Colin Craig on the Moon

Luna 2, the first man made object to land on the Moon, sent by the Soviet Union.

If what's been spread on the airwaves is to be believed, Colin Craig doesn't believe men landed on the moon. Amazing how what someone says can be spread like Chinese Whispers where it almost takes on a life of it's own. Yet the story, as reported in The Herald is this:

Mr Craig's initial comments were made during an interview with RadioLive host Marcus Lush.

Mr Craig said he had "no idea'' whether astronauts had landed on the moon, and hadn't had the chance to look into chemtrails - a conspiracy theory that suggests the trails left by aircraft come from the deliberate spreading of chemicals.

Asked about the moon landing conspiracy - which suggests the Apollo landings were faked by the US government - Mr Craig replied: "I don't have a belief or a non-belief in these things, I jut don't know."

Asked again, Mr Craig said he had "no idea" whether man had walked on the moon.

"That's what we're told. I'm sort of inclined to believe it. But at the end of the day, I haven't looked into it. And I know there's some very serious people that question these things."

Ouch. I know what he's saying, that things can necessarily be known if you can't verify them personally. In the end you have to take a lot on faith, because you can't be everywhere at once to check out the veracity of every single little thing. However, that subtle conversation of how reality and our beliefs interact is better left in a small discussion with a group of friends, not a swarm of pyranhas looking to take you down and eat you for breakfast.

Later on in the day, given the reaction to what he said, Colin Craig clarified what he believed:

In an interview with APNZ today Mr Craig appeared to move away from earlier comments about whether man has landed on the moon.

Mr Craig said: "Of course I think we landed on the moon, but it doesn't mean that I'm the expert on that."

"I think people should talk to people who are experts, whereas they can talk to me about politics or an issue in New Zealand, that's relevant to New Zealand, and then I will have an opinion on it.

"Do I think they're right? Probably not. But that doesn't mean that I'm the person that's going to be sort of judge and jury of whether their little view of the world is right or not."

But it was far too late, the whisper had been uttered and there was no way to retrieve it. Today, on the Tim Fookes Morning Show on NewsTalkZB, Tim Fookes was asking for people's opinions of a political party leader who believed in conspiracy theories, already carrying on what had been started the night before.  So, John Armstrong told Colin Craig through the NZ Herald, that he had a problem.

... when someone who conceivably could end up being a minister following next year's election is unsure whether he believes man has walked on the Moon, it is time to press the "whoop-whoop, pull-up" warning button on the dangers of potential coalition with a party which might also believe Paul McCartney is dead and Elvis Presley faked his own death.

Craig was not fully subscribing to one of the great conspiracy theories, but he was not dismissing it out of hand either.

That was breakfast-time. By lunchtime, Craig was shifting away from his ambivalence faster than the Space Shuttle on take-off.

Too late. His lunar-tic observations during an interview with RadioLive's Marcus Lush came close to overshadowing John Banks' press conference at which he announced he would not be standing for Act in Epsom next year as well as stepping down as leader at the party's annual conference in March. Given Banks will be in the High Court dock next year facing charges of electoral fraud, both decisions were inevitable. He correctly described his standing aside as a necessary circuitbreaker for the party. It gives Act one last chance of reviving itself. That is going to be a tall order.

Hmmm, I disagree.  Craig could actually make a good conservative leader despite not being a savvy debater who can recognise a pitfall at hundred paces.  He seems like a smart guy, so will hopefully learn fast.  Debating and governing are two different skills.

I don't think whether or not Colin Craig is a bit vague on men landing on the moon is the real issue, however.  I think it's Conservatism itself that scares media people (who are mostly liberal) witless and attacking Craig on this issue is just the poxy for their fear.
Related links:
That Interview on Radio Live - AUDIO
John Key: Colin Craig is 'winding up' media ~ NZ Herald
John Armstrong: Hello Colin Craig - you have a problem ~ NZ Herald

Craig on conspiracy theories ~ David Farrar, KiwiBlog
Colin Craig is a conspiracy theorist—chuckle chuckle—all the way to the bank ~ Terry Wallbank, The Conservative