Letter of the week: Peter Cooke, Whangaparāoa
In regard to the small minority of people who are championing their freedom to not be vaccinated against Covid and generally objecting to being told what to do, I would suggest these people take a look at a wider picture. Of course, our freedoms should be valued and defended but like most things in life there is a balance, and freedoms are balanced by obligations. You could call it a public duty but a better term is "social contract". In recognising that we are all part of society, and it is our dependence on others in society in numerous ways that keeps us alive and functioning, we also have to recognise that occasionally we must do things we are uncomfortable doing, and would rather not do, for the good of that society that looks after us all. An obvious example is joining the military in times of war; right now it means getting vaccinated. Sometimes the importance of "doing your bit" outweighs exercising your individual freedoms.
Here, our voices
Claire Trevett (Weekend Herald, February 12) mentions that it is "one of the most diverse protest groups ever seen at Parliament".
Many have now lost their jobs, standing up for what they believe, and have taken to the streets with nowhere else to make their voice heard. They are united yet diverse and fear no longer silences them.
So what does it tell us? Is it that unity is stronger than diversity or separation, and that our underlying Kiwi ability to come together and fight for what is important to us is more important than control or fear? Or is it that integration is more important than separation?
Robin Harrison, Takapuna.
Burrowed time
The real concern about these protesters is how do you reach people living down the rabbit hole?
From the words of some spokespeople, some are motivated by male ego, seeing themselves as heroes in a self-invented war and will not be deflected. But the more innocent and naive among them have clearly become unintentionally unmoored from reality with no bearings. To them, anything found on YouTube or on many outlandish sites, which have zero credible sources, is true.
To those on the verge of this rabbit hole, be very wary.
Yes, be open-minded, read widely but assess your sources through readily available sites. It's hard work but it gives the necessary bearings and keeps you from what can only be described as a kind of untethered insanity. Another choice is to remain sceptical but tune into mainstream media that have self-regulated standards of bias and accuracy.
Surely our educators need to be steering our young in either of these two directions right now, lest they become part of that pitiful sight we are witnessing in Wellington.
Keith Burgess, Symner.
Trickle treat
John Roughan's straightforward and straight-talking (Weekend Herald, February 12) demolition of any argument for Three Waters is comprehensive but there is one further point that should be borne in mind by Auckland ratepayers.
In the early propaganda it was said that, while spending five or six times the amount presently being spent by local authorities on water infrastructure, the central powerhouse would be able somehow, magically to reduce water rates. The Auckland Council creators made similar claims. And they proposed to spend less.
Peter Newfield, Takapuna.
