The referral revealed council’s costly mismanagement of the project to date – $93,000 of ratepayers’ money that could have been used productively elsewhere. How much more money will be wasted on this development?

It is comical that council continues to be pushed by a few demanding Nowra business people towards spending about $25 million of ratepayers’ money to  construct on a highly visible prime CBD corner a huge, ugly, Soviet-style car park. It would be a white elephant because in 2015 council’s own expert car parking consultants said the many existing car park areas around the CBD could be better managed to cater for existing and future needs and that a multi-storey car park is not required for at least five to 15 years, if at all.

Various consultant reports have told council that if multi-storey car parks are ever needed they should be built in Egans Lane or Stewart Place where they would give direct access to surrounding businesses. And as is normal practice high-rise car parks should be built and paid for by private developers who know how to run them as profitable businesses and not by council using ratepayers’ money and offering businesses free parking.

Get real, council.

When writing my previous letter regarding the proposed rate rise I visited the Shoalhaven City Council website and had a look at its reasons for the proposed impost.

Under the heading Your Rates, Your Future (which left me with the impression we should all be deliriously happy council was deigning to rip us off) residents are asked to complete a short survey on their preferred rate increase. No option was offered for no increase at all. So no matter what we want we can only say yes to one of council’s options for gouging us. It reminded me of a robocall I received from the ACTU during the most recent federal election campaign. I was asked to identify which issue would most influence my vote but there were no options for Liberal treachery on superannuation or the Labor leader’s personal treachery to his own union members and his two prime ministers.

The council website says that it cannot continue to meet the rising costs of operations within its current budget. So, did anyone suggest it might modify its current budget? I mean every person and every business in the face of static or falling revenue cuts their costs to fit what they have. It’s how we survive. Not our council though. Too many careers to be made around screwing the likes of you and me for the money they haven’t already gouged out of us.

Everything else on that section about the rate increase is self-serving self-justification. If it wasn’t so pathetic it would be laughable.

The story about a zookeeper who punched a kangaroo in the Central West of NSW has gone viral this week. People are asking why a person so experienced with animals would use violence against a member of a native species. Others are worried about the dog who was being held by the 'roo just before the punch. The man's employer, Taronga Zoo, said it "strongly opposes the striking of animals and does not support the practice of using dogs to hunt, as this can result in negative welfare for both species", but has not fired the perpetrator.

The dogs were confronting the kangaroo because a bunch of men wanted to go and kill a pig. The lesson is clear: if you are genuinely concerned about the welfare of your dog, don't put it in danger among wild animals and guns.