Sure, Terry gifted $20 million to Canberra Grammar School, his old school from whom he benefited enormously to become the ACT's most successful entrepreneur.

Sonja bemoans the fact that Terry might have been "more generous" if he had donated the funds "towards facilities that benefited the community more broadly".

She, perhaps, is unaware of Terry's achievement as probably the ACT's greatest charitable benefactor including his founding (with his brother, George) of the Snow Foundation.

That foundation was established in 1991 with an initial gift of $1m.

Following Terry's substantial additions it is on track to meeting its goal of $100m next year.

Since then, it has assisted 300 different organisations and over 300 individuals providing $26m in funding, including over $600,000 to individuals.

In Terry's words: "If you see someone struggling, you give them a helping hand".

In 2017/2018, the annual giving was $3.4m.

I was very pleased to see the redacted front pages of major newspapers, to demonstrate the censorship of excessive secrecy.

Whistleblowers protection and press freedom are two essential elements of a free society in a functioning democracy.

Show your support at a rally this coming Thursday, October 24, 12.30pm on the Parliament House lawns. You can help defend our right to know.

Whilst I support the freedom of the press, there is an assumption that all journalists write and source their material ethically and factually.

To gain the confidence of their audience there needs to be a reaffirmation that the determination of the public's right to know is governed by a standard of ethics by which every journalist can be measured and for which they are accountable.

The grab for sensationalist headlines and the personal glory that comes with next the big story so often overrules integrity. The distrust of politicians is encouraged; may I suggest the distrust of journalists needs also to be questioned.

Surely Mike Pezzullo is having a lend of us? A grandmother can go into Syria on her own and find her grandchildren, but Mr Pezzullo's highly trained, billion-dollar funded, secret service agents and sophisticated SAS forces can't arrange the hire of a second hand bus in a country which operates on backroom deals?

Are we to believe that his "team" can terrify small children in Biloela dressed as armed thugs but you wouldn't want to risk them in Syria?

Clearly Mr Pezzullo would prefer the blood of these Australian children on someone else's hands? Blaming the parents for poor decisions will do nothing for the lives and sanity of these poor little beggars.

How good is Australia?

Congratulations on a really forceful message about press freedom on Monday and Tuesday. It needed to be made and, it appears, may well need to continue to be made until things change.

The present situation is really quite depressing. A national ICAC with teeth would be a good start to make our politicians and their advisers more accountable.

It has been reported that Monday's "redacted" front pages of our national dailies is unprecedented.

To my understanding, it has happened before. During World War II censorship was very strict but towards the end of the war the media became concerned that the Minister for Information, Arthur Caldwell, was censoring the media for political, rather than national security purposes.

So they left their front pages blank. In the end, the media mounted a high court challenge and won. Is history repeating itself?

I congratulate The Canberra Times on highlighting the Coalition government's attacks on press freedom, whistle-blowers, and public interest.

It's not just the government. Without press freedom and independence we wouldn't know of the "baiting" scandal in the greyhound racing industry, the regular under-payment of workers by major corporations, or the damage being done to the Great Barrier Reef by climate change. We wouldn't have had the Hayne Royal Commission without Adele Ferguson's reporting.

I am wary, however, of the many media companies whose output is mostly their own opinion. Their shameful and pathetic attacks on Greta Thunberg, as an example, show them as bullies and cowards, rather than objective reporters of truth.

Let's see how many stand with the rest of the media on freedom of the press.

Your editorial ("Skywhale has earned a place in history", October 18) has got it wrong.

To call someone who dislikes a work of art a wowser is insulting and inaccurate. A wowser is someone who wants to deprive others of behaviour they deem to be immoral. My objection to the so-called Skywhale is that it offends the aesthetic, not the moral sensibilities.

Why celebrate Canberra's centenary with an ugly creature that says nothing about Canberra? Piccinini's work is habitually dark and perturbing, and not designed for celebration. The thing is drab, more turtle than whale, with a mournful expression, no doubt brought about by the unbearable weight of all those old mammaries.

Perhaps the brief went to the wrong artist for the occasion.

How happy we would have been to see a giant Burley Griffin monster eating a politician, bearing colourful, wonderful wings, beautiful boobs or even an erect penis coloured orange to match our excellent museum.

That would have given us a laugh at least. Seems to me the thing is more of an advertisement for the artist than for this amazingly beautiful and unique city.

I understand that big names sell and the controversy brought notoriety, but surely we can dislike it without being labelled wowsers?

I have been puzzling over exactly what the selection criteria must have been for those applying for a "public transport planning officer" as a consequence of the introduction of light rail. I think I've now got it.

1. Must be narrow visioned; 2. Must not know or have contact with any elderly residents, anybody under the age of 13 years, or anybody with a disability; 3. Must be completely unaware of any other roads that could be used as bus routes; 4. Must have the capacity to make sure that bus stops are at least one kilometre from most homes; 5. Must not see the need for any parking at light rail/bus stops; 6. Must be able to make the bus trip to Civic as long as possible if passengers don't get light rail from bus interchange; and lastly, but most importantly; 7. Must be dedicated to ensuring that public transport is only used by those who are fit and healthy.

Discrimination against the aged doesn't start at the nursing home, it starts way before that when governments and others put in place systems that are just not viable for those with chronic disease or disability. And as for stopping school bus services; words fail me.

While Bill Deane and Eric Hunter work themselves into a froth over Australia and terra nullius (Letters, 19 October), let reality intrude. When a group of people come into an area where they were not previously resident, and they stay, it is called an invasion and the original inhabitants are termed the 'conquered'. That is what happened on 26 January 1788.

The best the conquered people can hope for is to be treated as equals by their conqueror: that is what I believe the majority of Australians want for the descendants of our indigenous peoples. I can not think of a single example where a conquered people were subsequently given more rights than their conquerors.

To hold that in prospect will only result in even less harmony across the land we share.

In the Canberra bubble, bull dust, bull dust everywhere,

Global warming, fires and heat in the air,

No rain and for some, not a drop to drink,

Our government "pollies" just don't think."

Could Extinction Rebellion members ("Inside the newest climate movement". October 19, P9) explain specifically what sacrifices we and our children will make with your climate change proposals?

What about Nick Georgalis, founder and managing director of Geocon Building, Canberra for the ACT's Citizen of the Year. He has been giving thousands of Canberrans jobs every day now for years. He is also building most of Canberra high-rise units. He deserves it.

Just as the greyhound industry was banned in the ACT, so should the savage and brutal horse racing industry. Just as dogs are sentient being, so are horses. Ban horse racing now and use the course for a new stadium.

What a feel good story about the rescue of the kangaroo swimming in Lake Burley Griffin. It's a pity it will probably be shot in the next kangaroo cull.

Donald Trump cops a lot of flak but being president of the US can't be a picnic; especially if you're short of a few sandwiches.

People keep saying "since the good days of Kate Carnell's government, what would it take for the Liberals to win government in the ACT". It is a simple answer. Jeremy Hanson.

Re "Canberra Liberals promise to reinstate school buses", October 13, p10". Please reinstate the previous bus routes from the new suburbs in Gungahlin directly to Belconnen. The current arrangements make travelling from Gungahlin to Belconnen time-consuming and difficult, particularly for those with disabilities who need to get to medical and other appointments. This could change the votes of Labor voters like myself.

Howard Brady (Letters, October 8) is a scientist who believes global warming is a natural phenomenon. Scientists and academics come in all sorts. We need to take what some of them say with a grain of salt.

G J May (Letters, October 21) seems to believe that climatic change is natural, presumably explaining why they think those attributing climate change to human activity are a harmful "cult" who should be punished by the state. I have no idea whether the deteriorating climatic conditions we are experiencing are natural or man-made. But I do know a free society allows people to express diverse views without fear of state punishment.

Email: letters.editor@canberratimes.com.au. Send from the message field, not as an attachment. 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 date and page number. Letters may be edited. Provide phone number and full home address (suburb only published).

To send a letter via the online form, click or touch here.