Nation’s birthdate inapt

"At sunset," reported surgeon George Worgan of Sirius, "the governor, the principal officers of the settlement and many of the private soldiers drank His Majesty's health and success to the new colony."

No convict, however, set foot on Australian soil that day, and none of the large contingent of male convicts was present, nor any women and children.

It was not until February7 – women convicts and some 50children having landed the day before – that the entire company of the First Fleet (excepting those needed on the ships) assembled, the convicts forming a circle seated on the ground with the marines behind them, and listened to Governor Phillip read his inaugural address inviting them to co-operate and collaborate in the development of a new colony.

It would seem this occasion of February7, with its message of shared opportunity and promise, would offer a more congenial date than January26 for national recognition.

Ann Moyal, Bruce

Trevor Willis (Letters, January18) claims January26 celebrates the day civilisation reached our shores.

Actually it was the establishment of H.M.Prison Australia; a prison girt by sea from which none could escape.

Prisons are designed to keep bad people in and good people out. Over the years the prison has become self-governing and the occupants regard themselves as civilised.

However they still connive to keep good people out and demonise them by calling them "boat people".

They have forgotten their roots and the boats – Alexander, Charlotte, Friendship and others – upon which they arrived.

Civilisation?

Peter Snowdon, Aranda

Australia Day, not a date that is particularly pleasing for Aborigines, said Aboriginal activist Michael Mansell: "The British were armed to the teeth and from the moment they stepped foot on our country, the slaughter and dispossession of Aborigines began."

Genocide, loss of country, deaths in custody, lower life expectancy, higher incarcerationrates, interventions, ineffective governments, lack of services, intergenerational trauma and racism.

We "whites" certainly have transformed the lives of Indigenous Australians by ourinvasion.

Chris Doyle, Gordon

I found it genuinely sad watching yet another Nick Kyrgios "office" meltdown, because I reckon he is an inherently decent and intelligent young man; though a bit of an anti-hero in this era of "saints" Roger andRafa.

But amid the on-court turmoil, I noticed something that explains why so many of his playing peers, unlike the hypercritical commentariat and Twitter ghouls, speak so well of him.

Not only after match point was he gracious to his victor, Andreas Seppi, but as he walked off the arena he warmly tapped him on the shoulder in further acknowledgment of a match wellplayed.

Sure, Nick needs a good kick up the backside every now and then from those who care.

But the lynch-mob mentality that prevails also needs to be put in its place.

Give him time.

Peter Day, Queanbeyan, NSW

Jenny Goldie (Letters, January18) is concerned about the population implications of Westpac's "Bump Savings Account" for 2017 newborns which, to quote Westpac, will "help ensure the next generation enjoys the same quality of life we do". Given Westpac's refusal to rule out funding Adani's Carmichael coalmine, its "Bump Account" is sheer hypocrisy.

The mine will have a catastrophic impact on global warming and blight the future of these 2017 newborns if, indeed, they have any future at all in an overheated planet.

Patricia Saunders, Chapman

Now it is official, the global average surface temperature in 2016 was the highest in the instrumental record, making it the third record year in a row. So much for the alleged "pause".

Of course the record temperatures were in part due to a strong ElNino, but there were also strong ElNinos in 1982-83 and 1997-98.

Each of these years has had higher temperatures than the one before: 2016 was a whopping 0.35degrees hotter than 1998.

Whichever way one looks at it, the upward trend over the past 40-odd years has been inexorable and shows no signs ofabating.

Australia saw unprecedented bleaching of the northern third of the Barrier Reef, death of huge swaths of mangroves in the Gulf of Carpentaria, and fires in the wet highlands of Tasmania.

As the ElNino dissipates, we will see temperatures return to and drop below the long-term trend. The sceptics will update their templates to allege no significant warming since 2016.

But it will not be long before last year's temperatures becomenormal.

Within the next couple of decades we will have another strong ElNino and the records will be smashed again.

Meanwhile, Australia increased its carbon emissions last year and the government is allegedly considering a loan to the Adani Carmichael project.

How long will it take before individually and collectively we take serious action to turn this process around?

Paul Pentony, Hackett

Recent correspondents (letters, January 17, 18, 19) debate the virtues of kurrajongs versus eucalypts as a replacement tree species for Northbourne Avenue.

Why use trees at all? The tram is inherently ugly, not only financially and as a non-transport option but in real life.

It will be running under ugly wires on ugly rails inside a canyon of ugly, oversized concrete boxes, each spawned in the loading-dock school of architectural ugliness.

The main road entrances to the ACT each recently gained two huge advertising signs on oversized rusted girders, presumably decommissioned from the shipyards at Gdansk.

Bunda Street shows us how a job-lot of old drain covers transform a streetscape, and let's not start on the uglinesses of Flemington Road, Gunghalin town centre, the lakeside container depot, Wright, and infill flats everywhere, or on the horrors yet to come at West Basin.

For Northbourne Avenue I propose we continue as we've begun, since we are doing so well. Dump a heap of scrap metal where each tree was, add a six-metre concrete gargoyle by each road crossing, and let's aim for maximum ugliness and maximum developer profits throughout the ACT.

John Trueman, Downer

After last Friday's winds, we have all become more aware of the state of our city's trees. The verdict must be, 'not good'. Drive around central Canberra and you see trees half dead and dying, branches extended precariously over footpaths and roads and wilted leaves.

Trees do not just have aesthetic value; they provide homes for birds and insects and they provide shade.

Trees oxygenate the air and catch dust and grime, reduce effects of pollution and enable excess water to penetrate the soil and so help prevent floods.

Trees have a significant effect in improving our health and wellbeing.

TV detectives frequently advise each other to 'follow the money,' when investigating a case.

Apparently, the ACT government has allocated a paltry $900,000 a year for the city's trees.

I wonder how this compares to money spent on sport or public transport, the relative luxury of a light train or the arboretum?

It is all about priorities.

In a normal household, food comes before party dresses; basics before luxuries. Where do trees come — a basic or a luxury? We must decide.

Margaret Atcherley, Forrest

The Canberra Times editorial ("Canary in the Coalmine/Destroying Canberra to save it", January 11) refers to the real stakeholders in Canberra, the people who live in, and love, this city. Many people have invested a lot in Canberra as residents – time and love.

They chose to come and live here and many have chosen to remain here.

Even ordinary citizens who are residents have invested a lot of money. If being a stakeholder means having an interest, that investment needs to be weighed up.

The current DA to put an outrageously high building into the Curtin shops values the development at just under $15million in construction costs, on a block of land already leased by the developer with unimproved value $848,000.

This is less than $16 million all up. Half of an average street of houses, about 25 properties, has a monetary value that is more than that.

Curtin has around 2500 dwellings – its residents have invested 100 times as much in Curtin as this developer is proposing.

Add in the surrounding suburbs who use Curtin as a group centre and even from a bean-counting point of view, this community has put up a lot more stake than the developer.

So who are the real stakeholders here?

The residents and the communities deserve to be listened to.

Chris Johnson, Curtin

The "no holds barred" trashing of Canberra continues, as outlined regularly in letters to the Canberra Times e.g. Colin Smeal (Letters, January 18).

The article by Juliet Ramsay ("West Basin's path to urban awfulness", January 18, p16) provides an excellent overview of the disease now taking hold in earnest.

Consultation processes are a farce, as flagged by Chris Emery (Letters, January 17).

I read the latest contributions in a cafe in Curtin, only to be reminded of what is occurring when walking through the Curtin Shopping Centre, with citizens seeking signatures with the sign "Development threat to Curtin Square, Rally 11 am Saturday 21 January".

The Manuka Oval development plans by stealth should have been signal enough to the Canberra populace. Apparently not, it seems.

Murray May, Cook

Juliet Ramsay's excellent article ('West Basin's path to urban ugliness', January 18, pp. 16-17) raises many questions but the one that fascinates me is what is the objective of the Green Party?

It is clearly not making Canberra green.

The Labor Party is beholden to the unions which may explain why they are happy to desecrate parts of Canberra in the name of development but the Greens?

The ACT Greens must be the only green party in the world so set on co-operating in the destruction of natural beauty.

Perhaps that is what happens when they become part of government.

J. J. Marr, Hawker

In September last year we had the example of a new block of units in Franklin being issued with a Certificate of Occupancy by the relevant government directorate – on advice from the (private) certifier – despite the fact that at least half of the units did not have electrical power connected.

To date, no explanation has been advanced as to how and why this was allowed to happen.

Now we learn, courtesy of Chris Emery of Reid ("Public ignored on high rise", letters, Jan 17) that the project design in the Development Application for the BAC site in Braddon does not comply with the building fire regulations!

How can a DA for such a project be accepted with such glaring non-compliance on occupant safety?

Paul E. Bowler, Holder

BABY BUMP BONUS

One reads some amazing letters to the editor in the Canberra Times, but the worst I've seen in recent times are the comments by Jenny Geldie (Letters, January17) stating her opinion that the $200 "Baby Bump" account bonus offer by Westpac will result in unneeded major population growth. Surely she can't be serious.

Heather McMillan, Greenway

PROVING A NEGATIVE

According to the Canberra Times (editorial, January 18, p.14) those welfare recipients currently subject to debt-recovery processes will be offered the option of an internal review of their situation "conditional to them being able to prove they received no prior letter". Proving a negative? How?

Judith Erskine, Belconnen

CONTRAST IN STYLES

Starkly contrasting events east and west of the Atlantic. The US places power in the hands of a TV guru now dogged by his own contradictions, dribbling racism and misogyny, superbly contemptuous of convention. In Britain, on the other hand, Brexit deliberations proceed with quiet dignity.

Barrie Smillie, Duffy

A SMALL VICTORY

My Centrelink pension has fallen by 0.58per cent this year. That's not so bad, though, because my superannuation rose by 1.1per cent. In dollar terms, the rise was 2.26 times the loss. It's good to win occasionally, even if only by a few hundred cents.

Gary J.Wilson, Macgregor

CHANGING DECKCHAIRS

Just like changing the deckchairs on the Titanic, Malcolm Turnbull's effort will have a similar outcome.

D.J.Fraser, Currumbin, Qld.

Hunt. Sinodinis. Deckchairs. Titanic.

Paul McElligott, Aranda

I suppose one is entitled to feel some disappointment that there weren't more changes in the recent ministerial "reshuffle", particularly as Mathias spent so much effort and money in his quest to find Malcolm the new Broome.

Brian Smith, Conder

TRUMP A NEW YELTSIN

Is it just me, or do others see a resemblance between President-elect Trump and Boris Yeltsin? Whereas Yeltsin was drunk on alcohol, the Donald appears drunk on narcissism.

Mike Quirk, Wanniassa

UNREPRESENTATIVE

We do not want career politicians representing themselves: we want representatives of the people representing the people.

Brian Fox, Wangaratta, Victoria

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