In her rant about Byron Bay, (Echo, Dec 31), Ms Nolan may have been aiming for provocative, but she hit nasty and embarrassing instead.
Embarrassing because Ms Nolan’s divisive stereotyping of visitors and Byron residents alike served no purpose other than to affirm the misguided position of the chronically disgruntled minority in our community.
The dark clouds that find the negative in just about everything.
Unfortunately, by failing to provide an accompanying counterpoint, The Echo appears complicit in offering only a single-sided view of an issue affecting its entire readership.
Adding nasty to the embarrassment of Ms Nolan’s piece is the distasteful display of provincialism in fabricating a scenario in which most Byron residents hold deep-rooted disdain towards tourists to our town.
As if calling Byron home automatically instills empathy and understanding of social issues far beyond that of the rest of Australia.
I would wager tourists are no more or less oblivious to the plight of the homeless in society, the high cost of living, overcrowding etc. than those living in Byron.
Not every holidaymaker works in ‘shit jobs that are killing them with people they hate,’ as Nolan would have us believe. Lots of people like what they do for a living. Maybe, just maybe, most visitors are simply looking for a pleasant break and change of scenery from home.
Where is the crime in walking the lighthouse, surfing mellow summertime waves with the kids, buying overpriced t-shirts from local store clerks and enjoying some meals out served by working locals?
Contrary to Ms Nolan’s broad assumptions, not every visitor is overloaded with cash and ready to drop thousands of dollars on accommodation. In fact, I’d argue the opposite. Good luck finding a spot in one of our caravan parks or hostels between December and February.
Nolan shamefully misrepresented the vast majority of our visitors (many fellow Australians, by the way) as a selfish demographic hellbent on having a good time at the expense of residents.
Moreover, she falsely portrayed Byron residents as overwhelmingly fed up and unhappy.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
