YOUR VIEWS
WRITE TO: P0 Box 1, Southport, 4215 EMAIL: letters@goldcoast.com.au FACEBOOK: facebook.com/goldcoastbulletin
WHY does it take an election to address a disgraceful ongoing problem for quite some time?
(Lake Hugh Muntz: GCCC candidates speak about a fix for ongoing algal bloom – GCB 10/3/20.)
Lake Hugh Muntz, a popular neighbourhood recreational space, should have been a properly-managed community asset.
Former councils used to have an environment advisory committee, which met regularly with council chair environment committee.
It was made up of local university environmental scientists and conservation groups.
Many local issues were flagged up ahead and dealt with.
Recently a petition to reinstate this community consultation mechanism was rejected by Council.
Council’s internal committee structure has lumped economics, environment and planning into one committee, a perceptibly unsuitable agglomeration.
In the past eight long years of the Tate-led council, ratepaying Gold Coasters’ funds and our paid officers’ time have been squandered on studies for a port in a harbourless city.
Time appears to be spent by our employees enabling endless publicity re city management leadership of our council.
More observable guardianship of our assets would be nice.
What remains of Black Swan Lake, originally given under licence by council to the turf club, for $1 a year, now awaits club sign up to protect it under reciprocal arrangement whereby the club has a long lease over extensive community property.
Because of insufficient unfilled area we can no longer see black swans soar aloft from the water in magnificent flight.
But many birds still shelter in lake remainder and treed surrounds.
Some reconsideration into why State has delegated so much of environmental care to local government also needs scrutiny, if we are to guard our natural heritage into the future.
SALLY SPAIN, PRESIDENT, WILDLIFE QUEENSLAND GOLD COAST BRANCH
MAKE no mistake, China is totally responsible for the outbreak of the coronavirus.
Their peoples want for wild animals (mostly poached) both for human consumption and their obsession with their so-called natural medicines has no bounds.
China was so flat-footed about the spread of COVID-19 that it initially denied Dr Li had died.
There is now a black mark against President Xi Jinping.
A freer media in China would have forced action by the central Government earlier by alerting health authorities around the world to the outbreak.
The blame and responsibility for the coronavirus epidemic lie fully on the Chinese CCP regime.
And as for Xi Jinping, the only outstanding thing he has done is to have put his country and the world in danger.
President Donald Trump is totally correct in pointing out to the world China’s vast inadequacies and shortcomings.
TONY CAVUOTO, PALM BEACH
DAILY we hear young juveniles creating mayhem with parents calling on society to bring their darlings to heel.
Many of my age would remember our parents getting a visit from the local police when we did something which needed some attention.
Fast forward and the family unit in many cases no longer exists and many have little if any parental guidance in their life.
With many parents having had little if any parental guidance, which then flows to their offspring.
If things continue as they are, society has something to look forward to.
DALLAS FRASER, CURRUMBIN
ALL schemes to date to tackle juvenile crime have failed and the latest thought bubbles from the Queensland Premier will do nothing to lessen the juvenile problems.
Social mollycoddling is a waste of both time and money as it fails to instil in the young miscreants that most basic of human emotions, fear!
The solution is obvious but gutless politicians are too frightened to apply it.
Bring back the juvenile reformatories.
Site them in the badlands west of Longreach.
Design them like Gulags and have the juvenile cretins build them.
They can sleep on the ground until the job is finished. (I pinched that idea from the movie The Dirty Dozen.)
No TV, no internet, no yuppie phones, no visitors and a sevenday syllabus comprising daily hard physical labour (rock breaking comes to mind), compulsory team sports, drill and education to allow them to catch up with what they wagged from school.
No parole, all sentences to be completed, and no sentence less than six months. 0500 reveille in the morning and lights out at 2100.
Cold showers and daily dress and accommodation inspections also to be enforced.
Lessons on courtesy and manners would not go astray either.
All supervision by ex military recruit battalion NCOs and teachers of the old rigid discipline ethos.
Just the thought of this might scare some of the little b*stards into improving their behaviour.
J.J. GOOLD, MUDGEERABA