Enough drama
Of the many things New Zealand needs (improved healthcare, education and roads, to name a few), the one thing it doesn’t need is a limited drama series about Pauline Hanna’s sad life and death (NZ Herald, October 10).
South Pacific Pictures CEO Kelly Martin’s desire to “understand” why things ended the way they did won’t be revealed in a dramatised series. There’s a strong whiff of disingenuousness in the air, and I would think people who work in a creative industry could come up with a more plausible excuse.
Stretching credulity even further is the producer’s statement that “this goes beyond the salacious headlines” and is really about the cost of addiction. The expression that comes to mind is “pull the other one”. It is precisely because it’s salacious that the series is being made, and sex, drugs, an affluent suburb and “professional ladies” garner top ratings, while mundane and everyday lives don’t.
Given that Hanna’s tragic life was minutely dissected for all of New Zealand to witness during the trial, could we not let her rest in peace? However, perhaps the series producers could prove their sincerity and altruism by donating some of their profits to a worthwhile charity. That would be newsworthy.
Mary Hearn, Glendowie.
Power shares
Do all those who complain that electricity companies’ shareholders (I am also a consumer) are gaining at the expense of consumers realise that the investments are not as lucrative as they imagine?
I have one portfolio of shares in Genesis Energy which return me a gross dividend yield of 5.65%. My capital loss is $22,960.79 (17.63%). I have a second portfolio of shares in the same company, which return me a gross dividend yield of 6.55%. My capital loss is $28,311.31 (28.97%).
The yields are not excessive, which also means that the dividends paid are not excessive. The capital losses are of course only paper losses if I do not sell and, in due course, they might turn into paper gains. Parcels of shares I purchased in 2014 have reasonable returns that are swallowed up by losses on parcels of shares I purchased in 2021. Please do not tell me that I am receiving excessive returns at the expense of consumers. Investing in shares is not for the faint-hearted.
Barry Towers, Morrinsville.
Safety factor
Bruce Cotterill (Weekend Herald, October 12) compares his experience of driving past workers repairing a road in the US with the same experience in New Zealand, noting that there was far less interruption to traffic in the US than in New Zealand.
He fails to note that the US has 5.2 workplace deaths per 100,000 workers, more than double the New Zealand rate of 2.3 fatalities per 100,000 workers.
I suggest we look to learn about improving workplace safety from countries such as Singapore, Switzerland, Sweden, the UK and Finland, all of which have workplace fatality rates that are half or less what we have. There are probably many other lessons that New Zealand could learn from those economies rather than from the US, especially with regards to publicly provided health, education and social services.
Jon Eriksen, Parnell.
Committee questions
Martin Hefford was always a poor choice as a media spokesman for Health NZ Te Whatu Ora. His statement in May this year claiming that 40-50% of GP consultations could be managed by telehealth was slammed by health professionals.
More recently, he claimed the committee that evaluates submissions to increase fees from general practitioners is an independent entity and not part of Health NZ. If his claim about the fee review committee is correct, then it warrants transparency from Health NZ about whether the committee is contracted and what the budget is for that contract.
Sadhana Reddy, Lynfield.
