Other formats

    Adobe Portable Document Format file (facsimile images)   TEI XML file   ePub eBook file  

Connect

    mail icontwitter iconBlogspot iconrss icon

Salient. Victoria University Student Newspaper. Volume 36, Number 1. 28th February 1973

Letters

page 4

Letters

Drawing of Editorial 40 inch pole

An Open Letter to the Chief Justice Sir Richard Wild:

Dear Sir,

Recently while pursuing a matter of private research, I found myself drifting in the direction of the Supreme Court building in Brandon Street. My purpose was to obtain a copy of a Court of Appeal judgement on a matter of both personal and professional interest. I broached the subject with the desk clerk, who looked very doubtful and summoned his superior, a broad and impassive young man, who politely informed me that such a request was impossible. The judgement, he said, was confidential, the property of the judge. I would have to write to him for permission. Would the case be published in the Law Reports? No; he didn't think it would. Thank you sit.

Your Honour I do not wish to question the New Zealand Justice system, or assail the ranks of officialdom. Not lightly would I unfurl the banner of change, or raise my voice in reforming zeal. Bureaucrats can be as possessive as anyone else: it is not to question their privileges—even their minor ones — that I write this letter. Who would seriously seek to create unemployment?

Nor do I mind the ritual that precedes the process in appeal cases. To the outsider it may seem wasteful but you and I see the importance. Could anyone really want to reduce the appearance of N.Z. Justice in the eyes of the public?; to make the lawyers feel equal to the judges?; to demistify the proceedings in the eyes of the appellant? No; appearances are important; the myth is vital. Silver wigs cover many a shaven head, while scholarly glasses hide the gleam of satisfaction. It's all necessary.

Neither can I bring myself to criticise any particular judgement, that I know. It is with dedication sir that you have served, not only in the protection of property, but in the maintenance of decorum, and the eradication of deviancy. With admirable zeal you have meted justice to offenders, caring little for their fate, or for those minor rules of law enforcement and legal procedure that work only to protect the criminal. Your determination sir is a model to us.

What actually concerns me, sir, is a minor point, against which I raise my voice not in strident demand, but in humble plea. The problem is the unavailability of Supreme Court Judgements to the public. When Common Law frequently creates offences that did not previously exist, it seems to me to be almost cruel to deny knowledge of them to potential offenders. Ignorance is no excuse for lawlessness, as we all know, but if only we knew what is a crime and what is not we might be less likely to commit them. Rising crime figures are of course as useful to lawyers and judges as they are to statisticians, and I don't want to undermine your trade, which, under you sir, has grown so large. All I ask is that appeal judgements be made available to the public. I would hasten to suggest that in order to compensate for any loss you might fear, these could be sold at a slight profit. Please your honour consider my humble request in the light of what it could do for the public. Indeed, I am not unaware of the price of my proposal. The effects of a loss of power on minor officialdom would be catastrophic. Swarms of civil servants would be loosed onto the streets, their egos made redundant. Divorces, suicides, and mental breakdowns would greatly increase. Worst of all, the legal trade would [unclear: los] business. However the economic loss could be absorbed by the public health institutions, and thus national employment and economic turnover could be maintained.

Drawing of tit for tat

Well Sir Richard, do you fancy your self in a [unclear: whie] coat? [unclear: I] insult you by offering [unclear: ra] ponsibilities. People's [unclear: li] be in your care. And [unclear: y which] your former associates [unclear: rently] continue your old [unclear: relat] Richard, consider this [unclear: nes] mine. Above all you could bring your old skills to bear on the mental hospitals, introducing a long overdue discipline.

Yours etc.

Eric Frykberg

Where are the Weathermen?

Sir,

The Tour looms large over the heads of enrolling students as the national apocalypse approaches. No choice can now be made. The organisational and emotional wheels of pro and anti-tour groups have started turning and will not stop or change direction until the final climax or anticlimax. The tour will be decisive for contact with South Africa and its final end will therefore be of greater significance than the means used to get there. While the conflicts will affect New Zealand, only the cancelling will affect South Africa.

By stopping the tour we aid South Africa's road to majority rule but will create an apartheid-like division in New Zealand. The sooner the tour is stopped the more chance for harmony and peaceful coexistence in this country. The revolutionaries will prosper if the tour comes and too many revolutions are material in process and solely material in effect. The material culture is for the technocrats. True revolution is non-violent and non-material.

Which all brings me anyway to the conclusion that any way of stopping the tour before it comes, before the thinking stops and the bloodlust seeps in, is the right way. Action must take the form of a strong, powerful threat that will destroy any hope of the tour's feasibility. It is not hard in a free country to take action now to forestall wholesale cremation later. Blow up the right girder (however minor it seems) and the whole bridge will lose its support.

Bruce Robinson

Marijuana .... The New National Sport.

Dear Sir,

Permit me to use your columns to make the following observations. I hope they will draw some critical comments as they are very much my own ideas, and past experience has shown me that original thought commonly benefits greatly from the scrutiny of others.

Over the last twelve months it has struck me that not only is the smoking and eating of cannabis becoming a much more widespread and frequent event, but also the number of occasions on which users and non-users talk about this drug and others is phenomenal. Further, I have noticed how once this topic is raised it is difficult, even for an experienced conversation-tilter such as myself, to get people to talk of other things.

My first reaction was to think all this was the result of novelty. But no, I have observed several people over periods of time recounting the same experiences and expounding the same cannabinol thoughts again and again and again. On all but a few of these occasions the ravers were mostly or completely un-stoned.

The other probable explanation is that they find the topic interesting. I would agree. This is the most likely answer. But on thinking of similar much-talked-about-phenomena, the only one I could seriously consider, at least so far as New Zealand kulture is concerned, is rugby football.

Once this analogy entered my mind it was no mere feat of courage to continue to entertain it, let alone publish it in this way. For surely, no red-blooded (as from getting kicked when down on the paddock floor) New Zealander will appreciate "hippies" [unclear: be] Contrariwise, no head [unclear: esting] that shit is [unclear: ne] for the rugby he/she [unclear: be] at through childhood. [unclear: il] repercussions must [unclear: or] social truth. And so [unclear: pars are am].

Reading my papers and watching my TV has informed me of an accusation levelled at rugbyites during this time of national (almost national identity, haha; I refer, of course, to the tour) crisis. Some would have us believe that a number of rugby enthusiasts hold their sport to be the highest principle, the greatest "goal" (haha) in life. I am very tempted to agree. Now this is where the analogy extends itself. Amongst marijuana users there is also a certain number who appear to place shit above all other things; love, peace, justice, sex, property, ambition, others etc. etc. all take second place by at least a length to marijuana and suchlike. These users show a selfishness and lack of concern and responsibility comparable only to Jack Sullivan, and possibly Richard Milhouse Nixon—but that's another analogy.

Well, there you have it. Please let me know what holes you find in it or if you think it has any merit.

Yours most faithfully

Graeme Billey

PS. The "Sunday Times" refused to print this letter.

Handbook Sour Grapes

The Editor Salient

This year, many active university clubs have been excluded from the Orientation Handbook, such as the Ecology Action group the University Feminists and the Young Socialists. Clubs were not informed of the deadlines for submissions to the Handbook, as has previously happened. There has been considerable confusion and disorganisation during the production of the Handbook. The Publications Officer, in response to inquiries about the deadlines, gave dates which were far later than the actual deadlines. This has effectively removed from many campus groups the opportunity to publicise themselves in a Student Union publication which should be open to all groups, whatever their views.

The quality of the Handbook leaves much to be desired. For example, the cover depicts a fist smashing rugby players. Surely the Student Union policy is to oppose apartheid and does not extend to support violent disruption of rugby matches?

Some of the articles in the Handbook are of little informative value to new students. For example, the contribution of the Labour Club makes no mention of activities of the group and, in fact, tells students with any inquiries to ring Keith, who is not a member of the Labour Club but is the editor of "Socialist Action", a newspaper which is distributed at university by the Young Socialists. Apparently this means that members of the Labour Club have no perspective for any activities during the year. And yet they have been given space in the Handbook while clubs which are going to be involved in university life, are excluded!

Jill Harvey

Secretary, Wgton Young Socialists

Herr Philip's Morning Walk

Sir,

Those wishing to abuse or throw stones at the South African Consul, Herr Philips, may do so any morning between 9.15 and 9.30 when he limps from his house in Barnard street, down Park Road to his office in Molesworth St., (weather permitting). Several other old men smoke pipes and use a walking stick on this run so make sure you trip up the right bloke.

Wadestown Correspondent

Rigmarolement

Sir,

When will somebody in the university administration use their god-given brains and finally come up with something that will simplify the whole rigmarole of enrolling? After having gone through the process for the third time (each year taking longer than the year before) I can't help feeling that there must be an easier way to complete all the pettifogging procedures. Firstly it seems incredible that it is necessary to waste two weeks to complete the enrolment of all the students. No doubt the official argument is that it takes time for all the staff to discuss the courses with the students but that in itself raises the question whether it is necessary to send a lot of students tramping ail around the varsity as if on a bloody jungle safari?

Frankly, when a guy has to see people in the English, History, Religious Studies Depts., then gets shunted over to the Registrar's office and then back to the Union to pay his fees and be accosted by over-zealous chaplains, account seeking bank clerks, and subscription sponging Socialist Action freaks, isn't it time for a change?

Couldn't the whole business take place in the Lecture Block, instead of people having to make a journey to the Union building to complete the farce? And if it is necessary to see a staff member, then why not put them in one place and, for Christ's sake, have more than one member for each department so that all those time-wasting queues could be eliminated!

No doubt sonic mumble fuck wit in Robert Stout (or some other bureaucratic hell hole) will say that the whole process is as streamlined as possible. In that case he should go through the whole chaotic cockup himself then he might realise what a complete and utter waste of time half of it is.

Robert Fenton.

Drawing of a man sitting on books

Hopeful

The Editor Salient

It is very pleasing to read the article by the Salient editors in this year's Orientation Handbook. I would like to congratulate the editors on their decision to follow the principles established by the first "Salient" editor—that is, the signing of all articles written by the editors. Gone are the days of anonymous 'faction lines'! Maximum involvement from all students in the writing and running of the paper and the expression of varying viewpoints in the paper during the year will be encouraged. This is how the paper should be run, of course. Use of the paper should be open to all groups equally, irrespective of their views.

Terry Marshall,

Young Socialists.

We thank the Young Socialists for telling us how the paper should he run, of course. However, they infer too much from our Handbook article. While we certainly intend to sign editorials and as many news and feature items as is possible, we do not necessarily intend to sign columns, as we will not be writing all of them ourselves. We will, of course, take responsibility for the opinions expressed therein. Finally, we have reason to believe that the signature on the letter from the Y.S. was signed by someone other than Terry Marshall, using his name.

— Eds.

page 5

Handbook Queried

This letter is a personal statement by a member of the staff at Whitcombe & Tombs and should not be interpreted as a policy statement by the firm.

The Editor,

I was interested to read the article entitled "Books" in the Student Handbook. If nothing else it made entertaining reading for a couple of minutes. However such a poorly researched article begs for a reply.

Does the writer seriously consider the coverage limited, or would he like us to carry a copy of every book in print? After all, the U.K. alone publishes 3 3,000 new books a year. It should also be recognised that Whitcombes is a general bookshop with books covering all subjects. With branches throughout New Zealand we can get almost any book as quickly as the post office will allow.

As for having relevant textbooks, might I suggest that before the writer makes such statements, he should do two things.

First, at least try walking up the stairs to the first floor, other students have and seem entirely satisfied with the relevance of our textbooks.

Second, try thinking why some books are not there. Students are entitled to have the books when they need them, but we need to know what these books are. The Student Executive could help by urging the departments to prepare book lists early.

As for the final remarks about ordering, I can only assume this is a fill-in to end the line at the edge of the page. What bookseller could survive with such an ordering policy!! Many students seem very happy with our ordering system which operates as efficiently as any such indent system. Problems are of course bound to occur as a result of difficulties at the suppliers end.

If anyone wishes to discuss this matter further, please contact me at Whitcombes, Phone 41-080, ext. 89.

Yours sincerely,

Chris France