Adding Zed to the front bench, if and when the Coalition secures office ("Seselja coy on prospects of frontbench promotion", July 8, p4) may be politically astute on the part of Turnbull's advisers as they erect ramparts within the ranks to protect the government from the outraged right within. However, it would also reflect the level of malaise within the government.
Can anyone in the community identify a single contribution Zed made to the well-being of the ACT in the course of his first term in office?
Zed showed his true colours during the election when he advised us that, regardless of the outcome of the plebiscite, he reserves the right to abstain from any parliamentary vote on the matter.
He refuses to display his true colours and for that reason he is a poor representative of Canberrans and would make an abysmal minister. Surely Malcolm and his minders can do better than that!
W. Book, Hackett
Zed Seselja has been re-elected to the Senate after an expensive and dishonest campaign (conflating the ACT government's light rail project with the federal election) reminiscent of his defeat of Gary Humphries for the Liberal Senate nomination in 2013.
His views on the issues of equal opportunity for marriage and support of mandatory, unlimited incarceration of refugees legally seeking asylum are not consistent with the majority views of the ACT constituency. He is one of those parliamentarians who represent themselves, primarily.
It was with disbelief that Mr Do-nothing Seselja was mentioned as possibly being given more responsibility in a possible Liberal Government (Coalition firms as election winner, July 7, p1). This would be a further backward step for the credibility of the Liberals who lost ground in this election. Zed Seselja is undeserving of any elevation in the government until such time as he actually does demonstrate some merit and does some good for the community.
Dr K. Williams, Bonython
Zed Seselja's recent attack on the safeguards enjoyed by ACT women undertaking an abortion should disqualify him from promotion to the federal ministry.
He should take a leaf out of the book of Labor deputy leader Tanya Plibersek, who comes from a similarly tough background. However, she has managed to adopt enlightened attitudes to social and health issues and promotes these in an intelligent and articulate manner.
Chris Smith, Kingston
Fluffy inquiry
Andrew Barr's comment that a board of inquiry in the Fluffy asbestos disaster would not unveil anything new ("Not much to gain from a Fluffy inquiry", June 22, p2) is a joke.
He insists without federal government input there is no point having a royal commission-style inquiry.
It is no secret the federal government were warned of potential risks associated with loose-fill asbestos insulation going back to 1968.
Cabinet papers can be obtained from National Archives which reveal what they knew about loose-fill asbestos insulation now referred to as "Mr Fluffy" and; what if anything they did to protect consumers.
Mr Fluffy home-owners have every right to demand a transparent independent inquiry into recent events leading up to and including; the establishment of the buy-back program, lack of flexibility and compassion, all management aspects of the taskforce including; contracting, breaches of safety, on-site pilfering, land sales, and the involuntary nature of the program.
Holding an inquiry is the only way Canberrans' will be able to put to rest this sorry saga plaguing our community. This is not about ego; nor is it about cost-saving measures. It's about doing the right thing for rate payers and the community's basic health and safety.
L. Carvalho, Lyons
ABC's agenda
Rosemary Walters (Letters, July 7) is very wide of the mark if she thinks the role of the ABC is to balance the commercial media. The problem with the The Drum and Fact Checker is they enjoy massive public funding and therefore compete unfairly with commercial offerings. The Drum squeezes out left of centre private entities who need to turn a profit, and Fact Checker has already played a significant role in crowding out the market to the detriment of similar commercial initiatives.
There was a time when publicly funded ABC journalists kept their politics and opinions to themselves but the Drum brought that practice to an end once and for all and not surprisingly, the result was a torrent of green left opinion from ABC celebrities with the occasional nod to conservative views in clumsy attempts at balance.
As for the public benefiting from ABC views on important issues such as for example, climate change, Walters is again wide of the mark. The ABC is the last place to get a balanced view on climate change as it rarely presents serious discussion on any view that does not conform to the green left orthodoxy on the subject.
Both examples clearly contravene ABC internal guidance on impartiality.
H. Ronald, Jerrabomberra, NSW
Horrors of war
I will have to visit the Australian War Memorial to view Harry Daziel's VC ("Family pilgrimage honours heroic 'two-gun Harry"', July 6, p7).
To millennials, World War I is a footnote in history that probably leaves many bewildered as to why young men would fight in such horrific conditions particularly since Australians suffered terribly as a function of their 4-million population.
Older people will remember aged veterans, especially one-legged, former warriors. As a primary school-aged child in the US, I remember an old neighbour who invited us to swim in his pool. He served on the western front.
If you consider the Yanks only arrived en masse in April 1918, and suffered almost a quarter of a million killed-in-action in eight months, the numbers speak volumes about the carnage.
Jules Dumergue only told one story albeit reluctantly. He needed new boots, so he went to the dead man's pile and selected a pair. After he fitted them he discovered to his horror they were covered in mustard gas.
It was ghastly, he said.
Gerry Murphy, Braddon
Cotter Dam overflow
It is great news that the enlarged Cotter Dam is about to overflow. However, it would be nice to know why the dam was kept at 80 per cent full, for over 18 months?
M. Arnold, O'Connor
Use windfall from Symonston for oval
The ACT government was quick to follow the NSW Government's lead in banning greyhound racing ("Barr bans greyhound races after inquiry", July 8, p1). Although Canberra's Greyhound Racing Track in Symonston won't command the same premium price as Wentworth Park in the Sydney suburb of Glebe, I would still expect the ACT government to receive a considerable windfall from any sale of the Symonston site for high density residential redevelopment.
If the ACT government wasn't so beholden to its well-heeled Labor mates and their property developer cronies it would make use of the expected windfall from the redevelopment of the Symonston site to fund its own upgrade of Manuka Oval.
That, in turn, would obviate the need for the Barr government to entertain the 'unsolicited' offer from Grocon and GWS Giants and, thereby, remove the threat to public amenity that is posed by their voracious Manuka Green redevelopment.
Bruce Taggart, Aranda
Gun proliferation
We don't want to be like the United States where gun sales rocket after yet another massacre, leading inevitably to a further increase in distrust and violence in the land of the free ("Americans flock to gun show after Pulse Massacre", canberratimes.com.au, July 5).
Citizens fearing the dangers of gun proliferation here in Australia need to vote against the continuation of council-approved events such as Narooma's HuntFest before the gun lobby entrenches the false ideas that Australians are under attack from within, the police force is inadequate, and that gun ownership is necessary and desirable for people's personal protection.
Susan Cruttenden, Dalmeny, NSW
Can't believe this government's election promises on Medibank
D. Zivkovic (Letters, July 7) is apparently one of those suckered in by the Coalition's desperate claims that Labor's stance on the necessity to save Medibank was a "big lie".
The privatisation option raised during the early stages of the Abbott government was still on the table until during the election campaign the PM was questioned on the issue and, realising that this could be an election-loser, offered a quick promise that privatisation would not occur. But hey, we know from experience how little reliability can be placed in the election promises of this government.
T.J. Marks, Holt
Medicare levy
I could not agree more with Ian De Landelles (Letters, July 7) about the revenue remedies needed to maintain Medicare.
The Australian people have indicated that they do not want cuts to Medicare on the expenditure side so the only way to maintain these services is on the revenue side. As a taxpaying retiree I am quite happy to pay an increased Medicare levy to help with this problem.
What sticks up my craw though is the thought of well provided for self funded retirees who pay no tax (fair enough!) but as a consequence of no taxable income therefore pay no Medicare levy, but they expect to be able to access Medicare services which I and others are paying for. This is entirely unequitable in relation to taxpayers who faithfully pay their Medicare levy every year.
Robert Mair, Crace
I believe Medicare should be a "sacred cow" by agreement ("Medicare must not be a sacred cow", Editorial, Times2, July 7, p2). Without an ethical commitment it is not logical to expect any political party to treat Medicare with integrity when that virtue in far too many parliamentarians is like a mirage in a political desert.
The Coalition denied wanting to privatise Medicare, but even if it did, to criticise it for that would be like criticising an elephant for having a trunk. It's the nature of the beast.
Colliss Parrett, Barton
Chilcot report
Following the Chilcot report on Britain's involvement in the Iraq war, the defenders of Blair (and Howard) are saying that they followed the best intelligence available from our intelligence services.
I seem to remember exactly the opposite; that ASIO, MI5 and the CIA all said the evidence for WMD was unconvincing. The strongest evidence came from disaffected Iraqi exiles like Achmed Chalabi and from tortured prisoners.
Scott Ritter, once a UN weapons inspector engaged in Iraq, threw buckets of cold water on the WMD story with his booklet, War in Iraq. The Bush administration's subsequent strenuous attempts to assassinate Ritter's character are evidence that they had a plan to attack Iraq; evidence just as strong as the evidence mentioned just above.
As for the argument, which I saw put by Bill Molan, that resources for a lengthy occupation were insufficient because the US envisaged a short campaign, I might say that the looting and destruction in the aftermath of the invasion show that both thinking and resources were inadequate for even a short campaign.
S.W. Davey, Torrens
Your editorial about the Chilcot report ("Blair, Howard co-operate with war mongering", Times2, July 8, p2) reminded me that it has become an article of faith in America, Israel and among their allies that Iran wants nuclear weapons so as "to wipe Israel from the map".
I suppose it's just possible that a nuclear-armed Iran would attempt such a monumentally stupid act and thus commit instant national suicide, as America, Israel and possibly Pakistan retaliated in kind. Consider instead, that this might just be political rhetoric: a bit like "evil empire", "axis of evil", "cut off the head of the snake", "shirtfront" and so on.
Consider also, that Iran is surrounded by enemies, sectarian and secular, including America, which has several military bases in nearby former Soviet republics and which has threatened in the past to attack Iran.
Consider finally, and in light of the Chilcot report, that a major qualifier to be on the receiving end of a gratuitous, sustained and nation-destroying American bombing campaign (think Iraq twice, Afghanistan, the former Yugoslavia, Libya, Syria and Lebanon by proxy) is that the recipient nation does not have nuclear weapons, and you might just conclude that 80 million Iranians would be
foolhardy not to want an independent nuclear deterrent.
After all, it worked for the Soviet Union for a long time and is working, so far, for China and North Korea.
Peter Moran, Watson
Same-sex marriage
Thank you to Rev. JR Huggett (Letters, July 4) for acknowledging the threat of theologically driven anti-gay violence, and the risk that a plebiscite on same-sex marriage pose in this regard.
His view, based on experience, is a refreshing change from the views of conservative elements, who are now disturbingly playing victim in the war of words on the issue in their latest and increasingly desperate ploy to gain support for their views.
They have even undertaken the extraordinary and disturbing step of seeking to suspend anti-vilification laws in the event of a plebiscite. What exactly do they propose to say that is so offensive they fear these laws? The internet is continually full of stories of the violence inflicted on LGBT people, such as the recent Orlando tragedy, and other acts around the world.
Now we also see a trend of these elements focusing on back-room political lobbying of like-minded politicians, who thereby fail in their responsibility as secular leaders.
This happens in preference to engaging openly with the Australian public, whose views they no doubt realise from numerous polls broadly support same-sex marriage and pro-LGBT rights.
Our political leaders need to show some courage and do what is right, rather than give in to back-room pressure that seriously undermines human rights.
The anti-gay marriage lobby is not about religious freedom. It's about religious conservatives forcing their outdated views on others, and denying LGBT people the human rights and freedom they're entitled to.
Richard Roberts, Farrer
TO THE POINT
IRAQ'S DEMISE
Hundreds of thousands of Iraqis were killed in the 2003 invasion and its aftermath who were no threat to Australia, and were never counted. No thanks to the war launched by Bush, Blair and Howard, Iraq is now a terrorist state.
Richard Ryan, Summerland Point, NSW
DO IT AGAIN, MIKE
Now that Mike Kelly has been returned as the MP for Eden-Monaro, will he be occupying the offices he had refurbished for $400,000, as reported in this paper at the time, and the subject of my letter (September 16, 2013), before his last electoral defeat, or will he stimulate the economy with another taxpayer-funded extravaganza?
Ian Jannaway, Monash
GREYHOUND BAN
Thank you, Canberra, for finally calling "time" on greyhound racing. If truck drivers, green grocers and whitegoods retailers don't get millions in taxpayer subsidies each year then why, across Australia, do the dog and horse racing and industries? It's outrageous and it should end, now.
Lawrence Pope, Victorian Advocates for Animals, North Carlton, Vic
Well done, ACT government. The greyhound ban is not before time and it reflects well on its sense of humanity. Compliments also to the ABC, whose agitation to rid us of such cruelties were also amplified in their later efforts in raising the shameful live cattle industry. Let us all hope that this will also be discontinued.
Rex Williams, Ainslie
The greyhound racing association is condemning the NSW government for banning it, saying it hasn't been given time to "clean up the industry". It had 18 months to clean up and chose to do nothing. Personally I would like to see it go ASAP.
V. Harris, Yass, NSW
JUMP TO THE RIGHT
In light of The Canberra Times' editorial of July 1 endorsing the re-election of the Turnbull government, J.R. Hugget (Letters, July 6) asks if "Emperor Rupert owns Fairfax now?". Not monetarily, but certainly intellectually.
I suspect the jump to the right of The Canberra Times is just the next step in its ultimate sale of the newspaper to the Murdochracy.
John Passant, Kambah
UPS AND DOWNS
You were lucky, Graeme Barrow (Letters, July 8). My fortnightly super went up $1.81 gross a fortnight. And my net fortnightly pension went down by 19 cents!
Janet Rickwood, Greenway
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