This will make territorians poorer. Behind the fiat control of the ACT economy, which can have the appearance of being efficient, there is enormous waste, misallocaton of capital and social engineering.

Progressives all over the world love: (1) mass public transport subsidised by ratepayers and car owners and (2) high density housing.

Conservatives love single family homes on lots, with two cars, and lower rates. We will find out whether the ACT is "progressive town" or a "conservative town" at the next territory eletion.

Advocates who support spending on the city to Gunghalin tram line speak of the money as creating jobs and stimulting the economy. They forget that the money will go from what consumers want to what politicians vote for. The ACT government is building up a gigantic debt to fund its collectivistic fantasies. When it comes to long term debt, this rule is true: "Things are easier to get into than out of".

Victor Diskordia, McKellar

So Andrew Barr will get a $60million injection of funding for the light rail as long as he sells off our assets ("$400m assets sale to fund light rail", February 20, p1).

However, $60million will be lucky to be 1 per cent of acquisition and construction costs. Add to that the annual operating and maintenance costs. One rule of thumb to determine that unknown is 10per cent per year of the acquisition and construction costs, ie, $60million per year every year for its life.

This is nothing to get excited about or justify on a cost basis.

Geoff Davidson, Braddon

Stadiums, lidos on the lake, Green politicians pushing trams, spaceship-like convention centres landing on the city,and gamblers bearing gifts. It seems that the local ALP is prepared to bare its backside to any carpetbagger who comes calling. But unfortunately, it's the citizens who end up getting reamed.

But what can you expect when we have a Mickey Mouse local council masquerading as a state government. I think I'll move to Jerrabomberra. Move over H. Ronald, here I come.

Dick Parker, Page

I agree completely with the sentiments expressed by Kevin Kirk (Letters, February 18) regarding the excessive cost of registering caravans in the ACT.

Two years ago, I wrote to several members of the Assembly, who each passed my letter on to Attorney-General Simon Corbell. In his reply he made two points in relation to van registration fees.

Firstly, that the ACT follows NSW because "we are an island within the state". Odd that the ACT does not follow NSW in many other matters.

Secondly, that as heavier vehicles do more damage to the roads, rego costs need to be higher.

Whilst I agree with this in principle, he completely missed the point of my letter and failed to explain why my tow vehicle costs less than half to register than my caravan, when they are both of similar weights.

According to my rego papers, my car costs $460 for rego only, yet my caravan costs $1067.10.

It cannot be too difficult to introduce a separate category for caravans instead of lumping them together with Fixed Load Trailers (Equipment Trailers).

Wal Pywell, Wanniassa

I need to renew two Patent Office Design Registrations for a pivot hinge that I make in my garage.

For those who cannot cannot use the Patent Office Service's payment system, there is a fine of $100. My business bank accounts do not work with their strange limited online system.

The Patent Office claims: "It is the Australian Government's policy that IP Australia must recover the costs of its operations from the fees it charges ... in a way which does not discourage people from protecting their intellectual property."

If we had a minister for Science I'd give him or her an earful as a $100 fine for paying the Australian government's cost recovery fee is patently discouraging.

Howard Ubey, Kingston

Michael Lucas (Letters, February 18) is the latest in a growing line of contributors "debating" the public versus private school setup we have in the ACT, and for that matter across Australia generally.

One can argue for and against either side of the public-private divide. However, such is the makeup of the demographic now that the education system cannot fulfil its function without both sectors co-existing.

It's high time that contributors accepted that fact. Their time would be much better spent demanding such things as a national curriculum, compulsory basic subjects, namely the "3Rs", the training of the teaching workforce in "special to purpose" institutions, the removal of "warm and fuzzy" notions and the mandating of the "pass/fail" concept in all subjects, so that students start to have instilled from an early age the critical importance of applying themselves to their schoolwork.

Michael Doyle, Fraser

I tend to agree with Michael Duffy (Letters, February 16) that there should be a rethink on estate duty. I'd much prefer to pay tax when I'm dead rather than have an increase in the GST now. Surely our children can get by with, say 90per cent of our estate, with the other 10per cent going to the nation, knowing that this contribution will ease the "intergenerational debt" issue of concern to Treasurer Hockey. One small plea; let's not refer to it as "death duties". There must be a more inspirational label.

Bill Bowron, Farrer

Noting that while many states in the United States retain the death penalty, Richard Moore ("Calls for retaliation not in the interests of Australia", Times2, February 19, p5) says that no responsible opinion leader would call the US a "barbaric" country.

Perhaps Moore thinks "barbaric" means something other than cruel. Otherwise how would he categorise the increasing number of botched executions by lethal injection in America which is prompting consideration of a return to executions by firing squad?

Supporting such a move, a chief judge of the US Court of Appeal has said: 'If we as a society cannot stomach the splatter from an execution carried out by firing squad, then we shouldn't be carrying out executions at all. Barbaric? I think so.

John Casey, Curtin

I am pleased to see the World War I howitzer placed on display at the Australian War Museum ("Mighty gun that made its mark in WWI put on display", February 19, p5). However, around Australia many of the captured WWI guns, which towns applied to receive after the war, are disintegrating or have vanished.

I ask that museum director Dr Brendan Nelson and Veterans Affairs Minister Michael Ronaldson work together and have these guns restored, if possible, before the centenary of the Armistice.

Andrew Humphreys, Narrawallee, NSW

How fantastic the game between Afghanistan and Bangladesh was for the ICC last week, with a crowd of nearly 11,000. While we should have been honoured to be hosting such a historic cricket match, we didn't rise to challenge of adequately welcoming our interstate visitors. I saw families looking in bewilderment at food choices with only one stall selling "halal" chicken kebabs.

Advertisements for alcohol did not make sense, given that a fair proportion of the crowd did not drink. Security guards did not fully explain why attendees could not bring in the poles that held their supporter flags.

Lining up to use the ladies toilet, I needed to make space for an Islamic woman to pray – on the toilet floor! While the Manuka Oval probably does not boast a dedicated prayer room, surely, given the expectation that there would be Muslims attending this event around prayer time (many from interstate), a spare room otherwise being used to host corporate events could have been slated for this purpose.

Yes, we have a great city, and a great venue but let's show some intelligence and hospitality when inviting people to visit them especially when we are expecting them to pay for the privilege.

Mrs L. Madan, Macgregor

Desmond Manderson ("Un-signing the Magna Carta", Times2, February 19, p2) has clearly explained again the significance of the rule of law and the failures by some of our politicians to observe it or even recognise it. It is not a left-wing issue and had more commonly been of concern when socialist regimes sought to threaten it.

More recently, it has been under threat from the Bush US government and our Howard government when seeking to react to terrorism. The Hicks case was important for this reason, as he was convicted of a crime that did not exist at the time. At last, that important fact has been acknowledged, but not apparently understood, by our Prime Minister.

Hicks' being up to no good occurred at a time before 9/11 and before the US and Australia invaded Afghanistan. His conduct was not commendable, nor was it against any law. His treatment with the avid support of our government is symbolic of the tendency to destroy the values we cherish in order to fight terrorists whose very purpose is to achieve such destruction.

Bryan Meagher, SC, Canberra City

Unfortunately, Australia is cursed at present with a national leader who believes it is entirely appropriate to publicly vilify anyone – country, individual or organisation – if it suits his shallow domestic political interests.

Of course, once a bully, always a bully ("Fears Tony Abbott has damaged Bali nine diplomacy", canberra times.com.au, February 20).

Prime Minister Tony Abbott has reportedly stated he is "sick to the stomach" at the thought of what may happen to Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran and that millions of Australians are angry and upset with Indonesia over this matter.

Of course, he hasn't acknowledged that millions of Australians are more upset about our government's lack of concern about the pain and suffering visited on countless families by the activities of heroin smugglers.

And our Prime Minister ignores the fact that millions of Australians are not angry and upset with Indonesia for having the courage to uphold its own laws in the face of his entirely offensive and unreasonable behaviour.

These same Australians are conscious of the fact Indonesia is a sovereign state and is perfectly entitled to make and administer its own laws without threat of interference from Australia. Indeed, these same Australians recognise how quick Australia would be to react if Indonesia or any other country attempted to interfere in our judicial affairs.

John Richardson, Wallagoot, NSW

That Tony Abbott should use our neighbourly help to Indonesia following the tsunami as a bargaining chip for gaining clemency for the two Australians on death row is ludicrously inappropriate and counterproductive, described by Indonesian leaders as "undiplomatic".

It would be more effective to appeal to Joko Widodo's courage and strength of character to overturn Indonesia's entrenched policy of sentence of death for drug trafficking, which would promote an overflow of conscience to other countries that legally murder their citizens, such as China and the United States, enhancing their claims to becoming civilised peoples.

Shakespeare neatly summarised the dilemma in lawyer Portia's defence of Anthony in The Merchant of Venice: "The quality of mercy is not strained. It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven Upon the place beneath. It is twice blessed: It blesseth him that gives and him that takes. 'Tis mightiest in the mightiest. It becomes The throned monarch much better than his crown. His sceptre shows the force of temporal power, The attribute of awe and majesty Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings, But mercy is above this sceptred sway".

Bryan Furnass, Hughes

Was talk of axing the census ("Future of census in doubt", February 19, p5) a kite-flying or a softening-up exercise? The collection and provision of adequate data and evidence is a public good. It is becoming very evident governments, under the guise of cost-cutting, are undermining the whole fabric of our common access to data and evidence. The agency charged with collecting much of the publicly available data, the ABS, has been radically curtailed by cost-cutting over the last decade. In my increasingly cynical moments, I wonder if this cutting is to allow political arguments to be won on self-interest and dogma, rather than on evidence.

I am aware some of the ABS data has long been criticised as being wrong, usually without backup contrary evidence (because of commercial-in-confidence?), and out of date when released. While it should continually seek to improve its statistical effectiveness and collection efficiency, I believe that shortcuts/delays in the census or its substitution by surveys will not improve either aspect, but debase the overall value of its data.

The availability of long-term consistent data allows analysis of changes and trends in addition to snap-shots and current patterns. Also, additional lines of evidence lend support and broaden the context of knowledge. How does our society improve if we don't know the what, where and when that is provided by the census? And why is it that, contrary to previous expectations that more data would be collected as Australia got richer, we seem to collect less publicly available data on our communities and environment?

James Walcott, Mawson

My friend Frank observes that the Abbott government knows the cost of everything and the value of nothing. A litany of cutbacks and broken promises demonstrate this, among them in education, health and research and development.

Where is there an objective assessment of the longer-term consequences of these decisions?

Now we see flag-flying about cutting the five-year national census. The census provides vital information for both private and public sector planning. It would be inexcusable stupidity to suspend this collection.

Keith Croker, Kambah

THEN THERE'S PAYBACK

I guess there is a clear analogy in Tony Abbott's mind between aid to Indonesia and big businesses' donations to the Liberal Party.

When you give large amounts of money to someone, you expect to get something in return.

John May, Lyneham

LOYALTY ISSUE

No amount of weasel words can change the fact that David Hicks is a traitor. Any politician who seeks to qualify this fact should think twice.

H. Ronald, Jerrabomberra, NSW

POLITICAL CRIMES?

If being "up to no good" were an actual crime, Tony Abbott and his fellow travellers would be banged up in the slammer for 20 years already.

David Jenkins, Casey

GIVE PM HIS DUE

I have become convinced that if Tony Abbott cured cancer, the Canberra Times letters pages would be inundated with correspondents screaming "Abbott has destroyed the cancer research industry, and thousand or researchers will be out of work". What a sad lot.

Mark Sproat, Barton

ELEGANT ANALYSIS

Here, here to Professor Desmond Manderson for a most thoughtful and elegant analysis of this federal government's appalling performance ("Un-signing the Magna Carta", February 19, Times2, p4). Compulsory reading for anyone searching for understanding.

John Rodriguez, Florey

'PIZZA' POLITICS

My usual flippant answer to questions on immigration like that posed by Rod Matthews (Letters, February 18) is "pizza". The answer is easily expanded to coffee and various other comestibles, never mind all the other wonderful facets of multicultural Australia.

The point is that the positive effects of multiculturalism are manifold, and so pervasive that they aren't even noticed any more.

Peter Marshall, Captains Flat, NSW

GRADES OF INCLUSION

It looks as if Australia's gone back to convicts and free settlers under Captain Abbott.

Ivor G. Williams, Pambula, NSW

PRIVATE SAVES PUBLIC?

Mike Dallwitz (Letters, February 20) justifies private school subsidies because the government otherwise would have to invest more in public education.

I wonder whether he would support subsidies for private taxi companies which allow the government to invest less in public transport?

Rod Price, Jerrabomberra, NSW

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