They sit in their ute with remote control might, stopping both lanes though the road is in sight.
No traffic to manage, no danger to dodge. Just the pure, unchecked power of one-man-in-charge.
We inch, then we wait, then we curse, then we groan. Held hostage again by the army of cone.
They multiply nightly, expand without end. Our taxes, it seems, now pay cones to pretend.
And when we grow bold, “No workers!” we cheer. We speed ... then a real one does suddenly appear.
We feel the regret, but still rage burns bright. Cone rage by day ... and guilt late at night.
So fix up the roads, we’re not here to oppose. But do it with sense, not kilometres of woes.
Till then, fellow drivers, stay strong and engage. We’re all just survivors ... of New Zealand’s cone rage.
Sharyn van Heerden, Kaitāia.
All Blacks concerns
After two unspectacular test wins over a France second (or third) XV, we are left with the impression that the All Blacks will struggle against stiffer competition, particularly when next month they encounter the formidable Springboks.
And with the World Rugby Cup a short two years away, New Zealand’s rugby stocks are depleted and vulnerable.
The recent rule changes do not suit the fast, open game the ABs have chosen to play while the Boks’ stodgy, though winning, eight-man rugby played by huge men with muscular advantage looks likely to dominate.
Our glory days are over for this decade so let’s hope a distant future holds better fortune.
Larry Mitchell, Rothesay Bay.
Names on the back of jerseys?
The All Blacks decisively outclassed the French in the second test match in Wellington on Saturday.
The French looked dangerous when they engaged their backline, so it would be great to see them tossing the ball around more like the dangerous and unpredictable French teams of past years.
One final suggestion for greater viewer enjoyment, particularly for overseas viewers, would be to see the All Blacks players’ names on the backs of their jerseys.
Randal Lockie, Rothesay Bay.
The question of art
What is art? Is it a question of aesthetics, or cultural identity, or knowledge?
Whatever the answer, it is a question that has perplexed philosophers and art historians for centuries. It is also a question that has informed legal and regulatory bodies. Through the research for my doctorate programme, I found the question of art to be an epistemological one.
In other words, it is a question of knowledge. My PhD established the thesis of art as a site of knowledge and it took years of study and research to hold myself as an “expert” in the field. Three Auckland Council town planners have considered an application for an imposing 11.5m golden Buddhist statue on a 5m plinth to be categorised as art, in order to receive a certificate of compliance under the umbrella of planning laws.
These three town planners have spoken. They have made a determination on the question of what is art. They have decided that the golden edifice destined for the top of a 60m hill in Waiwera Valley is indeed “art”.
One must ask, what are their qualifications for the task and what criteria did they use upon which to make such a judgment? It is the public’s right to know.
Dr Elizabeth Gresson, Parnell.
Boy racers
A first step to not encourage the boy racers would be to ask the professional racing drivers to stop doing burnouts after a race. Monkey see, monkey do. The burnout is way past its use-by date.
Jock MacVicar, Hauraki.
