Letters, November 18: Quiet spring for paradise

The poison industry, consisting of the Conservation Department, Environment Waikato, Animal Health Board and Forest and Bird, has recreated Rachel Carson's Silent Spring in our clean green 100% pure South Pacific paradise.

I have been called nasty names by the poison industry, and newspaper editorials, but they are only shooting the messenger.

I don't pretend to be a spokesman on behalf of the community but I do have a responsibility to my community to report back on the destruction which is being visited on native species in the community's name.

The community has a right to believe those in charge of us but we are being badly let down. Just visit Pureora Forest Park early in the morning and listen. Where the dawn chorus used to be a cacophony, this spring it is one, hesitant bellbird. They haven't killed all the birds, just most of them. The dawn chorus in the middle of Te Awamutu is more extensive than in the middle of Pureora. This is not the way it should be. It is easy to prove the poison industry is not telling us the truth about native species destruction – just listen.

MURRAY DENCH

Te Awamutu

SPCA bias

It is my understanding that there have been extremely biased and incorrect letters penned re the real reasons behind the real concerns for the Waikato SPCA.

I am a newbie, in that two plus years ago I read an article re the financial difficulties and probable closure of our SPCA.

I have made a yearly donation since but, sadly, not this last year – under my own and professional agreement.

I have been genuinely appalled by the methodology applied by the changed committee.

Our distress is genuine, not due to change or ego.

ROBYN WILES

SPCA life member

Future open space

Daphne Bell (Waikato Times, November 9) is correct when she states that the Hamilton City Council needs to consider the future – in Minogue Park's case, the future use of open space for the health and wellbeing of the growing population – and that applies both to people and dogs as well as sports people.

Taking away public use of the flat area can only add congestion to the park (and in turn, to other parks throughout the city).

Minogue Park is so easily accessible, both by foot and by car, and will be put under incredible pressure as the population grows in the next 10 years.

I would like to know how the council plans to cope with the increased traffic that will come from the opening up of more inner city sports areas.

As it is, horse races, swimming pools, netball and BMX traffic creates huge traffic levels in the streets surrounding the park.

How will the council deal with added rugby traffic?

New grounds for rugby and other sports could easily be placed in areas to the north of Hamilton where houses and shopping centres are going up apace.

Think of it: in such locations, games would even attract sport fans from Auckland.

Now that would do something for our city.

CECILIE McSHANE

Hamilton

`Racist' remarks

You now can see why decent Kiwis are leaving New Zealand in their droves after the seemingly racist remarks by that hunk of scum Hone Harawira. The best move our family ever made was shifting to Australia.

J TAYLOR

Adelaide

Political hard-man

While some readers will see Hone Harawira as stumbling from one public relations crisis to another, it is possible he is actually executing a brilliant strategy with his possibly racist remarks in relation to white colonialists.

Each time he appears to be putting his foot in his mouth, there must be many activists cheering and saying: right on bro. On one hand, with convoluted and qualified apologies he is cementing his appeal to hard-liners within Maori activism; on the other, he is just managing to keep his foot in the door of conventional main-stream power-brokering through the Maori Party.

With his hard-line support, Hone could become the "hard-man" of Maori politics, drawing in sufficient fringe support to eventually displace the "moderates" at present holding control of Maoridom's little slice of parliamentary power. This could be the greatest argument yet for either the retention or rejection of MMP.

DENNIS PENNEFATHER

Te Awamutu

Reject Harawira

How sad to see our country represented at a meeting in Europe by Hone Harawira or, should I say, sent to represent us for he went sightseeing instead.

Like many, I was not particularly offended by the obscenities in his email which was private by nature.

However, I was appalled by the racist views expressed.

But surely, it is the Maori Party's willingness to support these views that is cause for concern.

A short while after hearing Hone's "apology", I got some Russian material which was alarmingly similar – Stalin was a great guy who did a great job, he just made a few minor errors in technique.

Until the Maori Party unequivocally rejects Hone Harawira and all he stands for, Pakeha will be entitled to label it racist.

JAMES J READ

Huntly

Destiny hullabaloo

With regards to Destiny Church and all the hullabaloo:

I remember driving to Mt Wellington, Auckland, and seeing a distraught Maori woman, 40ish, and my stopping and asking her "what's wrong".

She said she had been asked to leave the Church because she refused to give her eftpos.

Meanwhile, the argument goes on about abortion, for and against.

For some women perhaps the thought of a child from an "undisciplined" moment can be necessary for an abortion.

If my grand-daughter (young) was infected by some dog and that "infection" was perpetuated on my girl, I would have no hesitation on insisting on an abortion to get rid of it and cleanse her.

People, think before putting pen to paper. (Abridged)

KORO TOKO

Mangatangi

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