'Armed police would not have made a difference in this tragedy. ' Photo / Hayden Woodward
The latest shooting of a policeman reinforces the argument against arming the NZ Police.
Armed police would not have made a difference in this tragedy. No one knows where the next bullet may come from. That's the nature of a firearm.
If people are serious about this
issue they should look at the perfect nation of firearm madness. America. What a disaster!
Thousands of firearms have been turned over to police during the amnesty. That means there is actually less danger in the community.
It is guaranteed there will be more deaths should the police be armed. America is our proof and we are just as human as they are.
Mark Lewis-Wilson, Mangonui.
We all looked on while the world condemned the killing of an unarmed American by a cop.
Is the cop killed in Auckland on Friday going to get shown the same compassion, or does his death not matter?
Will there be marches down Queen St to show our disgust for his senseless murder.
If not why not?
Surely all lives matter and colour is irrelevant when a life is taken.
Bob Wichman, Botany.
A young unarmed policeman is gunned down and killed.
Where is the outcry and mass marching about this?
The young are always ready to criticise, condemn and protest but this passes by with hardly a murmur from them.
A loaded gun shows total disregard and rebellion for the law.
With the murders of young babies and crimes like this it is time to re-think the death penalty.
To the family, my sincere condolences, it is tragic that this young policeman has died while doing his duty.
P. Salvador, Hobsonville.
Among Phil Goff's 'water wake-up call' suggestions there is one easy and practical solution: "Megan Tyler will look at scrapping resource consents for water tanks and provide incentives to use rainwater".
I never understood why expensive council consent was required to use the rainwater from my own roof.
It is a no-brainer to use it for washing and flushing toilets, about half of domestic water supply, and this was encouraged by the old Waitakere council.
Apart from reducing treated water consumption the other advantage is a reduction in peak flow to the stormwater system.
What took them so long to realise this?
Alan McArdle, Glen Eden.
I have never been a supporter of Warriors coach Stephen Kearney but it should have been CEO Cameron George who got the axe.
Ever since his appointment the Warriors' win record has been disastrous.
Where are the big time players the CEO should have bought after Shaun Johnson's sudden departure? In 2019 George gave Kearney fantastic ovations and another three-year contract.
Then in one foul move he sacked him.
So, where do the Warriors go from here? Perhaps Graham Lowe is in the mix for coach after his comeback announcement.
At least he has the knowledge and respect to take the boys forward ... and he'd probably do it for nothing.
Rex Head, Papatoetoe.
Anyone who has invested, willingly or unwillingly, some of their life in the service of the military will verify that there is nothing quite like army discipline for getting normal people to carry out necessary tasks without question or hesitation. Even when the tasks may seem harsh or unreasonable.
New Zealand has a small but very well-trained army, and right now has, in all probability, a fair number of capable soldiers idling their time away, just longing for a worthy assignment.
Why does our Government not second a small detachment of military personnel to control quarantine centres? It is obvious that some form of strict discipline is needed, if isolation and quarantine are to be effective.
Covid-19 is a matter of national security and should be treated as such.
If civvy folk can't quite gather how important it is to stick religiously to the rules, then perhaps a few sharp-eyed, well-organised NCOs can ensure that we do not slip sadly out of level 1 and into desperate recovery mode.
What better use for a peace-time army? Sometimes compassion is not enough.
Stuart Weekes, Waiheke Island.
I am astounded to hear about all the lax policing of the people put into isolation for 14 days when coming through the airport and also mingling with ordinary hotel guests.
It is hard to believe that they are then mixing these newbies with others who have nearly finished their time on a bus together to take them to exercise at Queens Wharf etc.
How much is the Government paying of taxpayers' money to bus these people somewhere for exercise when most hotels have perfectly good grounds for them to be able to walk around when they are allowed to exercise.
The hotels should also be telling any folk who ring to book with them they are a Covid Isolation Hotel and give the would-be booker a choice and also should have signs outside their doors warning people who just walk in to use their coffee shop etc so they have a choice whether to risk it or go elsewhere.
On the travel bubble with Australia when it happens, what is to stop someone like the gentleman who came from Pakistan through Australia to New Zealand from being cleared to just walk out of the airport if he just declared he came from Australia. I am sure many untruths will be told if you have a choice of just walking out against having to spend 14 days in lockdown.
There has to be some watertight checks to make sure this doesn't happen.
Annette Turner, Warkworth.
It is patently obvious that the current isolation system is hopelessly overloaded with the sheer numbers of returning Kiwis. These people in the main are not stranded but have made other countries their home and have now decided NZ looks an attractive place to be at this time.
This being the case they should be allowed to enter New Zealand at a pace that the system can accommodate.
And surely they should be tested before their journey begins and all hotel isolation costs paid by them?
Vince West, Milford
More and more, one section of our community is being marginalised, excluded and discriminated against: people who have neither the facilities nor the knowledge to access the internet.
One reason for people's reluctance became very clear during lockdown when so many transactions could be completed only online: it is too complicated.
I know people who are highly intelligent but have ended up in tears of frustration. Working through the instructions can be like negotiating an obstacle course, designed to show off the designers' cleverness rather than to make them comprehensible to the public.
Websites are repetitious, forms to be completed are full of hurdles, dead ends and terms that do not have their accepted meanings. A question typed in the 'chat with us' box is met with an 'I do not understand — please rephrase your question' response.
Dr Smith's "that does not compute" robot (in the old TV series Lost in Space) is alive and well. We need more humans available to help users through.
We are being gradually coerced into working online so the process needs to be made simpler. We can't all be IT graduates.
Anne Martin, Helensville.
When are the referees going to do something about the kickers cheating ?
The kickers blatantly cheat by kicking the ball ahead of the referee's mark and when placing the kicking tee grab another metre.
This is blatant cheating and the referees do nothing about it. One way to stop this is to cancel the penalty.
Jock MacVicar, Hauraki.
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More than two dozen firefighters battled the fire at its peak.