LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33654, 2 October 1974, Page 16

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

<1) Letters to be considered for this column must not exceed 150 words. They should be on only one side of the paper; preferably typewritten otherwise clearly written In Ink; and ample margins and space between lines should be left for convenience in sub editing i2> A legible signature and full address — not a P.O box number - are required whether these are to be printed or not <3) The correspondent must say whether the letter has been or is to be submitted elsewhere •41 I’he editor cannot return or keep any letter not accepted for printing; nor does he undertake to acknowledge or enter into correspondence concerning letters, although an acknowledgement will be made where this seems to be necessary or helpful. <5) As a genera) rule correspondence on news items in other publications or carried on radio and television, is not acceptable. Peter Metcalf.—No such request received. Manners.—More than 150 words. Abrasive.—He is certainly not naive. G. M. Wane.—ls if not a matter of conscience? Investment by Iran

Sir, —Could someone explain how it is that overseas investment from Iran is a good thing- Not long ago we were saying that it was only a good thing if overseas investment brought “knowhow” with it. I can understand borrowing overseas to tide over fluctuations in overseas income. But overseas investment of the kind now proposed seems to have the sole purpose of making overseas money available to enable us to bring in overseas goods for which we really have no money or prospects of money. Such goods must, therefore, be classed as luxuries, and it would be better if the money were given away (not lent or invested) to countries that really needed it. We will presumably end up with a perpetual mortgage on which we pay interest for ever in the form of dividend and through which our economic independence can suffer—a true “never-never” system!— Yours, etc., G. C. SUGGATE. October 1, 1974. TV documentary Sir, —After having viewed the documentary “479” on television and seen the newspaper advertisements comparing child molesters with drunken drivers, I have drawn the conclusion that

this is an insidious plot ' financed by the breweries 1 and car manufacturers to £ divert attention from the i real issue. No blame is s attached to the breweries for 1 encouraging motorists to * drink by providing huge car £ parks at hotels, nor is there ‘ any mention of car manu- 1 facturers constantly increas- ' ing the power of their pro- ' ducts. I suspect the motives ' of the makers and sponsors of this campaign. How many of the people connected with it are shareholders of the aforementioned monopolies? Before appealing to the pub- 1 lie’s emotions, I feel priorities ’ should be understood.— Yours, etc., I M. J. ROBINSON. J October 1, 1974. ( Young voters J Sir, —I am very ashamed ' that only 40 enrolled to vote ■ in the Sydenham by-election. In fact, I am even more ; ashamed to confess that I am not anying the 40. However, contrary to appearances, I am interested in what is happening in my country and my electorate. However, I was unable to register as a voter i because I was unable to dis- ' cover where I might enrol. This was not publicised anywhere, neither on television nor in the newspaper, and my family and friends could not tell me either. Nor did anyone visit my house with the electoral roll. I am therefore highly disappointed with the lack of publicity it was given. Since it is possible that other potential voters feel the same way as I do, I urge the immediate reopening of the electoral roll, even if it is only for two days.—Yours, etc., DISAPPOINTED 19-YEAR-OLD. September 30, 1974 . Amnesty’s activities Sir, — The Shah of Persia is to. be congratulated on his exposure of Amnesty International during his interview on television. This organisation has been protected for too long by news media, and it is high time that the public became aware of its true activities. Amnesty International only takes an active and sincere interest in detainees in countries fights ing communism — Chile, South Vietnam, South Africa, Rhodesia, Iran etc: As a facade it carries out a lip service only for detainees in pro-CommuniiSt countries — Zambia, Tanzania which includes Zanzibar. North

Vietnam, Tibet, Russia etc. 1 The public should know that 1 a leading member of i Amnesty is also the repre- i sentative in England of Fre- ■ limo, the murderous eolfee- i tion of Communist-armed < and trained thugs, who, after ; carrying out countless ghast- i ly atrocities, have taken -] over Mozambique at the • point of the gun. — Youns, 1 ANTI-COMMUNIST. ] October 1, 1974.

West Coast Road Sir, — I am appalled at the state of the Christchurch? Arthur’s Pass highway for a 6|-mile stretch beyond t Castle Hill Station. The road { has just emerged from a winter with a massive dose ' of potholes. To steer around I these holes is to drive dan- ' gerously — one must spend t considerable time on the 1 wrong side of the road; to s slow down for each hole (if ■ you are lucky enough to 1 spot them) is also bad driv- t ing (what about the driver ] behind you?);' while to hit < them hard and straight ] presents other problems. The ( planned realignment and up-, grading of the road will , solve the problem in time, ( but this is of no comfort to , the motorists who face the road each winter in its present state. A weekly or monthly “fill in the pothole” ! programme would be adequate to keep the road safe in the meantime — so please. Even the skiers have had enough of the pothole i slalom course. — Yours, , etc., G. G. HUNTER. ; September 30, 1974. i Riccarton traffic Sir, —The residents of Burdale Street, Riccarton, sent a deputation to the Riccarton Borough Council at one of its meetings and asked that heavy traffic be prohibited from using Burdale Street. This traffic is a hazard because the street is not constructed to take heavy vehicles, has a dangerous intersection halfway along its length and at one spot the road is extremely narrow. Some time has elapsed since this meeting yet nothing has been done. Would someone on the council please state: What has been done, what will be done, and when?— Yours, etc., L. G. ROBERTS. September 24, 1974. [Mr T. N. Neate, Town Clerk of the Riccarton Borough Council, replies: “The matter referred to has been investigated and the council has received and considered the results. After full consideration positive steps have been taken to reduce the heavy traffic in the street and the organiser of the petition has now been informed of the decisions that have been made. The situation will be kept under review and further steps taken as and when considered necessary.”] Bus services Sir, —As a regular commuter both to and from the city, I feel that the bus service provided for the residents of Bishopdale, in the Veitchs Road, Sawyers Arms Road area, is grossly inadequate. It is a regular occurrence on the Northcote bus to have people left standing on the bus stop, being unable to get on the full bus and having to wait up to 35 minutes to one hour for the next Northcote bus. Unfortunately, I am one commuter who has to “straphang” every night as far as Veitchs Road, and although I am told it is excellent exercise, and good for the hairline, I feel that if one extra bus was provided, the crotvds on the 5.08 p.m. bus would be less, and Christ? church would have happier commuters. —Yours, etc., SUSAN DWAN. September 17, 1974. [Mr M. G. Taylor, general

manager of the Transport t Board, replies: “I regret that f it is not possible to provide f all peak hour patrons with a r seat; to do so would require a some 50 extra buses (and r drivers) merely to convey the y present number of patrons, $ Checks carried out on the t Northcote service do not pro- / vide any evidence to support J the contention that it is a I ‘regular occurrence on the f Northcote bus to have people t left standing on the stop.’] < Trout in Victoria s Lake Sir, —The North Canterbury Acclimatisation Society’s intentions, in putting 400 to 500 brown trout in Victoria Lake are rather poor, I think. These trout < would be slaughtered by the < anglers. Trout in New Zea- - land have been decreasing in s size and numbers in the last 1 30 years. In many rivers and '< lakes trout are, more or less, J non-existent because of pol- 1 lution and heavy fishing 1 pressures. These trout could 1 be put in these sort of wat- J ers to breed and thrive. They . would be able to live longer 1 and at the same time be an ' enjoyment for the fisherman. ' I think it is a silly idea to 1 put these beautiful fish in this small lake where they have no chance to live. — Yours, etc., PAUL VAN DE LOO. ‘ September 24, 1974. [Mr J. M. Checketts, secre- : tary of the North Canterbury . Acclimatisation Society, replies: “The council resolved to put fish in Victoria Lake to encourage and educate junior anglers.”] School curriculum Sir, — A*s a post-secon-dary teacher taking a cross- . section of the education sysj tern’s upper 50 per cent, I . heartily agree with M. . Edwards that a return to the i basic skills (the three R’s) is needed, and urgently. However, I do not agree that law taught as a subject need ' crowd out reading, writing I and arithmetic. It could form ' a most useful and inter- ; esting supplement to English ‘ literature, for instance. It ’ would surely be of far great- ! er use to the average pupil : than smattering of Japan- ‘ ese or trigonometry. Every ’ shorthand teacher knows that by selecting interesting, informative articles along with businass letters and i company reports, she can i help expand a pupil’s gen- • era! knowledge, while at the j same time developing this > pupil’s skill in shorthand. The same could apply to the 1 three R’s and a study of 5 law. — Yours, etc., ’ M. E. RITCHIE, j October 1, 1974. f Equal pay t Sir, — I wonder how the . average nurse’s salary would - measure up in comparison ! to that of a doctor if equalj ity of pay comes in? In many situations the factory worker earns more than a fully-qualified nurse, especially in the private nursing ’ field. — Yours, etc., 3 CONCERNED. September 30, 1974. 2 Labour’s record ’ Sir, — In my honest r opinion, this present Labour ‘ Party Government would be

the worst in the history of New Zealand; full of empty promises. Let someone tell me what it has done? The answer is nothing. It will not serve another three years. A few days ago it gave $7 million away to underdeveloped countries. Apparently they come first. Just ask yourself how many homes that would have built for people waiting for homes. Also in regard to the Sydenham seat it looks as if sympathy will win out instead of brains. — Yours, etc., OUT. September 29, 1974. Place names Sir, — In the course of compiling a comprehensive account of the origin of New Zealand place names, I have so far been able to locate little or any information about the following places in Christchurch and its vicinity: Barrington, Bishopdale, Branston, Burwood, Kendal, Merivale, Merrin, Southdown, Stewarts Gully, and Waltham. If any reader can inform me of the circumstances in which the names were given, I should be gratefuL — Yours, etc., A. W. REED. September 30, 1974.