Personally, I believe the refurbished malls are excellent and given a few years for the trees to grow will be welcoming spaces for shoppers and families.

The sculptures provide interest particularly to those from other places who might not be aware of our wildlife, extinct or threatened, and I applaud the increased amount of seating provided, recognising we are an aged population.

AS A 17-year-old on my first football trip to Melbourne, I was approached by a local at the airport asking me where the scar on my neck was.

When told there was two myths of two-headed people running the island of Tasmania, he said one head would say ‘yes’ on decisions, and the other head would say ‘no’.

Nothing would happen without a long and lengthy fight, does that ring a bell with projects of today like the Tamar River clean-up, a chairlift at Mount Wellington, a must tourists train line from Launceston to Scottsdale to name a few.

Maybe that myth is not a myth at all.

I WAS pleased to see the Local Government Association of Tasmania president Doug Chipman does not believe “there is any room for party politics in local government” (The Examiner, October 12).

Of the 32 candidates standing for election to Launceston City Council, 28 seem to agree with Mr Chipman in their published statements.  

Of the other four, one “is proud as a Greens candidate” another highlights his job as advisor to a Greens Senator, the third lost her seat as a Green at the last State election and the fourth refers to his 20 year career in state parliament.

Thankfully, there are enough high-calibre independents to choose from.

WELL it’s happening again council elections.

I have lived in my house since the 1960s and in that time there has never been a knock on my door by any candidate asking for my vote or telling me what they could do to make Launceston better.

How can anyone vote for someone who doesn’t even show that they care for the ratepayers of Launceston.

I myself have no idea who these people are. To me they are just pop-up faces on someone’s front fence.

Come on candidates, do something to show that you deserve my vote.

IT WOULD be helpful for correspondents critical of the ABC, especially those accusing the corporation of bias, to give examples of the prejudice they have encountered.

This would prove most useful to those of us who feel that the corporation is doing a good job in difficult times, whilst sticking more or less, to the middle of the road.

With Dr Kerryn Phelps elected the Federal Member for Wentworth,  immediate past Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull should enter the electorate like a Caesar triumphant.

The manner in which he was removed from the high office of Prime Minister by disloyal colleagues totally justifies his right to do so.

ONE wonders at how Senator Eric Abetz still retains number one position on the Tasmanian senate voting card, given that his, and others of the Liberal party's extreme right's political skulduggery, has resulted in the government losing majority in parliament.

His previous Machiavellian antics cost Tasmania it's only cabinet position because senator Richard Colbeck did not agree with his extremist views, and now this.

How long is it going to take for Tasmanian conservatives to realise that this bloke has only the interest of his hard right ideology at heart, and the interests of the Australian people can go hang so far as he is concerned.

Perhaps reason might prevail, and the upper echelons of the Liberal party realise what this bloke is about, and relegate him to last on the ticket. Then again, chance’d be a fine thing.

HORRORS of horrors, the Liberals have lost their gold plated, blue ribbon seat of Wentworth and who have they got to blame?

Only themselves and the ultra right-winged religious group, headed by the Abbott himself.

Maybe now they will realise that people don’t want a party ruled by people who only see black and white and nothing in the middle. Maybe, only maybe, the Liberals will show compassion when it comes to migrants, live sheep and cattle exports and caring for those less fortunate in our society.

Let’s hope that whatever happens Australia becomes a lucky, caring country again and those who have caused this situation find themselves cast out into the wilderness.