Submarines are great force multipliers; are eight enough?

I find this interesting because years of anti-submarine flying and two years in a warfare school working beside submarine captains never made me an expert; there was just too much to know.

But I acquired some enduring wisdom. Most importantly, in two world wars anti-submarine efforts needed at least 30 men in ships and aircraft for every one in a submarine.

Modern sensor fits and standoff weapons now mean they can detect and attack ships well over the horizon, making them even harder to counter.

This, along with their unequalled intelligence-gathering capability, make them a powerful peacetime deterrent and a great asset in war.

My only concern is that, given the potential threat and the vastness of the oceans, we need them now and eight might not be enough.

With Prime Minister Morrison's personal decision to involve us in a new pact with Britain and the United States comes the need to assess the value of such pacts, which do not come without financial cost.

Alliances have not always been reliable. Back in the 17th century, when Italy was a mix of mini-states often at war with one another, Machiavelli, noting current practices, wrote a treatise on how princes should deal with their neighbours, advising when to make alliances, and when the time was right to break them.

Coming to more modern times, the First World War was precipitated by the tensions caused by alliances.

The 1882 alliance of Germany, Austria and Italy felt threatened by the "encircling" triple alliance of France, Britain and Russia, completed in 1904.

The assassination of Archduke Ferdinand was the excuse, rather than the cause, for the start of hostilities, merely the spark that ignited the European tinderbox.

Then a week before Hitler invaded Poland to start the Second World War, he signed a non-aggression pact with Stalin as insurance against having to fight a war on two fronts, as had happened in World War I.

When the time was right, he tore up the pact and invaded Russia.

Historically, alliances have been generators of tensions and creators of war. There must be a better way to assure the security of nation states.

Amidst the angry claims and counter-claims around the submarines imbroglio, it is worth noting a comment by Euan Graham, a senior fellow at the Institute for International Strategic Studies in Singapore: "Australia is not just a political ally (of the US), it is in a convenient location, outside the envelope of China's longest-range missiles. The US could potentially base strike assets there and do what it did in the early 1940s." Just so we know where we fit.

I am puzzled. The Prime Minister states that the AUKUS "forever" partnership and the nuclear submarines that go with them are in Australia's best interests.

He appears to have gone out of his way to annoy Indonesia, Malaysia, New Zealand and France, not to mention China.

How is this in Australia's interest?

Surely the aim should be to live co-operatively with all our neighbours in south-east Asia?

We are not going to achieve that by stationing more US troops on Australian soil, buying long-range missiles and nuclear submarines. The only winners from this strategy will be the makers of killing machines.

Under AUKUS we have effectively lost whatever sovereignty we had left to the US. We will not be able to say no if it wants company for any future armed conflict anywhere on the planet. Is that in Australia's best interest?

The move by Christian Porter from the frontbench to the backbench on the basis that he received a substantial gift from an unknown source in no way resolves this matter. ("Secret funds oust Porter", canberratimes.com.au, September 20).

We the public have no idea if the money has come as a gift or an inducement. The fact that our politicians can be offered and be permitted to accept enormous financial gifts is an outrage on our democracy!

The matter cannot be considered to be closed. The "appropriate course of action" must be his total departure from Federal Parliament.

This matter highlights, as never before, the urgency and importance of making political donations unlawful.

This must be done in conjunction with a federal ICAC, with teeth, and soon.

Further to Carol Ey's letter of September 19, three generations of our family, including spouses and partners, are fully vaccinated with AstraZeneca. Ages range from tearly 20s to early 50s, plus we oldies.

Several reasons. Social responsibility for starters.

Then there is long COVID-19, which is ruining a lot of young lives, and, with Delta, the possibility of a horrible death that appears to be statistically more frequent than blood clots in the younger age groups.

There are also occasional suggestions that AstraZeneca lasts longer than the MRNA vaccinations.

One hopes the elderly who feel entitled to MRNA vaccines are not placing themselves ahead of younger and school age children who are not able to have AstraZeneca.

In February the ACT Chief Planner acknowledged in this newspaper that poor outcomes delivered by our planning system can easily occur because "... the planning authority may be almost forced to approve a development that we know is not ideal and the community doesn't particularly want. The developers know they can get a clear pathway ..."

The massive Manuka hotel project is now putting much more pressure on the planning directorate in order to get a pathway that focuses on private investment returns at the expense of some basic public mobility and public realm connection requirements ("Developer Sotiria Liangis says she will cancel Manuka hotel project over 'unviable' Canberra Avenue entry", canberratimes.com.au September 20).

Alan Leitch's chilling letter (September 20) removes all doubt about the catastrophic effects COVID-19 restrictions and the rhetoric coming out of politicians and the media are having on the psychological well-being of young Australians and their attitude towards other human beings.

This attitude will persist long after the COVID-19 pandemic has passed.

I despair for the future of this country.

Alan, before it is too late, please tell your grandson that it is politicians and unelected bureaucrats who are stopping him from seeing you.

The post-Brexit British are reviewing the use of imperial/metric weights and measures (another potential irritation for the creators of le système International d'unités) while the US seems comfortable with both.

Might it be prudent to consider this in the design of our STEM studies?

If I were bringing a nuclear reactor "up to the boil" for the first time during commissioning, let alone sleeping near it 100 metres under, I would prefer that the designers, manufacturers and operators all spoke just one common scientific/engineering language: English; and everyone knew that speed measured in furlongs per fortnight was a joke.

Over the past year, the ACT government has been in self-promotion mode in relation to the incentives offered to landlords in return for rent reduction for tenants.

Given the size of the landlord population in the ACT the available statistics would seem to indicate that very few landlords have taken up the offer.

I have just received my rates and land tax notices and these indicate that I will be paying approximately $1600 more and yes, of course the ACT government believes my land value is now higher and so they can ask me for more money.

When will the media carry out a genuine investigation of the ACT government's assault on landlords given that it arbitrarily increases land values, then land tax and rates and at the same time spins the story to the community that they are offering incentives to landlords to reduce rents?

Is the gaffe-prone Joe just "biden" his time?

France feels "betrayed" by Australia's unilateral cancellation of the nuclear submarine deal. That's no surprise. Australian people and Pacific Islanders feel betrayed by the Australian government's bogus commitment to the international climate change deal.

What an inelegant acronym they've come up with for our new military pact with Boris and the bloke who can't remember our PM's name. Australia US Friends of UK (AUSFUK) would be much better.

David McCarthy, Wallaroo, NSW

The recent comments about the 40km/h speed limit in Civic miss the point. There is a big sign with 40 inside a red circle. How hard can it be? To disagree with the process or the rationale of the decision does not allow drivers to blatantly break the law. Until it is changed, slow down.

Keep your chin up and stick at it Mr Barr.

I do hope that our new nuclear-powered submarines are painted yellow; the official background colour for radioactive hazard signs - and that the first four are named Paul, John, George and Ringo.

Re: "More questions than answers on subs", September 14, p54), is Prime Minister Morrison's explanation for 18 months of secret dealings "I don't hold the Parliament (in high regard), mate"?

Calling virus variants by Greek letters is offensive (and cultural appropriation).

At last. A military sideshow to support the least-worst President so we can all get on with the real business of ignoring climate change.

If the Greens' leader classifies nuclear-powered submarines as floating Chernobyls, would he classify aircraft full of aviation fuel as flying Molotov cocktails?

How come "that fellow from Down Under" doesn't know there is only one "u" in nuclear? The chap from Great Britain got it right. If heads of government can't agree on the pronunciation of the announcable, what hope is there they will be able to succeed with the implementation?

I have no sympathy for the French. How ironic this impasse is about nuclear submarines. Many remember the French nuclear tests at Mururoa Atoll from 1966 to 1996, and the bombing of the Rainbow Warrior in Auckland in 1985. And now the French call Australia arrogant.

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