Pitbulls left to maim and kill at will

Last night a group of pitbulls running out of control left half a dozen families in shock, that we know about, and left us and our neighbours afraid to go outside. Some in the neighbourhood have lost cats that were part of the family. I now have to go outside and kill the chickens that the dogs maimed. These dogs have been roaming Otahuhu for a month, killing and maiming and it is only because people turn a blind eye that this is allowed to happen. It probably will take an attack on a person before the situation is taken seriously. Bruce Shirley, Otahuhu. Frank Davis’ letter is exactly the type of attitude displayed by anti-rail protagonists of a similar system being built on the Gold Coast, Australia.

Yes, there was a significant amount of disruption to both transport flow and commerce around the Coast while the rail was being completed. There was some loss of bus stops which were more strategically situated. Similarly, there was a small loss of vehicle road on either side of the completed rail network.

But with Stage 1 and 2 now in service the resulting system provides a fast, utterly reliable, cheap form of transport that for many Gold Coasters almost totally negates the need for using their car for day to day activities.

So we hope Aucklanders ignore the Frank Davis type emotive, uninformed observations. My wife and I know — we lived through the development and used the light rail constantly. It’s brilliant.

Murray Brown, Hamilton. Whilst we all celebrate Anzac Day and our fallen heroes we could do well to consider the futility of war. When we look at the major combatants of World War II history tells us that Germany lost around 10 million men and Japan around three million. Despite losing the war both of these countries have gone on to become industrial and financial powerhouses. Then we look at the losses of the Allied forces who won the war, UK 450,900, France, 600,000, USA 419,400, Canada 43,000, Australia 40,000 and New Zealand 11,700. A total of about 1.6 million. Contrast this figure with Russia’s losses of 26.6 million fighting men. Men lost fighting the Germans. Astonishing then to consider that Russia is now vilified by the West in spite of the fact that they fought on our side and lost more men by far than all of the Western allies combined. Let us never forget brave men that fought in the war. But also let’s be super careful going forward before we rush headlong into battle fighting other countries’ wars.

Glen Stanton, Mairangi Bay.