Eulogising babbling Bojo is journalistic bridge way too far
I am surprised to read that “Bojo puts our Govt to shame”, according to Heather du Plessis-Allan (February 9).
She says “Boris Johnson banned the sale of petrol and diesel cars by 2035” in the UK. He actually said he would like to bring the date forward for banning their sale from 2040 “if possible”. Any shame is on Heather for leaving that bit out.
BoJo the journo was fired by the Times for falsifying a quote. There are surely better role models in the journalist field. He also tends to open his mouth before fully engaging his brain. He has just said he wants a Scotland-Northern Ireland bridge built, ambitious even for him.
Clean Green NZ lost
Well said, Heather. Our left-leaning Government supported by the Greens is doing a dismal job, when we could (and should) lead the way. What happened to Clean Green NZ? It seems to have been forgotten long ago! She ain’t clean any more and, possibly due to climate change, big chunks of NZ are not green.
Peter Korkie, Te Awamutu
Fizz education
Niki Bezzant’s warning last week of the danger that lurks in the fizzy drinks stacked high on supermarket shelves was timely. Isn’t it time phys-ed and fizz-ed went hand in hand in all schools?
Dean Donoghue, Papamoa Beach
Perfect shout-out
The justification for forcing doctors to be complicit in the unethical practice of euthanasia has always rested on shaky ground.
Now Andrew Tichbon reduces this already slender case to mere slogans when he “shouts”: “My life. My death. My choice” (February 9). Is this a sign of things to come from supporters of the Act in the upcoming referendum campaign?
“My life. My death. My choice” is the perfect shout-out for suicide for all ages.
Mary Appleby, Pukekohe
Getting people to kill
Andrew Tichbon demands to know “what gives society the right to prolong my life against my will?” and ends with the slogan “My life. My death. My choice”. It’s like the pro-abortion slogan “My body. My choice”. These are just “Me, Me, Me” for adults.
Tichbon misses the point. Suicide is legal; he is allowed to end his own life if he wants to. If he can’t, that might well be tragic, but it is his tragedy. We all want to avoid or escape tragedy, but there are limits on what we can do. We should not make it someone else’s problem by turning them into a killer. Even if they consent, we’ve still profoundly changed them if we get them to kill.
Gavan O’Farrell, Lower Hutt
Individual’s choice
Right on, Andrew Tichbon. How dare anyone think they can walk in my shoes, walk in your own! To quote Andrew, “My life. My death. My choice”.
JE Preston, Ellerslie
Toss out fuel tax
Hey, Phil. Now that the Government has given you all the millions for infrastructure projects how about cancelling the regional fuel tax?
Harvie Graham, Torbay
Good news beats bad
It was sad and disappointing to see the “good news“article, which 30 years ago, would have been front page news, about Auckland Council’s purchase of 95 hectares of public open space for $12 million — effectively doubling the size of idyllic Mahurangi East Regional Park — relegated to a minuscule article on page 12, which most readers would not have seen. Almost half the purchase price came from the generous, philanthropic John Turnbull and Margaret Turnbull Trust.
This purchase should be a reason for celebration to make us all feel good about ourselves and the future.
Your editorial staff and other media need to review their priorities with more emphasis on highlighting “good news” articles rather than emphasising “doom and gloom”. Readers and viewers are sick of it.