Quite a number of people have delivered flowers and cards to our local mosque in Monash; there are some very touching messages written on these cards, messages that truly melt the heart.

On Sunday night we were gathered in the mosque around the time of the sunset prayer, reading these messages, looking at the flowers, and marvelling at the goodwill in this community.

Among all the bad news, it can be so easy to lose sight of the reality that there is so much good in this world.

God created humanity in a state of purity and innocence, with an innate inclination towards faith, compassion, and beauty.

Evil is an aberration, and we should always see it as such.

Unfortunately, it is so much easier to tear things down than to build them up; yet, for every person who is willing to take an innocent life, there are a thousand others who are willing to save that life.

God is far greater than any of us know. On behalf of all Muslims, thank you, people of Canberra, our brothers and sisters in humanity, for your support.

D. Roseby, Stirling

For decades both the Liberal National Party and the Labor Party and their leaders have been demonising the refugees from wars we started who have fled to Australia.

They have all allowed the vicious right wing to spew out their hatred.

We have been bombing, killing and maiming Muslims in three separate nations around the world since 2001.

Before that we bombed Iraq and kept our silence when Russia invaded Afghanistan.

We are still silent when Israel slaughters more and more Palestinians.

Australia since 2001 has been waging a monumentally horrific war on Muslims here and overseas. Then we pretend we care for Muslims when one of us slaughters 50 of them.

Give me a break.

Marilyn Shepherd, Angaston, SA

Like Waleed Aly, I, too, am not surprised by the massacre of Muslim worshippers in the Christchurch shooting.

What surprises me is Trump's expression of sympathy and solidarity with New Zealanders at this act of hate.

That's so Kafkaesque. He can't be serious. Trump has demonised and cultivated hatred for Muslims, refugees and migrants from day one of his campaign for US presidency.

It's his kind of racial bigotry and far right ideology that is responsible for encouraging white power foot soldiers to embark on misguided missions of slaughter.

Trump's sympathy is hollow.

Rajend Naidu, Glenfield

As an Ahmadi Muslim Australian, the New Zealand terror attacks hit very close to home.

They reminded me of the deadly attacks on two Ahmadiyya Muslim mosques in Pakistan in 2010 where 94 people were brutally murdered at the hands of terrorists.

I acknowledge and commend that most of our political leaders have rightly called this terrorism because that is exactly what he intended to do.

However this must not come as a surprise when leaders in Western nations are promoting a fearmongering rhetoric (Trump, Abbott, Anning, Hanson et al) against immigrants and Muslims in particular.

This type of hatred must be stamped out and we cannot afford to normalise these events that are part of everyday life in many countries across the world.

He wanted to kill all Muslims in the West and replace all mosques with churches. He was a Christian. He was a terrorist.

But I will not glorify this as Christian terrorism because this defies the teachings and message of Jesus Christ.

Terrorism and terrorists have no religion.

Monus Shaikh, Spreyton, Tas

The racists in Christchurch and elsewhere who have deliberately killed innocent people are in essence the same as the violent Muslim jihadists they might claim to oppose.

They all reject the key principle of civilisation: live and let live.

None of them are admirable glamorous heroes, they are all just hateful bloodstained murderers.

Sadly, as humans, they are us: nowhere is free of this disease.

Not New Zealand, not Norway, not here in Australia, not anywhere. Where there are people there will always be some haters and killers.

We must work together in order to clearly and resolutely deny them moral and material support.

R. Neville, Fraser

Apart from the awful carnage itself, there are two aspects of the Christchurch massacre that deeply concern me.

One is that certain right-wing politicians, commentators in the News Corp press and radio shock jocks have for years stirred up islamophobia. This may well have inspired the accused killer, Brenton Tarrant.

Tarrant used an AR-15 assault rifle, a semi-automatic weapon with a 30-round magazine that can be converted to automatic mode, making it ideal for a mass shooting.

I find it extraordinary and troubling that a person with known extremist views on race and religion and a standard firearms licence could be permitted to purchase such a deadly weapon.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is to be commended for her undertaking to change her country's gun laws, but this should have been done many years ago.

Douglas Mackenzie, Deakin

In the wake of the Christchurch massacre, let it be known that it is not OK to promulgate hatred or abuse, or to denigrate anyone on the basis of their culture, their ethnicity, their religion, their gender, their sexual preference or a disability.

The racist, bigoted, sexist nation that we once were, is over.

Today, the true Australian extends the hand of friendship and treats our fellow citizens as equals.

Today, our first Australians can stand as equals among us, proud of their ancient culture and their role as the natural custodians of our land.

Today, all women are to be respected irrespective of how they look or their mode of dress.

Today, our children should expect to live their childhoods without fear of physical or emotional abuse.

To wrap yourself in our flag does not make you a true Australian.

It is what is in your heart that counts.

Alan Nelson, Bonython

Jennie Goldie (Letters, March 18) in her complaint about us "anti-light rail correspondents" and the lack of legitimacy of our sentiments, rightly states we need to move rapidly from fossil fuels to renewable energy and recognises this can be achieved with electric buses the same as trams.

I disagree with her opinion that the advantage of light rail (over buses) is that it carries a lot of people on new carriageways, not on roads.

Transport studies have shown buses have the capacity to transport similar numbers of people. The original policy intent of the Labor government was to have fixed busways similar to those in Brisbane and Auckland.

They would have run on separate carriageways in much the same way as the tram will.

Discussion papers, issued by the ACT government, show the cost of busways was far cheaper than the light rail option.

Buses are more flexible than light rail in that they have the capacity to operate off the fixed route as well as on it.

A busway is also cheaper, and less disruptive, to construct. If I lived in Cooma, like Jennie, I might happily ride the tram but as, unlike her, I have to pay for this through my excessive rates, I feel I have a very legitimate reason to prefer a cheaper busway system.

On the same issue, Don Sephton (Letters, March 18) is spot on with regards to Bill Shorten's $200 million tram to Woden promise.

I doubt it will give Labor any overall increase in votes if we consider those who oppose the excessive rates we have to pay for our trams.

If it had gone to health, housing or aged care places and packages then no one would oppose that.

Gina Pinkas, Aranda

I was aghast at the hypocrisy of the ACT government's endorsement of the climate change walk (and ACT school students' participation in it) and frustrated at the innocence (and ignorance) of those who organised this event without placing climate change in its broader context.

Climate change is a very important issue but that it has captured our interest and concern at all is because it will have, and is having, a devastating impact on the environment.

It is, to a considerable degree, caused by human activity.

It is very important for all people, both young and old, to understand that, although we might delay or arrest climate change through such things as renewable energy, we will not end the relentless decline in the natural environment.

That is because, climate change is only one of the factors contributing to this.

If we are genuinely concerned about the environment, we must strike at the heart of the problem: that is too many people consuming too much.

Yet, this is our governments' (on both sides of the political spectrum) preferred economic model.

They want more and more people consuming more and more forever.

Although the ACT is in the vanguard of renewable energy initiatives, it continues to gorge itself on perpetual and, therefore, unsustainable growth.

Herein lies the appalling hypocrisy of the government's endorsement of this march. It has wilfully participated in this smoke and mirrors nonsense that addressing climate change will end humanity's assault on the environment. It will not.

In the failure to explain this wider picture (no doubt to evade a necessary but contentious discussion of things like population and, yes, immigration) those who focus on climate change and ignore our "growth forever" idiocy are complicit in an extraordinarily irresponsible act of deceit.

We are selling our future generations desperately short, and that is unconscionable.

Graham Clews, Kambah

On Friday, I attended the school students' strike in Garema Place and was greatly heartened by their enterprise and commitment.

As a science teacher for many years I was always aware of just how talented and idealistic most young people are. Sadly, many adults have lost such idealism.

Conservative politicians urged students to not slack off and to stay in school where they belonged, expecting them to go quietly into the night and accept their fate of being adults in a failing world.

It is a world facing annihilation largely caused by our over-consumption and a focus on the short term rather than the future.

Of course, it should have been us protesting years ago as all that is happening was foreseen.

We have had many real chances to do something to avert the disaster we are now all beginning to experience and of which young people will bear the brunt.

Maybe we were just too busy, or overwhelmed or complacent. The students are trying to change the position of many of our political leaders who maintain wilfully ignorant positions on climate change because of their fixed ideology and the political benefits they get from supporting the fossil fuel industry despite all the evidence it is destroying the planet.

It was good to see parents and Baby Boomers at Garema Place, but next time there is a rally on climate change we need to be out there in our tens of thousands to show that we really do care about the next generation – our children, our grandchildren, our great-grandchildren.

Elizabeth Dangerfield, Crace

Of all the clever placards carried by young people the one that struck me as most pertinent said "Why'd U have 2 make tings so complicated".

A straightforward carbon tax on generators, fuel depots, iron smelters, and cement factories set on a rolling triennial basis by a reserve bank model organisation would be simple and efficient.

'Tings' will cost more and we will adapt our lifestyle to accommodate it by emitting less and substituting with sustainable materials such as wood.

Steve Thomas, Yarralumla

The published version of my letter "Electric cars still flawed" (Letters, March 16) referred to a typical energy usage of a small electric vehicle of 12kW per day. What I submitted, and what should have been published, was 12kWh per day.

Terry Werner, Wright

HEINOUS VIOLENCE

It is heartbreaking to hear about the shootings in Christchurch. My heartfelt prayers are with the victims and their families and friends. We must condemn such heinous acts of violence and discourage violence on the name of religion.

Usman Mahmood, Bowenfels, NSW

NZ'S PM INSPIRATIONAL

Jacinda Ardern you are truly inspirational.

Doug Hodgson, Pearce

GOODWILL HEARTENING

I'm absolutely sickened by what has happened in Christchurch. That said, it is heartening to see so much good-will, dare I say love, pouring out. That is the last thing the killer would have wanted to happen.

Kim Fitzgerald, Deakin

IF ONLY WE HAD ARDERN

If only Jacinda Ardern could come to Australia and be our prime minister.

David Fisher, Curtin

NZ COULD SEND HIM BACK

Can we expect the New Zealand government to send the Christchurch massacre accused back to us? That is what they will do if they follow our government's example.

Robin Trinca, Narooma

A TERRORIST ACT

The perpetrators of the New Zealand shooting are terrorists. Don't you dare call them anything else.

Keith Binns, Goulburn, NSW

THOSE DANGEROUS EGGS

I've heard a rumour Senator Fraser Anning now wants the sale of, and carrying of, high-capacity egg cartons banned.

Doug Steley, Heyfield, SA

TREES ANSWER TO DRONES

Don't just complain about drones flying overhead and delivering take-always to your suburb. Do something positive and plant a tree. Trees in your backyard will shield you from overhead views and trees in your front yard and street will stop flat white coffees being winched down in front of you. Those trees will also cool your house, sequester carbon, reduce traffic noise and improving your health. Plant up Canberra.

C. Brack, Evatt

LEAVING A SINKING SHIP

Has there ever been a time since Federation when so many ministers have departed the government at election time? Should we be reading anything into this?

Jeff Bradley, Isaacs

STUDENTS ACT THEIR AGE

Heard from a child at the children's strike in Garema Place on Friday: "We'll stop acting like adults if you'll stop acting like children, ScoMo."

Angela Giblin, Lyneham

FOCUS ON COURAGE

Let us focus on the tales of courage and resolution that have come out of New Zealand, not just the horror and the hate.

N. Ellis, Bonython

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