Overweight stigma
Correct me if I'm wrong, but what I take out of "Fat silent as stigma rife" (NZ Herald, October 21) is that New Zealand does indeed face a severe skills shortage dwarfing all prior skills shortages that have been proclaimed from the rooftops by businesspeople crying in the wilderness.
It's that niggling little skills shortage that most management face every morning in their mirror when it stares back at them. It takes the form of an inability to think outside rigidly defined categories, an inability to empathise with those whose circumstances differ, and also constitutes an inability to solve problems as opposed to an ability to cause them.
How much time and money is wasted on mismanagement?
Wesley Parish, Tauranga.
TV turn off
I find it ironic that the very raison d'être of television is causing its demise.
Advertising has reached such tiresome levels that I have entirely switched off on mainstream TV. Exceptions are the news and The Project (I love Kanoa and Josh).
There have been some great ads over the years but I'm tired of watching ordinary ones and sitting through even more ordinary programmes in anticipation.
With the advent of online streaming, TV revenue is dying. The Government will subsidise TV1 but not TV3.
I bet MediaWorks would love to introduce Fox News to the equation. They've tested the water with the AM show but haven't gone the whole hog. Could Duncan Garner become TV3's Sean Hannity?
Perhaps we should just end all TV so people learn how to socialise again. Does anyone remember how to play cards?
Paul Cheshire, Maraetai.
Speed limits
More nonsense from the "out of control" Auckland Transport, with harsh reductions in speed limits for the city (NZ Herald, October 22). Yet another agonising revenue-producing decision, with this time the inevitable inability to travel that slowly without being fined.
A careful personal trial of these ridiculously low speeds show they will be largely unworkable.
This is all part of Auckland Transport's lunatic "anti car" campaign. People in Auckland use cars, because of inclement weather with frequent rain, hilly terrain, and the spread-out nature of the city.
Simon Bridges is quite correct to criticise the proposals. Auckland residents should immediately take his lead and rise up to vehemently oppose this dictatorial nonsense.
Dr Hylton Le Grice, Remuera.
Heavy thinking
I fully agree with your correspondent R Anderson's call (NZ Herald, October 21) for a re-think on the proposed light rail project.
With the estimated cost of this project now blowing out to an eye-watering $6 billion, there are better, heavy rail, alternatives which the Government and newly elected Auckland Council should look into, such as a line between Manukau and the airport.
Train services could also easily be extended to Kumeu or Helensville in conjunction with the major upgrade of the North Auckland rail line recently announced by the Government, which would provide long-suffering residents in the north-west a decent alternative to contending with some of the worst traffic congestion in Auckland on SH16 - and much sooner than the ridiculous proposal for a tram to Kumeu which could take a decade or more to eventuate at the current rate of progress.
G Sinclair, Taupaki.
Surplus schmurplus
I wish to commend Sir Michael Cullen on his bravery (NZ Herald, October 17) in exposing that the Government's surplus is only on paper and not in cash. I hope they do not resort to borrowing more money to squander.
If only Sir Michael Cullen could be persuaded to return as finance minister and review the interest rate, even if only for the pensioners to enable them to continue to afford to live in their own homes.
B Young, Tauranga.
Drug funding
One wonders who actually makes the decisions at Pharmac or how, when and why.
As an example, a decision was made to provide the vaccine Zostavax for those aged between 66 and 80 for the prevention of shingles. The vaccine is available for those aged 81 and above but one has to pay for it.
Just in case Pharmac is not aware: An octogenarian generally has less, not more, money and still feels pain. This is not the only medical benefit not available to persons of that group. One wonders when compulsory euthanasia will be made obligatory after three scores years and twenty.
Reg Dempster, Albany.
Longest flight
Whilst people may think that the recent Qantas flight from New York to Sydney was the longest commercial flight time (NZ Herald, October 21), it is far short of the time taken by the airship, Graf Zeppelin on the Germany to Tokyo sector of its round-the-world flight.
This took place in August, 1929. The 11,743 km journey took nearly 102 hours, compared to the nearly 20-hour Qantas flight. It carried several notable people on the passenger list.
David Clemow, Papakura.
Trumped up
There is a recent video clip of Donald Trump at a political rally in which he describes how he has always been greedy for money (as though this were a good thing) and now he is greedy for money for America. This helps explain his transactional, values-free and knowledge-free approach to trade and geopolitics.
He spends 4 per cent of GDP on the military but prefers it to be spent on hardware to increase the manufacturing output rather than "endless" wars. He withdraws troops from northern Syria but sends them to Saudi Arabia because they are "paying for it". He is happy to sell billions of dollars worth of arms to Saudi Arabia, setting aside moral inconveniences such as the death of Khashoggi and the war in Yemen.
Climate change is a hoax because dealing with it will cost money. He dismantles Obama-era environment protections that are expensive. Bilateral trade deals are preferable because he can leverage the power of America. He has gutted the State Department and prefers not to spend on soft diplomacy or foreign aid, let alone the global institutions which have gone a long way to ensuring peace and prosperity in the 75 years since World War II.
In short, he has transformed Reagan's shining city on the hill into an illiberal democracy where world leaders must pretend to admire him to further the interests of their own country or the world at large.
Christine Hillier, Remuera.
Short & sweet
On limits
More dumb ideas from bureaucrats with nothing to do but think stupid ideas and strangle the city. We don't go through Christchurch any more because of the 30km/h limits. i>Ian Brown, Rangiora.
On colonialism
Andrew Judd's colonial ancestors might have "murdered and plundered" as he says (NZ Herald, October 21). Mine did not. They were all decent, hard-working and fair citizens.Bruce Moon, Nelson.
On e-scooters
Claire Dale (NZ Herald, October 21) suggests e-scooters should be "confined to roads, like bicycles are" Really? If she were to visit Orewa she would find many cyclists, riding on the footpath, often without helmets. John Riley, Orewa.
On Syria
Trump's decision to withdraw from Syria without mapping a peaceful exit, a homeland for the Kurds and a plan to keep ISIS under control is quite appalling and must be condemned. Steve Lincoln, Botany Downs.
On adjectives
Adverbs and adjectives can be used to reveal the truth, albeit unintentionally. "I'm seriously sorry" (Peters) actually means, nah, not sorry at all. And, "I'm incredibly surprised and disappointed" (Ardern), means, nah, I expected that. C G Marnewick, Bucklands Beach.
On media
What is the NZ Government doing to hold these juggernaut social platforms accountable for mining (and monetising) users' private information? Rita Riccola, Lucas Heights.
On rugby
As great a performance as the AII Blacks put on against Ireland , the English will be greatly encouraged by the poor performance at scrum time. It is great to have mobile props but they must still be able to scrum. Jock Mac Vicar, Hauraki.
On meals
Years ago it was usual for everyone, children included, to have breakfast, lunch and dinner. Snacks were occasional. Nowadays, eating on and off when you feel like it seems to be the norm. No wonder food is wasted. Pamela Russell, Orakei.
