I was a long-term timekeeper for the Knights and I recall Jarrod joining the Knights' system as a 15-year-old.

From the beginning he was a loyal and committed member of the Knights squad. He worked hard and he never complained if a call went against him.

Did he make a mistake in 2017, when on poor advice, and under pressure to continue playing the game he loved, he used an illegal substance? Yes he did.

Should he be treated as an outcast, and have his illustrious career ignored? No he should not. I call on Knights supporters to remember the good and not focus on a young man's poor decisions.

AT the end of his letter Milton Caine states: "It may be time for a more sober look at all the facts and not just a few that support your story" (Letters, 9/12).

This is excellent advice. The process he is criticising is called "confirmation bias" but more commonly goes by the name "cherry picking" and it is widely used by people on both sides of the climate change debate.

You are guilty of cherry picking if from a mass of data you select one or a few pieces that seem to support your view on a subject and ignore the rest.

Mr Caine seems to understand perfectly well that cherry picking is a crime against logic so I found it surprising that his letter, apart from the section quoted above, is itself a classic example of cherry picking.

He asks us to believe that unusually cold weather occurring currently in a few locations throws doubt on the whole concept of man-made climate change.

In fact by itself this tells us nothing at all about the subject.

MR Morrison wants to drain the public service "swamp".

In this so-called swamp are real people who have worked in trusted, professional jobs serving Australians with dedication. Morrison is draining this "swamp" as these workers take their Christmas leave knowing their jobs are going. What heartless timing from Morrison. No doubt he'll pray for them.

With terms like "draining the swamp" Morrison is sounding more like Trump's clown than just a clone.

MS Miller ('Petition show of support', Herald, 12/12) should be careful what she wishes for in "keeping the baths pavilions largely intact". But can the council please ensure that the hitching rail for horse and buggies and the water trough be put back in the parking area as those pesky, smelly and noisy horseless carriages will never take off.

I BELIEVE it's about time people stopped believing Scott Morrison is a god and his cabinet his disciples. To expect him to bring an end to bushfires by having a climate emergency discussion, to combat what some call climate change caused bushfires and drought, really shows how little they know about Australia.

The weather is as it is, has always been and always will be (unpredictable), there is nothing our prime minister can do that will change or redirect weather, both good or bad. That comes from other places. The best he or anyone can do is be prepared for the worst. You can go 100 per cent renewable energy, stop mining and exporting coal and convert all transport to electric, but all this won't change wind direction, create rain clouds or stop droughts. We are at the mercy of stupidity where some believe the prime minister can control the weather, he may be good but not that good.

COULD someone, preferably not an empty-headed politician, tell me why the fly ash from Eraring Power Station could not be loaded onto empty coal wagons and taken back up to the Hunter Valley open-cut mines to be used as back fill?

It could be used to fill the voids and a layer of topsoil put over it for rehabilitation of the area. Eraring already has a rail loop nearby to facilitate loading. After transport back to an unloading facility in the Hunter Valley, the fly ash could then be turned into a liquid slurry and piped to the voids. After unloading, the wagons could then be reloaded with coal for transport to the harbour.

WE hear people more increasingly complaining there is no work. This is at odds with some politicians who tell us we should get a job. It seems these politicians (who have a job) don't care how old, frail or disabled one may be. Unemployed people are a burden on the taxpayer, they say. They don't care to consider the many decades these elderly people were taxpayers.

But where did all the jobs go? Of course our clever leaders sent all our work overseas to build our ships, submarines, trains, cars and Xmas cards. Yes Xmas cards, I sought an authentic Aussie Xmas card to send to foreign friends and on the back was that familiar advice - "made in China". Not only have our clever leaders sent our work overseas they import foreign workers so more Aussies can go on the dole.

It seems to me someone got it all wrong. It's very clear that our workers and ordinary citizens are not profiting from their jobs being handed onto foreigners as demonstrated by the burgeoning homeless littering our rail stations and streets

CHRISTMAS is a time of year most people cherish. But for some, it is not. Working with disadvantaged young adults I recently was told by an 18-year-old how she hated Christmas as a child. The hope Santa would bring her gifts, to find nothing destroyed her. Always wondering what she did so wrong to be on the naughty list each and every year. Only to realise years later that the drug and drinking problem of her father was why she was left without. At this time of year, it is important to give and support charity. We support charity not to help those who inflict harm on their families, it's to help those impacted by no fault of their own.

THE Herald pen goes to Tony Machen for his letter about Jarrod Mullen.