Your Letters

Farming, driving and moving

Dear Ray,

I feel that I have to comment about your editorial in the June 02 edition of The Pump. You were kind enough to publish my previous letter to you in the March 02 edition and please forgive me for addressing the same theme but it is you who have waved the red rag at he bull.

I am not a farmer but I have lived in farming communities all my life and can remember stooks of wheat in the fields at harvest time. The farming industry has developed considerably over the last 50 years and not all the development has proved beneficial for either the farmers, the consumers or the wildlife. Lessons have been learned and knowledge has influenced practice which is now enshrined in policy. Your jibe at the EU insisting on unnecessary investigations I believe is missing the point, which surely is to ensure that across the EU as a whole, the conditions under which an activity is carried out, the safeguards which were probably developed in this country are being consistently applied. Have we not learnt anything from the catastrophe of Foot and Mouth? It is the hallmark of a conscientious society that these safeguards are built in to legislate against the minority who act irresponsibly while the conforming majority happily comply. We would be the first to complain if other nations were able to undercut our producers by short-circuiting our regulations, or that to boost production irresponsible practices were adopted.

No Ray, I am sorry but this EU Bureaucrat you mention, cannot and does not act alone and I for one am happy that at least someone is trying to ensure that we will have a countryside left to enjoy in 50 years time. Oh yes, by the way, we are full members of the EU and Tony Blair I am sure is aware of the arcane strictures of the Common Agricultural Policy and how to only way to influence its reform is to be an active leading member of the Brussels Bureaucracy.

Yours sincerely,

Cliff Gardner

Dear Ray,

Continuing the correspondence on Traffic Laws, like Ron Watts, I was aware that lorries over 7.5 tonnes gross vehicle weight were subject to the restrictions that he mentioned. However, I personally think that these speeds should be revised for two reasons. One, because they are ignored and the police are not interested at all in enforcing them. And secondly, higher limits to accord with other traffic make much more sense: they keep the traffic moving and remove long slow-moving queues of frustrated drivers. Just think, in our county with very few dual carriageway roads, driving would become a nightmare. Also, I find that most HGV drivers are considerate and pose no threat driving at these faster speeds.

There are lots of other laws that I wish would be enforced but I trust that our road legislators will amend the above law as I believe it would be common sense to do so.

Yours sincerely,

Graham Forster

Dear Mr Thompson,

May I please, through the Village Pump, say a very big thank you to the Stoke Ferry Playing Field Committee for organising the family fun day on Sunday 2nd June. We had an all-day Bar-B-Que, raffles, Tombola, children's races, cake stall, penalty shoot-out, roundabout rides, bouncy castle and bingo; and in the evening we had a disco and more bingo and line dancing.

Everyone had a brilliant day and those who did not take part missed out on an enjoyable evening and the teenagers were no trouble at all. Money was raised for a disabled girl in the village (about £300).

Thanks to everyone for a lovely day,

Patsy

Dear Ray,

I thought it was time for me to write you another letter to tell you how things are with me these days. Well, I must say, I feel I did make the right decision in moving to Downham Market. It is different to village life! But I did not realise how many things there is to get involved with. There is no need to say town life is boring; far from it.

I know the old expression that life is what you make it! Mind you, if one so desires, you can sit around and not join in anything; that can leads to a person deteriorating fairly quickly and getting old before one's time. As I have seen with a friend of mine. He has got no strength in his legs because of his old catch phrase: I Can't! Now he has got to the stage where he is helpless and would not take advice from anyone because he knew best!

I know that I do not like someone to say do this or that; but the person who says this only has my best interests at heart. If I had chosen to stay indoors and not bothered to go on the computer course, or involve myself in other activities, I would be an ill man, ready to go into an old peoples home.

I do not know if any readers have tried green tea? It is different; no milk needed as it is a Chinese herbal tea and quite tasty.

If I'm honest, yes I do miss Stoke Ferry. But having said that, I would not want to swap my town life for a village life. The only place I need to move to from here, when I'm a bit older, is either Diamond House or Ashville House. I have never been to Ashville House though I have met one of the young girls who works there. She chatted with me until I got to Bennett Street; I wouldn't mind seeing her again!

Well, that's all for this time. All being well I'll do another letter later on.

From your friend, as always,

John