Weapon access and hate speech created climate for cowardly act

Outside the defence forces, police forces, and a necessary requirement for some farmers, guns have only three purposes.

The first is to kill, the second is to maim, and the third is to intimidate.

I have often wondered if there is another dimension to those wanting to own such high-powered automatic weapons.

Do they have a psychological need to compensate for some form of inadequacy, either physical, psychological or intellectual, in their lives?

Perhaps there is a correlation? Is it a case of the greater the inadequacy, the bigger the gun?

I have seen what high-powered automatic weapons can do. There is no need, or place, for them in a peaceful and democratic community.

In addition to banning such weapons, perhaps we should also confront the causes of violence and hate.

Hate, and the violence it often generates, comes in many forms.

Its expression is not necessarily overt.

It can be incited, propagated and encouraged by inference and innuendo.

We should hold to account, before the fact, those voices who deceitfully, slyly, and cowardly hide behind our democratic right to free speech.

This includes sensational journalism driven by economic imperatives and shabby political opportunism.

The right to speak comes with a responsibility to exercise it wisely and to be accountable for what is said.

Dreadful events such as Christchurch do not occur in a vacuum.

There is such a thing as "cause and effect".

Mike Flanagan, Canberra

The Christchurch murders will likely rekindle the sentiment of horror and shock we experienced after the Port Arthur murders in 1996.

There is no good to be found in either crime but we can get closer by building a joint campaign for serious gun reform.

The Port Arthur murders were an opportunity to achieve a constitutional reform to provide that there is no right to bear arms.

Now New Zealanders have suffered a similar event with 50 or more killed, they would be wise to seek a similar strong threshold: no right to bear arms other than for prescribed purposes.

The reasons to tolerate guns in the community are limited: military purposes, police, veterinarians and farmers, sporting shooter clubs, others approved by a parliamentary majority.

All Australia achieved out of the murder of 35 citizens at Port Arthur was to pay grossly inflated values to people who surrendered weapons, many of those guns were already incapable of firing bullets.

The rich reward, paid out of a special levy (increased Medicare surcharge) is said to have allowed many to upgrade to a modern weapon. The number of unregistered guns in Australia and unregistered shooters in New Zealand (perhaps all holding weapons?) can only be guessed at.

Why do citizens, outside the limited classes noted, need to have powerful weapons in their house, even in locked gun cabinets?

Warwick Davis, Isaacs

I disagree with Keith Binns (Letters, March 19) that "the perpetrators of the NZ shooting are terrorists" and "don’t you dare call them anything else".

There was only one perpetrator and I refuse to call him a "terrorist".

To me he is a "murderer" and nothing else. He was seeking notoriety for his act of "murder" against helpless and innocent citizens and we should not allow him to have that notoriety by falsely labelling him as a "terrorist".

He acted alone and his intention was to murder innocent people of a certain religious faith and to seek notoriety by filming it.

Furthermore, I completely agree with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern that we should "never mention his name" and that he "will be nameless" when speaking of what he did.

We should only speak the names of those who were lost, rather than the name of the "murderer" who took them.

Tony Falla, Ngunnawal

I subscribe fully to A Nelson’s credo, "Our nation must change" (Letters, March 19).

My Jewish teachings are similar to those expressed by D Roseby, a Muslim [ibid]: "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."

And M Shaikh so rightly asserts: "I will not glorify this as Christian terrorism because this defies the teachings and message of Jesus Christ."

Words – written, spoken, sung, Twitter-ed – can and do kill, as we’ve seen most recently in Christchurch.

Words may not take lives directly, but behind horrific deeds like those of Christchurch, there are words. Sharp and hate-filled words. Blaming, accusing, judging words.

We have the right to free speech and the concomitant responsibility to use that right honourably and respectfully. We who write letters must begin in this space. People read what we write; we bear responsibility for the seeds of love or hatred we plant in others.

Let’s not write words about others that would be hurtful to us.

Judy Bamberger, O’Connor

I feel a great sense of gratitude that Turkey has allowed Australia and New Zealand to celebrate Anzac Day at Gallipoli for so many years.

I feel Australians and New Zealanders visiting Gallipoli always feel great respect for the courage of the Turkish soldiers.

For many years now, Turkish, Australian and New Zealand people have shared a deep sadness about the deaths of those youngsters in World War I.

We have also felt very comforted and inspired by the magnificently generous words usually attributed to Mustafa Kemal Ataturk who said: "Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives, you are now lying in the soil of a friendly country."

I feel that those noble words could also express our loving grief for those people who needlessly died in New Zealand.

Those Muslims lie in the bosom of a loving nation, New Zealand, who we Australians deeply admire for the caring, respectful way that they are trying to help families cope with their immeasurable grief.

I would like to apologise from the depth of my heart that it was apparently an Australian who caused that wretched tragedy.

The outrage that has been expressed is very understandable. I wish I could be sure that we would care for our racist and mentally ill citizens better in future so that tragedies like this would cease forever.

Rosemary Walters, Palmerston

Senior ACT public servants were recently given significant pay rises. I believe that those who pay these salaries, the residents of Canberra, have the right to expect these people to perform at a high level.

This does not always appear to be the case. We seem to lurch from one stuff-up to another.
Research shows that the greatest danger to hospital patients comes from the level of co-operation between different levels of staff. Yet we are constantly told that bullying is widespread in the Canberra Hospital and that it has been very hard to address.

The highly expensive light rail should have been built for maximum patronage. Unlike in Melbourne, where the government really cares about their older people, the ACT has a step from pavement to the carriage.

This makes access difficult for older people, the disabled, those in wheelchairs and parents with prams. These constitute a significant section of the population.

There is a ramp but this means going to the front of the carriage, asking the driver to lower the ramp situated at the middle door, then walking, embarrassingly, back to it.

Meanwhile the rest of the passengers have to wait. Exiting will presumably will be the reverse process.

To me outcomes like this should be addressed before there is any talk of pay rises.

Audrey Guy, Ngunnawal

As I slip, splash, trip and stumble along Canberra footpaths I look across with envy at the road alongside.

Smooth and wide, drained and swept, the roads receive quick attention for maintenance and any obstruction is dealt with very quickly.

Would it be possible for the budget that supplies the insatiable demand for more roads be stopped just for one year and the funds be spent on footpaths?

Ray Barnett, Ainslie

Mary Brock of Kaleen seeks to excuse the killing of Mimosa, a gentle pet alpaca who often visited Canberra Hospital, by a un-leashed black staffie, whose owner filmed the cruel attack while it took place.

The ACT appears to hold the record for vicious dog attacks, on both people and animals, that reached a peak in the last two years.

Incidents have included one an attack on a pregnant woman, and several that have resulted in the deaths of smaller dogs.

Mary seems to think that "stupidity" on the dog owner’s part, in filming the attack, is to blame.

Sorry Mary, this man, according to Mimosa’s owner, kept filming, did not call off his dog or seek to assist in any way, and disappeared like a coward.

Mimosa was left torn and bleeding and with both front legs broken.

Police and the RSPCA believe it is the responsibility of DAS (Domestic Animal Services) to find and charge the owner of this dog.

That animal will, in all likelihood, attack a child or elderly person next.

If nothing is done we, as a community, will lose confidence in DAS for dog control.

It is up to the head of ranger services, Eva Cawthorne, to take responsibility. This happened on her watch.

This matter cannot, and should not, be swept under the table.

Sadly, this cannot bring Mimosa back.

Christina Faulk, Swinger Hill

I recently drove some 355 kilometres to Griffith, where I filled up with Shell 98 for $1.539 per litre.

On my return to Canberra I filled up with Coles Shell 98 – at $1.689 per litre. There is no economic rationale for the $0.16/litre difference we Canberrans pay for petrol, other than "market differentiation" – i.e. "rip-off".

Even after incurring additional freight charges service stations in rural NSW make a profit at lower prices than are charged in the ACT.

To add insult to the additional $0.16/litre, I noted (and complained) that the four cents/litre discount on the Coles voucher I submitted had not been applied to my transaction.

I was informed that as I had offered my Flybuys card, I had been given additional Flybuys points/litre in lieu of the cash discount.\

Despite the protests of the cashier, I demanded that the transaction be cancelled and the entitled cash discount be applied.

At a cash conversion rate of $10 for 2000 points ($0.005/point) the additional four Flybuys points represented a discount of two cents/litre, 50 per cent of the docket value.

What a sneaky way to rip off customers. And not a good economic decision by Coles Shell stations – as a four-car family, after four decades as Shell customers, we now buy our fuel elsewhere.

When is the ACT government going to do something to regulate fuel in Canberra?

The prices we are charged for electricity, gas, water and sewerage are set by a regulator, but not so for petrol, an equally essential commodity. Why not?

Ken Keeling, Bruce

Thank goodness someone, at long last, has come up with the idea of attracting migrants to regional centres.

A long time overdue and an idea which, if handled right, could result in expansion of the population away from the already overcrowded capital cities.

Well done, Mr Morrison. I never thought I’d hear myself saying that, but credit where credit is due.

If the infrastructure is formulated correctly and housing, schools and medical facilities are expanded where required, it could be a win-win situation.

It would be a chance for newcomers to our wonderful country to assimilate in a more peaceful and friendly atmosphere, get to know our customs and language and settle their children into less crowded schools.

In turn, they will hopefully bring their many skills to benefit the areas in which they settle. At the end of the three years visa residence requirement, they are then in the position of either remaining or moving on.

It is to be hoped that Labor will back the current government’s proposal, and not shilly-shally around trying to score points.

Patricia Watson, Red Hill

HEROES OR COWARDS

Re Dave Jeffrey (Letters, March 20). While I don’t condone offensive violence of any form, including egging, to describe the slightly built teenager who broke an egg on the head of a much bigger man as a coward is a bit much. What was nasty was the group of large men who fell upon the teenager and dragged him away. The real coward was the man who could be seen kicking the teenager while he was being held down.

Rod Holesgrove, O’Connor

CALLING OUT BIGOTRY

So, Mr Morrison, it is all right to be a bigot, but it’s bad and wrong to call out that bigotry?

Jennifer Bradley, Cook

ATTACK ON MANKIND

"Whosoever killed a person, it shall be as if he had killed all of mankind; and whoso saved a life, it shall be as if he had saved the life of all mankind." (Koran 5:33). Sincere prayers and thoughts for all those impacted by this incident. Terrorism does not discriminate; we must stand up and call out all forms of hate and racism.

Bushra Nasir, Darling Heights

DALEY’S GAFFE

Michael Daley should be awarded a doctorate for his skill in inserting his foot into his mouth.

T. Puckett, Ashgrove, Qld

CONDEMN ALL VIOLENCE

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

D. Hughes, South Melbourne, Vic

FREE RIDES COST $1.2B

All Canberrans should take advantage of the free Easter tram rides. After all, it has only cost us $1.2 billion.

Graeme Rankin, Holder

SCARED OF THE FAR RIGHT

The tragic events in New Zealand should alert our Prime Minister to the fact his attempted scare campaign is ill-directed.

It should be the far right that voters are really scared of. There’s enough of them in his government to make us all scared.

Brian Smith, Conder

DON’T STIR THE IRISH

Take care with your language, Adrian Jackson ("St Pat a pom", Letters, March 21).

You might make Ireland snakey again.

Colin Samundsett, Farrer

MORRISON APES TRUMP

When Morrison says it is both extreme left and right of politics who are indulging in "hate speech" he is singing from the same hymn book Donald Trump used after the incident in Charlottesville.

It appears Morrison learns nothing and knows nothing.

E. Moffat, Weston

Email: letters.editor@canberratimes.com.au. Send from the message field, not as an attached file. Fax: 6280 2282. Mail: Letters to the Editor, The Canberra Times, PO Box 7155, Canberra Mail Centre, ACT 2610.

Keep your letter to 250 or fewer words. References to Canberra Times reports should include the date and page number. Letters may be edited. Provide phone number and full home address (suburb only published).