Letters to Editor: Glorifying speeding offence

Glorifying speeding offence

I am outraged that Thursday's edition of your newspaper is assisting James Buckrell to stage a publicity stunt that will probably help his business sell more pies!
Do you not see that by presenting this item as "news", Hawke's Bay Today is assisting this man in glorifying what is essentially reckless and potentially life threatening behaviour?
He really is trivialising his offence and one wonders at his sincerity - particularly as it will not be him but his customers that make the donation to Blue Light.
When you led with your initial article last week I was annoyed to see an image of Mr Buckrell's smiling face - it was as though he was proud of what he had done.
My immediate reaction was it would have been more appropriate for you to print a mugshot, of the type included in "name and shame" articles.
It really begs the question: why is Blue Light only receiving 20 per cent of the profit on these pies?
What is Mr Buckrell expecting the community to do, help pay his $1250 fine (and some!) with the rest of the profits?
What sort of message does it send out to young people and other potential boy racers, when convicted speeders are heralded as heroes?
Let's face it, driving at more than twice the speed limit is totally unacceptable whatever the time of day or night or wherever it takes place.
Andrea Brigden, Hastings
Give him a break
To all of the perfect and puritanical people who objected firstly to James Buckrell's foolish and dangerous driving, and deserved conviction for speeding, and secondly this newspaper's apparent attempt to glorify the fact:
If it hadn't been for Hawke's Bay Today, who employ a lot of local people and contribute much to the community, none of us would probably have known about any of it.
Personally I don't know either Mr Buckrell nor any of his staff.
What I do know is that his business makes excellent food and also employs, and has done for donkey's years, many local people.
Give the man a break, nobody's perfect.
Hands up those of you who have never made a mistake in their lives, or don't have a skeleton or two in their closet such as continuing to drink and drive, despite the consequences for everybody.
It would be pertinent to add also that Mr Buckrell doesn't appear to have been drinking prior to his offence and is very repentant alongside his making of amends.
So James ... naughty boy and thank-you for that which you give to the community.
Dave Hale, Napier
Is there any regret?
In the text section of Saturday's Hawkes Bay Today you "apologised to any readers who took offence" to the article about the 36-year old baker who was caught travelling at 202km/h in his Red V8 Holden.
In an act of bravado he is promoting his 'Red Rocket' pies and donating 25 per cent of the proceeds to a driving programme.
Included in the article was a large colour photo of the offender leaning on the car and munching one of the pies. Understandably a number of your readers saw this as a commercial promotion rather than a genuine act of remorse. While you have expressed regret that the article may have caused offence, you have not regretted actually publishing it.
Can we take it then that there is no such regret?
Ewan McGregor, Hastings

Editor's note: We believe there was news value in the James Buckrell story published Thursday, May 19 but we accept the presentation and tone of the story did reflect the seriousness of his original offence and we regret that. For that reason, we have apologised to readers who took offence.
Countryside lives
I was thrilled to read the letter from Mrs Gwynn on climate fears in your paper of May 20, particularly the last paragraph.
Two or three years ago, I became so concerned over the Greens publicity that we were poisoning the countryside and it was dying before our eyes. I went to the trouble of taking photographs on a recent trip to Auckland, at that time, and presented to the regional council, during submissions, showing and assuring the councillors that the countryside north of the Bay was in fact vibrant, pristine and thriving.
Now it would appear that the good lady does recognise that the pollution we were supposedly bestowing on our countryside has not created an oasis of death, but we still have "the beauty we enjoy now". Mother Nature is a wonderful thing, forgiving us our transgressions and putting our waste to use for the benefit of her flora and fauna. We do care, and we do recognise that she goes through cycles of warming and cooling, and these should not be used as an excuse to raise yet further taxes and impose unnecessary burdens of guilt on the population.
Philip M Ward, Napier