Unclean, brown and not at all paradise
There have been a number of ODT articles of late showing the struggles many local towns are having with large numbers of tourists, the latest being Naseby with a water shortage.
Reading about Milford Sound airport (pro-rata probably one of the busiest in New Zealand) requiring tourists to use the nearby bush as a toilet as there isn't one there leaves me embarrassed.
The response from this government is to use many millions of the visitor levy (which was supposed to be used for conservation and maintain tourist infrastructure) to promote New Zealand overseas for yet more tourists.
We are putting at risk the real possibility of losing that clean, green untouched paradise belief. Instead we run the risk of much adverse criticism due to failing infrastructure, sub-standard amenities and lack of facilities and processes these tourists would expect. Short term gain for long term loss.
The elite and elites
In true Trumpian fashion, Shane Jones champions "blue-collar workers" against a so-called "elite" who would deny them jobs. Yet Mr Jones employs no-one except bureaucrats paid by taxpayers, owns three houses, is the beneficiary of two trusts, has interests in a consultancy business and is paid $327,000 a year, also on the public dime.
His own elite status gives him no authority to over-ride genuine public concern over the permanent destruction of landscapes and an environment that support more sustainable industries than Aussie mining aimed at augmenting the gold holdings of overseas billionaires.
Those are the real elites that Mr Jones is serving at the expense of Kiwis who truly value their country in more than the shape of gold bars.
Wining and mining
It was disappointing to read of the $450 a head meeting at the prestigious Tarras Venue The Canyon, where a one sided view as to the merits of the proposed Santana gold mining venture will be presented from an elite group claiming to represent “the huge concern" of the community.
The claims that the operation would be “spewing toxic chemicals into the waters and air" and that “people will have to breath cyanide and arsenic 24/7" are simply not true. The audience paying their $450 entry will already have their opinion well and truly set but the majority who cannot afford $450 will only hear what the reporting media publishes, so will get a very biased one sided report filled with untruths.
Decision making
Completely disregarding Otago's flourishing economy, Resources Minister Shane Jones (ODT 20.1.26) calls Central Otago "largely empty" and "pregnant with mining potential", urges the region to be "humble", and says people can have their say through the fast-track process.
Really, minister? The Fast-track Approvals Act 2024 severely constrains which people have any say. Santana wants the decision under the Fast-track Approvals Act 2024 made in just 30 days, and has shown its colours by trying to amend the Act to completely exclude comment from community groups or residents.
Allowing Santana's proposed vast open cast gold mine, and the many that loom in its wake, will irrevocably reshape all Otago's future. A slew of open cast mines across our region is not compatible with tourism built on 100% Pure New Zealand, Central Otago's World of Difference, and the still-burgeoning wine and fruit economy.
Making such an important decision in this way is ridiculous.
Breman right to stand up for Jerome Powell
In the prime minister’s aimless State of the Nation address the only spark in proceedings came when questions were asked on Winston Peters public reprimand of our Reserve Bank Governor Dr Anna Breman.
Both Luxon and Willis doubled down on the belief that the minister of foreign affairs should have been consulted.
This makes your editorial (ODT 16.1.26) appear more troubling.
Why wouldn’t Anna Breman defend Jerome Powell, a fellow central banker, facing criminal charges under Trump’s attempt to oust him?
By supporting Winston you are essentially saying that the governor of RBNZ should not advocate for central bank independence, or worse, overlook the bullying tactics of Trump.
We should keep in mind that in 1989 we were the first government in the world to pass legislation to formalise the independence of central bank around monetary policy with the Reserve Bank Act.
US President standing up for the West
Ewan McDougall (Letters ODT 21.1.26) delivers a quite frankly unhinged attack on United States President Donald Trump.
He complains about Trump’s endorsement of the campaign by Ice in various US states to apprehend and deport illegal aliens let into the country by Ewan McDougall’s idol Joe Biden.
For those who don’t know, the acronym Ice stands for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a federal agency charged by Act of Congress with carrying out the task Ewan McDougall is so disgusted about. If you do not have control of your borders, you cannot consider yourselves a country.
There are two types of leaders of world powers, hawks and doves. Putin and Xi Jinping are hawks who if they sense weakness in the leadership of the West, will threaten and control the doves leading the West.
Trump is a hawk and thank God he is the leader of the most powerful nation on Earth.
Whether Ewan McDougall likes it or not, a powerful US is vital to the stability of our world. Your correspondent would, in the event of a threat to the security of our country, be on his knees begging for the US to intervene on our behalf.
Trump is a hard-nosed businessman who is a negotiator who starts his negotiations with the most ridiculous of demands, which he knows are totally unrealistic, then after the uproar from people like Ewan McDougall, gets to the table and settles for the reasonable solution he wanted before he started.
His outlandish hubris is grating at times, but do not be fooled. He has the best interests of all Western nations at heart.
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