I FIND it increasingly frustrating and annoying about the publicity anti-vaxxers and their hangers-on are receiving almost every day. Also, the angry looks on their faces and their aggressive and confrontational attitude.

As a 72-year-old I recall many times, especially in my younger days, when I was against the government but over the years I was able to mature in forming my opinions.

I particularly recall the angst and opposition when seatbelts became compulsory and then how even opponents saw how many lives it saved. Ditto random breath testing, hotly opposed even by many experienced drivers but eventually accepted as being another life-saving law. Now we have a situation where for a plethora of reasons, some absolutely ludicrous, people are refusing to be vaccinated. My advice is to wake up, grow up and accept that vaccination is not only advisable but essential.

HAVE our leaders learnt anything yet? I refer to two articles: "Jab equity urged amid variant fears", and "RBA sees economic risk from variants", Herald, 9/10.

In Australia, some state leaders have their heads in the sand hoping the virus will go away. Even New Zealand's low vaccine rate is due to an elimination strategy, shown to be impossible. With less than 5 per cent of people on the African continent fully vaccinated, the World Health Director- General says inequitable distribution of vaccine is both "immoral and stupid" as "variants will emerge and current efforts in developed countries will fall apart." The Reserve Bank of Australia made a similar assessment.

We squabble about which vaccine we like best with little regard for countries that don't have access at all. This pandemic has made inequity within and between countries so evident. When will all world leaders work together?

I FINALLY have a COVID-19 certificate inside my phone. Many, many thanks go to my son. I started (by myself) on Tuesday last and I ended up in something that wanted my name, date of birth, motor vehicle licence number, passport number. Of course I did not enter any information requested and promptly left. I've since been told it is fair dinkum and is a real Australian government site within MyGov.au. So back to COVID-19 certificate. I had another go on Wednesday, Thursday. No result, just ridiculous.

My son dropped in this morning and the first thing rang Service NSW. This was around 8:30 and while he worked on our phones I listened to the most dreadful music ever composed. Eventually I had to turn off the phone, although we had advanced up the line six times in the meantime. What I am writing about is just how difficult a lot of us oldies find it is to be current with App's. What we really need is a 15/17 GrandDaughter or Grandson within about 500 yards of our home or whatever that is in metric feet. Basically, thanks to my son my wife and I are up to date with our COVID-19 State and Federal laws. Hip, hip, hooray.

THE hundreds of thousands of dollars City of Newcastle has spent on new, and extending cycleways in Hunter and Scott Streets appears not to be attracting too many cyclists. It is very annoying to have a cyclist creep up behind you as you are walking along the pedestrian footpath (south side of Scott St) with an empty shared cycleway just across the road. The other problem the pedestrian has on these streets is the increasing popularity of e-scooters and e-skateboards trying to share the same narrow footpath. They seem to disregard the older generation who like to use these paths and some seem to get a thrill from zapping around you to show off their riding skills.

I have a suggestion for the council, and that is to include skateboarders and scooter riders into the cycleways and rename these designated lanes - scooter / cycle / skateboard lanes - for short S/C/S lanes and design a suitable identification symbol to paint on the pavement to show it is for these users. At the same time install suitable signage on the pedestrian-only paths to say the skateboarders, scooter and cycle riders are legally not to use these paths.

With the upcoming council elections in December, perhaps some of our ward contenders could look at this increasing problem and offer some help or comment.

POLITICIANS don't change their minds anymore. They "pivot". Slowly, almost imperceptibly, they inch away from one conviction towards another. On arrival, it hardly seems like they've changed their mind at all. The commentariat, mightily impressed, writes opinion pieces praising their political cleverness, and events move on.

After concluding he'd extracted all the political mileage he could from willful neglect and intransigence, the prime minister began pivoting on net zero emissions at least 12 months ago. With exquisite timing, he'll announce a policy for net zero by 2050 just in time for the Glasgow climate summit. By sheer coincidence, we are told, the Murdoch media's shameless "Mission Zero" campaign will be in full swing. Such is the public fatigue and impatience on the issue, the monumental cynicism of it all will probably pass with little comment.

And the Nationals? Undaunted, it seems they'll push on in pursuit of their ambition to be the last organised political party on earth to accept the need for change. Just as it also seems that, long after they do, Peter Devey, (Letters, 15/10), will still be writing letters saying it was all a false alarm.

THE latest on Deputy PM and Nationals leader, Barnaby Joyce, is that he is getting hard and tough on social media and trolls, ("Barnaby Joyce backs social media crackdown", Herald 7/10). His daughter, Bridgette, is the victim of gossip and innuendo concerning the former NSW Nationals leader, John Barilaro, and Joyce is all revved up which is totally understandable.

He has been pushing the PM to act immediately to protect Australians from Twitter and Facebook and the anonymous individuals who spit vitriol and lies.

One can only admire Joyce's stand but it took personal circumstances to move him. Pity he hasn't the same urgency for action on climate change. His support of the Murugappan family who are still stuck in community detention in Western Australia has waned. Blood is thicker than water.

MOVE the Supercars to The Hill, Merewether, Bar Beach, Dixon Park. Show the world our beautiful beaches and magnificent ocean-front homes, a real estate agent's dream. Newcastle East have done their bit. It's time, Gough.

ONE wonders what the public reaction would be if a mosque or church deliberately disobeyed public health orders instead of a pub. Would the average Aussie punter be vocal in their support of a mosque or church for breaking the law in the name of freedom?

RACHEL Jenkins (Short Takes, 16/10), I've never thought of governments as being monsters. But now that you mention it, monsters incite fear, which along with hysteria have been a big part in governments rhetoric around COVID from day one. As far as vaccinations go, the story is a work in progress. Time will tell.

CAN we please have an explanation from the council as to how a councillor and also the lord mayor can use in-house legal lawyers to issue a letter of demand for defamation against a ratepayer, which I would think is a personal remedy?

I BELIEVE the recent story ("Green steel from old tyres", Herald 13/10) misrepresents the major role of coking coal; it is used in iron-making, to convert iron ores to molten iron, saturated with carbon (around 4%). The carbon is then burned off by combining with oxygen injected in the basic oxygen steelmaking process. Electric arc steelmaking uses steel scrap and solid iron. Any carbon additions would be minimal.

IAN Kirkwood has to get my vote for being thoroughly independent. I still firmly believe that party politics has no place in local government. I was of the opinion that councillors were there to serve the rate paying public. Bring on the election so we can have our say.

MAC Maguire, I was a member of the Labor party, a union delegate and an official of the union. That's the basis of my comment, as requested. It is apparent that you missed Albo's pledge that when he took office he would work with the present government rather than snipe. Sorry, but he has done little or nothing to help. He has done nothing but whine, complain and criticise the government on things that are obvious to blind Freddie. They would have no idea of how to do it themselves. I will not start to give him other examples as the Herald would have to run a special supplement to cover it allOpen your eyes and ears and think about how you could help instead of bagging those whose opinions differ to yours.