Young New Zealanders spent lengthy periods of their late teens or early 20s living under Covid-19 restrictions, but an exclusive Herald poll found they appear to be far more optimistic about society than any other age group. Photo / Michael Craig
Times are changing
As an older person, I was not surprised at the poll (NZ Herald, December 16) which explored key issues in NZ society. The aim was to discover whether these issues brought us, as a nation, together or pushed us apart. As Julia Gabel has noted, the response between younger people 18-24 years old and older people 65 years+ was stark. It’s a sad commentary on some older people that they feel so challenged by change - by diversity in all its manifestations, whether it be sexual, racial or gender, or simply change in general. Letters to the Editor that complain of change, whether it be Three Waters, co-governance, climate change mitigation, or equity provisions in education, health or housing, are written, I would guess, by mainly this older age group. Part of their resistance is driven by the belief that by giving others more somehow they will get less. Or perhaps power sharing is not a commodity they want to entertain. Thank goodness that young people polled point to a more optimistic future for NZ. I would urge this older cohort not to fear change but to have more of an open mind and even embrace it as young people do. Diana Walford, Greenlane.
Bash and grab
Another horrendous attack on an innocent dairy worker by absolutely gutless people. To me, the common denominator of these thugs is not a bad childhood, poverty or any of the other things we keep hearing about, but a warped sense of entitlement, “If I want it, I’ll take it and just so I look tough I’ll use a weapon.” In what group of humans would it be considered to be a show of courage and strength for four people, one armed with a machete, to attack a defenceless young man? What they don’t seem to realise is that to decent people they’re just cowards dressed in a “gangsta” uniform of hoodies and trackies. Unfortunately, we’ll hear the usual cry of “something has to be done to stop the escalating violence in New Zealand”, but nothing changes, and so on and on it goes. Lorraine Kidd, Warkworth.
Speaking less
Within New Zealand, we are facing an increasingly divided country. It’s breaking my heart. I was born in this country and I chose to be called a “Kiwi” – hard-working, my word is my bond and I actively support my family, friends and community. I recognise I live in a racist country where people are openly and increasingly hostile to other races who live in our beautiful country. Any changes start with me. I now watch what and how I say things. I don’t want to insult anyone but am keen to hear their views. I have two ears and one mouth; my mother taught me to use them in those proportions. I’ve learned more by listening than talking. Our country’s current situation is like, “Two fleas on a dog, arguing over who owns the dog.” Building our future needs everyone to change – and that starts with what and how we speak. My mother also taught me, “If you don’t have anything good to say, don’t say anything.” It can make for shorter discussions. John Eadie, Kerikeri.
Spread the word
Hats off to New Zealand’s Ministry of Health for its excellent care of my husband and me after we came down with Covid during a recent visit to Auckland. Being no spring chickens, we were most impressed by the trouble taken to provide us with antivirals and the follow-up to make sure that we were recovering well. Back in Australia, we are spreading the word about what a good job New Zealand is doing to manage this current Covid outbreak. Sue Donovan, Main Beach, Queensland, Aus.
Missing jabs
Aotearoa/New Zealand did very well in terms of its response to Covid-19 in the early stages of the pandemic. It has, however, completely lost direction. For most New Zealanders, only a first booster shot has been made available. For those who are eligible for a second booster, there is no third although efficacy is severely reduced after six months (a stage many have reached or are about to reach). In any case, the boosters did not accommodate new variants of the virus. Surprisingly, there have been few public protests about the current dire situation. Winifred Crombie, Queenwood.
High steaks
It’s not widely known that the credit calculated for carbon sequestration (intake) in the NZ calculation for CO2 uptake for plants and trees in New Zealand does not take into consideration native bush; apple, cherry or orange orchards; farmers’ crops; and all paddocks and grassland around New Zealand. Only allowed are pines planted after 1992. Yet with all this “unallocated” credit for CO2 uptake, the Government wants to tax farmers for its farmed animal burp additions of methane, the only country in the world to come up with this idea. Recently, Uruguay was given European certification for producing carbon-neutral beef to international standard ISO14064, allowing companies to verify their greenhouse gas emissions. The cattle in Uruguay have been derived from NZ genetics but the interesting thing here is that, under this ISO accreditation, it relates specifically to greenhouse gas emissions from the cattle, so the sequestration of CO2 by grass and pasture has been recognised and accepted by the certification institution - and thus accepted by the EU. Is not the New Zealand Government being a little harsh or greedy in its treatment of our farmers? Kent Baigent, Karaka.
Golden opportunity
My Gold’s chief executive, Rich Elliott, is reported in Business Desk (NZ Herald, December 19) to be encouraging us to buy gold because central banks are buying up large “in the last year, up 27 per cent, which is the most since 1967″, “in October alone, central banks added 31 tonnes of gold to international reserves”. Central banks and governments historically buy huge amounts of gold at price peaks and sell when the price bottoms out. Not a profitable plan. This is on record so it can be verified. The time to buy then, is when you notice banks and governments are selling - and sell when they’re buying. Gary Ferguson, Epsom.
Trying the waters
Thank you, Rob Campbell (NZ Herald, December 15) for your timely piece on co-governance, which brought some welcome sanity to the debate. Unfortunately, terms like co-governance and Three Waters have been made into bogeyman terms by some politicians and commentators who hope that if they are repeated often enough in shocked tones they will scare voters, the vast majority of whom have no idea how they might affect their lives. The fact is, they won’t, except that they will have cleaner rivers and drinking water, and Māori might, at last, have health outcomes comparable with the rest of the community. Warren Drake, Ōrākei.
Oh crumbs
One thing missing from the shelves this Christmas: Ernest Adams’ Christmas cakes, puddings and fruit mince tarts. Why? The Ernest Adams lines have all been discontinued, including their slices and cakes. No forewarning, no explanation from Goodman Fielder who make (made) these goods. A long-standing well known, good-quality product, no longer available. How disappointing. D. Cook, Torbay.
Criminal element
The perception that crime is rampant may fit a certain political narrative - but it’s not born out by the facts. Crime statistics show we are no better or worse than we’ve ever been. In many areas, things are a lot better. The fear of crime is usually much worse than the reality. Highlighting high-profile crimes, particularly violent ones, are good ways to play into knee-jerk fears. If you want to rattle voters paint a picture that the police and government have lost control of crime. Then talk strong-arm tactics and you incite fear and add the satisfaction of revenge. There’s always going to be something bad happening somewhere in a nation of five million. A lot of good things are happening in both preventing and combating crime as well. Even white-collar criminals are finally being held accountable. We need to keep a real sense of perspective and not give in to prejudice or fear. There are far too many actors prodding those two beasts at the moment for their own ends. Jeff Hayward, Auckland Central.
On weather
Poet John Milton called it Paradise Lost but composer Giacomo Puccini aptly described New Zealand’s summer as One Fine Day. Ray Gilbert, Pāpāmoa Beach.
On hoarding
Looks like we might be needing to stockpile the toilet paper again; not because we fear we might run out, but rather because we soon won’t be able to afford any. John Ford, Taradale.
On food banks
Every time I see a photo from a food bank, there are cans of chickpeas. What kind of Grinch donates chickpeas? Do they think the poor are going to whip up a batch of hummus to go with their tabbouleh? C.C. McDowall, Rotorua.
On the UN
Blessed are the toothless and absolutely useless United Nations (together with the “peaceniks”) because they will inherit plenty of Frequent Flyer points. C. Lock, Gisborne.
On roads
During the last National Government’s term in office, the road transport lobby managed to convince the Government to allow trucks to become heavier, longer and faster (by 10km/h). Now everyone is complaining about the condition of state highways. Who would have thought? Niall Robertson, Balmoral.
Perhaps if Waka Kotahi listened to people like Greg Murphy and his push for better education of drivers, rather than a money-gathering penalty system, it might garner more respect from the public. That’s before we even talk about road conditions. John Little, Milford.
Interesting that the Uber drivers ask the passengers to cancel instead of doing it themselves, there is obviously some sort of penalty for them to do this or they would cancel themselves. Kathy A.
Totally… this is them gaming the system. Emma C.
As a passenger, if you keep cancelling over a period of time, you will get a warning (this varies from country to country that I’ve been in for Uber and Grab). Eventually, you get a “you’re paying this upfront and no refund if you cancel” and, I believe, also notifies drivers you are a regular person who cancels. Drivers also have a cancel limit before they start getting pinged by the company, hence why they will ask you to do it (as you’ll get around three “free” cancels in a week before your slate is wiped clean). Scott D.
Used to use Uber for business. No more. Have also experienced a high cancellation rate. So I’ve said to my division, no more using Uber for travel. Back to taxis as long as they are reliable. E L.
Last night our Ola driver rings me up to ask where I am going. I don’t think they can see until they get to the pick-up. I said you are not allowed to ask. He cancelled me. I did go into my ride history and was able to complain about him. His loss as we wanted a long ride. Mark G.
As a regular user of Uber, mainly inner-city trips, I’ve had the occasional cancellation but not an issue. The drivers take only a small portion of the fare. I often tip. This is a first-world problem. I wonder if the same people complaining ever tip? Mark M.
Why tip? If the fare rate isn’t enough, then the model is flawed and Uber is too greedy. This happens worldwide with Uber. I never use Uber now as I would rather pay a fair price and get the ride. Guy M.
OPINION: New Zealander reflects on delivering speech at St James' Palace.