MOTORWAY
Dear editor,
The Sunshine Motorway carries traffic as far north as Noosa and to Caloundra South. It is totally inadequate as single lanes, north, past the Airport. Who is responsible initially, for that short-sighted blunder?
Knowing full well that interstate southerners are on the move north, to enjoy our Queensland sunshine and beaches, where was the wise road and infrastructure planning? Where are the futuristic town planning geniuses? Sleeping on the job, being well remunerated?
Were they failing to read the immigration writing on the wall, not reading between the lines, predicting the magnetism of our paradise? Surely critical prediction and estimation should be a requirement for town planners?
It has cost drivers their sanity in traffic congestion and delays. Councils are responsible for organising time lines for construction, roadworks and town planning for predicted population growth, far ahead. We are in a time warp, where infrastructure has fallen short of population growth.
As our road networks continue to groan under pressure; a result of Council’s multi-development policies along our coastline, the limits of the Motorway is a bridge too far from Noosa, for 30, 000 drivers travelling on single lanes. Duplication of the lanes is the least expected in our twenty-first century society.
E. Rowe,
Marcoola.
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RUDD COMMISSION
Dear editor,
I can’t let Adrian Riches and Robyn Deane’s comments supporting Kevin Rudd in the last Advertiser go unchallenged. Kevin Rudd’s crusade against the Murdoch Press just shows how delusional he is.
He conveniently forgets that the Murdoch Press championed him in the 2007 election, which he won. It was when his Government proved dysfunctional that they started to put the heat on him as any responsible press would do.
The Murdoch press is a private company. If they are so biased and out of touch they wouldn’t sell papers and would go broke. If they choose to show some bias towards one side of politics that is their choice. Will we also have an investigation into Fairfax media and The Guardian who are clearly left-leaning.
I will go along with Mr Rudd and support his Royal Commission on one condition. It also includes an in-depth look at bias in the ABC. One only has to critically watch Laura Tingle in action, Q&A and Four Corners to see that allegations of bias on the ABC against the Morrison Government and anyone on the centre-right of politics has substance. The ABC consumes over 1 billion of our taxpayer dollars every year so should be above reproach.
I am sure Ms Dean’s, Mr Riches’ and Mr Rudd’s apparent penchant for fairness in reporting would mean they would think that also investigating the ABC is fair enough. After all, if the ABC is unbiased as they believe, they have nothing to fear
Des Deighton,
Coolum Beach.
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OZ DEMOCRATS
Dear editor,
Australian Democrats are Setting up Local Branches Across Australia.
Hands up if you want to be part of the most amazing political comeback in Australia’s history. If you have your hand up, then read on.
The Australian Democrats are working across Australia to establish local branches in rural areas. We plan to field candidates in all states, and we need you to be part of that.
The Australian Democrats are Australia’s oldest and most successful minor party. Established in 1977, the party had senators in parliament for over 30 years.
The Democrats held the balance of power in the senate from 1980 to 2004, and the sole balance of power for 13 years of that time.
That’s longer than any other minor party in Australia’s history, and proof of how we kept the bastards honest.
The party was deregistered in 2015, after 38 years, but we continued to exist as an organisation. We regained federal registration in 2019, after just four years in the wilderness. Today, the party’s membership is the highest it has been in 10 years and is still growing.
Our aim now is to become the party that represents rural Australia. We have established policies specific to sustainable agriculture and management of climate change, based on scientific evidence, and best practice.
We want to add to that policy by hearing what local communities need, and that’s where you come in.
If you are interested in helping to form a local branch in your town or shire, we would love to hear from you. Please send your expression of interest to info@democrats.org.au
Andrew Castrique,
Australian Democrats.
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