I HAD the opportunity to visit the Van Gogh Alive display at Foreshore Park on Saturday morning with my son and daughter-in-law.
It was a superb display. There were screens and projectors everywhere in the marquee, with written explanations of Van Gogh's tragic and short life. Also displays of his prolific body of work in the 10 short years of his productive life. He produced some 2100 works. Along with the projection of his work on screens, there were selected classical pieces to accompany the display. The whole exhibition was very impressive. I can thoroughly recommend a visit.
I visited the city again after lunch to check the surf (such as it was). The city was buzzing with people. As part of the New Annual Festival, there were hundreds upon hundreds of people in the streets. There were men in their alpine hats and lederhosen and women dressed in their dirndls. Not only were the adults dressed up, but teenagers and children too.
There were lots of people gathered at The Station, in the streets and at Civic Park. It was wonderful to see. No one can say the city is dead.
Les Field, Wickham
Game day missed the mark
I ARRIVED at the game an hour early to find out there were no lead-up games to the Northern NSW men's grand final. It took us 15 minutes to get in as they wouldn't accept card or cash - I had to pay for the ticket online and wait for the confirmation email. We eventually managed entry.
My colleagues went to buy a beer and it was warm. They also indicated there was hardly any choice in food. By this time a line had formed and unfortunately many people missed the start due to slow entry.
My friends went for a second drink, however the line was so long they decided against it. I have been involved in our beautiful game for decades, however I believe Northern NSW Football made what was supposed to be an enjoyable day a nightmare.
Steve Dorman, Hamilton South
Action against cane toads
IF these pests are juvenile, it shouts that there is a breeding community here. As a qualified pest control technician, this is shouting that they are here and people need to take action now. Don't worry about the do-gooders - eradicate these vermin now with any means available; sticks, golf clubs, freezer, salt etc.
If the people who worry about the welfare of this vermin take objection to the methods of eradication, put all the toads in their yards and watch the native animals perish! Our native animals south of Brisbane have no, and I mean no, idea what this vermin can do. If I find any in my yard, I will use any means to finalise these toads - humane or not.
Wayne Lynch, Medowie
Declaration has been debunked
YOU just have to love man-made climate change deniers like Peter Dolan and Peter Devey, perhaps it is the 'Peter Principle': look it up.
The Peters continue apace with their flat Earth thinking that man-made climate change is a fiction and that they are standing out like a beacon in the night with the only true insight. However, Mr Devey's most recent claim that there is no scientific evidence that CO2 emissions are causing catastrophic climate change is a step too far. Why the word catastrophic is used is unclear but perhaps it is a safety valve.
There is a mountain of scientific evidence that CO2 emissions are a major cause of climate change. Carbon dioxide absorbs energy at a variety of wavelengths between 2000 and 15,000 nanometers - a range that overlaps with that of infrared energy. As CO2 soaks up this infrared energy, it vibrates and re-emits the infrared energy back in all directions. About half of that energy goes out into space and half returns to Earth as heat, contributing to the Greenhouse Effect. Scientific enough? While the sun has played a role in past climate changes, the evidence shows that current warming cannot be explained by the sun (credit NASA and Columbia University). Finally, the two Peters would be well advised to cease using the World Climate Declaration as a bible. The WCD has been debunked by many climate scientists and is the brainchild of CLINTEL, a Dutch fossil fuel lobby.
Mike Sargent, Cootamundra
Challenging times
PETER Dolan (Letters, 29/9) has another novel suggestion - critiquing the qualifications of those who make scientific claims is "playing the man and not the ball". A handy formula when you're scratching around for evidence to support a position, but apparently not one to get in the way of a gratuitous sneer at Adam Bandt. Meanwhile, Peter Devey (Letters, 29/9) audaciously claims there is "no scientific evidence, published anywhere" that CO2 emissions from human activity are causing catastrophic climate change. "None", he says.
The word "catastrophic" is disingenuous because it attempts to reframe what the credible scientific community is arguing. It is not saying, as I suspect Mr Devey well knows, that the evidence tells us climate impacts are already catastrophic. It is saying the evidence shows the impacts are now very real and unless emissions are drastically reduced, those impacts will reach dangerous levels.
As both these correspondents likely realise, it's impossible to adequately summarise this evidence in a single letter. But if the Herald gave me a few pages, I'd volunteer to list a sample of relevant scientific studies, easily accessed from organisations such as NASA, the World Meteorological Organisation, CSIRO, British Antarctic Survey, and dozens of universities. Mr Devey might consider these "jumped-up" institutions, but they're the best we've got.
Then there are the 13 chapters of the IPCC's Working Group I 2021 report entitled "The Physical Science Basis". This provides a comprehensive survey of the current physical science evidence. I've at least tried to digest some of that report. Have Mr Dolan and Mr Devey?
More to the point, would it matter if they had? It seems we've reached the Trumpian stage where evidence and facts are either treated by antagonists as "fake news", or used as fodder to argue the opposite. Even so, your correspondents can't camouflage their studied avoidance of my challenge - to describe, as a hypothetical exercise, the evidence that would be sufficient to sway their opinion. They both vocally assert the alleged deficiencies of current science and claim allegiance to scientific rigour, so they should be able and willing to do this quite readily. A matter for them. However, if they won't, it's perfectly reasonable to infer their attitudes are motivated by something other than science. Mr Dolan in fact lets that cat at least partially out of its bag when he suggests that to even think we can influence Earth's climate is "hubris". No doubt leftist at that. Presumably we should instead do what humility dictates - trust in divine providence, keep burning billions of tons of fossil fuels, and hope for the best. Thanks, but no thanks.
Michael Hinchey, New Lambton
SHORT TAKES
NOTE to AOB and his players: see how it's done, with heart and effort.
Kevin Miller, Windale
CONGRATULATIONS Knights, no damsels in distress here. Great result girls. I hope City of Newcastle organises a victory parade for you as I'm sure the public would be happy to show their appreciation for your wonderful efforts. If it's good enough for the boys, it's good enough for the girls.
Bill Slicer Tighes Hill
I'M an Optus customer and I must say I'm disappointed but not surprised. It's about time we tightened regulations on protecting people's personal information. I guess I'll soon find out if someone wants to steal my identity and access my assets but in the meantime can I get a discount on my monthly phone bill? Seems fair doesn't it?
Odessa Kout, Mayfield
LIKE Barry Swan (Letters, 1/10), I was appalled by Pauline Hanson's suggestion that Mehreen Faruqi "go back to Pakistan". Having spent considerable time in Pakistan, I have met many lovely people there and always felt welcome. Under no circumstances do they deserve to have a Greens Senator inflicted upon them.
Scott Hillard, New Lambton
THE federal government is promising us a green future by jumbling facts with fantasy and delusion, telling us we are saving the world from catastrophic disaster. But the truth is one of dishonesty in declaring renewable energy reduces domestic energy prices and creates thousands of jobs when in fact it does the opposite. It is baffling how politicians switch off the analytical side of their brain and descend into the ideological realms of fantasy.
John Cooper, Charlestown
NEWCASTLE council may not accept advertising from fossil fuel companies ('Fossil fuel ad ban blocked', Herald, 29/9), but Supercars certainly does when they use our heritage streets and parks as billboards for their own sponsors. Over the three events so far, these have included coal and petroleum products, not to mention the gas guzzling race itself. Perhaps councillors just want to protect the millions of dollars they have invested in this event, but it's not a good look for a city wanting to be seen as a leader in the transition away from fossil fuels.
Christine Everingham, Newcastle East
BRIAN Measday ('Face reality of fossil fuels', Letters, 28/9), if Australia was to stop exporting fossil fuels tomorrow it would not make one iota of difference to the world's environment, as those using those products would simply get them elsewhere. It would however make it even more difficult for our government to continue to fund the very generous welfare payments that so many in this country take for granted and which the current government, despite our dire financial position, continues to increase.
