While many people are calling for an end to the Three Waters reforms, Northland mayors want new Prime Minister Chris Hipkins to 'rescue' Three Waters. Photo / Paul Taylor
While many people are calling for an end to the Three Waters reforms, Northland mayors want new Prime Minister Chris Hipkins to 'rescue' Three Waters. Photo / Paul Taylor
Opinion
Policies ebb and flow according to the polls
Shane Te Pou (Herald on Sunday, Feb 19) stated that Luxon has “No plans or vision”.
At the same time Labour, after five years in Government, are obviously still trying to decide what their “plans and vision” really are.
This is clearlyevidenced by PM Hipkins’ decision to scrap or delay many of their unpopular policies. Policies that have already cost many millions. Policies that Hipkins as a senior Labour MP under Jacinda Ardern’s leadership supported enthusiastically and then vehemently defended.
It is quite clear that Labour’s “policies” ebb and flow, according to the results of the latest political poll. Hypocrisy at the highest level.
In spite of the impending billions having to be spent getting many communities back to reasonable normality after floods and a disastrous cyclone, I find it incredible that the Minister of Transport, Michael Wood, blithely announces that the hugely expensive light rail project in Auckland will forge ahead, regardless of opposition from many quarters.
This, along with the billion-dollar Three Waters scheme comes across as a stubborn status quo or personal status exercise by the ministers concerned.
Surely these financial behemoths can at the very least be put on hold until the country recovers from two years of Covid, disastrous flooding and now a cyclone for good measure.
It’s way past time that Kiwis are given an even break for a change.
Ted Partridge, Māngere
Resentment not helpful
I read Shaneel Shavneel Lal’s thoughtful piece about climate change in last week’s Herald on Sunday. I agreed with most of what they said, but I also noted their comment about old people who, " ... will mostly die of old age”, while their generation will likely die, " ... from floods, landslides, cyclones, fires and tsunamis”.
They are sadly, probably right. However, they described my generation as those who, " ... arguably contributed significantly to climate change”.
They are right in saying this, but this sort of comment can unbalance the discussion regarding what to do about it, as resentments towards ‘other’ generations, which is not helpful.
Climate change was detected by scientists of the 1970s, including New Zealander Jim Salinger.
Since then, the scientists have spent an extraordinary amount of energy trying to tell the people, but the fossil fuel industry spent just as much energy but a lot more money seeding disinformation about the science.
So is it a generational thing? Bill Maher recently pointed out that Greta Thunberg has 13,000,000 followers on instagram, but Kylie Jenner has 279,000,000. Greta travels by yacht, but Kylie travels by private jet.
The problem is human, not generational.
Niall Robertson, Balmoral
Gutter mutterings
John Roughan’s excellent opinion piece (Weekend Herald, Feb 18) is a warning not to overreact to the current devastation wrought by Cyclone Gabrielle.
Obviously, infrastructure in the worst hit areas will have to be rebuilt.
However, the examples he quotes of the bus driver observing rubbish sitting over grates blocking drains and the quick reactive response of his council to maintenance clearing a drain by sheer chance before the deluge on January 27 begs the question as to how many homes in Auckland might not have been flooded that day if drains were regularly cleared?
I suspect that in many cases of flooding in Auckland that the principle of Ockham’s razor, the theory applied to the 14th century friar William of Ockham that says, if you have two competing solutions to solve the same phenomenon you should prefer the simpler one.
The competing solutions in this case are the Three Waters solution of removing all municipal water infrastructures from the control of elected councils and entrusting this responsibility to four mega regional servicing agencies answerable to a national regulating body verses a bus driver’s observations and John Roughan’s good citizen reaction by phoning the council who made a quick response.
Perhaps William of Ockham needs to be invoked here and his wise words from many centuries ago be applied today, that it is locals that can make councils aware of the simple solution of just clearing drains on a regular basis and not some faceless centralised bureaucracy.
We were advised before the cyclone to clear our gutters. It didn’t say to replace them.
Bernard Walker, Pāpāmoa
Mere comfort
Last Friday, February 24, marked the first anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The response of political leaders during the past year has been a revelation.
The Australian Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, and the UK PM, Rishi Sunak, have visited President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv and offered extensive aid — both lethal and humanitarian.
Then-Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern turned down an invitation to meet with President Zelenskyy.
In her place she sent Defence Minister Peeni Henare to meet with the Ukrainian Defence Minister ... nine months after the onset of the war.
Henare presented his counterpart with a Māori mere.
No, not any rifles or armoured cars, but a beautifully carved jade war club. Henare believed that his visit “sends a strong message that New Zealand stands with the people of Ukraine and that our support for the Ukrainian defensive effort against Russia’s illegal invasion is unwavering”.
This is no comfort for the troops on the front line, nor for the parents of the hundreds of children killed so far by the Russians.
Chris Parker, Campbells Bay
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy holds the flag of a military unit as an officer kisses it, during commemorative event on the occasion of the Russia Ukraine war one year anniversary in Kyiv, Ukraine. Photo / AP
Fantastic, Mr Fox
Reading about Roald Dahl’s publisher re writing his works for modern audiences (Herald on Sunday, Feb 19), makes me think that it’s just a clever way of renewing the publisher’s copyright and generating a bunch of free publicity.
Or am I too cynical?
I have a feeling if Dahl were alive and had a chance to respond to the rewrite and feedback from Inclusive Minds, he might quote himself from Fantastic Mr Fox: “I understand what you’re saying, and your comments are valuable, but I’m gonna ignore your advice.”
Huw Dann, Mt Eden
Ka pai, Te Matatini
What a wonderful, joyous occasion Te Matatini has been in these gloomy times expressing all that is great being Māori. There are many lessons their fellow New Zealanders can learn from Te Matatini which should be compulsory viewing for all of us.
