HOUSING SHORTAGE PLEA
THIS a plea to all Tasmanian councils to stop issuing permits to rich people who own two or maybe three houses, which they then use as Airbnb residences.
They are profiting at the expense of people who cannot afford the high rents caused by a shortage of affordable housing.
People are becoming homeless because these greedy people are not content to receive a weekly rental permanently, but charge exorbitant rates daily.
Have you no conscience?
There are plenty of motels, caravan parks and camping sites in Tasmania for tourists to utilise.
Brian Habner, Kings Meadows.
ARTISTIC ENDEAVOUR
SYMBOLIC marks and shapes are personal visual and spiritual statements to all artists, regardless of cultural background.
What differs is the context in which the work is presented. We acknowledge and celebrate the influence of African art to the Cubists in the early 1900s.
Picasso in particular, and the influence of Japanese woodcuts on the post-impressionists such as Vincent Van Gogh. An international exhibition of Van Gogh's work was celebrated at the National Gallery of Victoria not too many years ago and the borrowing of pictorial structure was highlighted and appreciated by the thousands of Japanese who flocked to the exhibition.
In a big world, cultural influence is a fact of life and should be celebrated, not condemned. In the 1970s an Australian teacher and artist, Geoffrey Bardon, first introduced and encouraged Indigenous Australians of Arnhem Land to utilise linen, canvas, oil and acrylic pigments to make their art.
The film A Calendar of Dreaming's was made by Film Australia highlighting this amalgamation of artist endeavour. No one condemned the Indigenous artists for borrowing a Western way of producing art.
On the contrary, the Indigenous stories and symbolism have reached a massive world audience as a result of the collaboration. I would encourage Deborah Salter-Oosterloo (The Examiner, November 20) to continue painting in whatever way feels right and meaningful to her, and gallery directors to let the public make their informed judgements.
Fred McCullough, Glengarry.
COVID VACCINATION
COVID is real, it mutates so vaccination is an important step towards some normality, while it is a personal choice for many not to be vaccinated, the real point is it spreads and it will not stop spreading through so many unvaccinated.
Protests and large gatherings will achieve nothing, but could after borders open create spread, there are so many vaccinations from the past that have eradicated diseases, for example, polio, tetanus and rubella plus more.
Many protect their animals from parvovirus etc, so everyone needs to protect themselves to enable herd immunity, and a step forward to normal life.
Susan Goebel, Mowbray.
CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS
KYLIE Stephens (The Examiner, November 29) laments the demise of Christmas and the cancellation of Launceston's Christmas parade. For those still looking to share the true Christmas spirit with their families, come to the festival on December 11 at St Matthias' Windermere (stmw.org.au) from 2-4pm, with a nativity pageant at 3pm. Christmas has been a cultural, historical and for some, religious tradition for 2000 years.
Neither COVID nor over-commercialism can be blamed.
Only the priorities in our hearts can keep it alive and ensure our children and grandchildren know the pure joy of Christmas.
Margaret Hosford, Youngtown.
GIVE TIM ANOTHER GO
WHY can't the Australian Cricket Board reappoint Tim Paine as Australian men's Test captain?
He has proven how sorry he is for a bad mistake by relinquishing possibly the most prestigious position in Australian sport.
How this contrasts with the unacceptable and insincere "if I have offended anyone" offered by clearly offending politicians.
His teammates are publicly still behind him and it would be a tangible example of true redemption.
Rod Fenner, East Launceston.
ARCHER'S POLITICAL BRAVERY
ONE simply must admire the morality and bravery of Bass Liberal MHR Bridget Archer.
Voting to allow debate on an anti-corruption bill should be a fairly obvious good act, but in the National Liberal Party, it is career-threatening, as the reaction of her colleagues showed. Ms Archer, like many conservatives, probably still think of the Liberal party as a party of free enterprise and individual self-reliance.
But, one look at the party's leadership group shows it for what it is: men who attached themselves to the public teat early in life, and regard their position as one of personal opportunism and helping rich mates. The sort of people who fear a federal anti-corruption body.
As an independent, Ms Archer would romp to victory in the coming election.
Her only real liability is being a candidate for such a do-nothing, scandal-ridden party.
Peter Lloyd, Reedy Marsh.
OMICRON VARIANT
PREMIER Peter Gutwein has done a good job keeping Tasmania largely COVID free during the pandemic.
Why would he then voluntarily open the door to the new Omicron variant on December 15?
