Aren’t we all fed up with not being told the truth by the authorities; not just the federal and state governments, but by their often incompetent, hide-bound, administration-driven senior bureaucrats, who make stupid decisions, asks letter writer GREG CORNWELL.

THEY mostly have all departed; the anti-vaxxers, Red Ensigns, Proud Boys etcetera. And good riddance. 

Like most Canberrans, I have no time for them or their mixed-up ideologies.

Yet don’t we all share some of their concerns – muddled and misguided as they are?

Aren’t we all fed up with not being told the truth by the authorities – no, not just the federal and state governments – but by their often incompetent, hide-bound, administration-driven senior bureaucrats, who make stupid decisions lacking simple common sense? 

Or worse perhaps, do not challenge decisions taken by their parliamentary bosses which are based purely upon political considerations?

No, I’m not talking about hard-working nurses and other health professionals in the front line, but those shadowy senior people in comfortable offices all over the country who simply don’t grasp the results of the complicated and inept decisions they impose upon ordinary Australians.

Every day it seems we learn of some new, often thoughtless, bureaucratic mistake and then? Silence. Nobody sacked, nobody named, nobody even held responsible. Life just goes on, the casualties quietly and publicly abandoned.

And the media? They continually trot out government statistics, report bad spots in nursing homes, quote ministers giving reassuring speeches.

But never publish explanations, nor perhaps seek them.

What is keeping the covid figures falling? Could yesterday’s deaths be attributed to other health problems? Are the identified nursing homes with high death rates poorly staffed or badly managed?

And the reassuring ministerial speeches. What do they really mean to battling small businesses, losing money and staff and reducing wages, while the politicians and their bumbling bureaucrats still are on full pay?

The ordinary law-abiding citizen might not be as demonstrable as the mob who invaded us recently, but don’t imagine we aren’t concerned and, yes, disgusted.

Greg Cornwell, Yarralumla

Cat laws are just revenue raising

THE requirement for cats to be registered in the ACT as of July 1 (CN February 10) highlighted that cats (particularly feral) harm native species and it is very important to address this.

But to menace pet-owner cats with the threat of “new strict liability offences for pet owners” has to be the most fanciful thinking of a government that believes by introducing this law it will even be remotely effective, let alone being enforced, and all the while backing it up with threats.

I can just imagine a special cat taskforce cruising the suburbs trying to catch cats in containment zones (or roaming) and tracking down the owners to issue their harsh penalties – get the picture?

Information about dog-walking areas on the Domestic Animals Map (on-leash, conditional, prohibited), requirements to be leashed on foot/cycle paths regardless, distancing requirements and so forth is all available, but it’s all totally unenforced. It will be the same with cats.

Microchip your animal and submit your details on a national database (I use Central Animal Records for as little as $10 a pet) and your pet can be identified and returned if lost.

Duplication by forced “registration” of cats (like dogs) in a state or territory system is just revenue raising for local government (an indirect tax – how can they even justify $55?) and has nothing to do with protection of native wildlife.

Bjorn Moore, Gowrie

We’ve become the Nanny State!

I’M 55 and until last year had never received a speeding fine in more than 35 years of driving. As of January, I now have two speeding fines, both issued while driving along Northbourne Avenue for speeding – at 46km/h and the other at 48km/h on a main, three-lane arterial road. Seriously, has this become the Nanny State!

Roger Nee, via email

Shame on QPRC councillors

THE previous Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council failed to negotiate a financial settlement with the Department of Education (DoE) over the site selected for the new Bungendore high school following three arduous years of community consultation. 

But worse, the new council declines to negotiate at all. Rather, the council wants to “re-investigate” sites.

It implicitly rejects DoE’s site-selection process. However, it does not have the authority, funds or competence to select a site for a government school.

QPRC’s January 27 decision to withdraw “in-principle” support was not foreshadowed. Several councillors were given just five minutes to read the motion.

Some community members still object to the selected site. Everyone else accepted DoE’s decision-making process. Their good faith commitment is being usurped by six councillors that disagree with the process outcome.

In what was an encouraging sign of bi-partisan political commitment, both the Coalition and Labor made a promise before the 2019 state election to build a high school in time for the 2023 school year. 

In this regard, it is concerning that the NSW Shadow Minister for Education, Prue Car, now disputes DoE’s process for Bungendore high school. Every NSW region should be worried if the alternative Education Minister places no trust in DoE’s competence to select a site for a new school.

It is shameful that six councillors are prepared to make the district’s children needlessly suffer in 2023.

Greg Cameron, Wamboin, NSW

There’s just too much poo

HAS Chief Minister Andrew Barr forgotten that Canberra was designed and built with a sewer system (and other utility infrastructure) for a city of 100,000 people?

Under his leadership, Canberra is growing “exponentially”. For example, the Belconnen Town Centre’s ugly twin towers (built on a fault zone) must have at least 30 times more toilets than a single-storey building on its narrow footprint would need.

I note in “CityNews” (“Residents kick up a stink about park sewage units”, February 10) that the Umbagong (District Park) Protection Group has valid concerns about the state of the existing sewer network. Icon Water’s proposed upgrade is a cheap Band-Aid solution to a major Canberra-wide sewerage problem. Most of Canberra’s original sewer pipes are iron, of varying diameters, which are now rusting and corroding – causing pressure surges, backflows and leakages. 

Of course, the real concern is the chemical production of hydrogen sulphide, a toxic, foul-smelling gas. Other nasty sewer gases include methane, carbon monoxide and dioxide, ammonia, carbon and sulphur monoxide and dioxide and nitrous oxide, chlorine gases and many more. 

I have worked in the toxic gases detection industry and am concerned whether a “stink vent” (aka odour control unit) carbon filter can safely purify all the harmful gases (claimed to be 99.9 per cent pure) before it is blown into nature, close to houses and play areas.

We all contribute to our sewerage network, but how many more toilets can our Greens/Labor Coalition squeeze into its antiquated and inadequate sewer system?

A month ago an ageing “stink vent” in Pakistan blew up and caught fire, injuring residents.

Russ Temple, Macquarie

More constructive comment, please

IT’S disappointing to see Jack Kershaw (CN February 10) trashing Greg Cornwell’s opinion piece (CN January 27). If only those who are bent on complaining about the efforts of others could be more polite and offer constructive comment.

For example, John L Smith (CN February 10) who fleshed the subject out very well. I very much hope to see more thoughtful opinions on the subject of changes in society.

Frank Scargill, born 1939 (Jack, please note) Macarthur

When ‘up-to-date’ isn’t

I HAVE checked with ATAGI that its latest recommendation is that all individuals 16 and over should receive a booster from three months after their second dose to attain and maintain the “up-to-date” vaccination status.

However, the urge to boost the economy, cruising and industry generally, while good in principle, is seemingly a priority over the health of the nation, and will see thousands of new arrivals soon to be allowed in if they have had two vaccinations but not necessarily the booster.

Multiple premiers have said publicly that it would be difficult to enforce more than two vaccinations on international travellers because many countries don’t have booster programs. Jolly bad luck. 

Have all our governments and parliamentarians forgotten so soon that the NSW inquiry into the vessel “Ruby Princess” issued a scathing report that about 2700 passengers, hundreds of them infected with covid, left the cruise ship before results of tests on some passengers were known. The claim is we have learnt since then.

Why then in a scenario where soon possibly hundreds of the tens of thousands of visitors not cleared as being “up-to-date” will be allowed legal “up-to-date” entry when the opening paragraph herein has ATAGI insisting that Australians have the booster to comply with being “up-to-date ” – whether determined by Commonwealth or State representatives?

To run even the slightest risk of another “Ruby Princess” places Australians on the gangway of that vessel’s debacle, and I suggest predicts the likely outcome of coming elections, let alone our health system.

Colliss Parrett, Barton 

Global heating responses

TWO correspondents have responded to my letter on global heating (CN January 20). I can easily and quickly deal with their criticisms. Peter Leane (citynews.com.au, February 9) asserts that Earth will heat up by one degree in a year. In fact, all evidence, including from NASA, the World Meteorological Organisation and the IPCC, shows that Earth has warmed by one degree since the beginning of the 20th century.

Myriam Amar (CN February 10) criticised my letter because I did “not really provide a solution to climatic change”. That was never my intention: I wrote a follow-up letter, but the editor decided not to publish it.

Dr Douglas Mackenzie, Deakin