Letters To The Editor

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Roundabout views

Returning from a rare night trip to Lismore I drove up Ballina Street towards the Rotary Drive roundabout. As I neared the roundabout a police car with all lights ablaze was coming fast from the East and disappeared behind all the junk which now blocks the view of traffic near the roundabout. Sheer instinct made me brake hard because I guessed that the invisible police car would go down Rotary Drive, which it did, at creditable speed although I had not seen any trafficator indication of it's intention to do so because of the obstructed view of traffic near the roundabout.

I would remind Council that roundabouts are there to make roads safer, which they do if Council stops regarding them as suitable receptacles for bulky "art" and obstruct the clear view necessary for traffic safety.

Get it away pronto!

Nat B Wheatley
Alstonville

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Pot stirrer

I was stunned to read the remarkable claims in Michael Robinson's letter (Echo, Oct 16).

I was interviewed on national television with him on this very subject only last May. In this interview he told viewers he didn't have a problem with cannabis used as a medicine, seems he has changed his mind.

I do not know where he got the statement 'HIV patients who smoke pot tend to develop AIDS and die faster than those who do not', but in a discussion off camera, I told Mr Robinson I had been smoking cannabis as treatment of HIV for over 15 years. Now I know May was some time ago but I can assure Mr Robinson I am not only still alive and have not developed cancer but I am still happy (no obvious depression), hungry (despite relentless nausea) and my immune system is stronger today than it was in 1988.

If we need to talk about mental impairment caused by painkillers, the medical alternative to cannabis for me is opiates - heavily psychoactive with known overdose levels and proven addictive properties. This is not a choice, Mr Robinson I am alive today because of cannabis.

Justin Brash
Surry Hills

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School fate

After a day of meetings with Department of Education and Training representatives the fate of Young and Powerful School now rests in the hands of Dr Andrew Refshauge, State Minister for Education and Training and Minister for Aboriginal Affairs.

Please show the Minister how much this community cares about the school by contacting Dr Refshauge on phone: (02) 9228 4499, fax: (02) 9228 4400 or write to:

Dr Andrew Refshauge, M.P.
Level 31 Governor Macquarie Tower
1 Farrer Place
Sydney NSW 2000.

Tarryn Corlet
Goonellabah

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Road rort

This week I went to an RTA office to obtain a copy of the current Road Users' Handbook.

Obviously, it is necessary to know the road rules if you are to comply with them.

I was horrified to find that the Handbook is no longer given out on application for a Learners permit, and in fact it is not given to new applicants for a License, at any stage.

It is sold, at a cost of $26.

I was told that a copy was available at the Library, if I needed to read it, and I could access it on the internet. You and I know that many young people do not have easy access to the internet when they might need to check a road rule or requirement. They cannot carry the local Library building around in the glove box. And, most importantly, many, many, young people have little money and I am sure would therefore not buy a copy.

Surely, if we want safety on the roads, our society should look at making it absolutely easy for our youth to access the road rules.

Increasingly I wonder just why we do pay taxes. Is even such an essential source of community safety and driver education to be made less accessible to those who need it most, and are least able to pay?

I ask that this $26 charge should be immediately ceased.

You may have some positive suggestions as to how we can alter this situation.

I suggest that you make your demand for review of this practise. Do it today. Take action, by writing to the NSW Government, via the minister, the Hon. Carl Scully MP, and by contact with local members of the Government, and of the Opposition.

Colleen Morgan
Iluka

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Teachers' Day

On Thursday October 30, Australia celebrates World Teachers' Day. The theme for the day, celebrated in other parts of the world on October 5, is 'Teachers - Opening Doors to a Better World'.

It is a time for teachers, the pillars of education, to be recognised as not merely the suppliers of facts and figures, but as those who inspire young minds, unlock potential and realise dreams.

At this time of year, when schools are holding their Orientation sessions for next year's Kindergarten children and their parents, the important role of teachers is especially apparent.

In just two hours with 25 of her 2004 children, the Kindergarten teacher at Lismore South PS was keen to discuss with some parents her initial observations that several of the children had not developed their dominant handedness and that others had trouble with the fine motor skill of using scissors.

By the end of the weekly Orientation sessions, this teacher will have developed a great knowledge of these children whose lives she will guide in their first year at school. This does not happen by chance. This teacher, like all others teaching Kinder to Year 12 in NSW public schools, has the skills and the appropriate qualification for her vital role.

In celebrating World Teachers' Day, I would urge all readers to thank a teacher for opening doors to a better world for all our children.

Jenny Dowell
Goonellabah

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Birds crack ton

A few days after writing to you a bout the 99 species of birds recorded for Lismore Lake, I was phoned by a young man staying at the Caravan park saying he had sighted the 100th bird - a Tawny Frogmouth nesting in the Van Park area. I went out to see for myself and met William Buckley and his wife, over here from WA.

So taken are they with our area, that they are now negotiating to buy a property in Keen Street, which actually overlooks the northern end of Lismore Lake.

I wonder why it is that some members of Lismore Council are blind to the possibilities of making of Lismore Lake a really beautiful passive recreation area that would be an asset to our town, and a draw card for visitors that appreciate birdlife, and for all those people that are interested in the preservation of our natural environment. Why not treasure this opportunity now?

Molly Crawford
Lismore

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Cannabis debate

I have known too many people who have lived miserably or died painfully to have patience with the Government's intrusive attempts to stall open and honest discussion on medical cannabis between doctors and their patients. I've known one too many old men who have spent their final months nauseated and vomiting while their distressed and helpless families watched.

One too many women with cancer who linger, bone-thin and languid, as their loved ones beg for 'something' to make them feel better.

And I, like so many carers, have witnessed the therapeutic relief that many such patients experience after using cannabis. Their illnesses become less miserable, their difficult deaths are made more tolerable.

And those reasons explain precisely why the Australian Government's relentless attempts to bar patients from access to medical cannabis constitute both cruel and unusual crimes against us all. They are wrong-headed and politically driven obsessions, not compassionate advisements intended to relieve human suffering.

As a patient, when I'm feeling ill, I don't want John Howard's or Bob Carr's opinion about the best medical treatment for my condition. When someone I love visits a medical clinic because she is sick to death, I hope that she will be met by a doctor who will give her truthful advice born of experience and a focused dedication to her well being. I pray that she is not met by police with no clinical skills whose primary allegiance is to a political agenda.

As a human being, I am stunned by the intensity of our authoritative bodies and 'anti-drug' groups obsession with medical cannabis. It boggles my mind to think that our government officials are spending so much time and money to obstruct the use of a medication that might actually help cancer patients find relief from pain or tolerate their chemotherapy, AIDS patients gain a little weight and feel better, those with MS may finally relieve some cramping, or maybe just a good night sleep for an old lady with bad osteo.

We have yet to see any data from the Government that explains why medicinal cannabis should be excluded from use when pharmacy shelves already contain morphine and codeine - as well as an ever increasing list of unusual concoctions and drugs that have longer side effect profiles.

I wish the Government would channel some of that energy towards, say, improving pain control in our debilitated nursing home patients. Or facilitating clinical research trials with medical cannabis so that credible science could replace emotional rhetoric about its efficacy.

Andrew Kavasilas
Nimbin

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Good show

I want to tell your readers about a terrific show I saw last weekend. Clark in Sarajevo is not an uplifting show, it is very confronting. In the current climate of lies and deceit from governments, where humanitarian reasons are the excuse for acts of terror and invasion - this show is a timely reminder.

The excellent set transports you to a war zone immediately upon stepping into the theatre, the lighting and sound are truly masterfully done. An excerpt from a press release has been added to the show and is a striking counterpoint to the rest of the show. The performances are heartfelt and intense and no single actor can be selected for special mention as they are all powerful performances.

If you are after an evenings provocative entertainment - one that makes you think - take this opportunity to see this show. This weekend Thursday, Friday and Saturday are your last chances to see one of the best pieces done locally in a long while.

Gray Wilson
Lismore Heights

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School food

Childhood obesity is very much a topical subject right now. Therefore I fail to understand how Primary School canteens can continue to sell the rubbish to children offered on canteen menus.

I have a 7-year-old daughter attending Primary School where the canteen sells a majority of 'fast' greasy food. It is not my choice for her to eat such food. In the past requests to stop selling 'junk' have been met with the response "Healthy food won't sell as well".

I am of the opinion (based on my own practises) that if you don't offer junk food and offer a variety of good healthy food children will eat a more healthy diet. I have seen articles in the media regarding schools who have made such changes to canteen menus.

I challenge all schools and P&C associations to do the same. Its great that the Department of Health and Government bodies are working hard on this issue, but it needs to happen closer to home with parental choice and school support. I encourage parents who are concerned to take a stand with their school/P&C and ask for canteen menu's to eliminate junk food. This is certainly what I will be doing.

Helen Beth
Lismore

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Legalise it

Tut tut Michael D. Robinson (Echo, Oct 23).

I stand for a 'drug' free Australia too - one where prescribed medicines are produced exclusively by the state and taken out of the hands of all private market multinationals or individuals whom simpletons such as yourself serve.

Any creditability you may have was wiped clear away by oxymoronic name of the organisation you represent. The strict denotation of the word drug is 'legalised medicine'. Then, let's cut close to the bone, Michael - what you're expounding with your main theme is illicit narcotics re addiction.

My dear man, by far and away the greater percentage of substance addicts in this world are sourced to legal products. They may not cause as much social damage as illicit substance abusers, granted. But why is this so Mr Robinson? Because the victims of your system (narcs) don't have the luxury of professional advice on the nature of usage, availability and dose. They are forced to use what they can procure, minus professional care. Hence the psychosis syndrome.

How many molecules, radical in marijuana produce its magical effect on the brain re pain? Too many for modern medicine to replicate in one package, that's for sure. You would do well to realise organic compounds found in plants such as poppy and cannabis often outperform synthetic creations (minus the dopamine triggers) that licit pharmaceuticals can manage for chronic pain management, minus most of the side effects. I urge Australians to petition their State and Federal MPs for a referendum to decriminalise and monopolise illicit narcotics, as a matter of urgency.

My model of sticks and carrots, as extolled in The People Dead is worth a read, Michael (Mitchell & National libraries). Please feel free to enlighten yourself. Modern monopolised pharmacology is but 100 years advanced, the Ancient Egyptian elite were using willow 3500 years ago.

Frankly, a generous course of 'dope' might loosen your constipated thought processes.

Arthur Dale
Lismore

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Other drugs

The majority of readers seem to pillory poor G. Wallace for his lack of education and humanity (though I am sure he is joking in the style of the 'Henry Root Letters' from the 1980's even the name 'G. Wallace' arouses suspicion), but there was a letter of such fascist content that I couldn't, as a good anarchist, let it pass without comment.

Michael Robinson (Echo, Oct 23) suggested that the purpose of the legal system is to have people "change their ways, for the good of the community and the good of the individual."

Of course we can rely on people like Michael to know instinctively what is good and what is bad. I assume that since his organisation is styled 'Drug Free Australia' he also has a long-term goal of criminalising (banning) alcohol and tobacco consumption as these drugs cause far more damage in the community than do the presently illegal drugs.

One can only wonder where to draw the line about what is good for the community and individual - I wouldn't like the idea but surely compulsory vegetarianism would be better for individuals and the community - less heart disease and less impact on the fragile Australian ecosystem by hoofed monsters or at the very least ban junk food takeaways, as it seems most Aussies can't control themselves and actually abuse their bodies with grease burgers and then expect to get their stomach stapled on the public medical bill.

Another thing that should be stopped immediately is the habit of buying goods on credit! If any practise is injurious to both individual and community it is obviously the purchase of crap consumer goods on the never-never, the cascading evils that this act causes would fill a book, let alone one short letter.

So, in short, lets gaol all meat-eating, Gold Card holders for the good of us all! Anyhow, I feel that the WA police deserve applause for their decision to target real crimes with real victims rather than drug use, where the punishment dished out is always worse than the crime and most users I have talked to seem to pay their fines by selling more drugs.

Surely a better system would be for the government to supply these addicts with the drug of their choice at a fair price (approx, one-fiftieth of current price), but have compulsory counselling and support if they want to access these cheap drugs. This would be a cheap system for the government to run and great for the crime rate since the figure that 80% of stealing is committed to buy drugs, it probably would result in an instant halving of the crime rate. The subsequent huge freeing up of police resources, the destruction of the black-market and the cessation of criminalising our youth for the use of pot are just a few of the benefits a sensible and accepting drug policy might achieve.

Although I concede that it would be nice to live in a drug free Australia, by continuing to attack the already disempowered, we simply continue on the same useless path that we have been following for 25 years with no long term reduction in illicit drug use.

Surely we have to attack the legal drugs, the presence of which in society normalise getting 'out of it' and drug dependence, so the switch to heroin or pot is just a small change of behaviour rather than a huge life change - the huge life change occurs when the addict finds they have to purchase non-Christian drugs on the black-market at a price that only a criminal income can afford.

Ross Macdonald
Nimbin

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Poet's Corner

Ode to Bart Cummings

The Melbourne Cup King
His first cup was nineteen fifty
The horse was Comic Court
He strapped for dad that year
No remuneration sought.

Light fingers won in sixty-five
Galillee in sixty-six
Bart's career now on a roll
This trainer had the mix.

Red handed won in sixty-seven
T'was three years in a row
Brought smiles to all the stable fans
As they raked in the dough.

From sixty seven to seventy
Bart had a 'winners' drought
Though Big Philou was a certainty
Til nobbling took him out.

Think big starred in seventy-four
And again in seventy-five
Gold and Black was stopped by rain
In which Van Der Hum did thrive.

Seventy-seven t'was Gold & Black
In seventy-nine - Hyperno
Bart's career again 'on fire'
Like a summer Oz inferno.

And then the bad times came again
No winners for ten years
The knockers all came out to laugh
And some were there to jeer.

Then along came nineteen ninety
And back came our King Bart
The horse was Kingston Rule
The race record did depart.

And again in nineteen ninety one
T'was Lets Elope that year
Who said Bart was finished?
Finished! No bloody fear.

Saintly won in ninety-six
T'was Bart's tenth cup win
And Rogan Josh in ninety-nine
You should have seen Bart grin.

Can he do it again this year?
He'll sure put a fight will
I be there to cheer him on?
You bet - too bloody right.

by Max Hitchins
From the E Book: Melbourne Cup - A Mug's Guide #2

www.TheMelbourneCup.com.au

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