It’s not a joke, it is a significant investment
I rapidly checked the date on today's issue of the ODT (19.3.26) and found to my astonishment that it was not April 1, but that apparently the boss of Forsyth Barr Stadium does indeed intend asking the Dunedin City Council for a ‘‘significant investment’’ in the stadium.
‘‘Investment’’ is corporate gobbledigook for cash to buy a series of curtains, hung from the roof to divide the area into smaller areas.
The amount of cash is not stated but said to be ‘‘significant’’. In other words, heaps.
Mr Doorn was not around when this white elephant was foisted on Dunedin ratepayers, but let me remind him and the DCC councillors who will decide next week whether to increase borrowing or divert essential spending to tip more cash down this particular toilet, that the proponents of the stadium always stated very loudly that the stadium was not at all a rugby venue but that the design was to provide exactly what Mr Doorn is now stating that these curtains will provide.
Can I suggest that Mr Doorn provide the DCC a comprehensive list of confirmed concerts and other events which have committed to this new configuration and a schedule of payments by NZ Rugby and the Highlanders.
The ‘‘build it and they will come’’ model has proven to be a total myth.
Russell Garbutt
Clyde
Doggone it
Good to see the Civis piece on the government’s flabby response to dangerous dogs (ODT 7.3.26).
A woman was mauled to death by uncontrolled dogs in an urban area. She is not the first. Children of course, being small, have their faces bitten. This state of affairs should not be allowed to fade from the public or political mind.
Slack enforcement of dog control laws is a problem. But there is another problem, usually unacknowledged, about attitudes to dogs.
Everyone is aware of cruel and irresponsible dog-owners, but not problematic ‘‘doggy people’’ owners. I do not mean ordinary dog-lovers, the majority of responsible dog-owners, but ‘‘doggy people’' whose attachment to their dogs could be described as a personality disorder.
As far as doggy people are concerned, if their dog attacks a person or another dog, it must be the fault of the victims because their dog, like a new-born child, could not possibly have done wrong.
This attitude is far from rare and may be shared by some dog-control officers, which obviously poses problems when dealing with out-of-control dogs.
The duties of dog-control officers are heavy and often dangerous, which is why I think dog-control officers should be treated as police officers and paid in like manner.
A sensible community response to a dangerous dog is to take it and kill it quickly with a bullet but the taking part of this operation usually involves doggy-owners or worse, violent owners. Which is why so many dogs are left to roam and frighten people, or worse.
Christopher Horan
Lake Hawea
Pay it forward
It is interesting to see the increase in petrol/diesel price. My question for sellers is how can you increase the price when you are selling stock that was bought at a cheaper price? Why do you not put the price up only when you buy at a more expensive price?
David Fortune
Te Anau
Name change
Great news that the peninsula is now free of possums - 24,000 removed. Well done to all who achieved this. How about changing the name from Otago Peninsula to Otakou Peninsula? Makes sense and aligns with the increasing use of Otepoti Dunedin.
Warren Jowett
St Clair
Gold was valuable in the 1800s and still is today
On reading letters and articles to the ODT (13.3.26) we read that according to Mr Churchman “Gold is not worth the trouble of mining it” and that Mr Munro on the opinion page points out that not all dams are engineered to hold back water or liquefied slurry.
The historic gravel tailings along the banks of the Clutha River between Alexandra and Clyde townships are untouchable heritage sites administered by Doc, although they would make outstanding residential sites facing north and overlooking the river and spectacular Old Woman Range.
The miners of the 1800s rushed into Gabriels Gully, the Kawarau Gorge and the Nevis leaving a wage of 7-8 shillings a day for the chance of earning a month’s income from 1oz of gold at £4 an ounce. With people prepared to pay $8761 per oz gold is still worth mining in 2026.
People paint a word picture to match the limits of their experience, such as that gold has no use and dams only hold back fluid. Clearly the price of gold and Mr Munro’s descriptive article correct such narrow views.
Stan Randle
Earnscleugh
Address Letters to the Editor to: Otago Daily Times, PO Box 517, 52-56 Lower Stuart St, Dunedin. Email: letters@odt.co.nz
