Charge will take away my lifeline.

Further to Nichol Wilson's letter of June 13.

While Alastair Darling's road charging scheme would seem to be acceptable to some people,

it seems to me there appears to be a deafening silence for motorists with a disability.

My car is my lifeline. Without it I would have no quality of life. Try using the Metro or buses on your own, in a wheelchair.

We all agree something needs to be done. How about spending the millions raised from fuel tax and/or road taxes to improve and upgrade the road networks? Also, what happened to freedom of choice?

Surely if a motorist ensures his car complies with the relevant laws, it should be their choice to use the car or bus.

As an aside, look how difficult Newcastle City Council are making it for car drivers to drive into the city. No car lanes (can an MPV use these lanes?), more yellow lines, increased car parking charges, more and more road humps, reduced speed limits, more traffic signals, more one-way streets, etc.

Are they creating more congestion in the city so when congestion charging is introduced, as I am sure it will be, most people will admit something has to be done?

A good example of created congestion is trying to drive from Newcastle over to Gateshead.

A LODGE-JOHNSTON, Hotspur Street, Tynemouth.

Stealth tax is just so unfair

READING Your Shout, Evening Chronicle, June 13, I again came across Nichol Wilson, agreeing with Alastair Darling's plans to bring in another stealth tax ( or should it be called highway robbery charging motorists pounds 1.30 per mile to travel on our motorways?

The Government has just passed a right to roam in the countryside and this should also apply to roads. And as for Nichol Wilson's claim public transport is a lot better these days, I take him back a few months when he was complaining in the press he couldn't get a bus in Hebburn to travel up to Windy Nook up and Felling. Short memory or what? And, as we the council taxpayer subsidise public transport, we should all be paying a quarter of the fares we are now charged on Metro, trains and buses. Get real Nichol. How many people who travel on business every day could afford these charges?

G SMITH, Fisherwell Road, Pelaw.

Bullies should be ashamed

MAY I say to BS of Jesmond that you do not know me so how dare you call me a whingeing, whining, everything for nothing, self-pitying wrinkly?

My husband and I are in our 70s and enjoy life to the full. We worked all our lives and saved for our retirement ( we don't go on holiday or nights out. We enjoy our garden and the lovely village in which we live.

The only things we get for nothing are eye tests and dental checks. The treatment itself we pay for, just like everyone else, and are content to do so. Do you think for one moment any of us enjoy receiving any kind of benefit which causes jealousy and will you accept or refuse the same when you become a pensioner?

We appreciate concessionary bus travel but we have not asked for free travel. We have never whined for anything so before you print such vicious, cruel words please get down off your high horse and speak to a few pensioners, if it is not beneath your dignity. You may be surprised to find that only a minority whinge and whine. The majority of us love life and wish to live our lives in peace, not to cause bother to anyone.

You sir/madam, bring shame upon society in general by targeting once again the people who raised what is turning out to be a generation which should be ashamed of its cold heartedness towards us.

May I give you something to smile about BS? Your words caused a few tears of sadness ( how's that for putting the boot in? As for BB of Heaton, I guess I've heard it all now! She thinks pensioners should give up their seats for mothers and their buggies... may I apologise to this person for misreading the notice on the window, I always thought it read `for elderly and disabled' but then I'm just a silly old pensioner and have obviously got it wrong.

So who is next in the queue for firing bullets at us? How about the fact we even exist? Getting in your way in towns and shops and taking up seats in buses are only two points that appear to enrage people. How about getting up a petition to have us banned from everywhere and that will leave room for all you pensioner-haters out there to enjoy life without our presence?

God help us when we cannot live together in peace, each living to the best of our ability. You should all be thoroughly ashamed of yourselves. For goodness sake, find some real issue to direct your anger and frustration at. There are plenty of those out there. I've had my say and that is an end to it. Take this as you will.

Name and address supplied

Anger at art is misplaced

WHY all the fuss over the artworks of Ebony Andrews?

Anyone would think artists had never made use of animals before to further their careers. The greatest English animal painter George Stubbs regularly dissected horses bought from the knackers yard.

Similarly, Damien Hirst has been exhibiting sliced open carcasses of cows and sheep for years without attracting the sort of anger pointed at Miss Andrews.

Clearly, cows and sheep do not elicit the same emotional response as cute, cuddly and fluffy animals like squirrels and bunny rabbits do.

This, presumably, also helps to explain the curious absence of correspondence over the recent fate of those animals abandoned at stables in County Durham.

As I write, I have just heard on the TV Japan intends to increase its annual slaughter of whales, purely in the name of scientific research, you understand, to around 1,000-a- year.

Are Chronicle readers going to let this go by without comment too?

Name and address supplied

Fiasco's real comedians

ON reading of the Chubby Brown fiasco I am wondering if the Lib Dem council and Labour opposition should not be on the stage at the City Hall because they must be the biggest bunch of comedians I have ever heard.

Political correctness is the usual problem with this country, worrying about the rights of the ethnic minorities and hurting their feelings. Can I ask these councillors what about the right of the majority of the country or is this not relevant?

As has already been said, if you don't want to hear this comedian don't go, or am I stating the obvious? I find it strange this comedian has performed at the City Hall for 20 years with a Labour council in control and yet not a peep from the "Unison hierarchy". Why?

Can I also assume the Lib Dems will be following the Labour council and ban the Union Jack and St George flags from council buildings?

D MILLER, Westbourne Avenue, Gateshead.