It is time to treat drug addiction as a mental health issue

The girl said she knew nothing and asked where she was. My friend invited her to have some breakfast, a hot shower and gave her some warmer clothes.

She realised that the girl must have been completely disoriented, and had probably crawled through the dog door the night before.

Some time later she seemed to be recovering and my friend was considering how to help her further when a neighbour, hearing the story, called the police. The officers were not particularly understanding of the poor girl's plight, explaining she was a known drug addict and refusing to drive her home.

No doubt they had their reasons.

But, with this incident fresh in my mind, I was touched to read "Michael K Williams and The Wire: how the show redefined television watching" (September 21, p27).

Partly as a result of Williams' work, Ben Lamb, the author of the article tells us that, in the US, "drug addiction is starting to be treated as a health problem".

I look forward to that change in Australia so that young people afflicted in this way will no longer need to crawl to shelter through our dog doors.

So the French want us to buy their subs or they'll sink our prospects of increased trade with the EU? That's the same trick they used on New Zealand in 1986 to spring their Rainbow Warrior bombers from a NZ prison.

New Zealand, embarrassingly, caved in. We must not do so now.

If the French are so worried about trust, they should return Alain Mafart and Dominique Prieur to complete their sentences in New Zealand. Then we'll know they are serious about trust.

I note the Chief Minister expects Canberra "will end up being 95 per cent-plus double dosed".

I wonder what he is basing that percentage on?

Is it just the usual residents of the ACT or is he including the very large number of people that travel in to the ACT for work each day? Is it people aged 16-plus? Twelve-plus? Five-plus?

I strongly suspect his doctors (of spin, not medicine) will be warming up the cherrypicker to choose the combination that looks most favourable to him.

You cannot go past the Returned Services League for preciousness and sanctimony.

God forbid the holy Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne be a place to celebrate one of the few remaining things in contemporary Australia that those who gave their lives in war could, with pride, at least claim to have died for: free speech.

They must have died instead for a way of life now routinely punctuated by public scandal - political pork-barrelling, political and bureaucratic unaccountability, public jobs for mates, electoral rorting, criminal behaviour by deregulated industries, politically correct fascism, and so on.

The RSL's right-wing political correctness is truly oppressive.

Before our blundering Prime Minister embarrasses us any further over the mishandled submarine deal, could a minder take him aside and let him know the word is pronounced nuclear as in "newclear".

It is not, and never was, "nucular".

It may give an impression that he actually knows what he's dealing with ... at least superficially ... very superficially.

Having been rendered speechless by the nuclear submarines decision I shall now articulate my rage about another matter, namely the appointment of Brendan Pearson as Australia's new ambassador to the OECD.

This is the man who gave the lump of coal to Scott Morrison who subsequently waved it around in Parliament, saying: "This is coal, don't be afraid."

Morrison then passed it around to his colluding colleagues so he could concentrate on spruiking the value of coal to the house.

Pearson is a former chief executive of the Minerals Council, the great defender of coal and other fossil fuels.

He is on Morrison's staff and has been involved in Australia's international engagements on climate and energy policies.

What guarantee is there that once he gets to Brussels, he will not stall effective action on climate change or oppose obscene subsidies to the fossil fuel industries?

It really is the worst of appointments.

Your travel writer Michael Turtle ("Celebrate the best, protect the rest", Relax, September 19) says "I have a dream of visiting all the US national parks. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to do that here as well."

According to the US National Parks Service: "As America's most famous naturalist and conservationist, John Muir fought to protect the wild places he loved, places we can still visit today.

"Muir's writings convinced the US government to protect Yosemite, Sequoia, Grand Canyon and Mt. Rainier as national parks."

I have been to Yosemite, Sequoia and Grand Canyon. Terrific views but full of tourists. I had to take a "canvas cabin" and keep my toothpaste in lockup so the bears wouldn't smell it.

A great experience, but it's nothing like bushwalking.

John Muir published in 1901. Myles Dunphy was just 10.

Myles was a bushwalker who was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1976 in recognition of service to conservation, and was awarded an International Union for Conservation of Nature Award for Long Merit in National Parks.

His role in forming the Mountain Trails Club of NSW, the Sydney Bushwalkers and the Confederation of Bushwalking Clubs in 1932; and the National Parks and Primitive Areas Council; and in establishing a professional parks service, puts him up there with John Muir. The name National Parks came from the American Muir; however, conservation of the bush for bushwalking, not grand tourist ventures, is entirely Australian.

If Michael Turtle wants to visit the best of our national parks, he needs to walk. Showcasing is not what we are about.

The Turnbull government's decision to purchase conventional, diesel-electric submarines, as distinct from nuclear-powered ones, especially when it involved the conversion of the French submarines' existing nuclear propulsion system to diesel-electric, on its face defied common sense.

And, not only did the project involve enormous cost, the boats were to be in service for many decades beyond 2030.

Perhaps Malcolm Turnbull could be excused for not knowing much about submarines; but, what were his supposed expert advisers in Navy Office thinking?

As for the French gripes, there was no guarantee that France would have given Australia access to its nuclear propulsion technology, even if it had sought it at the outset, as has the US now agreed to do.

In the final analysis, surely the bottom line is what is best for Australia's national defence.

Scott Morrison could do with a soupcon more finesse, some panache, a touch of nuance and a dose of sang-froid to cope with the chagrin d'alliance.

Clairvoyance among his entourage might prevent the odd faux pas.

Whoopee and razzamatazz are so passé.

It's a pity the French don't have a word for gauche.

I beg to differ with Gary Frances ( "This is us", Letters, September 23).

That said, I believe that this is what we'll become unless all of us are prepared to call out the vile behaviour of the "scum rebellion" and "drunken morons" who are taking part in the Melbourne protests.

Protests in the past have been reasonably orderly gatherings of people who care; not the crazy vandals going around kicking cars (for what benefit?) and attacking our police force who are employed by us to keep us safe.

I believe the Victorian government should send those arrested out to pick up rubbish and clean off graffiti - wearing masks and distancing even if they don't believe in it.

From the enduring wisdom of Doug Hurst (Letters, September 21) comes the observation that eight new submarines might not be enough. Noting that even these will not arrive till 2039, and with all due gravitas, I suggest: "We all live in a rented submarine, a rented submarine, a rented submarine."

David Pope's editorial cartoon (September 21) appears to refer to the hunt for the "in the red" October.

How heartwarming it was to see footage of an eastern grey kangaroo being rescued from the lake. Two brave gentlemen passing by jumped in to do the rescue and the kangaroo appeared to be gently putting out a paw to say thank you.

Experience has shown competition, deceit and distrust between old and new powers is neither new nor obsolete. While memorandums of understanding, trade agreements and good will give the impression all is forgotten you don't have to scratch deeply to discover the fundamentals haven't changed.

Strewth, were getting nuclear submarines. Who'd have thought under this government? I thought they'd sign up for coal-powered steam ones.

I have just received the annual rates notice for a townhouse unit in Cook. The amount payable is $3304, a 14.5 per cent increase on last year. I thought the "heavy lifting" was supposed to be over. How long can savage increases of this kind go on for?

People are wrong to say Barnaby Joyce's recent public comments show that he is a sandwich short of a picnic. Actually, he is a sandwich looking for the picnic.

Shark-spotting drone programs, along with education and the use of a personal shark repellent device, is a simple approach to reduce the risk of a shark encounter. Shark nets are indiscriminate killing devices of marine animals and should be banned.