The hardship, heartbreak and cost to society are massive and getting worse.

It is my observation that we are far more focused on treating the symptoms, particularly at governmental level, instead of genuinely tackling the causes.

A recent documentary filmed in St Arnaud showed how a young boy ended up involved in the drug ice, its making and distribution.

This boy had been abandoned or failed by parents, family, society and government; he was impoverished, destitute and desperate.

He was observed and predated on by a bikie gang who offered him false friendship but most importantly a means to survive against starvation, social deprivation, sickness and death.

As a society we had condemned this boy like so many tens of thousands of others to extreme poverty; more than 2.5 million Australians are living below the poverty line and many have nothing what so ever to live on in the wealthiest country on Earth (per capita).

Clearly the “elephants” in the room are: human greed, inequity in wealth, a lack of love and human compassion, all fostered by cold hearted hypocritical lying governments and chameleon like politicians.

Extremist capitalism is the mammoth and our wealthy elitist politicians know it.

The fact is sharing wealth is not in their interest and that is why 5 to 10 per cent of the people own 90 per cent of the wealth; and it’s getting worse with globalisation.

— ALAN J. LAPPIN,

Boorhaman North