OPINION: Prime Minister John Key likely woke up today with fewer friends in the property industry than he had yesterday, but his reform of the tax system will have many feeling relieved.

OPINION: After rammings and one sinking of anti-whaling protest ships in the Southern Ocean, it is difficult to see how the New Zealand Government can continue to take a Pontius Pilate approach to what is happening on the frontline of the whaling war.

OPINION: Stand up and take a bow John Norton.

OPINION: February 6 is here again, which is a great excuse to take stock of where we are at as a nation.

OPINION: It was dubbed the greatest health scare of modern times in Britain.

OPINION: With the 40th anniversary of the first lunar landing safely out of the way, United States president Barack Obama has abandoned his pre-election pledge to send astronauts back to the moon and ultimately on to Mars.

OPINION: The Government's review of taxi safety comes too late for the family of slain cab driver Hiren Mohini. The Auckland cab driver died in the early hours of Sunday after a frenzied knife attack over a $20 fare. His life could have been saved by a $1000 plastic screen, which are mandatory in most other countries. It was certainly worth a lot more than the cost of a safety screen.

OPINION: It's that week of the year when many parents will be feeling a degree of ambivalence.

OPINION: Hopefully it will be back up by the time you read this but as these first words of this editorial are written, a significant milestone has just passed.

OPINION: There was an air of inevitability about Environment Minister Nick Smith's decision to call in the consent applications to build three large cubicle dairy farms in the Upper Waitaki basin. The only surprising thing is that it took so long.

OPINION: Prince Charles has proved at last the monarchy may not be as useless as the republican movement would have us believe.

OPINION: The farcical events of Monday show that when an irresistible force meets an immovable object, the resulting power blackout can cripple large parts of the country and generate a gale of political hot air.

OPINION: Today is Australia Day, and no doubt our cousins across the Tasman will be enjoying the anniversary by throwing a few extra shrimps on the barbie.

OPINION: British television talent show supremo Simon Cowell has built his celebrity status on being vain, cynical, rude, and arrogant.

OPINION: Even the most strident critics of the current Government would have to give it credit for one thing; it is not afraid of tackling the trickiest of issues.

OPINION: Politics is all about the art of compromise, where those with differing views are able to get together and thrash out a policy that does its best to meet everyones' needs.

OPINION: When Prime Minister John Key was on the campaign trail ahead of the 2008 election, Opihi Services Academy was a must-see.

OPINION: As night follows day, the prospect of a visit by a member of the British royal family inevitably sparks an outbreak of republican sentiment in New Zealand.

New Zealand has a new hero, although he is unlikely to ever qualify as a household name.

OPINION: When it comes to slow learners, South Canterbury's contingent of drink drivers are in a class of their own.

OPINION: When a devastating earthquake strikes, it inevitably tests the strength and character of the people at its epicentre.

OPINION: Any motorist who has momentarily strayed off the straight and narrow and encountered a state highway rumble strip will appreciate what a wake-up call it is.

OPINION: Health Minister Tony Ryall is considering whether to appeal a Human Rights Review Tribunal ruling that the families who care for their severely disabled adult children should be paid for their work.

OPINION: New Zealand's hard-pressed taxpayers got a $2.2 billion Christmas present from the country's four biggest trading banks, but old Scrooge cast a long shadow over the bankers' seasonal largesse.

Terror has been a topic constantly in the global news over the last decade, but reports about it have usually involved the United States and the so-called "war on terror" being fought mainly in Iraq and Afghanistan.

OPINION: Running for public office, at whatever level one may contemplate it, is something that's not for the faint-hearted.

OPINION: Was it inevitable that things would escalate to the extent that they have, and are they destined to get a lot worse?

OPINION: Troy Hardy is truly a brave man.

OPINION: Is the presence of Israeli tennis player Shahar Peer at the ASB Classic in Auckland on a par with the presence of a national rugby squad, representing apartheid-era South Africa, in New Zealand in 1981?

OPINION: It truly is a red letter day in South Canterbury, given that it's the centenary of the birth of one of our greatest sporting champions.

OPINION: We have seen some incidents of real heroism take place in New Zealand over the last week. Unfortunately they have found their way into the media and had national attention drawn to them because they resulted in tragic deaths.

OPINION: The picture on today's front page of hundreds of people enjoying the welcoming party for 2010 at Caroline Bay, and the fact that New Year's Eve celebrations around South Canterbury were relatively trouble-free, both point to the fact that we live in a great place.

OPINION: The amazing story of Twizel's Kylie Wakelin, who became the first New Zealand woman to ski to the South Pole this week, just goes to show what extraordinary things can happen in the lives of individuals who are up for the challenges that come their way.

OPINION: It goes without saying that some of those most eager to see the back of 2009, and a change of fortunes in the new year that begins tonight will be those associated in some way with South Canterbury Finance.

OPINION: Although any death on our roads is one too many, at time of writing the country's holiday road toll stands at just two, in five days, a good start to the holiday period.

OPINION: The obvious question for all Kiwis, especially those given to globetrotting, after reading yesterday's story about an alleged attempt to blow up an aircraft over the United States at the weekend, is "what would you rather have?"

OPINION: They're in the media every year, the endless promotional plugs about "our summer of cricket", "our summer game" and other similar references to the game that supposedly forms the centre-piece of our summer sporting entertainment.

OPINION: 'Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines!

OPINION: For most New Zealanders, tomorrow is a special day, one of the most important of the year.

OPINION: It's the time of the year when we expect to start seeing footage of bushfires raging across the Tasman in Australia, where summer temperatures soar and fires can quickly spread across thousands of hectares of bushland due to strong winds.

OPINION: Given the road system we have in New Zealand, one would have thought that consideration would have been a quality present in abundance among the country's driving population.

OPINION: As politicians and commentators debate the big question in the wash-up of the Copenhagen climate conference – whether the talks were only mildly disappointing or a complete waste of time – it is worth considering the few crumbs of hope that were left on the table.

OPINION: It looks as if it will take divine intervention to get the biblical film epic Kingdom Come off the ground, but heck, it is almost Christmas, and miracles do sometimes happen.

OPINION: Many people yearn for the time before mobile telephones became ubiquitous.

OPINION: The Government's decision to make room on the nation's flagpoles for the tino rangatiratanga Maori flag has managed to get knickers in a twist up and down the country.

OPINION: As crunch week begins at the Copenhagen climate talks, the world's leaders – and indeed Prime Minister John Key – look like they have a mountain to climb.

OPINION: One of the great skills in life is knowing when to quit while you are ahead, and that is exactly what our best entertainment exports have done.

OPINION: When the police unveiled the results of a move to introduce earlier closing hours for inner city Timaru bars, the endorsement of the taxi community was telling.

OPINION: Seven months ago this newspaper wondered whether Energy Minister Gerry Brownlee had what it took to tackle the incredibly complex issue of electricity sector reform.

OPINION: It's not often the Upper Waitaki Basin finds itself at the top of the national news agenda, but plans for three large scale European-style dairy farms - where up to 18,000 cows will be kept in cubicles indoors for much of the year - have generated a political storm.

OPINION: Those who have watched celebrity psychologist Nigel Latta on television or read his books will know that political correctness is not something he has a lot of time for.

OPINION: It's the time of year when many of us are preparing for a well-earned rest, but others, naturally, know that their services are more likely to be required now than at any other time, because they have taken the decision to try to keep us safe while we're enjoying a time of recreation.

OPINION: It's hard to believe there could be any real surprise around New Zealand at the prices of tickets for the 2011 Rugby World Cup, which will be played here.

OPINION: It is hard not to like Tiger Woods.

OPINION: For some time there has been a nascent movement – existing mostly on the internet – which has aimed to bring back national institution Georgie Pie.

OPINION: Prime Minister John Key's shilly-shallying over whether or not to attend this weekend's United Nations Copenhagen Climate Conference is puzzling.

OPINION: The latest offensive incident involving TVNZ Breakfast host Paul Henry has sparked outrage from the disabled community, and rightly so.

OPINION: The glaring gap between Australia's standard of living and our own is a thorny issue.

OPINION: A large number of vulnerable New Zealanders were caught out with the failure of a string of finance companies in the past few years.

OPINION: Dame Margaret Bazley's review of the legal aid system is as damning as it is alarming.

OPINION: This newspaper was fast out of the blocks to congratulate Air New Zealand chief executive Rob Fyfe for saying sorry to the families of the victims of the 1979 Mount Erebus disaster for the way they were treated.

OPINION: It's not as if the reminder was necessarily needed, but Tuesday morning's power cut, which affected some 20,000 Timaru residents, was a wake-up call about how dependent we are on power to function properly as a community.

OPINION: Today marks a great day for Timaru.

OPINION: The case of an Air New Zealand flight attendant who was sacked after being caught drink-driving on her way to work has pitted the principle of public safety against an individual's right to privacy.

OPINION: Rugby's not often associated with chickens, unless of course one is thinking of the French cockerel, as the All Blacks will be this week.

OPINION: Just what police will achieve in the fight against alcohol-related crime when they mount a massive two-day trans-Tasman operation next month remains to be seen.

OPINION: It wasn't exactly Woodstock, but there were definitely a lot of good vibes doing the rounds at Fonterra's annual meeting in Ashburton this week.

OPINION: It's a delightfully bookish coincidence. In the week that a movie based on the latest literary phenomenon to sweep through the ranks of our pre-teens and teens is set to hit our screens, we learn something astounding about the author many of the parents of the current generation of teens grew up with.

OPINION: It is fast becoming clear that the Government needs to take time out from its headlong rush to introduce an Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) to have the political equivalent of a cup of tea.

OPINION: When the Maori Party last week called the inevitable hui to discuss the antics of MP Hone Harawira, it was a fair bet that most New Zealanders were expecting the event to result in the equivalent of a slap over the wrist with a wet bus ticket.

OPINION: Match-winning All White Rory Fallon has lamented the lack of attention football gets in rugby-mad New Zealand.

OPINION: Let's face it, soccer is a long way from being New Zealand's national sport.

OPINION: Rugby commentator Murray Mexted may not be everyone's cup of tea, but at least he is a man who speaks his mind without fear nor favour.

OPINION: The best thing to have in business, South Island hotels entrepreneur Earl Hagaman once mused, is a monopoly.

OPINION: It is a sad fact that the vandal attack on the new Caroline Bay interactive war memorial should not come as a great surprise to anyone.

OPINION: If our politicians haven't yet managed to grasp the message that the end is nigh for their spectacular culture of entitlement, there can be little hope they ever will.

OPINION: The overwhelming emotion felt by anyone reading the story of a house fire in St Andrews in the Herald Weekender must surely have been relief. Relief that nobody came to serious harm as a result of the fire.

OPINION: The keen recyclers of the Timaru district should take a bow.

OPINION: Including ACT leader Rodney Hide as a partner in Government was always going to be a gamble for Prime Minister John Key, who probably expected the odd bump in the highway to political success.

OPINION: Commodore Frank Bainimarama's petulant expulsion of New Zealand and Australia's top diplomats from Fiji can be taken as a sure sign that he is beginning to feel the squeeze.

OPINION: Vianne Shead was a vivacious Temuka teenager with a slight rebellious streak, a passion for life, and a love of fun.

OPINION: In retrospect, 2003 did not rank as a great year in the history of the Waimate District Council.

OPINION: The fact that yesterday heralded the coming into force of new legislation banning the use of handheld cellphones while driving has been widely covered by the New Zealand media, so much so that it would be virtually impossible for anyone in the country in recent weeks not to have known about it.

OPINION: The decision by KiwiRail to back off plans to extend its Temuka railyard is undoubtedly one that will be welcomed by the town's residents, but their relief will be tempered by a couple of factors.

OPINION: The time frames in which they show evidence being analysed are totally unrealistic, but anyone who has watched television programmes like CSI (Crime Scene Investigation) knows just how important a tool DNA has become in the fight against crime over the last couple of decades.

OPINION: Back in 1929 the memories of the miserable human toll that resulted from the battles of World War 1 were still fresh in the minds of the people of South Canterbury.

OPINION: Air New Zealand chief executive Rob Fyfe's apology to the families of the victims of the 1979 Erebus disaster was a great gesture that went some way to right a wrong.

OPINION: Camping is a Kiwi summer tradition and this part of the country is blessed with many campgrounds in picturesque spots that will soon be overflowing with those looking to enjoy a slice of the summer in the great outdoors.

OPINION: Love them or hate them, cellphones have undoubtedly brought a host of advantages to the world.

OPINION: The politics of education can be complicated and confusing for outsiders to the sector and the debate over national standards is no exception.

OPINION: Prime Minister John Key should take a leaf out of All Blacks coach Graham Henry's book.

OPINION: At first glance the people of Temuka have little in common with the populace of West Berlin during the Cold War, but natives of the picturesque South Canterbury town could be forgiven for believing their beloved home is under threat of being cut in half by a wall.

OPINION: Kids, as every parent and schoolteacher knows all too well, do silly things.

OPINION: In less than a fortnight one of the most overdue laws will finally come into operation on New Zealand's roads, bringing this country into line with numerous other nations, when it becomes an offence to use a handheld cellphone while driving.

OPINION: It may not be the only major issue out there, and certainly the global credit crisis helped to shift it from centre stage for a time, but there is no question that climate change has become one of the defining issues of the first decade of the 21st century.

OPINION: It would be fair to say that South Canterbury rugby has spent the last few years in the doldrums and attracted its share of negative publicity during that time, both for its performances on the field and, occasionally, the behaviour of some of its representatives off the paddock.

OPINION: In his early days in Government, Maori Party co-leader Pita Sharples was warned that he would likely have to swallow the odd "dead rat" in order to get a good deal for Maori, and since then he has swallowed his fair share with little sign of indigestion.

OPINION: The Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) has turned its attention to the vexed subject of police pursuits, and decided to recommend a number of changes to the way the police pursue criminals.

OPINION: Parents of young children around the country will be instinctively tightening their grips on the small hands in their clasp in the light of the Aisling Symes tragedy.

OPINION: New Zealand's accident compensation scheme has long been sold to us as being the envy of many other countries. It is a one-off, a no-fault scheme that provides cover for anyone injured in an accident through a state-funded insurance scheme.

OPINION: US President Barack Obama appeared to be as shocked at his winning of the Nobel Peace Prize as everyone else.

One court victory for the tax man does not make a summer, but two make for a terrific start to the spring.

OPINION: The findings of a UMR Research survey into the level of trust New Zealanders have in the media makes sobering reading for the industry.

OPINION: Local Government Minister Rodney Hide is nothing if not busy. Not content with trying to fix the dysfunctional morass that is Auckland, he has tackled one of the thorniest political issues of them all – dog laws.

OPINION: The sentencing of former Cabinet Minister Taito Phillip Field yesterday was a great tragedy.

OPINION: Prime Minister John Key must be having second thoughts about the wisdom of his mercy dash to tsunami-stricken Samoa after it landed him in the midst of a speeding motorcade controversy.

OPINION: When a woman discovers her first baby is on the way, her doctor or midwife will politely suggest that antenatal classes for her – and hopefully her partner – are a good idea.

OPINION: We have always known that Black Caps captain Daniel Vettori has a special magic.

OPINION: As the unspeakable horrors of the Pacific tsunami continue to unfold and the death toll rises, the thoughts and prayers of New Zealanders are with our island cousins.

OPINION: Some people take big setbacks in their stride.

OPINION: The Centennial Park Store on Church Street in Timaru is too bright to miss.

OPINION: Swiss authorities have been condemned for detaining award winning film director Roman Polanski.

OPINION: When Sir Kerry Burke's end came as chairman of Environment Canterbury (ECan), it was not pretty.

OPINION: She may not have been everybody's cup of tea, but there can be little doubt that Sue Bradford will be a big loss to politics.

OPINION: The word icon is possibly the most overused in our modern vocabulary, but it is the only way to describe a man of the stature of Sir Howard Morrison.

OPINION: Ring the church bells, break out the champagne, put the chicken dance song on the stereo the recession is over.

OPINION: When a new baby arrives he or she brings a huge amount of joy and delight for families. That is why they are called little bundles of joy.

OPINION: Finance Minister Bill English has the second most important job in the Government, and almost a year after he took charge, all the signs are he is doing a good job at managing the country's finances in difficult times.

OPINION: Let's look at the positive side of things first, and it is a huge positive that nobody was harmed as a result of the arson in Timaru on Saturday night.

OPINION: Normally the prospect of the setting of a new record by a New Zealand sports star or sports team would be keenly anticipated up and down the country, but the prospect tonight is a pretty unpalatable one.

From the tactics of underarm cricketer Trevor Chappell, to the deliberate attack on ice skating star Nancy Kerrigan, sport has provided plenty of scandals to shock the world.

Some issues are bigger than party politics and need a genuinely bipartisan approach where parties across the spectrum come together, put their differences aside, and hammer out a deal for the greater good.

OPINION: The "epitome of evil" was yesterday told he will spend at least 18 years in jail. It does not seem long enough.

OPINION: It is difficult not to feel a great deal of sympathy for the plight of Timaru beautician Natasha Porter.

When competitors in the University of Canterbury Engineering Society's annual Undie 500 rally tootled through Timaru on Friday afternoon on their gaudy pilgrimage to Dunedin it was hard to see anything more than a group of young people having a good time in an extremely pointless pursuit of fun.

Over the years producing company annual reports has become something of an art.

OPINION: Spring has sprung in New Zealand in more ways than one.

OPINION: Thedebate over the shade of green that adorns the new Powerstore outlet on Timaru's golden mile has pitted Timaru District Mayor Janie Annear against one of the most powerful forces in the modern world the brand.

OPINION: Timaru, according to travel bible Lonely Planet, is an important port city and also a convenient stopping point halfway between Christchurch and Dunedin "although many travellers prefer to press on to the smaller, more charming Oamaru, 85km further south".

OPINION: The case of Detective Sergeant John Gualter, who has pleaded guilty to driving while two and a half times over the legal alcohol limit, is shocking but not surprising.

What might seem like one of the downsides of living in a community the size of South Canterbury - the lack of notable sporting achievements - on the national and international stage is conversely also one of the upsides.

OPINION: There are times when public pressure is a good thing and a company, by listening to the public and changing a controversial rule or practice, shows it is open to criticism and willing to give its customers what they want.

OPINION: Whether or not it is true that the banging and crashing of containers will keep the town's residents awake at night if a proposed extension to the Temuka railyard goes ahead, there is little doubt that the plan is already causing some in the town to lose sleep.

OPINION: The bylaw banning the wearing of gang patches in Wanganui, which came into effect this week, has certainly been well signalled by mayor Michael Laws and his council, but its implementation was nevertheless still accompanied by a high degree of fanfare.

OPINION: It may well be true, as Phar Lap Charitable Trust chairman Derek Mayne is quoted as saying on today's front page, that many people do view Phar Lap simply as a racehorse one of the greatest of all racehorses, to be sure, but a racehorse nonetheless.

OPINION: Hands up all those who don't wish to know how well that school you're thinking of sending little Mary or Johnny to is going to meet their needs?

The New Zealand cricket team's struggles during the test series in Sri Lanka have not come as too much of a surprise.

OPINION: When years of discontent within the ranks of Environment Canterbury councillors boiled over this week, it was fitting that the showdown took place in the home of the southern rebellion in Timaru.

OPINION: There can be no winners in the sad case of Scott Murray, just a lot of people who could be forgiven for feeling like the filling in a very difficult sandwich.

OPINION: The size of Telecom chief executive Paul Reynolds' pay and bonus package has caused predictable outrage, and rightly so.

OPINION: When a bomb ripped a Pan Am jumbo jet from the sky on December 21 1988, killing all 259 people aboard and another 11 on the ground in the small Scottish village of Lockerbie, the world was horrified, and rightly so.

There's absolutely no question that the Hydro Grand Hotel is one of Timaru's most recognisable landmarks, and that as a hotel it has a rich history.

OPINION: On the face of it, there may have been nothing to All Black coach Graham Henry's decision, on the eve of one of the most important matches his team will face this year, to fire a shot across the bows of rugby's global administrators.

Malcolm Mulholland

The sentencing in the case of five manslaughter convictions for the death of Wainuiomata woman Janet Moses has caused controversy.

OPINION: Footage of the disgusting brawl between players and up to 100 spectators from two of Auckland's top rugby schools at the weekend has been on our television screens often this week.

OPINION: If the amount of chatter coming from Wellington about the idea of increasing goods and services tax (GST) is anything to go by, we are being softened up for a hike in the consumption tax that has been part of our lives since 1986.

OPINION: The school ball is a landmark event in a teenager's life, a time for fun, innocent romance and a gateway into adult life.

OPINION: The landmark Ministerial Review Group report on the state of the health system contains 170 recommendations chiefly aimed at cutting bureaucracy and duplication and delivering better health services in a sustainable way.

For most ordinary New Zealanders life, if not a struggle, certainly involves a fair bit of watching the pennies to ensure we can fulfil all our financial commitments, both the ongoing ones and the unforeseen ones that often make the juggling act interesting.

The most positive thing that can be said about the news that PrimePort is to lose nearly half its container trade to Lyttelton is that at least those heading up the organisation are not new to handling such difficult situations.

OPINION: Forget pampered, over-paid and underperforming stars, indifferent form, Graham Henry's metaphysical laments, and endless opining from countless pundits.

OPINION: Sensible turkeys do not vote for Christmas - nor do Members of Parliament support a move to rein in their lifetime travel perks. Common sense suggests they should think again.

OPINION: Given the amount of time he's been in Parliament, and even in Cabinet, one would have thought Labour MP Chris Carter was quite used to the idea of fairly intense media scrutiny and mature enough to ride it out with a degree of dignity.

OPINION: When a High Court jury decided two months ago that David Bain was not guilty of the murders of five members of his family, it became inevitable that his legal team would bid for compensation.

Many great things can be passed down from generation to generation. Good parents, and indeed grandparents, aunts and uncles, have much to teach the young in terms of commonsense, morality, honesty, and integrity.

The latest Pacific Islands ferry tragedy is a timely reminder of the important role the so-called regional 'super powers' have to play in the region.

OPINION: New Zealand can be justifiably proud of its record on corruption.

OPINION: Revulsion, Disgust, Outrage - those words, and there are many more where they came from, describe some of the emotions expressed by those in the Herald office yesterday on first seeing graphic photographs of the mindless and cowardly attack carried out on the birds in the aviary at the Temuka Domain on Tuesday night.

OPINION: One could almost feel the chills travelling up and down spines across the country yesterday, when news broke of a horrific attack on a Waikato woman, who had been out jogging in a rural area, by eight pig dogs.

OPINION: Young people are arguably our most precious, and most difficult to manage, resource.

There's no way to sugarcoat a story like that leading the front page of today's Herald. After all, 20 jobs is 20 jobs, and in a community the size of South Canterbury, that is a significant number.

OPINION: As a book opening exercise, Parliament's revelations about MPs' spending was about as efficient at shedding light as a $2 torch in a July blizzard.

OPINION: The latest antics of social development minister Paula Bennett have opened up a deep divide in New Zealand society.

OPINION: Coronation Street fans with long memories may remember an episode many years ago when battleaxe Vera Duckworth spruced up her terraced house with fake brick cladding.

Dr Albert Makary's campaign to get Timaru philanthropist Allan Hubbard recognised in the New Year's honours list is unlikely to endear him to his friend.

There are few business issues more important to New Zealand than the capital restructuring of Fonterra.

Give him a stetson, some cowboy boots, a couple of six shooters and a shiny star, and Wanganui mayor Michael Laws would make a convincing sheriff.

OPINION: It was the cruellest of ironies that an avalanche which buried two skiers, killing one, yesterday in Canterbury's Ragged Range came not long after avalanche warnings were issued for the Southern Alps.

OPINION: The loss of Timaru's resident district court judge some eight years ago was something that was strongly resisted here, largely because restorative justice efforts that were being made here, in which then resident Judge Edward Ryan's sentences were playing an important role, were working so well.

OPINION: If the verdict in the David Bain trial was one that divided opinion across the nation, the one that came down in the same court yesterday will surely have the vast majority of the country united behind it.

OPINION: Had Prime Minister John Key not reacted to Labour leader Phil Goff's latest recession-related suggestion in the way that he did, it would have been a surprise.

OPINION: Jetstar, the budget airline offshoot of Australian national carrier Qantas, has had a torrid time since it began flying domestic services.

OPINION: When the powers that be at the New Zealand Rugby Union headquarters made the announcement a fortnight ago that the contracts of All Black coach Graham Henry and assistants Steve Hansen and Wayne Smith had been extended until 2011, questions over the timing were certainly justified.

OPINION: Every now and again, for those working in the news media, an event happens that pushes a lot of the everyday tasks involved in working for a media organisation aside.

OPINION: If Wednesday night's earthquake hasn't got citizens dusting off their civil defence emergency plans, then they've got nerves of steel.

OPINION: The power to end the bunfight over adding folic acid to our daily bread now rests squarely in the Government's hands, leaving our political leaders facing a difficult decision.

OPINION: The fact that we're still in the midst of a recession hasn't stopped Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard from starting to worry about a return to prosperity and the problems that it may bring.

OPINION: The security situation in Afghanistan has taken a sharp turn for the worse, posing serious questions the Government as it reviews its commitment to providing troops to the troubled nation.

Chocolate and red lipstick, according to conventional wisdom, are recession-proof products because of their "feel good factor."

OPINION: Health minister Tony Ryall, who is stewing over whether to continue funding a programme that provides subsidised fruit to low decile schools, would do well to get his officials to put in a quick phone call to Timaru South School principal Mike Hogan and ask him what he thinks.

OPINION: Determination must rank as one of most important qualities that parents can pass on to their children.

Chris Trotter

Thanks to Winston Peters, Labour now has some serious thinking to do.

OPINION: Smokers are a determined bunch.

OPINION: The prospect of a solution to the badly flawed Foreshore and Seabed Act has lured the hibernating former New Zealand First MP Winston Peters out of his political Siberia, so the National Government and its Maori Party partners must be on to something.

OPINION: Satruday night was one of those nights when all South Cantabrians in their right minds should have been rugged up near a roaring fire, doing everything they could to stay warm. Rain was falling and the weather was generally miserable.

There's no doubt that one of the major priorities for New Zealanders at this time of the year, especially those who live in the South Island, is staying warm. Winter conditions can be bitter and having a refuge from the type of cold we're experiencing right now is vital.

OPINION: You've heard the phrase "more bang for your buck".

OPINION: This newspaper was one of a number that was quick to react with dismay to the allegation that young French rugby star Mathieu Bastareaud had been attacked and beaten by a group of thugs in a Wellington street.

OPINION: There's no doubt that Springbok rugby coach Peter de Villiers is a man unafraid of speaking his own mind, though it's a habit that often leaves observers wondering just what it is that goes on in his mind.

OPINION: Eight months after the National Government was elected there can be little doubt about which end of the political spectrum it represents.

The Old Chook

Last week I rambled on about the seaside. It brought back many memories. They were great days for us children.

Derek Burrows

I think I might have a weight problem and I'm lying awake at night worrying about it.

Peter O'Neill

Tweet tweet, twitter, twitter.

Joseph Romanos

The New Zealand Rugby Union is fortunate Michael Jackson has stolen most of the headlines over the past few days.

OPINION: The hullabaloo over Timaru's Aquatic Centre over the past fortnight has shown that, not only is democracy alive and well in our region, but so is commonsense.

Gwynne Dyer

"The Dalai Lama equals non-violence, and without him there would be violence," said Lhadon Tethong, executive director of Students for a Free Tibet, a couple of months ago.

Now that smacking children is no longer defensible under the Crimes Act, it is hard to imagine what All Blacks coach Graham Henry can do to make his team sing the national anthem with pride.

OPINION: For those of a certain age, the death of Michael Jackson will loom as large as the passing of Elvis Presley did for a different generation.

OPINION: There can be little doubt that the internet has revolutionised modern life.

OPINION: The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry's 86-page report on the future of the meat industry is a chubby document that has no doubt done great things for the paper industry, but it's hard to imagine it doing much for the sector it was meant to help.

OPINION: As the winter of economic discontent grinds on, it may be hard to find things to be thankful for, but there are some bright spots amid the gloom.

Derek Burrows

OPINION: To say that I'm confused by modern technology is as much an understatement as saying Neil Armstrong liked to travel.

Joseph Romanos

OPINION: Michael Campbell's comments after his disastrous play in the US Open golf championship would have been humorous if they weren't so sad.

Esther Ashby-Coventry

When my husband is struck by `man-flu' he takes to the couch in the lounge and surrounds himself with the remotes, iced water, tissues (both new and used), empty plates, layers of newspapers and the cat curled up by his feet.

OPINION: The bashing of young French rugby star Mathieu Bastareaud should have us all hanging our heads in shame.

Tracy Watkins

OPINION: It is no wonder MPs are seizing on Sue Bradford's bid to rewrite the law around referendum questions like drowning men grasping a straw.

Given the outcry elicited by the Timaru District Council decision this year to go ahead with the proposed aquatic centre, there's no doubt yesterday's lead story in the Herald will have met with some support in the community.

Chris Trotter

OPINION: What has the Mt Albert by-election taught us about the 2009 National Party?

OPINION: It's gratifying to see Daniel Carter's loyalty remains to the Crusaders.

Derek Burrows

OPINION: AN OPTIMIST: A person with a tendency to expect the best and see the best in all things.

OPINION: The reopening of the can of worms that is the child smacking debate is far from the waste of time that it may appear at first glance.

OPINION: While swine flu cases here have been mild so far, the virus still has the potential to kill.

OPINION: The heady combination of talent, money and fame at an early age makes modern sports stars a particularly vulnerable bunch.

Environment Minister Nick Smith has sent Environment Canterbury an old-fashioned rocket over its performance on consenting, and he was right to do so.

OPINION: The fact that Environment Minister Nick Smith has announced a review of air quality standards is undoubtedly good news for South Canterbury in that it offers the possibility of a more reasonable timeline being put on moves towards cleaner air.

OPINION: Anyone who watched news reports of the time will remember vividly the destruction wrought by the infamous Omagh bombings, which killed 29 people in 1998.

OPINION: Politics is all about good timing. It is unfortunate for embattled British Labour leader Gordon Brown that his timing has been thoroughly lousy throughout his premiership.

OPINION: The idea of a capital gains tax (CGT) is firmly back on the agenda, but this political football looks likely to get a good kicking without scoring any goals.

It's been a full week since the world first heard that air traffic controllers had lost contact with an Air France flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris and the global news machine sparked quickly into life.

OPINION: Or at least the major question has been answered after a jury yesterday found David Cullen Bain not guilty of the murders of five members of his family in Dunedin 15 years ago. The question of compensation has yet to be addressed, but that's an issue for another day.

OPINION: When National MP Richard Worth decided to snub a commemoration for the 28 Maori Battalion while on a visit to Egypt in 2002, and went on a camel ride into the desert instead, his political masters should have told him he was better suited to an adventurous lifestyle in the sandy wastelands than the discipline of politics.

OPINION: South Canterbury has now had four suspected cases of H1N1 influenza or swine flu, and all patients have been cleared, with the total number of confirmed cases for New Zealand steady at 10. But the low number is no reason for celebration, or complacency, as the Australian experience is showing.

The Green Party's move to publish all the details of its MPs' expenses claims warts and all is bold, principled and a beacon of light for all politicians.

OPINION: It's simply incredible how much reality television has made its way on to the centre stage of world events.

In the midst of a cold winter and a grinding recession, it is heartening to read about the generosity of Claire Collett.

No-one could accuse Finance Minister Bill English of delivering a charismatic Budget speech yesterday, but what it lacked in flair it more than made up for in guts.

When William Stewart first went on the run near the Rangitata River back in February, a local wit dubbed him "Uncouth Jesus" after the police's initial description of him.

OPINION: Air New Zealand's services to Richard Pearse Airport are locked in a cycle of decline thanks to recent cuts to services during the week and at weekends.

OPINION: New Zealand farmers are feeling mighty ticked off with the home of the brave and the land of the free, and rightly so.

OPINION: No one who lives in South Canterbury will need any convincing right now that winter has arrived, indeed arrived with a vengeance.

There would be very few people in New Zealand who haven't indulged in the odd daydream, or discussion with friends or family, about what they would do if they won Lotto.

The Commerce Commission's report into the wholesale electricity market has confirmed what consumers have felt for years they've been ripped off.

The trial of musician Jimmy Mason for giving his son a flick on the ear was always likely to reopen old divisions between those who believe it is okay to discipline children by smacking, and those who think there must be a better way. His conviction is a terrific result for the children of New Zealand.

Animal welfare activists, like their political cousins, can sometimes be seen as somewhat extreme in their views and in their approach to their cause, and that can limit the amount of public sympathy they are able to elicit for the plight of animals they believe to be in distress.

Not content with using the air miles argument to knock our wine and lamb exports, our British rivals have wheeled out an aged anarchist who is obviously short of money to bash our butter.

Taxpayers facing tough times and feeling cynical about the representation provided by MPs will be feeling even more resentful after the weekend's antics in Parliament.

New Zealand is by no means the first developed country to see jobs that can be done remotely moved offshore, and nor will it be the last.

In a perfect world, there would not be any problems in the operation of our public health system; no waiting lists, no postponed surgeries, no cancelled appointments. But then in a perfect world we wouldn't need a health system at all.

The National Government seems determined to ruffle feathers with a couple of recent appointments, but this seemingly high-risk strategy has less potential to backfire than the Government's critics would imagine.

The demise of the venerable Christchurch to Timaru cycle race is a shame and proof that the balance of power in the politics of road use has swung too far in favour of motorists

In the aftermath of the tragedy that unfolded in Napier last week, the inevitable blame game has begun.

Two recent restorative justice penalties are great examples of punishments fitting the crimes.

The tragic death of Senior Constable Len Snee, who was shot on a Napier street, will inevitably lead to calls for police to be armed.

For two businesses who specialise in telecommunications, Telecom and Vodafone aren't great communicators.

There is no such thing as risk-free investment, as backers of finance companies have found to their cost over the past three years.

Forgiveness is a wonderful quality in a person, but it is a big stretch to expect to find it in hundreds of thousands of passionate rugby fans.

The Maori Party's offer to go to Fiji to try and negotiate with Commodore Frank Bainimarama was half-baked and never likely to win Government support.

When skilled migrants ponder where in New Zealand they would like to settle, it is a fair bet that regional centres such as Timaru may not be at the top of the list.

OPINION: To his credit, Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard has always been relatively forthright for a central banker.

OPINION: The carnage on the roads over Anzac weekend, in which 13 people needlessly died, has reignited the debate about how we, as a nation, are tackling the issue of road safety.

Following on the heels of the bird flu and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (Sars) health scares, there is likely to be complacency about the latest variation, swine flu.

If it runs true to recent form, today's Anzac Day will see a greater turnout than ever at commemorations around the country.

OPINION: Since he came to power at the point of a gun Commodore Frank Bainimarama has made some unwise decisions.

When Finance Minister Bill English stands up to deliver his first budget on May 28, good news is likely to be in short supply.

It is now 12 years since the last large-scale review of New Zealand's defence forces and it is high time they came under scrutiny again.

Racism is a scourge that has bedevilled the world for centuries, and continues to make life a misery for countless people.

If he were alive today, there's no doubt Sir Robert David Muldoon would have his trademark smirk plastered across his face.

The Government's decision to ditch a legislative reform that required police checks on parent volunteers in early childhood centres is sensible.

It has taken a long time, but broadcaster Tony Veitch finally did the right thing when he pleaded guilty to a serious assault charge yesterday.

The revelation that Timaru Hospital is staffed overnight by just one junior doctor raises important questions about a work practice that, at first glance, would not seem to be fair on either the hospital's patients or the staff involved.

The rapidly unfolding events in Fiji rate among the most sinister of its turbulent history and have confirmed the Bainimarama regime's status as a military tyranny.

Something simply has to be done to put an end to the piracy that is endangering the lives of sailors working on ships that ply one of the world's busiest shipping routes, and indeed of those wanting to sail in the area for pleasure.

Recessions, a lot of commentators are fond of saying, are self-fulfilling prophecies.

OPINION: Barry Keen did not have to be out of bed on a cold April morning yesterday, fighting a fire.

OPINION: The Government should add a review of sentencing guidelines for criminals who download child pornography to its must-do list.

You've got to hand it to Kim Jong Il, 'great leader' of secretive hermit state North Korea. He has better timing than any comic, and his latest escapade would be amusing if the situation were not so serious.

At first mention, Kiwis being urged to stay away from Gallipoli on Anzac Day sounds like someone has got the wrong end of the stick.

A colourful broadcaster coming unstuck is not a new phenomenon.

Air New Zealand has a track record of fraught industrial relations with its pilots, engineers and cabin crew, and its current battle with its trans-Tasman staff is shaping up to be ugly.

The Government is to be applauded for tackling the challenge of building a high speed broadband network throughout New Zealand.

OPINION: One of the nasty side effects of the economic fix the world has found itself in is the concept of companies being regarded as too big to fail.

OPINION: Leaders gathering in London for this week's G20 summit need look no further than their goodie bags for confirmation of how dire the world economic outlook is.

When it was being speculated ahead of last year's general election that a major diplomatic role might be in Helen Clark's future if, as proved to be the case, Labour lost the election after three terms in government with Miss Clark at the helm, the tone of the speculation was that such a posting would be some sort of a "sunset" role.

When Jesse Ryder slept in and missed a team meeting during the one-day series against the touring West Indies cricket side in January, the howls of condemnation were quick to erupt, not just from the mainstream media and former players, but from armchair critics on social networking websites like Facebook.

The report into the shooting of Stephen Bellingham is a depressingly familiar tale that poses a number of questions for police, and provides little comfort for the dead man's family.

Unless you're a Chiefs fan, this year's Super 14 has so far proven a major disappointment for Kiwi rugby fans.

Take a bow New Zealand farmers.

The leadership of the Catholic Church in Rome has defied commonsense, medical science and is testing the faith of its believers with a fresh decree on HIV AIDS that shows it is out of touch.

More than enough newspaper columns and television and radio airtime have been devoted to the horrific case of Josef Fritzl already, but a few aspects of this horror case remain troubling, The Timaru Herald writes.

It has the ring to it of a bizarre, even fanciful tale.

Our police have been through the mill in recent years, and, while they arguably do the toughest job in the country, a lot of the problems have been of their own making.

When North Shore mayor Andrew Williams generously proffered his "heartfelt thanks" to the people of Timaru and Gore for providing the funding needed to sort out Auckland's transport infrastructure problems, he struck a raw nerve.

By DEREK BURROWS

The credit crunch is biting and businesses are bending over backwards to attract and keep custom; meanwhile, employees fearing for their jobs are doing their utmost to please their clientele.

By ESTHER ASH-COVENTRY

In papers around the country, including this one, ACC is often on the receiving end of complaints.

By GORDON BROWN

OPINION: There's been a bit of new stuff on the box in the last week or so, and some of it's been pretty good.

OPINION: The idea of a subsidised nine-day fortnight was a clever scheme that emerged out of last month's job summit.

OPINION: Crimes do not come more audacious, greedy and downright mean-spirited than those of Michael Swann and Kerry Harford.

OPINION: Ngai Tahu's decision to charge commercial fishermen for rights to catch eels in Lake Ellesmere has given the companies involved indigestion, and should have the rest of the country reaching for the Quik-Eze as well.

OPINION: In Waimate, people power is alive and kicking.

By GORDON BROWN

OPINION: Dancing With the Stars should be renamed Bitching With the Judges.

Every child loves to read tales of brave knights, fair maidens, fearsome dragons, fairytale castles.

By GWYNNE DYER

OPINION: One should not speak ill of the dead, but it's hard to resist the suspicion that the murder of the army chief of staff on March 1 and of the president on March 2nd in Guinea-Bissau were linked to the drug trade.

OPINION: A lot of people would argue that the top ranks of rugby administration have never been awash with brains.

WHEN it was reported that former Finance Minister and deputy Prime Minister Michael Cullen was looking to hang up his hat, the overwhelming majority of respondents to an internet poll decided he would be best remembered as a `smart aleck.'

WHEN the Government decided South Canterbury was not a hard-to-recruit area for medical staff, the health policy specialists in Wellington had obviously never heard of Waimate.

THE Government's Kiwibank, or co-operatively-owned PSIS would love to claim that moral high ground, but ASB left the lefty banks in its wake this week with a $1 billion fund to help businesses in trouble.

PIRACY; it's something we've read and heard plenty about lately with numerous ships falling victim to it off the east coast of Africa in recent months.

By DEREK BURROWS

THE year I turned 12 I watched the Queen's coronation on television at the village hall; I collected cigarette cards of famous footballers and cricketers; and I visited London for the first time with the Boys Brigade.

Stephen McFarlane

AS I write this article, the Dow Jones share index in the United States has just hit its lowest closing level since October 2002.

By THE OLD CHOOK

WELL folks, I'm having a few problems. Last week I made a big decision. It was time the old chook spruced up her appearance but I don't know where to start.

TIMARU District Councillors scratching their heads this morning about whether to vote to get on and build a new $23.5 million aquatic centre at Maori Park could do worse than put themselves in their forebears' shoes.

By PETER O'NEILL

THERE are many things to dislike about cellphones.

IT'S a vexed question that has cropped up before, but this time an added variable is thrown in.

THE word mindless is one that is thrown around a fair bit in the news media these days and at times it is perhaps over-used. But it's the most appropriate word to describe the actions of the idiot or idiots who decided to drop a block of Oamaru stone on the roof of St Marys Church in Timaru on Thursday night.

WHEN former Cabinet Minister Damien O'Connor was in hot water during the last Labour administration and faced being stripped of his duties, his boss at the time Prime Minister Helen Clark quipped that being left in charge as Corrections Minister was a punishment in itself.

IT'S hard to believe that the New Zealand sporting code that was the subject of such a damning review this week is also the one whose representative team produced a huge upset late last year to win its first World Cup.

OPINION: One of the many failings of George W Bush's Republican administration was the way it mishandled relations with the United States' traditional foe, Russia.

IF Prime Minister John Key is planning to jump on the telephone and offer to bail out every `iconic' New Zealand company that catches a cold during this recession, he's not only going to run up a huge phone bill, but also create an extremely dangerous precedent.

Derek Burrows

I'VE just returned from travelling around Canterbury with my old school friend, David, and I've discovered that even though we've not seen each other for more than 50 years we still have heaps in common.

NOW that the Caroline Bay aviary is flying the coop to a bright new future, it's time Timaru's political leaders had a good, hard look at what is going on down at the bay's skate park, if they are brave enough.

Stephen McFarlane

IT'S tough out there at the moment. The media are telling us so, and I have no reason to disbelieve them.

In a world gripped by recession and filled with industries looking for a handout everywhere you look, good news is a scarce commodity indeed.

AMID the hair gel, tattoos and hanging tough attitudes, it was hard to tell whether the six young men heading off to jail for the manslaughter of Wayne Bray had learned any sort of lesson.

THE only implication that can be drawn from Green MP Keith Locke's reaction to the discovery the Security Intelligence Service (SIS) has an open file on him is that he should somehow be regarded as above the law.

WHEN new Education Minister Anne Tolley blundered in and dumped a requirement that school tuck shops offer only healthy food to pupils, she placed her ideology ahead of common sense.

Peter O'Neill

SORRY, I'm back.

WHETHER the motive behind Prime Minister John Key's fondness for using the expression "rolling maul of jobs and growth initiatives" is a genuine love of rugby, or simply a shameless attempt to appear to have the common touch, its use does him little credit.

WHEN former Prime Minister Helen Clark was in power she probably looked forward to the Waitangi Day celebrations as much as a primary school child longs to go to the dental clinic.

THE minimum wage is always an emotive issue and it's no surprise that talk of an increase produces vastly different reactions from big business and from people who are on that wage, about 100,000 workers in New Zealand at present.

By DEREK BURROWS

IT'S the same old story and it's being going on for decades it's a saga of fierce aggression, furious controversy and outbursts of cursing.

IN the dismal aftermath of the weekend's nasty attack on police by Christchurch boy racers, there are a couple of reasons for hope.

IT'S almost impossible to understand, in the highly televised world of top sport these days, why one would even consider trying to pull a fast one on the umpires and the opposition, but it's just as hard to avoid the conclusion that Australian wicketkeeper Brad Haddin did that in Perth on Sunday night and, in the context, of the game against New Zealand at least, got away with it.

WHOEVER discovered a copy of the good old Social Security Act of 1964 in a forgotten drawer, blew the cobwebs off, read it and decided to reveal that the South Canterbury District Health Board was in breach of the legislation, need not have bothered.

TWENTY-FIVE months after the military seized control of Fiji, Commodore Frank Bainimarama continues to chuckle in the face of his Pacific neighbours. Since he seized power in 2006, deadlines have come and gone along with a number of Pacific Islands Forum talkfests. In Australia and New Zealand's cases, the Commodore has now outlasted the administrations of two of his most vociferous critics, Prime Ministers Helen Clark and John Howard.

IT MAY seem to Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert that protecting his country's soldiers from the potential for foreign prosecution over alleged war crimes in the Gaza Strip is an important move in terms of giving his troops the ability to carry out their tasks with confidence.

OPINION: Piracy; it's something we've read and heard plenty about lately with numerous ships falling victim to it off the east coast of Africa in recent months.

By DEREK BURROWS

OPINION: The year I turned 12 I watched the Queen's coronation on television at the village hall; I collected cigarette cards of famous footballers and cricketers; and I visited London for the first time with the Boys Brigade.

It's a vexed question that has cropped up before, but this time an added variable is thrown in.

MONETARY policy decisions don't come much easier than the one Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard will unveil tomorrow.

IT'S a strange experience meeting someone you haven't seen for more than 50 years, particularly when you are more familiar with the back of their head than their face.

WAITANGI Day will have a special resonance in Timaru this year, but not for the usual reasons.

IN the grand scheme of things, it won't make a huge difference to the country's financial situation to have the salaries of our 120-odd Members of Parliament frozen at their next scheduled review later in the year, but as a move aimed at winning public confidence at a difficult time in our history, it's gold for John Key.

` ` SO, Jimmy, how do you feel about captaining the Highlanders this year?"

WITH the repetition of 35 solemn words today, President Barack Obama opened an important new chapter in the world's history.

TO PARAPHRASE Arkwright from Open All Hours, it was a funny old week last week.

A REPORT from news agency Reuters, which came out of Gaza yesterday, quoted a 19-year-old former science student at Gaza's Islamic University as saying she didn't know what the future held for her, with the university destroyed in the three-week Israeli offensive that has seen the territory turned into a veritable killing field.

ONE way and another, there's a fair degree of history being made around us at the moment, on different levels.

THERE'S absolutely no doubt that the conflict that has erupted in Gaza in recent weeks has been the single event drawing the most international attention in the early days of 2009, and justifiably so, given the human tragedy that has been unfolding there.

ANY significant social problem is almost certainly caused by a range of influencing factors, rather than having a single cause which, if it is directly addressed, will result in the problem being eradicated.

THIS is it. Today is a historic day in the life of Timaru and South Canterbury.

TODAY we're going to examine a subject that has puzzled man from time immemorial - women's shopping habits.

WE may not be quite as curious as the proverbial cat, but we human beings are pretty inquisitive. We have enquiring minds and we like to be able to learn more about things around us. That's why the internet, as a concept, has been so incredibly successful and why tools like Google, allowing us to find out more about the world around us, are so popular.

IT WOULD be pretty easy to fling all sorts of crude criticisms and names in the direction of Jesse Ryder right now, but the blogosphere and social networking websites are already full of those and while they may represent an opportunity for cricket fans to give vent to their emotions about Ryder's latest indiscretion, they do nothing to help the problem.

IT'S certainly not everyone's cup of tea, but some 10,000 enthusiasts are expected to flock to the Timaru International Motor Raceway at Levels this weekend to show that motorsport certainly is theirs.

DEBATE around New Zealand's health system often contains plenty of public criticism of the country's district health boards, in terms of issues such as waiting lists, and the need to keep them under control, surgical postponements and other realities of living with a public health system in which all costs have to be watched extremely carefully.

THIS holiday season has not been short of its negative headlines on a local, national or international level, unfortunately. A high road toll, one of our highest holiday drowning tolls in recent memory, a tramper missing, presumed dead, a fatal house fire in Auckland yesterday, which left four children dead and their parents critically injured, two deaths in a crash between a jet ski and jet boat on the Kawarau River.

IT'S always good to know that help is at hand - even when you are opening a tin of baked beans.

THE drowning of rising rugby league star Sonny Fai at West Auckland's Bethell's Beach - at time of writing Fai was still missing, presumed drowned - is a tragedy in itself, but it should also throw into sharp relief the terrible holiday period this has been in New Zealand in terms of drownings generally.

IT SURELY can't be too much of a surprise that a major study into the success of students in the classroom has shown that the keys to effective teaching are student-teacher interaction and the quality of feedback students get. Most parents of school pupils will be keenly aware of how their children's relationships with their teachers affect both their enjoyment of school and their keenness to put in the work required for success.

A few days ago, the Herald commemorated the achievement of three South Cantabrians in being included among the list of recipients of New Year Honours. Those honoured from smaller communities like South Canterbury are not usually found in the upper echelons of the list in terms of the honours bestowed on them, though Territorial soldier and Timaru District Council employee David Armstrong's naming as a member of the New Zealand Order of Merit is certainly notable. Those usually tend to go to high profile recipients, many of them national household names.

POLICE and other agencies involved with road safety in New Zealand have every right to be pleased that the provisional road toll for 2008 is the lowest in 49 years.

Former Prime Minister Mike Moore, in a column on this page today, calls for a formal process to be established to consider New Zealand's constitutional situation, a process that would naturally include the question of whether or not New Zealand should cut Mother England's apron strings and become a republic.

So, the monkey business over India's cricket tour of Australia seems to have died down, at least for the present.

"I'm sorry sir, but our store policy means we can't accept returns on beauty care products," the Timaru shop assistant advised me politely.

It's no surprise that the debate is already in full swing about an appropriate, enduring remembrance for New Zealand's most famous son, Sir Edmund Hillary. The esteem in which the conqueror of Everest is held means a remembrance that goes well beyond statues and museums -- which, in any event, already exist at Mt Cook village -- is needed.

South Canterbury's spot at the head of the field in terms of the percentage of valid votes returned during last year's election for district health board members is good news in the sense it signals a reasonable level of concern about our representation.

The life of our greatest New Zealander ended yesterday. And while there is sadness at the death of Sir Edmund Hillary, there should also be celebration for such a wonderfully inspiring life.

It's easy to sympathise with the frustrations of search and rescue personnel when their services have to be called in to help people whose plight is largely of their own making.

Cruise ship congestion in the country's bigger ports looks set to be Timaru's gain, with a suggestion by Cruise New Zealand chairman Craig Harris that Timaru could be developed as a cruise port.

The removal at dawn on Sunday of the historic Greymouth War Memorial Gates is an example of the kind of insensitive action that can irreparably harm relations within a community.

Well, now I've heard everything... which is more than Casey Voges can say, because he wants ACC to fork out $20,000 to buy him a new ear. He lost one of his old pair when a police dog chewed it off while he was being arrested for burglary.

No doubt many a New Zealand cricket purist will have bemoaned the nastiness and incompetence that emerged in Sydney over the last week, but given the choice between watching that encounter and the New Zealand-Bangladesh game from Dunedin, it's a fair bet many will have been drawn to the former.

I sn't it amazing the number of people you don't know in Timaru. I've lived here all my life and can count my friends on one hand -- but maybe that's just me.

Former Labour prime minister Mike Moore is the latest to come out swinging against the Electoral Finance Act. He predicts that the law, which aims to control what can be spent on political electioneering, will soon be tested in court and found wanting. If he is correct, it will be a huge embarrassment to his old party.

For most of us, this is a wonderful time of the year. Thoughts of work are far away, the pressures of normal daily life replaced for a while by relaxation and recreation with family and friends at the beach, or the lake, or just in the back garden.

When the Corrections Department last month revealed details of the rather bland lunch the nation's prison inmates would be served up on Christmas Day -- with a frosted mince pie the singular nod to the festive season -- it would have gone some way in many people's minds to allaying the suspicion that our prisoners are on a pretty good wicket.

A mid the distressingly high number of lives lost in road accidents and drownings since the holiday season began there is also good news -- the relative absence of bad behaviour, and particularly during the New Year celebrations.

One of the contentious issues to arise in the wake of the police rape trials has been whether juries should be told of previous convictions. The jury that acquitted Brad Shipton, Bob Schollum and Clint Rickards last year were not told the trio had earlier been tried on similar charges, and that Shipton and Schollum were already in prison for pack rape. Had the jury known, so the argument goes, they would have been found guilty, which infers the jurors got it wrong.

While much of Asia is in a state of anxiety about bird flu, New Zealand has already been struck by a much more terrifying epidemic -- Boxing Day shopping mania.

The names of Brian Schimanski and Rowdy Aitken have been given a deliberate highlight in the New Year's Honours list appearing on this page today. They are two South Canterbury people who represent all that is good about the biannual recognition given to New Zealanders, and they richly deserve their Queen's Service Medal.

For Benazir Bhutto, twice elected to her country's top office and twice having spent lengthy periods in exile, heading back to Pakistan this year with a view to helping return the country to democracy was always a desperately dangerous move, and she well knew it.

The festive season feeding frenzy is over for another year, or at least largely over, given that some of the major chain stores' Boxing Day sales actually last through to the end of the week, and even beyond. The frantic spend-up on Boxing Day itself, a tradition that has been coming into its own over the past few years, is over anyway, and the participants are checking out the spoils.

For those fortunate enough to have time off in the so-called "silly season", it's a time for recreation and regeneration ahead of the challenges of the New Year, and in many cases should also be a time for reflection, an opportunity often denied us during the hectic run-up to Christmas.

If the Government hoped its new official limousines, to be used for transporting ministers, the leader of the Opposition and visiting dignitaries, might turn a few heads, it's technically already got its wish six months out from the cars being pressed into service.

Media Release from the Institute of Cetacean Research:

For those living in Gisborne and on the East Coast of the North Island, Christmas this year will be a time for feeling decidedly unsettled. There's the distinct possibility that aftershocks from Thursday night's destructive earthquake will continue through the festive season, which is sure to keep most on the edge of their seats around the Christmas table.

There but for the grace of God go I . . . is an adage drivers heading away on holiday over the next few days should ponder. And they should do it with the case of Austrian woman Heike Schellnegger uppermost in their minds; it could well save lives.

A police request six months ago to the Christchurch City Council to impose a weekend boy racer ban on 26 streets as a way of tackling the city's growing problem has become a burning issue. Burning in the sense that boy racers are getting a lot of people fired up and also in the sense that residents in one of the hot spots, along McLeans Island Road, are concerned their burnouts may spark a blaze at nearby Orana Park, putting the animals in mortal danger.

Every year thousands of overseas tourists come to New Zealand to view the country's natural attractions -- the fumaroles and geysers at Rotorua, the South Island's lakes, mountains and glaciers, the Waitomo glow-worm caves, etc -- and I'm sure they don't go home disappointed.

Despite never being too far away from controversy, it seems Winston Peters has yet to acquire the taste for humble pie, as events of the last week have clearly demonstrated.

It would be difficult to imagine a more unseemly, and indeed dishonourable, way to bring down the curtain on a person's life than the two publicised cases in recent months of one part of a deceased's family making off with the body and conducting a burial against the wishes of the rest of the family.

I knew I'd spent too long Christmas shopping when I found myself staring vacantly into a butcher's shop window. In my defence, I had been at it for 17 minutes. Also, I had just been traumatised by a dozen signs in a nearby shop all screaming "Christmas. It's simply brilliant". All I wanted to do was scribble underneath it the words "For us".

There is a time to speak up, and also to shut up. The difficulty is knowing when each situation applies. Former assistant police commissioner Clint Rickards received the "shut up" lesson twice last week.

Dairy farming's a cushy number. That's a thought that may have crossed the mind of the odd town dweller in the last 36 hours since Fonterra raised its payout forecast for this year's production to a record $6.90 per kilogram of milksolids.

Prime Minister Helen Clark chose a speaking engagement kicking off a two-day journalism educators' conference as the opportunity to get a few things off her chest about the New Zealand media.

So a high number of New Zealanders gamble, according to a new survey, which found around 80 per cent of adult New Zealanders had indulged in some form of gambling in the past year.

You'll excuse me if today's offering is a bit sombre but there's been a death in the family.

The Government, through Transport Minister Annette King, has announced it wants to halve the country's road toll by 2040, bringing it down to no more than 200 deaths a year, as part of a discussion paper on sustainable transport launched on Monday.

Fathers are failing. Or at least some are, it's suggested by information released under the Official Information Act which says a reasonable proportion of those required to pay child support, including many with six-figure incomes, are failing to keep up with payments.

The idea of a "mega club" in Timaru with several chartered clubs headquartered on the same site, possibly in tandem with the proposed new aquatic centre on Maori Park, is in its infancy, but the concept deserves thorough investigation.

For a man who presided over the All Blacks' worst performance in the history of rugby's World Cup, Graham Henry has pulled off a remarkable piece of escapology. The man who was nicknamed the Great Redeemer when he took his undoubted coaching talents north to the rugby hotbed of Wales several years ago and achieved some wins, has reinvented himself as the Great Houdini.

Some time before Parliament breaks for its Christmas recess, Labour, with the support of most of the minor parties in Parliament, is set to ram through one of the most controversial pieces of legislation of its eight years in power. It is the Electoral Finance Bill, born of the Exclusive Brethren's attempts to swing the 2005 election National's way.

Failure is something that rears its ugly head in every field of employment. But it's only in a tiny percentage, and most notably in the medical field, that failure can -- and indeed does on a fairly regular basis -- result in death.

It's already been said and written dozens of times since the weekend that the theft of nearly 100 medals, including nine Victoria Crosses, from the Army Museum at Waiouru is an insult to our nationhood, or words to that effect.

So where did that come from? Why was New Zealand last week in the fierce grip of Beckham-mania?

The curtain has finally been drawn on the speeding prime ministerial motorcade, more than two years after the police raced Helen Clark from Waimate to Christchurch Airport so she could catch a flight to Wellington to watch a rugby test.

It was described in some quarters as bribery and while it didn't fully fit the traditional image of that nefarious practice, there's no doubt that it would not have been a good look.

He must, at the very least, have found a cure for one of the most feared diseases -- cancer or Aids -- or hit on a foolproof solution to world poverty, global warming . . . or the real biggie, discovered a clear path to enduring world peace. Only that could explain this bizarre behaviour.

Police Association president Greg O'Connor describes as "absolutely and utterly ludicrous" the reports that the Government is drafting law changes to lift to 18 the minimum age at which teen offenders can be dealt with by an adult court.

With a report now in the hands of Police Commissioner Howard Broad on how a recently completed 12-month police trial of taser stun guns went, the full glare of the spotlight has been focused back on the devices by a new United Nations report.

Few New Zealand towns and cities have not had a crack at launching a festival as an event for locals to enjoy and a lure to visitors. Some work and many don't; others run out of steam or become so big they end up going to a major centre.

I 'm sure we've all done it at some time in our lives -- mislaid something really important, such as a will, a safe deposit key or, worst of all, the phone number of the best fish and chip shop in town.

It's amazing to think that this time last week, as he took his regular morning walk, John Howard was still firmly of the conviction that he could pull off yet another Australian election victory.

Forty years ago a master plan to meet Timaru's roading needs was unveiled. It was futuristic and made bold claims on how quickly the city's population would grow -- it should be more than 40,000 by now.

Clint Rickards is gone. Those four words will not surprise anyone because it always seemed a foregone conclusion that he would go as a result of what was learned about his conduct during the two sex trials in which he was acquitted on a range of charges.

Food for thought, and the variety that will take plentyof chewing on, was served up to those people who headedto the Waitaki Bridge Hall on Tuesday night to discuss thepossibility of a "divorce" from Environment Canterbury.

It's time for our country to change its name. Or at least that'sthe view of a former public servant, who has suggested that Aotearoa-- which translates as "land of the long white cloud", wouldbe a much more suitable name in the 21st century.

TOMORROW is the beginning of a new year and therefore today is a great time to ponder what we would like to see happen in 2009.

IF LAST Wednesday, Christmas Eve, was largely a day of anticipation for the young among us, counting the hours until the unfolding of Santa's largesse, then today can probably be said to be a day of anticipation mainly for the adults in our community.

THEY may not yet have reached double figures in terms of age, but it's clear that Jamie Gardiner and his sister Bonnie, aged eight and seven respectively, care about their environment. That's why Jamie was moved to contact the Herald last week when he found plastic on the floor of the picturesque Taumatakahu Stream that winds through Temuka.

IT'S a call that we hear every year, but this year there just may be a little more urgency to it than in the years of prosperity that preceded the global financial meltdown of 2008.

A STORY that hit the headlines a few days ago has the potential to cause some robust debate in the new year and that's probably a good thing, because it was a story about a call for a debate.

IT'S Christmas Eve and so I think it appropriate to tell you a story of Christmas Past.

THE supporters of large South Island irrigation projects who engaged three cabinet ministers at a forum in Christchurch last weekend did not win any promises of funding, but it was nevertheless good to see irrigation interests wasting no time in lining up the ministers of finance, agriculture and economic development so soon after the election.

THE ability of prison staff to keep prisoners, themselves and the public safe inside the country's prisons has been called into question following an attack on an inmate by another inmate that left the former seriously injured at the weekend.

WHEN Timaru district councillors sit down in February to consider the submissions on the proposed aquatic centre, they might ask themselves why they put the issue out for public consultation. The 3189 submissions received is significant input, and the fact that about 70 per cent of them oppose the project reflects large-scale opposition. It means the council now has reduced wriggle room to force the development through.

THE adoption of the Timaru Transportation Strategy effectively confirms that at some point Evans Street will be converted to four lanes. The decision by the New Zealand Transport Agency should not be viewed as any surprise. After all, considerable research has gone into the strategy and the changes that will need to be made to State Highway 1 through Timaru as traffic volumes rise.

THE true measure of the spirit of a community is how it reacts when individuals within it are going through difficult times, which means the spirit present in South Canterbury is something pretty special, looking at the last few weeks. And that view has been strongly reinforced this week, just days out from the celebration of an event inextricably linked to the concept of "goodwill toward men".

NO-ONE can fairly accuse the Waimate District Council of being blind or deaf. The decision to "put the chequebook away", reduce the reliance on consultants, and review staffing levels follows hard on the heels of new Local Government Minister Rodney Hide warning councils to cut their cloth, and Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard asking councils to keep rate rises within inflation levels.

THE killing of tagger Pihema Cameron by middle-aged businessman Bruce Emery on an Auckland street last January has sparked considerable debate. Last week a jury returned its verdict and there are varying views whether Emery should have been found guilty of murder or acquitted. The middle road adopted by jurors - conviction for manslaughter - shapes as a generally acceptable fit.

CHRISTMAS is fast approaching and as usual I'm having difficulty in deciding what to buy family and friends this year.

THERE should be no denying the contribution that protest groups make to New Zealand. They are a form of conscience to the national psyche and over the years they have lifted the profile of opposition to such diverse issues as nuclear testing in the South Pacific, apartheid in South Africa, animal cruelty and environmental protection.

THE trial of six young people for the killing of Wayne Bray earlier this year has again exposed a disturbing feature of Timaru after dark: It is not a safe place to be, particularly alone.

AN INTRIGUING contest came to a conclusion on Thursday evening, when the winners of the Heartland Sculpture Challenge were announced, the immediate effect being that a couple of new pieces were added to an increasing collection of public art dotting Timaru and other communities in the district.

WHETHER or not their comments are justified, it will be amusing to many observers of our country's political system to see Labour coming out swinging this week over plans by National to fast-track legislation.

A STORY in yesterday's Herald about school uniforms did more than simply point to the high initial cost of having a child start at a new school; it again highlighted the long-debated question of whether or not children should have to wear uniforms to school.

OUR biggest and most expensive kindergarten re-opened for business yesterday. For the new term, it has a roll of 122, including 35 attending for the first time. And there have been changes. For attendees, red is no longer the clothing colour of choice. Instead, more blue is likely to be seen, and also expect to see a bit more green. And they have a new head teacher.

IT'S a very odd feeling. After 50 years in journalism I'm now officially retired.

THE opinion that South Islanders often have of those living in Auckland is not always a positive one. But there should be some grudging respect floating around right now for the refusal of ordinary Aucklanders to get sucked into paying big bucks to see a meaningless soccer match at the weekend, just because one David Beckham was playing.

NEW Health Minister Tony Ryall has wasted little time in putting district health boards on notice that he expects them to do a better job in prioritising spending. Responding to complaints from the Taranaki DHB about under funding, Mr Ryall said board members would be better off "cutting back on bureaucracy than bleating".

SPORT South Canterbury congratulates the Timaru District Council on their further consultation around the new proposed aquatic centre, which will encourage physical activity at all levels and be a key in supporting the health and wellness of all groups in South Canterbury.

SO near and yet so far . . . Japanese climber Kiyoshi Ikenouchi was within hours of being rescued alive from near the summit of Aoraki Mt Cook yesterday. But he finally succumbed to the extreme weather that had trapped he and Hideaki Nara for most of this week.

SO THE Reserve Bank's official cash rate (OCR) is at its lowest level in five years after the bank's governor, Dr Alan Bollard, shaved an unprecedented 1.25 per cent off it yesterday.

IN A country surrounded and traversed by water, water safety is surely something that should be a no-brainer for New Zealanders, and indeed there was a time when education in that hugely important sphere was something all Kiwis received.

THAT the release of a decision yesterday to grant Meridian Energy a water consent for its proposed North Bank Tunnel hydro-electricity scheme brought some dismay and promises it would end up in the Environment Court, or higher, is hardly surprising.

THERE are days when I curse the day the computer was invented, and last Thursday was one such day.

CONFRONTATIONS on the high seas have been in the news in the last few weeks and there will surely be more in the next few. Not to do with pirates this time, although environmental activist Paul Watson, captain of the anti-whaling ship Steve Irwin, which belongs to the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, has been referred to in some quarters as a pirate.

THE weather may not have played ball, but the fact that an estimated 10,000 people still found their way down to Caroline Bay yesterday is testimony to the drawing power of Timaru's annual Festival of Roses.

THE world is no longer a safe place. That's not exactly a newsflash, it's just that we've been graphically reminded of it in the last 48 hours by the horrors of the coordinated attacks on a series of targets in Mumbai.

THE SPECIAL relationship that has always existed between Britain and New Zealand looks to be on the verge of taking another severe blow, with a British proposal for airport departure charges based on travellers' environmental impact.

ONE of the promises National made on the campaign trail was to have a referendum on MMP by 2011. It is overdue and the election aftermath has highlighted both the good and bad points of the way we elect our Parliament.

BEFORE Rodney Hide slimmed down, went dancing with the stars and turned mellow yellow like his sports jacket, he had the title of Parliament's "perk-buster". Does he still have the get-up-and-go to deal with perceived extravagance and wasteful spending of the public purse? If so, then his new role as minister of local government promises to be interesting.

THE media are often criticised for the number of negative stories that feature in the news coverage. Indeed, such was the tone of a letter on this page last week, the day after the front page was devoted to the outcome of the trial of those charged over the horrific death of Rotorua toddler Nia Glassie.

THERE'S a time and place for everything; the pay rise given MPs could hardly be a worse look, and unfortunately for them they can do little about it - apart from deciding to give their increase to charity.

TO many Westerners, stories of pirates and piracy on the high seas were part of their lives growing up, but the type of activity covered in books like Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island was the stuff of history and, to some extent, fantasy.

IT WAS hard to imagine when we first heard about it some 15 months ago, and it's even harder now that we know in horrific detail what she went through: Can there have been a more shocking case of child abuse in New Zealand than that of Rotorua toddler Nia Glassie?

REGULAR readers will be well aware that my do-it-yourself projects don't always run smoothly.

A NEW study of New Zealand athletes, published in an international journal, has established a link between alcohol sponsorship of sport and problem drinking among participants, prompting calls for such sponsorship arrangements to follow tobacco sponsorships into the sunset.

FOR a man who became the prime minister in waiting just over a week ago, John Key is moving with remarkable speed, but then he's been on a punishing schedule since just after the November 8 election, trying to ensure he could fly to this week's APEC conference in Peru with his Government in place. Still a relative newcomer to parliamentary politics, Mr Key has been quick to appreciate the importance of forming alliances under MMP, and the best way of doing that.

EVERY year, as the Christmas holiday season approaches, the spectre of a lethal summer cocktail looms large.

IN A week of overwhelming political developments, the most underwhelming announcement came from the New Zealand Law Society. After "agonising" deliberation, it had decided that former top cop Clint Rickards should be given a "certificate of character" - effectively giving him permission to practise as a lawyer.

HOW the minor parties in Parliament are treated by voters is always an interesting subtext to elections and with New Zealand First disappearing from the House, it was particularly interesting this time.

ASK people in the Timaru district what they think of living here and an overwhelming number will tell you they love it. The reasons will be innumerable but will mainly focus on lifestyle.

THE choice yesterday of Phil Goff, a man who entered Parliament at the same time as Helen Clark, in 1981, to take up the Labour Party reins following the stepping down of Miss Clark and Michael Cullen is a move that gives the impression not of heralding a refresh of the party, but of being a transitional step.

I AM not proud to admit this, but I assaulted an American once. I gave him a little kick in the ankle. He was about 81.

THE POLITICAL spotlight is firmly trained on John Key now, and rightly so, but the woman he is replacing as prime minister should not be allowed to exit stage left without due recognition of her enormous contribution to the political life of New Zealand.

VOTERS had their own reasons for rejecting Labour and plumping for National. It may have been about policies, or leadership, or trust, but deep down the root issue was about change. The electorate decided it was time to put Labour out to pasture after nine years in power, and as if to cement the view, Helen Clark and Michael Cullen immediately followed up by standing down from their leadership roles.

ANYONE who watched the unfolding drama that was the United States presidential election on Wednesday - and many will surely have been glued to their television screens - will acknowledge it was a compelling and ultimately inspiring spectacle.

WEDNESDAY night's saccharine-rich debate between Helen Clark and John Key was so out of character it has been attributed to them having just watched the masterful oratory of newly-elected American president Barack Obama. They were as sweet as cherry pie, even to the point of acknowledging they could offer each other a job if the circumstances fitted. There was almost a chemistry between them that could have left viewers all misty-eyed.

TWO weeks ago, the Herald posed a number of questions surrounding the disciplinary action taken by the New Zealand Rugby Union against the South Canterbury union. That was following the imposition of a $4500 fine because of a complaint from an air hostess about an incident on a flight carrying the South Canterbury team from Gisborne to Wellington. The NZRU's full decision is now out but it only answers some of our questions.

TODAY we are going to explore a vital episode in English history.

THE Bali bombers' days, if not hours, are numbered. It's possible that by now they have already been executed, but if not, they soon will be.

SIR Edmund Hillary, often referred to during his life as "the greatest living New Zealander", has been dead for just 10 months and the memories of the emotion that followed his death will be fresh for many New Zealanders, particularly his family.

IT MAY not end up that way at all, but it seems fair to speculate at the start of this week that it could turn out, for New Zealanders, to be a particularly significant one.

ENVIRONMENT Canterbury this week buried the hatchet with the Opuha dam developers - nearly 12 years after a deluge caused the dam to breach, unleashing with it legal action that cost the parties in excess of $1 million.

IT'S largely the same before any general election. Aside from those who have always voted a certain way regardless of policy, voters are faced with wading through the promises of the parties, particularly the major parties, and deciding which they find most appealing, as well as deciding which of the parties they find most trustworthy, before casting their votes.

SO NOW we start to see the nitty gritty of having a nice new aquatic centre in Timaru. In addition to the estimated capital cost of $23.5 million, the ongoing operating expenses will require every ratepayer in the district to contribute about $100 annually in rates. It should prompt furious debate when the district council puts the proposal into the community for further consultation.

IF YOU'RE into mystery novels, or watch any of the numerous crime series that grace our TV screens, chances are you've come across scenarios in which shady characters make use of the anonymity that prepaid, disposable cellphones provide in order to be able to communicate without getting themselves into trouble. Buy a phone, make those couple of calls vital to the criminal enterprise being undertaken, chuck it away.

DIDN'T you just love the story in last Friday's Herald about Roxy the labrador who got legless by gulping her way through four litres of cask wine?

THE decent thing to do when you misspend someone else's money is to pay it back. In the lead up to the 2005 election, seven of the eight parties represented in Parliament spent $1.2 million of taxpayers' money on expenses they wrongly termed "election spending". Six of the seven have paid back the money - topped by Labour's $824,000 all the way down to the Maori Party's $54.

THOUGH competition between companies supplying goods and services to consumers, which theoretically helps keep prices down, is seen by many as a good thing, one area in which such a principle has not always been widely welcomed in New Zealand in recent years is the electricity market.

FIRST some facts: Asians are generally smaller than Pacific Islanders and Kiwis; there are Pacific Islanders who need to be shown how to use what we regard as conventional showers and toilets because they have never seen them before; there are seats in Parliament and on district health boards and Crown agencies reserved for Maori, none are reserved for any other race.

HAVING quality information about the lives of citizens is important for those making planning decisions on a range of fronts. That those in that position are properly informed is in the best interests of every Kiwi, so it makes sense that Statistics New Zealand, the agency charged with gathering that quality information, is able to do its job properly.

THERE was no surprise in the Green Party announcing that its preferred post-election coalition partner is Labour. Even before running the ruler across Labour and National's policies to see which were the greenest - Labour won easily - it was obvious from the last three years that the Greens are a party of the left.

I FINALLY got sick of the nagging and gave in.

THERE'S no doubt that the fight against cancer, particularly when it afflicts young people, is a cause worth getting in behind. The CanTeen campaign, which involves selling bandannas to raise funds for the cause, has been a visible and, on the face of it, effective, way of doing that for some years.

JUST how long should people's misdeeds be held against them? That's the question raised by the situation of 44-year-old Terry Thorne, engaged in a custodial tussle with his former partner, Nicola Richards, over their seven-year-old daughter, Caitlin.

Ever since an errant soccer player named William Webb Ellis picked up the round ball and ran with it, rugby players have had a streak some would call mischievous, others would call poorly behaved.

DURING election campaigns, voters hear plenty about investing in New Zealand's future. Right on our doorsteps in Timaru is a classic account of not investing in our future - the plight of our homeless teens.

LABOUR knows the power of the student vote. The campaign trail promise in 2005 to scrap the interest on student loans helped Helen Clark win an election she was destined to lose. So why not produce another rabbit - make the loan scheme available to all students by abolishing the means testing of parental income?

ON TUESDAY night we saw the sense in confining the televised leaders' debates to Helen Clark and John Key. For 90 minutes (less advertising time) an audience estimated at more than one million people saw the pair talk policy in relation to the issues facing New Zealand and explain their philosophies, and their style and leadership was able to be judged by viewers.

IT'S absolutely crackers. There's going to be a crackdown on Christmas crackers this year because Customs has suddenly become concerned that 60 per cent of imported crackers don't have the certificates required under the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act, which classifies the Christmas treats as fireworks.

ONCE was bad enough. Twice was much worse. Three times is simply unbelievable, yet sadly true.

ALTHOUGH it had taken somewhat longer than administrations in other countries to provide the reassurance of a guarantee of the bank deposits of individuals, our Government didn't have any real alternatives to the step it had to take on Sunday, as the global financial crisis bites.

A COUPLE of columns back I wondered in passing why vacuum cleaners had settings other than "suck-as-hard-as-you-can-you-illegitimate-child".

NEW Zealand is now officially in election mode with the last of the parties opening their campaigns yesterday. For Labour and National, the launches came 48 hours after two opinion polls indicated the gap between them has closed significantly. It suggests the volatility in the financial markets has also entered the psyche of the voters.

As the days lengthen and the temperatures rise, it is hard to focus on the cold, dark nights of winter when the horrid smell of smoke permeated the air. But the "clean heat rate" that Timaru people are now seeing in their Environment Canterbury rates demands should serve as a reminder that the town has the fourth highest pollution rate in New Zealand and that trying to ignore the issue is no longer an option.

Environment Canterbury has had more than its share of critics - this newspaper among them. The prosecutions it has led stemming from the Opuha dam collapse, unlawful sewage discharges by the Timaru District Council, and the actions of farmers and others in breaching the Resource Management Act; the moves to improve air quality; the state of the rivers; the size of the Ecan bureaucracy and its rate increases beyond the level of inflation; the Christchurch-dominated and politically-weighted representation. The shots fired across the bows of the regional council have generally been justified.

THE RELEASE of the National Party's law and order policy ahead of next month's election, and particularly the "two strikes" plan, has sparked serious debate and, as big ticket policies from major parties tend to do ahead of elections, brought some strong criticism flying in National's direction.

MATHEMATICS has never been my strong point. At school I even had difficulty working out what change I needed for my dinner money.

AS the economic news darkens by the day, voters' thinking towards the election should also be changing. This should not be an election with any emphasis on such relatively trivial issues as the anti-smacking legislation, electoral spending, Winston Peters, the fate of the Maori seats, or how Helen Clark and John Key look. The vital issue is who should lead New Zealand through the economic storms ahead.

THE decision by the police last week to prosecute Varinder Singh, the owner of a liquor store in South Auckland, following an altercation outside his business, is the sort of situation guaranteed to spark emotional reactions from law-abiding citizens.

I know we've all wondered at some point in our lives - perhaps while going numb as we pump petrol into our car - whether whales have lips.

A report released last week into the actions of former Immigration Department head Mary Anne Thompson in assisting family members from Kiribati with immigration procedures makes grim reading for a one-time high flier in the public service and it's plainly not the end of the matter.

THE NEWS that, while New Zealand's overall road toll this year is tracking well compared with last year, the number of alcohol or drug-related road deaths continues to rise, is not only a major cause for concern, but also a call to action.

There is a shrewd expression often thrown into a political context which says "make haste slowly". It was applied late last year as the Government rammed through the Electoral Finance Bill in a bid to tighten the rules surrounding political funding and give them some transparency and certainty.

IT WOULD be a brave person who took a job at New Zealand Rugby Union headquarters now if helping to determine the future direction of the provincial competition was part of the brief.

IF YOU have been surprised at the remarkable absence of policies released by the political parties ahead of next month's election, don't be.

EVEN Blind Freddie can see why the minor parties are upset at being left out of any televised political debates involving Helen Clark and John Key. A battle between the two claimants for the prime ministership of the next government will deliver a keen audience that Jeanette Fitzsimons, Rodney Hide et al can ride on the coat-tails of. And they will remember how one masterly performance and the presence of the infamous worm got Peter Dunne and United Future a ticket into Parliament six years ago.

IT'S DIFFICULT to argue with the contention that parenting today is a bigger challenge than in the past, though there are naturally parents in every era who have it tougher than others because their circumstances or their offspring prove that much more challenging.

IT CAME as a shock, probably because there was no warning. I was sitting outside, enjoying the sun, when I happened to glance down. There, sticking out of my shorts, were MY FATHER'S LEGS.

WHEN the fire service launched its inquiry into the Waikato coolstore explosion that killed a firefighter and injured seven others, the apportioning of blame was not part of the terms of reference. In other words, it was to be a matter of finding fault rather than blame.

TWELVE years ago the Timaru District Council asked then Dunedin aviary curator Tony Puller to report on the state of the council's three aviaries. He concluded that the Botanic Gardens aviary had the best location, the Temuka Domain the worst, and the Caroline Bay aviary was "cold, draughty, and close to the motorway". It is time the 2008 councillors dusted down Mr Pullar's report and determined the aviary issue once and for all.

THE death in May last year of South Auckland woman Folole Muliaga, after a contractor from Mercury Energy cut the power to her house because of an unpaid bill, was in the headlines for days as all sorts of accusations were thrown around with gay abandon, largely by spokespeople for her family.

FOR those with any knowledge of the political goings-on in the country - and let's face it, they're front and centre right now - events over the last 72 hours will not have contained much of an element of surprise.

WHEN it comes to the issue of councillors having a pecuniary interest in matters being debated by the local body they sit on, they are subject to strict rules. There have been a number of cases in which councillors have had to stand down as a result of breaches.

THE camping season has started in the Mackenzie Country. This is when outdoorsy types who can't afford baches in Wanaka load a furniture van worth of stuff into a groaning caravan and head off to "get away from it all".

Head lice are not creatures people necessarily go out of their way to discuss. There's nothing cute or cuddly about them. In fact, they're considered downright creepy, and the idea of having them crawling around in one's hair is not at all attractive. Just reading this editorial may be enough to start some people's skin crawling.

MOTORISTS are now so conditioned to the volatility of fuel prices that few would challenge an increase of between 2c and 10c. But they would vent their spleen if the rise was because of a new tax, especially if that tax produced little worthwhile benefit to them. Against that background, the cautious reaction by South Canterbury mayors to the prospect of a regional fuel tax is appropriate.

THE home page of Fonterra's website proudly proclaims: "What nature creates, Fonterra enhances to bring the best of dairy's goodness to generations of customers and consumers around the world. It's our life's work." But rather than pride, at present the visionary words should be creating a cringe among everyone associated with the co-operative.

THAT the story this week about the Kapiti Coast District Council endorsing a recommendation that nudity be allowed all along the district's 45km coastline has attracted plenty of attention is absolutely no surprise.

THE idea of banning the wearing of gang patches and colours on some retail premises in South Canterbury is not designed as a panacea for our gang problems. But it is an attempt to reduce the level of intimidation and fear that the presence of people who are clearly gang members induces in others.

THE news that Police Commissioner Howard Broad is to review the Arms Act, specifically the availability of air rifles, following the fatal shooting of a police officer in South Auckland on Thursday is welcome, though it's probably simply a case of doing his job. A failure by Mr Broad, who has policy responsibility for the Arms Act, to review the legislation in the light of the Mangere tragedy, which has seen a man charged with murder, would rightly have led to a flood of questions.

TAKE note of the Crimp cartoon on this page and be warned - the campaign leading up to the November 8 election will likely be the dirtiest voters have seen. The tension has been building all year on the back of issues such as political funding, credibility, leadership, policy u-turns, tax cuts, hidden agendas, and the turmoil surrounding Winston Peters.

THE fatal shooting of a policeman in South Auckland in the early hours of yesterday morning is yet another reminder -if any was needed - of the serious danger our officers are exposed to in carrying out their duties.

THE decision in March last year to get rid of the Caroline Bay aviary was hailed as the correct one by this newspaper, simply because the cost to move it was too high. That stance has not changed as the news beds in that, after a turnaround on the original decision that saw its execution stayed by 18 months, the aviary is finally to be demolished.

IT'S the most exciting archaeological find in New Zealand's history since contractors found a buried retaining fence in Northland in 2006.

TO SOME people the whole issue may seem like a case of much ado about nothing, but in fact what Timaru as a community has to say about the fate of a tree planted at least 120 years ago on the Domain Avenue frontage of the Botanic Gardens speaks directly to how we feel about the history of the city. So the Timaru District Council decision yesterday to leave it in place is to be welcomed.

IT WOULD be stretching a point to say it will become a substantive issue at the election, but the Government surely would not have been ready for the heated - pun deliberate - reaction to the decision this year to phase out traditional incandescent light bulbs.

THERE is an element of the controversy over the anti-smacking legislation in the reaction to teachers being told they can "man-handle" violent children if they pose immediate risks. No way, says the Office of the Children's Commissioner in a response that shows just how out of step the office is with everyday life in schools.

THE decision announced on Thursday to award hosting rights to the quarter-finals of the 2011 Rugby World Cup to Wellington and Christchurch is a victory for common sense. Yet it seemed that right up to the hour of the announcement there was still nervousness in the two cities that they might miss out on this gilt-edged opportunity because there was more money to be made by hosting the games in Auckland because of the bigger capacity of a revamped Eden Park.

LAST Tuesday, to reduce the risk of didymo spread, Conservation Minister Steve Chadwick agreed to the New Zealand Fish and Game Council recommendation to restrict the use of footwear with felt soles by fishing licence holders.

THE latest New Zealand Defence Force annual report has not really told us anything we didn't already know. Staff shortages and equipment problems are hampering the army, navy and air force, but then we've certainly heard similar utterances at annual report time before.

AMERICAN presidential elections always attract significant global interest because of the extensive involvement of the United States in world affairs, and the impact of what's going on in that country has on the rest of the world. The election on November 4 will be no different, but it will have intriguing dynamics we've never seen before, making it likely to be the most fascinating presidential contest yet.

TRUANCY is an issue that is a constant thorn in the flesh for schools throughout New Zealand, with many having children on their rolls who, for one reason or another, are often absent. A few parents have been prosecuted in recent years for failing to ensure a child's attendance.

NEXT week it will be a full year since an editorial on this page detailed how a 12-month trial of Tasers in two of the country's biggest police districts had been completed, with reports set to be compiled and a final decision on whether or not Tasers would be accepted into general use expected to take "several months".

IT'S THE story that simply won't go away, despite Winston Peters' increasingly defiant attempts to send it scuttling into the shadows. And now Prime Minister Helen Clark is being tainted by the ongoing saga of billionaire Owen Glenn's alleged donation of $100,000 to Mr Peters, which has ended up before Parliament's privileges committee.

This week's comments by National Party transport spokesman Maurice Williamson about road tolls are not the first example we've seen of the "loose lips sink ships" principle being disregarded in the build-up to the election.

NAME suppression is a contentious issue at the best of times for the New Zealand media, but a Manukau District Court judge on Monday opened up a whole new sphere of debate on the subject.

THE next public meeting to discuss issues at the Milford Lagoon is scheduled for Thursday, September 11. The meeting is being facilitated by Environment Canterbury and will be held at 7.30pm, at the Alpine Energy Community Centre, Temuka.

THIS week they'll be back. New Zealand's Olympic competitors, some crowned with glory, others crushed by disappointment and others encouraged but anxious to lift their performances in four years' time, will be welcomed back home, congratulated or consoled, by the public and more importantly by their families and close friends.

SOME random thoughts from the Olympics.

COME Monday morning they will all be over. The sleep deprivation of the last two weeks will be at an end; the square eyes will return to their usual oval shape; our lives can resume normal transmission. But the Beijing Olympics have been a marvellous interlude.

NEW ZEALAND is fertile soil for travel writers. Isolated but with some of the world's most astounding natural attractions, Godzone lures them from all corners of the globe.

THAT great upholder of moral standards - the Auckland City Council - was always on a hiding to nothing in trying to prevent the "Boobs on Bikes" parade yesterday. As a District Court judge quite firmly pointed out, the council did not have a legal leg to stand on.

DEMOCRACY began in Roman times when ordinary people who held opinions stood on street corners and freely voiced them. And then had their testicles cut off.

WE'VE seen it so often before, many times with far more devastating effects than at the weekend, that it becomes tiresome to repeat the warnings, the cautions, indeed the pleas for common sense.

IT'S easy, when things go as they did for New Zealand in Beijing on Saturday, stretching well into Sunday morning back here at home, to get carried away on a wave of superlatives about how great a performance or series of performances has been.

For a week now, the Beijing Olympics have been the only game in town. Not often is an important All Black rugby test - one which will have a major bearing on the destination of the Tri Nations trophy - relegated to a virtual sporting afterthought, but this week the game against South Africa in Cape Town has been.

A POLL on the Stuff website on Wednesday about the involvement of China's ruling Politburo in changing the soloist in the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics drew a predictable response.

THE palliative care provided by hospices throughout New Zealand is a relatively new thing, the national hospice body having been set up in 1985, but nevertheless it's already become an essential element of our health system.

THE STORY of Melanie Donne is one of those tales that habitually get generous coverage in the New Zealand media. It has several elements designed to attract a sympathetic response; human interest, an animal, an alleged injustice. It's the kind of story that often sees things changing for the better for the poor soul at the heart of it once it gets into the public domain.

I'M IN THE doghouse - and regular readers will hardly be surprised to learn that it's entirely due to my ineptitude at recording television programmes.

THERE is nothing like a dose of beneficiary bashing to fire up emotions. So when John Key yesterday unveiled National's benefits policy, he got instant praise and criticism. No surprise in that, and nor was there any surprise in the policy because it closely resembles the stance that Don Brash took into the 2005 election.

THE HUMAN Rights Commission has just put out a guide on the questions employers shouldn't ask prospective employees.

PARLIAMENT: The highest court in the land; a place of respect and being respected; where decorum is expected; where the participants are referred to as the "honourable member" and the power of oratory reigns. Yeah, right.

A couple of weeks ago, New Zealand First leader Winston Peters, of all people, raised the spectre of "dirty politics" and predicted a particularly spiteful election campaign.

WELCOME to the John Cleese Olympic Games (motto: Don't talk about Tibet; don't talk about human rights abuses; don't talk about Tiananmen Square).

AS KIWIS spread their wings, cruises around the South Pacific are becoming a popular travel option. The concept of a floating hotel with plenty of entertainment options and varying views has struck a chord, and the prices are not bad either. But all is not plain sailing.

THIS is where it really all starts for National, writes the Timaru Herald in its editorial. Coasting in the polls for months on end now, the challenge that lies ahead for John Key, Bill English, the party's other MPs and its spin doctors is to sell its vision for the future of New Zealand - outlined at the weekend - to the electorate ahead of this year's trip to the ballot boxes.

Friday night marks the start of the 2008 edition of the world's greatest sporting festival, 16 days which will be marked by titanic struggles for supremacy across the full range of sports that form part of the Olympic Games.

It's been a favourite phrase of Winston Peters over a long and colourful political career and he's voiced it again in recent weeks. "Put up or shut up!" he challenged the media in mid-July as questions arose, for the second time, about an apparent $100,000 donation to New Zealand First from expat billionaire Owen Glenn. That followed newspaper revelations which put the phrase squarely back on the table after Mr Peters' original denials.

The brutal aftermath of last Saturday's drubbing of the All Blacks by the Wallabies in Sydney will have surprised nobody. That's how defeats, and especially against our traditional rugby foes, are dealt with in New Zealand. If top rugby is regarded as something akin to a religious experience, then ritual verbal stonings must inevitably be the response to such "transgressions".

Much has been made since the weekend of United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's reference to New Zealand as a friend "and ally" of the US following talks with Prime Minister Helen Clark and Foreign Minister Winston Peters.

Thousands of "mum and dad" investors will be kicking themselves at investing in the finance companies that have hit the wall. Their life savings, their retirement funds, or the nest-egg for their children have either gone for good, been horribly shrunken, or will take ages to recoup.

There will be general relief in South Canterbury rugby circles today that the showpiece match of the club season is to go ahead, particularly when, in the words of the union's chief executive, Ian Hegarty, senior club rugby has "enjoyed the best competition for many years". It's unfortunate that the firm conditions the players have been able to enjoy for much of the season have gone soft over the last couple of days.

My last journal entry looks like a cryptic note. Made nearly a week ago, all it says is, "Culture Stroke. Remove your clothes and spread your cheeks. Welcome back."

As we approach this year's election, there will be numerous pressure groups publicly stating their expectations of the Government that emerges on the other side and, in all likelihood, carefully monitoring the responses of the major political parties.

The plight of a Cromwell family which hit the headlines this week when a toddler was held back from a Qantas flight because the brother she was with was not old enough to supervise her has highlighted some anomalies around how the "age of responsibility" is determined.

Given that we're only just past the official halfway mark of winter, and that the part of the season that is usually the coldest still lies ahead, chances are high that Timaru will set an unwanted record this year.

I t would be fair to say that I'm not much of a cook.

Is it a problem that over the last 15 years or so, donors' money has been paid into a trust to help meet some of the costs of legal actions that Winston Peters and New Zealand First have been involved in? Not necessarily.

The eleventh hour resolution of a labour dispute involving Timaru's bus drivers is a situation that should be welcomed across our community today.

It's been a week of important meetings and activities for anglers and hunters in the South Canterbury region.

There is no denying the people's voice. And in a phone-in to the Herald yesterday they spoke in loud volumes (see story Page 3). So while there is merit in the proposal to kick vehicles out of central Stafford Street and create a pedestrian and shopping precinct, it will not happen unless the Timaru District Council buys in to what would be a furious row.

Given that a power crisis this winter, including the possibility of blackouts, would have been another blow to a Labour Party trailing badly in the polls with an election on the horizon, Energy Minister David Parker will be more than a little relieved that the optimism he preached at the beginning of winter has proven to be well-founded.

Although the situation may have lent itself to any number of clever word-plays over the last month, it's crystal clear that there is a serious side to Waimate's ongoing "dunny debate".

The world of television -- an entertainment vehicle that reaches into virtually all homes in New Zealand -- is about celebrities. Even if those considered celebrities here pale into insignificance against the genuine article internationally, it's clear our main TV stations -- led by TVNZ -- encourage their top screen figures to be celebrities.

Today's topic is double standards -- and it's hard to know where to start because our lives are bombarded by them.

The tragic death of Sergeant Derek Wootton, a Porirua police officer, who died after being struck by a fleeing stolen car while laying road spikes in Titahi Bay last week, has brought calls for tougher penalties for those who flee from police.

The user-pays business model generally works fine. It simply means that people who use a service pay for it; those who don't take up the service for whatever reason do not pay its costs. Of course, there are exceptions to the rule, principally surrounding the delivery of core services. For example, taxpayers without children still pay for education; and those with full private health insurance still contribute to the public health system.

For Mark Tomlinson, Lake Alexandrina was a happy hunting ground last weekend. He landed five fish inside two hours, and returned four to the water. The one he kept is destined for the taxidermist.

There are more than 5000 people receiving weekly sickness or invalid benefit payments in New Zealand as a result of drug and alcohol dependence which they claim prevents them from working. That much we know from figures published this week.

It's so unfair. A cheap shot, really. After a few months as an American in another country, you get used to the snide remarks and rude comments that run the gamut of feelings -- from a barely disguisable inferiority complex to the genuinely disgusted.

There could not have been a more ill-considered comment in support of beleaguered broadcaster Tony Veitch than that voiced by a radio colleague yesterday. "Don't kick a man when he's down," said talkshow host Leighton Smith. Of course, that is exactly what Veitch did to a woman -- his former partner with whom he had just fallen out. So what happens now?

Nothing will bring back Debbie Ashton. The 20-year-old's life was ended in December 2006 -- the innocent victim of a reckless driver who should have been in jail, not ticking like a time-bomb around the streets of Nelson. No apologies now, no compensation for which her distraught family are surely entitled, will turn back the clock.

Few New Zealanders would have envied Martin Snedden three years ago when, as chief executive of New Zeal;and Cricket, he was the man who had to deal with the delicate matter of a tour to Zimbabwe.

When I was a kid I dreamed about becoming a professional footballer and playing for England in the World Cup.

It's hard to imagine that businessman Peter Low, organiser of a march against violent crime in Auckland on Saturday that attracted more than 10,000 people, didn't know exactly what response he'd get in alluding to using triad gangs to protect Auckland's Asian community.

It's not long now before whitebait fever will strike.

In terms of disruption, yesterday's nationwide protest by truckies -- including in Timaru -- was the biggest New Zealand has seen in decades. The 1981 Springbok rugby tour caused many disruptions, had the police stretched at times, and caused the cancellation of two matches. But the impact on the populace at large was limited. Indeed, not since the watersiders' strike of 1951 has a protest had such a big impact as yesterday.

They're usually only clearly identifiable in hindsight; the missed putt, the outstanding save, the electric midfield break, the truly visionary policy announcement or the stunning misreading of the electorate's mood. Many important contests, be they sporting, political, or otherwise, have a defining moment, a clear point at which it can be said that the contest swung decisively in one direction.

For some time it's been obvious that the meat industry, and particularly the sheepmeat sector, have been in a bad way, so the announcement of a proposed deal between rural services firm PGG Wrightson and meat processor Silver Fern Farms (SFF) this week has the potential to give it a much-needed shot in the arm.

The leaky homes crisis has been one of the saddest chapters in the history of the building industry in New Zealand, with an estimated 80,000 people throughout the country living in homes either affected or at high risk of being affected by the problem.

My stomach is tense, my palms are clammy and I'm breaking out in a cold sweat. My hair would be standing up on end but it's too afraid.

A mobile murder house will be coming to your school soon. That's the implication for South Canterbury schoolchildren of a proposal to revamp the region's school dental system, which looks likely to be adopted.

Sadly for those who follow our national game closely, and there are plenty of them around, rugby headlines carrying a less than positive tone have been a fairly regular feature over the last nine months. Most have been directly concerned with, or at least closely related to, what's going on on the field, with many part of the flow-on effect from the All Blacks' failure to win back the World Cup last year.

Last week I said I would continue the report on the public address provided by Dr Michael Wilson from Australia.

When Timaru began Project Youth a year ago, there was every hope the anti-gang strategy would succeed where other towns had failed -- squeezing out the Mongrel Mob and Black Power. It was a tough task, but where Timaru had an advantage was in striking early in the development of the gangs, and bringing together the police, local government, social agencies, government departments and iwi to share information.

If the Retirement Commission gets its way, within two years New Zealand school children will be learning the ins and outs of managing money as part of their curriculum. The commission has launched a pilot project in a small number of schools, which it hopes will see pupils throughout the country being taught to make robust financial decisions by 2010.

There comes a time in every young boy's life when he must perform certain rites of passage. They include the first date and the first broken bone. Then, of course, there's the pilgrimage to the place that combines a little bit of both. It should be a requirement of every little whipper-snapper to pass through the stadium gates to watch the All Blacks in action.

Assuming the organisers of a petition aimed at overturning controversial anti-smacking legislation have the required number of signatures to force a referendum, it should, in the absence of a compelling reason to the contrary, form part of this year's general election.

Few law-abiding New Zealanders would take issue with vocal Invercargill mayor Tim Shadbolt's contention that the country needs to work out how to effectively address growing gang concerns.

No one admits to doing it but it's common knowledge that nearly everyone slinks off to be alone in a darkened room to indulge themselves where no one can catch them at it.

With the rising cost of living, I've noticed changes in the way people behave. Just the other day at the supermarket, I overheard a woman trying to negotiate a hire purchase agreement for a block of cheese, and I've just realised why I've been catching up to other cars when driving downhill. People have started turning off their engines.

Barely a day goes by at the moment without New Zealanders, and indeed people in most countries in the Western world, being horrified anew by the situation in Zimbabwe. The latest development is the withdrawal of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change from a forthcoming election run-off this Saturday.

The basket of justice-related changes passed by Parliament last week are welcome. They allow 11 to one majority jury verdicts, remove the "double jeopardy" rule preventing someone being tried twice for the same crime, and provide for cases to be heard by a judge-alone rather than a jury. While the legislation sweeps away a lot of tradition, the fact that Parliament so overwhelmingly adopted the changes reflects the improvement they bring.

If Winston Peters had ever stopped to seriously consider what an embarrassment New Zealand First's donation of misspent money to charity might turn into for his party, he would have held back from embarking on the ill-fated move in the first place.

Two seafood companies at the top of the South Island have applied to bring in more than 100 migrant workers between them, at a time when Sealord has just confirmed more than 300 redundancies from its mussel factory. Talley's Fisheries and Aotearoa Seafood Ltd both said the applications were made in a tight labour market, in which they were struggling to get staff, and were made before the confirmation last week of the lay-offs from the Sealord factory in Nelson.

A spate of violent offences in South Auckland, including three homicides in just over a week, has understandably spread fear in that community. Indeed, it's caught the attention of virtually the whole country.

Governments like leaving legacies, and as if to back up its leader's United Nations environmental award, the Clark administration is continuing its headlong rush for New Zealand to lead the world in climate change. The Government cannot rightly claim it has the people with it as it seeks to implement this country's response to the Kyoto Protocol, yet still the mad dash continues.

Today we are going to explore the murky world of economics. With fuel and food prices taking off faster than Formula One Ferraris roaring off the front of the grid, it is an opportune time to examine what is driving these unwelcome assaults on our weekly budget.

On the face of it, an independent review into fuel pricing in New Zealand would be welcomed by most consumers. How could it be otherwise when the price of what goes into our vehicles continues to head skywards?

Concern over the effect that rape trials are having on many rape victims has led the Law Commission to call for an examination of the "processes of trial in sexual offending" as a way of easing the burden on complainants who come forward.

The ruling by a High Court judge this week questioning the legality of many abortions comes as no surprise. Dealing with a judicial review sought by the Right to Life organisation, Justice Forrest Miller indicated he agreed that "'abortion on demand"' existed, which is contrary to the legislation that took effect in 1977.

The end is fast approaching for my wonderful time here in Hobbiton. Much of that time has been spent as a Hamlet-like gatekeeper of information -- cold, underpaid and with only a few ominous lines. As a result, I've probably missed out on what many travellers do with their time here -- bungee jump, abuse sheep, spend late nights in the back alleys of K Road in Auckland, you know, the usual.

A local version of an advertisement for a credit card, which once aired regularly on our television screens, contained the line: "Knowing there are 4 million All Blacks... priceless".

Barring any unforeseen delays, at some point in the next year the use of hand-held cellphones by drivers will be banned in New Zealand. It's a move that has been resisted before by this Government, but is now being taken due to a doubling in the number of car crashes involving cellphones over the last four years. It will mean New Zealand coming into line with more than 40 other countries including some, like Australia, which have had such a ban in place for several years.

I 've been cast this week into an unfamiliar role -- I'm responsible for a spouse who has been reduced to crutches and for whom every movement is fraught with risk.

As the saga of the cold, callous gunning down of dairy owner Navtej Singh in Auckland last weekend unfolds, there is criticism of the media's focus on the length of time police, and therefore emergency services, took to respond to the fatal shooting.

True to form, New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has been all over the situation involving New Zealand Dairies Limited since Russia's Nutritek Group was given permission to acquire a controlling stake.

Saturday's snowfall brought memories of two years ago flooding back. It was evident in the way locals swept through supermarkets and gas bottle-refill points to ensure they didn't miss out on essential supplies. But while the fall was not as heavy as in 2006 and the impact was, at worst, an inconvenience, it was also a reminder that involuntary power cuts this winter are a real possibility.

The rules surrounding the setting of speed limits on the roads are an ass. There is no better example than outside Mt Maunganui College where 13-year-old Breeze Brunton was killed on Tuesday after being struck by a logging truck. Somewhere there is a bureaucrat -- probably in Tauranga but possibly in Wellington - who should be feeling guilty about the loss of the student's life.

For weeks it's been obvious to all but Hillary Clinton and her closest allies, including husband Bill, that Barack Obama would be the man to take the Democrats' hopes into the United States presidential election this year. Indeed, Obama had turned his sights towards his forthcoming Republican opponent John McCain some time ago, while continuing to press his compelling case for the nomination.

Tagging has been grabbing its fair share of the public spotlight over recent months as communities wrestle with how to combat the petty, yet vile, form of vandalism.

A hearing before the Human Rights Tribunal in Wellington, which began yesterday, will attract considerable interest because it has the potential to impact strongly on future legislation around targeted relief packages.

I 've a confession to make. In my wardrobe there's a jacket with a hood.

Once they had the opportunity -- and truth be told they've had to wait some time, it didn't take long for the Australian rugby fraternity to start making a pretty public fuss about one of their major achievements in recent months.

What an emotive news week in New Zealand.

Timaru District mayor Janie Annear's call last week for more help from the judiciary in the fight to stop gangs becoming established in Timaru and other centres in South Canterbury was an entirely reasonable one.

It's still several months away, say most predictions, but already this year's general election shapes as a particularly stressful one for the leaders of our two main parties, based on their handling of errant team members this week.

It was quite a surreal experience taking the bus into Auckland after first touching down in New Zealand. Aside from the jarring 17-hour flight and the time zone quantum leap of 34 hours, I was awestruck by one particular sight. As the bus came up over a ridge, my eyes fixed on a long, slender object in the distance. It was impressive, to say the least. It seemed to tower above everything and the traffic scurried around the monument.

The organisers of "national hoodie day", taking place tomorrow as part of the annual Youth Week, should be smiling quietly to themselves at the irony of it all.

Thank goodness Maori Party MP Hone Harawira listens to his mum -- because he certainly doesn't listen to public opinion.

For a national television channel practised at turning the spotlight on significant new Zealand individuals and situations, TVNZ seems to spend an inordinate amount of time caught in the glare of the media spotlight itself.

I f he had been from one of those countries that by virtue of their large populations and abundant resources produce sporting champions seemingly at the drop of a hat, Scott Dixon's achievement yesterday in winning one of the world's most famous motor races may have blown over in a few days.

So who killed baby twins Chris and Cru Kahui? It was not their father Chris, said a jury after deliberating for all of 10 minutes over the two murder charges he faced. It was not me, said their mother Macsyna, who believed the jury's verdict was correct and who then vowed to "not rest" until the killer is caught.

For the last few years, Timaru's proposed new aquatic centre has been nothing more than an idea, albeit an idea that's given rise to plenty of debate. But this week the proposal went a step further with concept plans being unveiled, giving South Cantabrians a first glimpse of just what the centre might look like if it becomes a reality.

Given that there's an election just around the corner and Labour is languishing well off the pace in the latest polls, as well as all the hype over tax cuts from both major parties over several months, yesterday's Budget announcement was one of the most keenly anticipated in years.

Predictably in an election year, John Key's announcement that National's election platform will include a two-stage referendum on MMP has been seized upon by opponents as a signal he doesn't wish to work with other parties in government, and that the big business elements which opposed the system's adoption are controlling him from the wings.

Two extraordinary decisions in the last two weeks by two separate courts -- the District Court in Timaru and the High Court in Christchurch -- have challenged the precept that justice should not only be done, it should be seen to be done. Both not only fly in the face of transparency but also run counter to a long-standing prevailing attitude in the courts.

A fter much deliberation and soul-searching I have decided, in view of the many environmental challenges facing the world, that it's time for me to do my bit and become an eco-warrior.

Climate Change Minister David Parker has responded to National's decision to withdraw support for the Government's Climate Change Bill by, in essence, accusing John Key and his party of pettiness.

I had given up on air travel long before I came to New Zealand.

The decision by Federated Farmers, one of the country's most powerful lobby groups, to seek research on the share of retail prices of a range of foods that reach farmers' pockets was an interesting and valuable one.

By all accounts, the facilities constructed in Beijing for this year's Olympic Games are extraordinary, providing the basis for a stunning showcase of modern China when the world's top athletes arrive in the country.

Neither New Zealand's public service, generally, nor its Immigration Service, specifically, have been strangers to the harsh glare of the media spotlight recently, but that doesn't diminish in any way the negative public impression of both that the Mary Anne Thompson saga is creating.

Consultants advising the Timaru District Council on the future development of Aorangi Park gave the tree a good shake but have come up with a plan that changes little from the status quo. There is general satisfaction from sports bodies with that outcome because some feared upheaval. But more importantly, the council and park users now have a blueprint produced from a robust review to use as the basis for any changes required over the next 50 years.

I know it`s a sign of advancing age when you begin to long for the golden days of the past but try as I might I can't help pining for the time when nearly everyone could speak and/ or write correct English.

John Key has unequivocally signalled the National Party's concern about the swathe that pure methamphetamine, commonly known as "P", has cut through New Zealand society in recent years, and its determination to turn that situation around.

A colleague was running late with her Mother's Day shopping. Mum lives in another town, and there was now no time to post anything.

Junior doctors have now had two two-day strikes and their dispute with the country's district health boards is no closer to resolution. If anything, positions have become more entrenched, and in the meantime thousands of patients have been inconvenienced.

New Zealand's track record of railway ownership is not glittering. In the halcyon days through to 1986, rail was busy carrying freight and passengers, but it was a business propped up by taxes and a transport licensing system that gave it protected status. Once exposed to competition and the requirement to operate as a stand-alone business, some harsh realities hit home.

Hardly a day goes by without people somewhere in South Canterbury feeling the impact of drunken, senseless acts by teenagers. The petty vandalism, the violence, the dishonesty, the hoonish driving cannot be simply dismissed as youthful acts of bravado or tomfoolery because to do so would be to condone them.

Back in the good ole days, when my main aspiration was to someday become a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, us kids spent a lot of time being educated with the help of pictures and obscenely large place cards.

One of the symbols of a democracy is a free press able to enjoy freedom of expression. It means the people have the freedom of information to know what is going on, and it also ensures transparent government. Applying that test, we see that once again Fiji, in the grip of a military dictator, is not a democracy.

The Government yesterday eased its growing nervousness about the cost to New Zealanders of helping to save the planet. It was not exactly a U-turn but in being able to halve the country's projected carbon deficit under the Kyoto protocol, the Government will not have to raise petrol prices by 6-8c next January to meet New Zealand's liability for putting out too much greenhouse gas.

I don't know what you were doing when the lights went out in Timaru on Friday night but I'll wager you were not left in as a precarious position as I was.

Colin Murdoch was an extraordinary person who never achieved the fame and fortune he deserved. When he died in Timaru on Sunday, it brought to a close a life-time of invention that could have placed him on the world's rich list and had his passing acknowledged by global leaders for the contribution he made to humanity. But that was not his style. Instead, he was content to be an understated New Zealander, happy in the knowledge his inventions have saved the lives of millions of people and animals.

Four years ago then Timaru surgeon Samiuela Kueli Tonga was publicly outed as a dubious doctor. He was named after the health and disability commissioner found in favour of three complaints by patients against Tonga. The commissioner, Ron Paterson, said the operations had been straightforward and the mistakes made during them showed Tonga did not know his way around the anatomy. It is hard to imagine a more critical comment directed at a surgeon.

The sympathy felt for Keith and Margaret Berryman that they have finally been acquitted of blame for a fatal accident on their King Country farm 14 years ago is understandable. They have lived a nightmare which has cost them hugely - financially and health-wise. It is something they should not have had to endure for so long.

Jack Winkler is an American journalist working at The Timaru Herald. In his weekly column he takes a not always serious look at Kiwi life compared with his homeland.

EDITOR'S VIEW

Green MP Sue Bradford is not noted for her sensible utterances. But in asking opponents of her anti-smacking legislation to "move on", she is probably reflecting the majority of public opinion.

The degree and causes of poverty in New Zealand invariably provoke arguments. They are on again with the release of a report by the Child Poverty Action Group which estimates 185,000 children are living in poverty, and which complains that government policies are widening the gap in income inequality.

There was a chill wind blowing around the Cave war memorial on the hill just outside the township last Friday morning but it did nothing to deter the good turnout of residents who were there to mark Anzac Day.

Don't expect Helen Clark and her cabinet to publicly acknowledge it, but chances are they are now wishing that tax cuts had been delivered sooner than this year. Whatever the cuts and their timing that Finance Minister Michael Cullen has factored in to next month's budget, they shape as being too little and too late in the election cycle to appease the vast majority of households under financial pressure .

The first television remote control we owned came with its own cord. Sure, this allowed you to change channels on the TV while sitting on the couch three metres away, but technically speaking it was about as remote as a light switch, the only difference being that you can't trip over the wires of the light switch. This, of course, was 800 years ago.

Transit New Zealand's full-page justification for the four-laning of Evans Street in Saturday's Herald should be essential reading for all Timaru residents, not just those who oppose the proposal because of the impact it will have on their neighbourhood.

Jack Winkler is an American journalist working at The Timaru Herald. In his weekly column he compares life in New Zealand with that of his homeland.

Hillary Clinton was exaggerating when she said the whole world was watching America's presidential election unfold, but there is still unprecedented interest in who will next lead the global superpower. And as the race turns into a marathon, even Robert Mugabe will be wondering why all the fuss about the month-long delay in revealing the outcome of Zimbabwe's election.

The conundrum facing the police in filling vacancies in South Canterbury seems weird. Five positions are unfilled and another two vacancies loom, causing staff to work longer hours and special operations such as targeting drink-driving to be put on hold.

Farmer disappointment that a mega-merger of New Zealand's meat companies is off the table is understandable. The meat farmers are battling a myriad of problems -- from the weather and higher fuel costs to depressed prices and soaring exchange rates. Yet over the fence, their dairying cousins are seeing their returns spiral upwards and all is rosy.

Just when I thought it was safe . . .

Kiwis are not the only ones wringing their hands over the growing issue of adolescent boozers and the problems they are causing. Many European countries are reporting younger people drinking, with 12 now the average age across the EU at which youngsters have their first taste of alcohol, and increasing numbers of teenagers are needing hospital treatment after binge drinking.

The report of the inquiry into New Zealand's worst maritime disaster since the sinking of the Wahine is damning. Six lives were lost in Foveaux Strait two years ago because people with a responsibility to ensure the recreational mutton-bird trip by the trawler Kotuku was safe failed to meet their obligations.

Jack Winkler is an American journalist working at The Timaru Herald. In his column each Friday he will take a not always serious look at life in South Canterbury compared with his homeland.

The New Zealand Rugby Union didn't need a $130,000 review to be told why the World Cup turned into a debacle for the All Blacks. Within 48 hours of the quarter-final exit last October, the union's shareholders - the rugby fans of New Zealand - had delivered their verdict: Player rotation and the conditioning programme caused players to be underdone; the on-field leadership was exposed in the pressure of the closing stages of the game against France; too many management personnel confused the players; and the match officials were below standard.

On the face of it, the return to port of Japanese whalers with little more than half their intended catch from the Southern Ocean might seem like a victory. In reality, there is still a long journey ahead before victory of any sort can be claimed.

Geordie McGregor is credited by many as giving his name to Lake McGregor. But that error has now been clarified by a reader. It was George McGregor's close association with the lake that probably generated this thought, but in reality it was John McGregor of Glenmore Station who named Lake McGregor, and his partners, William and John Robinson named Lake Alexandrina after their sister.

One tough question will surround the official inquiries into Tuesday's tragedy on the Mangatepopo River: What were people doing in the riverbed when a flash flood swept down it? Will the answer be that it was simply an act of nature and a teacher and six students were in the wrong place at the wrong time, or was this a disaster that should have been seen coming?

Demographers -- the people who study population trends -- have a description for Timaru. They call the district "meat and three vege" territory. It means, for example, most people are of European descent, married, own well-kept 30 to 40-year-old houses, and prefer New Zealand holidays and home-cooked quality meals.

Periodically New Zealand's tourist bodies launch campaigns encouraging Kiwis to stay home and see their own country rather than travelling overseas.

The bid to make third-party insurance compulsory for all drivers is gathering momentum with the Government about to publish a report for public comment, and with a decision one way or other by the election.

The development of New Zealand's roads has left the clear impression with motorists that the "tar-seal jungle" belongs to them. The widening, straightening, and smoothing of the highways has all been about improving the safety and comfort of drivers and passengers, and similar work to the urban streets has simply been an extension of the roads-belong-to-cars mindset.

The days of meatworkers and watersiders being the face of industrial militancy are long gone -- in part because the golden geese they were playing hard ball with ultimately had to restructure, causing the loss of thousands of jobs and significant cuts in pay.

The "journey of harmony" being taken by the Olympic torch yesterday became a farce. Sure, San Francisco managed to avoid the violent protests witnessed in London and Paris, but only because the symbol of the Beijing Games was taken on a journey of hide and seek to keep away from the protesters. Of course, it meant the torch was also kept away from people genuinely interested in supporting China and the Olympics, and thus its sole American appearance became a token showing.

The verdicts of the jurors are in and now it's time, after more than a decade of unprecedented attention, to move on; for the furore over the death of Princess Diana and her boyfriend, Dodi Fayed, to be consigned to the pages of history.

Given the impressive record of that genius artist and inventor Leonardo da Vinci, who among many other things dreamed up the helicopter and the parachute (I'm sure the motivation behind those two inventions was not entirely coincidental), I'm not surprised that it's an Italian who has given the world the first self-making bed.

It's hardly surprising that New Zealand First has come out in opposition to the free trade agreement signed with China in Beijing on Monday and that leader Winston Peters has said he will speak against it overseas.

Given the level of controversy that surrounded its introduction -- not just in regard to its provisions, but the unseemly haste with which it was rammed through Parliament and the fact that it represented a complete departure from the normal bipartisan approach to electoral law -- one would have thought Labour would have gone out of its way to ensure that in regard to the Electoral Finance Act, it was operating well above the law.

A bout seven years ago some friends and I were sitting around, fixing the world with cheap talk, when we decided it was time for action.

For many New Zealanders, although the omission may well be entirely subconscious, emergency personnel will be people whose worth we don't truly appreciate until we find ourselves in need of their services.

The housing market was always going to cool, it was just a question of when. Reserve Bank Governor Allan Bollard's brief, to keep inflation in check, and his use of incremental increases in the official cash rate to do that, made a slowdown in the market inevitable.

EDITOR'S VIEW

It's to be hoped that those fortunate enough to have set up camp in one of the dozens of tents alongside the water, or who will at least make it up to Lake Ruataniwha this week, realise they're witnessing New Zealand sporting history in the making.

It's not often I can claim to be a world leader -- in fact, you probably won't be surprised to know that this is the very first time -- but on Saturday night I was at the forefront of a project to help save the Earth.

In his role as a television presenter and interviewer, Paul Holmes has never been everyone's cup of tea. Some have loved him, a fact reflected in the vast amounts of money paid to engage or retain his services, but it would be fair to say that he's got up the noses of a fair number of others.

It may well be a combination of the over-the-top negative reaction from Justice Minister Annette King and a positive response from Green Party justice spokesman Nandor Tanczos, not a traditional ally, that will tell National it's on to something with its plan for a levy-funded Victim Compensation Scheme, announced yesterday.

The job description calls for someone articulate, presentable and comfortable in their own skin. Okay, I can work on all of those.

Anyone who has seen the recent movie Wild Hogs, featuring four middle-aged men on a cross-country cruise on powerful and expensive modern motorcycles, will surely agree it paints an appealing picture of such an adventure.

For most South Cantabrians, this weekend will bring with it the opportunity for some rest and relaxation, the chance to forget about the pressures of the week's daily grind.

I t may well have come as news to some people. Many will not even know of anyone who has ever indulged in such an act. But it seems that making off with road signs and traffic cones is something that many around South Canterbury are prone to doing.

"Welcome to New Zealand, ladies and gentlemen. You'll notice this is a particularly beautiful country, with some spectacular mountains.

It's Good Friday morning and outside it's almost totally silent. There's no hum of motor vehicles, or the laughter of children on their way to school. Most Timaruvians are enjoying a well-earned lie-in.

The story of 12-year-old Abbas Nazari is a remarkable one in anybody's language. The point, though, is that he'd be able to write it down clearly and concisely in English, which until just six short years ago was not his language at all.

Whatever else it may have achieved, the carefully stage-managed announcement by ACT of the return of former Labour finance minister Sir Roger Douglas to politics has forced National leader John Key to clearly set out his position on working with Rodney Hide's party.

I t's parents who worry most about student loans. To those who have them, for the first few years anyway, the loans are just numbers on pieces of paper. These pieces of paper are handy for soaking up beer and, if folded over a few times, propping up the leg of the kitchen table.

The third cricket test between New Zealand and England in Napier is proving to be a notable encounter for a number of reasons, not least the fact that it's the deciding test of a compelling series, with a result now virtually a foregone conclusion.

Rationalisation is a buzzword of modern business. We're constantly confronted with news of businesses rationalising operations or services.

Respect for human rights is a concept of great importance to most New Zealanders. We were the first to give the vote to women and remain, for our size, one of the loudest voices against injustice, wherever in the world it's found.

We all know who SAS soldier Willie Apiata is. He's a hero. Pure and simple. A man who faced enemy fire to carry a wounded colleague to safety in Afghanistan in 2004. It was a deed of such gallantry that he was awarded the Victoria Cross, marking him out as among the bravest of the brave.

I think congratulations are in order for those people who in recent weeks have submitted proposals to alleviate Timaru's traffic congestion.

The calls have come thick and fast over the last week, from a judge, from politicians, from media commentators, even from the two companies so aggressively marketing the products that have helped give rise to the debate.

Friday's horrific crash involving a train and stock truck at Orari was a graphic reminder of the dangers associated with railway tracks and the extreme care needed in approaching and crossing them.

Few countries as far apart geographically as New Zealand and Britain could claim to have such strong, or enduring, historical ties. They are ties that have kept our countries inextricably joined
for 170 years, despite the distance.

More than once in the current term of the Labour-led Government, and indeed before that, National has attacked Labour over the ballooning size of the public service and promised to make savings on that front should it be elected later this year.

To use a parliamentary expression, there is the whiff of porkies as politicians rush to defend two overseas jaunts that six retiring MPs will make next month. The so-called justifications only highlight that these trips are perks and golden handshakes at the taxpayers' expense.

Brace yourself for this week's gripe -- rental car companies. Why is it that when you hire a car, the final price usually bears no resemblance to the advertised price?

Ordinarily, the prospect of the state again owning the railways, when that sector has been shown, historically, to be such a difficult one to run as a viable business, would not be an attractive one. The National Party has said as much, though its argument comes mainly from the capitalist notion that no government should be concerning itself with things like running the railways.

The annual round of meetings to consider local body spending is about to begin, and around New Zealand the meetings will come under strong scrutiny from ratepayers. In South Canterbury, the intention is to keep rate rises below 10 per cent -- to which the only comment can be "and well under 10 per cent at that".

A report from Wellington this week on a telephone counselling service for troubled children and teenagers contained the startling statistic that three out of every four calls it receives go unanswered.

It wouldn't be stretching the point too much to suggest that by the time this year's American presidential election has run its course, many New Zealanders will have heard and seen far more about that contest than about the election soon to take place at home.

Late last week morning commuters might have heard on their car radios that Hamilton police were seeking the attacker of a 17-year-old girl, late the previous night. It was the kind of offending all right-thinking people would like eradicated from our society, so there would have been outraged reaction, and a fair degree of sympathy for the victim.

Overseas investment in New Zealand assets has been much in the news of late, both at a national level and in South Canterbury.

Sweat was tracing small rivulets down my face and the back of my neck as our stationary railway carriage sat slowly broiling in the Australian Outback sun. Outside the window the red desert shimmered in the heat.

When our top sportspeople find their names being trotted out early in news bulletins, or stories about them featuring towards the front of newspapers, it's often the result of some silly indiscretion.

Even given the fact that a week rarely goes by without some controversy being played out in our country's health sector, the last week has been momentous.

Aorangi Park is a jewel in South Canterbury's crown. Not only is it the home for a wide variety of sporting bodies, the facilities also make it a hub for local, provincial, island and national events, which in turn benefit the local economy. Hence the importance of the review now underway about the park's long-term future.

A fair bit has been made this week of the fact that High Court judges' remuneration is to increase 9.4 per cent, or some $30,000 a year.

The saga involving a Czech-trained gynaecologist who botched a number of sterilisation procedures while working at Wanganui Hospital is a cautionary tale for all the country's district health boards.

Hopefully none of us will ever actually be in that awful place, but if one tries to put oneself in the shoes of the Kuchenbecker family of Lower Hutt, it's hard not to admire the dignified way in which they have handled an utterly tragic situation.

Until the early hours of Sunday morning, Jesse Ryder had made a habit of slamming shut the mouths of the critics and the doubters by rising to every challenge put before him in his early days in international cricket.

A national magazine is running a competition called "Places of the Heart". The idea is that either photographically or in 600 words, entrants paint a picture of their favourite spot. This is a good idea, because it's all too easy to ignore the good things around us.

Based on much of the material published on the Government's KiwiSaver scheme since its introduction, most people would have the impression it was working like a house on fire. Indications last month were that more than 400,000 people had already signed up, a significant number in a country of just over four million people.

In a different context, the Owen Glenn affair might well have been a case of "much ado about nothing". And certainly Labour is trying to minimise the fallout from party president Mike Williams' "honest mistake", when he said the party had received no donations from freight tycoon Mr Glenn since the 2005 election campaign.

The release this week for the first time of a report detailing the serious preventable adverse events in hospitals run by the country's district health boards over the course of a year will have had a sobering impact on many people.

Jurors in the long-running coroner's inquest into the 1997 death of Princess Diana must surely have found themselves casting startled glances at one another, stifling the odd snigger, and even wondering if they'd been transported into a bizarre parallel universe as Mohamed al Fayed spoke from the witness stand this week.

The outcome of the investigation into Sunday's mid-air accident between a helicopter and a light plane at Paraparaumu is awaited with interest. Even though there were witnesses, the investigators will want to piece together as best they can what the pilots were doing just prior to the collision, what their field of vision was, whether there were any communications, and what factors contributed to the triple fatality.

I hate to say I told you so - but I told you so (well I would have done had there not been a three-day delay between my writing last week's column and its publication on Wednesday).

Where will the bizarre saga surrounding the theft of 96 priceless medals from the Waiouru Army Museum end? The crime itself would have been considered audacious -- but for the ease with which the thieves were able to get away with the nine Victoria Crosses plus various other badges of valour that are at the heart of New Zealand's military history.

Street artist M says he's misunderstood. "Graffiti has been around since the time of the Romans," he told us in Saturday's Herald. "Public expression on blank walls is thousands of years old."

The Government's bid to crackdown on tagging will be welcomed by the thousands of property owners who each year face the depressing sight of buildings, fences, gates, signs and letterboxes etched in the brain-numbing vandalism of infantile youth. The move might -- only might -- put a dent in the antics of the taggers that cost millions of dollars annually to remove.

There is nothing like a problem to focus the mind and that is where New Zealand's meat industry has arrived. Sheep numbers have fallen to their lowest in more than 50 years; conversions of sheep farms to dairying continue at pace; the high dollar is wiping out the modest rise in lamb prices on international markets; on-farm inflation is above ordinary inflation; and the dry summer is forcing stock to be slaughtered at lighter weights.

Believe it or not, the 2008 Southern Hemisphere rugby season starts tonight, and senior administrators in this country should be worried. Anticipation and excitement in advance of the start of what is supposedly the world's premier tournament below test level appears to be virtually non-existent, and that general lack of enthusiasm will surely spell trouble at the turnstiles.

Helen Clark's opening speech to Parliament on Tuesday included a pledge that Labour would act to boost levels of home ownership, which have declined in recent years in line with a decrease in the affordability of homes as the property market boomed.

This is save-the-world stuff: scientists are trying to work out how the Kiwi accent developed so quickly from the Queen's English which arrived with the first generation of immigrants. In a comparative blink of an eye we were ordering fush and chups for our chooldrun and blaming the gumamint for evything.

Prepare yourself. The next time you use Richard Pearse Airport you might have to check in hours before your flight to Wellington is due to leave.

A mid the hoopla of Finance Minister Michael Cullen talking last week about tax cuts, little was made of a challenge he issued to employers. Yes, he said, New Zealand needed to close the wage gap with Australia, but the Government could only do so much through lower taxes, and he called on employers to do their bit by lifting pay rates.

Timaru needs a new slogan, and for a minimal fee I'm willing to provide it. First, some options.

The life of Michelle Richards is remarkable. A teenage mum, a prostitute, a serious drug addict, a criminal; the former Timaru woman was at the age of 35 put behind bars to serve a life sentence for her part in the bizarre and brutal killing of retired Temuka businessman Dennis Hind in 1997.

The level of airport security imposed in New Zealand in the wake of the 9/11 attacks in the United States is the bane of many travellers. Having to supply identification and be subject to the screening of their person and luggage is looked on as invasive and also time-wasting. There is also the cost spread across the travelling public of paying for the extra staff and facilities required to meet security needs.

There is no denying John Key's appetite. The Opposition leader has eaten another "dead rat", the eighth swallowed by National since the last election in a bid to become the government later this year.

Those directly affected will find it hard to share the enthusiasm, but the fact that numerous fines defaulters in Timaru have recently had their vehicles seized to cover their outstanding fines is good to see.

It's not a new idea by any means, but the suggestion that more male teachers are needed in New Zealand primary schools has been given added impetus by the release of the results of a national survey of primary school principals.

No one could accuse me of being a purist when it comes to the sport of cricket.

The issue of an apology to "indigenous Australians", particularly the so-called stolen generations, has been high on the political agenda across the Tasman for some weeks as the proposed date for the apology draws near.

The history of major roading development in Timaru is littered with public apathy. Hence, good-on the Evans Street Action Group for raising opposition to the proposal to have a four-lane highway along that section of State Highway 1. If nothing else, their action should ensure proper debate and scrutiny of a roading design that will have an impact on Timaru well into the 21st century.

Hot on the heels of the state of the nation addresses by Helen Clark and John Key this week came a state of the environment report. Compiled by the Ministry for the Environment, it is thought-provoking reading and collectively raises a number of challenges for all New Zealanders to address.

For would-be air travellers from Timaru, the reduction in domestic fares announced by Air New Zealand on Friday is not likely to have a big impact.

Labour Department spokesperson Margaret Radford was understating the case when she said last week that the calling of a meeting with the Timaru District Council and the Caroline Bay Association, following some health and safety concerns at the recent Caroline Bay Carnival was "probably very timely".

They may not yet have acquired the popularity they enjoy in some European and particularly Asian countries, but it's clear bicycles are becoming increasingly popular in our communities.

In the last couple of months, serious road accidents in New Zealand involving foreign drivers have been a growing problem, with driving on the wrong side of the road often a factor.

A Human Rights Commission report released last week, following an 18-month inquiry, highlighted the problems faced by transgender people.

It's funny, isn't it, that there's a common misconception that biggest is best.

One of the truisms with law and order is that justice delayed is justice denied. Hence the lengthy delays in serious crimes going to trial is appalling and in need of immediate attention.

A small news item caught my eye on the international page the other day. Out of America, it was the release of the Lake Superior State University's 33rd annual list of words banished from the Queen's English for misuse.

Predictably there was outrage last week following revelations a 19-year-old who ploughed into a vehicle south of Ashburton in September, killing a couple returning from celebrating their wedding anniversary, was texting on his cellphone at the time. Robert Stonestreet was also over the legal blood-alcohol limit and pleaded guilty to two charges of drink-driving causing death.

Some readers took umbrage at the Herald for "insulting" the memory of Sir Edmund Hillary by reporting his death on the same page as gang-related arson attacks. They should be doubly outraged no members of the Royal family will be present at his funeral.

Irrigation is the lifeblood of the South Canterbury economy. Without it, the dairying boom would have largely bypassed this area, other forms of farming would be less intensive, and the benefits of the liquid gold would not have flowed on into the towns. But does irrigation come at any cost?

The ugly spat that has erupted within the New Zealand Rugby League set-up in recent days certainly belongs in the "not-a-good-look" basket. Sadly, though, it's just symptomatic of the state of the game in this country.

Part of the Timaru district plan reads: "There is growing public concern . . . at the loss of heritage sites and places, and of the need for the recognition and protection of heritage and cultural values associated with buildings".

The release of two reports into the saga that cost David Benson-Pope his job as a cabinet minister has simply confirmed what most people already knew – there were serious errors in the handling of the Madeleine Setchell affair.

Just a pile of rubble. That's all that was left of the Orange Lodge Hall on Bank Street yesterday after developers had the building pulled down on Monday afternoon, within hours of being contacted by both the Herald and the Historic Places Trust about the possibility that the structure had historical significance.

So the Government is considering a more flexible approach to the question of licensing of creches.

There was a tragic irony that on the same day that South Canterbury couple Bruce and Jenny Eggleton told how organs had been donated from the body of their son following a car accident, Parliament killed off a bill aimed at correcting New Zealand's poor organ donor rates.

The pressure the police are under for invoking the Terrorism Suppression Act has multiplied with the decision by Solicitor General David Collins not to proceed with any prosecutions under the act.

It was going to be New Zealand's year of sporting glory.

Planned changes to New Zealand's real estate industry announced by Associate Justice Minister Clayton Cosgrove on Tuesday should be welcomed not just by consumers but also by the majority of estate agents.

So Timaru is a town of "red light runners" who also cannot read or understand such simple words as "stop" and "give way".

A born and bred Timaruvian, I admit to having some odd driving habits. If, for instance, I can't find a park right outside the library or the Stafford Street shop I want to visit, I'll drive around the block until one becomes vacant.

It may not necessarily be a debate for the ages, but the debate about the ages continues unabated.

Budget airlines are, from a consumer's point of view, an outstanding innovation. Carriers that have come into our market and helped to substantially lower prices for some services.

The Education Review Office has just released a report that will make disturbing reading for anyone who takes seriously the suggestion of a decline in the general standard of written English in New Zealand.

The annual Sea 2 Sea Challenge which involves participants exercising for at least 30 minutes a day over six weeks; roughly equivalent to covering the 240km from the West Coast to the East; has again been a highly successful promotion of the value of physical activity.

The cabinet reshuffle announced by Prime Minister Helen Clark yesterday was the most important in her time as leader.

The idea of young people sleeping rough in Timaru, as highlighted in the Herald on October 24, is one that will be disturbing to most South Cantabrians.

Car parking in a city, as we all know, can be a problem just about everywhere, but I discovered a whole new challenge last week – trying to find a suitable three-day park for our car in Dunedin while we went on a trip to Central Otago aboard the Taieri Gorge Railway.

The emotion that continues to surround the terrorism raids should surprise no one.

It's strangely appropriate that allegations of terrorist activity should recently have dominated the national headlines, because we're just over a week away from an annual festival in which we commemorate one of history's most famous terrorists.

New Environment Canterbury councillor Bronwen Murray was clear and unequivocal on the campaign trail: As a southern area councillor she would not be supporting Sir Kerry Burke remaining chairman.

The stoush between senior minister Trevor Mallard and National MP and former minister Tau Henare in the MPs' lobby at Parliament on Wednesday evening, is one that may well be shrugged off by some as a bit of a joke, an indication that the phrase "boys will be boys" applies even at this level.

The names Road Knights and Devils Henchmen were synonymous with Timaru's "gang town" reputation of the 1980s and early 1990s.

Let's hope they know what they're doing. Those leaders in the Greater Auckland area currently sounding off about the unfairness of their ratepayers being asked to contribute to an Eden Park upgrade for the 2011 Rugby World Cup, that is.

Today we are marking the 592nd anniversary of the glorious victory of the English over the French at the Battle of Agincourt with a potted history of weaponry through the ages, a brief resume of that famous battle, and we will conclude with the shocking revelation that a new and appalling weapon is worryingly being developed right here in New Zealand.

A win's a win and as South African captain John Smit said, he would have been happy to win the Rugby World Cup 3-0 rather than 15-6.

It would be a rare week in New Zealand when there was no public criticism of the police and this certainly hasn't been one of those weeks, what with the fallout over Monday's raids around the country.

It's a debate that has surfaced periodically for years, usually after a young driver is involved in a horrific fatal crash, but this time it appears that calls for the driving age to be raised to 16 may well go further than talk and result in a meaningful change to our driving legislation.

The biennial conference of the Council of Trade Unions ended on an interesting note with new president, Helen Kelly, using the forum to call for an increase in the minimum wage from its present $11.25 to $15, a massive jump by anyone's standards.

The decisions of the Liquor Licensing Authority, released last week, which set the closing times of two bars at the south end of Stafford Street at 3am, instead of 5am, will have been met with disappointment by some members of the public, but for many, it will have gone straight over their heads.

Black-clad armed police are not an entirely foreign sight in New Zealand, given that its unusual for much time to pass without an armed offenders squad callout somewhere.

Dear Mr Hobbs,
I know you may think this application somewhat premature but I feel I need to make you aware of my interest in the All Black coaching position before less visionary applicants, such as Robbie Deans and Warren Gatland, put pen to paper.

A true story. A truck driver was making a delivery to a local farm when he and the farmer's wife got talking. He didn't plan it this way, but he heard himself saying he'd recently got married and yes, those extra eggs her chickens had produced would be much appreciated by his new bride.

Few people would question the decision by the New Zealand Government to impose restrictions on travel to this country by Fijians in the aftermath of the military coup in the island nation last December. After all, the country's democratically elected leader remains on the outer and democracy has, effectively, been placed on the backburner by Commodore Frank Bainimarama's takeover.

Voters have given an overwhelming endorsement to the work of the Timaru District Council over the last three years.

EDITOR'S VIEW
Surplus is a

For a few panicked hours on Wednesday, more than 20 workers at Timaru's mail centre had to deal with the possibility, albeit slim, that they had been exposed to a hazardous substance, after white powder was discovered on a mail sorter's hands and clothes.

Farmers in New Zealand have shown themselves to have considerable lobbying power in recent times, successfully digging their heels in on the proposed "fart tax", compulsory microchipping of dogs and rural access proposals.

It's only a game. That's a line we've all heard uttered numerous times since the weekend.

It's doubtful there's another death that has captured the global imagination in the last 50 years as comprehensively as that of Princess Diana in a Paris tunnel 10 years ago.

Drugs and alcohol.

The start of the new month has been accompanied by the coming into effect of some new pieces of legislation and one has already caused controversy.

Former Wellington Mayor Mark Blumsky, a first-term Member of Parliament for National, last week indicated he was giving that position away at the general election in 2008, saying he was surprised by the "tribal" nature of parliamentary politics.

As an exercise, the release of annual crime statistics by our police is a positive move in that it gives the general public the opportunity to hold our police accountable for the work they are doing.

Each week when starting a column I'm never quite sure where it's going to take me. This week, though, I'm pretty certain. No matter where I end up, I'm going to be in trouble.

The outpouring of emotion that has followed the fatal shooting of a hammer-wielding man by a police officer in Christchurch last week was inevitable.

If the opportunity for people living in South Canterbury to fly to the major North Island centres cheaply from Christchurch is not enough to call into question the viability of Timaru's air service, could it be that questions over the reliability of the aircraft flying the route will end up doing that?

As the Rugby World Cup meanders towards its business end, when the handful of teams with a genuine chance of lifting the Webb Ellis Cup, along with a couple of others rounding out the top eight, will remain, there is a nagging question hanging in the air, which needs an answer.

If Beaconsfield Road resident Linda Pullar, on the front page of yesterday's Herald, looked as though she wasn't quite sure which facial expression to settle on, that's probably entirely appropriate.

Crisis is a word too easily plucked from the dictionary to describe difficult situations in this country, but it certainly seems there's the potential in the education sector for a scenario that may warrant the description.

When I was at school we occasionally used carbon paper. You know the stuff I mean, the blue paper that inevitably found itself sandwiched between the wrong pages and mistakenly copied scribbled notes all over your homework.

Given the recent problems that have beset political parties founded on Christian principles in New Zealand, it seems a fair bet many Christians will be going out of their way to avoid being associated with the latest one, should it ultimately get off the ground.

The case involving the murder of 27-year-old Auckland woman Anan Liu, the alleged abduction and subsequent abandonment at a Melbourne railway station of her three-year-old daughter Qian Xun Xue by her husband, Nai Yin Xue, and his subsequent flight to the United States is as extraordinary as it is tragic.

So the challenge of climate change is akin to that posed by the threat of nuclear war in the declining years of the 20th century. That's according to Finance Minister Michael Cullen, who drew the comparison as the Government unveiled its policy for tackling climate change on Thursday.

The driving age is a subject that has been much on the minds of politicians in recent days, following the deaths of three 15-year-olds in a horror crash near Christchurch and the involvement of a 15-year-old driver in the crash in which Christchurch City Councillor Graham Condon was killed this month.

Today isn't quite D-day, but it is an important one for all residents of South Canterbury with the right to vote.

So after two years Timaru has shed its "touch, taste, feel" slogan and adopted a new one. Well, I can't say I'm sorry. As a sub-editor I always felt a bit embarrassed by the tautology of that catchphrase to promote Timaru.

Project Youth, the multi-agency inititiative aimed at putting the squeeze on any increase in gang activity in the Timaru District, is an exercise all right-thinking residents should support.

The situation will seem ludicrous to many people, which is, of course, exactly why it has been in the headlines over the last two days.

That stories which hit the headlines last week about the alleged "devil" in our milk have not prompted wholesale defections from the ranks of committed milk drinkers is hardly surprising.

One thing that could be said for certain about Ahmed Zaoui on Thursday afternoon, when the announcement was made that the Security Intelligence Service was withdrawing its security risk certificate on him, was that he was a happy man.

There's no doubt the annual Central South Island Charity Bike Ride is a special event.

Despite its relatively low profile, rowing has been the sport in which New Zealand has made the most noise on the international scene in recent years and judging by the three gold and two silver medals at the recent world championships there will be more rowing success at next year's Olympics.

Having to deal with an errant member of her cabinet is obviously not something Helen Clark particularly enjoys, but it seems like it keeps happening to the prime minister.

I just love big sports tournaments, whether it's the Olympics or the World Cup –that's the soccer World Cup, by the way, which incidentally doesn't have to identify which sport it is because it was the first such global competition and it is by far the most extensive and most watched international team tournament.

Sometimes, to put certain issues into perspective, you have to make them more relevant to your own situation.

One of the world's great cities, just a short hop across the Tasman, will be well into the process of getting back to normal today after the unprecedented upheaval of the Apec summit, though it's a fair bet that process might well take the rest of the week.

So schools, through the fundraising efforts of parents and boards of trustees and through such things as interest on investments and the charging of significant fees to overseas students for the benefit of getting an education in New Zealand, are continuing to have to find alternative sources of funding.

The restraint that Christchurch woman Denise Clarke appears to have shown over the last couple of weeks has been remarkable, given the hurt she and her family must have been through.

Predictably, a judge's decision to adjourn a murder trial in the Wanganui High Court this week because no provisions had been made to accommodate the accused woman for the duration of a trial expected to take four weeks, has sparked some vigorous public debate.

The clash of dates which saw four South Canterbury meet-the-candidates' meetings scheduled over two nights ahead of the forthcoming local body elections was disappointing.

When Ken Frost first became a Corrections Officer his reaction on seeing people behind bars was "what a waste".

The bells are chiming, calling out to the faithful.

The year-long trial of Taser stun guns involving police in the Auckland and Wellington regions has concluded, with reports now to be compiled in a process that is expected to take several months.

The response to the launch last week in Auckland of the SuperGold card – offering a range of discounts to pensioners – by New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has been somewhat less than overwhelming.

If you have money invested in a finance company right now, chances are you've been feeling a little nervous of late.

Domestic violence is a subject that, unfortunately, finds its way all too frequently into the headlines in New Zealand, to the extent it has become the focus of major campaigns aimed at finding ways of reducing it. It also regularly finds its way into our courts, where judges face what can only be described as an unenviable task in adjudicating on a wide range of different domestic violence scenarios.

The term flip flop has been high on the political agenda in recent weeks as Labour attacks the policies and pronouncements of National leader John Key.

Too much information. It's become a catch cry in recent times, usually used in the context of someone graphically describing bodily functions.

Sex education is in the sights of the Education Review Office, which has declared that the majority of sex education programmes being taught in schools are not as effective as they should be.

It would be all but impossible to have lived anywhere near the stretch of State Highway 1 between Christchurch and Dunedin for any length of time without being aware of the controversy often engendered by the annual Undie 500 event.

Environment Canterbury chairman Sir Kerry Burke has read the signals correctly – the council's relationship with South Canterbury is in jeopardy.

There was great news for consumers this week with the announcement of the entry of budget airline Pacific Blue to the domestic New Zealand market, complete with introductory $39 one-way fares on the trunk routes between the country's three major centres.

When to give chase and when to back off.

A ll this new-age enviro-speak winds me up. Carbon credits and footprints, emission trading, food miles, biofuels – all designed to make us feel guilty, but I'm not buying it.

The Buy Kiwi Made campaign could not have had a stronger kick-off yesterday.

It was no great surprise that when Timaru inline skater Nicole Begg posed in the nude earlier this year in a bid to lift her profile, it proved hugely successful.

Timaru may not lead New Zealand on many fronts, but this community is certainly looked up to by most others when it comes to the question of, well . . . being a community. And it's not just our view.

Shoplifting is a major problem for retail businesses of all sizes and how to combat it is a question those involved are constantly thinking about.

Timaru district councillors headed out of town yesterday on their second tour to look at aquatic centres elsewhere, but this time with warnings ringing in their ears.

I 've spent the weekend at a journalism conference in Wellington, and why this is relevant to you is because the industry is at a crossroads, and you have a stake in where it goes from here.

There's little doubt Maori Party MP Hone Harawira's decision to go "walkabout" from a parliamentary trip to Melbourne last week achieved exactly what he hoped it would – publicity, and plenty of it.

It's taken several years, but the guilty verdicts last week in former officer John Dewar's trial for covering up rape allegations against police officers have in a sense brought things full circle for Louise Nicholas.

The outrage that most of the country has felt in the wake of the horrific abuse of Rotorua toddler Nia Glassie was manifested this week in the observance of three minutes' silence.

It's an ambitious plan, but the bid to make Timaru the home base for the Irish rugby team during the 2011 World Cup makes a lot of sense.

Health, and particularly the cost of maintaining it, is a subject never far from the headlines in New Zealand.

It's long been fashionable to blame society's woes on television or even, more recently, on the internet. And it's true that some aspects of bad behaviour are imitative and that the weak-natured copy bad actions portrayed in films or video games.

Yet again, New Zealanders have been confronted with graphic evidence of the horrific results of a dog attack.

The law banning smoking in pubs has a lot to answer for. There was a time, fading into the memory already, when you could trot off down to the local on a Saturday afternoon, grunt a couple of times over a jug and quietly head back home for tea.

It is a massive statement of the obvious but yet again it needs to be said – railway lines are exceedingly dangerous places and extreme care should be exercised around them, whether you're in a vehicle or on foot.

Murder is always a horrific crime and there's no doubt that any murderer deserves to spend a long time behind bars. But there are some who deserve special attention and Michael Scott Wallace, convicted in New Plymouth last week of the 2005 murder of German backpacker Birgit Brauer, is unquestionably one such individual.

It's an indictment on New Zealand society that it seems to require a case of almost unimaginable cruelty to remind the country of the prevalence of child abuse in our communities.

Rotorua MP and former midwife Steve Chadwick's Infant Feeding Bill, conveniently highlighted on Wednesday to coincide with the start of World Breastfeeding Week, tackles an issue that certainly has the ability to polarise opinion.

A charge sometimes levelled at newspapers is never letting the facts get in the way of a good story.

There are times when being married to a writer has its drawbacks. Writers, as we know, can become deeply absorbed in their subject, to the exclusion of what is going on around them.

Fact: The number of teenagers killed on New Zealand roads is disproportionately high.

The Tour de France finished yesterday with controversy again swirling about it.

Is this the latest pick-up line in the pubs and cafes of Wellington?

David Benson-Pope had to go. Prime Minister Helen Clark has placed great store on her team having integrity and honesty – remember, 11 ministers have been sacked, stood down or quit over the last seven years.

All power to Transport Minister Annette King with the plans for more effective penalties to deal with speeding motorists and other driving infringements that contribute to the road toll.