Gas-guzzlers and seawalls highlight climate ignorance

A couple of recent news items stirred a response from the part of my brain that deals in irony.

First up was a fella bemoaning the bad press that utility and SUV vehicles garner, and saying that they have proved their worth in the recent devastation around the motu, totally (and blissfully?) unaware that it is the proliferation of such vehicles which contributes to global warming/climate change and random destructive storms etc – obviously more so in countries like the US, where the population is much greater. Chicken and/or egg, anyone?

Second was a seawall contractor advising folks not to worry about sea level rise, as his company can build seawalls high and strong enough to cover such piddling problems (my words!) for worried owners of coastal property. But can his company, and, no doubt, others, build a seawall around the whole of Aotearoa? That is what will need to happen, otherwise individual seawalls that some folk are able to pay for simply push the high water on to the next property that doesn’t have one.

You can only laugh.

Jeremy Dunningham, Napier

Wasted money

Isn’t it refreshing to see that many policymakers have now finally been forced to realise that we never needed to spend so many millions of dollars on consultants. Auckland Council and central government suddenly appear to have had a massive brainwave, enlightening them as to what many of us could have seen decades ago.

They were wasting unnecessary millions of rate- or taxpayer dollars on projects that still turned into mishaps and were often flagged altogether. This was never an issue for the spin doctors and PR agencies, who had little to lose and possibly a lot to gain from perks and easy money for a bit of ‘‘research’’, often purely stating the obvious.

Until now, when finally the nation is essentially in such a state of desperation that we have to cut the proverbial just in order to manage our ridiculous debt situation – because, let’s face it, the last few years and 2023 in particular have taught us a lesson, the lesson to live within our means, to look after our fellow humans, not ignore them. Meanwhile, career officials higher up the ladder decided to let some ‘consultants’ fleece our nation for decades on end.

There’s still hope however, and if nothing else, these recent disasters have shown us harsh, cold, but realistic lessons; lessons that misappropriation and frivolous spending will one day come to bite you in the backside. That day has arrived!

Still, we may now have to feel sorry for those data analysts and assistants who will have to search for other employment, in times where uncertainty seems to be the only constant. All this sad and ruthless nonsense could have easily been prevented, were it not for some higher up in the political hierarchy, who conveniently shut their eyes to the obvious!

Rene´ Blezer, Taupo

Unfair treatment

You’ve got to feel for the 76-yearold bloke at Waihi Beach who has lost his sun and view due to a large garage on his boundary.

Hey, it’s all been done by the book, say the neighbours – for whom the house to which the garage is attached is only a parttime residence. And the garage itself is full of junk. They even bought him a gift-basket peace offering and took umbrage when he told them to eff off. If it was me they’d have probably worn it.

It meets our requirements too, says the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, whose main concern seemed to be shading on a bit of their grass further along. Gotta get our priorities right, eh?

What happened to the old Kiwi concerns like doing right by your neighbours and fellow citizens? Now it seems that looking after number one and putting one over the other guy, and even lawlessness, are the order of the day.

All symptomatic of a society that has lost its way.

John Leith, Eastbourne

Scam warnings

So an Auckland ‘‘IT professional’’ was scammed in a cryptocurrency con (Business, March 5). Either they are not very good at their craft, IT, or they are naive and greedy.

How are the banks meant to save these people from themselves when they are unaware of the huge flashing lights saying ‘‘if it seems too good to be true it probably is’’?

Certainly warn others who may be less qualified to spot these scams but maybe a more general warning about cryptocurrency for beginners could be in order.

James Archibald, Birkenhead

Appalling summer

Why did a small part of summer only come in autumn after weeks of very heavy rain, huge land

slips and enormous floods? Finally we had at least a week of fine days from March 1; crazy weather, but at least we did not need to wait way until December for summer to arrive for the very first time in 2023.

Luckily Cyclone Judy and Cyclone Kevin both missed our shores. We sure needed them to pass us by.

Murray Hunter, Auckland

The Rob Campbell debacle has nothing to do with free speech, or the desirability or otherwise of public service mandarins being able to speak their minds.

The public service is politically neutral, for very good reasons, and Campbell understood that perfectly well. However, on more than one occasion he was not willing to abide by this requirement. Even when this latest issue broke, I understand he was wanting to negotiate under what circumstances he could comment on political issues. The answer is, under no circumstances.

Campbell was unwilling to accept this so he had to go. Simple, really.

Gavin Kay, Auckland