Breaking silence
Let me remind you ... I'd like to continue bringing before readers the discussion over the same sex marriage bill.
Has the church gone quiet - though I enjoyed J Gilgreen's letter.
The pulpit needs not to be quiet over this marriage bill. As God is holy so must we be and the true marriage must be upheld.
Come on Northlanders, let's not be silent ... Ruth McColl, Whangarei
Democracy plea
We have just witnessed a parliamentary "conscience" vote in which PM John Key ordered his MPs to vote as he directed. Hypocrisy!
Mr Key, a self-professed atheist, attends church each Sunday to "be seen to be doing the right thing". Hypocrisy!
There have been three controversial bills passed recently when members of major parties voted directly against the wishes of the majority of citizens.
The Anti Smacking Bill, the Marine and Coastal Area Act, the Gay Marriage Bill, all returned polls showing around 80 per cent public opposition.
Why then did politicians, elected to represent the will of the people, take it upon themselves to vote otherwise? Hypocrisy!
MPs are voted in because of their stated pre-election policies. They cannot claim to represent their constituents on controversial topics that were not part of their pre-electoral platforms. In any other matters they should either abstain from voting or conduct snap polls in their own electorate to gauge the will of the people - or insist upon a binding referendum.
NZ politics is at an extremely dangerous stage, with the three main parties desperate to attract Maori votes and passing legislation that is abhorrent to all of us who demand true democracy.
The greatest threat to equality is the Maori Party's push to have the Treaty of Waitangi included in a rewritten constitution.
Make no mistake - that is their sole reason for wanting to rewrite a constitution that has worked effectively for over 100 years.
A constitution in which Treaty "interpretations" take precedence over traditional British law will destroy democracy in this country - and this can be forced upon us with a tri-party consensus, bypassing the wishes of the people via a referendum.
I don't really wish to become a second-class citizen in my own country. Demand a constitution referendum! Demand democracy! Mitch Morgan, Kaipara
New twist
Around we go again.
I wonder which part of the city councillor Greg Martin spends his time in? I am a regular and often frustrated user of the Maunu Rd/State Highway 1 intersection, and for him to suggest "that a lot of people need to walk to the nearby hospital" is a new twist indeed (Advocate, July 17). Many reasons why there should not be a roundabout at that site have been put forward, but that reason is novel. Pedestrians and roundabouts are not a new phenomenon so c'mon - please don't treat us like morons.
Promote reasons why there should be a roundabout at the site, and not inefficient traffic lights. Bill Roberts, Whangarei
The man is defending physical and sexual violence allegations made by five exes.