Safety test drives to distraction
I went for a medical certificate to enable me to renew my driver's licence, and wonder why this required a half hour with the nurse and a half hour with the doctor.
After the eye-chart test, the nurse checked my blood pressure. She then said, "I'm
going to read out 10 random words very slowly. Then, you say them back."
Wondering how this is an indicator of my driving ability, I fluff the recall. I'm alarmed at not remembering all 10, can feel sweat gathering under my mask. Was that last word ship? Or did I say that?
Next, random requests, "Write in words these numbers, like you'd write on a cheque". Pardon? Can't recall when I last wrote a cheque. More random questions; then the finale, "Say the 10 words again". I was about to ask what words, then realised. Flustered, I scrape four of them out of my brain.
Later, the doctor says if I'd had three more incorrect answers I'd have failed. I wonder about the research that delivered this test to indicate my capacity to drive at age 75. I ask the nurse, and she reads out a reference to a medical facility in Alberta, Canada. So, yes, I now have the paperwork to present to AA for my licence renewal. Am I a safe driver ... who knows?
But if you're about to undertake this test at age 75 and it's still the new version fresh from Alberta, Canada — I can tell you eight of the 10 random words you need to recall are nail, ink, house, chair, book, ticket, tree, and, of course, ship. I recalled them while driving home.
Denise Hansen, Tauranga.
Hooton attacks
What is good government? Administrative competence above all, including better policy choices? Matthew Hooton's relentless attacks on alleged Government incompetence (NZ Herald, September 2) — failures of fiscal and monetary policy, the labour and supply shortages, the rich getting richer — is largely due to the conditions created by the pandemic and the Ukraine war.
Would a National/Act government manage things better? What kind of society, what sort of planet would they be shaping for us? Lower taxes for the wealthy; fewer regulations for landlords, farmers, employers; more roads and prisons. All delivered with admirable competence, no doubt, and the belief our greenhouse gas emissions are too miniscule to worry about.
Barbara Darragh, Auckland Central.
Early election
With the mountain of controversial legislation Labour has been pushing through, without mandate and unobstructed by virtue of a monopoly government, it is time for an early election.
Opposition parties have promised to roll back much of it, with all the attendant cost and disruption caused by Labour's parliamentary bulldozer — Three Waters and two Health Authorities for starters.
There is hardly a statute which does not have Labour's thumb print of change or ideology on it. Let it run for a further 12 months, and restoring New Zealand will be an even more monumental task.
June Kearney, West Harbour.
Kowtowing Kiwis
It's a pity that when efforts are made to achieve a fairer tax system, ferocious attacks from the opposition and media make it impossible.
It's so much simpler to use labels like "tax grab", than to have an informed debate about the merits of improving the system.
The debacle over KiwiSaver is a case in point. The small local providers were originally in favour of a fairer regime, but at the last minute withdrew support. David Parker must have been astonished at that. Now National has the audacity to claim it is KiwiSaver's biggest supporter.
Under John Key, National gutted KiwiSaver and removed the government support the Labour government introduced in the early 2000s. Their actions will have cost us much more than Parker's plan to force big overseas players to pay GST. It's sad we still kowtow to big business, at the expense of everyone else.
V M Fergusson, Mt Eden.
Ramming kicks
Re the letter of Gary Hollis (Herald, September 1) and the spike in ram raids being due to recessions and putting food on the table — may I suggest that economic woes and nutrition come a distant second to the thrill of stealing another car, smashing another shop front, stealing more cigarettes and alcohol, the thrill of the chase and the strutting notoriety from social-media coverage?
While loopholes in the justice system appear to prevent the jailing of those caught due to age and few repercussions for those responsible for their upbringing, until the novelty wears off and the little darlings find another outlet for their energy, little will change, and excuses will continue to be made for them.
Ted Partridge, Māngere.
