Navalny was a rare voice of opposition

Alexei Navalny’s expose of monetary fraud, the rot in Russia’s corrupt dictatorship and his ability to ridicule the worst excesses of the regime even from a prison cell made him Russia’s most popular opposition politician (“Navalny’s martyrdom reflects new age of thugs and dictators”, 23/2). His wit and optimism prevailed even in the terrible conditions of a Gulag prison in the Arctic in a country where past revolutionaries have shown themselves to be gloomy and fanatical in nature.

A realist who knew the probable consequences of a return from rehabilitation in Germany to Russia, Navalny nevertheless took this step at his peril.

That makes him very special as a person who did not hesitate to risk his life in his struggle for political change.

As people on the streets of Moscow said in interviews after the news of his death broke, Navalny was their last beacon of hope for democracy in Russia.

Stephanie Ingerson, Middleton, SA

Kids, parents in pain

I am a pediatric dentist and I was very pleased to read Angus McIntyre’s recent article about the issues faced by our patients (“Kids wait months in pain for dental work”, 20/2).

The waiting times for children to access treatment under general anaesthesia are excessive, and the implications of this are significant. Delayed treatment has an impact on the quality of sleep of an affected child, as well as on nutrition and school attendance and performance. When a child has a bad toothache or dental infection, it affects their whole family.

Parents are using up their carer and sick leave to care for children who have protracted episodes of pain and infection, and this has an impact on performance in the workplace.

Mary Apps, Adelaide

Neglect reigns again

It is about 12 months since Anthony Albanese marched in Sydney’s Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras, urging us to vote for the voice, even though we had no idea what the voice was.

Since then an enormous amount of taxpayer funds has been spent promoting the voice and the subsequent defeat of the voice to parliament.

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister has been focused on treaty, so very little has been spent on improving the welfare of the Indigenous people, despite the images outlining the conditions under which many of them live.

We should all be ashamed by the neglect of Aboriginal people, particularly in the remote areas of Australia.

Margaret Elder, Moss Vale, NSW

Why Tay Tay matters

At age 80, I tried to work out what all the fuss was about in relation to Taylor Swift.

Sure, she has a good voice, writes some beautiful lyrics, but so do thousands of other singer-songwriters.

I conducted some research with two of my three granddaughters, aged between 18 and 30, who paid a queen’s ransom to get to see her Sydney perform­ances. I listened to some of her music and was mildly impressed. Then, insight dawned: she is relatable. In the crazy world of sex, drugs and rock, she rejects most of those. She shines like a shimmering star in a constellation of professional decency and she influences the behaviour of teen­agers in a very positive way.

Not only that, but she brings a boost to the Australian economy like never before.

Come back, Taylor, whenever you want.

Paul Hunt, Engadine, NSW

Wage rises work

Every time workers are given a well-earned, decent pay rise, the fat end of town starts screaming (“Wage surge warnings: we’ll all pay”, 22/2). As for these rises being “their biggest wage rises on record”, in 1970 NSW teachers were given a 14 per cent pay rise. There was no teacher shortage then and the “best and brightest” were attracted into teaching.

Too many people in government and business have a bad case of TBS, Teflon brain syndrome: nothing sticks.

Ryszard Linkiewicz, Woolooware, NSW

Give us a little credit

Finally, the head of a major bank is telling it like it is, about the over-reaction to the banking royal commission, with banks being forced to unduly tighten up lending policies.

National Australia Bank chief executive Ross McEwan highlights the ludicrous situation where even quite prosperous retirees, especially women, find it almost impossible to get a credit card in their own right despite having significant assets in cash and property (“Growing complexity hurts customers, NAB warns”, 23/2).

We faced this problem and eventually sorted it out with our bank, but it took many months of fighting red tape. There is an urgent need for an inquiry into this highly discriminatory situation.

Allan Williams, Forrest, ACT