Sydney bashing:
Brad Pace writes: Re. “Melbourne dreams of new airport but Sydney’s still stuck in gridlock” (yesterday, item 9). Last week it was a comment about the maturity of Melbourne’s business environment over Sydney’s, and now we get a comment on the inability to build infrastructure in NSW.
All framed around pie-in-the-sky rubbish around a third airport for Melbourne, which would seem to me to be far less vital than:
- A train line from the airport that’s already in Melbourne, and;
- A second airport in Sydney that will stop Melbourne visitors from flying around in circles for half an hour every time they visit.
What’s with the Sydney bashing? Is this a Michael Clarke thing? Or is everyone just a bit happy with themselves down there because the tennis is on.
The fact is both cities will continue to grow, and a co-ordinated approach is the only way to go forward. Fast train anyone?
The territories don’t exist, do they?:
Kim Lockwood writes: Re. “Poll Bludger: double whammy for major parties in Qld” (yesterday, item 1). William Bowe gives Anna Bligh the usual unwarranted accolade when he says hers was “still the only parliamentary majority ever secured by a woman leader in an Australian federal or state election”.
Yeah, federal or state. The territories don’t exist, do they? If they did, Bowe (and others who try the same sleight of hand) would acknowledge Clare Martin, who took the ALP to a one-seat majority victory in the Northern Territory in 2001, eight years before Bligh won in Queensland. And Martin turfed out the Country Liberal Party, which had been ruling for 27 years.
Taiwan:
Tom Richman writes: Re. “With China watching, Taiwanese vote for pragmatism” (yesterday, item 12). Often overlooked when commenting on Taiwanese elections is the fact that DPP support is not simply based on its stance on independence but, more importantly, because, as a left of centre organisation, it supports, for example, universal health care, workers’ rights, government investment in agriculture, education reform and the cessation of nuclear power … all of which were instituted during its eight years in office.
Yes, Melburnians do seem to relish an anti-Sydney story. It’s like a younger brother thing.
And Crikeyites seem to think that Western Sydney, in particular, is the root of all evil, effectively blaming it for Howardism, even though it hardly voted for him.
The main problem for Sydney is that since the 2000 Olympics it has rested on its laurels and thought just like most former Olympic cities that tourists and businesses would flock there without the government helping to make it happen.
The billions spent on mostly non essential infrastructure for the Olympics instead of much needed infrastructure projects will take a long time to recover and thats one reason why Sydney is struggling to attract tourists, migrants and investors not only against Melbourne but Brisbane as well.