Letters (via Mowser)

Letters

FEBRUARY 18

Pretend jobs don't provide a living

The Australian Bureau of Statistics definition of ''employment'' stipulates one hour per week or more of paid or unpaid work (''Qantas and Bonds job cuts take shine off rise in employment'', February 17). Could the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, Bill Shorten, tell us how many of his ''46,000 new jobs'' will provide a living for those fortunate new employees?

February 19

Arndt just an apologist for sexism

BETTINA ARNDT is entitled to her opinion, but please let's keep such arguments in perspective.

FEBRUARY 17

Greeks' mess not all of their own making

Unlike Spiro Anemogiannis (Letters, February 16), I do have some sympathy for the Greeks in their present crisis.

FEBRUARY 16

Media as sidetracked as Labor by leadership row

What purpose is served by all this salivating in the media about who did what, and when (''Gillard used polling to trigger coup'', February 15)?

FEBRUARY 15

With credibility and integrity gone, so too trust

All the opposition has to do to win the next election is to make sure as many people as possible see the Four Corners program that aired on Monday on the deposing of Kevin Rudd (''Gillard staff planned for coup'', February 14).

FEBRUARY 14

Learn from past lessons and rail against proposal

Does greed know no bounds? The private sector group Infrastructure Partnerships Australia wants the private sector to get its hands on the eastern suburbs rail line (''Rail study pushes for Bondi line to be sold'', February 13). As the former Labor member for the area, I can confidently say this is the best performing part of the CityRail network and has been the subject of substantial public investment and upgrading. It is well patronised and serves as a service model for other parts of the network. The IPA's solution to this public sector success story is to privatise it.

FEBRUARY 13

Actions speak louder than words, Mr Treasurer

So Wayne Swan is irate (''Treasurer angry as banks warn of more rate rises'', February 11-12). Well, how about putting anger to good use and providing some legislation to control the banks' greed. Being angry is all well and good but how about showing some intestinal bottle and applying some legal controls to these greedy money purveyors. The voters would love you for it, Mr Swan.

FEBRUARY 11

Company collapses point to major industry crisis

Missing in the debate about changes to the private health insurance rebate is an understanding that the vast majority of Australians with private health insurance are not rich (''End to medical rebate will cost $1300 a year'', February 10). However, as others drop or downgrade their health insurance as a result of the rebate changes, all Australians will be forced to pay higher premiums.

FEBRUARY 10

Coddling is wasted and a hindrance to growth

It is easy to understand parents being anxious about child safety ("Police threat to parents on children walking alone'', February 9). Everyone remembers the Beaumont children and the Graeme Thorne tragedies of the 1960s. However, this article and the police comments need context.

FEBRUARY 9

Blunder record may be smaller than Premier's

While I am perplexed why two academics felt it was necessary to examine the purported judicial record of magistrate Pat O'Shane, I nevertheless found one of the figures given to be, if correct, more revealing than those claiming to deal with appeals from her judgments (''Majority of O'Shane decisions overturned in Supreme Court appeals'', February 8).

FEBRUARY 08

Rudd will just bring forward the demise of Labor

I've voted Labor for 60 years but would not do so again if Kevin Rudd was leader (''Did he or didn't he? Rudd denies asking powerbroker for help in hostile state'', February 7). Why? Because he is a person with grandiose ideas who is unable to progress them in a way that gains co-operation and results.

FEBRUARY 7

Investigation into Waratah train wreck needed

Now that the people of NSW have bailed out Reliance Rail and in effect become the 100 per cent owner of the company, will the O'Farrell government insist, indeed demand, the repayment of the $50 million ''success and other fees'' from the financial engineers of the scheme (''Socialising the losses on another botched project'', February 6)?

FEBRUARY 6

Policies, not personalities, should be the decider

Peter Hartcher's analysis although searching, fails to address a critical issue: Labor's policies (''Every which way it's Rudd'', February 4-5).

FEBRUARY 5

Family's complaints are painful

I HAVE no sympathy for the Gee family's pain of having to send their five children back to school with brand-spanking-new everything (School maths causes pain, January 29). Our two children (nobody should have more than two in this overpopulated world) never went back to school with everything new. There were always hand-me-downs and bargains from the uniform pool. I even vaguely remember using a sewing machine to make girls' uniforms. Since when do lunch boxes last only one year? Surely there are well-made shoes for children, costing less than $85?

FEBRUARY 4

More focus is needed on unwitting victims

Concern from the state's cancer control agencies about the research neglect of several leading causes of cancer death is very welcome (''Deadliest cancers lose funding race'', February 3). Australian tobacco control leads the world in reducing the incidence of lung cancer, the biggest cause of cancer death: male rates per 100,000 today have declined to those last seen in the early 1960s and female rates will probably never reach even half the peak male rates.

FEBRUARY 3

Parents, children suffer as politicians enjoy perks

As a foster carer, I am disgusted with the changes made to the foster care allowance (''Take back our children, say angry foster parents'', February 2).

FEBRUARY 2

Rinehart raid on Fairfax a threat to democracy

When Gina Rinehart gets a seat on the board of Fairfax, I will cancel my subscription (''Rinehart seeks bigger slice of Fairfax'', February 1).

FEBRUARY 1

Legal hurdle may be gone - but so are supplies

It is all very well removing the ban on regular unleaded, however, it will be inadequate (''Premier bows to motorists on unleaded fuel'', January 31).

JANUARY 31

O'Farrell's next stop should be zoning near stations

Good on the O'Farrell government for tearing down barriers to home building in NSW (''Rezoning blitz in push for housing'', January 30).

January 30

Provocation enough without insensitive side

Why would anyone be surprised that the first Australians are less than impressed about the celebration of Australia Day on the anniversary of the day that the First Fleet arrived in Port Jackson?

January 29

A proud literary heritage

AS TEXT publisher Michael Heywood claims (''Literary heroes forgotten'', Extra, January 22), too many classic works of Australian literary fiction have been sadly neglected or are even out of print.

JANUARY 28

Provoked or not, the mob was disgraceful

I am almost speechless with anger at the mindless stupidity of the mob and their violence towards our elected leaders in Canberra on Australia Day (''Australia Day turns ugly'', January 27).

JANUARY 27

Alternative therapies should be tested, not junked

Four hundred doctors, scientists and researchers urging our universities to axe courses in alternative medicine constitute a vocal lobby (''Scientists urge unis to axe alternative medicine courses'', January 26). Yet hundreds of thousands of Australians choose to incorporate complementary and alternative therapies into their family healthcare plans, predominantly at their own expense. Private health funds rebate a fraction of the real cost to consumers.

January 26

We can make a difference by accepting refugees

This Australia Day, as we contemplate what it means to be an Australian, let us remember all the different ways we have come to be here. Some by boat, some by air, some by land (much earlier).

JANUARY 25

Abbott's reasoning versus his responsibility

Tony Abbott stated that his core policy is to send the asylum seeker boats back.

JANUARY, 24, 2012

Gillard has the numbers but lacks the courage

How does a government with 75 votes to 73 not have the numbers to pass Andrew Wilkie's pokie legislation in the lower house?

JANUARY 23

Public ability to swallow bitter medicine ignored

It is difficult to reconcile a government that has gone to such lengths to reduce the power and effect of cigarette companies upon the health of the nation with one that appears to be throwing in the towel when it comes to poker machine reform.

January 22

Running with the other pack

YOUR story ''A Lone Wolf's golden farewell'' (January 15) brought back many memories of another time and another place, namely the late 1960s and hanging around with bikers in Carlton, Sydney.