Mr Dutton's hard work reducing asylum seeker arrivals is unravelling before the eyes of the nation. Throw out compassion, throw out common sense. I believe the one-size-fits-all, heavy-handed approach to the Tamil family ('Rally calls for family to stay', Newcastle Herald 2/9) would be more at home in Russia or China.

If Mr Dutton can make this more political and less like common sense, I would give him an award. Meanwhile, one poor family is being torn apart. Well done Mr Dutton.

PETER Dutton is correct, morally and politically ('Australians rally for Tamil family', Herald 2/9). As someone whose business semi-adopted a very troubled Vietnamese boat boy, taking him into our home at times, I take very, great umbrage at the criticism of Mr Dutton, who is quite correctly; morally, and politically doing his duty in deporting the Biloela Tamil family back to Sri Lanka ('Rally calls for family to stay', Herald 2/9). These people were warned before having children they would not be granted refugee status, and there are other very relevant factors affecting their claims.

In my opinion we cannot go on so needlessly (and so dangerously) creating precedents that will allow for future hordes of illegal immigrants. Their Aussie taxpayer-funded lawyers (not to mention Aussie taxpayer-employed Labor left-wing stacked tribunal and judiciary members) will almost certainly exploit any new loopholes.

Yes, by all means financially (and otherwise) support the unfortunate in their own countries, however Australia cannot become a dumping ground for the world's problems, just as I've witnessed occur first hand in the UK, Europe and Scandinavia. To all those clamouring for this Tamil family to stay (and demonising Peter Dutton for doing the correct thing by all Australians), I say it is all very well to have a very caring heart, but only if it is matched by an equally careful head. Mr Dutton has both.

THE brilliance of Peter Lewis (Opinion, 31/8) acknowledges the life of Joy Cumming, a pioneer and a woman of stature now immortalised in recognition of her role as the first Australian female lord mayor.

LAST week we had bush fires along the east coast ('Blazing Belmont', Newcastle Herald 23/8), now the same area is hit with torrential rain, but perversely not in the storage catchment or the rest of country which is in the worst drought on record ('Rain falls but restrictions still coming', Herald 2/9).

The Murray-Darling Basin, the vast river system that stretches across South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland is all but dead because of what the royal commission report described as "gross maladministration" (Guardian 31/1).

The Great Barrier Reef has been declared to be bad and getting worse. In the middle of this climate-induced catastrophe, a group of Labor luminaries voiced their support for our continued reliance on coal, perhaps shattering the believe that if things get bad enough politicians will act ('Friends of coal group 'childish'', Herald 3/8).

So here is a solution: let us acknowledge that climate change is not caused by greenhouse gases, after all there was no problem when they stood at 290 parts per million.

Climate change is caused by human activity that is wedded to economic growth, and emissions have increased as part of that growth process. Economists and politicians fixated with GDP growth ignore scientific advice with the full knowledge that their policies are the driver of climate change, yet in their ignorance or vanity they will not contemplate a steady state economy.

I TOTALLY agree with the anonymous writer in Saturday's letters (Letters, 31/8), who expressed dismay at the lack of road courtesy they had been subjected to.

On a daily basis, I am a victim of careless, erratic behaviour on my daily commute. Not one to generalise, but the perpetrators are usually males in their late 20s to early 30s, once fit and now sporting a word in illegible tattooed script on their fat right forearm illegally resting on the door sill.

They are often driving a dual-cab ute or large four-wheel drive with bull bar, driving lights, snorkel, oversized tyres and any number of other four-wheel driving accoutrements that will probably never be called into action for their intended purpose.

In my opinion these road warriors have an inflated sense of self-importance, and therefore think that tail-gating and boorish behaviour is their civil right, though it could be argued that they do not think after entering their cars, instead choosing to discard all intelligent road-use strategies and otherwise electing to be a bogan. The struggle is real.

TO Saturday's anonymous writer (Letters, 31/8), it's time you traded in your button-up boots for a copy of the road rules. Give way to the right disappeared decades ago.

Who goes first at four-way stop signs is decided by negotiation. However, this is being made more difficult lately by a proliferation of illegally-tinted windows. That is, tinting forward of the driver's shoulder. Don't expect anything to happen about this soon, either. Highway Patrol officers seem to like their anonymity too.

Traffic authorities appear to be making suggestions of give way to the right, but that is not the law. I believe that move seems mainly directed at making the police's already inconspicuous workload even lighter.

The fact is we could all take a good, detailed look at the rules of the road, particularly about moving out from the kerb, behaviour on and approaching roundabouts, and who goes first when two lanes become one without a broke lane-end line.

At least five seconds of indication is required before moving from a kerb into a traffic flow. And indication is also required before exiting a roundabout.

I was nearly run down twice last week by a Black Mariah suddenly changing direction towards me without warning. It's interesting, because anyone in the back would have been there because they broke the law.

Also remember to give way to any vehicle already on a roundabout. I am tiring of drivers charging at me when I am already in, just because of their mistaken belief that they can go first because they are on the right.

About two lanes becoming one when there isn't a broken lane-end line, priority is given to the most-advanced vehicle. Please take particular note of this entering Honeysuckle Drive at the western end.

TO Peter Dolan (Letters, 29/8) in regard to his response to my letter (Short Takes 26/8): if anything, I believe the Pell case and the Chamberlain case tend to mirror each other. The only similarity is, in both cases is you had a predator and a victim. In the Chamberlain case neither could give evidence, but in the Pell case both could. One is lying. I believe most Australians believe the guilty verdict against George Pell was correct, as did two of the three judges ('Calls for Vatican to defrock Pell', Herald 29/8).

I HAD an embarrassing exit from the car park at Westfield Kotara on Friday. After only spending around 75 minutes there (and with three hours of free parking), I held up the 2.30pm school pick-up exit traffic jam as I wasn't allowed out until I paid $6. This was my second visit to the shopping centre for the day, having left around 40 to 45 minutes earlier. I spoke to centre management on my way home (with steam still coming out of my ears) and was told the system doesn't reset for 45 minutes after a car's exit. My two visits, therefore, were seen as one and attracted a charge. With all the smart technology in car parks these days, I don't think this is good enough. Westfield, you have (at least) one unhappy customer.

DEAR Facebook users, please stop sending your stupid hoaxes to me. Please stop posting your seriously puerile cut-and-paste warnings that suggest that some random person is going to hack my device. Can I suggest that you actually read before you cut and paste? Regain your brains and think. Facebook is turning our brains into mush. Please start thinking again.

MARK Creek (Short Takes, 31/8; Short Takes, 24/8) fails to address the issues in letters to which he replies. There are genuine concerns over Supercars. Instead, in my opinion he chooses to confuse objections over wristbands for residents with wristbands for race goers. He should go to Newcastle East residents and collect his wristband and vehicle pass which he must display when told to, to access his own suburb, park in his own driveway and enter his own home. Mr Creek, resident wristbands (tickets) can easily be excluded from official numbers. Why haven't they been ('Race hits state target', 3/7/18)?

A MASSIVE achievement by the Under 13s Gropers rugby union team: four years together, three losses, four grand final wins and undefeated this year. One of the smallest teams in a tough competition, they are undoubtedly the giant slayers. A huge congrats to the players coaches and parents. A stellar effort.

IN response to Matt Ophir and Karen Scriven (Short Takes, 21/3): these are pure patriarchal responses. No, it's not utter lunacy to go around abusing women alone in their cars for driving a few kilometres over the speed limit. And that terrible mother who put her child in grave danger! Lucky he was there to say something, huh? He really saved the day. Amusing and concerning.