Phone app for CPR is a genuine lifesaver
Your article last week was very good (Saved by samaritans and defib, October 15). I googled Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) and there is an app that locates the nearest one. It is amazing how many private houses have them. The same app has a CPR assistant that appears on your cell phone to help — a brilliant idea! Because AEDs are critical, the Government should advertise the smartphone app on a regular basis and also explain how it works. Bruce Phythian, Parnell
Ex-pat robbed of vote
I am a New Zealander living in London. I was very disappointed not to be sent a voting reminder in advance of the election as it has been in my 20 years living here. I forgot to check the date and this is the first time I have not voted since I was eligible. I return home every year and am entitled to vote. Many I spoke to at a recent NZ Graduates' Association also felt aggrieved. Even though I live abroad I retain close links and it is my democratic right to vote in New Zealand. Yes, my family should have reminded me but so should the electoral commission. How many ex-pats missed out? It could have changed the outcome and prevented Winston Peters choosing his coalition partner. Jan Dalgleish, London NW3
Mining results for answers
National should have got the law changed to allow Bernie Monk and team to enter the Pike River themselves. National then might not have needed to even consider a coalition. Terry Leonard, Pukekohe
Election insincerity
Some astute observers might be tempted to conjecture the exhausted National team of old men didn’t try too hard with Winston because they were tired of churning out evasive answers between elections, when suddenly, temporarily, insincerely, people such as hungry children, and car-dwellers did matter. Jim Carlyle, Te Atatu Peninsula
Sucks to sit next to smokers
If cigarette smoke contains more than 4000 chemicals, of which at least 40 are cancer-causing, why has it taken so long to start banning smoking in public outdoor places? Once you have sat next to a smoking table, trying to enjoy your tiramisu dessert, you will agree. There should long have been a blanket ban on smoking, in and near public places. Rene Blezer, Taupo
Lousy driving the issue
Even if the speed limit was lowered that would not fix the real issue with our road toll: lousy driving habits (Keep loved ones safe from harm, October 15). I recently returned from Norway where drivers are polite, defensive and patient. Their road toll is almost half ours. Norway has severe penalties for even minor infringements — high fines and loss of licence. Will this ever happen here? Nope. We defend our personal freedoms to the death, and prefer to let people die on the roads. Jules Riding, Whangarei
People crash cars
No matter how much money you throw at roads and safety messages, people cause accidents. Why can't money be spent enforcing the law? Send bad drivers to re-sit a basic driving test and make driver education compulsory as well as defensive driving courses. Olive Inglis, Warkworth