It is incredible that the Victorian attorney-general has apparently only recently become aware of the deficits, business closures and alleged criminality of some private bail providers, according to (\u201cPrivate bail services for accused criminals to be banned after run of failings<\/a>\u201d 30\/7). There have been so many examples of unethical and\/or criminal behaviour by some private operators who have been awarded contracts for various outsourced government services \u2013 TAFE colleges, childcare, NDIS \u2013 and then found to be incompetent or corruptly misusing taxpayer funding.
In deciding to outsource public services to private businesses, it would appear that governments do so in the seriously mistaken belief that this absolves ministers and their departments of management responsibility for supervision of the actual contract obligations.
Surely, it is incumbent upon the attorney-general to now resign following this disgraceful exposure of ministerial incompetence and neglect.
Jenny Backholer Clifton Hill<\/p>\n
Costs of civil society Napoleonic Code Musical legends Local talent AND ANOTHER THING Credit: Matt Golding<\/p>\n Trump Dear Bret, Machiavellism under any circumstances is not god \u2013 nor good for that matter. Trump still considers himself as emperor of the world. His interference in domestic affairs of other countries is unparalleled. His latest intervention in Brazil wanting his mate Jair Bolsonaro reprieved is none of his business. Trump thinks it was wrong for Epstein to \u2018steal\u2019 a 16-year-old girl working at his Mar-a-Lago spa. It concerns me more that a 16-year-old girl would be working as a spa attendant.
Congratulations to Saria Ratnam for so clearly outlining the absurdities of the Morrison government\u2019s changes to funding university courses (\u201cFee schedule for arts degrees is all ancient Greek to me<\/a>\u201d, 30\/7).
The changes we were told at the time would provide incentives for students to enrol in university courses that would increase \u2018job ready\u2019 graduates in areas of high workforce demand such as nursing, and deter students from enrolling in areas his government deemed \u2018overstocked\u2019, such as law, or \u2018frivolous\u2019 such as the arts.
The policy resulted in enormous increases in fees for certain subjects while reducing fees for others. Not only has this been unsuccessful in its intended outcome, but Ratnam provided excellent examples of the inconsistencies in its application. \u201cLiterature and French were each $578. Creative writing and political theory were $2124 each\u201d … \u201cIndigenous Australian art histories is twice as expensive as \u201cArt history: Australian art\u201d.
Gender studies is severely penalised at $2124 per subject, but Latin and ancient Greek are apparently favoured as useful vocational subjects with reduced fees. This is clearly a nonsense.
The funding structure for university courses needs to be addressed urgently. And the provision of courses and their funding needs to recognise both workforce demands and the value of arts degrees to a civil society.
Jenny Macmillan, Clifton Hill<\/p>\n
Regarding Yvonne Aoll\u2019s article \u2033\u2063Disinherited Daughters face psychological trauma<\/a>\u2033\u2063, it appears that children can be discriminated when it comes to inheritance. A way to get around this would be to adopt Napoleonic inheritance laws as in many countries, so offspring, including those born out of wedlock, are given an equal share of the inheritance.
Ingrid Pezzoni, Toorak<\/p>\n
I agree with the correspondent (Letters, 31\/7<\/a>) who questioned why the passing of Cleo Laine received little mention in the media. There was much coverage of the deaths of Ozzie Osbourne and Hulk Hogan but little about Cleo Laine, Chuck Mangione (legendary flugel horn player) and conductor Sir Roger Norrington. I had the privilege of performing with Cleo Lane in the 1980s and was in awe of her immense talent. Australia, the \u2018clever country\u2019? Perhaps not.
Russ Davis, Camperdown<\/p>\n
Given the speculation about Snoop Dogg as the grand final entertainment this year, obviously the AFL entertainment gurus reckon footy fans are ready for a bit of rap and hip hop. If that\u2019s the case, then why don\u2019t they book some local Indigenous people who make that sort of music? It would keep the rumoured million-dollar-plus booking fee in Australia and be a further acknowledgment of the Marngrook origins of the game in keeping with the AFL\u2019s other endeavours in celebrating Indigenous culture.
Ross Bardin, Williamstown<\/p>\n![\"<p>\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/0d3a647c412d3dc979da44e4b7ef10c51cddcb97.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
Columnist Bret Stephens\u2019 comments regarding Donald Trump (31\/7<\/a>) are a reminder that no one is as bad as the worst thing they have ever done. And no one is as good as the best thing they have ever done.
Rod Wise, Surrey Hills<\/p>\n
David Watson, West Footscray<\/p>\n
Alan Inchley, Frankston<\/p>\n
Gretel Lamont, Aireys Inlet<\/p>\n