Together - or not?
Are we really all in this together?
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It seems to me the economic burden of COVID-19 has fallen primarily on those in the private sector.
There appear to be two classes of Australians; those sheltered from the negative impacts of the lockdown measures in the public sector and quasi-public institutions; and those exposed in the private, productive sectors of the economy.
The decisions makers at state, federal and local government level have the luxury of steady paid employment and are not exposed to the vagaries of no job and no, or limited income. So it's easy for them to be isolated from the devastating effects of the economic meltdown.
There is no shared sense of sacrifice amongst the public and quasi-public workforce.
Those in small business seem to be bearing the brunt of the savage financial downturn with state and local governments doing little meaningful to help. No practical life-saving support.
Almost 75 per cent of Australians in a recent poll indicated they wanted politicians and senior public type servants on salaries above $150,000 to have pay reduced by 20 per cent during the crisis.
But there appears no chance of that happening. The spirit of sacrificial sharing won't stretch that far!
Colin Carrington, Heathcote
Duck season ban support
Thank you Chris Roberts (Bendigo Advertiser, 26/5/2020) for sharing how duck shooting impacted your experience as a tourist to regional Victoria. Sadly, you are not alone.
Studies including by The Australia Institute show the majority of potential visitors will avoid duck shooting areas. Who could blame them?
The blast of gunfire piercing the air, dead and maimed birds falling from the skies, otherwise beautiful waterways littered with ammunition cartridges, beer cans and bird body parts, is not generally associated with a nice afternoon out.
Most people would take their family - and their wallets - somewhere else.
Latest Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows Victoria is the hardest hit by the corona pandemic of all states, with the number of employees on the payroll in the state down by 8.4 per cent since mid-March.
Government estimates show regional Victoria is set to lose $3.8 billion in lost tourism for the first half of this year.
With many of our rural communities dependent on tourism to survive, the last thing we need is duck shooting deterring the economic relief we desperately need.
For so many reasons, only one of which is economic, it's time Victoria followed the lead of other states and banned recreational bird shooting.
Kerrie Allen, Regional Victorians Opposed to Duck Shooting Inc, Ballarat
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