• JULY 23

Seduced into purchasing a bottle of wine because of the display of a shiny gold medal – only to discover later that it is for the best label design – confirms what one sip of the plonk reveals: you have chosen style over substance.

• July 22

Not only is Basil Fawlty organising Britain's exit from Europe, he's also in charge of transport planning in NSW

• June 14

Your article about worsening storms on the east coast ("Shifting storms under climate change put sheltered areas at risk'', July 21),  had me digging through some old geography textbooks. In 1982, Lynn Scott wrote a wonderful junior geography textbook called People and Places (Jacaranda Press). In a chapter about coastal living she quoted the late, great Midget Farrelly. His words were prophetic:

• July 21

As the old Chinese proverb goes: 'When business is bad, paint the counter'. Look busy.

• July 20

The citizenship blunders by the Greens have sent our foreign-born MPs into a frenzy.

• July 19

What an horrific prospect that Peter Dutton could be appointed head of a new national security super-department.

• July 18

The real choice should be between a big Australia and a sustainable Australia.

• JULY 17

Excellent, but belated, decision by the major supermarket chains to ban single-use plastic bags at their stores. Next should come the ban of balloons.

• JULY 16

As Imre Salusinszky notes ("The friends the Coalition could do without", July 9) "the tabloid radio voices" Alan Jones and Ray Hadley, have demonstrated that they can force elected governments to bend to their will. For this reason, Malcolm Turnbull cannot afford to ignore the relentless hectoring of these "friends". In contrast I recall that during my time as a Meals on Wheels volunteer I was alerted to the more positive aspects of their broadcasting. A solitary lady, whose failing eyesight prevented her from reading or watching TV, described Alan Jones as "the most stimulating company". Her life, she said, would be "so dull without him". In some circles, at least, Jones and Hadley are more popular and influential than any politician.

• July 15

It says something about the entrenched ideology of some groups that funding an $18 billion motorway, with its attendant problems, such as finding parking and wider feeder roads for those polluting cars being channelled into Sydney, is preferable to spending a lesser amount on straightening the railway and speeding up trains (Cabinet documents reveal "exceptional" benefit to rail upgrade, July 14).

• July 14

Michael Pascoe is quite right: Sydney's rezoning game is little more than a frenzy for developers.

• JULY 13

What happened to the idea of decentralising arts and culture facilities that was the erstwhile justification of the fire sale of the Powerhouse site to developers?

• July 12

​The facts don't support Paul Keating's account, writes Lord Mayor Clover Moore.

• July 11

Former deputy lord mayor John McInerney must think the rest of us suffer from amnesia.

• July 10

There is little comfort in Peter Hartcher's analysis of a possible Australian defence against North Korean missiles.

• JULY 9

Being a crusty old curmudgeon, one tries to avoid laughing out loud in private, lest one forgets oneself and does so in public one day. However, Annabel Crabb's column on Christopher Pyne's apology ("An event of breathtaking enormity", July 2) had one guffawing on a number of occasions, not least at the suggestion that "it's probably time to start looting".

• July 8

This denial demeans us all. We must acknowledge the truth in an act of sorrow and regret.

• July 7

The war of words over North Korean missile tests has all the potential of a frightening miscalculation.

• July 6

We need to "Stand up for Royal" and ask that allocated funds to investigate this flawed expressway option are put into better integrated transport planning.

• July 5

The responsibility for, and control of, education is gradually being handed to statisticians and private companies.

• July 4

Letters: I was hoping Turnbull's ascent might usher in a new era of stability and achievement after years of chaos.

• July 03

Our outdated adversarial political system really is putting the accelerator on its demise with the news that our Tony is having another crack at it.

• July 2

I can't believe the City of Sydney has shut down the homeless people's makeshift shelter in Martin Place, on the grounds that it was a "public nuisance" and "causing inconvenience" ("Martin Place homeless community unseated", June 25). I work alongside the building every day and haven't been inconvenienced at all. I've stopped for a chat and been inspired by the care and support the people provide each other, whether it be washing-up duties, cooking, or having a yarn. Why can't we have a similar, permanent, dedicated shelter for homeless people in the city?

• July 1

The church, contrary to the belief of some in the media, is much bigger than Cardinal George Pell.

• LETTERS

The sooner the hard-liners stop the petulance, the better for all of us.

• June 29

Religious persons are still citizens with as equal a right to be heard on matters as anyone else.

• June 28

How disappointing, though not surprising to see Malcolm Turnbull once again display his lack of leadership.

• June 27

Sydney is well provided with restaurants but there is a severe shortage of social housing.

• June 26

Quality teaching is important but it is only part of the answer to falling standards.