It is great to see new schools being announced in Chisholm and Medowie, but one wonders when /if Cameron Park will ever get a primary school, or will students continue to be bussed to Edgeworth?
How is it that Pauline Hanson's policies are receiving much less scrutiny from the media? Her real policies are the record of what she has already voted on in the federal parliament if you ask me.
Ms Hanson does not support policies that would help those with low incomes or workers or pensioners. She is getting support from Liberal and Nationals voters. She is not a fan of public ownership and funding of essential services. Her website says she will reduce the size of government and pay down debt, the type of policies that have always meant reduced funding for public services, attacks on wages and living standards for workers and those on welfare.
It's an undeniable fact that neither the LNP or Labor governments have done much over the years to build houses and improve under-funded public services in line with the increasing demands of an older population. Aged care is a striking example. The two major parties have also sold off thousands of public housing dwellings, privatising public land while giving handouts to developers.
That said, Ms Hanson's policies are no solution to the everyday concerns of workers. When she scapegoats migrants she is not referring to any of the 1.1 million UK-born people living in Australia who make up 'the largest overseas-born demographic in the country', 4.2 per cent of the total population and 13.4 per cent of all overseas-born residents according to the Department of Home Affairs. Many are permanent residents but not yet Australian citizens.
The only thing I have in common with Pauline Hanson is at least one English grandparent and some Irish ancestry. To me, One Nation policies are racist scapegoating of minorities. It is cowardly and reprehensible. The media's lack of serious scrutiny on One Nation's policies and the federal Labor government's mild criticism of them is not cutting through. Ms Hanson's policies are a pathetic imitation of Trump-style politics. Are we going to see racial profiling in ICE-like raids, attacks on individuals and communities by far-right thugs under a possible One Nation regime?
I hear you, Greg Hunt ("Keep Industrial Drive as a nod", Letters, 12/6). Proudly, I had six family members who worked at Stewarts & Lloyds and BHP from the 1930s to the 1970s, plus a great-grandfather who died from injuries sustained working at The Dyke. To maintain the name Industrial Drive, much more than a nod is needed.
Let's think big in valuing and displaying our industrial past then. The Carrington Pump House and surrounds could be developed into a museum and interactive park for our industrial heritage. Add a ferry operating to and from Newcastle Quay to The Pump House, and ferry tours of our working harbour. Design an industrial trail of past sites, plus make Delprat's Cottage and The Muster Point sculpture visible and open.
Industrial heritage tourism is a global travel experience. Such a development would attract more enthusiasts to our city and region. If we keep the name Industrial Drive, let's show those using the road its origins with bold, creative ideas, as well as developing the northern side of the harbour.
It would be interesting to see how many Australians actually have any idea about the Australian system of government. I'm sure a lot have no idea.
Australia is not a republic, and we do not elect a president. We are governed under the Westminster system. I'm sure we should be thinking about this when we consider the logistics of One Nation as a stable, cohesive government. There are 178 federal electorates in Australia. That means that one nation would have to get someone to represent these electorates. What a nightmare when you take into account that the people who are going to vote for One Nation have multiple diverse ideas and opinions. These range from racism, xenophobic white-supremacy thinkers like neo-Nazis, sovereign citizen believers, people who believe money grows on trees, right through to the likes of Gina you-know-who, who apparently wants to spend money on Americans. Imagine this bunch trying to form a cohesive government. Wake up, Australia, we need to be thinking rationally.
It is clear we are in a climate crisis and should no longer be approving new coal and gas mines ("Coal poses a human rights risk", Letters, 3/6) but there is another reading of the Midcoast Council's 16 applications for disaster funding in just seven years.
Our systems need to change to protect communities dealing with, and preparing for, more inevitable climate damage. Constantly reacting, and applying for funds in the aftermath of yet another disaster cannot be the best way forward.
Byron Shire council has just joined the Bass Coast Shire Council and others in passing a motion to support a federal fossil fuel exports levy to fund a Climate Compensation Fund.
It is time to look after our communities, not the greenwashing fossil fuel industries driving the changes in the climate.
I often read in the media that we have free medical services, free pensions, free medicines, free car registrations. They are not free; You have paid for them with over 40 years of taxes on your wages and are still paying. Iron ore royalties in WA alone are $10 billion a year. Coal royalties in NSW are $2.95 billion and up to $15 billion in Queensland. Some political parties and protest groups want to get rid of coal and iron ore. Then you will have to pay more tax or no longer have "free" services. Nothing is ever free.
I thank Mac Maguire for his input that keeps the wind in the sail for One Nation. That I would call free publicity, questioning the need to watch Sky News. Most One Nation supporters truly appreciate Sky News, which has become so popular with viewers that commercial advertising is becoming a pain in the butt ("Variety of views are welcome", Letters, 17/6). So please, don't watch Sky News, there must be other media platforms that actually tell the truth.
Gina Rinehart has invested $1.4 billion into Elon Musk's space program. Imagine how useful that would be to Australians' poorest children's education.
I had to have a second look at the calendar this morning. I thought it was April 1 when a poll found Pauline Hanson was the preferred prime minister. Has to be an April Fool's joke, I said. Surely voters cannot be that dumb.
