The new move to ban smokers from any al fresco outdoor dining and drinking areas has been criticised by some in the Tauranga hospitality scene as a step too far. But is it really?

Being sent to prison deprives an offender of their liberty. What else it should deprive them of is not so black and white, writes Katie Holland.

Marcel Currin writes: Incredible news, everyone. I am heir to a business tycoon who died in 2008 along with his family in Myanmar. Yea, right.

The issues caused by synthetic cannabis haven't gone away since the ban on psychoactive drugs, writes Amy Wiggins.

The freak shows of old which made these overeaters objects of fun and entertainment didn't die out in the Victorian age, writes Annemarie Quill.

Once again shows how many Tauranga residents value arts and culture, says Amy Wiggins.

There needs to be a dining and fashion focus for Tauranga city. That's the way to go. Downtown needs to have a unique selling point, writes Amy Wiggins.

It is the hardest thing to maintain your composure when someone you are speaking to takes an abrasive turn, writes Marcel Currin.

Things have changed since Einstein's day. We not only have to worry about the universe, but something equally unfathomable - the Twitter-verse, writes Annemarie Quill.

The Government's decision to tighten rental property requirements is likely to be welcome news for Tauranga's rental population.

The dark humour does the rounds. We read the same jokes again and again but they still make us smile. They express a shared understanding, writes Annemarie Quill.