Living On The First One Hundred Years

Greymouth Evening Star, 20 August 1949, Page 2

Living On The First One Hundred Years

Sir—lt is apparent that a form of total Communism, superior to the Wildest dreams of Karl Marx, is tightening its grip on this fair little country, as each successive Socialist Budget is presented. The children of today’s citizens are even now facing total disinheritance. In the short space of 13 years of the Socialist regime over £1,000,000,000 has been filched from our people and only the remnants of it vested in the State. Even the individual’s national savings, to the tune of £29,000,000 have been invested in State houses. Thousands of people are clamouring for these State shelters, because they have not the means or prospects of establishing a home of their own on present inflated values. The dead hand of the State moves tardily. State houses built in Greymouth over 13 years of Socialism approximate 150 or a yearly average of 12. In the slump years private enterprise built four times this number per year, and people wonder now why they cannot get a home. - In 13 years Mr Nash has extracted £1,000,000,000 and spent it where? With the exception of £46,000,000 invested in hydro-electric works, the rest has gone down the drain. . Railways are wearing out, roads are in need of maintenance and development and public buildings are deteriorating. In Greymouth the •only building undertaken in 13 years has been the watersiders’ palatial rest room, whilst every available private building has been acquired and filled with an unproductive type of occupant. Compare Mr Nash’s 13 Budgets with the previous 100 years in New Zealand’s history and what do we. find? In the past 100 years the total taxation was under £1.000,000,000, that is less than the Socialists have squandered in just over a decade. Compare the way this £1,000,000,000 was spent in the first. 100 years. New Zealand was roaded from the Bluff to North Auckland, a complete railway system was instituted (and the trains stayed on the rails). Government and public buildings for all purposes were established. Our sea transport facilities were developed. Generally speaking the great asset which the squanderers have lived on for a decade was established on that first £1,000,000,000. Despite the fact that this year’s spending will increase another £7,000,000 on last year’s, the poor oldage pensioner at the closing days of his life (well spent in developing New Zealand) will receive only 5s more a week to meet the rising cost of living, which in turn was recently held to entitle the wage-earner to an increase of from 10s to 13s 4d recently. The wage-earn-er got that rise. At the same time the national superanuitant has had to take his belt in a couple of holes. No rise for him until he has squandered all available savings! The most pleasing, note in Mr Nash’s speech, as a result of his constant, goading for more production, was his acknowledgment of the great response from the farmer, who has enabled a large parasitic community to find an existence. Compare the farmer’s effort with that of the coal-miner and wharf worker who have been subsidised to the tune of millions. The need of coal has held up cement, haulage, and progress and the wharf worker’s mockery of production has retarded the whole effort, even to the extent of delaying gift foods to starving peoples. The horde of “stop watch efficiency experts” and satchel-carrying individuals has held up private industry all along the line. No, this stupenduous spending to pacify sectional interests is neither good nor sound government and must ultimately lead to a state of bankruptcy for both the State and the individual. —Yours etc. MONEY-TO-BURN. Greymouth, August 19.