Letters to the Editor - timesnews@fijitimes.com.fj
Knowledge vs wisdom
Although I support the People's Charter, there is one pillar that I believe could be improved a great deal i.e. Fiji as a "knowledge-based society".
Knowledge is not much use without wisdom and values. Humility, courage and compassion are also needed if we are to make good use of our knowledge.
History shows that mere knowledge of new materials such as oil and its by-products has brought immense pollution of the environment and caused many diseases of the human body.
Knowledge of new ways of "making" money has led to the transfer of wealth from the poor to the rich, leaving an ever-widening gap.
An education in wisdom is far more useful. Wisdom is about man paying attention to the data, understanding its meaning and consequences, and making proper judgment about its usefulness for the common good.
Wisdom is about making the right decisions with commitment and compassion. I would much rather see a wisdom-based curriculum, a value-based and a faith-based society.
Knowledge based societies have succeeded only in multiplying worldwide problems.
Our youths need to be taught how to question so-called "facts", how to learn from history.
They (and all of us too) need to know the depths of their selfishness and prejudices, their fears and their deepest desires.
A wisdom-based society would be committed to benevolent living and compassionate, non-violent relationships.
Fergus Garrett
Flagstaff
Bravery award
I have read your article of Nacanieli Dokoni the hero who had saved 10 lives in Nadi flood.
I think that he should be given a bravery award by the Fiji government of his role on that day to set up as an example for others of what a brave young man he was.
A person like Nacanieli should also get some kind offering from the government to say that they do care about these type of citizens of Fiji which will be very positive for the people of Fiji.
If Nacanieli was in Australia for what he had done, he would have become an instant hero and a rich man from News, TV interviews and rewards from the government. I hope he does get a thank you from the government.
Reginald Deo
Australia
Yellow
THE Yellow River (Huang He), is the second-longest river in China after the Yangtze and the sixth-longest in the world at the estimated length of 5464km.
Originating in the Bayan Har mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into the Bohai Sea.
It is remarkable how the Chinese re-aligned the river to prevent the flooding catastrophe the river constantly presented some centuries ago.
Give these guys the Nadi river and we'll be good. They surely change our own small yellow river. Seriously.
Donald Singh
Beijing
Roads up north
Action speaks louder than words. No matter how hard the DNR Northern may try to defend his department, the people are still not satisfied with the service delivered by the roads department. Last year a one kilometre road was reconstructed from Wailevu sector office to Wailevu ricemill.
The initial allocation for the work was $100,000.
Within three months of the completion of the work, potholes emerged and now nearly a year after the reconstruction the same stretch of road is full of pot-hole patches.
Why does the DNR north have to blame the funding they receive from the Finance Ministry is not sufficient.
The drivers and the general public are not blind.
We can see the inconsistency in delivering the required service by the roads department. Why don't the DNR Northern call a public forum on the issue and he will be able to see for himself the public outcry on the pathetic service provided by the department in the Northern Division.
Ajesh Nair
Labasa
Lottery winner
A 34-year-old New Zealand man is the newest millionaire winning the Lotto first division prize money of $NZ26,264,932.
The Waikato man who works as a supermarket checkout operator said nothing was going to change.
During his interview with the press on the day he was announced winner he proudly made the following statements.
He said he would continue working as a supermarket checkout operator because he enjoyed his job and not just because he had to pay bills. No change he said because at the end of the day his bank balance was just a number!
He said he would be the same person he was yesterday and the day before that.
He said he was single and would not rush into a relationship just because he won so much money.
He said he would take his time to finding a nice woman to settle down with! Asked if would go to work the next day and he replied "most definitely, I will be at work at the normal time of 5am."
Yep you guessed right, the lad didn't report to work the next morning and was nowhere near the supermarket nor anywhere to be seen. How so fast can money change things?
Overnight he must have found out very fast that his fame and fortune would vastly be influenced by others and not himself. Everyone now wants to be his friend and every gal wants to be his companion!
Right now the supermarket is the last place he wants to go to and he most probably has already found a nice one, or two.
Some will win and some will lose and as for our Waikato lad it will interesting to know how and where he will be five years from now.
Hopefully running his own supermarket and not back at his old supermarket.
Simon Hazelman
SAVUSAVU
Pathologist woes
I was both saddened and appalled by the way a family in Taveuni had to endure over two weeks of heartache waiting to bury their dead son; and all this because in the entire Fiji Islands, we have one retired pathologist to see to all the bodies.
The body of the boy had returned, unrecognisable and swollen.
Our communities in Taveuni are small and everyone knows just about everybody living here.
The family whose son had committed suicide has been family friends for as long as I can remember, living in the adjoining estate.
I would like to know why Mr Neil Sharma, our Minister for Health, has one retired pathologist seeing to the post mortem examinations in Fiji.
Our Health Minister should put himself in the position of the family and families who have to wait over two weeks to bury a loved one.
As for the lone pathologist, I was quite disgusted with the manner in which he arrived and performed the autopsy, rushing through the procedure so that he could leave for a friend's house to drink grog.
Taveuni is a very small place and this sort of behaviour does not go undetected.
I would like to request our Prime Minister to look into this matter and remedy this situation.
Abhishek Sapra Ura
Taveuni
Electricity rate
Would it be possible for FEA to drop electricity rates at night - say from 7 pm to midnight? If we had another electricity company in Fiji, competition would be healthy.
And one way would be able to drop electricity rates at certain times and during peak periods raise the rate and people who use power during peak period pay the higher rate.
But, sigh, we have only FEA, but I'm sure they have their experts who can come up with a new plan. Just look at the phone company they give rebate when we call at night. What say FEA?
Allen Lockington
Lautoka
Kaji union
A Fiji primary school association? Excellent. Thousands of parents will support FRU in this move.
Ever wondered why NZ continues to roll out classy players non-stop? FRU's Kaji Union will become our own assembly line.
Donald Singh
Beijing
Power to you
On behalf of the Central Division, a big vinaka vakalevu to FEA ! Hats off especially to the repair team, for all their efforts and sacrifices over the repair period.
With many adverse challenges, they finally managed to repair the damaged transmission line between Wailoa station and Suva. Power to you, for energising our nation!
Dennis Kumar
Suva.
Fijian name
I don't know why some people want be called Fijian when they are not.
How many of us Kaidia would like to stay in a Fijian village how many of us would like to have a Fijian name.
The best way to be Fijian is live like a Fijian. For me I just have to drop one letter from my first name.
Sukha Singh
Massachusetts
Safe town
During the recent floodings and havoc which affected the Western and central divisions, our friendly northerners were safe.
Maybe, God saw how they were suffering in the past with cyclone so they escaped this imminent flooding. Maybe it was a time for Western people to see how natural disasters cause unthinkable damage.
Nevertheless, may God be on their side and hope that they will rehabilitate soon.
Ravinal Prakash
Lautoka
Move on
Let us pray to almighty for a brighter future for all of us. This is the time to move on and forget the past. What ever happened maybe for some it was good, so let's move on.
Vineel Nand
Nadi
Risen Christ
NOW that the Easter weekend is behind us, Christians should not forget that we serve a risen Saviour.
He loved us so much because He not only created humanity but was willing to become one in order to redeem humanity.
He is now in heaven praying and interceding on our behalf that we will all accept the sacrifice He has done for humanity and allow Him to transform our lives into His character through His Spirit before He comes to take them home.
When we acknowledge serving a risen, living Saviour, we will always be optimistic and have hope in our hearts and life is worth living, no matter the hardships we face because He lives.
Let's march forward Fiji.
Savenaca Vaka
Nasinu
Atheism in Fiji
Richard Abel (FT 09/04), billions also believed that the earth was flat before evidence proved otherwise.
You are using the "argumentum ad populum" fallacy; If many believe so, it is so.
You have all the rights to believe in the spiritual side of things but prove that your beliefs are logically valid before telling me that I am wrong.
Savenaca Vaka (FT 09/04) thinks that God saved Fabrice Muamba. So who caused the heart attack in the first place?
Your God, in his omnipotence, would have foreseen this incident and prevented the heart attack in the first place. Why stage this drama?
Do you realise how many people close to Muamba were hurt by this incident?
I am sure you wouldn't be saying this if Mr Muamba had passed away, as in the case of Antonio Puerta, and hundred others who died on-field.
This is even more idiotic than the cover story of The Fiji Times titled the Cross theory whereby the Christian God supposedly calmed the weather for his own glory while thousands were suffering just a few hundred miles away.
Ajay Singh (FT 09/04), thanks but I do not need to be prayed for.
Alternatively, I would be glad if you sacrifice a goat for me, as a Santerian priest would do.
NICK RODRIQUEZ
Nadawa
Pagan rituals
EACH time a Christian religious festival comes along there will be some people who say it's not Christian but based on pagan rituals.
Year in and year out this is debated upon in the papers.
We have Easter and the Easter Bunny and the hot cross bun, I've heard people say that these have no significance in Christianity and I believe so too.
And then there is Christmas, I've heard people say, how come Jesus was born on the 25th of December.
Because if we have BC and AD shouldn't Jesus be born on the 1st. But according to records there is no year zero.
But I suppose the debate will go on until we pass on into the next life, world or realm or get reincarnated or whatever. Or roam the earth as a ghost.
But as each festival comes and people write about its significance, there will be someone, of the same faith, who will say something else.
And now may I say that religion has been the cause of wars and break ups in congregations.
Or is it just people who cause the problems and not religion?
And one Jim Walker wrote "People have slaughtered each other in wars, inquisitions, and political actions for centuries and still kill each other over beliefs in religions, political ideologies, and philosophies. These belief-systems, when stated as propositions, may appear mystical, and genuine to the naive, but when confronted with a testable basis from reason and experiment, they fail miserably. I maintain that faiths (types of beliefs) create more social problems than they solve and the potential dangers from them could threaten the future of humankind."
Allen Lockington
Waiyavi
Prayer power
IN response to Ivon Prasad's response to Nick Rodriquez, I believe Nick has his own views and to some extent I agree to what he has to say. I am no atheist but what I believe in is "service to mankind is service to God".
Praying alone will not help drop food on your table from the skies. This issue has given me the chance to put my views on this one person I always wanted to make an opinion about.
My sevens hero Waisale Serevi used to pray during the whole duration of play.
He used to mumble a short prayer before every kick he used to take.
I always thought, that prayer would help him score every time he kicked and I was correct most of the times.
Then I came to know about the downfall of this star and him losing everything.
I almost cried.
In the height of this flood, my very religious and serving uncle from Ba passed away.
No family members could make it to Ba. Five men from the neighbourhood had to help the family bury him instead of cremating him as his religion suggests.
There are some lessons to be learnt for all of us.
And to Mr Nick, Ivon is no one to shut you up so I'd like to hear more practical opinions from you.
Prakash Chand Votualevu
Nadi