Some questions: Is it ever okay to verbally abuse young and upcoming referees? Is it ever OK to abuse a referee at all? Is this what junior sport is about or any sport for that matter?

Or is yelling out at the referee not classed as abuse? Is it a reasonable defence to say I too am a referee and I have abuse hurled at me every week and same said to my children?

I am here to tell you it’s not okay for anyone to create a culture where kids think this behaviour is acceptable, as demonstrated on the field.

As a parent I can teach my children to be polite, resilient, caring, law abiding citizens. I can encourage them to be involved and participate in sport. However I can not make them super referees.

I ask everyone who attends live sport that is refereed by kids, do not yell at them while they are on the field, come and educate them before or after the match, remember they are learning and are just entering the adult world and do not have the resilience of a seasoned referee.

Encourage them by letting them know what they did well, explain to them any inappropriate calls they make and give them an explanation on how they can improve in the future.

We are all aware that sport is important in society for a multitude of reasons, and that sport is essential for the wellbeing of our communities.

We as participants or spectators need to stand up and let others know that this behaviour is not acceptable.

I am curious to know where Eden-Monaro MP Mike Kelly gets his information regarding the supposedly low speeds available on the NBN satellite service. 

As Dignams Creek doesn't fall within the wireless network zones, I was forced to go to the Skymuster satellite with a promised download speed of up to 25 Megabits/second. 

My downloads have often exceeded that speed and I am delighted with the service. 

I am finally free of the dead hand of Telstra. 

Perhaps if Mr Kelly consulted more widely, he would be better informed.

As the number of citizens able to afford a ticket on the SS Zingel Place continues to plummet each year, it seems somewhat ironic that the vessel’s crew –  allegedly employed to look after the welfare of its passengers –  continues to grow in both number and cost, while toiling away in five star luxury.

The Bega Valley Shire Residents and Ratepayers Association (BVSRRA) believes that the council will face its biggest test since being elected when it discovers later this month if it has the character and courage to require council’s bureaucrats to manage within the shire’s means.

The BVSRRA believes that council should cut its coat according to the shire’s cloth and that the elected council should insist that operating expenses be reduced by least $1.6million in the General Fund budget, so as to ensure that expenditure does not exceed forecast income and avoid the necessity of dipping into reserves and pursuing further borrowings.

For the claim ‘fit for the future’ to mean anything, councillors need to insist that council management must start to value ratepayers’ funds as much as they value their own.