Shark nets are not needed

With the tragic death of Adam Strange at Murawai beach, honouring his memory is important. So to is being sensible about approaching shark attacks.

Immediately, the paranoid 'big brother' groups began to insist west coast beaches need to have shark nets put in place to protect local surfers and beach goers. According to them, one shark attack is one too many.

As someone who lived out at Murawai, Mr. Strange had developed a fondness and appreciation for nature. People who knew him said he would have been uncomfortable with the idea of the shark which killed him being shot or the prospect of having shark nets put in place.

People rarely die from shark attacks in New Zealand. The last fatal shark attack took place in Whangamata back in December 2009. Only 15 fatal attacks have occurred since records began in the mid 19th century. Like anything else in life, going into the water involves certain risks and consequences. Rip tides, nearby rock s, as well as other marine life are far more potent than any shark could hope be.

Installing shark nets will do almost nothing to prevent other hazards which beaches contain. Many regular beach goers don't see it as necessary, nor does the rare shark in the water warrant it. Now that Murawai beach remains closed for authorities to do an investigation, not much evident will justify big brothers claim. Why should it? Out of the many thousands of people who have visited and swum in the water, how many sharks have surfaced to greet them with a wide toothed smile? Sharks are barely even seen in our waters.

People need to stop panicking so much. Much like "Jaws" did in 1975, people are letting one tragic story ruin a kiwi pastime time of enjoying summers at the beach and in the water.

Passing legal hurdles won't make asset sales any more popular

With Mr. Slippery's recent tirade of legal hurdles to sell of state assets met, many party members in National are celebrating it as a victory of some sort. At the same time, each National MP is failing to assess the changes this will mean for our country. Foreign investors will buy up stakes in these assets. If not now, then certainly in a few years.

How can something which has passed legal checks suddenly be made out to be popular? Only those idealist National party loyalists could think along such lines. Who enjoys being told you can't buy magnets because Simon Bridges believes you lack common sense? On the same token, why is selling off good income earners to fund a disastrous deficit meant to suddenly be popular?

Easy divorce and easy evasion

Why is divorce so incredibly easy today? So many young children are suffering from emotional grief when their parents selfishly put their own interests first. Now, the jury has come out that fatherless families are in short supply when it comes to child support. Many fathers owe large amounts of money to support their children, whose time is divided between each (yes that stupid word again) "partner."

People who try justifying divorce often cite abusive relationships and mental problems but those do not compare to the most common reason. Alleged "irreconcilable differences." If the married family, as an institution were brought back and lifelong marriage encouraged strongly, rather than hinted at, then chasing after distant father for child support payments would not be as common as it is.