IN the mid 1970s the ALP rejected the then DMR (Dept of main roads) and City Engineers proposal to build this bypass as a motorway through Blackbutt Reserve. This decision had widespread environmental and community support.
It has only taken 50 years to find an alternative route that, surprisingly, has been there all this time.
Am I being paranoid by suspecting that Newcastle has been punished for 50 years for daring to reject a powerful state department's proposal?
Allan Morris, Cooks Hill
It's been a long road to repair our potholes
THE people of Karuah have had enough. The state of Tarean Road leading into Karuah is getting to the stage that it is dangerous. Please stop the pothole patching, as this is only adding to the humps and hollows in this road.
Tarean Road needs to be completely redone. Recently work was carried out on Tarean Road further south and most of us here could not understand why, when the part of Tarean road between the sawmill and the new housing estate was far worse.
Come on, council, get up here and have a good look at what is a disgraceful and dangerous road.
We have put up with this situation for many, many years and believe as ratepayers we should be ahead in the queue to get the road fixed.
John Morgan, Karuah
Why should we pay for peaks?
REGARDING the letter by Julie Smyth ("Stinging solar panel owners doesn't add up", Letters, 25/5), why are not the baseload power suppliers slugged for inflexibility, rather than mum and dad solar panel owners for oversupply?
I have a plot in Haystacks Solar Garden, giving me credit on my electricity bill despite my being a private renter. I can take my solar cells with me, should I move. I will be caught up in this fiasco also. Not appreciated.
Where is the economic imperative to soak up excess with demand side management? Surely supermarket chains would love to run their air conditioners at peak solar times? Pricing signal needed here.
Maybe happy hour charging in their complexes, for electric vehicles? I suspect that both of these demand sources are being utilised to soak up the excess of supply in off-peak, and nighttime, baseload over-generation.
It's cheaper then, but why?
By the way, mandating that data farms only deal with bitcoin / crypto currencies during peak periods of solar power supply might be a step in bringing these often Ponzi-scheme innovations into the social fold.
Andrew Spannenberg, Mayfield
Go beyond Dutton, Albo sledges
I HAVE a dream. It is a simple dream. It is not about great change. It is about saving energy, saving time, and offering opportunity.
My dream is of a Newcastle Herald letters page bereft of opinions that either Mr Albanese or Mr Dutton is "obviously on the way out" or "clearly on the nose with all Australians."
No. In fact, after the ridiculous years of leader turnover through a revolving door, the leaders of the federal government and Opposition are safely entrenched in their positions.
Whatever some letter writers would like you to believe, there is no discernible speculation within the relevant parties to dump these leaders.
Those writers can save their time and energy on these opinions and think up something they haven't already said dozens of times. Imagine the acres of space freed up on the letters page over the coming year which could be given to genuinely interesting and useful ideas and commentary.
Michael Jameson, New Lambton
Weapons blame game is no help
GREENS candidate Bryce Ham ("Aussie role in weapon supply", Letters, 23/5), alleges Australia is exporting military equipment to Israel based on a claim by David Shoebridge (a fellow Green).
Ham's logic goes like this: Australian manufacturers produce components exported to companies in countries like South Korea and the US which are used to make arms which are exported to Israel.
Then via a sleight of hand argument Mr Ham then goes on to propose that this is evidence of Australia exporting arms to Israel.
This is patently ridiculous, and here's why: Australian firms have a contractual arrangement with firms in South Korea and the US to supply parts.
That contractual arrangement would not include which country those parts were sold on to as part of an assembled product.
These products would then almost certainly be sold to many countries, not just Israel.
Is Mr Ham seriously suggesting that Australian exporters demand that their parts be only used in products just for Israel, that a commercial contract would include a clause stating which countries the parts in products could not be exported to?
This defies commercial reality, legal obligations and would be seen by the exporting country as a challenge to their national sovereignty.
He is advocating that parts manufacturers in Australia either voluntarily refuse to export their products, or the government bans them from doing so.
The result would be that the overseas manufacturers would source their parts from elsewhere, resulting almost certainly in job losses or worse for the Australian exporters.
This is a ludicrous proposition. It would be like saying that if Australia exported wheat or cotton to a country, and that country then used that wheat to make army rations and the cotton to make clothing for the Israeli armed forces, then somehow this would be Australia exporting military assistance to Israel.
The fact is Australia has not exported military equipment to Israel for years. The October 7 2023 Hamas raid on Israel, and the Israeli response since, has created a holocaust of massive proportions with, at this stage, no solution in sight. Grandstanding in the newspaper based on shoddy claims does nothing to ease the pain and suffering.
Barney Langford, Whitebridge
What does affordable truly mean
Just what is affordable housing and how much does it cost? The average price of a new house in the Newcastle area is close to $800,000 - $900,000 or even more. So is affordable housing the average price, half price or whatever? No one ever puts a price on affordable housing.
Graeme Bennett, Warners Bay
Whack nuclear reactor in space
I HAVE a solution for your nuclear power plant positioning and waste. We should put a fusion reactor in space and transmit the power via infrared.
The added benefit is that everybody gets a turn, as the earth is ball shaped, despite what some people say.
It's almost as though somebody designed it to be the perfect energy delivery system. My pot plants agree.
David Turner, Newcastle
Energy plan is all over the place
THe Labor party says no to nuclear energy yet we have nuclear submarines on order. I know the Libs initially ordered the subs but Labor did nothing to end the sale. I think the government is unclear as to which way to jump.
All cars will be electric in the future, using electricity produced by coal fired power stations.
Labor says we will have renewable clean energy yet we hear that a power station has had its end of life extended to 2027 to supply power to keep the lights on.
I only hope the nuclear power station does not end up in the Hunter area. Just our luck to win a lottery we don't want.
