It should not be a choice between the US or China. US exceptionalism, much discussed by Hugh White in his recent Quarterly Essay, and by John Menadue, has its direct echo in Chinese exceptionalism. The moral of the current imbroglio over Taiwan is that it takes two to tango. Both the US and China are equally tone-deaf and neither has the ability to understand, let alone handle, each other.

Also, from Australia's viewpoint, the US has proved itself too unpredictable an ally, for many reasons, including the poor judgement shown by Nancy Pelosi in her recent visit to Taiwan and the possibility Trump could once again become US President.

All these security problems were ignored, as Menadue has argued, in the AUKUS agreement and the negotiation of a nuclear- powered submarine for Australia. This policy shift neatly trapped Australia into a forward defence posture, while silently kneecapping our long tradition of support for the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. This is not the only critique to be made of the Morrison government's policy choices.

Any rethink of Australia's foreign and defence policies by our new government must be thorough, not partial. A move back from Mr Morrison's forward defence to strong self-defence, and an emphasis on more independent foreign and defence policies, should be on the table.

Ian Morison ("Get on with it Albo", Letters, August 16) is right on target. Anthony Albanese is using the former PM Scott Morrison as a red herring to obfuscate and distract attention from his government's lack of progress in addressing the real problems facing the nation.

These include, but are not limited to, the cost of living, inflation, and energy and petrol prices.

I do hope that the family of Sir William McMahon are celebrating his almost certain rise up off the bottom of the table of "worst Australian PMs" (as almost universally recognised in the surveys of our PMs).

He may only move to "second worst" - but it will be daylight between him and the new occupant of that spot.

Thanks to the efforts of its employees, the Commonwealth Bank made a $10.7 billion profit in 2021-22.

That's enough to give each employee a $200,000 pay rise. One of its employees got a $1.8 million pay rise. How much did the other 48,899 employees get?

While I usually agree with Felicity Chivas's letters I have to dispute her inference that down and feathers produced after the killing of the bird are ethically sourced (Letters, August 16).

Firstly, there are issues with how the birds are raised and housed; ducks

without access to water, forced feeding (for the production of foie gras) and stocking density for instance.

Also, the method of slaughter - automated production-line style machine killing is never compatible with best welfare practice.

If you want an ethically sourced puffer jacket, look at those made with synthetics. No feathers or down are collected ethically. All involve suffering and death.

I have just come back from a visit to Civic. How depressing and drab City Walk and Petrie Plaza are.

I've come to the conclusion that the main problem is the awful, artificially coloured and now faded concrete pavers which were laid almost 50 years ago. These need to be replaced with natural coloured stone.

Until they are, no amount of tickling at the perimeter by the City Renewal Authority with its coloured tables and umbrellas will change the awful atmosphere and dull appearance the old pavers give.

To the many people who are finding their homes too cold, may I suggest purchasing a couple of oil column heaters which provide great warmth when left on low for the day, rather than reverse cycle aircon/heaters which only blow hot or cold air when turned on and when off the room cools dramatically.

In addition, our family uses 'oodies' which are terrifically warm and cover you head to almost to toe. They are reasonably priced, allowing the heating to be turned down in the house if needed. Also, by the way our home is generally between 9 and 11 degrees first thing in the morning and we heat it to around 13 to 15 degrees using our slow combustion wood heater (which is serviced regularly) early afternoon.

We also open the curtains/blinds in the east first thing, leaving them open facing north and then open the curtains/blinds facing west in the afternoon getting as much sunshine as possible from the day.

Warm socks and fleecy PJs are also the go.

There was an interesting juxtaposition in the letters on August 16.

John Smith argues for population growth. John Coulter, on the other hand, points out the folly of this and the economy-centric thinking of politicians and many journalists. He notes "the economy, and everything else, is totally dependent on a healthy and functioning natural environment".

Population increases create requirements for more infrastructure and resources, leading to demands for yet more population increases to meet them. In short, growth is a Ponzi scheme.

We (and the world) have to learn to live within our means; the finite resources of the globe. Technology won't solve all this. Population growth should be avoided, for all our sakes and everybody else's.

The Australian War Memorial has shown a lack of concern for historical accuracy and the sombre memorialising of all affected by war.

Nicholas Stuart's forensic critique of The Digger of Kokoda: The official biography of Reg Chard by Daniel Lane ("Truth is vital in harsh history", canberratimes.com.au, August 15) shows some of the book, including the most powerful and sensational parts, are pure fiction, and can seriously distort understandings of the war in PNG.

Yet it is endorsed by the AWM head of military history, Dr Karl James, and its former director and now board chair (and president of Boeing Australia), Brendan Nelson. It was also sold in the AWM bookshop.

We need our history to be as accurate as possible. Reg Chard may well have memories of events that could not have occurred, but people have false memories for many reasons. It is the responsibility of others to ensure accuracy if it is to be published as an "official biography" and be sold beside books that enrich our historical understandings.

It is also the responsibility of those in positions of authority who choose to endorse a work to be confident it is accurate.

Jack Kershaw again argues for a third lake crossing (Letters, August 17) between Acton Peninsula and Flynn Drive.

As ever Jack is eloquent, however in my opinion the balance of the relevant arguments is firmly against adding a third bridge across Lake Burley Griffin particularly away from the existing two bridges.

In the interest of transparency, I enjoy sailing on the lake in the area Jack recommends for a third bridge.

However, my objection mainly reflects the lack of demonstrated need for a third bridge, that Jack's suggestion would essentially destroy Nara Park as a quiet area.

Also, the ACT government has never released a cost-benefit study showing that light rail via any route is a better option than say electric buses running on the existing road network.

In the future I think the community is more likely to be working from home, travelling by small compact vehicles including bikes and looking to reduce emissions, rather than constructing more concrete bridges to facilitate large scale fixed route means of transport.

When Coles discontinued the large plastic bags a few years ago they immediately brought in a new line of give-away plastic toys. I wondered at the time whether more or less plastic was headed for landfill.

Rather than this reductionist approach of focussing on one item, can we find out the total volume of plastic that Coles (for example) is sending to the tip? That would surely be more useful to humanity and the biosphere.