Content deleted Content added
A.J.Chesswas (talk | contribs) |
A.J.Chesswas (talk | contribs) |
||
Line 65:
===Politics===
====Formative Influences====
Raised in one of the safest [[National Party of New Zealand|National]] seats in the country, ''Taranaki-King Country'', held by [[Jim Bolger]] from [[1972]] ([[National Party of New Zealand|National party]] leader [[1986]]-[[1997]], [[Prime Minister of New Zealand|Prime Minister]] [[1990]]-[[1997]]), and [[Shane Ardern]] from [[1998]], Chesswas quickly learnt to prefer blue to red.
After a brief flirtation with [[Socialism]] during his introduction to [[environmental planning]] and [[sociology]], Chesswas became drawn to a more [[centrist]] position and supported the [[United Future New Zealand|United Future]] party at the [[New Zealand general election 2002|2002 election]]. During this time he became acquainted with the [[Maxim Institute]], and became more involved and engaged with political issues, particularly as the [[New Zealand Labour Party#Fifth Labour Government|Fifth Labour Government]] passed into law the [[Prostitution in New Zealand#Prostitution Reform Act 2003|Prostitution Reform Act 2003]] and the [[Civil Union Act 2004]]. Over this period, while completing his studies in [[environmental planning]], [[sociology]] and [[theology]], participating in [[LinkNZ|Christian Community Church]], and working part time for [[Child, Youth and Family]], Chesswas began to develop [[agrarian]], [[localist]] and [[communitarian]] convictions, integrating these within a [[right-wing]] and [[Voluntarism (politics)|voluntarist]] paradigm rather than the [[coercive]] [[left-wing|left]] with which they are often associated. As well as the [[Maxim Institute]], Chesswas counts as formative influences the works of [[Emile Durkheim]], [[Max Weber]], the [[Critical theory (Frankfurt School)|Frankfurt School of Critical Theory]], [[Jean Baudrillard]], [[John Friedman]] and [[Wendell Berry]].
====Blogging====
At the beginning of [[2005]], coinciding with his return to Stratford, Chesswas began ''"Agri-Christian NZ"'', a [[blog]] providing comment and discussion on [[theology]], [[politics]] and current events from a [[Dominionism|Christian fundamentalist]] perspective, with an [[agrarian]] slant. Being election year, Chesswas used this blog to support and promote the [[New Zealand National Party|National Party]] under [[Don Brash]] for the [[New Zealand general election 2005|2005 election]], on the basis that a vote for National, together with mobilised community-level action, would better strengthen [[families]] and community-based institutions for the good of [[civil society]].
| |||