Hire standards
What is wrong with New Zealand employers? My son, a graduate, highly intelligent, hardworking, reliable and a resilient achiever, cannot find a permanent job.
He only applies for jobs he could do/is qualified for, sends tailored CVs and CLs; he has offered to work for free, to gain experience;
he's tried "cold" contacting businesses. Most employers do not acknowledge job applications. Apparently, this doesn't happen in other countries. It's not just rude, it's poor business practice.
Rejections are usually slow and automated, with no explanation. There is always someone who is "more aligned with the experience and skillset needed". But how can he know what went wrong if no one tells him?
Maybe it's because he's on the quiet side. Those with the gift of the gab get the job, even if they're rubbish at it. Maybe it's the tall poppy syndrome – but if you are afraid of excellence you end up with mediocrity.
This situation dates from before Covid-19. Like many other talented youngsters, my son may be forced to leave New Zealand. If I were to write the school report for New Zealand employers, I would mark it, "Must try harder."
P. Ryder, Manurewa.
Speech author
In her speech in 1947, when aged 21, Princess Elizabeth declared: "I declare before you all that my whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong."
The speech was written by a 50-year-old journalist, Dermot Morrah.
In the Oldie magazine, Robin Ollington, his granddaughter, wrote: "My family still have a
letter from the King's Private Secretary, Sir Alan Lascelles, thanking my grandfather for the speech. As the letter says, the speech made the princess cry. I am reliably informed that Winston Churchill was also reduced to tears when he heard it".
Warren Johns, Remuera.
Flag etiquette
Despite the name, according to British tradition, a flag should be flown no less than two-thirds of the way up the flagpole, with at least the height of another flag between the top of the flag and the top of the pole.
The practice dates back to the 17th century. Some sources suggest the flag is lowered to make room for an "invisible flag of death" flying above.
The flag is half-masted by raising it to the top of the mast, then slowly lowering it to the half-mast position, which will depend on the size of the flag and the length of the flagpole.
The flag should be raised again to the peak before lowering it for the day.
Boyd Miller, Hauraki.
Changing subjects
A good editorial on NZ and the monarchy (NZ Herald, September 12).
Monarchy in itself seems like an outmoded concept, something you can't imagine starting afresh but which is a legacy of the past. Monarchy, where a country like New Zealand recognises as its head of state a monarch half a world away, seems almost bizarre. This may have looked natural when our country was a colony but, in this day and age, it defies logic and reason.
How many New Zealanders see themselves as the subjects of King Charles III?
As the portion of New Zealanders with English ancestry is about 40 per cent, this means that 60 per cent of the population is not. Surely it is time for New Zealand to make arrangements for its own resident head of state?
Frank Olsson, Freemans Bay.
Underlying problems
The idea of home detention for rape, at any age, is appalling beyond belief (NZ Herald, September 9). Justice must be just, and this is manifestly unjust. The judges and the politicians have failed these girls, their families, and society.
And yet, we cannot speak about the problems in a society where these crimes occur. Prevention is always better than medicine, the proverbial ambulance at the bottom of the cliff.
Why are these boys and girls in a situation, at these ages, where this can occur? How are we teaching these young people that committing crimes and also taking no personal responsibility for your own safety is acceptable?
If you are under 18, you should not be unsupervised, at parties, sleeping in strange places, drinking alcohol, trusting strangers, accessing social media. You should be at home, studying, learning, and contributing to the family that raised you.
We do not teach any responsibility or even consider social cohesion a thing. Society and its insistence on carefree unlimited liberalism and socialism is failing our children and damning the next generation.
Albert McGhee, East Tāmaki.
