So where's Scott Morrison? Last year, we might recall, he had to come home from a holiday in Hawaii with his tail between his legs as record bushfires covered Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra in thick clouds of smoke.

Morrison then tried to pretend he didn't need the briefing from 18 fire chiefs that had been begging him for months to take the bushfire season seriously, and wrung his hands in blinking incomprehension as the water bombers and resources came too little, too late.

Once again the Prime Minister is very quiet on bushfires. I haven't seen a single word from him or the government about preparing for bushfires this summer. Does this man actually lead, or is he only in it for the spotlights and the flashy announcements?

Patrick Jones (Letters, December 1) must have flipped when he woke from his 19th-century nap.

I suppose he would argue that this land now called Australia was "legitimately found" by Cook nearly 250 years ago and "given to the Brits"; that the old 12-mile international construct didn't matter; and that land ownership "had never seriously been within the purview" of the people of this land.

So there! "Emotive claims" by First Nations people may well "undermine this country's critical economic interests". Does Patrick even know that bugging a foreign nation's premises to gain unfair economic advantage is illegal and has been condemned by International Court? (while practised widely by just about every nation).

Why are the real perpetrators of this illegal activity not being called to answer to our nation? No, much easier, although hugely expensive, to let poor old Bernard hang out to dry.

I refer to the government's response to the publication of a Chinese photoshopped picture of an Australian soldier.

Reacting with shock, horror, outrage, disgust, or a demand to remove the picture which would never be obeyed is surely exactly what the Chinese government desired.

Unless there was some nefarious Australian domestic political purpose, it is surely strange to perform as the Chinese government desired.

Humour, incredulity, sarcasm, irony, off-handed dismissal or ridicule would surely be a more appropriate response.

Square envelopes for birthday and Christmas cards require two stamps because they do not meet Australia Post for standard items (machine sorted) which must be a rectangular shape with stamp in top right hand corner.

Why do many card manufacturers and charity card sponsors increasingly use a square format?

Perhaps they do not expect cards sent by mail. I used to support the charities with up to 100 cards every Christmas: regrettably no longer.

How long will it be before someone is seriously injured or even killed on Canberra's footpaths, plazas or walkways? I'm referring to the numerous motorised cycles and scooters that people ride at up to 40 km/h in these areas, ignoring pedestrians.

I have near misses several times a week in the Canberra CBD. The main culprits are food delivery cyclists, hurrying between shops and customers, followed closely by motorised scooters, that are now prolific.

Their thoughtless and selfish behaviour will injure or kill someone soon.

That was a good letter from Sue Wareham (Letters, December 3) in the context of the Brereton report, on why Australian forces were in Afghanistan in the first place.

I was living in New York City on 9/11 and it was clear the US was going to react in a major way. Since then I have often wondered why, as Sue raises, there was not an operation to capture Bin Laden by special forces, instead of bringing such misery and deaths to Afghanis through a full-scale military invasion.

The reaction by the US and its allies to 9/11 has caused ongoing crises in the Middle East and elsewhere, even up to today with the stand off between Australia and China being the latest manifestation. Surely the Western response to 9/11 must rank as one of the most significant foreign affairs disasters of modern times.

When visiting various universities in China's Jiangxi province several years ago I was struck by how many times Chinese staff had asked me about our Aboriginal tent embassy in Canberra. Their line of questioning was clearly directed at our human rights record.

Unsurprisingly, with the release of the Brereton report, and with relations between our two countries having reached a new low, similar accusations are being leveled at Australia by Chinese officials.

These accusations speak of their own perceived repugnance towards Western arrogance and racism against "Orientals" that is buried deep within the national psyche. They also speak of the White Australia Policy, which stood as an affront to our own democratic values. But more significantly, they speak of the global strategic rivalry between China and the West as fundamentally being ideological at its core.

The challenge ahead for Prime Minister Scott Morrison is to focus on Australia's commitment to the highest standards of human rights in the hope of bridging this historically intractable and deepening divide.

No Sandor Siro (Letters, December 1), the customer is not always right!

Especially when the customer is a bully, throwing their weight around, ignoring international findings, wilfully allowing deadly illnesses to spread, seizing other's property by force, ignoring contracts and treaties and maliciously just making up spurious reasons to block deliveries and destroying valuable produce.

It's not stupidity to offend such a customer, as you claim, but it takes moral courage and integrity to call them out for their behaviour even if they are a valuable customer.

If you really are interested in a balanced and even approach to relations, could I suggest you drop by the Chinese Embassy and ask for a copy of their open investigation into the deaths of thousands at the hands of the PLA in Tiananmen Square in 1989. Then ask how many of those soldiers were tried and punished.

I'm sure they would be happy to oblige. Their experience would provide us with valuable insights into how to manage our alleged crimes.

Australia has had a long history of amicable, and mutually beneficial, relations with China. That relations have now reached a low ebb is highly regrettable, but we must resist Chinese bullying. The disclosure of alleged atrocities by Australian troops in Afghanistan is distressing enough, but it is no business of China's. That country's intemperate verbal attack on Australia would be bad enough, but its use of a provocative doctored image is totally unacceptable.

Our government has a duty to speak out, courteously but firmly, against unfounded attacks like this. It is necessary to take appropriate action to uphold our sovereignty and protect our national dignity. It is to be hoped that, in due course, relations with China will get back on an even keel, underpinned by mutual respect, but that will not happen if we adopt a subservient attitude.

The ACT government has distributed a brochure describing proposals for the Woden Public Transport Interchange. How could they get it so wrong? They propose closing Callam Street at the interchange for all except buses and trams. Callam Street is an important dual carriageway thoroughfare, providing access throughout to parking areas and local roads. It also gives direct access from Launceston St to Tuggeranong, via Athlon Drive. It must not be closed.

The current bus interchange is adjacent to the shopping precinct. The proposal is further away, in Callam Street, and pedestrians have to cross bus and tram lanes to reach southbound buses. The bus interchange should be enclosed and compact, with direct access to shops, etc.

This proposal is an attempt to provide for expensive and immovable tramlines. Cater for the future, not the past, with a versatile trackless solution such as electric buses.

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