Two new Victorian COVID-19 cases as vaccine roll-out hits a few speed bumps | February 26, 2021

In the US, leading Republican in the Senate Mitch McConnell said Trump was "practically and morally" guilty of the January 6 insurrection, and yet, because he is now a private citizen, he should not be convicted. Isn't that taking respect for a former leader a bit far? Five lives were lost in the attack on the White House, and not one in 1605 England, except for the perpetrator. Surely this is tantamount to "getting away with murder".

I think in the US, people appear to be so distracted they cannot see the anomaly here. But surely they cannot overlook the fact that right here they have set a dangerous precedent; and, if they do not act, there may be serious consequences in the future.

Farmers with water frontages should be very afraid about new camping laws for leased Crown land.

How well do some people behave when they go bush? I have friends who visit wetlands to rescue wounded waterbirds during duck shooting season. Invariably they find human faeces, toilet paper, cans, spent cartridges and other litter, plus unwanted bird parts. Some shooters cut down trees illegally once "enforcement" patrols have moved on. Complaints to the government hotline are useless on the weekend or at night because it's not staffed, and police say they are too busy.

Farmer Ken Pattison ("Consultation commences", Feb 20) has driving and shooting licences, so he supports licensing campers to educate them about their responsibilities. How well might that work? A Game Management Authority report last year admitted a quarter of its licensees have not even supplied an email address or phone number and shooters' knowledge of basic responsibilities is poor, despite years of taxpayer-funded "education".

The focus is on fishing, but it seems duck shooting camps will also be permitted along leased water frontages.

The Victorian Fisheries Authority says camping "has been occurring on many of these frontages for many years" - in other words, authorities failed to enforce the law. Their remedy? Open the floodgates, allow camping on Victoria's 26,000km of crown land water frontages. Apparently this "allows for it to be better managed through regulations". Their lack of logic is astounding.

I look forward to a new supermarket - a much-needed asset for Castlemaine. This is well overdue - providing jobs and keeping more people in the shire should be paramount. We don't have much and it is needed to prosper.

Each week, our Letter of the Week will win its author a $30 Coles voucher. This week's winner is Zerin Knight from Maiden Gully for her letter published on Tuesday.

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