Canberra Times Letters to the Editor: Theorists looking for answers in all the wrong places

George Monbiot is an Oxford-based journalist and environmentalist and if you enter his name and neo-liberalism in your search engine you may find a video of him talking very informatively and fluently for about an hour.

Firstly he talks about Keynesianism (the Great Depression to about 1970) and then about neo-liberalism (1970 to the present).

To my surprise he seemed flummoxed by a question as to where we go from here. Elsewhere he says we need "a conscious attempt to design a new system, tailored to the demands of the 21st century."

How many times every day do we hear someone claiming that economic growth is a given truth and the answer to all our problems?

More than 40 years ago Kenneth Boulding said "anyone who believes in indefinite physical growth on a physically finite planet, is either a madman or an economist".

In fact there are distinguished, sane economists who promote the idea of a Steady-State Economy backed up by the nuts and bolts of it with the three key elements being; a stable and ecologically sustainable population, a low use of resources and an equitable distribution of wealth.

Richard Nixon once said "we are all Keynesians now" and Monbiot says "we are all neo-liberals now". Why don't we take a rational approach and all become Steady-Staters now?

Dick Varley, Braidwood, NSW

I write to you in my capacity as the CEO of Royal Life Saving Society – Australia, to ask all readers to take the greatest of care when children are in or around water.

Royal Life Saving's latest campaign — "Keep Watch" — urges all parents not to be complacent about their child's safety around water.

Our research shows 461 children under the age of five have died in Australia over the past 15 years due to drowning. Of these, half the drownings were in home pools or spas.

In 100 per cent of child drowning cases in home swimming pools, active adult supervision had either lapsed or was entirely absent.

Water is only safe when you are watching.

An average of 31 children drown every year. For every toddler drowning death, approximately 10 children are admitted to hospital as a result of non-fatal drowning.

Drowning is preventable. We ask all readers to follow the four Keep Watch key actions to prevent toddler drowning; always actively supervise all children around water, regularly check and maintain your pool fence and gate, teach children water awareness, and learn CPR.

One recent study showed that in 62 per cent of cases, the child had gained access to the pool area through a faulty fence or gate or through a gate that had been deliberately propped open. We stress the importance of regularly checking and maintaining pool fences and gates to ensure they are in working order.

We ask all parents to take every precaution when it comes to their child's safety around water.

Justin Scarr, CEO, Royal Life Saving Society — Australia

Self-driving cars and buses using complex algorithms and in-time sensing of other traffic within their proximity will substantially reduce collision risk with vulnerable and exposed pedestrians and cyclists who make do without the shield of an outer carapace.

This safety gain is reassuring even if preliminary trials demonstrate more accidents with careless human drivers.

Pedestrians and cyclists will be subjected to reduced risk of severe injury and death in impacts with automated vehicles that have been programmed to be overly cautious.

Driver error, road rage, impatience and anger will be minimised as automated vehicles replace badly behaved and impatient drivers.

Although it is impossible to completely eliminate accident risk, drivers who become passengers will no longer need to face the daily stresses of behind the steering wheel commuting. Surely this will translate into community level public health benefits.

Adjunct Associate Professor Joseph Ting, Queensland University of Technology.

Paul Wayper, of Cook, (Letters, November 17) had an issue with road rage.

He went on to say: "Next time, consider a semi-trailer doing this to you and see how you like that scenario."

I take offence to that comment.

My husband is a truck driver who has a perfect driving record and who does stupid hours as per union and government regulations.

But like everything else there are bad car drivers, bad motorcyclists, bad cyclists and bad truck drivers.

Next time this happens to you, hang back let Mr/Mrs Idiot get ahead of you so you don't get stressed and get caught up in an accident, because you are more vulnerable than in a car. Get their rego plate and report it.

You never know, something might happen.

V. Harris, Yass

Dogs with diplomatic immunity? What will those cunning Americans come up with next? Let's just hope they don't want wedding cakes and, God forbid, aren't dual citizens. Barnaby Joyce come back, Canberra needs you.

M. Moore, Bonython

Tony Judge (Letters, November 17) says the 1967 referendum gave Indigenous Australians the vote.

This is not correct. Indigenous voting rights were enshrined in law by the Menzies government five years earlier in 1962 when the Commonwealth Electoral Act was amended.

There was no referendum required to do this.

The 1967 referendum, under the Holt government, removed discrimination against Indigenous people from our Constitution by giving the Commonwealth the power to include them in future law making (rather than leaving it to individual, inconsistent and often discriminatory state law) and to count them in the Australian Census.

The first — an administrative device to commence the long road towards equality. The second — to regard Indigenous people as citizens worthy to be counted. Approximately 10 per cent of voters said "no" to these.

Maria Pellegrino, Gungahlin

Only a few weeks ago Labor was decrying the demise of the car manufacturing industry when the last Holden rolled off the assembly line, blaming the Liberal party for lack of support. Yet here's our Labor party having "our" trams built in Spain.

If Melbourne can boast about the construction of its new fleet in Melbourne — ie "made in Melbourne for Melbourne" adorns the side of each new tram — why did we have to go to Spain for "ours"?

Peter Toscan, Amaroo

It is admirable Yvette Berry supports the upgrading to the cooling systems of Canberra schools ("Schools get cool for summer", canberratimes. com.au, November 8) and, as she correctly states, "They weren't built for the environment we have today".

So, what would we build today? If the example of a west-oriented development application on a RZ2 block in west Belconnen is anything to go by ... we'd end up doing just the same.

And how do we come to this conclusion?

The aforementioned application is for four new public housing dwellings on a 1000 square metre block to face west. Contrary to the Commonwealth of Australia, Department of the Environment and Energy (2017) publication Your Home — Australia's guide to environmentally sustainable homes, which states "The most economical time to achieve good passive design in a home is when initially designing and building it".

Further, the ACT Home Energy Advice Team publication Eaves in Canberra states "Windows should be used sparingly on the eastern and western faces of a dwelling". The opportunity to heed the vast amount of information available on building solar passive dwellings is clearly not being grasped in the ACT's public housing replenishment.

The ACT Public Housing Renewal Taskforce, who should be co-ordinating with the Environment, Planning and Sustainable Development Directorate to only endorse solar passive housing developments, have decided to go with Ms Berry's assertion, in her response to my concerns, that "It is not unusual for a development to be east/west facing".

Not unusual, but is it optimal?

Anne-Marie Wilkes, Macgregor

The conditions in Immigration Minister Peter Dutton's Manus Island prison are getting worse.

Refugees have no food, no water, no power.

It won't be long before disease leads to deaths.

People-smugglers — eat your heart out. Peter Dutton has you hornswoggled.

Peter Dutton is a man of many talents. But sadly his heart is made of stone.

This explains why he can't laugh or smile. Dutton is stone personified.

Graham Macafee, Latham

Don Sephton (Letters, November 17) calls into question the eligibility of retired General Jim Molan under Section 44 (iv) of the Constitution and the fact that he would be drawing a Defence pension.

Perhaps Mr Sephton should have gone on to read the next paragraph which clearly states "But sub-section iv does not apply to ... .a pension by any person as an officer of the Queen's navy or army ...".

While there might might some interesting debate as to former Royal Australian Air Force officers, Jim Molan's eligibility is pretty clear.

It would appear that the drafters of the Constitution had the foresight to recognise that retired military officers might make a valuable contribution to our Parliament — in Jim Molan's case, they were entirely correct — he would make an excellent senator and bring a new level of intelligence, common-sense and real-world experience to the chamber.

Kym MacMillan, O'Malley

According to media reports, Western Australian MP Andrew Hastie will abstain on the SSM vote in parliament despite 60 per cent voting "Yes" in his electorate.

I would have thought that this RMC Duntroon trained former army officer would serve the best interest of his "troops" in his electorate instead of being a religious bigot.

Perhaps he attended too many church parades.

Voters can get rid of Hastie at the next election and elect someone who will serve the electorate rather than an imaginary God.

A.Jackson, Middle Park, Vic

I am utterly appalled by Canberra Catholic Archbishop Christopher Prowse calling "for hardline laws to allow businesses and individuals to refuse service for same-sex weddings because of religious and moral objections" ("Church wants law to protect religious freedom", November 16, p8).

The Catholic Church in particular lost any moral authority it might have had within the Australian and world community when it effectively turned a blind eye to the actions of pedophile priests within its ranks.

Instead of caring for the flock, elements within its ranks have preyed upon the flock.

Its moral compass is well and truly broken.

Frank Bergersen, Kambah

No mandate for change

Chief Minister Andrew Barr is reported ("Canberrans top the land in their support for equality", November 16, p3) as saying that the overwhelming same-sex marriage result gave the ACT government "further ammunition" to roll out more social inclusion measures across Canberra.

Chief Minister, you have no mandate for such a stance. The survey was about one thing — and one thing alone — and that was whether the law should be changed to legalise same-sex marriage.

The survey was not about "social equality", whatever that means.

If you go to the next ACT election with a platform of enhancing social equality, and win that election — which is problematic — then you may be able to claim a mandate to roll out more social inclusion measures, but not before.

Don Sephton, Greenway

Given that every kilometre of light rail costs more than $100 million and that the former ACT chief minister Katy Gallagher adopted such a high cost/low benefit form of public transport for partisan political purposes (to secure Greens' support to hang on to government), the decision can properly be described (consistently with the findings of the Auditor-General) as more reckless than wise.

With construction of stage one well underway, I suggest that giving the stations and trams frivolous names, instead of boringly (and belatedly) wise ones, would be more consistent with the true nature of the government's light rail decision-making processes.

So in that vein my suggested tram names are "Developer's Delight", "CFMEU Choo Choo", "Tammany McTram" and "Juicy Jam" and "Sweet Snarl" (to reflect the likely impact of light rail on peak period traffic flows on Northbourne Avenue).

I also strongly support the previously suggested, "Rattenbury's Rattler".

Bruce Taggart, Aranda

DIPLOMATIC WAG, SURELY

Re: "Dog from embassy linked to attacks", November 17, I was amazed to hear that dogs responsible for a number of attacks on people in the Canberra suburb of Stirling may be protected by diplomatic immunity.

Crazy.

How can animals be included in diplomatic immunity?

I do hope that they entered the country via correct quarantine procedures.

If not, the owners need to surrender the dogs so they can be put down.

Robert Davis, Windsor, Vic

DISBAND VETTING

Mr Turnbull believes that a disclosure of genealogy by candidates will suffice to avoid a repeat of the current crisis of ineligibility.

The government could save a lot of time and money if it applied the same standard to security clearances and completely disbanded the Government Security Vetting Agency.

After all, if we cannot trust those who are to handle the nation's most dangerous secrets, then who can we trust?

Gary J. Wilson, Macgregor

MUGABE'S NADIR

The low point of Robert Mugabe's leadership of Zimbabwe was perhaps the Matabeleland massacre in 1983-84 when his forces killed thousands of Ndebele people.

Rod Matthews, Melbourne, Vic

THANKS, ANDREW

Many thanks to Chief Minister Andrew Barr for adorning Canberra with rainbows after the announcement of the SSM vote.

It reminded me of Genesis 9:16 — "Whenever the rainbow appears, I will remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on earth." Andrew if not for you — I might have forgotten His is the glory.

Good on you mate!

J. Powers, Casey

CONGRATS TO NZ PM

Finally help for those entrapped on Manus Island ("Thaw in refugee deal", November 17).

Congratulations to the Prime Minister of New Zealand, but not Australia's who has preferred no help.

Perhaps a ship of the New Zealand Navy might evacuate them — unilaterally.

It succeeded at Dunkirk. Saving lives to start new lives.

That's the proper treatment of all refugees.

Peter Graves, Curtin

LOOK AT RACE

As far as potential amendments to the proposed legislation to enable same-sex marriage are concerned, the best and easiest test anyone need apply regarding their legal and moral justification is whether the same so-called rights to effectively discriminate would be acceptable, let alone legal, if they were applied in relation to someone's race.

I'm guessing that the answer to most would be "no".

David Jenkins, Casey

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