PARLIAMENTARY BROADCASTS

Evening Post, Issue 98, 27 April 1936, Page 8

PARLIAMENTARY BROADCASTS

(To the Editor.)

Sir,—lt is a great pity that "Lavengro" should be allowed the freedom of your valuable space to express his personal opinion by way of innuendo against our national standard of intelligence which he declares "is backward enough as it is." Were "Lavengro;' possessed of ordinary cultured intelligence which he wishes us to believe he possesses, he will at my suggestion readily see how unnecessary it was to waste his time belittling the intelligence of our people when by turning the dial of the y radio set from 570 k.c. to 840 k.c. he or any similarly-cultured person could have received the scheduled 2YA programme from 2YC.

To a backward person like rrie, it is easy to see the advantage of the Parliamentary broadcast to the other backward people resident in other fardistant parts of the Dominion, not forgetting other misinformed countries who are unable to occupy "that seat" in the gallery' of our House of Representatives. It is also interesting to note notwithstanding the repetition of words and phrases that the report of the debate in our Press could have been read by the average "backward" person in less than half an hour —the debate occupied about three hours of fairly rapid speech.

As a listener-in it is my impression that ■. music comprising Sonatas in "majors" and "minors" is not as elevating as a Parliamentary debate when one realises that the "alleged backward" masses of New Zealand workers were a very "minor" consideration of the late Government, but now it is very apparent that they are the "major" consideration of the present Government. I prefer political facts to chamber music. These all too rare Parliamentary broadcasts of political truths contain the most cultured uplift the alleged "backward" people ever heard. I have in mind a statement made by the Minister of Labour,when he said in effect that the Bill then ( before the House would have the tendency to make people possessed of large capital leave the country, and added: "Well, let them get out and take their money with them, because we want neither' them nor their money." In conclusion, Sir, permit me through the courtesy of your paper to compliment Mr. Savage on Parliament's achievements in so short a period. I trust that he will not only put .Parliamentary debates on the air more frequently, but in the near future will put the debates over the air on short wave.—l am, etc., _ J.J.B.