Your views: Readers' letters

Dialysis machines

Once again Wanganui misses out. This time to Levin.

Successive governments and local councils have been sitting on their hands waiting for what?

Government departments closed and moved to Palmerston North, airport no longer serviced by Air New Zealand, and the list goes on.

Now we have Tracey Schiebli asking where on earth we get three nephrologists from.
Well, where is Levin getting them from?

Let's start with getting the service here and then recruiting the operators for them. Wanganui has so much to offer, but negativity in this is unhelpful, to say the least.Letter writer Christine Scanlon Dialysis machinesOnce again Wanganui misses out. This time to Levin.

Successive governments and local councils have been sitting on their hands waiting for what?

Government departments closed and moved to Palmerston North, airport no longer serviced by Air New Zealand, and the list goes on.

Now we have Tracey Schiebli asking where on earth we get three nephrologists from.

Well, where is Levin getting them from?

Let's start with getting the service here and then recruiting the operators for them. Wanganui has so much to offer, but negativity in this is unhelpful, to say the least.

CHRISTINE SCANLON
Castlecliff

Mining question

I question the Ministry for Business, Innovation and Employment's contention that mining the ironsands off South Taranaki would mean funds of $1.1 billion a year to the value of goods and services produced in New Zealand. (Chronicle, March 14).

Other government ministries told us the TPP treaty would mean large sums from expanded trade, and that was not based on fact. It was not a free-trade agreement but a windfall to corporations.

Also, New Zealand has one of the lowest tax rates and royalty rates on overseas corporations doing business here among the western nations.

Most of the profit from the TTR mining would go out of the country, thus increasing the shortfall in the balance of payments.

Finally seafood company Sanford may be in for a big surprise if it thinks the EPA would meet its two reservations on the sediment plume and effect on fish stock.

It would know that the current Government does not even regulate fishing requirements but leaves it to the fishing companies to regulate themselves.

This means no genuine regulation on what is being caught in NZ waters. One would predict the same inaction on TTR mining.

I expect a higher standard of journalism from the Chronicle, with more investigative journalism rather than just quoting a government ministry.

DONNA MUMMERY
Whanganui

National disgrace

Estimates suggest that between 270,000 and 300,000 New Zealand children live in poverty.

Let's be clear, this is a national disgrace.

The damage caused to children living in such circumstances is well researched and well understood.

Government policy and decision-making has a massive impact on child poverty.

I challenge this Government, or any incoming government, to do better.

So why must you change their circumstances? Poverty minimises the opportunities for children to reach their full potential.

So, you must change the circumstances because you have compassion, you have empathy, and you want the best for all people -- especially those in real need, those that cannot speak for themselves.

Yes, there is some action being undertaken by this Government, but it is not enough.

You are failing to make a real difference and you need to do better.

Make the changes required now, and in time the social reward will be tenfold.

HALIM SHERIDAN
Whanganui

God's voice

G.R. Scown (letters, March 9) misunderstands how God speaks. Jesus said, "My sheep hear my voice. I know them and they follow me".

To know God's voice, we must first believe he is, then be willing to listen and put aside our own agenda in favour of his.

There was always only one God, but there have been, and are, many counterfeits.

Listening with humility rather than hubris may help in discerning the difference.

MANDY DONNE-LEE
Aramoho

Towards equality

How can we achieve equality in 2017? We must force our politicians to abolish all racial and separatist organisations, agencies and legislation.

This could be achieved by putting pressure on the political parties and the politicians standing for office in this year's elections. There is no reason why we cannot have one law/legislation for all New Zealanders and stop this conspiracy, which is rapidly destroying our nation.

We encouraged South Africa to do this; it is now our turn.

Honour those who have suffered for justice and freedom in our land, respect those who have worked to build and develop our country.

Believe that New Zealand belongs to all those who live in it under one law, one flag.

IAN BROUGHAM
Tawhero

Primitive thought

Having wound himself up, John Haakma (letters, March 3) ventures into the realm of "the problem of evil", where theologians have mired themselves for 2000 years.

His "God made all things, he owns all things and holds the unassailable right to determine the fate of all things according to to his own law and purpose" is a string of assertions with its own implications. Never forgetting the omniscience, omnipotence and omnipresence of the supposed creative entity, we must surely say: "If God made all things, he must have made the wicked along with the good, which itself implies that 'wickedness' is a part of his knowledge and being".

But enough. Mr Haakma's argument is circuitous nonsense: that black is white; that it is virtuous to allow God to be wicked against all reason and judgment; that indeed mere humans have no right to call God to account for the primitive "record" of his supposed utterances and their resulting carnage.

No, I am not angry. I am sickened and bored that religions still attempt to chain us to primitive modes of thought and belief which inhibit our ability to think clearly and accept the modern knowledge that leads to an expanding and factually-based understanding of our natural world, of which we are a very significant part.

Frankly, I am beyond agnosticism or atheism. I am quite simply anti-religious.

We have reached the point where, if we were prepared to recognise the superstitious and fictitious nonsense in which all major religions are embedded, we just might be able to break free of the shackles of the in-group/out-group syndromes engendered by these pretences to supernatural knowledge.

We have nearly cracked the big one of slavery -- its continued support in the Bible and Koran limits the victory, but all that should be enough to make people think that reason could be made to prevail, with honest goodwill, to hone a universal moral and ethical code based on reality, not supernatural wishfulness of a long-gone era.

RUSS HAY
Whanganui

Smokefree fund fiasco

It beggars belief that $1.7 million has been spent on the Smoking Cessation programme in Wanganui with little tangible success; this when there are so many other health-related areas where Goverment funding could be used to benefit those who have a higher regard for their health.

I cannot try to imagine the curse of tobacco, alcohol, or any other drug addiction, so accept that I do not have any right to sit in judgment of those so addicted.

Once addicted, there is little anyone can do or say to effect cessation of the habit; this can only be taken by the person addicted.

It would be interesting to see a full financial report showing exactly how this phenomenal amount of Government funding was spent.

Accountability and transparency is paramount!

V. GREGORY-MEREDITH
Whanganui

Non-pollution

Rosemary Penwarden (Chronicle, March 6) remembers dive-bombing in the sparkling waters of the rivers around Whanganui -- not in the Whanganui River, obviously, as it has a mud bottom so can't sparkle.

The Whanganui River dive bombers were diving into the Whanganui sewage disposal outlet that carried Whanganui's sewage out to sea to feed the plankton that feed the fish, and from all accounts there were plenty of fish at the town wharf as well, in the thick of the sewage.

With the sewage going directly out to sea, the fishing should remain good, and if we had not committed our town to spend $42 million on a catch-and-carry sewerage system we would have had $42 million to spend on all sorts of good projects.

The figment of people's imagination -- that it is causing pollution -- got in the way. Bugger!

We may have even been able to come up with a solution to stop our toxic stormwater polluting our "sparkling" river, if only we can keep the run-off from pine forest harvesting. That will pollute our river for years to come.

G.R. SCOWN
Whanganui