IT'S 8.45 pm and I have turned Q&A on the ABC off.
I can't express how I feel in a few lines, only to say that having just watched Foreign Correspondent then Q&A, I am more worried than ever about the future of society than I have ever been.
This is not the forum for my concerns. I will stay with a topic I am very familiar with. Why do people consciously have babies if they want to work, but are not prepared to pay (it could never be enough) whatever somebody believes their care is worth?
I haven't heard a reasonable declaration yet, for doing so. The worst reason for why it should be free is "I go to work and end up paying it all on childcare". How much is your child worth? Of course, there are situations where care is imperative. The world is facing serious crises at present, and authorities are being so subtle so as not to "scare us". The most important message that is not being delivered, is that the previous 50-60 years of modern habitation has caused irreversible degradation to the planet, and the lifestyle that has become "the norm" for humans has been part of this outcome.
I believe caring for sick, frail, disadvantaged humans is a problem worldwide (watch Foreign Correspondent). I believe it is more important than free childcare. This situation will rival climate change. Humanity has reached a tipping point whereby now is the time to reset principles, morality, virtue and honesty to name a few.
It seems the new PM is 'having a go' at trying to persuade Australians to kick start a nationwide genuine 'look in the mirror' about how we ended up here. Suddenly the notion of "having it all" is relinquished.
I don't believe childcare for six-week-olds is the answer. In fact, in future that will be regarded as an impediment to successful bonding, sibling rivalry, and becoming a worthwhile member of the community where they live. Most of the information I hear is the importance of community, friendship and physical activity to gain a healthy, fulfilled life. It's not placing babies in childcare while parents pursue their career.
Pat Garnet, Wickham
Duplicity or ignorance?
JOHN Cooper, ('Waste of time and money', Letters, 30/8), repeats the long discredited claim by the Coalition that the "robo-debt" scheme was just a continuation of Labor's scheme.
Labor's scheme was fundamentally different in that once the data matching identified a potential debtor, the case was audited by a human being. Human intervention was the critical difference between the two schemes. Under the relevant law a debt had to be proven before a repayment could be claimed.
The Coalition illegally demanded a payment without having proved a debt was owing and became aware that what was being done was illegal in the first half of 2017, yet continued with the scheme until 2019. This disgraceful and costly maladministration is definitely worthy of further rigorous investigation.
Reg Howes, Valentine
Fuel for thought on event
SUPERCARS' use of E85 fuel hardly makes the event environmentally responsible. Even Supercars claims it only cuts their emissions by 50 per cent.
There are many other environmental concerns about the event including: the re-laying large parts of the track before every event, the CO2 emissions from all of the truck movements in the bump-in and bump-out period, the additional emissions caused by long traffic delays as residents and visitors try to access the East End during the bump-in and bump-out period, the tyre rubber shed from the tyres that disintegrate over the three days of racing (much of which ends up in the ocean), the generators used in the precinct which run for weeks and emit noise and fumes 24 hours a day, the thousands of plastic cable ties left littering the precinct months after the event has moved on, the plastic containers, straws and cups dumped and left on site, and the loss of more than 200 trees and much more shrubbery.
Council talks about sustainability and commitment to reduce its environmental impact. Backing this event says otherwise. We would find out if it is sustainable and value for all the money it costs the ratepayers if the council ever does an independent cost benefit analysis. Don't hold your breath waiting for one because I believe council knows what the outcome of such an analysis would be.
John Hudson, Newcastle East
Availability, affordability crucial
I FIND it amusing that a very well qualified engineer/administrator has raised some serious issues concerning the Kurri Kurri power plant project, sacrificing his position for doing so, and a radio announcer turned politician has assured us that it will go ahead and operate as planned, ("Minister says Kurri peaker will proceed", Herald 31/8).
Not sure the politician is across the full details. If the 660-megawatt plant is to start up using diesel, more than six million litres of fuel will be required to generate that power over a 24-hour period. Based on 4 litres of diesel producing 1 Kwh power, how will this be supplied to the site? That is a lot of trucks or big pumps or onsite storage. Where is this fuel coming from? We are also told that the plant will eventually be fired on gas from a pipeline from West Wallsend to Kurri. Has any work started on this?
Then sometime in the far distant future; hydrogen.The hydrogen, we are told ,will be supplied by a giant electrolyser on Kooragang with power supplied from Hunter renewable energy zone. Of course it will, what could possibly go wrong. One group, we are told, will build a one gigawatt hydrogen producing system. But shutting Liddell and Eraring down takes over four gigawatts out of the system. There is a shortfall somewhere. I think I would put more faith in the engineer/administrator than the radio announcer/politician. Where our power comes from is irrelevant, but it must be available and affordable.
Raymond Stewart, Charlestown
Australia's letting it slip away
I RECKON the way the country is heading right now could be a return to the past when Bob Hawke was running the ACTU, when inflation was out of control, caused by rising wages and unaffordable working conditions.
Home loan interest rates were running at 15 per cent and business overdraft around 24 per cent. Many employers were already planning to move offshore, as happened in the following decade.
Back then it was the resources industry, encouraged by the Labor government, with Bob Hawke now the new prime minister, that helped recovery and economic stability, but only after Paul Keating, Hawke's treasurer, gave us the recession he said we had to have.
I believe any recession in today's global climate, without the resources sector help, will see no recovery with spiralling government debt.
I foresee Australia will be seen as the country which had everything but common sense, which shot itself in the foot trying to set an example for the world to follow, but achieved nothing by world recognition, now a third world country with no hope of a return to prosperity.
Carl Stevenson, Dora Creek
SHORT TAKES
I HOPE these new electric bikes and scooters for hire, ('Scooters ready to roll', Herald 31/8), do not end up like abandoned supermarket shopping trolleys that litter the streets. Two bikes have sat there abandoned for almost a week opposite my house. One wonders if they are ever going to be picked up and recharged.
John Scott, Kahibah
THOSE diligent letters contributors who've spent hours trawling through the internet to find flaws in the transition to electric vehicles ought to combine their efforts and forward their data to the EV manufacturers. Virtually every vehicle manufacturer on the planet is currently investing billions in the design and manufacture of EVs and abandoning any further development requiring fossil fuels. Before they go too far, these manufacturers and their shareholders urgently need to be informed of the error of their ways as they clearly haven't thought it through.
Rick Frost, Mallabula
I'LL take a wild guess that those who dwell in their homes are less concerned by house values taking a dive and actually hope that any loss of monetary value will be reflected in their rates, unlikely. Investors on the other hand are nervous, especially the "mum and pop" holding companies. Not to worry, the Hunter renters are covering their backsides. As long as dwellings are considered merely property to invest in rather than a human necessity the public will be held ransom by the greed of the wealthy.
Peter Ronne, Woodberry
AT 6am on Thursday, September 1, the AEMO website recorded power supply for the eastern states as follows: NSW - 94 per cent black coal and gas (coal supply at 93 per cent, wind 0.06 per cent), Queensland - 92 per cent black coal and gas (coal supply at 83 per cent, wind 0.03 per cent), Victoria - 78 per cent brown coal and gas (coal supply at 70 per cent, wind 0.07 per cent). There was no battery supply for any of these states. Many coal-fired power stations are due to be closed in the next few years to meet NetZero dreams. Pray for windy mornings and/ or a miraculously rapid supply of adequate battery storage. Or cold showers, anyone?
Andrew Williams, Toronto
ROLAND Inman, (Short Takes, 29/8), I'd definitely take part of that bet. It certainly seems that anytime a politician faces any sort of official inquiry into corruption or other misdeeds, they suffer from a complete lack of memory on almost everything they're quizzed about. Gladys Berejiklian is a prime example of this, as she seemed to suffer memory loss during her ICAC hearing.
Adz Carter, Newcastle
SCHOOLS such as Knox Grammar receive huge taxpayer dollars, yet are classed as independent. Could somebody put me straight?
David Davies, Blackalls Park
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