Credit: Cathy Wilcox
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SPORTS CODES
I’m a footy and soccer enthusiast. I also have a young family. We went for dinner on Swan St before the A-League Grand Final on Saturday night. From our vantage point, the most dangerous aspect of the pre-match gathering (“Fans set off flares in Richmond ahead of A-League grand final”, 31/5) was the Victorian Police. While brash and noisy, the Victory fans were aware of families and other members of the public. The heavily armed police presence was not only imposing and heavy-handed but created unnecessary tensions. More dangerous still was the police blockade that forced the moving crowd into a small passage along Swan St. This could have turned into a dangerous crowd crush. While many flares were lit, no public property was damaged. Some media outlets have since described these scenes as chaos and civil unrest. I often wonder about the continued demonisation of soccer crowds.
Sam Bentley, Fitzroy
Unnecessary escalation
I have family members who are not particularly soccer followers, but love sport and went to the game Saturday evening. They said the police presence was aggressive, overdone and was more about the police trying to make their stamp, than settle supporters. They weren’t at all frightened by the flares, but were by the horses and police presence.
Maureen Gunn, Strathmore
Error of omission
Your correspondent’s concern about the behaviour of soccer fans in Richmond (Letters, 2/6) made no mention of the appalling behaviour of football fans on Saturday (“Man punched and kicked during MCG brawl”, 31/5). Is it only soccer fans who are perceived to be capable of such behaviour?
Kurt Elder, Port Melbourne
The original code
In response to your correspondent (“What’s in a name”, Letters, 2/6) the official and correct name for the great Australian game is Australian football, not Australian rules. Incidentally, your correspondent says it has less right to be called “football” but it was codified in 1859, making it the oldest football code, including association football.
Michael Pryor, Alphington
City rules
I concur with your correspondent, but would go one step further, and reference the local code as its original “Melbourne rules”. During that era of codification, all English codes were referenced by the institution or town where the code started; e.g. Rugby, Eton, Sheffield, and Cambridge, which was the likely basis of the Melbourne rules. Thomas Wills returned from the UK with that cultural baggage. Indeed, The Sydney Morning Herald was publishing the results under the heading of Melbourne rules as late as 1952. Soccer was just a contraction of association football, as rugger was a contraction of Rugby.
Mike Pantzopoulos, Ashburton
A thing of beauty
Some moments transcend the ordinary and stir something deep within us. The aurora borealis, painting the night sky with its ethereal dance of colour, is nature’s masterpiece. The electrifying opening riff of Money for Nothing by Dire Straits sends a pulse of energy through the veins. And then there’s the sublime movement of the football by Collingwood’s players, weaving magic through the midfield, turning Aussie rules into art with every pass and sidestep (“Hollywood Hawks have become a horror show after Collingwood smashing”, 31/5). These are the sights, sounds, and sensations that remind us of the beauty around us.
Darren Grindrod, Glenroy
A penalty too far
The AFL 50-metre penalty too often turns exciting action into a 10-metre kick right in front of goal. I know a penalty is necessary but too often it seems to be given for trivial infringements and has disproportionate consequences. How about 25 or 30 metres instead of 50?
Tony Owen, East Kew
THE FORUM
Quality housing
It is reasonable that there are concerns around health and safety of the former quarry and rubbish tip in Oakleigh South and concerns that Monash Council will be made responsible for monitoring the site after the completion of the development (“Plan to move 2500 residents onto former dump and quarry full of unstable ‘slime’,” 2/6.) The City of Monash has twice rejected development on this site.
There is a wealth of research proving why open space is beneficial to physical health and mental health, and also the environment. Plan for Victoria is the state government’s new blueprint for growth and development. Action 13 outlines the need to introduce minimum standards and guidance for open space in established urban areas. Planning isn’t just about providing housing. We owe it to residents now and into the future, to not only provide housing, but to provide quality housing in liveable suburbs. I agree with the suggestion to turn the space at Oakleigh South into a public park.
Yvonne Bowyer, Surrey Hills
Growth opportunity
While Melbourne needs more housing, clearly the toxic “slimes” of a former quarry in Oakleigh South is not the location. As The Age recently reported, University of Melbourne tree expert Dr Greg Moore has found that Melbourne is “losing canopy at about 1 to 1.5 per cent per annum and the consequences of this is the city is going to be much hotter”. Insects, birds and possums need houses too. Let’s turn the site into an urban forest for people and animals to inhabit, use and enjoy.
Ray Peck, Hawthorn
Let ideas soar
Ross Gittins is right (“Taxes will have to go up”, 2/6). As a Boomer enjoying the best corner of place and time history has ever offered, I cannot understand peers who insist the “middle-class welfare” gravy train should continue. Every day there are demands for more expenditure in areas from health to education to defence etc. Yet ask who pays and the “Little Red Hen” approach emerges and we duck for cover. Occasionally an idea emerges, and it is nullified by vested interests (e.g. the mining super profit tax). At elections a list of bribes is rolled out. Politicians and the media have an opportunity to start a debate about our economy now, clear of election static.
Michael Langford, Flinders
Wrong focus on tax
It’s again up to Ross Gittins to state the obvious. The concessions for the rich far outweigh the benefits for the most disadvantaged in Australia today. Capital gains, negative gearing etc. Funding to private schools far outweighing those to comparable public institutions. The fear of a backlash at the election is overriding doing what is right.
David Raymond, Doncaster East
Super shelter
The pressure being placed on the government’s proposal to tax super balances above $3 million, and in anyone’s language these are wealthy individuals, shows a misunderstanding of the purpose of superannuation. Superannuation is a vehicle to ensure working people have a reasonable income when they finish working. It’s not intended as a tax shelter for wealthy individuals, even if it’s often used for this. In any case, those fortunate enough to have such healthy sums to invest, are not forced to leave the funds in superannuation and be subject to the new tax. They can choose other investments, and of course will be subject to existing tax rules. There will, of course, be protests against the proposal, principally by those whose self-interest is affected. This shouldn’t deviate the government from implementing sound progressive policy.
Matthew Hamilton, Kew
New church
In the 1990s John Howard described the Liberal Party as a “broad church” incorporating both the classical liberalism of John Stuart Mill and the conservative values of Edmund Burke. Until the recent election it seemed to be a structure that served them well. The loosely connected teal independents also come from a wide political spectrum but could possibly find enough common ground to form a broad church of their own. All they need is a more persuasive name.
Sandra Torpey, Hawthorn
Quality candidates
If the federal Liberal Party holds any ambition to return to the treasury benches in 2028 it must undertake urgent reform. Factional warlords must be dealt with to ensure pre-selection of high quality candidates. The Liberal Party must redefine itself according to the vision of Menzies which was for an aspirational party of conservative social values with strong support for the liberal arts. The party must re-establish its economic credentials as the party of low taxation, yet be willing to massively increase defence spending. This means being willing to cut spending heavily in other areas.
Peter Curtis, Werribee South
Free to speak
I am increasingly concerned by the number of individuals who are “not authorised to speak publicly” or “speaking on the condition of anonymity”. Virtually every investigative piece in your masthead has a quote accompanied by such a proviso. I am beginning to wonder if we really have freedom of speech as a core tenet.
Mark Hulls, Sandringham
Mushroom tragedy
The Erin Patterson murder trial has brought back memories of a dreadful tragedy in my family. My great-grandfather James Norris was a splitter and in 1861 was working at an out-station called Brankup near Mosquito Plains. James’ wife Margaret was caring for the children Susan, Emma, Charles and Sophia aged between two and seven. She also had a baby at the breast. During the week that James was working at Brankup the family was camped under canvas. Shortly after James had started work Emma became ill and was not sleeping. James went for the doctor in the early morning and upon returning with Dr Gunning found that three-year-old Emma had died during his absence. Over the next three days Susan, Charles and Sophia all died. A magisterial investigation and subsequent coroner’s inquest found the deaths were caused by poison from eating mushrooms.
We were never sure where the children had been laid to rest. However, we decided with the help of the local historical society to concentrate our search in Adam Smith’s private cemetery. We commissioned a geophysicist and ground penetrating radar and in 2017 the graves were discovered. These four beautiful children all buried alongside each other. At last our family was able to find some peace. A memorial day was organised and many people from the district attended. My wife and I placed flowers on the graves.
Noel Norris, Casterton
A day’s work
Society must reassess how we decide what a person’s day of toil is worth (“What you need to earn to be in your Melbourne suburb’s top 1 per cent”, 2/1). To do this, we could go through an exercise where we take logical criteria and decide on a loading, or reduction, for each. Examples of the criteria that could be used are: the risk of death or injury; difficulty in achieving entry qualifications; physical and mental demands of the work; job security; responsibility for others; and the big one, the value of your work to society. There are other criteria that could be used such as: decisions you need to make in your job, which sacrifice your personal integrity; workplace amenity; difficulty in getting to work; and another big one, the quality of your work.
When I go through this exercise it is difficult to come up with a wage greater than twice what a terrific teacher or nurse receives. The rewards some people receive for their day’s work defy logic. Of course, protecting shareholder assets is often the criteria used for justifying this madness.
Howard Tankey, Box Hill North
Too rich?
ANU demographer Dr Liz Allen’s surprise at the extent of wealth inequality is a modern reaction to the “ancient and unresolvable” debate on the question of “whether the rich are too rich” (The Affluent Society, JK Galbraith, 1958). What can be identified and attended to, is when those who are not rich become so poor that they cannot afford the shelter available in that society, and don’t have the children to give that society a next generation.
Galbraith suggested that ensuring society’s survival ought to take precedence over all its other goals, and that it is the inequalities sanctioned by the government, such as preferential treatment of capital gains and special allowances for mineral recovery, which ought to be targeted whenever wealth inequality grows to the point of threatening a society’s survival.
Ruth Farr, Blackburn South
Opportunity arises
Moderna US has just lost an enormous contract with the US government to develop a vaccine against bird flu at the request of Health Secretary Robert Kennedy. In Melbourne we have an excellent Moderna facility that I’m sure would love the opportunity to poach the world’s best from the US to work here and continue their research. And perhaps we could snare few hundred Harvard students and teachers who are not sure what the future holds for them under a Trump administration and direct them to our universities. Come on Australia, grab the opportunity.
Nathan Feld, Glen Iris
Paw paw no more
What is it that has led to the demise of the Paw Paw? Not one fruiter at the South Melbourne Market now stocks this tasty, slightly pungent health food. No longer available at Woolworths either nor at Sacha’s in the west. The market stall holders say there is no demand, one sale per 20 plus papaya purchases is claimed to be uneconomic. This is a travesty. We need to reverse this extinction of a nutritious tasty food source.
Marcel Colman, Albert Park
AND ANOTHER THING
Credit: Matt Golding
Defence
Well done to Anthony Albanese on standing against America’s ridiculous tariffs and suggesting Australia should spend more on defence. Unfortunately, America still thinks they’re the police of the world.
Greg Bardin, Altona North
The headline reads, “Albanese urged to confront Trump on tariffs” (The Age, 2/6). I’m sorry, but l don’t see “confront” in our PM.
David Cayzer, Clifton Hill
The absolute chutzpah of the US and its treatment of its allies, increasing our cost of living by creating tariff chaos in world trade then telling us how to spend our budget in furtherance of US interests.
Les Aisen, Elsternwick
How offensive that we are told to spend more on defence. How about we develop closer and friendlier relations with China and spend more on health, education and the environment instead?
Ralph Frank, Malvern East
It is timely to remember the words of former Republican president (and US army general) Dwight D Eisenhower: “Beware the military-industrial complex.”
James Proctor, Maiden Gully
Pete Hegseth says Australia should increase its defence spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP. He is entitled to set US spending but should have no influence on Australian decisions. Anthony Albanese should stick to his guns.
John Walsh, Watsonia
Ed Husic would be a good replacement for Richard Marles as the defence minister.
Malcolm McDonald, Burwood
Furthermore
Poor maths skills (“Fixing primary school maths one problem at a time”, 1/6) must be a trickle down problem as the government can’t work out how to make the maths work to fully fund our schools.
Niko Melaluka, Brunswick
Fare revenue would be greatly increased if all passengers paid, then tram and bus drivers could have a fair wage (“School bus and commuter services to be hit by driver strike”, 27/5). Fare dodging has become the norm.
Ray Brindle, Burwood
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To submit a letter to The Age, email letters@theage.com.au. Please include your home address and telephone number below your letter. No attachments. See here for our rules and tips on getting your letter published.