doing what we can when we can and choosing wisely our leaders is our responsibility. Then, we will "know how lucky we are in this country". Arohanui. Shirley-Joy
