Letters Shara plant theft
someone else to pick up, or worse, to be washed into the sea. For those amongst us that leave the bags on the beach, with the intention to collect it on the way back, ask yourself how often you’ve forgotten accidentally? Count your blessings, smile bright and keep enjoying all the goodness on your walks. And say thank you, a lot. Juud Addison Byron Bay
The gardens on Shara Blvd near the highway are maintained by a volunteer and it would be appreciated if the culprit stealing the plants would stop. Michele Ocean Shores
A time of loss In recent times Byron Bay has lost Mungo, lost its Main Beach and lost the ability to control a sensible future pathway with the loss in the courts to the developers of West Byron. From that decision we will also lose our ability to function in a fair and reasonable time frame and convenience. More people, more cars but very little more in the way of infrastructure will eventually squeeze the functionality out of Byron Bay. What were they thinking? This is not a selfish case of ‘not in our backyard’ but a case of ‘our backyard isn’t anywhere near big enough’ for these changes. Neil Matterson Byron Bay
Congrats to The Echo A strong congratulation is in order for The Echo in surviving the Murdoch Press assault on local newspapers. It was relentless and captured many of them on the whole east coast some years ago. Content was reduced
Dark and confusing
Cartoon by Craig Scanlan to social niceties, strong calls for state money for new development, ads and services and of course, real estate adverts and hype. And of course another goal was to remove a paper that operated as a community forum and dared to practise investigative journalism. And then, after taking out and transforming all these local papers and dumbing down the community‌ whoosh, all gone, vanished, kaput, overnight!  We sort of awoke from the nightmare, and there, left standing high above the clouds is The Echo. Congrats! Quite amazing,
Letters to the Editor Send to Letters Editor Aslan Shand, fax: 6684 1719 email: editor@echo.net.au Deadline: Noon, Friday. Letters longer than 200 words may be cut. Letters already published in other papers will not be considered. Please include your full name, address and phone number for verification purposes.
you did it, went against the most rich and powerful media organisation in the western world and survived, quite a feat!  A lesson in corporate behaviour too for local communities. 2020 vision. Bill Sokolich Kuranda
Scoop the poop bags I am a Byron Ranger and a member of a local volunteer group that, amongst other things, organises clean ups on our beautiful beaches every week. During today’s clean up at Belongil we collected 30 full doggie bags that were left behind. How lucky are we to be able to exercise and enjoy selected beaches together with our furry family members? However, if you do go to the beach, please pick up your own doggie-poo bags and don’t leave it behind for
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It seems our world gets darker and more confusing all the time. Bushfires, floods and extreme weather suggests that climate change is real and yet our governments still hesitate to take real action. In America COVID and Trumpism dominate and everyone seems divided about what it all means. The spirit of connection that binds us all together, humans, animals and the Earth seems to be desperately breaking apart. I live surrounded by beauty and it reminds me that the connection is real, but so many others are suffering from loss. I am grateful for what I have in my small world but there’s much to worry about. Personally I’ve felt devastated lately about the NSW government’s decision to close parts of our railway here in the Northern Rivers. I believe the government can afford it, and our communities need it, but they just don’t care. I’ve been banging my head against a brick wall on this issue and now my head hurts. I know there is support from all the people who need ▜ Continued on page 13
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www.echo.net.au/byron-echo Byron Shire Echo archives
EPIC Sunday 27 december
OOZ Duo Monday 28 december
Simon Meola Tuesday 29 DECember
Chris Aronsten Wednesday 30 DECember
Tim Stokes 'Ä&#x2022;Ä&#x2C6;Ä&#x2022;Ĺ&#x201D;Ä&#x2021;Ä&#x2022;Ĺż ÇŠÇŞÇ˝ NJǧNJǧ The Byron Shire Echo 11