As we were in shock we didn’t really feel as though we shared our appreciation as well as we would’ve liked.

Could we please thank the Tanja Fire Brigade, Bega Ambulance and Police for your care and concern. Terry Bunn who came down from his house to assist as well as the passers-by who kept us safe from oncoming traffic and tended to our immediate needs.

The staff and patrons at the Big 4 Caravan Park for helping take care of our children while we were at the hospital. They also made many offers of help. MGM panel beaters were brilliant and I recommend them if you need that type of service.

We love coming here on holidays and we truly felt just how tight knit and caring the Tathra and surrounding communities really are. We will be coming back.

The Electoral Legislation Amendment (Electoral Funding and Disclosure Reform) Bill 2017 is due to be voted on next Monday.

There is no place for such undemocratic legislation in Australia. It's goal is to exclude the voices of all but corporate players from the political process. Business interests will not be affected.

This bill will impose severe restrictions on community and public interest groups who currently fight for the public good and contribute to the multi-voiced debate that is essential to democracy. 

Any organisation deemed as engaging in ‘political activity’, defined as spending a certain amount on and voicing views on any issues that are likely to be ‘brought before electors at an election’ will be required to register with the Australian Electoral Commission! Otherwise they may not express views on public policy matters nor participate in the national political debate.

This is akin to requiring all small businesses in Australia to register as public companies and undertake the associated compliance burden or go out of business. 

There will be severe penalties, including prison terms, for failure to comply with the legislation. This means in many cases, the volunteers who run public interest groups such as The Climate Council, Great Southern Forests, you name it. This legislation, if passed, means most will not be able to survive.

When even the notoriously conservative IPA opposes this bill with the chilling condemnation that it “is a threat to free speech and civil society” we should be very afraid. 

This legislation should be opposed by all political parties, independent politicians and citizens who prefer democracy to government by big business. 

Dear Mike Kelly,

Would you please not support the Coalition's attempt to end democratic protest and action from grass roots supporters who would otherwise not have a voice.

The Bill will have a huge impact on civil society — forcing charities and grassroots organisations to join a government register and follow complex new rules or face 10 years in prison.

It will trash GetUp's and other groups' proud independence by forcing them to affiliate with one or more political parties. 

This defeats the purpose of the right to protest because we don't always support the same political party. It will choke off half of activist funding by forcing anyone who donates more than $4.80 a week to get a formal document signed and witnessed by a Justice of the Peace. Puh- leeze!

This Bill only applies to civil society. For massive corporations and the fossil fuel lobby it's business as usual.

The history of genocide, ethnocide and dispossession of Australian Aborigines is well documented, including the massacres and pillage unleashed on their communities, the abduction of young girls for slave work, the removal of children of mixed blood, the violence meted out to young boys in custody etc. And the gap remains wide to this day.

To the few Neanderthals who choose to turn a blind eye on the ongoing discrimination borne by Indigenous Australians, a modicum of empathy and understanding would go a long way towards healing the wounds past and present and establishing a more inclusive society.