A bit of emotion is good

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Opinion

Re: Correspondent standards slipping and Is recent correspondence insightful — or incite-full?, February 8 letters.

Ron Taylor was concerned over the impolite and attacking style of some correspondents with an alternate view.

As one is very aware, some of my views are alternative to others.

But like Ron, I too strive to be polite. I am always aware that others also have a right to their own opinions.

And Sharlene Pilkinton has now questioned Is the recent correspondence was insightful — or incite-full?

My thoughts? In 2009, I began contributing here on humanitarian and environmental issues.

Back then, climate change was the dividing issue, and I found the lack of positive feedback disappointing, and I was glad this paper allowed those to incite full comments. It was all I had to stimulate me to greater effort. I know The Gisborne Herald nowadays, due to the latest scientific findings, has a policy not to publish climate-change denial letters and others rubbishing the official scientific finding of various fields.

I disagree with Ron Taylor — since Jeremy has been at the helm, there have always been some with impolite attacking styles, and over the three decades as a Herald contributor, I've suffered much of it.

Yet, I think a bit of emotion in others is good.

Even if correspondent standards have slipped, which I doubt, I find stimulation in the feedback of all kinds — they get me thinking and encourage me to further contribute to this page.

BOB HUGHES