Truck protests are spreading as quick as Omicron itself. The protests are variously in opposition to vaccine mandates, ongoing Covid-related restrictions and face masks. They are definitely helping to galvanise a weary world voters after 2 years of lockdowns and precautionary mandates. But even the Canadians haven’t stooped to the sheer terror inflicted on NZ truckies and different protesters who’ve gathered outdoors the NZ parliament in Wellington.
Starting with the ‘Freedom Convoy’ in Quebec, Canada, the idea of blocking streets and essential truck commerce routes is turning into a global phenomenon. There at the moment are comparable protests in Paris, Bangkok, Canada and, now, Wellington in New Zealand.
But NZ authorities have found a new and vicious weapon to make use of against the truckers – Barry Manilow. At least a loud and repeated playlist of his hits on a 15 minute rotation blasted out at high volume. They’ve also thrown within the dance hit ‘Macarena’ to combine it up with ‘Mandy’ and ‘Could It Be Magic’ to assist repel the truck rallies.
In response the truckies are firing back with their very own musical weapon, Twisted Sister and “were not going to take it’.
Whilst the NZ authorities are resisting rolling out their riot police and squads of uniformed policeman to maneuver on the protests, they unleashed the uncooked power of a Barry Manilow power ballad to do the onerous work for them.
It seems Barry’s huge songs weren’t as huge a deterrent as they have been hoping (some Manilow fanboys in the ranks of New Zealand’s truck driving fraternity?), so Parliamentary speaker Trevor Mallard obtained the police to activate the sprinklers to assist “dampen” the protests in Wellington.
But the protesters merely dug their own trenches and rerouted the irrigation methods (Barry did do a rendition of ‘Bridge Over Troubled Waters’ which may have complimented slo-mo video of the truckers of their moist T-Shirts frolicking beneath the sprinklers, however no…).
Instead the protesters trucked in bales of hay to absorb the water. Mr. Ballard also took duty for the heavy-handed and brutal use of the Manilow ballads.
So if Barry Manilow can’t deter these persistent truck protests, WHAT probably could?
โซล่าเซลล์ , inspired by the Canada truck convoys and protests, began last Tuesday, but the numbers waned because the week progressed.
Last Thursday NZ police arrested 122 folks, charging many of them with trespassing or obstruction.
But numbers have picked up over the weekend once more (presumably BYO ear plugs).
According to the NZ Herald, among the protesters’ grievances is the requirement in NZ that some staff should be vaccinated in opposition to Covid-19, together with academics, docs, nurses, police and military personnel.
New Zealand has been spared the worst of global Covid pandemic after it closed its borders early, applied strict lockdowns, and has maintained an ‘almost’ zero-Covid coverage to restrict the unfold of the virus.
The southern nation has reported only 53 Covid-related deaths amongst its inhabitants of 5 million.
As Barry Manilow as soon as stated of his personal music… “I assume my music is like anchovies – some people prefer it, some individuals get nauseous.”