That there is a midwife shortage due to burnout is a calamity. It seems to me the real tragedy is in the comments made by the professor who places the blame on the “highly medicalised system that they work in”. So that’s it then? It’s still doctor versus nurse,midwife versus obstetrician,and my model of care versus yours. The two groups would still seem to be at war even after all these decades. Have we made no progress at all towards some sort of reconciliation?Ross MacPherson,Seaforth
Imperfect marriage
Parnell Palme McGuinness attempts to highlight and compare different government systems,revealing that the “West is best”(“”,Juy 16). But democracy can come in many forms,continually evolving and often is indeed faulty. Good democracy is dependent on a solid educational base. As the poet Alexander Pope wrote in 1709,“A little learning is a dang’rous thing/Drink deep”. It is also important that we recognise the processes within the digital sphere can aid the process of evolution,but we must not allow it to direct the evolution. Just like a good marriage,democracy is hard work to maintain as we all evolve together.Janice Creenaune,Austinmer
Collision course.Matt Davidson
No argument that in the eyes of many citizens,their democracy has its faults. But to the considerable envy of those who live under dictatorships,in a democracy there is always the possibility of improvement by changing the government,changing or introducing laws,and even modifying the constitution. All free thinking individuals must be continually horrified by treatment and suppression of critics of authoritarian regimes. There is also the well-proven likelihood that the behaviour of a dictator for life will promote incompetent supporters to powerful positions while becoming increasingly erratic and corrupt. Every democracy has seen election of poor quality leaders,but the good news is we can strongly criticise them without fear,and ultimately be rid of them.Geoff Harding,Chatswood
I doubt that those who have suffered under the knife of a cosmetic “surgeon” or have been burnt by shonky builders would agree with McGuinness’s comments about over-regulation. It is unacceptable that anyone can call themselves an engineer or a sonographer;it is unacceptable that strata managers don’t need to be licensed except in NSW. We need more appropriate regulations,ones that are actually enforced,not fewer. Next McGuinness will be promoting trickle-down economics. And we know how well that works.Maddie Brown,Yarralumla
Bowled out
A couple of contributors hate the idea of bowling clubs shutting down (,July 16). Those spruiking successful bowling clubs would have to admit the actual game of lawn bowls is a minor activity,as greens all over Sydney lie vacant 75 per cent of the time. How did this happen?
Around two decades ago,bowling clubs took the huge gamble to concentrate on promising young players,and on new and ever-evolving bowl technology,while mostly neglecting the ordinary club bowler,who’d turn up every week to do the hard yakka. New,super-keen executives spun the coin,and lost. Now,most surviving clubs pay little or no attention to the game,and focus on big-end entertainment and flash restaurants,etc. It’s apparently called progress.Rosemary O’Brien,Ashfield
State of origin
I agree with your correspondent (,July 20). Surely in this century,our state should not be named after a small country on the other side of the world. We are advanced enough that we should have our own name,and as we are now recognising our original inhabitants,let it be an Indigenous name to reflect our origins.Rae Rosten,Berowra
Democracy in motion
And it follows there will be a motion before council’s next meeting (“”,July 16)?Allan Gibson,Cherrybrook