Now is not the first time that Australians have faced a national emergency with a do-nothing government in office federally.
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In wartime 1941 two politicians, Arthur Coles and Alexander Wilson, were so fed up with the inaction of the Menzies government that they crossed the floor of the Australian parliament and brought the Curtin government into office.
The Morrison government clearly replicates the situation existing in 1941, as it has clearly demonstrated it has no plan to bring Australians together to confront the huge problems facing the country today.
We need a latter day Coles and Wilson to intervene so Australia can play its part as a responsible world citizen.
By immediately implementing the necessary global heating counter-measures and confronting the repairs necessary for a healthy Australian environment, our citizens will then see that inaction is defeatist and unacceptable to them.
A change of government beckons.
Bill Thompson, Scullin
Well-worn phrases
Dennis Fitzgerald complains he keeps hearing reference to "Avenue of apprehension" while listening to a cricket commentary ("Road of reason", letters, January 1, 2020, p 19).
Dennis should know that this is yet another cliché or vogue phrase that should be banished from the language. We need a wake-up call warning us against all who insist of going head to head with state-of-the-art clichés.
But the movers and shakers of our post-modern society are so busy getting up to speed, in the fast lane, while still looking for a level playing field, that any call to avoid clichés will be dead in the water.
The bottom line is that those working at the coalface, and doing the hard yards, while looking forward to the local watering hole at the end of the day, will never have time to fashion fresher similes like "avenue of apprehension", whatever that means.
They will never aspire to be like Winston Churchill of whom it was said that he spent the best years of his long life in polishing up his impromptu remarks.
With a little effort we could be just as awesome, but have a good one and no worries, mate!
Robert Willson, Deakin
Back to school
Greta Thunberg's determination to hold mass Friday school strikes in favour of action to negate global warming has attracted the strong approval of Katherine McCarthy (Letters, December 31) who compares her to Joan of Arc .
Had Greta called for Saturday strikes nobody would know who she was.
Bill Deane, Chapman
5G hazards
G. Williams (Letters, January 1) observes that the Morrison government draws on international recommendations to make a case for the safety of 5G networks, yet intimates that the same government fails to follow international recommendations with respect to climate change.
For comparison, it's useful to follow the hard-headed approach of the insurance companies, given that their business is to evaluate risks and pick up the tab.
The major insurance group Swiss Re names five risks with high potential impact on the industry in its 2019 SONAR report. Two of these are the spread of 5G technology and the impact of climate change on the life and health sector.
The concerns with 5G encompass concerns about negative health effects from electromagnetic radiation, and issues related to hacking, privacy and security breaches.
It turns out that 5G, climate change and the Internet of Things are related, with 5G using energy consuming technology including ubiquitous small cell antennas installed in neighbourhoods in front of homes, with these in turn being connected to endless numbers of wirelessly connected "smart" devices.
Wireless access networks consume at least 10 times more energy than fibre or other wired access networks. 5G and the Internet of Things are not sustainable with an ever rising energy consumption trajectory.
Murray May, Cook
Who would want a president?
Mark Slater says Australia won't be fully independent while it maintains the Queen as head of state (Letters, December 26).
Given the prime ministers and politicians in general we have experienced lately, who would want the responsibility of electing a president?
The current situation with the governor-general works well.
Why mess with it?
Just because some people think we should copy other countries and feel inferior because we are different isn't a reason.
Why add another layer of instability to the levels of government?
R Boxall, Hawker
Budget balancer
Zinger! It hit me like a bolt of lightning recently.
Mr Barr on ABC Radio announced his government was refinancing some current debts to more favourable rates and repayment schedules. A bonus for our budget. Well done.
How about introducing ACT government bonds to give ACT residents (only) an opportunity to invest in ACT government debt. I suggest there are multi-millions sitting idly in bank and other low-interest accounts that residents would love to see used beneficially for the ACT community and to achieve better returns themselves.
Triple-A rated, better investment returns than the banks are offering (1 per cent plus), long-term investment and stimulating the ACT economy.
Winner. Winner. Winner. Mr Barr, Mr Coe. ACT election, October 2020. Get on with it.
John Mungoven, Stirling
We can't ignore this
I recently drove from Canberra to Sydney to spend time with family. It was smoky when we left and as our journey up the Hume progressed, the smoke got thicker and thicker.
I have never felt so depressed on a road trip (even a thickshake at Marulan to pick up spirits didn't help). What really devastated me was realising the enormous scale of the destruction of our forests, wildlife and communities as the fires continue to burn.
Continuing to deny the reality and impact of a changing climate in Australia is negligent and dangerous. We need to adapt and implement measures now to equip us for a future which will depend on new technologies and practices for our energy, agriculture and economic sustainability.
History will vilify those who had the power and opportunity to act and didn't.
Patricia Blenman, Lyons
Things are crook
I have a 10,000-litre tank and 500 litres in garbage bins which are empty. In the millennium drought, I did not empty them. I am now using Icon water for my plants. Very sparingly as I am a full aged pensioner and cannot afford the costs.
Has this been factored into our future use of Icon water? A lot of small users will be using more of Icon's.
Now is the time to stop watering playing fields and impose tougher restrictions.
Ken Wood, Holt
Take a pill, Doug
The human body is too complex and multi-dimensional to be fully understood but some of its malfunctions can be controlled by little things we do.
For example I am predisposed to migraine headaches but if I take one tablet containing a total of 530 milligrams grams of active ingredients at the first indication of an attack that will stop it from developing.
If I have to delay but take the tablet before full development, the severity will be moderated. If I let it develop I will be out for the count for at least 24 hours and take at least another 24 hours to recover.
In round figures those active ingredients are only 170,000 thousandths of my body weight but have a great effect if taken early enough.
Doug Hurst (Letters, December 24), given that analogy, please don't be dismissive of the intellect of scientists and their ability to understand complex and multi-functional systems.
Do not be so pessimistic about our ability to moderate the effects of our pollution in our atmosphere by our agreement to produce fewer pollutant molecules.
John F. Simmons, Kambah
Dubious logic
Jim Molan was quoted as citing deaths at sea as justification for the government's asylum seeker policy. He also said those who say we should weaken our laws must take responsibility for what happens next.
This cuts both ways. A consequence of Australia's "success" in stopping the boats has been to channel refugees into even more dangerous routes of escape from the fear of persecution. Stopping the boats is not a recipe for saving lives but simply for ensuring that refugees die elsewhere.
Dr William Maley, Reid
TO THE POINT
INCONVENIENT TRUTH
At last we get the facts about bushfires ("Arsonists behind many bush fires", December 28, p9). Only 17 per cent were caused by lightning. The remaining 83 per cent by careless or criminal humans. Blaming a lack of action on global warming avoids the real problem - humans.
D W Cook, Wanniassa
WATER THREAT
These days bring back vivid memories of the 2003 fires with three months of hot weather to come and no sign of substantial rain for months. When it finally does rain it's going to wash millions of tonnes of ash into the dams and poison the water supplies. Remember how the Cotter dams were closed and undrinkable for nearly a year? How are over 5 million people in Sydney going to cope?
Alan Kelley, Lower Barrington,Tas
QUESTIONABLE CLAIM
In his New Year's message Scott Morrison asserts "there's no better place to raise kids anywhere on the planet" than in Australia. Parents in some other countries might dispute his claim because they have confidence in their governments that take climate change seriously.
Tim Hardy, Florey
ADVERSITY AHEAD
Well may the prime minister cynically appeal to Aussie pride in his New Year's message, reminding us of our supposedly legendary ability to overcome adversity. We'll need every bit of it, to survive the calamity of his government.
Alex Mattea, Sydney, NSW
WET CONUNDRUM
A trace of rain fell at our house on New Year's Eve. BOM records are directed towards what is in the rain gauge at 9am, so the record of rain is reported on January 1 as the first for 2020 - even though it clearly fell in 2019. Was it the last for the old decade or the first for the new?
Peter Baskett, Murrumbateman
HAIL TO THE CHIEF
Aloha is both a greeting and a Hawaiian farewell. ScoMo/Dutton - choose you weapons for 2020.
Linus Cole, Palmerston
WHO PAYS?
While I applaud the PM directing that discretionary leave for federal public servants to engage in fire fighting be paid for at least four weeks, I wonder if he will provide additional funding or whether the cost is to be absorbed into existing budgets? If the latter, this is a meaningless act of deception.
Rod Horne, Bywong
GOLLY GEE, PM
What a magnanimous gesture by the PM to decree APS members who fight fires be given an additional four weeks' paid leave. He failed to mention this can be kept cost neutral by sacking a few more public servants. How good is that?
Mike Lynch, Isaacs
AN EMPTY GESTURE
The PM's commitment to APS members fighting fires on leave means nothing if the departments have to manage the leave costs from within their current budgets. It would mean that while the Morrison government is making no additional revenues available to support our firefighters it has the hide to encourage private sector employers to fund similar support for their employees.
Chris Aulich, Giralang
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