A quick word
A former NZ sports champion who was arrested for importing cocaine has name suppression. This unfortunately casts suspicions of guilt on all past NZ champion athletes aged between 33 and 37. We will all know sooner or later.
Dave Miller, Tauranga.
Christine Keller Smith appears to have confused race with gender in her letter (Weekend Herald, Mar 30). Only a minority of Kiwi males would try and deny women the right to their privacy in designated toilets and areas for breastfeeding etc, but setting aside space based on race is another matter. Imagine the outcry when the All Blacks fly to South Africa this year if Business Class was designated for P¯akeh¯a team members only and Economy for others.
Gavin Baker, Glendowie.
While one feels some sympathy for victims of scams, we should all know there has been a huge amount of publicity around them for some time now. Scam artists are becoming more and more cunning and sounding more and more plausible. If there is an urgency to transfer money, don’t. If they say they’re from the bank, hang up and call the bank or call family or a friend. Sadly the old adage, “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is,” may become our best friend.
Janet Boyle, O¯ rewa.
Labour is incorrect that increasing benefits reduces poverty. It only entrenches dependency on poverty. Worklessness is the main cause of poverty. To lift people out of poverty, people need to work and increasing benefits is a disincentive to work. What beneficiaries need is help up, rather than a handout. Andrew Parsons, O¯ ra¯kei.
If David Seymour was a true Libertarian, he would allow parents to choose whether or not to send their children to school. Greg Cave, Sunnyvale.
Is it just my impression, or is it those who say that stores should be open over Easter as most don’t commemorate Easter’s real significance, who take those same days off as a holiday? Neil Arnold, Mt Roskill.
Do utility companies, banks and insurance companies deliberately have the most awful “hold music” just to make you give up and hang up? I was 20 minutes on hold at an insurance company yesterday and the music was a genre that I can’t even begin to describe. It was simply awful; a kind of torture. I then called another insurance company and it was just as bad, if not worse for another 10-minute hold. I stayed the course but I’m sure it’s deliberate. Glenn J Pacey, Glendowie.
Why is the same urgency not applied to the deliberately defaced English version of the Treaty at Te Papa as there is to the K Rd rainbow crossing? Wendy Tighe-Umbers, Parnell.
Can I respectfully suggest that Christopher Luxon add one more item to his 36-point plan: “Seek ways to persuade New Zealanders that Government policies are designed to benefit all.”
Greg Cave, Sunnyvale.
The killing of seven aid workers in the Gaza Strip by Israeli forces is a tragedy. The explanation by the Israeli Government (“it was a mistake”) is a farce. The workers were travelling in a clearly identified foreign aid vehicle. The only thing keeping Benjamin Netanyahu upright is his own hubris.
Des Trigg, Rothesay Bay.
The Israel Defence Force blows up three vehicles carrying aid workers in Gaza. I have two questions: How does this defend Israel? And, who are the terrorists? Alistair Woodward, Freemans Bay.