Letters: Horizons now a greenie-inspired organisation

Greenie-inspired organisation

It is with some concern that I read Murray Hughes letter (Chronicle, July 13) ... But I must say I'm not surprised the latest drama happened ... I have environmental/ratepayers goals and in my two terms on the regional council I think I clearly demonstrated that.

It's great to see that I have been proven right on a number occasions from local stopbanks being a waste of time and massive waste of money, cleaning the waterways into the Whanganui River to the toxic mess of the Foxton/Manawatu River detour, to Lake Horowhenua in Levin (both put on the regional council backburner or too hard basket).

The point of this letter is I hammered away at these projects without any real support and certainly in my first term on most occasions the two Whanganui councillors voted against each other.

The regional council has gone from a farmer/rural-driven organisation to that of a "greenie-inspired organisation" in my view. This did not need to have happened if common sense prevailed and councillors worked together to get a balance.

It now seems vast sums of money are spent on "greenie touchy-feely stuff". I have no problems with substantial pure environmental goals, after all that is the prime task of the regional council.

Nicola Patrick needs to beware of the wishes of those people she represents and a local authority binding referendum is a warning red flashing light. Don't use the STV system to get more "political greenies" around the regional council table. [Abridged]

BOB WALKER
retired regional councillor
St Johns Hill

American nightmare

What is happening in America? Have they all gone crazy? If any more proof was needed that they elected a fool for their president his response to the Covid-19 pandemic has confirmed it. The US with only 4 per cent of the world's population has 25 per cent of the virus.

Things have become so bad that countries all around the world have closed their borders to the US and even Mexico has closed its border crossing to keep Americans out.

So now President Trump can build his wall and Mexico will "gladly" pay for it.

GRAHAM LEWIS
Whanganui

Kiwi lives

My inner sense of fairness requires me to respond to Paul Baber's epistle in the Chronicle of July 9. Despite Rob Rattenbury's well constructed and relevant column of July 6, Mr Barber takes it upon himself to divert the intentions of Mr Rattenbury towards a topic which is obviously dear to his own misguided beliefs .... a balance in views of BLM.

Why he should get his knickers in a twist over Black Lives Matter is beyond my comprehension as it has no relevance in New Zealand in the form in which it has been imported from the US. If we are going to jump on the bandwagon, let's give it a title that is appropriate to NZ, perhaps "brown" or "beige" lives matter as identified by Billy T James in the first and Sir Howie in the second classification of colour.

I cannot understand why slogans such as "White Lives Matter" and "All lives Matter" are slated as racist. I would have thought that every life matters, regardless of skin colour, creed or belief, but obviously not to some people of colour. [Abridged]

D PARTNER
Whanganui

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