Correspondence with Brian Edwards, re "Sir" Paul Holmes

[Morrissey Breen]

On Radio New Zealand’s “The Panel” yesterday, Dr Brian Edwards made
the remarkable claim that Paul Holmes had had a magnificent, stellar
career, and that his racist, profanity-laced verbal barrage against
the U.N. Secretary-General in 2003 was just “one little slip”.

I decided to remind Brian that Holmes’s behaviour on that infamous day
was anything but “one little slip”, and was in fact part of a
consistent stream of vicious race-baiting and inflammatory, ill-
informed comments about international affairs by Holmes. I posted
Brian the following e-mail….

Paul Holmes made “one little slip”? You must be joking.

Dear Brian,

Paul Holmes did not make “one little slip” over his entire career,
contrary to your protestations on The Panel this afternoon. He was
found guilty of having grossly violated broadcasting standards when he
instructed his viewers to “prepare to go ballistic” over a Maori land
claim in Tauranga (Holmes, Monday 18 November 2002). Just last year,
he angered many people by writing a foul anti-Maori tirade in the
Herald. That was his contribution to Waitangi Day.

And the “cheeky darky” rant was not a simple “slip”; he raved for at
least two minutes, repeatedly using the crudest and most vicious
language he could.

In 2004, when the Abu Ghraib scandal broke, Holmes laughed
sardonically at the prospect of Iraqi civilians being tortured: he
chortled, “They won’t like THAT!” Last year he joined in the campaign
against Julian Assange, and was quoted all over the world for his
bloodthirsty opinion that “they will have to kill him”.

“One little slip”? You are dreaming, surely.

Yours in concern at shoddy standards of commentary,

Morrissey Breen
Northcote Point

A couple of hours later, the good doctor took the trouble to write a
rather irritated reply....


Well, Morrissey Breen, he'll almost certainly be gone by the end of
this week, so you can carry on feeling smug and superior after his
death. For my part, I'll take a flawed performer like Paul anytime in
preference to an unforgiving, judgmental, self-righteous prick like
you.

Please don't write to me directly again. Pour your venom out on the
website where everyone can read it. And if you want this reply posted
as well, I'll be happy to oblige.

Brian

You can follow the fun by clicking HERE...
http://brianedwardsmedia.co.nz/2012/12/paul-holmes-starry-starry-knight/

[Rich80105]

I don't read irritated in that. It is a nice custom not to speak ill
of the dying. the time for ensuring a balanced historical perspective
will come. He was a man that made an impact; he certainly worked hard,
and accomplished a lot of what he set out to do.

[David]

On Thursday, 24 January 2013 09:34:31 UTC+13, Morrissey Breen wrote:
> On Radio New Zealand’s “The Panel” yesterday, Dr Brian Edwards made
>
> the remarkable claim that Paul Holmes had had a magnificent, stellar
>
> career, and that his racist, profanity-laced verbal barrage against
>
> the U.N. Secretary-General in 2003 was just “one little slip”.

I never liked Paul Holmes, and never liked his television.

What he said about Koro Kofi was fine. It is said all the time
about people in power.

Lets get over this PC bullshit!

[I particularly hated the way he fawned over Kiri. I was jealous!}

[Morrissey Breen]

I was speaking ill of Holmes ten years ago, when he was in his prime.
Check out my oeuvre some time.

>
> the time for ensuring a balanced historical perspective
> will come. He was a man that made an impact; he certainly worked hard,

He talked and talked, often with little substance. Hospital cleaners
and roadmen and farmers work hard; Holmes made a handsome wage by
shooting his ignorant mouth off day after day.

>
> and accomplished a lot of what he set out to do.

Like what? Ranting at Maori? Spewing out racist filth on the radio?
Laughing at victims of torture?

Holmes lacked the courage to even challenge that war criminal Alistair
Campbell in 2005, when Campbell contemptuously brushed off his attempt
to ask him a serious question about his role in the invasion of Iraq.

WHAT did Holmes accomplish again?

[Rich80105]

I think you have covered it. Lots of money, leveraged off little
talent - but that is what radio shock jocks are employed to do. He did
manage to attract a large audience for advertisers. You and I may not
value empty conversation, but I am sure Sir Paul and his family find
plenty to be proud of . . .

I do agree with one comment that his support for his daughter was
admirable.

I once knew him personally, and behind the bluster he was in fact
quite intelligent - I regard much of his talent as wasted, and sadly
overshadowed by the sad incidents you have referred to.

[anym...@anon.com]

Morrissey Breen wrote:

<snip>

>
> WHAT did Holmes accomplish again?

More than you will ever do ......

[Morrissey Breen]

Really? What has he accomplished, beside engaging in regular racist
rants and kissing up to minor celebrities and politicians?

[anym...@anon.com]

At least his obsessions reached a nation, whereas yours struggle to move
participants in a few obscure newsgroups whose numbers tally barely more
than the population of Eketahuna.

[Morrissey Breen]

My friend, you need to have a good look at the oeuvre of this writer,
ie., moi. I have engaged in debates with people from all over the
world, on a great number of subjects---but I have never, ever, engaged
in a Holmes-style racist rant or laughed at the victims of catastrophe
or war.

Over thy years, my associates and I have stimulated, and sometimes
goaded, journalists, political propagandists, politicians, and
scholars in a range of fora, from this one to the Guardian to Media
Lens to the Harvard University site. Most people are willing and able
to engage in constructive debate, but not all of course: I have
reduced hapless cases like Kerre Woodham, Michael Laws and Leighton
Smith to displays of drooling anger, and I have drawn threatening
letters from the murderous folks at the S.S. Trust.

Look over my oeuvre, my friend: it's more substantial, better written
and will last longer than anything that "Sir Paul" has done in his
wasted career.

[Morrissey Breen]

Yes it was. Holmes is guilty of shoddy journalism, intellectual
laziness, and the grossest sycophancy---but he is not a monster.

>
> I once knew him personally, and behind the bluster he was in fact
> quite intelligent -

Unfortunately, he will be remembered for the public bluster, not the
private substance.

>
> I regard much of his talent as wasted, and sadly
> overshadowed by the sad incidents you have referred to.

It's a very sad story. He was and is intellectually far superior to
everyone he worked with, and often cruelly humiliated them on the
radio. Grovellers like Paul Little deserved such treatment; the humble
mayors of provincial towns who he treated with such disdain did not.

[Rich80105]

Money of course. In the current me-first bugger everyone else climate,
nothing else matters . . . Why do you think the photo-op king gave him
a knighthood?

[Pooh]

"Rich80105" <rich...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:7qu3g8p808cujglkp...@4ax.com...

You saying your photo-op queen wouldn't have given Holmes an award Dickhead?
Even though I've never been a Holmes fan he has changed the way our
broadcasters interview and just for that I think he deserves an award. I'd
go so far that he deserved one more than Clark just for the fact he didn't
suck off the taxpayers tit as much as Clark did.

Pooh

[Morrissey Breen]

On Jan 26, 3:34 pm, "Pooh" <pa...@bigots.lie> wrote:
> "Rich80105" <rich80...@hotmail.com> wrote in message

>
> news:7qu3g8p808cujglkp...@4ax.com...
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> > On Thu, 24 Jan 2013 11:57:11 -0800 (PST), Morrissey Breen
> > <morrisseybr...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> >>On Jan 25, 8:48 am, anymo...@anon.com wrote:
> >>> Morrissey Breen wrote:
>
> >>> <snip>
>
> >>> > WHAT did Holmes accomplish again?
>
> >>> More than you will ever do ......
>
> >>Really? What has he accomplished, beside engaging in regular racist
> >>rants and kissing up to minor celebrities and politicians?
>
> > Money of course. In the current me-first bugger everyone else climate,
> > nothing else matters . . . Why do you think the photo-op king gave him
> > a knighthood?
>
> You saying your photo-op queen wouldn't have given Holmes an award Dickhead?
> Even though I've never been a Holmes fan he has changed the way our broadcasters interview

You might remember this cutting edge interview from Albany, 2005....

PAUL HOLMES: So, umm, ahhhh, ha ha ha, umm, ahhh, DID you have
anything to do with the manipulation of intelligence?

ALISTAIR CAMPBELL: No.

[Long, embarrassing pause.]

HOLMES: Okay. Thanks. They should let me ask all the questions! Ha ha
ha ha ha! Ummmm....

>
> and just for that I think he deserves an award.

This is where we pray there IS an afterlife, and he DOES get whatever
comes to crawlers, sycophants and toadies.

>
> I'd go so far that he deserved one more than Clark just for the fact he didn't
> suck off the taxpayers tit as much as Clark did.

Yes he did. He was paid his obscene television salary out of public
money.