The “do as I say not as I do” hypocrisy is one of the least pleasant characteristics of human behaviour.
But it is becoming more prevalent, especially among political leaders and people like former US vice president Al Gore and philanthropist Bill Gates who willingly tell others how to live low carbon emitting lives while maintaining a lifestyle with a carbon footprint the size of a small city.
It was therefore unsurprising that there was much cheering and fanfare when Radio NZ revealed the hypocrisy of high profile vegans, Canadian film producer and part time NZ resident James Cameron and his wife Suzy who are running cattle on their Wairarapa farm.
The Camerons regularly commute between homes in NZ and Los Angeles and despite being newcomers to agriculture who have been granted the privilege of buying NZ land, unashamedly lecture farmers that they need to stop farming animals to help reduce the effects of climate change.
Apparently Cameron was going to show us how to do it, by replacing livestock on his 1500ha property with organic vegetables.
According to the RNZ report the project has sunk.
Vegetable growing stopped within the past year, their Greytown vegetable retail store closed then suddenly large numbers of dairy grazers appeared on their land.
Equally concerning is that RadioNZ report neighbours and others in Wairarapa are prevented from talking about their high profile neighbours, having signed non-disclosure agreements due to connections with Cameron Family Farms.
Cameron’s actions in lecturing those in a country into which he has moved and legally preventing neighbours from talking about him, may work in the US but is not the way Kiwis operate and certainly does little to endear himself to his adopted home.
It is therefore little wonder that public reaction has been so euphoric
