Last Monday night at approximately 9.30 pm there was a loud noise similar to a car accident out the front of my home. The street is reasonably dark and couldn't really see anything and as I was on my own, I didn't venture outside.
It wasn't until the following morning I discovered what had happened, some moron/s thought that it was fun to destroy my green waste bin with their car. There were a few more bins destroyed as well. But, it was not until Friday morning when the workers came to replace my bin that I found out the real extent of the damage.
Apparently, these nitwits did a drive around Riverwood and destroyed approximately 300 bins costing many thousands of dollars to replace. The two fellows replacing the bins should have been on holidays, but their leave was delayed due to these irresponsible ratbags. I only hope there was CCTV footage somewhere which enables the police to catch these vandals.
W. Jennings, Riverwood
Traffic hold ups are still happening
Traffic holdups in Gerrale Street, Cronulla because of building construction at 49-57 Gerrale street opposite the beach, have upset and annoyed residents, with traffic disruptions up to 10 minutes during busy times. Even though the site management has been asked by council officers to control construction vehicles and not to block the traffic lanes, hold ups are still happening.
Leslie G, Cronulla
UK pensions are frozen
More than 2000 retirees in St George and Sutherland Shire are provided with a UK pension, having worked in the UK and paid mandatory National Insurance contributions to the UK 's State pension scheme.
The good news ends there for these UK pensioners 'pensions are frozen here never to increase at the weekly rate first received in Australia.
Although this limited practice is blatant unfair discrimination, the UK Government, which boasts of British core values of democracy, fairness and non-discrimination, refuses to make any pension policy change, disingenuously claiming it cannot afford £600Million to pay every pensioner fairly.
This is a dishonest claim for the UK's National Insurance Fund, from which UK pensions are paid, currently sports a credit balance in excess of £36 billion, forecast to soar to £72 billion by 2025!
One elderly British pensioner, who lives in the Prime Minister's Cook constituency, has had publicised in the Guardian, his fight to have his UK pension of £46/week [$92] increase, in his case, by £82/week. [$164].
He would be delighted if he could encourage the Prime Minister to use his example to bring this outrageous issue to the attention of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in June in Rwanda. For this appalling British pension policy, Britain is the only OECD nation with such a disgraceful approach to paying pensions, is applied to UK pensioners retired in 48 of the 54 Commonwealth nations and in which are retired 95% of the UK's frozen pensioners.
Jim Tilley, Woronora Heights
Willful Blindness
Heretical question: Are our incremental and inconsistent intervention cures to this flu metastasising to be worse than the disease? We barely blink as we witness millions of civilians displaced, starved and murdered as collateral damage at the alter of our bloodlust in pursuit of power and religious ideology in conflicts around the world.
But the planet goes into apoplectic high dudgeon when the virulent flu snuffs out mostly ageing boomers marginally ahead of our used by date.
At seven-plus billion of us, we are clearly still a threatening rather than a threatened species.
Ross Gittins' prescient insight (smh March 21-22 2020) ' that while the medicos focus on saving lives, the costs of their medicine or who will pay for it remains.'
It's becoming clear to millions of us that we will be with unemployed, poverty, domestic violence, bankruptcy, suicide etc.
Trashing the world economy comes at a longer-term cost to us all.
While the vast majority of flu sufferers will recover, many others will not be so fortunate.
No Harm. Improbable.
A. Tennie, Caringbah South
The lighter side of social distancing
A friend of ours tells me he is being very careful in practising social distancing, but his wife doesn't seem to understand as she keeps knocking on the front door and asking to be let back in!
Gordon Pickering, Woronora Heights
Private Health Insurance
I would be interested to hear what the Private Health Insurance Companies are doing to assist during the COVID 19 pandemic. In particular, how are they intending to address their membership being faced with an increase in premiums from the 1st April? They should not forget that there are many members now unemployed and facing enough stress without this additional financial worry. It could be that a mass movement away from Private Health Insurance occurs to relieve some of their burdens and where would that leave the insurers?
Maybe, they should delay this increase until we pass the COVID 19 pandemic and many are back doing what they do best. Would it be possible to reduce the premiums for a set period? Who knows what they have in mind as long as they are mindful.
Stephen Howes, Woronora Heights
Hand out ration books to stop panic buying
During the second world war all of us in England were issued with ration books, that continued to take effect for a number of years after the war was over. I suggest that we be issued with ration books here. Panic buying will cease.
Mary Small, Sylvania.
Gotta love the Shire
A couple of weeks ago I got home from surfing and realised that I'd lost my watch somewhere on the beach down at Wanda / Greenhills. I went back down the following day and could not believe it when I saw my watch sitting on top of the gate 5 beach entrance. Whoever you are, you score 11 out of 10! Thanks!
Paul Macarthur, Gymea Bay
Write to the editor at craig.thomson@austcommunitymedia.com.au