Hi Everyone,

I have been to several Melbourne’s Cup and I thoroughly the euphoria, build up and the historic nature of it all. I’m not so sure I’m in the majority anymore. I run a small business. This year because of staff shortages I had to work but made a point of closing the business to watch the race and presentation with the skeleton staff. Well, that didn’t happen. The phones didn’t stop and neither did the clients bashing the door trying to do business.

I almost came to blows with one of my clients who told me it was ridiculous; It’s on a Tuesday; It’s the middle of the day; It’s treats horses abominably; it promotes one of the worst scourges in our society, gambling and it’s just a shameful unproductive, dangerous, irresponsible indulgence!

I was delighted that Michelle Payne was the winning jockey and that she had a heartening story, quite apart from being the first woman to win. I’m just so amazed that so many since that Tuesday have told me how utterly disinterested and disconnected they are in the Cup. Practically every foreign resident also echoed the same.

What is going on here? Even when I was at school the teachers would organize a sweep for the class. Is Melbourne Cup on the way out and does this mean that is the iconic status of AFL Grand final also now being threatened and I’m just oblivious?

Matt, Alberton, SA

Dear Sweet and Sour,

I love going on holidays. I make sure I take two each and every year. I’m lucky enough to be able to afford to do so. I’m recently re-partnered after several years and believe it or not, holidays have become an issue for us. I’m happy to pay for my wonderful new partner to come away with me as I had this holiday planned for the last 6 months. She doesn’t want to come. Worse, she doesn’t want me to go either!

She would have preferred that we worked it out together which I totally get and I’m more than happy to do that…. for the next holiday. On this occasion it’s a holiday with mates and their partners. From the start, it’s been planned and priced with me included as a double (whether I had a partner or not). It’s a cruise. If I pull out, the cost for the other 5 couples increases 20%. I don’t want to pull out. My partner has also told me straight that she doesn’t want to go away with my friends.

So I can’t work out if she’s being unreasonable or I’m being uncompromising? Do you think my partner may have social issues and just wants to stay within her comfort zones? Is she a snob? I definitely want to go with the other couples. I’ve been looking forward to it for the last 5 months.

I certainly don’t want to financially penalize the other couples and I’m not so flush that I can just pay for the cruise and take an alternative holiday at the same time. Please tell me what’s happening here and which direction I should take.

Mark, Moonee Ponds, Vic

Dear Mitch and Guests,

They are going to ruin our beaches. They want to have food vendors operating on the sand and beach chairs for rent as well! As a lazy nation we haven’t yet learnt to put rubbish in the provided bins but here we’re are going full steam ahead to let the junk food merchants and the rubbish makers pollute the best beaches on the planet. And then some vendors will be able to isolate the best portions of the beach for chair hire. The arguments just don’t stack up!

Apparently the tourism industry wants us to have the same commercial facilities on our pristine beaches as the Europeans and Americans, so we can compete better for the tourist dollar. I just can’t believe anybody would think that fried chips, crap hamburgers and lazy boys’ chairs would make our beach experience more enticing than the majestic stretches of glistening white sand and the quenching turquoise shining waters for which all of our coast is renowned.

I don’t want to buy a Whopper while I’m lying on a hired chair three inches from the next girl or guy. And I certainly don’t want to help the thoroughly annoying fly population start to infest our beaches while feeding off the discarded food wrappers. Please panelists speak up for our beaches now. We just don’t want hired beach chairs and Maccas right on the clean white sands of our coastline.

Paul, Cottesloe, WA