Sense of closure
Saturday marked the sixtieth anniversary of the Bega Bombing.
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Constable Ken Coussens, his wife Elizabeth and infant son perished when their house was dynamited by Myron Kelly. The story featured in Saturday’s Daily Telegraph.
A quote from the featured article reads “Sixty years ago, a boy’s simple world was blown apart. The memory is as vivid today as it was then.” This referred to the nine-year-old boy, the son of the deceased, who walked out of the wreckage unscarred.
I remember the scene well being one of the Ambulance officers in attendance. I often wondered what happened to the nine-year-old boy. After reading his story in the Telegraph it brings a sense of closure for me.
Keith Beresford, Sydney
Working towards best outcomes
Doug Reckord rightly observes that “community is very much about teamwork” (Letters, 14/7), however, like a team, the success of our community is also dependent on the ability of its members to work together to achieve the best outcomes for everyone.
Of course, where those entrusted with governing are not seen to be working to advance the best interests of the entire community, then it is inevitable that there will be disagreement and disharmony.
Doug contends that the health of our community will be enhanced by minimising criticism. However, putting to one side the fact that this thesis conveniently works to benefit those in power, I would contend that the health of the community is made stronger where it is capable of debating its differences in open, honest and respectful discourse, rather than closing its eyes and pretending they don’t exist.
As long as there are those in government, the bureaucracy, business or the media who are prepared to act contrary to the collective interests of our community, it is inevitable that there will be discord, and pretending that it will go away if we ignore it will resolve nothing.
John Richardson, Wallagoot
Rural divide in arts funding
In the recent state budget, the NSW Liberal-National government promised $100million to create a regional arts fund, but on July 17, arts bureaucrats revealed that the fund is not what it is cracked up to be.
The fine print of the Regional Cultural Fund shows a mere $25million will be now rationed across all of NSW’s rural and regional communities in 2017-18.
This is pitiful when the fund is compared to what is being spent in Sydney’s CBD. A massive $600million is being poured into a three kilometre radius of the city.
Sadly, like all other areas of government expenditure, the funding is all going to Sydney – with country areas left to fight each other over the scraps.
In the June budget, the NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro and NSW Arts Minister Don Harwin boasted that they were providing $100million in funding for regional and rural art galleries, museums and community halls. We now discover that this is just a cruel budget hoax.
But the most insulting aspect is that the fund cannot go to hire staff, urgent repairs, ongoing maintenance or operational costs.
Furthermore, this fund is very unfair. How will small communities compete with the larger better resourced regional centres?
Unfortunately, too often the Nationals promise a lot and deliver so little.
While I do not oppose the funding for Sydney’s Opera House, the art gallery or theatres, rural and regional areas just deserve to get their fair share – and the Nationals must explain why all of the funding goes to Sydney.
Walt Secord, Shadow Minister for the Arts
- Send letters of no more than 300 words to ben.smyth@fairfaxmedia.com.au with your name and home town for publication and a contact number for verification.