Pension greed

I, too, am offended, but for a different reason.

I am offended that the age pension which was designed as a safety net for those in need, is now considered to be an "entitlement" and is being rorted by those who are not dependent on it, as they are fortunate to have substantial assets to fall back on.

The age pension was designed for the needy, not the greedy.

The Browns do not have to restructure their household budget to maintain their lifestyle, instead an asset restructure may be needed to enable them to readily access some of their substantial assets to make up the deficit instead of saving it for their beneficiaries.

Mario Stivala, Spence

We were shocked and disgusted that Annabel Crabb saw fit to use, we think unnecessarily, the coarse and degrading remarks of "Madonna" in her article on the Inauguration ("Stars left in star spangled limbo", January 22, p17).

It seems journalism has sunk to a new low and I'm afraid that we have lost the respect we formally had for this journalist.

Marie and Tom Wells, Holder

In her story about the young couple from Theodore who cannot get internet (January 22, p8) Kimberley Le Lievre reports that the couple have tried different options, "including putting a satellite on their roof".

I can see why this would not work; because satellites work best when they are in space. Or is this just a journalistic error?

Peter Nelms, Kambah

The first test of Gladys Berejiklian as NSW Liberal leader and Premier will be how she responds to the Nationals' John Barilaro's demand to rewrite the coalition agreement.

The bullying way in which Mr Barilaro has put his demand for more taxpayers' dollars for rural pork barrelling is hardly statesmanlike.

It's the sort of thing you see in a gangster movie from a standover man in a cheap suit.

Furthermore, his claim that he puts his role as the local member for Monaro before his call for a halt to further council amalgamations in country areas would have a lot more credibility if he had not gone missing in action when the government in which he was a minister forcibly amalgamated all of the councils in his own electorate.

Nigel Thompson, Queanbeyan East

I'm not sure whether John McKerral (Letters, January 22) gets why there are subsidies for renewables, as well as renewable energy targets, and why there is so much fast-tracking of non-fossil-fuel energy production.

Mr McKerral makes it sound like we have a choice.

We don't. Carbon emissions have to drop, steeply, over the next 15 years and beyond.

Even prior to the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, governments worldwide were accelerating a range of measures to replace fossil fuels in the energy market mix.

Still, it may be too late to keep the planet warming 2 degrees by 2030. The first half of 2016 was 1.6degrees warmer than a century ago, and while not a trend, it's a serious worry.

C. Campbell, Lyneham

I agree with Murray Upton (Letters, January 22) that ActewAGL's estimated meter reads are a joke.

I have had the same problem for the last three quarters and phone calls and letters didn't do much good until The Canberra Times had a couple of items in its local news section and also a letter from me in the Letters to the Editor section.

I wonder if the government or the ACCC would jump to the defence of the public if, say, the supermarkets, service stations and any other business starting charging the public a "monthly estimate" on their grocery and fuel bills when they went through the checkouts?

I know the ACCC would class it as "price gouging" and I'm sure a large fine would follow.

Errol Good, Macgregor

I refer to Adam Gartrell's report ("Medicare levy rise on the table", January 22, p3).

The article inter alia states that "Health and tax experts see a levy rise as a fairer option than raising the GST ... because low-income earners and seniors do not pay it".

I've got news for Adam! If a retired senior gets a government superannuation pension, it is subject to both income tax and the Medicare levy. However, if a senior receives a private superannuation annuity, noincome tax or Medicare levy is payable.

I don't object to paying my share of income tax, but why should I also have to pay the Medicare levy, particularly when superannuation retirees/seniors in the other category do not have to pay the Medicare levy or, in fact, any tax at all.

Robert Mair, Crace

As a senior I went to enjoy a film at the cinema on January 16. I sat through the obligatory advertisements and previews and was confronted by excess volume that exceeded my comfort zone.

Upon complaining to the manager to lower the volume I braced myself for the main feature.

I lasted three minutes and stormed out to confront the manager and again complained about the excessive noise. Sadly the message did not register with him and I obtained a refund.

May I make a suggestion that the whole system in presenting movies at cinemas, in general, be reviewed with the intention of considering clients' hearing tolerances.

Audiologists and audiometrists would be alarmed to know of this problem and would agree that excessive noise that the younger generation would be exposed to in this regard could possibly cause hearing impairment by the time they reach their 40s or 50s.

Peter Bazeos, Belconnen

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