Misinformation campaign
Contrary to some recent media reports (“Workers protest privatisation, Bendigo Advertiser, October 13), Premier Daniel Andrews is not turning his back on disability services in turning to the non-government sector; he’s making policy-backed and evidence-driven decisions that benefit people with disability.
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There is no question that the NGO disability sector is best placed to deliver services under the National Disability Insurance Scheme. NGO disability services employ highly skilled and passionate staff who are critical to supporting people with disability to realise their goals.
They are community-run organisations that harness enormous social capital in communities that government could never hope to replicate. And they are ready, responding to consumer requests by changing their service models to meet the demands of the NDIS and offer real choice and control to people with disability.
There’s opportunity, not harm, for people with disability in a future where the services they want are delivered by the non-government disability services sector.
David Moody, National Disability Services Victorian state manager
Fab Four forever no. 1
Gotta admit, Garry Linnell, you had me going. Your column claiming the Beatles to be the "most overrated of all" (Beatles are the most overrated of them all”, Bendigo Advertiser, October 15) appeared convincing, until I realised it was obviously tongue-in-cheek.
No serious student of popular music - even that of 50 years ago - could possibly arrive at a conclusion so outrageous.
This piece was clearly designed to generate a response from people such as myself and to that end, your ruse has worked. There is, of course, an inherent danger in undervaluing the affect that the greatest band of all time has had on the world.
One runs the risk of also offsiding some of the lesser lights, such as Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen, Sting, James Taylor, The Eagles and Phil Collins, all of whom have said much and often about the influence The Beatles have had their work.
And, try as I might, I have difficulty in finding more than a handful Beatles songs - including the early stuff - containing basic three-chord structures, so, if the article was intended to be serious, I'm sure the assertions contained therein have very little basis in fact.
I am aware that you are a journalist of some repute, but am not convinced of your credentials in this area. The Beatles overrated? You say yes, I say no. Should we put an end to their story? You say stop, and I say go go go!
Len Gaskell, Bendigo
Intervention unwelcome
In regards to Jacinta Allan’s comments (“Council election ‘critical’: Allan”, Bendigo Advertiser, October 15) the truth is both the City of Greater Bendigo and the state government created an absolute disaster for themselves.
Starting over the issue of the mosque, pitting people against people. This had no need to happen, as Jacinta and the then mayor well knew. Under the power of state government, the then dysfunctional local government should have been dismissed.
You have now interfered, in State Parliament, over local government where you have no right. Yet in the situation of our voluntary organisations under your state power, you have attempted to interfere with us. To attempt to shift the blame from your failed actions, you wish to undermine our democratic rights to vote as we see fit.
You now realise we have a democratic vote and you are concerned because you realise that the majority of people do not agree with your dictatorial directives coming from state government. Labor, you created this debacle and you now fear the result of a democratic election.