I AM a resident of Newcastle and a registered nurse. I worked at the John Hunter hospital during the SARS epidemic.
A thought about the latest outbreak and viral load found in the sewers of the Hunter region. NSW Health needs to look at the influx of visitors from Sydney visiting Newcastle during this latest COVID (Delta strain) outbreak.
Looking at houses for sale. Not really no. They were really having a few days out during a pandemic. Why are crowds of people allowed to visit a house auction during these times of a pandemic?
The latest viral load in sewage is probably reflecting the number of infected people who were allowed to pass through to Newcastle on the (pretence) of buying a house.
I spent 18 weeks locked down in England before I could get home; the government there was scared they would have to 'bring out the dead' as space was running out in undertakers and mortuaries. Then I was quarantined for two weeks in Melbourne.
What we should do is nationalise the issue, otherwise politicians will be forced to recognise that there may not be a workforce to go back into the economy
Catherine Whelan, Newcastle
Why we need strong unions
THE High Court has ruled in favour of big mining companies, Workpac, a labour hire company, and our worker-hating federal government.
This was only possible because of legislation passed by this government with the support of some crossbenchers, namely Hanson's One Nation party.
These changes and this ruling leaves many workers who, in reality, are working full-time in many industries vulnerable as insecure employment is now the 21st century's slave labour trade.
An example of this vulnerability. A colleague, labour hire, was involved in a safety incident at my job. Through no real fault of his, but by association, he was suspended pending investigation.
This took more than three months, all with no pay. He was forced, by his bank, to sell his house, with little prospect of getting another loan whilst on this insecure type of employment.
The investigation should have taken no longer than a week as the other person involved admitted his error and resigned, which he did not have to do.
What a government should be legislating for is for this not to ever happen again. They should be ensuring that people are in real full-time employment if they are working those hours. They should be legislating for more secure work. They should be legislating for ease of home ownership.
I am sure that Australia Industry Group and the other business lobby groups are happy with their result, but at what cost to Australia?
This country was a better, fairer country when unions were strong. People had a say then. Sadly it is only big business and money that talks now. Time to change and join a union as this will only get worse. It is in your hands people.
Glenn Jones, Weston
Declan right to make a stand
CONGRATULATIONS Declan Clausen and Ben Mitchell for their stand against homophobia in the workplace. ("No excuse, we all deserve to be safe at work", Opinion, 4/8).
It is true that Newcastle council has been progressive on lesbian, gay and transgender issues - supporting the Pride Festival, the YES equal marriage rights campaign and in the 1990s it supported HIV/AIDS patients and parents and partners and was one of a handful of councils that included lesbians and gays in its community engagement commitment.
But in the past, anti-gay laws and attitudes, have made life hell for older lesbians and gays in Newcastle and the Hunter.
Some examples:
- 1948: Supt Clifford of Newcastle Police suggested "civilians" become vigilantes and round up homosexuals;
- 1952: Fifteen members of one of Australia's first homosexual social groups were arrested for "unnatural (homosexual) offences";
- 1958: After the Newcastle Morning Herald reported his being charged with "abominable crimes", a young man committed suicide;
- 1977: Police centred their questioning on "homosexual activities" rather than focus on the murder of Alan Edge. Some gays lost their jobs or were ostracised by their parents.
Older LGBTIQ community members can recall many more. The Herald conservatively reported 107 men charged with indecent assault (with each other) in the 15 years between 1955-1970 and 36 men charged with abominable (buggery) offences in the same period. Tragically, these "offences'' would be legal now.
John Witte, Mayfield West
Peaking plants not the answer
ARE we already there by meeting a net-zero emission target for coal-fired power stations?
Considering a net-zero number is to produce no more carbon emission than was produced in the year 2005, thus no more power stations have been built since 2005, with a couple closing and the remainder not producing what they originally produced in 2005 because of age, why are they being condemned when ahead of target?
I believe they deserve to be replaced with the latest technology to continue providing non-stop cleaner power for the next 40 years, something wind and sunshine will never achieve, or guarantee, rather than building peaking plants.
Peaking plants are going back in time to when most communities had their own small power station, which didn't work then, and won't work now, peaking plants keep up with demand, and power stations keep ahead of demand.
If we can't keep ahead of demand with power supply, how can we plan for the future with the electric road transport knocking at the door?
Carl Stevenson, Dora Creek
Leaders can't handle criticism
LIKE the leaders of Australia's charities, ("Changes concern charities", Herald, 4/8), I have great fears about the motives of the federal government's planned legislation to restrict the activities of non-government organisations.
These include the hard-working groups of volunteers that often do essential work for which our government refuses to accept responsibility, in many cases keeping people alive in our increasingly unequal society.
The actions that will in future be called "unlawful behavior," and result in de-registration, include being critical of government policies, about which the charities often know more than the politicians themselves.
Again, we see an example of political leaders who refuse to accept any criticism of their actions, even when they are obviously wrong. Remember Robodebt.
Doug Hewitt, Hamilton
SHORT TAKES
I WONDER if anyone realises that the AstraZeneca vaccination is still safer than catching the virus. Statistically, from what I have been able to find out, side effects from AZ are less than many other things people have no qualms about eg. many medicines (Panadol), many snack foods. Then again, here in Newcastle, it has been very difficult to get vaccinated with anything. Whereas my family that live in Sydney and Coffs Harbour had little problem in booking in for a vaccination.
Kath Bow, Wallsend
I ALWAYS said that when the vaccination started they should have targeted the higher populated areas like the cities in all states. It has come to haunt us now that this seems to be the problem where vaccines that were issued for country areas are being redirected to Sydney for the huge outbreak. We are seeing the worst of people in country areas who are now complaining but would they be complaining if they were in the same position as Sydney and needing some way of slowing down the infection rate.
Allen Small, East Maitland
CASH payments for getting vaccinated. You've got to be kidding, isn't not dying from COVID-19 enough incentive.
Peter Selmeci, Murrays Beach
WE should keep the politics out of COVID, it doesn't help the problem. For some to say we're being left out because Newcastle is a Labor area is ridiculous. The outbreak in Sydney needs all the help we can give them. It's the Australian way. Gladys asked all states for help and four Labor state governments refused to help. Now that's not the Australian way, shame on them all.
Phil Payne, Gateshead
IN reply to Debra Forbes, (Short Takes, 4/8), regarding sending vaccines to Sydney. It took me years to realise we weren't a suburb of Sydney. My reason being we had lived in the 'Big Smoke' (Sydney). After some time I found myself thinking 'It's only Newcastle'.
Daphne Hughes, Kahibah
LOCKDOWN: I vote for short, sharp and sudden!
Luke Taper, Georgetown
AUSTRALIA today is a good example of the Stanley Milgram experiment gone real world.
Darryl Thurston, Salamander Bay
HOW will the merging of the two Newcastle building societies benefit this area when competition will be reduced?
Dianne McDonald, Cardiff
I WONDER if the same thing will happen with the merger of the Newcastle Permanent and Greater Newcastle building societies as happened with NIB? NIB was once "owned" by its members, not shareholders. My great grandfather, Richard Scott Blakey, was one of those who started the original Starr Bowkett, which went on to become the Newcastle Permanent, with the aim of helping workers to eventually own their own homes. I hope the newly-merged Newcastle Perm/Greater doesn't eventually become just another big bank.
