Our meeting on 10 November was an enjoyable occasion having 18 members of Karori Lions join us at Marsden for an annual dinner together and to welcome our guest speaker David Shanks, New Zealand’s Chief Censor. David is a highly respected business leader with wide experience in both private and public sector including time as Chief Legal Adviser for the State Services Commission and the Ministry of Social Development. He gave us a comprehensive picture of the work of the Classifications Office which he heads and the challenging world of social media, TV, film, games, videos and written material.
As David said to us, the challenge for the Censor and his office is getting balance between individual rights and what is perceived to be wrong behaviour reflected throughout the world and in our own country.
He talked about pressures on young people, the growing amount of pornography and violence in communities, and increasing rates of suicide. Very useful handout material gave us an insight into the education messages being imparted in New Zealand around conversations we need to have going forward, showing respect, listening to concerns , learning about the perils of social media, and building patience to resolve issues affecting all ages in society.