You'd dine with Voltaire.

Barrie Smillie, Duffy

Like Ian Warden (CT, March 3), I have visions of the hell to which I might ultimately descend, and strangely I share some of Mr Warden's alarming thoughts as to what I might find there.

I share, for instance, his nightmarish thought of an everlasting Floriade, or Married at First Sight being the only TV show. Unlike Mr Warden, however, I do not fear "a Liberal government modelled on the long, slow torment of the Howard governments (1996-2007) of all those years of human fungus". Rather, those who might design a boutique hell for me need go no further than ensure Ian Warden is at the entrance gate to meet me, hand in hand with Jenna Price.

Virginia Berger, Barton

With residential real estate, Ray Sparvell reports that agents say a big driver for many buyers is a sense of peace and quiet ("Buyers place a premium on tranquillity", March 3, p24).

This being the case, there is a strong incentive for Canberra residents to have delivery drones absent from their suburb. If drone deliveries are implemented on a continuing basis, I would expect real estate values in drone noise-affected suburbs to fall.

Many Bonython residents have been highly impacted by the recently completed drone delivery trial in that suburb conducted by the Google-linked company Wing, with the high-pitched invasive noise pollution from the drones being a central concern among others such as safety, privacy, and impacts on wildlife and pets.

Further evidence is provided in the submissions to the current ACT Legislative Assembly inquiry into drone delivery systems in the ACT. About 80 per cent of the 140 plus submissions are against the use of drones for widespread delivery purposes over suburbs, with noise a top concern.

Residents of Canberra who wish to protect their property values should reject drone deliveries over their suburb, and be quick to recognise the commercial spin Wing is pushing.

Murray May, Cook

ALP senator Kristina Keneally (Q&A;, ABC, March 4) is right to end direct support for the Catholic Church (voluntary labour and money) as this "failing and decaying institution" does not deserve her support, though the church soldiers on despite falling membership thanks largely to taxpayer-subsidised cash cows like Catholic schools which help prop it up.

Senator Keneally and every other citizen, including the many victims of Catholic clerics, support this institution with their taxes thanks to secular governments which are populated by many Catholics, including atheists, gays, Jews and Muslims who have been victims of the Catholic Church for centuries. Notably during the Crusades which lasted almost 200 years and the Inquisition which lasted roughly 700 years, with many centuries of anti-Semitism by the Catholic and Protestant churches being a major cause of the Nazi Holocaust.

Many Nazis were self-described Catholics and Protestants.

The secular state must end all support for religious institutions like the Catholic Church, in keeping with the "separation of church and state" doctrine. Sadly many politicians including Tony Abbott are supporters of both George Pell and the Catholic Church which did all it could to protect Pell and other child-abusing clerics.

Richard Lutz, Payneham, SA

After watching the ABC's Four Corners and Q&A; programs on Monday (March 4), I came away with the strong impression that the Catholic Church in Australia – and perhaps generally – has two major problems to address regarding child sexual abuse.

The first is priestly celibacy. From the beginning of the papacy in the disciple St Peter's time, priests were permitted to marry; only in the period 1123-1139 was celibacy made compulsory in the priesthood. Enforced celibacy flies in the face of natural male behaviour and may well be partly responsible for child sexual abuse by Catholic priests.

Another important factor in this sorry saga is the Catholic confessional. This allows Catholics to have their sins forgiven by God through his "spokesmen", the priests. They can then move on to their next sins, such as child molestation and sexual abuse, with a clear conscience.

The Catholic Church clearly needs a serious review of these antiquated, unnatural and even, in the latter case, immoral rules.

Douglas Mackenzie, Deakin

Nicholas Stuart (CT, March 7) repeats the great lie that the conflict between India and Pakistan is all Britain's, i.e. Mountbatten's, fault. The truth is it is the invasion of the Sub-Continent and attempted genocide of the native Hindus and other religions by Islamic imperialism (C8th-present) which is the root cause. The obstinate refusal of Jinnah to join in a power-sharing government over all India meant Britain had no choice but to establish a Muslim Pakistan. Mountbatten is a convenient whipping boy for those ignorant of history.

NR Watson, Phillip

Reading the article "Donald Trump averaged 15 false claims a day, and it's getting worse" in The Age on March 7 (reproduced from The Washington Post, December 31, 2018) gave me an insight into why so many prominent Americans have described Trump as a "pathological liar", "prolific liar" or "conman".

These descriptions fit the man aptly.

It's truly mind boggling that such a scoundrel of a man should hold the highest office in that great country.

Rajend Naidu, Glenfield, NSW

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