Roundabout rules
THERE still appears to be a misconception (ignorance) of the traffic rules.
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Referring to roundabouts, there are two main rules: drivers must approach at a safe speed and drivers must give way to cars already in the roundabout.
In the case of the large roundabout on Westbury Road at Stanley Street, Tudor Court, drivers roaring down the slope to the roundabout do not have a given right to drive straight through.
I was stopped on Stanley Street waiting to enter, while the nearest car up Westbury Road was clearly well back from the line.
I entered then turned left. Then I had a large tank-sized SUV about a metre from my tail, blasting horn and waving fists.
In some danger it pulled out, overtook, still honking, and roared off down the road. They were wrong.
This attitude is very common and wrong.
Danny Gunn, Summerhill.
Hospital thanks
LAST week I had surgery at the Launceston General Hospital.
The admission team, headed by Julia, was outstanding and looked after me for the first seven hours.
The anaesthetist Doctor Deb left no stone unturned to make sure I was comfortable before she started her procedure and the vascular surgeon, Doctor Kathy, who had come to meet me in admission, was most pleasant with her explanation of the procedure.
The pre-op team the week before had been most pleasant to deal with.
The next day after the operation the LGH contacted me to make sure I was OK.
Also Lee-Anne and Bridget from the renal unit followed up as well.
I think the LGH does a truly wonderful job with a lot of pressure from outside.
Our population has become terribly impatient with supermarkets, shop assistants, doctors surgeries.
There is more than just you or me to consider, let’s consider all of us.
Paul L. Bullock, Launceston.
Respect
THIS IS a word that many people do not understand.
It is not about cultural differences or colour of skin. Respect, many people say, needs to be earned and I beg to differ.
As a child I was taught that my elders were to be respected. I was taught that to be cheeky or smart mouthed would get me into a corner.
Respect does not have to earned, it needs to be taught. In schools, at home and in every aspect of work experiences.
Truth being, disrespect is how our children treat us. They know we cannot smack them, they know we cannot discipline them by grounding them as they have a system in place that will (as they think) protect them.
So all us parents or grandparents have this issue in trying to instil respect.
I am so glad that being aged, I will not be privy to the disrespectful future adults.
Felicity O’Neill, Deloraine.
Attack
THE Coalition’s Electoral Legislation Amendment (Electoral Funding and Disclosure Reform) Bill 2017 is a disaster in the making.
The Bill will have a huge impact on civil society — forcing charities and grassroots organisations to join a government register and follow complex new rules or face 10 years in prison.
It will trash our movement's proud independence by forcing GetUp to affiliate with one or more political parties. It will choke off half of GetUp's funding by forcing anyone who donates more than $4.80 a week to get a formal document signed and witnessed by a Justice of the Peace.
This Bill only applies to civil society. For massive corporations and the fossil fuel lobby it's business as usual. It is an attack on democracy and must be defeated.
Paul Murphy, South Launceston.
World Wetlands Day
IN REFERENCE to the letter (The Examiner, February 17) regarding Tamar NRM’s involvement in World Wetlands Day.
To correct the record, the Parks and Wildlife Service and the volunteers of the Tamar Wetlands were the organisers of the World Wetlands Day event not Tamar NRM as stated. Tamar NRM’s involvement was in supporting the day by running activities helping attendees gain a greater understanding on the role of frogs and macroinvertebrates in wetland systems.
Parks and Wildlife and the Wetland Centre volunteers are to be congratulated for a well organised event that we were proud to be part of and for organising Costa Georgiadis (Gardening Australia) to be there, really boosted the day's experience for the hundreds who attended.
West Tamar Council also deserves credit for helping make Costa’s visit a reality.
Organisations such as Tamar NRM and Landcare Tasmania were able to hold side events on the day before Wetlands Day, where local community projects and community gardens could be showcased.
Roger Tyshing, President, Tamar NRM.
Gun Homicide
JACK Sonnemann’s assertion (The Examiner, February 23) that the state of Alabama had only one gun homicide last year is so ridiculous that it cannot be allowed to go unchallenged.
In 2013 its gun homicide rate was 6.56 deaths per 100,000 population (in a population of 4.8 million).
In 2016 there were 407 gun homicides in Alabama, which is the second worst state for gun deaths in the USA.
In contrast there were nine murders from all causes in Tasmania in the 2016-17 financial year and only two in the previous year.
Jack reckons "the problem is not the guns". Certainly part of the problem is the deliberate misinformation disseminated by the gun lobby.
I suggest the next time Mr Sonnemann wants to spread "fake news" he try to make it slightly more credible than last letter’s effort.