Horrific road toll requires tougher action and less talk

The appalling loss of life on our roads is now said to be a ‘‘crisis’’. In response we have the usual pleas from senior police officers to drive more responsibly. When will the penny drop that talking about this issue will achieve nothing? Action is required.

The issue of impaired drivers aside, the carnage on our roads can mostly be attributed to the fact we have a high percentage of drivers who ignore the rules of the road. Using a phone while driving is still common place. Making a driving licence more difficult to obtain is necessary.

There also needs to be a significant increase in the number of police focused on traffic policing only. Research has shown drivers are more responsible if there are more police on the roads. And the number of cameras in hot spots must be increased.

When apprehended, those who are placing other road users at risk must be dealt with severely, including the confiscation of cars.

The failure to take these steps will see the carnage continue, and those responsible for that failure will have blood on their hands.

Bruce Anderson, Christchurch

Doctor dentist

Damien Grant (‘‘Dentists in teeth of storm of over-regulation’’. Focus, November 18) opines that dentists are over-qualified for what is essentially a drilling and filling business. We also now see many dentists attempting to elevate their status by titling themselves ‘‘doctor’’.

Recently I visited my dentist and while in the chair I asked why with only a bachelor’s degree he called himself Dr. He said it was because he was a surgeon. I said medical surgeons call themselves Mr. He then said it was because it had taken him many years of studying. I said I didn’t think you became a Dr. just because of a lot of time spent lounging round student digs. He then said ‘‘Open wide’’ and put a long pointy thing with a sharp end in my mouth. ‘‘Ooooh’’, I said. ‘‘Did that hurt’’, he asked. ‘‘Yes, doctor’’, I replied.

Richard Prince, Tauranga

Footpath menace

As a wheelchair user I am well aware of how those who use them and scooters behave (‘‘Mobility scooters overtake law’’, News, November 18). As for accidents I would suggest that in many cases it is the general public who are to blame. One thing I can attest to is being in a wheelchair it can become a mobile observation platform. One only has to go along any main street to observe that people rarely move in a straight line and tend to wander. There is also that fearsome weapon called a smartphone. The number of times I nearly collide with people and then of course it’s my fault.

Another problem with people are those coming out of shops who never look where they are going. Today a lady came out of a SpecSavers shop and walked straight into me. I couldn’t resist saying ‘‘I’m not surprised you had to go in there’’. A brief huff and shrug and shake of her shoulders and off she went onto the road without looking. The cyclist who just missed her was, of course, to blame.

Leslie Austin, Featherston

Boys will be boys

I have just finished reading ‘‘Boys will be ... men’’ (Sunday magazine, November 18). Unfortunately this was a load of rubbish. ‘‘Men are the silent sufferers of masculinity’’ – oh please! I need to go to a doctor due to eye strain caused by rolling them continually while reading this.

Laura was ‘‘devastated’’ after giving birth to a boy. I suspect that she was devastated about having a male voice in her allfemale inner sanctum.

Boys and girls are different, I knew this when my daughter had a birthday party and all the girls behaved a lot differently (quieter, calmer) than the attendees at her brother’s parties.

There was one shining light in the article and that was around teaching kids about respect, behaving properly and communicating – these are the things that should be talked about.

Boys will be boys and girls will be girls for the most part, then there will be some in the middle. All of is this fine, it’s not up to us parents to force our kids one way or another. Rather we should help them to be confident about who they are, whatever that may be.

Steve Dransfield, Wellington

Swot overload

I quietly chuckle when I read comments about assessment overload in secondary schools. I sat School Certificate in 1960 and that was that for the next two years.

If students kept their heads slightly above water they were awarded University Entrance in the sixth form without having to sit exams. The final year, the Upper Sixth, was one without any external exams apart from the ridiculously difficult Junior Scholarship which hardly anybody bothered to sit and only a genius could pass.