Obesity problem
I profoundly disagree with F. O’Sullivan (The Examiner, December 29).
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Obesity can begin in childhood, but not necessarily and not generally related to “...lazy parents” and their food choices.
The blame game is never helpful.
There are multiple and often complex reasons why children and adults are of higher weight.
These can include social and genetic issues, plus mental and physical health conditions. F. O’Sullivan needs to check his proposed statistics and review his thinking.
Lesley Osenieks, Trevallyn.
Tasmania – Paradise
We have just returned from a 15-day motorcycle trip to Nepal.
After inhaling copious amounts of thick black diesel fumes emitted unchecked from the nose to tail traffic I ended up in accident and emergency with acute bronchitis.
The plastic litter defacing every roadside is a challenge to a nation that seems to have no means of dealing with this modern filth.
In contrast, we have just proudly shown off our beautiful isle to West Australian visitors. We rode through lush North-West farmlands reaping a record harvest.
The dams were full, the cattle looked fantastic, not inbred and skinny, and the pure clean air was a joy to breathe.
Don't rest on your laurels readers, the litter is creeping up. The Keep Australia Beautiful volunteers would love to be out of a job so please take your rubbish home.
We really do live in paradise.
Moira Wellman, Legana.
US withdrawal
Jack Sonnemann (The Examiner, December 31) obviously doesn’t understand that nature abhors a vacuum.
In this case, a power vacuum created by Donald Trump’s uneducated decision to withdraw US troops from part of Syria.
It was exactly such a vacuum, created following the defeat of Saddam Hussein, that allowed ISIS to come into being.
Also, contrary to Trump’s naive statement, ISIS is far from beaten.
It could be likened to Britain in the dark days of 1940. Battered and bloodied but totally determined, as the continuing suicide bombings and attacks around the world bear testimony to.
This withdrawal, by the benign, if the egocentric USA is allowing the equally egocentric, but far from benign Russians and Turks to fill the vacuum, which is bad news for everyone in the region and especially the Americans' own allies, the Kurds.
Richard Hill, Newstead.
Watch and listen
Watching the Australia v India Test match on Fox Cricket couldn’t take any more from Shane Warne.
I changed over to Channel 7 and was immediately knocked down by advertisements at the end of each over, so back to Foxtel.
I hit the Warne garbage with the mute button and switched on the radio tuned to the ABC.
How’s that? Bloody brilliant. No better way to watch and listen to Test cricket at home.
Well done to the 10,478 Hurricane fans who attended Bellerive Oval, and a bigger well done to the 12,455 fans who attended York Park and created a ’Canes season-best home crowd.
Mick Leppard, Invermay.
Glass houses
Greg Sheridan, a senior journalist at The Australian wrote the following about the CNN media outlet in the US on December 29-30: “CNN has become an appalling news network. Its business model is Trump… it has one dominant program template – constant, endless, repetitive, emotional, excessive, mocking, outraged, denunciation of every element of Trump. It has lost all interest in objectivity, fairness, balance or proportion”.
In an Australian context couldn’t these exact same words be applied to The Australian newspaper and its attitude to Bill Shorten and every element of the Labor Party? No doubt Sheridan is blissfully unaware of the foibles of his own organisation.
Ralph Marshall, Launceston.
Test Cricket
Australian Test Cricket will continue to flounder as long as Cricket Australia insists in treating first-class cricket as third-class cricket.
Ross Warren, Devonport.
Solar Grid Systems
I recently received a letter from Aurora Energy which included a glossy brochure on the new FiT for domestic solar power producers.
It came as quite a shock to read that the FiT had been set at 8.541 cents per kilowatt. (although there was an additional 5 cent per kilowatt sweetener for the next 12 months for those on the legacy rate, which ceased with effect from December 31, 2018).
The economic regulators' reasoning for the 100 per cent plus resale markup price was to cover network, maintenance and “other costs”.
It follows therefore that domestic solar power producers should receive a further reduction in their quarterly Aurora bill in the region of $25 to cover their own costs of professional annual inspection and maintenance of their solar systems.
In addition, domestic and business solar power producers should also be able to add a small supply charge.
Let's face it, what's good for the goose is good for the gander.