The reduction in financial support from both federal and state governments is borderline criminal and pressure on bed availability has led to a 'MacDonalds" style, drive-through approach – seven-14 days and you're out, adequately treated or not.

The proliferation of drug abuse has meant these individuals displace those with genuine diagnosable mental illness (schizophrenia – bi-polar disorder and the like). 

Much needs to be Invested into genuine care of those with diagnosable mental illnesses, including the psychoses, serious depression and anxiety and, most importantly, youth mental health and suicidality across the ages. 

Oh, that we ever have genuine caring leadership.

I am appalled at the tactics employed in trying to prevent ordinary Australians from having a say in the same-sex marriage issue.

It is a social matter having no bearing on governance, but is preventing the government from addressing far more pressing issues. Active gays are a small but powerful minority with many high achievers and people in dominant positions in business and elsewhere. I find despicable the activities of businesses and businessmen in using their powerful positions to force the issue.

Margaret Court expressed her views very politely, only to be met with abuse. A church group was threatened and intimidated into cancelling a meeting. I understood that threats and intimidation constituted a criminal offence, but this is apparently applied selectively.

Gay couples have, quite properly, every civil right accorded to heterosexual couples, but are intent on getting their hands on the word "marriage" which, for centuries, has had a specific meaning as the joining of a man and a woman. They imply that conventional marriage has a purely religious basis. 

I imagine that at least 70 per cent of marriages are carried out by secular marriage celebrants, in addition to the thousands of heterosexual couples who have no certification. It seems lost on gay activists that their current campaign is alienating the public and supporters. I will certainly be voting "no" and urge others to do likewise.

Everyone fed up with the debate on same sex marriage? 

You know, I am fed up with it too. Fed up with the alternate facts. Fed up with attempts to change my view.  

I made up my mind a long time ago by simply looking at the question being asked in the survey as to whether I support same sex marriage or not. And that’s all that is being asked. The question deals with whether you want to see the Marriage Act changed to include same sex couples. It does not ask any other questions on religion, children, or all the other issues being raised. 

Those questions do not need to be asked because religious institutions have forever determined whether couples can be married and in some, divorced.  Our state and federal laws ensure protection in the other areas I mentioned.

So, let’s look back on my marriage. I was not able to marry in a particular church because I was not of that faith. Sure, I could have changed my faith and the problem would have been solved. I decided to marry in a registry office instead.

The bottom line is, if the Marriage Act is changed to include same sex couples, it means they can legally marry but does not mean religious institutions have to marry them, although many have indicated they would.