Social service cuts are another act of violence
In its campaign of cuts to social services, the government is committing acts of violence upon the people it was elected to serve.
"Charities hit hard by cuts" (ODT 5.9.24) had to be continued on p5 because of the long list of funding and staffing cuts to agencies serving "vulnerable children and youth". In between the two parts of the article were other reports of domestic abuse, including a sustained assault upon a mother by a father – a "domestic rampage" – which caused the pair’s children to run and hide.
Funding cuts hit hard at social agencies; some women and children are ‘hit hard’ by the very people who should look after them. What’s the difference? The children’s commissioner and others have criticised the out-of-control measures of Oranga Tamariki, predicting that the result of their severe reductions in resourcing will be a future (and expensive) mountain of unmet need.
Back to basics
Reading your report on funding for transport in the South (ODT 2.9.24) I find it strange that our Minister of Transport should think "back to basics" means severely cutting funding for cycling and walking.
Surely back to basics in his portfolio, with all its problems, should mean back to cycling and walking desirable, thus reducing parking needs, the potholes that worry him so much but are accelerated by increasingly heavy motor traffic, and motor accidents with their huge cost to the public purse as well as to the unlucky victims.
Back to basics should mean enthusiasm for ensuring a sustainable future for our beautiful land and its inhabitants, walking and cycling benefitting fitness, mental health, a less polluted atmosphere, and providing affordable, quiet leisure or holiday activities .
Will needed
Referring to Aaron Nicholson’s letter (ODT, 26.8.24) the Blanket Bay entrance of the original tunnel (length 112m, width 4m, height 5m) is well clear of the present highway. The Sawyers Bay entrance is a lot closer and may be affected by the present highway. The original tunnel, now covered with earth sediments and vegetation, is still there.
If a pathway were to be now constructed here then I would think that at least 80m of this path from the Blanket Bay end would be made within the tunnel. The Sawyers Bay end would require a gentle bend towards Roseneath.
This section would have a much reduced width and height than the original tunnel as now only being required for people and bikes not trains. The advantages over the present pathway is being shorter and having a more gentle gradient.
With modern tunnelling equipment and expertise this would not be just wishful thinking but could be done quickly and very cost efficient. What is now lacking is the will to do it.
Begone
The article about Gore’s Gold Guitar raises some interesting issues concerning unwanted sculptures.
Would it be possible to find a public-spirited individual or organisation to take possession (or destruction) of Dunedin’s "molars". They could even be transported to augment the breakwater at Aramoana where they would at least be in the correct anatomical position at the mouth of the harbour and never see the light of day again.
The cost of building and the cost of repairing
Perhaps Auckland Mayor Brown has a point?
I have been wondering why new houses cost about $1m-$1.2 million, when many sections are advertised at $325,000 and build costs about the same?
Maybe under current circumstances you could get the sections a bit cheaper: they have been in general on the market some time.
Add these figures together and you get about $650,000 — a disparity of $400,000-$600,000 in the asking prices and costs of building these new houses .
Perhaps the same thing applies to the hospital?
Maybe we should just properly fix the old one?
Instead of spending $5 million working round asbestos in the old hospital library, I bet it would have been a fraction of that to fix it.
The same with the roof. Patch-ups often end up costing more than replacement.
A builder friend of mine got a price for an insurance job he was no longer fit to do.
The builder put in a price three times what he would have charged if he’d been able to do the job.
When quizzed on the price the builder said they’ll pay (the insurance company).
Maybe that’s the attitude of the contractors? We’ve got them where we want them (the government). They’ve promised so we’re on to a winner.
Address Letters to the Editor to: Otago Daily Times, PO Box 517, 52-56 Lower Stuart St, Dunedin. Email: editor@odt.co.nz
