A recent conversation sparked this post.
We were talking about England; how it’s changed, how people are scattered, how division is now a way of life there. I said, “If we’re not careful, we’ll end up like England.”
The reply came fast: “How?”
That’s the question that stuck with me. Because the truth is, I know how.
Not just from the news, not just from history books, but through blood. My parents told me about our ancestors: the languages they were stopped from speaking, the identity they were forced to bury. And here’s the part most people don’t want to admit. It didn’t just happen to Māori, or Chinese, or one group. It happened across Aotearoa in the 1800s. Anyone who didn’t fit the empire’s mould was silenced, reshaped, or pushed aside.
England once thought it was unshakable. But you can’t build a house on control and expect it to stand.
The empire scattered people, erased languages, and rewrote cultures. Those fractures didn’t disappear. They spread. Europe. America. And yes; they’re at our doorstep, too.
Look at England now: fractured, fighting over smoke while the fire burns beneath their feet. Division. Identity lost. No shared vision. There is no road map. Just control systems and tired people trying to remember who they are. That’s where unguarded nations end up. And don’t think for a second that New Zealand is immune.
If we don’t hold the line, we could wake up 10 years from now with no voice left, just a digital ID, a controlled food system, and rules signed by people who never asked us. Power in the wrong hands doesn’t just shift things a little. It changes the shape of a nation.
That’s why I’m not ignoring what’s happening with digital ID proposals and GMO policy. It’s not “paranoid” to pay attention. It’s wise. When people stop paying attention, their freedoms don’t just fade. They’re signed away while everyone’s distracted.
This isn’t about fear. This is about responsibility. Our grandparents and great-grandparents lived through cultural exile. Some of us carry the stories in our bones. We’re not going to let that happen again on our watch.
We need to guard the peace of this land. We need to protect our borders and our identity before someone else decides what those words mean for us.
England scattered because no one stood guard over its foundations.
We don’t have to let Aotearoa follow the same path.
8 responses to ““If We Don’t Guard Our Peace, We’ll End Up Like England””
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You persist with using Aotearoa when there is no such place- are you just virtue signalling?
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Aotearoa has been used as a name for this land long before it was called New Zealand. Whether you accept that or not doesn’t erase it. This post wasn’t about arguing over names — it was about protecting the future of the country we both live in
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I think it helps that we have a large ocean between us and other nations, because illegal migration is one of the big issues faced by the UK. We also need to remember that if it weren’t for the English we would not have things like Common Law or property rights, and this place would have been a whole lot worse if colonised by the French or anyone else for that matter. And it was the Royal Navy which enforced the end of slavery in the 19th century entirely at their own expense, and for which the world owes them a great debt. For these things we should not be forgetful or ungrateful. Yes do lets’ guard this place of ours called New Zealand / Aotearoa whatever, and right now the threat is not so much from without but within.
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Duncan, you’re telling the empire’s version of the story and conveniently leaving out the rest. Colonisation didn’t arrive wrapped in a ribbon — it erased languages, stripped land, and tried to overwrite cultures. You can be grateful for some things and still call out the damage. That’s what honest history looks like.
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I am saying that the reality of the 19th Century was that colonisation was happening all over the world whether you like it or not, and there was no chance that these islands were going to be left to their own devices. It was also a reality that Maori were anything but a peaceful and united people with armed conflict being a fairly constant, and yes cannibalism too. The introduction of muskets which happened due to European contact did accelerate that conflict, but I would still like to see some evidence or even good arguments that their quality of life was superior or even comparable to that of a modern society.
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What you have just said is just wrong- not true- and that matters. Of course the activists want to use the name even though it was invented in the 1890’s. How can you possibly say it was used as a name before New Zealand was – there is absolutely no evidence at all of that. Starting with a lie doesn’t promise well for the rest of what you write – that’s your distraction.
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I’ve always known this land as Aotearoa. But let’s be honest, Roger — this isn’t really about the name. You’re just frustrated because I won’t fold to your outdated version of history. I have something you might want to try: an open mind.
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You are right it isn’t just about the name – its about the distortion and the lies. I have no intention of expecting you to ‘fold’ ( whatever the hell that means) to my versions of history just that you actually try and find out a lot more about what you write about before you actually write. Cute phrases are really just verbal fluff – like ‘the epitome of coolness’ – that describes Paul Desmond not some writing just tossed off for some effect. Open is find for minds but not gaping!
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I’m Sophie
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