The Daily Advertiser letters: 'I can't even guess as to how many woke Gods there must be'

I thought what he was on about all those centuries ago was a pretty decent and just way to live in harmony with my fellow man. Voting Yes in the referendum seemed perfectly natural.

I am now horrified to learn from Peter Paradice (DA letters, 24/10) that not only I, but God as well, is woke.

Given that man has established a vast array of religions during his tenure on this planet I can't even hazard a guess as to how many woke Gods there must be gazing down on their handiwork.

What I can guess at though as my gaze wanders around the world, from the mean spirited outcome of the referendum to the utter travesty of Gaza is their level of disappointment.

I was saddened to read some rather vitriolic language in some letters in regard to the referendum and towards people who voted yes. Phrases like "inner city elites", "virtue signalling" , "vile", and something about "rotting fish".

This is really unnecessary and counterproductive. Such derogatory language only deepens the divide between Australians who voted as they did. As the old saying goes, ''he who throws mud loses ground''. Such social media style language often degrades honest debate and could even threaten democratic debate in our nation.

Over one-third of all Australians voted yes last week, including tens of thousands around regional and rural Australia.

Late counting has shown nearly every remote Indigenous community and places like the Tiwi Islands overwhelmingly voted yes.

Although the yes vote did not get up, it has spotlighted the great gaps which exist between the Indigenous Australians and the rest of Australia.

So now it is up to all of us, yes and no, to do something about it. One way, as Uncle Hewitt said in this paper, is to start listening and to hear some truth telling. ''History is still calling," he said, "Let's not give up.'' If we all do this, the referendum will not have been in vain.

We need the switch to clean energy to reduce emissions, but there is a downside.

The closure of ageing coal-fired power stations means a substantial drop in income for workers in the industry.

One reason is that in the past, strong union representation in the mining sector helped achieve higher pay rates.

Working families could provide better educational opportunities and material well-being for their children. But now, much more is at stake for future generations.

Countless families in Australia have already suffered displacement and hardship, due to the increasingly severe floods and fires fuelled by global warming. This trend is set to intensify.

During the 2022 floods hundreds of schools were closed, disrupting students' learning. The same thing happened during the 2019 to 2020 bushfires.

Children are among the hardest hit by extreme weather events. The writing is on the wall for coal. I hope coal-mining unions will help support the clean energy transition in their communities, for our children's sake.

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