I found the article by David Cormack (NZ Herald, April 23) to be biased and, at least based on my life experience, factually weak.
He laments the lack of Government backbone surrounding the demise of CGT which he sees as a tax designed to get back at people who he regards as well off and probably middle aged or older. It is, he tells us, required to "redress the imbalance where one generation got huge amounts of support to get houses, jobs, education and healthcare while those coming next have been left fighting over scraps". This is overstated balderdash.
I am a baby boomer and so anticipate that, come the CGT revolution, I will be amongst those lined up against the wall.
I grew up in post-war Britain where I do not recall "huge amounts of support" for anything other than long hours of hard work and very plain cuisine. I lived in small rooms in public hospitals where I worked 50-90 hours weekly as a junior doctor for years. I bought my first house in New Zealand when I was 31 with a mortgage charging over 20 per cent per annum. I have never been supported into a job, have paid healthcare insurance all my adult life and have largely financed my retirement through personal savings.
Either David Cormack's view of recent history is seriously warped or I missed the golden generation!
David Woolner, St Heliers
Kauri dieback
The writer of the letter "City Council Must Open Waitakeres" (NZ Herald, April 23) is right.
The issue of the sudden volcanic cones closure issue need to be visited as well.
Along these lines, I was extremely surprised to hear of a beach closure in Northland.
The three reasons conjured up are outrageously spurious, to say the least. One being that some people leave rubbish behind. Another is that some people "pee" in the water.
The third was that there could possibly be some old Maori unofficial graves adjacent to the area.
Important to note that any or even all of these "reasons" for closure could apply to any beach, anywhere in New Zealand.
Colleen Wright, Botany Downs
NZ drivers
We often see comments like "New Zealanders are the worst drivers in the world" (NZ Herald, April 17). I don't know if any countries keep statistics of good and bad drivers, but there are annual statistics for fatalities. Wikipedia gives these (as at 2014) for 181 countries in the world. They are in two forms; fatalities per 100,000 inhabitants, and fatalities per 100,000 vehicles. A better guide might be fatalities per 10,000km driven, but it would be hard to get the data.
By inhabitants, New Zealand rated 47th best out of 181. The worst is nearly nine times worse than us.
By vehicles, we rated 28th best out of 181. The worst is 77 times worse than us!
Who does better? Many European countries, Japan, and Australia. We can and should do much better, but we'd have to be far, far worse to be truly the worst drivers in the world.
Frank Coulter, Pauanui Beach
Notre Dame
We attended a special service in Notre Dame one Easter Sunday. The French Catholic hierarchy were all there and the church, which can hold 12,000, was chock-full. TV monitors gave everyone a clear view of the Archbishop of France as he gave a clear friendly welcome to everyone - to people from all over the world, of every religion or no religion at all. He encouraged us to shake hands with strangers, which everyone did.
Notre Dame that day provided a venue for the uniting of humanity. Restoring the building will be money well spent.
Pamela Russell, Orakei
Who cares about a structure that's 850 years old which can be rebuilt? Try rebuilding parts of the environment or species of extinct animals that have been around a lot longer than that. I mean have many people really been missing the Christchurch cathedral?
Glenn Forsyth, Taupo
Gun control
In the wake of the Christchurch massacre and the ensuing gun debate I was amazed to catch up on a remarkable piece of recent New Zealand history in the just released film
Soldiers Without Guns.
After 14 international attempts over 20 years to find a peace in civil war-torn Bougainville Island, a brave New Zealand battalion risked a landing, carrying only guitars and much aroha, to broker a peace on 30 April 1998 - a peace that has held 21 years later.
With cultural understanding, the strategic use of local women, and sheer Kiwi ingenuity, the war was ended. It made me proud to be a Kiwi, but also to understand the relevance that this incident has in our current post-March 15 environment.
Linton Conway, Mt Albert
Mangrove removal
A recent article by Michael Neilson (NZ Herald, April 18), highlights the positive outcomes that have occurred over the last decade with the partnership between the Auckland Council and volunteers from the Waiuku Restoration Trust (Mudlarks) removing mangroves in the sediment-chocked Waiuku Estuary.
The same pattern of white sandy beaches until the 1970s, then to be overrun by mangroves, has also been documented in the Bay of Plenty. At that time uncontrolled land development allowed sediment run off into streams and bays, creating a muddy environment thereby allowing mangroves to flourish, with damage to native flora, bird habitats and feeding grounds.
It was encouraging to read how the wildlife is now improving with the reintroduction of native plants into the Waiuku Estuary. Similar successes are also being documented around the Bay of Plenty, where volunteer groups are working with the Tauranga Regional Council to improve the habitats of estuaries. Increases are now seen in birdlife, as documented, for example, in Welcome Bay. As Neilson reported, this is really something to be celebrated.
Dr Meg Butler, Welcome Bay
Wealth gap
Michael Walker suffers under the delusion that the working class don't work hard (NZ Herald, April 24). All the ones I know, especially in small businesses, are working long hours and burning midnight oil day in and day out - even more so now with the franchise-killing new minimum wage. That is the problem, they aren't being rewarded and the Government's unfair distribution of wealth is largely to blame. We have the widest gap between the rich and poor in all 35 OECD countries, which is surely proof of that.
Gary Hollis, Mellons Bay
Michael Walker's letter (NZ Herald, April 24) against wealth-gap agitators has a serious blind-spot. His first-placed government "job" is to provide "freedom from internal attack", and then it goes on. The immediate blind spot is to the relentless attack on everyday workers nationwide by the smart-alecs getting rich by their wits, most pre-eminently in tax avoidance schemes.
Uber-expensive cars, yachts, and homes have ever-climbing sales rates, while homeless numbers sleeping rough are relentlessly growing.
Only Scandinavian governments have eliminated both extremes, resulting in their citizens' surveys reporting the highest life satisfaction index on earth. Their simple solution is no secret: fair taxation. This also provides for their needy, of which there are few because fair taxation motivates all to try harder.
In New Zealand many on benefits opine that it's not worth getting a job because of the unfair tax system. We are truly chasing our own tails here down under. We need to be on top of the world like Scandinavia.
Jim Carlyle, Te Atatu Peninsula
Short & Sweet
On Ardern
It has been suggested she has a future at the UN. Sorry, I don't think so as she would need Helen, Michael, Heather and Winston to help her and the accommodation would not be big enough.
A J Petersen, Kawerau
Ms Ardern would be well-advised to decide whether she wants to be Prime Minister of New Zealand or an international trail-blazer. She can't be both.
Janet Boyle, Stanmore Bay
On Crusaders
Of course we must change the name of the Caped Crusader as well. After all Batman runs around with his underwear outside his trousers. That must be giving offence to somebody in New Zealand.
Michael Walker, Blockhouse Bay
On CGT
It would have been better not to appoint a former Finance Minister to conduct the CGT project. Has there ever been one keen on reducing tax?
John Clements, Orewa
On religion
Glenn Forsyth wrote "I attend church…(NZ Herald, April 24)" May I remind him that going into a garage occasionally doesn't make you a car?
Neville Nielsen, Orewa
On going forward
Going forward is in the so-yesterday space now. If it's not in a space, now it doesn't exist. Another cringeworthy trend.
Darshik Kumar, Rotorua
