4 THE WEEKLY TIMES Wednesday 20 December, 2017 Dear Sir, I didn`t think anything could compare with the Pester Power of the Home Ice Cream Van going around every second Saturday (sometimes morning and evening, sun or rain) ringing the life out of the bell for the sake of the almighty ice cream...but no I was wrong!!! It's bad, but angelic compared to the Bennelong pestering antics of pollies pretending to care in order to get voted. Recorded phone messages by the millions, endorsement letters from former Prime Ministers by the millions, pics of opponents looking 'evil' in brochures by the millions, and of course, the sacred Privacy Act destroyed by the trillions all for the sake of the almighty vote. So glad the turmoil is over for now. Well, till I`m reminded of Pester Power via an overused ringing bell in a future Saturday. DAREN RICHARDSON Ryde Dear Sir, I write with a blunt warning. Tragically crystal meth/ice is having a shocking impact on many suburbs and areas of Australia. It is true to say now that in many parts of Australia, crystal meth/ice is now cheaper to buy than even a takeaway pizza. It is very disturbing. I write to warn readers of this most dangerous drug and to highlight to readers that it is never worth dabbling with a drug like ice. It is so dangerous and so addictive. Ice is tearing a massive number of families apart. This sadly includes damage to a massive number of Indigenous communities. In some communities, HUNTER’S HILL COUNCIL HUNTER’S HILL COUNCIL NEW YEARS’ EVE ROAD CLOSURES The Hunters Hill peninsula will be closed at Church Street overpass from 1.00pm on New Years’ Eve Sunday 31 December, as in other years, until 2.00am on January 1, 2018. A limited number of entry passes are available for friends and family of residents and commercial business on the peninsula. Residents will need to show proof of residency, for example a driver’s licence or rates notice to obtain a pass, with a maximum number of two passes per household and two additional, if off-street parking is possible on the property. Passes are only available from the Council Customer Service Centre until midday this Friday December 22 The Administration Centre will be closed from 12.00pm Friday 22 December 2017 to Monday 1 January 2018 inclusive. Normal business hours apply on Tuesday 2 January 2018. emergencies only and can be contacted on 0408 461 996. Garbage Collection days will be as normal, and will begin at 4.00am. Urgent requests concerning garbage and recycling should be directed to the Council Contractor, United Resource Management (URM) on 1300 136 460. The Council and staff wish everyone a joyous and safe holiday season. Letters grandparents, parents and children are all using crystal meth. There is a very big misconception in the community that alcohol is the big issue for Indigenous Australians. Nothing could be further from the truth. Close to 100% of our clients have been impacted by ice and shock TV ads seem to be having no impact. You can buy ice in many parts of the country for as little as $5. We want to see governments everywhere developing rapid response teams to deal with a problem that has frankly got out of hand. People aren’t getting the help they need at the speed that is necessary. The answers lie in the development of rapid response teams. The under-reporting of ice is at a huge level. This problem is much bigger than people realise. People are being touched by ice everywhere. Young people are so vulnerable. One of the biggest issues is that crystal meth is so potent, it does not take much for people to become addicted. People end up feeling like they are bullet proof and invincible. This is just one of the dangers of this drug. We are asking governments everywhere to take action because of the scale of the problem. I would also like to highlight, people can get more information about my organisation by visiting www. adac.org.au. I would like to wish readers a safe and happy Christmas and New Year. SCOTT WILSON CEO, Aboriginal Drug & Alcohol Council Dear Sir, In the Bennelong election electricity pricing is a big issue. Fact is Turnbull and Abbott have done everything Barry Smith GENERAL MANAGER LETTERS Welcome TWT welcomes letters from our readers. Full name, address and telephone number MUST be supplied, even if not for publication. Send to: TWT PO Box 123, Ryde 1680 or email: c o n t a c t u s @ w e e k l y times.com.au in new technology and new clean generation. The carbon tax, which encouraged new investment and was having a real impact was abolished. Then there was the Warburton review into the Renewable Energy Target, although even he as a climate skeptic had to admit that the RET put downward pressure on prices. ment they sat on the report ducing the target. In spite of all of this renewables are picking up again, so now Turnbull has announced the National Energy Guarantee. Interestingly enough, this saw AGL and Origin shares increase in value. Our coal generators are old and worn out, we need new generation, and more competition. Renewables are big employers, and don't pollute our soil and water. They can be built quickly and with batteries can run 24 hours a day. So why must Australia always lag behind while China and Europe move ahead? With our great solar and wind resources, both of which are free, we could be an energy superpower. It's time to look forward. ROMI DHANI Tennyson Point Dear Sir, For many Australians, the festive season is one of joy and connection, where friendships and family are celebrated, food is shared and holiday plans are made. Yet for others in our neighbourhoods, that sense of togetherness, warmth and belonging will not be felt, and rather an acute sense of loneliness will take hold. Christmas Day might be lunch for one, sleeping rough or spent with the paralysing uncertainty of not knowing where family is, after being separated There is hope. At Red Cross loneliness is not something to be ashamed of. We’re there for people who have nobody else: calling and visiting, driving them to appointments, offering one-to-one support to those struggling with mental illness, or giving a warm welcome to those seeking safety from violence or persecution. We know loneliness doesn’t discriminate. It stealthily creeps into our lives, no matter our age, gender or ethnicity, and takes hold when tragedy happens, like losing a loved one, a divorce or losing your job. And if you don’t catch it early, loneliness can reach chronic lev- But it’s bigger than that. When there’s no one by your side, and you’re feeling deeply isolated, communities start to become less trusting, there’s more fear and places start to feel less safe. It’s time for Australians to change that. Red Cross is calling on you to make this the Season of Belonging, by taking simple steps. Be kind on social media, say hello to your neighbours, volunteer or check on someone you know is in trouble. A donation to Red Cross will also help us continue on our mission to work with half a million of the most socially excluded Australians to build the vital connections they need. You can help: redcross.org.au/ act. JODY BROUN Director, NSW & ACT Australian Red Cross Hi all at TWT, Thanks for supporting the Joubert Singers for another year. Your help advertising our concerts has been brilliant, and I am sure brings in extra people. ence, as we can only barely cover our costs. Yesterday's concert was a great success, and we were proud to acknowledge you as a supporter of the choir. Best wishes for a happy Christmas and another successful new year. MARK ALLERTON Publicity Dogsbody, The Joubert Singers Dear Sir, Discrimination against women is certainly rife at the moment. The Friends of Lane Cove National Park recently gathered to celebrate Christmas and 50 years since the formation of the National Parks and Wildlife Service. We were shattered to learn that our beloved Area Manager, Michele Cooper, had been retrenched. Her only fault was that she was “too close to the tributes one would’ve thought most people in positions of authority would aspire to. Many people would remember Michele’s promotion of the Opening of the Kukundi Discovery Trail at Lane Cove National Park Headquarters in 2015. was not Michele’s only achievement. Others included the LCNP Plan of Management, the Chase Alive Discovery Program and the Volunteer Policy. She has been with National Parks for 25 years in various roles and as Area Manager for 5 years. The restructure carried ronment and Heritage is endless. Many valuable and ex- their jobs and Rangers are fore Christmas is heartless. One would think we need more women in managerial roles and not removing those who have been so capable, experienced, popular and supportive of We and the environment are the losers. NOELA KIRKWOOD West Pymble IN OUR age of politically correct euphemisms, in which toilets become “bathrooms” even when there is no bath in sight, death becomes “passing” and euthanasia becomes “assisted dying,” we desperately seek to take the hard edges of the truth with softer verbal packaging. In this same world where we seek to anaesthetise reality so that we can somehow remain comfortable, in control and germ-free, we avoid the use of the word “sin” as if the sinful part of life has gone out of fashion. We can then justify everything we do that once fell under the heading of the seven deadly sins! Well I’m sorry to disappoint, but sin is as alive and well as ever it was. When we hear this, we may immediately divert our attention to acts of terrorism, racism, domestic violence, oppressive policies, all of which are caused by “others, “ who in the moral lexicon of Donald Trump are “the bad guys.” * * * WE LOOK in the mirror probably each day and see the signs of ageing, weight loss or gain, tiredness, spots bumps and all manner of deterioration. We seem to have no trouble attending to these with our lotions, injections, creams and masks! The Administration Centre will be closed from 12.00noon on Friday December 22 and will be open for Business as usual on Tuesday January 2, 2018. Clearway New Years’ Eve restrictions apply from 1.00pm on December 31 and entry to the peninsula will be restricted to residents and to entry passes To The POINT With Fr KEVIN BATES SM look into the mirror and view the state of our own soul. Our many euphemisms, along with our preoccupation with work, entertainment, wealth, appearance and status, serve to save us from looking at our souls too closely. It’s a sick society indeed that runs for cover whenever the signs of our wounded self dare to surface. It’s a wonderful paradox that a healthy, joyful, liberated self can emerge from a good honest visit to the heart of things, within ourselves and among ourselves. Standing face to face with our sins, (and I can easily lend you some if you are a bit short!), we are stripped naked and our defences are gone. However, in that moment, we discover that we are not alone. It’s then we come faceto-face with that Love which conceived and birthed us. It is that Love which breaks through into our sinful self and sinful world for which we wait during Advent and which we celebrate each Christmas time. When this Love breaks through, our sinful self has nowhere to hide and nothing to fear. Our sinful self is held in the arms of utter forgiveness. Nothing is brushed with a Disability parking permit will be able to access the peninsula without an access pass issued by Council, however this will be up only. Revised Northern District Plan In late October 2017, the Greater Sydney Commission released 5 draft District Plans for public comment with the exhibition closing on 15 December 2017. Council considered the revised Plan which references the need for more open space and importance of schools as a social connector, however it does not identify the schools or a priority for expansion due to population growth. Both the original and revised district plans rely heavily on collaboration between under the carpet and nothing is beyond the embrace of this love and mercy. In this utterly truthful encounter, there is no need for euphemisms, avoidance or distractions. * * * THIS LOVE is more than enough to hold our gaze, heal our wounds, satisfy our deepest hungers. So loved and forgiven, we cannot help but become bearers of this Love for others. It is now our turn to give birth to this Love at every opportunity. It doesn’t have to be trailblazing, exciting, mindblowing or awesome or any of the other epithets we love to use to describe today’s peak experiences. It can be something as simple as a humble birth in a stable full of the dung of life and the warmth of innocence such as that provided by the animals at Bethlehem so long ago. Dare we visit our sinful selves this Christmas and encounter there the Love that alone makes all things new? Father KEVIN BATES SM is Parish Priest of the Holy Name of Mary Church at Hunters Hill. A Time For Celebration As we celebrate this festive season, we are mindful of all those in our local HUNTERS HILL HAPPENINGS with Mayor MARK BENNETT community and beyond for whom Christmas may not be a time of good news and celebration with family and friends. I hope that all of us, in some practical way, can share the joy of Christmas with those who are lonely or in need. On behalf of Council, the Mayoress and holders only. Visitors my fellow Councillors, I wish you all a very councils and state authorities to achieve the happy and peaceful Christmas, and every vision of the district blessing in the New plans. Year. The recognition in the plan of the importance Council Closure of Sydney harbour and scenic and cultural landscapes reinforces Councils continued scenic riverfront areas from inappropriate development. Council will lodge a submission to the Greater Sydney Commission, addressing the revised draft Plan. Clr Mark A. Bennett MAYOR
Wednesday 20 December, 2017 THE WEEKLY TIMES 5 Merry Christmas to All Readers Hunters Hill Mayoral celebrations Advertisement ADVERTISEMENT Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a peaceful and Happy New Year for 2018 Mayor Mark Bennett Christmas Reception Hunters Hill Mayor Clr Mark Bennett, centre, Christmas Party in Hunters Hill Town Hall last Thursday night since the September 9 Local Government elections. He is pictured with, l to r, former mayor Richard Quinn, Hunters Hill General Manager Barry Smith, former councillor Peter Astridge, Mayoress Dr Lydia Bennett, former mayor Clr Ross Williams, Clr Elizabeth Krassoi, Clr Jim Sanderson and Clr Ben Collins. TWT on-the-spot PHOTO. NOW IN SIX LANGUAGES! Trent Zimmerman MP Federal Member for North Sydney www.weeklytimes.com.au Authorised by John Sidoti MP, 128 Great North Road, Five Dock NSW 2046, using parliamentary entitlements.
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