We are indeed very lucky to have the magnificent 145-kilometre Centenary Trail, described as being "designed for cyclists and walkers and circumnavigates the main residential zones, cultural precincts and rural environments of the city also taking in a number of the key high vantage points and is a bushwalk/urban hike all rolled into one."

My partner and I are walking and thoroughly enjoying the trail in weekly chunks at the moment. However, there is one disappointing element to the trail and that is the litter that has been dumped whenever road access is available.

The quantity of rubbish in the Canberra bushland is appalling. One example. Last week we walked along Mugga Lane for a kilometre or so near the Murray's coach depot.

In addition to the usual collection of old mattresses, glass and plastic bottles, bags of dog poo, were two deposits of at least 12 large commercial paint tins each.

What contempt for the environment and fellow Canberrans the person who did this must have.

Having walked many of Australia's and Britain's major long distance trails I can state that Canberra's takes the dubious prize for the most littered.

Timothy Walsh, Garran

I do not hold any hope that an ACT parliamentary inquiry that is "Greens-driven" ("Development lobby won't win public sympathy for deregulation call, September 13, p14) can address the disastrous planning/development monster that underpins both the "urban renewal" of Canberra and the ACT economy.

The Greens through Shane Rattenbury are responsible for the light rail.

The Barr government established a light rail-development nexus whereby Canberra will be transformed by ugly dense developments in the town centres and along the light rail corridors that link them.

Woden town is already an urban renewal disaster from which it will be impossible to recover.

Rather than being surprised by little expanses of green and canopy when walking through the town, it is a case of horizontal and vertical masonry, planned to reach higher and higher, and so block out both sun and vista. All this is to serve a tram line.

There are two problems with the light rail-development nexus.

First, it rules out development possibilities that are much more in harmony with the bush capital. Second, as the Commonwealth inquiry revealed, there is no persuasive case for stage two.

The Productivity Commission wrote to the inquiry that there is no business case for light rail compared to busways.

Light rail was always inappropriate public transport for the bush capital. Now there are major alternative transport technologies being demonstrated.

As Jack Waterford reminded those attending the Albert Hall meeting, there is a time to do nothing and wait until you can do something well.

J. Smith, Farrer

On the evening of September 10 a public meeting was held in the Albert Hall, the subject being Canberra – the Planning and where it is at.

It was noticeable that not one member of Andrew Barr's government was sitting as a panel member to answer the public's questions.

Surely the member responsible for planning or their representative should have been present?

Even just to have the courtesy of explaining why the relevant ACT minister was absent.

Such indolence by this ACT government seems to demonstrate that its only interest is in releasing land for development and thus increasing government revenue.

Canberra is fast becoming a mobile traffic jam and concrete jungle.

The days of being the Bush Capital are fast disappearing.

N. Bailey, Nicholls

How can the people who run our banks and insurance companies sleep at night?

Do they use booze or drugs?

N. Ellis, Belconnen

Given the depressing improbability of the federal Attorney-General dropping the case against Witness K and Bernard Collaery ("Open push for 'Witness K' proceedings," September 13, p3), it's to be hoped as much of the trial can take place in open court as possible.

It's more than ironic that the organisations charged with preserving our freedom from terrorists and hostile states should be initiating a slide into totalitarianism via the "Star Chamber" authoritarianism of a closed court.

Protecting national security should not involve punitive actions against whistleblowers who have only caused our government some well-deserved embarrassment.

It's even more absurd, given the dispute with Timor-Leste has now been settled, partly due to the efforts of Collaery himself.

Geoff Page, Narrabundah

I was disappointed to read in Finbar O'Mallon's article ("No room for ACT battlers", September 15, p1) that replacement units for Griffith and Narrabundah public housing will not be for public housing. If we do not want the inner south and inner north to have ghettos according to wealth, ethnicity and age, we need to mix people up. Real communities are made up of mixtures of people who can communicate and look out for each other.

I was disappointed when, in one of the early submissions relating to the Brickworks area in Yarralumla, although the resident's group proposed there should be public housing and community gardens this was rejected by government as it wanted to sell the land to developers so as to make megabucks. Friends and neighbours from all walks of life and social strata are a joy.

Please, ACT government don't create the segregation of people into ghettos. Make a little less money, but allow creation of caring and sharing communities.

Caroline Fitzwarryne, Yarralumla

Once again the AFL has ignored the Australian music industry by bringing in an overseas act to headline the grand final. With the wealth of talent Australia has, surely the AFL does not have to import. Keith Urban, Kylie Minogue, AC/DC to name a few overseas based Aussie acts that would love to be the main entertainment event. There is also a wealth of local talent without having to bring in outsiders. Remember Meatloaf.

American football, baseball and basketball only go locally for acts, why can't the AFL?

Alan Leitch, Austins Ferry, Tasmania

I have recently tried to buy $160 worth of global roaming Mb on-line for my wife's Telstra pre-paid mobile as she is on a Greek island and the wi-fi in her accommodation is dodgy.

There is wi-fi available on the island, but it's at inconvenient locations. After making three $50 and one $10 credit card transaction (yes, I had to use three) the system still told me there were not enough funds in her account — not even to buy $29 worth of global roaming Mb, much less $160 worth.

So I rang Telstra and talked to a consultant. After 20 minutes she came back to me, and said that she had arranged the global roaming Mb my wife wanted.

Then she told me the problem had occurred because I had not used the correct system for depositing funds.

I was curious because there was no information on its web-site that there was a special way. Indeed, the system appeared to give me no other option than the one I took, ie to make three separate transactions.

I was flabbergasted at the answer she gave. The correct system was to make eight (yes) separate transactions of $20.

She carefully explained that unless I deposited $20 the computer would automatically turn a $50 contribution into data (not global roaming data).

So the account still wouldn't have any funds available to buy a global roaming package.

Silly me.

It's no wonder Andy Penn wants to simplify the Telstra system.

He doesn't know the half of it.

Neville Bleakley, Chifley

Dave Sharma? Israel? John Howard? I wonder how he stands on the occupied territories and the location of the Australian embassy. He will no doubt make a great foreign minister, continuing the proud Australian tradition of independence from one-sided American policy and contribution to the peace and brotherly love in that region.

Alex Mattea, Kingston

In her letter re the right of a politician to abstain from a vote on euthanasia (Letters, September 12), Johanna Owens states an abstention is acceptable on the grounds of faith. When a politician abstains from a vote, his/her electorate is deprived of their right to be heard on that issue.

This means that abstention is not to be used lightly. I don't doubt that Johanna agrees with this.

Where we disagree with each other is that in a secular nation such as ours, faith of an individual (politician) is not a reason for removing the right the majority of that electorate have to have their say.

Politicians are supposed to vote in accordance with their electorate's wishes, not their own and on an issue as important as euthanasia they would be morally in breach of their duty should they abstain.

Paul Bolitho, McKellar

So, the much admired former foreign minister Julie Bishop has inferred that some of her colleagues may have acted illegally during last month's leadership spill, while claiming that the Liberal Party "is doing the right thing" by handling such matters internally ("'Illegal': Julie Bishop reveals Liberal MPs face serious internal accusations", canberratimes.com.au, September 14).

Many in the community believe that one of the biggest problems our country faces is a political class that stands ready to place its opinions and actions above the law, ever ready to act as judge and jury on its own behaviour.

If our politicians, including Ms Bishop, really want to be taken seriously, they would refer allegations of illegal behaviour to the appropriate law enforcement agency, while accepting that they can't have their cake and eat it too.

John Richardson, Wallagoot, NSW

If ever there was evidence for asserting the need for strong unions in the 21st century, the arrival of Amazon in Australia provides it in abundance ("Inside the 'hellscape' Amazon's workers face", September 8, p28). The exploitation of workers in their two massive warehouses presents a classic case of using IT and rather chilling language to achieve just that.

The electronic scanners workers use provide Amazon management with detailed and instant data on their "pick rate", creating constant worker stress as they attempt to meet targets and avoid the sack.

A 1984 linguistic element exists in that the workers, mostly newly arrived immigrants, are told they work in "fulfilment centres", although it is doubtful that they would find their labour that fulfiling.

The workers must find it extremely ironic that the company title for their role is "associate".

Tim Hardy, Florey

Once again the Trump regime is seeking to tear down international order.

John Bolton, Trump's National Security Advisor, one of the architects of the George W Bush illegal invasion of Iraq, is now gunning for the International Criminal Court.

Trumpism is all about destroying international order.

A bully finds it much easier to bully when he only has one target. Bullying a roomful is a very tall order.

How dare he.

I am the first to admit that international order has had a chequered record since 1945. However, it was way better than the period 1914-1945.

More than 100 million died in the struggle to maintain freedom.

Trump dodged the Vietnam draft five times yet he had the gall to denigrate a courageous prisoner of war, the late Senator John McCain.

He and his henchpersons dare to turn the world back to pre-WWI when the robber barons of industry ruled the world. Didn't they do a bang-up job.

The greatest threat to world peace today is the Trump White House.

Rod Olsen, Flynn

The anonymous editorial claiming that Republican deep staters are secretly working away to keep President Trump in check feeds perfectly into his narrative; that there is a secret deep state, that it is responsible for frustrating his program, that it is a threat to America.

So I agree with Germaine Greer; I think Trump wrote it himself.

S. Davey, Torrens

WHY NOT NAME NAMES?

Liberal senators Lucy Gichuhi and Linda Reynolds have backtracked on threats to name bullies in Parliament and announced they would let the Liberal Party deal with the issue internally. Senator Gichuhi's decision came after a meeting with Scott Morrison. Sounds to me like the two senators have been nobbled.

Don Sephton, Greenway

SAME OLD, SAME OLD

Ann Smith (Letters, September 11), Mitch Fifield was minister for communications and minister for the arts in the Turnbull government. His title is now Minister for Communications and the Arts. I don't think this implies any change of function or emphasis.

Michael McCarthy, Deakin

LEVEL THE PLAYING FIELD

While we're discussing gender quotas for the Liberals, let's embrace the whole quota issue. What about age quotas: nearly 15 per cent of us are over 65? Have we got the balance right for religious diversity, shoe size, weight, etc?

Roger Dace, Reid

RED MISTS DESCEND

I have previously defended Chinese and Russian responses to US provocation, but a burly Russian copper with a fractious teen in tow, anti-pension law demos broken up with baseball bats, and executions in China for holding the wrong opinion make me question Russian and Chinese bona fides.

Barrie Smillie, Duffy

EASY ON THE EAR

Art is subjective and we interpret pictures that confirm our own biases. I look forward to Barack Obama visiting our country again and will look closely at how our cartoonists depict him. Let's hope his great sense of humour may enlighten our lazy and sometimes complacent media.

M. Smith, Brighton, Vic

LOOK, DON'T TOUCH

You can fund palliative care to your heart's content, P. O'Keeffe (Letters, September 11), but it won't change the fact I should have the right to do what I want with my skin, my flesh and my bones. It's none of yours or the government's or any stupid superstitious cult leader's damn business.

James Allan, Narrabundah

THE GORGE RISES

Bravo Ian Pilsner (Letters, September 13) in taking Jan Gulliver to task about her claim that PM Morrison was a failed immigration minister. The anti-Liberal Party bile and untruths in letters to the editor by obviously rusted-on Labor voters, makes me want to heave.

M. Silex, Erindale

TONY'S TUNE

There once was a person called Abbott,

Who had a deplorable habit,

He thought he was good,

Just misunderstood,

By all but the Credlin connection.

Cynthia Moloney, Yarralumla

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