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Scoop Feedback: The Warehouse’s Money For Jam
In this edition: Money for Jam - Warehouse style - Kiwi Bank, Every New Zealander’s Dismal Venture - Crocodile Tears All Dried Up - Israel Acting Like Rogue Country Possessing Weapons Of Mass Destruction With The Help Of US Veto! - Torture of Peter Blake's killers
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Money for Jam - Warehouse style
Dear Sir,
Retail giant The Warehouse is set to bring computers to the masses by offering free training in its Warehouse Stationary stores.
The Key4Free programme is a joint initiative between The Warehouse and the Tertiary Accord of New Zealand.
The first lessons are being held with the Manukau Institute of Technology (MIT), which will take enrolments for the programme on an 0800 number.
MIT will give the "students" appointment times and provide in-store tutors for the training, while The Warehouse will meet the cost of the computers and converting the stores.
Each store offering computer lessons will have 15 to 30 computers and the 90-minute lessons will be held during opening hours.
The move comes as part of founder Stephen Tindall's desire to give something back to the community and support the knowledge economy.
"We hope to attract a lot of people who haven't had exposure to computers, particularly older people. Computers are just so vital these days," said a Warehouse spokesperson.
Some Warehouse Stationary stores will be made smaller to accommodate the computer training. "There is a bit of cost involved but we think it's worthwhile."
Nothing comes for nothing and no amount of posturing by Mr Tindall will convince me there is not a buck in it for his business.
Whether by way of "foot-traffic" through the store and the subsequent purchase of computor software or hardware or other goods and/or through the receipt of a "fee" for making the facilities available matters not a jot. I do not see this being done purely out of a desire to give something back to the community. He is after all a businessman.
If the latter, one has to ask where does the initial funding to the Tertiary Accord and Institutes come from.
If the government, then why is this not been channeled through the education system proper rather than adding to the bottom line of an entrepreneurial enterprise.
Mirek Marcanik
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Kiwi Bank, Every New Zealander’s Dismal Venture
I read with interest the Scoop Feedback by Sandy Wells defending the Kiwibank, and fail to comprehend your correspondent's logic, or more precisely, the lack of it.
Your correspondent's belief that a view must be valid simply because it is contrary to the Business Roundtable and ACT New Zealand defies credibility.
If banks are "such evil institutions in general", how can we be sure that the Kiwibank will be any improvement? Indeed, if such entities as the TSB, PSIS and Credit Unions are such a significant improvement on other banks, what is the point of setting up another one, especially one that is doomed to fail.
Your correspondent has the right to invest in whatever bank she chooses to. I however would prefer not to invest in such a dismal venture as the Kiwibank, yet I have no choice in the matter for it is my taxes that are bankrolling this absurd project, and I would prefer to have the option of investing my earnings where choose to instead of being forced to prop up Jim Anderton's pet project.
Yours sincerely
Darryl Ward
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Crocodile Tears All Dried Up
Dear Sir,
So, the Prime Minister is to again attend Waitangi Day celebrations at Waitangi.
Helen of Troy could not have orchestrated this better.
In 1998 the tears flowed thicker than the Tiber in full flood.
Since then Miss Clark has carefully fostered a sense of foreboding amongst not only Northern Maori, but Maori generally, that they will never again see a Labour leader or Prime Minister grace their hallowed ground unless they can quell the vocal (and sometimes physical) activist minority.
While they may not have quite done that (as evidenced by the uttering of Titewhai Harawira on hearing the news) Miss Clark is obviously feeling very safe in the power keeping relationship she has fostered with Maori in the intervening period.
No crocodile tears this time I suggest, just a steely-eyed look of "try me now if you dare".
Frankly, I think I prefer the look that launched a thousand ships to the one that has blasted the strike-wing from the air, has our blue water Navy in her sights for sinking, is jiggling the Army around like a cork in a pond and yet hopes to launch a fresh start over Waitangi on 6 February.
Mirek Marcanik
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Israel Is Acting Like Rogue Country Possessing Weapons Of Mass Destruction With The Help Of US Veto!
Israel Is Acting Like Rogue Country Possessing Weapons Of Mass Destruction With The Help Of US Veto! (Deepak Sarkar, January 16, 2002). Once again, US foreign policy is showing a blind eye toward Israel's aggression and massacre in the occupied land of Palestine, despite a coordinated effort in the United Nations for a resolution proposing an observer force.
US is the only country who voted against an observer force prolonging the constant violence against the peace loving Palestinian people in their own home land. It is obvious from the actions of Israel and US that they want to divide the Palestinian people into different factions weakening and eventually killing President Arafat facilitating the take over of the remaining Palestinian land into Israel forever.
It is amazing to watch how many times Israel can violate International will and UN resolutions without any US objection and/or harsh criticism and/or bombing/sorties.
Who can convince Non-Democratically Installed US President, Mr. George Bush, that Israel is an occupying force enacting terror and massacre for 50+ years and Palestinians are fighting only for the 22 percent of their legitimate homeland. Mr. Sharon can keep saying President Arafat as terrorist but President Arafat can never match Prime Minister Sharon in massacre and mass annihilation of Palestinian people, including old, disable, women and children.
There is a East Indian saying, "Thief's mom has louder voice!" This is so true for Prime Minister Sharon.
Hope Israeli and US Governments come to sense helping the world to achieve peace immediately and let the Palestinian people live a normal life as enjoyed my most world citizens.
Deepak Sarkar, Trans Canada Highway
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Torture of Peter Blake's killers
Dear Sir,
First suspicions and now confirmation, through medical evidence, that the alleged killers of Peter Blake were beaten while being held in custody by Brazilian authorities should come as little surprise.
Neither should the fact that a spokeswoman for Brazil's Justice Department admits this is a regular occurrence within the culture of impunity that exists in some sections of the Brazilian Police Force.
While acknowledging that few, if any, countries can lay claim to the fact this does not happen within their police force, Central and South America are well known for their less than tolerant attitude towards their criminals, dissidents and general public.
On 8 December I wrote to you suggesting there was more to the killing of Peter Blake than just an opportunistic robbery that turned violent.
In a society as corrupt as that in the whole of this region, it is little wonder that all measures possible would be used by those involved in this graft to ensure that suspicion is diverted from them.
The fact that the alleged "perpetrators" were so rapidly apprehended in the vastness of the area they operated in must raise some questions.
And what better way to close the case than to extract coerced confessions from people who have little or no value in the greater scheme of things and even less chance of receiving a fair hearing.
Unless, of course, they were in fact hired killers and their rapid apprehension was a sop to world outrage and subsequent "beatings" a deliberate ploy to ensure they were never brought to justice anyway.
I guess we will never know.
Mirek Marcanik
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