Their efforts were incredible. In a few days they managed to pull together donated food, loaned prams, camping chairs, marquees, phone chargers, DVDs for kids and toys. The list just goes on and on.

Thanks to the local racehorse owner who donated hay bales to feed my horses, the mum of a disabled daughter who still turned up to help feed us, the off-duty nurse dispensing care, the teenagers turning up with hot pies after their Saturday holiday jobs and the new Australians who turned up with home cooked meals (absolutely yum!).

Then there were the locals donating towels to cool down heat stricken folks, the employees of the local pound who offered a spot to put the dog, the local lads who put up a marquee for me and the young family lugging around an esky with frozen water for us.

I'm sure I've missed many of these nameless, modest, kind Australians, but to you all; thank you from the bottom of my heart.

As the owner of a house in Rosedale burnt down on New Year's Eve I would be interested in joining a class action of the type suggested by Mark Kenny ("Could a climate suit tip the scales?" Focus, January 5, p13).

What was notable in the Rosedale case was the gap between the efficiency of the RFS in warning residents as early as 6am to evacuate and the lack of government response when the fire arrived about 10.30am. A lone helicopter belatedly dropped water on a few houses, saving one section of the beach.

As one of the sacrificial lambs on the altar of the Commonwealth government's neglect and ineptitude, I would hope that, through a class action, my loss could contribute to the nation's eventual gain by demonstrating to the government that climate inaction will cost it more than will climate action.

Sadly, it would appear that, just as in the case of the PM's belated, if welcome, call out of the military, only when faced by a threat to its political interests and future, will this government be persuaded to take more seriously the critical need for Australia to start making genuine efforts to deal with the roots of our crisis. That is the need to cooperate effectively with the international community in tackling the threat of climate change.

Australia's nationwide fire disaster is the canary in the coal mine for the entire world. We can no longer afford to close our ears to its frantic tweets.

A dazed rainbow lorikeet perched on our feeding tray in the back yard wreathed in smoke. Two gang gangs still come sporadically for sunflower seeds and water but other native bird visitors are substantially down.

Devastating fire has hit Kangaroo Island causing the loss of life, property, and livelihoods. It has also impacted on, if not destroyed, the habitat of the koala, and of a subspecies of glossy black-cockatoo, which is critically endangered and now restricted to Kangaroo Island.

Humans, property, ecosystems, wildlife and its habitat are being destroyed. How will we recover from such utter devastation? Resilience and being "optimistic", the Prime Minister's ill-chosen word to counter people's distress, have their limits.

During what is probably the greatest national emergency Australia has experienced since World War II, why has our head of state been all but invisible?

While we know "Scotty from marketing" is more of a hindrance than a help, the Governor-General could be doing something more helpful than the usual round of vice regal affairs.

Have his (Liberal) minders told him to stay away?

Perhaps the Governor-General could invoke his reserve powers to rid us of this pestilential government. Whitlam was sacked for far less.

We can't go on like this. Everybody, except the far right fringe and those in thrall to corporate greed, knows that these fires are not normal.

Our government continues to shame us in the eyes of the world for our lack of cooperation in the fight against climate change. We are in bed with pariahs such as Brazil and the US in this regard.

We can't wait another two-and-a-half years to get rid of these deniers. What we need is for two Coalition members of the lower house to cross the floor for a no-confidence motion, as happened in 1941.Then we need the Labor party to show a bit more spine and come up with a credible policy on limiting emissions.

At least that way we would go down with some sense that we had done our bit.

Re: "Veiled warning, but organisers to press ahead with burnouts" (January 4, p15).

Summernats organiser Andy Lopez is quoted as saying: "We have 60 professional firefighters on site". It is a strange priority over bushfire concerns when Australia has been making requests for firefighters to come to our aid from Canada, the United States and New Zealand.

Smoke is also of Interest. The ACT administration bans cigarette smoke in public. It warns of problems to the public from bushfire smoke. However, it seems to have less concern about smoke from the burning of compounds which make up rubber tyres, even when it's in addition to thick smoke from bushfires.

Andrew Barr is warning against, rather than immediately banning, burnouts. Perhaps dealing with the consequent health problems are an "externality" to his breed of economics. It is very similar to his attitude to already looming problems from inadequate water supply and social infrastructure due to pressure from an ever-increasing population.

The first priority for Monday's national security meeting should have been a strategy to deal with the current impacts of climate change; the unprecedented bushfires destroying lives and the country from east to west and the water shortages rapidly becoming more dire and widespread.

Such a strategy should address the measures we need to take urgently to mitigate emissions and adapt to the inevitable future impacts, whether it be bushfires, floods, cyclones or droughts and water shortages as well as the reconstruction needs which will also be unprecedented. Bush regeneration and species recovery needs will also be enormous.

Science has told us for decades that this is the trend we must expect and is destined to get worse unless emergency action is taken.

This will cost a lot but must be the priority. Building submarines at a cost of $50 billion (or $255 billion if we count the lifetime cost) is not a priority.

There are many other areas where savings could be made and priorities reassessed, and the obsession with the budget surplus should be ditched. We need cooperative leadership. It is obvious Morrison is not the person to provide it. He should resign and let others more capable and compassionate work across party lines to do the job.

When ScoMo and his band of helpers make an effort to put things to rights they still get it wrong. Rushed announcements, tax-payer funded political advertising and lack of consultation. Who do they think they are? F-Troop or Laurel and Hardy?

Your editorial of January 1 was quite right. ("Climate change must be above politics", canberratimes.com.au, January 1).

Not only do we need a co-ordinated response to deal with the manifestations of climate change, not least bushfires, but because climate change is a threat to national security.

ADF chief Angus Campbell noted in June that Australia is in "the most natural disaster-prone region in the world ... [and] climate change is predicted to make disasters more extreme and more common. If the predictions are correct, it will have serious ramifications for global security and serious ramifications for the ADF".

Former ADF chief, Admiral Chris Barrie, testified before a Senate committee examining the potential impacts of climate change on Australia's national security in May 2018 .

The Senate committee concluded that climate change is exacerbating threats and risks to Australia's national security, including sea level rise, bushfires, droughts, extreme rainfall events, and higher-intensity cyclones.

We need a multi-partisan climate and energy policy that will deliver urgent action on climate change.

Mr Morrison don't you think a more appropriate ad at this time would be for new politicians; ones with integrity, honesty and willingness not to blame everybody else for their lack of timely action.

Criticism of Scott from marketing over his failure to consult the NSW fire chief is a bit harsh. How could he when he had an important video to produce?

A political advertisement during a national emergency? What next, a free set of steak knives? The Prime Minister has the political sensitivity of a Tyrannosaurus Rex.

How good is South Australia? They've got Scotty running their bushfire effort. What the country needs right now is Admiral James T. Kirk. Unfortunately we are stuck with Scomo and his merry band of Klingons.

About 25,000 koalas have just been burnt to death on Kangaroo Island in a fire the like of which has never been seen before on the island. "How good (bad) is that?"

I have posted the Prime Minister a pretty piece of charcoal to add to his pet rock collection. Last week it was a lovely tree in a pretty forest.

Morrison signs off on political advertising as a major disaster unfolds. How smart is that? The Australia Defence Association said the ad was a clear breach of conventions that prevent the military from being used for political advertisements.

A plea to the Lord: Please send back Bob Hawke. We need him here.

A question for Scott Morrison. "How good is Australia?" when its capital city is the most polluted on the entire planet?

How utterly unbelievable is this Smirko, Smoko, or Scotty from (Liberal Party/Morrison) marketing? Just shut up and go away. We'll let you know if we need you.

"Terror Australis".

From now on donations from fossil fuel companies to political parties should be revealed and then redirected to the fire fighters. We don't value deceptive political advertising but we do value the brave work the fire fighters are doing.

News flash Josh and Scomo. Your budget surplus just went up in smoke. Start spending boys. The country needs it.

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