C. Williams, Grey Lynn.
League loyalties
I cant believe how Blair, Kidwell, and especially Lowe, cant understand why these four Tongan boys want to have the mana and privilege to play for their country. This is exactly what our Maori flag is all about, tino rangatiratanga, to have the mana to choose the path of our own destiny. This is also what our haka are about. Emotional reasoning and realisations descend upon us at the last minute sometimes.
Talking about crawling over broken glass to want to be in the Kiwis, Bromwich and Proctor would be willing candidates. How long must they pay for merely being celebrities in public? You guys should stop this negativity and support them all with no malice, and get on the job and bring the cup back.
Dan Korewha, Kaikohe.
Parks maintenance
As a Grey Lynn resident and ratepayer for 40 years I am writing to concur with Tony Warings excellent letter regarding the state of Auckland parks. I have long lamented the removal of the dedicated park manager, such as we used to have in Grey Lynn. Now we have one contractor for all the parks, Ventia, a newly formed, totally untested Australian company, which has been incapable of mowing the grass in Grey Lynn Park (and no doubt others) for months.
The explanation on behalf of the mayor is laughable: It has not been possible to mow Grey Lynn Park since August as there has been excessive wet weather. Any mowing would damage the turf as the ground is exceedingly very [sic] wet and boggy in the majority of places throughout the park. There are also very steep slopes that are not currently able to be mowed due to accessibility.
As there has never been a problem in the past, I would say this is because the fancy new mowers they purchased on getting the multimillion-dollar contract are not fit for purpose, being larger and heavier than those previously used.
The mayor added that he is confident that Ventia will manage councils assets to the high service standards we expect and adds, Staff are satisfied with the attempt that has been made by Ventia to maintain grass turf to the best of their ability. Well, staff may be satisfied but this ratepayer is not.
Louise Johnstone, Grey Lynn.
Fix MMP
To those who voted for MMP 21 years ago on the grounds that no winner of a first past the post election since 1951 has achieved 50 per cent of the vote, and that was not deemed to be democratic, I now ask, how are you people going to fix the problem New Zealand now finds itself in? We are being dictated to by an MP who has just lost his electorate seat and his party, New Zealand First, has only got 7.2 per cent of the total vote.
What authority has this person got to foist his policies on to the majority of New Zealanders so that he can bask in the glory of having changed the course of history?
The thinking public of New Zealand must not just lie down and accept this blatant attack on democracy by a system so flawed that it can allow what we are now witnessing. First past the post may not have been perfect but at least all MPs were elected by people in electorates. After the dust settles from this manipulation of democracy we must demand a total rethink of how our country is governed and what is the best system to achieve a truly democratic outcome for all New Zealanders.
Morrin Hardy, RD Turangi.
Softening markets
Words like consensus and grand-coalition seem to send some into the same spin, as does referencing the 1983-1993 Australian Accord that brought more flexibility into labour markets while lowering inflation and unemployment. It was never going to be a perfect solution but produced some remarkable, and equitable, long-term social reforms as well.
Despite some now recognised negative unintended consequences, that accord provided a social wage to cushion workers from the adverse effects of economic and wages policy reform. It also represented a more equitable alternative to more extreme economic rationalism (neoliberalism) adopted worldwide.
Whichever word is used, I would argue for a thoroughly debated, well-reasoned cross-party consensus in health, education, and long-term infrastructure provision for the environment, transport and even democratic processes. If this consensus looks beyond competitive models to the more equitable Scandinavian ones that focus on collaborative solutions all can buy into, we could achieve new regional-central government economic models to transform our physical and social environment for decades to come. Something worth having and waiting for?
Steve Liddle, Napier.
Netball selection
Something needs to be done about the Silver Ferns. The Diamonds are all over them. They win any loose ball, are in the Kiwis faces all the time, theyre aggressive, they want to win. The Silver Ferns just cant seem to step up a notch when needed or absorb the pressure.
We had a winning team against the Diamonds last month and half those players havent seen the court this time around. If those players managed to step up against the Diamonds then why are they keeping the benches warm and why are the NZ coaches sticking with players who arent performing?
Liz Sampson, Mission Bay.
Reduce speed limit
I am greatly saddened by the senseless deaths on our roads. The loss has been felt by most New Zealanders and especially the families concerned. Norway has comparable population and features. Their drivers contend with snow, ice and many waterways. In Norway, while vehicles can legally do 100km/h on highways with a median barrier, on roads without a barrier the limit is 80km/h.
The time taken for a road trip from Auckland to Hamilton would not be affected when the highway is finished, as this road will have a median barrier all the way. However, from Auckland to Whangarei the median barrier finishes at Johnsons Hill tunnels and the balance of the journey at 80km/h would take five to 10 minutes longer.
Road deaths in Norway over the last two years have been 117 and 135. Our deaths have been 319 and 326. This seems a no-brainer decision.
Tony Arthur, Snells Beach.
Passchendaele
Your editorial attracted my interest up to the final two paragraphs which perpetrated a myth I had hoped had faded into oblivion. The myth is that British generals were inferior to other combatant generals and, as a result, New Zealand troops were subjected to a higher casualty rate. It should be obvious to any study of the Western Front, that all combatant armies were fighting in exactly the same way. This is why the battles stalemated for many months on all the major fronts.
If I am right, why single out the British generals? Surely the opposing generals were equally useless. For NZ to have had an independent command, it would have needed an army of at least twice as many as it sent to Europe. Do you think the outcome of Passchendaele would have been different if New Zealand troops had been under the command of the French Marshal Philippe Petain instead of [Field Marshal Sir Douglas] Haig?
Christopher Barradale, Parnell.
Little and brave
What Damian McKenzie lacks in size against todays rugby players, he more than makes up for in guts. It seems the talented All Blacks we keep getting blessed with are motivated solely by the boots theyre filling of their predecessors. I reckon Michael Jones set the bar and it just went all uphill from there.
Glenn Forsyth, Taupo.
