I am writing this letter to to let the people of Junee know how low other people can be.

A couple of years ago I placed solar lights each side of the driveway into the Baptist Church. These lasted about two weeks before they were smashed.

The last few weeks I have been doing up a garden at the church. I was given some shrubs and purchased some myself and planted them. I was very disappointed and hurt when I went down to the church the other day only to find that someone had taken five of these shrubs.

Plants are not cheap to buy and I do not feel like replacing them only for them to be taken as well.

I hope the person who did this feels at least a bit of guilt.

You have to send a well done to the transport minister and our state local member. It’s good to see them in touch with our local community.

Just as people in Ladysmith prepare for centennial celebrations of the Tumbarumba line, our politicians sneak a bill into parliament to close it. It’s insensitive and out of touch.

But worst of all, there’s been little consultation and some very basic questions still haven’t been asked. There is a heritage group that has worked for 20 years to keep the line open with aspirations to extend their operations to Tumbarumba.

The government is happy to splash $4.8 million around for a rail trail trial to “attract tourism”. Why did the government fail to approach the heritage group to see how they could have spent the $4.8 million to enhance tourism?

With that money, they could have realised their dreams of trike operations back to Tumbarumba.

After all, the state government is reopening 60km of the Maimru-Demondrille line for $5 million.

Further, we are told the trail needs to be fenced. If that is so, why tear up the railway?

Standards at the time of construction meant the corridor had to be at least 22 metres wide – so why not simply place the cycle-way next to the existing railway?

As for tourism, I can see families right across Sydney and Melbourne saying, “come on kids, we’re off to Tumbarumba to go for a pedal”.

Isn’t it time the boffins in government began to get real and listened to the concerns of local people?

Discarding infrastructure, even in its current state, is nothing short of scandalous.

The words marriage equality have nothing to do with equality.

They are about changing the meaning of a work very important to human culture.

They are also about changing the meaning of the words bride, bridegroom, husband, wife, widow, widower, parent and familyh

Do people want to spend the rest of their lives having to explain that they are married to a man or woman?

I would like to see our servicemen receive the same media coverage as that being extended to a convicted criminal like Schapelle Corby.