Any New Zealander who's nurtured misgivings about the sale of the nation's assets to foreigners - especially to communist Chinese - will have their fears validated and heightened by this worrying book. The hypocrisy of those involved: NZ and Chinese government politicians, diplomats and bureaucrats, is matched only by that of the Chinese front people buying New Zealand out from under its citizens.
The NZ political class is also flensed - be that National or Labour. There seems to be only two options. Either the politicians are woefully ignorant of what's going on, or are involved because of thoroughly well informed self-interest. Neither option is good for New Zealand or its citizens. The number of directorships in Chinese-owned companies for NZ politicians is worrying, too. (The chapter on communist China's NZ poster girl Jenny Shipley is rather damning).
The book lays bare communist China's game plan and its methodology - always styled as "investment," rather than the takeover that's really happening. A point that could perhaps have been emphasised far more strongly is that every time that NZ or a New Zealander buys products from China, that purchase aids and endorses several less-obvious consequences.
The most egregious consequence is that it gives communist China the purchasing power to buy land and natural resources from under New Zealanders. It also validates the export of New Zealanders' jobs to Communist China where slave, sweat shop, child and political prisoner labour by the Chinese government are normal. That's how China can produce goods so much more cheaply than could any country employing properly paid staff with appropriate safety and environmental standards. In that context a Free Trade Agreement with China really means that NZ politicians are free to trade kiwis' jobs for Director positions on Chinese-owned, NZ companies.
The end result is that others may have the goods, but communist China then has their money.
Never be deceived by a label. China utilises one of the most fundamental rules of advertising-spin-speak. Viz. take a product's weakest point and eulogise it to the maximum amount possible. There is no People's Republic of China. In reality, there's a Communist Party's Republic of China, where nepotism, cronyism, ruthless authoritarianism, political bribery and manipulation, along with downright lies and deception are the currency of the day - at home and abroad.
The book also details the covert and overt ways in which China is slowly annexing the nations around it - near and distant - including Pacific islands located far outside its territorial waters, but uncomfortably close to Australia and NZ.
The book reveals potentially the real reason for annexing Tibet: to dam the rivers that are the headwaters and lifeblood of so many downstream Asian nations, so they can be held to ransom. Examples include: Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, India, Russia, Kazakhstan and Thailand. The rivers involved being the Mekong, Brahmaputra, Arun, Indus, Sutlej, Irtysh, Illy and Amur. The headwaters of the Ganges are not far over the Indian border with communist-China-controlled Tibet.
If communist Chinese tried to take over New Zealand or Australia at gunpoint, it is likely that fervent patriots would defend their countries to the last person standing. But when done from the blunt end of an open wallet, it seems that those same people can't surrender fast enough as they sleep-walk their way to becoming serfs in a satellite province of communist China.
An old cliche serves well: be afraid - be very afraid.