Given the current global order and its leakage south e.g. the Charlie Kirk vigils held around the country and throughout the South Pacific, it is possible (and without being accused of heading down a rabbit hole) that local lefties and community activists should have structures in place which can resist a fascist revival. Outrage, protest, faith in the judicial system, certain constitutional safeguards and the party system (of late there is talk of reviving the Alliance) may lack sufficient coherence and resilience.

Since, some years ago, sitting and chatting on a bus alongside a committed activist who had literally thrown her adult life into the hands of God and his followers for her accommodation and daily sustenance as she moved around the country, I have been aware of the organisational skill, commitment and capacity of the Christian nationalist right. In the US, tea parties, MAGA and organisations like Turning Point have provided a grass roots base of ambition and resilience.

We could be only an election away from a significant shift to the right in Aotearoa. Of course, hopefully not, but, on the left, is there a need for cells, playing with identity, an increased commitment, keeping an eye out for infiltration, and worrying about communication safety?

Just a thought.