Last Post, January 4

Pill testing is not a straight forward issue.

John Lewis (Letters, 3/1) explains the technical problems of detecting drugs with a quick test. By doing a test there is an implicit suggestion that it is OK to take tablets, and the testing authority places itself in a position where it could be liable for failure to detect a harmful substance in the event of a death.

Bill Fuller, Cleveland, Qld

Further to the informative letter from John Lewis on pill testing, there is one simple, effective and cost-free way to not die from a drug overdose — don’t consume drugs. What is pill testing if not aiding and abetting a criminal activity?

John Dennis, Black Rock, Vic

Greg Sheridan is spot on (“Vice villain isn’t the man I know”, 3/1). Vice is a brilliant movie, but why take it to task for historical falsehoods? The business of Hollywood is entertainment, and that means playing fast and loose with the facts. Buying a ticket for the cinema is to remind yourself of T. S. Eliot’s observation: “Humankind cannot bear very much reality.”

John Dorman, Toowoomba, Qld

Greg Sheridan refers to “the dishonest treatment of Dick Cheney” but fails to mention the uncontested, untendered awarding of contracts to Haliburton.

Maureen Curtis, Auchenflower, Qld

I too have seen the movie about Dick Cheney. His unwavering support for his gay daughter was inspiring and should have had progressives cheering. Unfortunately, because Cheney is from the Right, his stance on his daughter’s sexuality will never be applauded by the Left.

Riley Brown, Bondi Beach, NSW

Gore Vidal’s main character in his novel 1876 had a wry take on religion. When comparing Protestantism with Catholicism, he preferred to live in European societies that were predominantly Catholic, and less Christian than America. However, an Anglican church in Gosford is doing its very best to rob history of its facts and language of its meaning.

Mike Fogarty, Weston, ACT

If Rod Bower’s comparison of Manus Island to the Holocaust was prompted by a photo of a barbed-wire fence, one can only imagine his distress should he ever visit a farm.

Tim Watkins, Brisbane, Qld

Who gives a cupful of cold water whether Neil Prakash is Fijian, Senegalese or Callithumpian? He’s marked “not wanted in Australia”.

Rosemary O’Brien, Georges Hall, NSW

Perhaps Cambodia might take Neil Prakash. After all, he chose his nom de guerre, Abu Khalid al-Cambodi. Or perhaps we could revive the defunct deal we had with Cambodia to take in exchange for some hefty aid, those we don’t want here.

Deborah Morrison, Malvern East, Vic