Let’s give Shane Jones the finger.
That’s the message at the centre of a campaign that’s appeared in billboards, social media and possibly other places in the last week or so.
It’s from WWF, and other than flipping a fish-finger bird to the Minister of Fisheries, it asks us to sign a petition in support of expanding New Zealand’s marine reserves (and send Shane Jones a rude email along the way).
As Minister of Fisheries, marine reserves are something Shane Jones has some sway over. He’s also one of the three ministers empowered with fast tracking resource consent approvals. All in all, getting Shane Jones onside would be a great way to get the sort of policy change WWF is looking for.
It’s a shame, then, that it’s not going to happen.
Is there a world in which giving someone the finger makes them more likely to support your cause?
Do people often receive direct, personal, public insults and think to themselves, “actually, you know what, these people might have a point?”
It’s possible that this whole campaign will have no effect at all.
That would be the best outcome for WWF, marine sanctuaries and the marine life that would be protected by them.
More likely, the effect of the campaign will be to harden Mr Jones’s resolve. If there was any chance before this campaign hit that he might in fact extend marine reserves, there’ll be bugger all now. People don’t react well to being insulted. It’s human nature.
If anything, the result of this campaign will be LESS chance of more marine reserves in this term of government, fewer areas for threatened species to live and breed and more bycatch by commercial and recreational fishers.
Will it grow WWF’s email base and help them raise funds? Probably. Will it get people talking and make for a good marketing case study? I guess so. Will it save a single fish? Not a chance.
