Letters: Cannabidiol medication, dawn raids, EVs, berms and a cycle bridge

Katy Thomas and her son Edward. Photo / Supplied, File

Opinion

Pitiful plight is so unnecessary

I'm writing this from the Emergency Department of Starship. Parents around me watch in sympathy as my 7-year-old son screams and thrashes about in pure fear. He doesn't want to be here and neither should he be. He is terrified of his seizures. He doesn't want to die.
As he is sedated and dozens of wires attached to his head, I feel a sickening sense of deja vu - wasn't there another mother who campaigned for medicinal cannabis a few years ago? Didn't her epileptic son pay for our current medicinal cannabis scheme with his life?
Only two medicines approved since are also the most expensive; unaffordable for most patients. Although doctors can prescribe them, most won't due to lack of training. So patients turn to the black market or grow their own in fear of prosecution. When caught they face jail time and their medicines destroyed - punished three times for having crippling conditions.
The developed world has moved on from the war on sick people but not here. Pointing to a closely failed referendum that was about the right to party, not the patient plight, shows an unbelievable lack of compassion from the party that claims to be kind.
Katy Thomas, Auckland Central.

Return raid
When we were 20-somethings in 1976, a group of us carried out dawn raids on the homes of a couple of National Government Cabinet Ministers in Wellington.
At dawn, George Rosenberg, Tony Atkinson, Dennis O'Reilly and myself terrified the sleepy politicians in a most satisfactory way. We were committed to any action being peaceful but we were appalled at the actual dawn raids that were happening in the country.
I remember that one of the ministers was Lance Adams-Schneider.
Our Hillman Hunter was stopped by police near Wellington railway station afterwards but we managed to talk our way out of any suspicion falling on us.
I have always been proud of this small effort, which admittedly, was completely ineffectual.
Penelope Bieder, Ponsonby.

Fuelled again
Just before Covid shut everything down, I bought a new car; a demonstration model, just under a year old. Having had a look at similar age models in the electric car category, I stuck with petrol.
Electric cars were twice what I paid for in the petrol car option, and even with the subsidy now offered, out of my price range. As the car is near new it should have low emissions and will certainly be cleaner than older vehicles. I live in an inner-city suburb, am retired and of course have a fixed income.
This Government is totally out of touch with the realities of daily life for most of us.
Annette Stewart, Greenlane.

Blooming berms
To balance out Rick Mozessohn's "bermscaping" (NZ Herald, June 14), we offer wildflower seeds for the city's berms, and support residents to look after/defend/eat the growth, and to encourage a city with delicious, medicinal, and pleasurable berms for all.
We support Rick's vision of everyone maintaining their own berm being the "ideal scenario" but wish to offer a different type of maintenance and a different, more diverse "ideal".
Chris Berthelsen, Negative Emissions and Waste Studies Programme

Carried over
The SkyBuses that are currently not being used for the North Harbour service are perfect for loading bikes and riders on, to transport over the harbour bridge.
The buses can run at peak times and collect cyclists at Akoranga bus station and deliver them to Victoria Park, with return journeys for those wishing to go to the North Shore.
For payment, AT Hop cards can be used. This way, we can see how many people are keen to take their cycles to the city every day before a separate bridge is built for them.
Jane Neill, Birkenhead.

Rejoin ANZUS
It is now quite clear New Zealand will need to consider the implications of an increasingly autocratic and assertive China on our nation and our near-north neighbours in the South Pacific. It is very likely that we will see more "grey-zone" operations by China's large fishing fleet, associated militia craft and coast guard vessels expanding their reach southward.
Perhaps it is time to revisit and consider rejoining the Anzus Pact with Australia and the United States. Our departure from Anzus in the mid-1980s was messy, with very little forethought by the Labour Government as to the implications of banning a visit by the USS Buchanan. This elderly destroyer was no longer a frontline unit and was quite clearly not armed with nuclear weapons. American surface warships are no longer armed with nuclear weapons and the number of nuclear-powered warships in the US fleet has shrunk dramatically since the end of the Cold War.
With some goodwill on all sides, it may be possible to reach an understanding whereby New Zealand is considered an active partner in the defence of democratic values in the wider Indo-Pacific region.
Murray Dear, Hamilton.

Left jab, uppercut
I received an official text regarding a Covid-19 vaccination. As my phone is not net-connected, I rang the 0800 number supplied. After being on hold for over 30 minutes I hung up. I forwarded the text to my daughter. Following the directions she linked in, logged on, changed the password and was promptly locked out. Was the booking procedure designed by the antivaxxers from Voices for Freedom? Ralph Gardiner, Western Springs.

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Lessening lessons
I note the NZEI is calling for a day a week out of the classroom for every teacher. Surely they already have this? From 3pm to 5pm, Monday to Friday.
My children already seem to have a constant succession of relievers (for reasons never explained), split classes and "teacher only days". There's also the occasional "paid union meeting" where I have to pick them up at lunchtime.
These days must be incredibly disruptive to their learning, I'd hate for them to be increased.
I appreciate that teachers' workloads are large and they need help, but there has to be another way.
Allison Kelly, Mt Roskill.

Short & sweet

On EVs
If there was ever any doubt that this Government has lost touch with middle New Zealand, that has now been proven with this tax on non-electric new cars. Bill Gibson, Kawerau.

That all tradies should trade in their gas-guzzling four-wheel drives and take advantage of an $8000 subsidy on a new Nissan Leaf? Nonsense. Neil Hatfull, Warkworth.

In reply to John Robertson's concern (NZ Herald, June 15) that the Government should mandate charging points in all new house builds. All you need is a three-pin power point. Andy Freeman, Hamilton.

On movie
That the commercial arm of Hollywood should be seen to be "digging for gold" in Aotearoa, NZ, and prepared to turn a tragedy into dollars, is abhorrent. Lead me to the objectors' platform. Nick Lindo, Upper Riccarton.

On bridge
We shouldn't get too upset. If it is like every other transport initiative proposed by the Government, nothing will happen for three years and then it will be canned. No problem. Steve Dransfield, Karori.

On vaccine
In Ōrewa, the nearest place my partner can go for his Covid vaccination is Birkenhead. The other options given were Henderson, Manukau, the Airport, or Auckland CBD. He is 75 and doesn't drive. J Lee Martin, Ōrewa.

On inflation
Are the massive increases in the cost of infrastructure projects, together with property prices, telling us that inflation is already way out of control? Gary Andrews, Mt Maunganui.