Multifaith centre can be a healing place for all

DR Peter Strang, you beat me to it with your letter (ODT, 28.10.20).

I, too, am saddened by the response of ministers and others to the planned multifaith centre in the new hospital, in particular Dave Stanton’s letter (ODT, 26.10.20).

As a Christian and supporter of the Dunedin Interfaith Council, I encourage Mr Stanton to attend the services/prayers of other faith groups.

Hopefully, he will then realise they are not devilworshippers, nor do they worship imaginary, manmade deities.

They all touch and commune with the same wonderful, mysterious nonphysicalness that Christianity does; merely in different ways and by different means.

I hope that the multifaith centre will be made into a space where people of any faith, or none, will find peace and solace.

Anne Barkman

Brighton

Cr Vandervis

IF anyone tries to tell me that one councillor out of 14 at the DCC (Cr Vandervis) is a personification of the devil himself and all the others are angels with their flying wings and examples of correctness, dignity, rectitude and respectability, I will have serious doubts about such a contention.

Most people with some sort of functioning cerebrum would realise that Cr Vandervis has been targeted by most of the councillors and some of the council employees as an object of annoyance and hatred for many a year.

On his part, Cr Vandervis seems to express his desperation, frustration and exasperation by getting angry and raising his voice.

Sad that Dunedin City Council has morally degraded to such an extent, turning out to be the laughing stock of many.

Why don’t the city councillors dedicate a day or two to try to learn some basic manners and behaviour norms in a mediation session in front of a psychologist or psychiatrist so that everyone is better off, including the ratepayers?

Mathew Zacharias

Mosgiel

Cannabis

SO we have voted to not make indulging in taking cannabis legal. Great news.

This will not sit too well with the sandalwearing “intelligentsia” out there, but it was the sensible thing to do.

It means that it is less likely that our vulnerable young teenagers will get on to the drugs ladder, and end up addicts to much harder drugs.

Also, less danger of cannabis-impaired driving.

The time has come for the police to redouble their efforts to crack (no pun intended) down on the illegal supply and use.

To this end, our Government must give the authorities the manpower and resources to deal with the problem.

John Batt

Wakari

Freedom camping

THE issue of the socalled ‘‘selfcontained’’ sticker appearing on vehicles that appear unlikely to be truly selfcontained (Letters, 28.10.20) could be resolved by making this a national warrant of fitness requirement.

This would ensure that the vehicle was truly selfcontained and appropriate standards would be applied.

For the New Zealand owner of a selfcontained vehicle used only for private purposes, the fee could be moderate, but for multihire vehicles it should reflect the cost to councils of providing facilities for freedom campers and might even encourage the use of camping grounds.

Alex Dempster

Wanaka ...................................

BIBLE READING: Great is our Lord . . . his understanding is infinite. — Psalms 147.5.