Invasive weed threatens Belconnen ovals – who cares?
Invasive capeweed… “Unless action is taken now, in five or six years most of these ovals will be useless to any sports in the Belconnen area.” Photo: Weedforce.com.au
“There are some ovals in the Belconnen area that are surrounded by capeweed and in places the weed is now growing on the oval,” writes reader RON ROBERTSON, of Scullin.
Re Michael Moore’s column “Rabbits to budgets… what’s Labor’s problem?” (CN October 15) – swap rabbits for the invasive capeweed and you will see another problem for this local government.
There are some ovals in the Belconnen area that are surrounded by capeweed and in places the weed is now growing on the oval.
I estimate that, unless action is taken now, in five or six years most of these ovals will be useless to any sports in the Belconnen area. I don’t know what the situation is on the southside.
A look around any blocks of land that this government is responsible for and you will find it lousy with cape weed and it is covering areas that would usually supply seeds for small ground feeding birds.
It is a pity that we don’t have any environmentally friendly people in the Assembly.
The excellent article by Richard Johnston “Circle of angst as the NCA pushes for high rise” (CN September 24) shows how far the NCA and its leadership have fallen.
To be considering a draft amendment that would permit 15-storey buildings on a roundabout in Hume Circle makes a mockery of its role to protect the character of the National Capital.
Columnist Mike Quirk has regularly detailed the abject absence of necessary analysis in the approach taken to planning decisions by the ACT Government.
Further, in CityNews, October 1, Mike states: “In my view prioritising light rail over improving bus services and constructing social housing has been a poor use of limited funds.” I would agree and suggest even a disgraceful use of public funds.
The extent of detached dwellings in excellent condition in good suburbs being demolished for townhouses and unit blocks is alarming.
In my street alone in Weetangera, two houses have been demolished and been replaced by nine townhouses.
In one case, arguably one of the best houses in the street has an ugly block of townhouses being erected next door, which is likely to have a significant impact on its amenity, liveability and hence property value. There appears to be little if any requirement for the townhouse complex in any way to conform with the existing residential building character.
With the government’s announced intention to permit the construction of a second dwelling on virtually all residential blocks, this downward spiral in urban design, amenity and character will gather pace.
I contend that this government is hellbent on drastically changing the character of the city and in doing so, marching to the beat of developer’s drums.
Also in CityNews, September 24, political columnist Michael Moore highlights the millions lost to government incompetence. Khalid Ahmed and Jon Stanhope have regularly and assiduously detailed the worsening debt situation, despite ever increasing taxes faced by the ACT community and the abject failure of the government to address this serious decline in the state of the economy.
Might this be the most incompetent government administration in the ACT ever since self-government?
Since their “creation”, the Greens have always sanctimoniously claimed they aren’t like the “old parties” as, unlike them, they don’t have factions.
If there were ever any doubt to the fallacy of this claim, it was debunked by the fallout of the aftermath of their recent leadership ballot.
To confirm that factions do indeed exist, Senator Steel-John is blaming an “unofficial” faction for undermining him.
Surely if there’s “unofficial” factions, then there must also be “official” ones as well.
Ian De Landelles, Murrays Beach, NSW
Try paying the bills on this
Letter writer Mike Quirk (CN October 15) makes a mathematical error about the cost-of-living crisis brought about by the kid from the university Trotskyite Club who currently leads Australia.
The same edition stated the average Canberra house rent is $700 a week ($36,400 a year).
The annual average family income is about $100,000. Rent takes $36,400 and income tax, $32,945, leaving $30,655 for the family’s living expenses – or $589 a week, which is less than their rent!
Try paying the bills for two adults and two children out of that, and having a wonderful standard of living.
It may be all right for a family of two public servants, each of $120,000 plus 20 per cent superannuation, but for families in the real workforce it is a hard scrabble.
Anthony Hordern, Jamison Centre
Trump: reliable and gracious he is not
In just a few mid-October days, the US president shot off a volley of pronouncements that failed to impress the world, let alone diverse cohorts of voters who might turn out for the US midterm elections next month.
Donald Trump crowed about cosying up to Vladimir Putin and ensuring a Russian diesel deal for American fuel tanks and global markets.
He then bellowed for a new president in Ukraine and disingenuously denied having anything to do with or knowing about Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite system delivering considerably slower communications network connections for Ukraine’s military and intelligence operations, thus making that beleaguered country much harder to defend and more vulnerable to Russian bombing.
The president also approved live-streaming of the upcoming execution by firing squad of a former defence psychiatrist and insulted and disparaged not just the very highly regarded and skilled Nobel peace prize winner but also the award’s independent committee, its assessment processes, officials and the country where it is managed and presented.
What appears to be this president’s worsening state of personal and political degeneracy will only encourage many here to write him off as a self-obsessed con artist, a bully boy and a tedious whinger who is unable to keep the green-eyed monster at bay
Yet his poor leadership and vindictive personality characteristics surely make him and his zealous administration a highly unreliable and friction-generating ally for countries such as Australia.
May the midterm elections on November 3 start to deliver a major power and governance shift in the US, for all our sakes.
Sue Dyer, Downer
Shocked, saddened and sickened by the attack
As with the overwhelming majority of Australians, I was shocked, saddened and sickened by the attack on Dr Helen Haines and then to hear about the number of members of parliament, from all jurisdictions, who came forward with their own stories.
As a long-serving member of the ACT Legislative Assembly, I conducted hundreds of mobile offices.
Canberrans are well aware that MLAs only have an office in the Assembly and it’s not always convenient for members of the public to easily access their local member, so on Friday evenings and weekends, I would set up my table and signs around the electorate’s shopping centres and make myself available for people to raise their concerns.
I’m pleased to say that in a large number of cases, I was able to have their issue positively resolved. Even when not successful in getting the desired outcome, people were pleased they had been heard.
I believed it was very important to be there on my own, as constituents may not approach if staff were with me.
I also door knocked alone, though, my husband advised me not to door knock in the late afternoon in winter. Not that people necessarily appreciate being disturbed then, either.
Being readily accessible to the public was a very important part of my role as an MLA, being unable to continue with my mobile offices, due to some health issues, contributed to my decision to retire.
Many MLAs, including my successor Tara Cheyne and Opposition Leader Mark Parton, regularly conduct mobile offices. The ACT community is better served for it.
During the hundreds of mobile offices I conducted in my almost 12 years as an MLA, only once did I feel concerned for my physical safety. This occasion was in the winter, late afternoon. There had been an incident at the pharmacy close to where I set up. As the dusk approached, I remember thinking: ‘Is this safe?’ Shortly afterwards a security company employee arrived, and I felt relieved.
In light of reports from many members of parliament, and their staff, publicly disclosing their own concerns for their safety, and former members contacting me with their concerns, I realise how much has changed in the last decade.
Regrettably, it is obvious that a significant factor in this change has been social media, and the way in which it has been weaponised.
While it’s impossible to wind the clock back, it is the responsibility of all of us to be aware of the potential harm of the language we use.
The written and spoken word does matter!
Australia has long prided itself on being a strong democracy, where we are free to express our opinions in an open way, without fear for our personal safety.
One can only hope that the attack on Dr Haines will be a wake-up call, and a time for reflection on the way we interact with each other.
Mary Porter AM, Murrays Beach, NSW
Medical procedures and productivity
There has been a lot of talk about the shortage of doctors and specialists in Australia.
There has also been a lot of talk about low productivity in Australia and how it is bad for us because it increases inflation.
I want to tell you about my experience with ENT specialists in a NSW country town and in Canberra that may alleviate both of the above.
In NSW, the specialist used a video otoscope which lets the specialist see what is happening inside the ear while suction removes the wax.
In Canberra the specialist used a small vacuum pump with a long tube to which he attached a disposable tube to push into the ear canal. Every minute, or so, he would stop, pull the tube out and look inside how much wax was remaining. That took about five minutes for each ear, compared with that in NSW of three minutes for both ears.
For the examination of my voice box the specialist poured a little anaesthetic liquid into a small saucer, dipped cotton wool in it and pushed the saturated ball right up into my nostril. Two nostrils took about four minutes all up.
In NSW the specialist sprayed anaesthetic from a spray can into each nostril taking about 25 seconds for both.
In short, in the same time for the same procedure the NSW ENT specialist can see about three patients more than just one in Canberra.
As I experienced the above procedure with two different ENT specialists in Canberra I would be grateful to know how common it is, or I was just unlucky?
I read with interest the column by Clive Williams (Whimy, CN October 22) about words that have become divorced from their meaning.
One missing from Clive’s extensive list is the word “stakeholder”.
In earlier years this was taken to mean an independent person holding the stakes – money or property – to be distributed following an activity, usually a duel.
Thus, the stakeholder was disinterested in the outcome, and hopefully, trusted by both participants.
However, today stakeholder refers to a person who is very interested – and usually intends to benefit – from the outcome of an activity. This is a completely different meaning from the earlier meaning.
Geoff Murray-Prior, Watson
Palestinian leaders brought it on themselves
Clive Williams (letters, CN October 22) claims responsibility for the failure of peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority remains contested because several aspects had not been agreed.
If that was the case, the PA leaders would have responded to the Israeli offers by making a counter-offer, or at least pointing out their concerns and asking Israel to address them.
Instead, Yasser Arafat in 2000 and 2001 and Mahmoud Abbas in 2008 simply rejected the offers outright or just ended discussions. They clearly weren’t prepared to make a final peace deal regardless of what they were offered.
In 2000, the Saudi ambassador to the US, Bandar bin Sultan, urged Arafat to accept the deal and later called Arafat’s refusal a “crime against the Palestinian people,” and former US president Bill Clinton also made it clear he solely blamed Arafat for the failure. The spurned 2008 offer was even more generous.
What also can’t be contested is that in 2005, Israel totally withdrew from Gaza, and got back constant terrorism rather than peace.
Janet Parnwell, McKellar
Now’s not the time to cut library hours
As a student, it deeply saddens me that there have been cuts to the opening hours of ACT Libraries.
The public likes to pity the new generation of students, in the new age of social media, technology, and AI.
Lots has changed in the last decades of education. What hasn’t changed, though, is that countless students find joy in studying in libraries.
ACT students are now robbed of their access, with cuts to weekend hours and evening hours, libraries are no longer convenient to the needs of students.
I really hope that by spreading the word – that students have lost a valuable asset – we can help the government see the impacts that losing libraries has on ACT students, and reverse these changes to restore the libraries for good.
Imogen Burgess, via email
A column every politician should read
I thank Michael Moore for his column on the important efforts independent politicians are engaged in with regard to human rights and social justice (“Independents embarrass Labor on human rights,” CN October 22).
I hope every politician in the ALP, Coalition and the minor parties reads this article and pauses to consider their own stance on these matters.
ACT voters who put David Pocock first should absolutely feel proud.
His stand on human rights is just the latest example of the integrity he brings to the Senate (“Independents embarrass Labor on human rights”, CN October 22).
I’m most grateful to him for pushing for stronger environmental laws and real action on climate. Senator Pocock does his homework, listens to experts and votes on principle rather than party lines.
His push for a fair tax on multinational gas companies shows exactly whose side he’s on.
Canberra sent a former Wallabies captain to Parliament, and he’s still playing for the team that matters most: Australians. The big gas companies have lobbyists; the rest of us need more Pococks.
This isn’t the right “hour to embrace AI” (CN October 22) given the AI bubble is actually collapsing.
Just this month AI company Firmus failed in its public float, while in America Character.ai went bankrupt.
Many AI data centre projects have been cancelled this year, so far $260 billion worth of cancellations, due to pressure from residents unhappy about data centres’ environmental pollution.
After reading Jon Stanhope and Khalid Ahmed’s column “The bank vault is empty, but Labor’s still spending” (CN October 22), I was left offended to the point of rage.
Please, surely its time to tell no hopers in the Legislative Assembly to “be gone”
A cleaning of government clutter is essential. Let’s throw the trite out and start over, or cross the border and live elsewhere!
"We read less, but consume more. The visual format of that consumption allows for increasing misinformation and disinformation thanks to AI. Videos and images of candidates can look real, even if they aren’t," writes ANDREW HUGHES.
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