The Nancy Steen Rose Garden in Parnell is a peaceful haven well known to rose lovers. File photo / Glenn Jeffrey
I have recently become aware of the size and location of the proposed Erebus memorial in the Dove-Myer Robinson Park /Parnell Rose Gardens. It is quite frankly appalling that a project of this size was not publicly notified and to my mind indicates an awareness that it was
going to be controversial and that public scrutiny should be circumvented.
It is the view of many of the residents most directly affected by the memorial that the size and design is aesthetically inappropriate for such a small, tree-covered park. The Nancy Steen Rose Garden, the "old rose" section of the Rose Gardens, has been in the park for more than 30 years and is maintained by a dedicated team of volunteers, many of whom come from all parts of Auckland. As ratepayers, the lack of consultation is singularly disturbing.
Jennifer Spence, Waiuku.
My wife and I frequently fly and are amazed none of the airlines seem to have procedures to quell the spread of airborne diseases, particularly after having been through such a bad flu season, not to mention measles, swine flu, bird flu, Ebola and others. We often wear masks if we see someone close with symptoms, but surely would it not be sensible that the airlines provide masks and ask those suffering to wear them as a courtesy towards their fellow passengers?
Come on Air NZ and Qantas — lead the way.
Warren Cossey, Whangamata.
World leaders of all races, colours or creeds bang on and on talking the words but not walking the words. They are like needy kids banging their chests screaming me me me.
My mother, who lived 97 years, always said, "the very rich and the very poor have always behaved badly. The vast middle class pay their taxes, keep out of jail, look after their children and just manage to keep the whole world going."
I say, go all you young people who are making loud noises about what's wrong with the world. You are wonderful, and remember, remember, to never become like the arrogant fools you see on our screens and read about in our papers.
Susan Lawrence, Kohimarama.
Every four years, our media make arduous comparisons between the NZ national rugby team and the Brazilian national football team, along the lines of, "We are the Brazilians of world rugby". Anybody with half an ounce of sense will realise this is a ludicrous argument.
Brazil have been masters of a game the whole world plays whereas NZ have been masters of a game that is played seriously in only about 20 countries. The vast difference in skill levels between football and rugby alone makes this comparison extremely far-fetched. Yes, NZ are pretty good at rugby but the comparison with Brazil just doesn't compute.
Maybe that statement can one day be made when rugby has become a truly global game but in the meantime a bit more humility and a dose of reality would not be out of place.
Frank John, Fitzroy.
Ministers may talk of moving the dry dock to Marsden Pt, but will the expert labour move with it? The Devonport workforce probably own their houses on the North Shore and might just be reluctant to move to the Marsden Pt area where there are probably no houses, suitable schools for their young, or other facilities readily available in Auckland.
Not that I have any reason to doubt the resources available in Whangārei, but what happens if staff wish to return from whence they came? It should also be remembered that the land in the Marsden Pt area is low lying, as is the whole of the Bream Bay coastal land.
John Tobin, Remuera.
In the article "Military vets facing gaps in care", Veterans' Affairs Minister Ron Mark states that the gap left by the underfunded No Duff organisation is not being picked up by the Returned and Services Association. Should he not have said "not being picked up by Veterans' Affairs"?
The minister's comments are even more interesting when in August he was quoted as saying, "The Government has budgeted $1.1 million a year for the past three years to help Vietnam veterans. But figures show that at the end of March, less than $200,000 of the year's allocation had been spent — leaving more than $900,000 sitting idle". As a Vietnam veteran I would have no difficulty seeing some of the "idle funds" used to assist No Duff.
People from within the RSA movement have previously made attempts to contact younger-generation veterans but have been told by the Ministry of Defence that names and addresses of recently released veterans cannot be disclosed because of privacy concerns. Wouldn't it therefore be helpful if Veterans' Affairs kept in close contact with recently released veterans, provided that the veteran agrees, until the veteran settles back into civilian life?
Finally in 2017 Professor Ron Patterson led a group seeking submissions to enhance the Veterans Support Act.
The complete lack of implementation of any of the recommendations from the Patterson Report could and may have a negative impact on the physical and/or mental health of veterans.
Andrew Lister, Howick.
Your disgruntled correspondent who feels insulted that the New Zealand vs South Africa game on Saturday night was wrongly advertised as 9.45pm should check the facts. The game started at 9.45pm on Spark — the 10.45pm start was the widely advertised start time for the one-hour delayed coverage on TVNZ.
The start times for these games have been available in many Herald liftouts over the past few weeks — and have all been correct.
David Bevan, Howick.
John Oliver makes a valid point in his letter regarding taxpayers paying for cannabis-related health issues.
My observation is that by regulating and legalising personal cannabis use the taxpayer should save greatly in reduction of court costs for presently illegal violations and subsequent jail terms and, being regulated, the GST on purchase will help fund health and other services.
People will use cannabis regardless, much better to remove it from the tax-free pouches of gangs and other black-market traders.
Samantha Cunningham, Henderson.
I note with some concern and despair the discussions in this paper about the teaching of NZ history in schools.
The starting point for this discourse seems to be what constitutes NZ history.
Many of those loudly advocating "teaching NZ history" seem to be advocating a starting point of British arrival in New Zealand. Narrow, ill-informed, vacuous and dismissive comments are also made about "English" history. There seems to be a perception that history is linear, existing in a vacuum with a definitive start date. It does not.
My late father, Hugh Laracy, a PhD graduate from the Australian National University in Canberra, where Pacific and indigenous history in this part of the world had its birth place, went on to teach history for many decades at the University of Auckland. Thousands of students sat in his lectures, which were enlightening, entertaining, informative and thought provoking. One paper he taught was European Exploration of the Pacific. In my opinion, it should have been compulsory for every student.
The history of Europe is also NZ and Pacific history as events and people in Europe were the catalysts for events that later brought Europeans south.
For the intelligent history student, one line of history leads into another. History is a jigsaw, it is a study of the human condition. Lives of people are juxtaposed against each other. In studying European exploration of the Pacific, I and many of my father's students also learned about the history of the people who lived in this region. One of the great jobs my father did was to work on a history of Tuvalu. He spent a long time in Tuvalu in the early 1980s working on this. The gathering up of stories, the listening to voices and the writing up of indigenous history when there is only an oral tradition is not easy. My father also used to say that there is no history, only biography. Knowing where you come from and where you fit in the world is vital for tolerance, self worth and survival. To those people who say "teach NZ history", I say do we not belong in a greater world? World history is our history. If you are going to study history, work on learning the lot.
Laurentia Laracy, Takapuna.
On cannabis
I'm thinking John Oliver's basic questions on the legalisation of marijuana are also relevant for alcohol consumption and the effect it has on our society. It appears that what is good for the grey goose is not so good for the gander. Martin Shaw, Milford.
On climate
I wonder if Greta Thunberg is going to sail her yacht home via China and India and deliver the same message to the leaders of those two countries which recently announced an increase in their annual coal use. Murray Brown, Hillcrest.
On winter
Cheer up! Cheer up! With General Winter's forces fighting a rearguard action, that messenger of calmer, warmer days – the handsome kotare – has announced his annual return. Welcome back, Mr Kingfisher. Brian Byrne, St Heliers.
On billboards
It is interesting that during local body elections billboards are allowed to stay up as people vote, yet with general elections they have to come down before midnight on the preceding day because they will influence the outcome of the elections. June Krebs, Sunnyhills.
On rugby
One of the stunning moments of last Saturday was seeing the Japanese crowd clearing up every last piece of their debris after the big game before they left the stadium. Let's make that our new NZ aim. Angela Caughey, Meadowbank.
On Ihumātao
If the seller was to negate the sale and return the cost price to Fletchers and return to the status quo, said owners could then sit down with other interested parties to discuss options. R F Pearson, Hillsborough.
Dylan Higgins is impressed with the spiritual home of golf.