Helen Clark's Slur on West Coasters inspires book

Several years ago Helen Clark called the West Coasters ferals, and she started a name slinging match that still runs deep within the rural valleys of an area with more than its fair share of rich and intriguing history regardless of which decade you look at since the country was settled by Europeans.

The PM’s slur cut deep with many and perhaps none more than ex-pat Paddy Sweeney who despite living in Australia still calls the West Coast home.

Sweeney is the founder of the Good Bastards club an organisation that is largely based on humour, over 35 Rugby, four wheel bike musters, fishing trips, much laughter and yarn spinning while maintaining a frontline position on the fight against political correctness.

“It wasn’t so much that ‘Old Helen’ called us names, the crux of it she wouldn’t apologize for her attack.” Said Sweeney. “The only ferals are the imported tree huggers that vote labour. You usually only see them on dole day when they come into town to get their handout where there is a real big swag of the bastards.”

Helens unrepentant insult bothered Sweeney to the point where he wrote a book about a fictitious Prime Minister called Helen Fark and an opposition leader called Brash Donaldson. It’s called the “Lost Tribe of Jackson’s Bay” and as Sweeney puts it “….weaves a tale about a miserable old Prime Minister who treats the West Coast as a backwash and sacrifices the culture of the people for a few green votes around the country. What unfolds is a tale of humour and twists and turns that keep the reader hooked into until its climactic ending that most folk do not see coming.”

The yarn entwines the first settlers in New Zealand, the Moriori’s, into the story and even brings the validity of the Treaty of Waitangi into serious question. All this in the name of humour.

“ Humour is a great license and pretty much all the ‘do gooders’ get a rocket; wit is a great weapon ya know” said Sweeney

All humour and wit aside, (or is it,) it will be interesting to see if Saturdays result is the same as that in the book.

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