Letters to the editor October 3 2018

No needle, and he is unable to play.

I believe it sets an astonishingly bad example for young players.

It is not courage, but foolhardiness.

How would have his teammates felt if, in the first tackle of the game, Cooper was unable to continue?

One man down in their most important game. 

Despite that, congratulations to the Roosters.

They were completely dominant.

AROUND 50 years ago at East Maitland Park  I sent off a prominent Maitland identity’s son for a deliberate head butt in a scrum in a major semi-final of the under-15’s competition.

On Sunday night, during the NRL grand final, the whole wide wonderful world witnessed the action of the Melbourne Storm’s number six seeming to deliberately kick one of the Sydney Roosters, who was lying prone on the ground in the grand final.

Yet the head referee took the cop-out of using the on report and sin bin system for something it was never created for. 

What does he call a send-off offence? Shame on him.

IS IT not too late to forget about building submarines and go back to the “good old days” when Australia leased a lot of warfare equipment? 

There was always lots of repair work done here, with employment of the skilled locals, and many of the imported ones emigrating here and training others. 

Why try and keep up with the Jones’ when these other countries are way ahead of us? 

Why not spend more money on training diplomats with language skills and avoid our country becoming a target when disputes occur?

STEVE Barnett (Short Takes 2/10) and Jim Todhunter (Letters 2/10) express outrage at perceived slights against middle-aged white males.

As a middle-aged white male, I understand fully the privileges I enjoy. 

It’s largely middle-aged white males, voted in by middle-aged white men like me, who make the laws in this country, and they advantage me over all minorities.

Even over my middle-aged white wife. 

I have job opportunities and, as a consequence, tax laws that advantage me.

Police have no interest in me because of my middle-aged whiteness.

There are plenty more advantages, and I didn’t earn them. 

I just fluked being born a white male. 

Steve and Jim, I believe you are choosing to be outraged and to play the victim card.

But that’s becoming typical middle-aged white male behaviour lately.

NATHAN Vass (‘SA now needs us’, Opinion 27/9) intimates that an excess of wind power was responsible for the South Australian statewide blackout.

The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) and industry experts assert that was not the case.

While the AEMO does warn of a 10 per cent chance of South Australia load shedding, it is only if no additional capacity is added before peak summer demands.

I suspect the Australian Energy Market Operator are more concerned that coal-dependent states that experienced around 50 major generator failures last summer.

As Nathan suggests, South Australia imports electricity from other states. But it is actually a net exporter.

A Climate and Energy College graph shows South Australian customers paid an electrical spot price premium 100 per cent above eastern states customers in 2000, reducing to 25 per cent by 2001 and staying there until 2018.

This period also saw the closure of the state’s coal fired station, and the proportion of wind energy growing from minimal in 2000 to 45 per cent in 2018.

With the latest wind farms signing contracts below $55 per megawatt hour they are now driving prices down, not up.

Even coal-fired power stations cannot compete at these levels.

High efficiency low emission (HELE) coal plants, with their costs estimated to be 30 per cent greater than current plants, would be condemned to operate only when insufficient renewable energy was available.

That mode of operation would greatly increase their maintenance problems and operating costs.

Little wonder the AEMO don’t share Nathan’s HELE vision.

READ MORE: Today’s Short Takes

I WOULD like to address two comments in Tuesday’s Herald.

Firstly, I would like to endorse Carl Stevenson comment about donations (Letters 2/10). 

We also get called numerous times during the evening to donate, and not knowing how much actually goes to the charity we have stopped.

Now, we only donate to the Pink Ladies at Belmont Hospital.

Secondly, I would also like to endorse the comments from Daryll Hadfield (Letters 2/10) on our hospital system.

I recently was admitted to the John Hunter intensive care ward and the cardiac F3 ward.

While there I received the very best of professional help, and the care and attention given by all was greatly appreciated by myself and my family. 

For the skill and the attention give to me and my family, we can never say thank you enough.

SINCE the privatisation of Newcastle transport, many people have to walk further to their nearest bus stop, endure a couple of changes of buses to reach their destination, and the whole journey takes longer than it did pre-privatisation.

This is difficult for older people.

Yet, the state government’s answer to traffic and parking in Newcastle is making parking more difficult and expensive as a way of driving public transport use.

Will only the young, fit or wealthy be able to access the Newcastle CBD in future?

Email letters@theherald.com.au or send a text message to 0427 154 176 (include name and suburb). Letters should be fewer than 200 words. Short Takes should be fewer than 50 words. Correspondence may be edited and reproduced in any form.