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5 minute read
Public Purpose
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PO BOX 7105 South Penrith NSW 2750 P (02) 4722 2998 • F (02) 4731 6255
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Issue 1539
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Editor’s Desk Troy Dodds
troy.dodds@westernweekender.com.au @troydodds
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Governments need to be better
Government response must be better
As tends to happen in times of disaster, Australians are putting their hands deep in their pockets to help those impacted by floods in northern New South Wales.
And despite their bitter rivalries, even free-to-air TV networks Seven, Nine and Ten will come together for a fundraising telethon this weekend.
As inspiring as it is to see people unite for others, I’m left to ponder: is this not the role of government?
There appears to be a growing feeling in Lismore and other flood-impacted areas that both the State and Federal governments have been extremely slow to react to a disaster that will take years to recover from.
One talkback caller told 2GB on Tuesday: “If the residents of the Northern Rivers hadn’t risked their own lives to save others, so many would have died.”
It’s intriguing that for a country so often ravaged by flood and fire, so much of our emergency response lies in the hands of volunteers – salt of the earth people from the State Emergency Service and Rural Fire Service.
Perhaps in 2022, we need to be smarter about our disaster response.
We of course have the fancy Resilience NSW, a thought bubble spearheaded by former Premier Gladys Berejiklian, but nobody seems to fully comprehend what the body does and what its role is.
The fact that the State Government this week appointed Mal Lanyon as the ‘Northern NSW Flood Recovery Coordinator’ suggests that Resilience NSW is nothing more than a showpiece given its very mission statement is to help communities rebuild after disasters.
If asked, governments will send out long emails listing all of the various funding, grants and help available to those impacted by the floods.
But those on the ground appear to be telling a different story. They feel abandoned and forgotten, and they don’t feel the assistance is flowing.
Inside the next 12 months we will have both a Federal and State Election where the Labor and Liberal parties will spend millions of dollars campaigning, telling us how good they are or will be.
But it is in times of crisis we really learn about the backbones of governments.
There should be little need for the general public to put their hands in their pockets in times such as this.
People impacted should feel that their government is here for them, whether it be to provide immediate or ongoing funding, assist in clean-up or, importantly, to be on the ground as the emergency is unfolding. Something has failed here, and governments must be better.
A lovable icon we’ll never forget
When I was a little kid, I was footy obsessed in the winter but just couldn’t fall in love with cricket over the summer.
In fact, I’d be fuming if I checked the TV Week and discovered that a Test match would air instead of a re-run of ‘Get Smart’.
But in the mid-1990s, Australian cricket reached incredible highs – and like many I became totally obsessed, particularly by a freak spin bowler known as Shane Warne. All of a sudden I was out in the backyard trying to replicate his heroics on the hard turf of Bass Hill, where I’d spend school holidays at my grandmother’s house.
Nobody knows this but Joe the Camera Man was actually talking about me when he said “can’t bowl, can’t throw”. And he was right.
Truth is not many people could replicate Warnie.
He was a legend on the field, an enigma off it and, even through several controversies, maintained a larrikinism that Australians loved and respected.
Watching interviews with Warne since his tragic passing on the weekend, it was clear that this was a bloke with a good head on his shoulders who, unashamedly, took advantage of his fame and money at times.
Deep down he was a family man who lived life with plenty of love and passion.
Like most, I was absolutely rattled when news came through of Warne’s death.
The outpouring of grief from all over the world over the past week would have even surprised Warne himself, I suspect.
A piece of Australian sport’s storied history has gone. RIP Warnie.
Index
News...............................................1-21 LBA Feature........................22-26 Extra Time...........................27-42 Entertainment ..................43-54 Weekender Living ........55-58 Business...............................59-60 Business Directory........61-63 Auto..................................................64 Sport ........................................65-68
POLITICS OF HUMAN SECURITY
WITH CARL HALLEY Climate change Australia’s biggest threat
Lindsay Federal Election candidate Carl Halley promises to “Keep the Bastards honest or keep the Bastards out.” web www.carlhalley.com.au www.facebook.com/carlhalley.com.au
WW47586 Presents... As the exciting return of Shakespeare by the River in 2022:
Weir Reserve - 5 Bruce Neal Drive, Penrith (past the Nepean Rowing Club, at the end of the road). 7:00pm, Saturday 5 March | 5:00pm, Sunday 6 March 7:00pm, Friday 11 March | 7:00pm, Saturday 12 March 5:00pm, Sunday 13 March Patrons are invited to an outdoor performance. Bring your picnic chair/blanket and picnic fare. Ticket price is $20.00 by donation, which is fully tax deductible.