If the federal Liberal Party cannot negotiate with its junior Coalition partner, the Nationals, on climate change it should do so with the Labor Party with whom it, and the general Australian population, have more in common.
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If the Liberal Party is sincere about its economic management credentials why hasn't it taken note of the economic modelling and advice given in both the Stern, and in the Garnaut Reviews well over 12 years ago?
Ignoring the realities of climate change will cost billions more than adjusting to it. We have already squandered the huge advantages we have over most countries in developing renewable sources of energy.
It is economic lunacy not to fast-track these opportunities before we are totally left behind.
Anti-vaxxers are entitled to their views, but they cannot stop the rest of the population from being vaccinated. The same principle applies to climate-change deniers within the Nationals.
Kerry Foster, Allambie Heights, NSW
Ignore the Nationals
We should not continue to be held hostage to the National Party. Clearly Australians want action on climate change. Liberals, you need to act and ignore the Nationals if necessary.
Just do what is right. Ignore the excessive influence from the coal and gas Industry. Think about your grandchildren instead of your position in power.
If you are the party of free enterprise, why aren't you using the power of the market instead of a soviet-style choice of "old technology"?
The answer is to have a plan and support the affected people and industries to transition to an economy away from fossil fuels.
That transition will bring massive opportunities. The cost of inaction is huge, adversely affecting regional Australia disproportionately.
Enough debate; just act or get out of the way.
Greg Dunstone, Bruce
Feel the love
Oh joy! Oh rapture! Oh bliss! Andrew Barr has told us that the end of our lockdown is in sight. He has told us that brave residents of ACT should be preparing for the lock-up. Well...what is the opposite of lock-down?
Anyway, thank you Chief Minister for leading us to this point as recently as a printed version of Our CBR appearing in my letter-box on Tuesday.
I mixed my hot chocolate and sat before the television to watch the ABC News, COVID-19 free. Then it happened. Aaargh, at 7.21 pm we were shown a close-up of somebody receiving their "jab".
Is there no other video that could have been spread across our screens? Or "Viewers are advised that you are about to be shown something that you might not like to see. We'll tell you when it is over".
Oh, well, fait-accompli. News gatherers have succeeded in keeping us abreast of what is going on.
By the way announcers need to correct the pronunciation of a common word vunnerable [sic], used regularly in items about COVID-19. Let's break it up: "vul' ner-able".
John Howard, O'Connor
Logic is flawed
In "Steady on Annastacia" (Letters, October 14) Don Sephton criticised the Queensland premier for her tactics in fighting COVID-19, but his reasoning is very faulty.
The value of tactics is best decided by the results. Queensland has a population about 12 times that of Canberra, but over the past month its daily number of cases has been about one while Canberra's has been about 30. In other words, Queensland's performance has been about 360 times better than Canberra's.
But that isn't the end of the comparison. Queensland has achieved its result without lockdowns. Therefore, it could be reasonably argued that Queensland's performance has been thousands of times better.
New Zealand, with a population, area, population distribution and economy all similar to that of coastal southern Queensland, is often touted as the "gold standard" for combating COVID-19. However New Zealand had 55 new cases on Wednesday (and rising) with many predicting New Zealand's worst days are ahead.
It seems probable that Queensland has won the world gold medal for fighting COVID by a large margin.
Perhaps Don should send an apology to Annastacia.
Bob Salmond, Melba
The free state
I guess Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk trumpeting "great" vaccination rates when places like the ACT and NSW are doing so much better (Don Sephton, Letters, October 14) is a bit like NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet, and no doubt soon ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr, trumpeting "freedom" and how their jurisdictions are "living with COVID-19" when you then think about life for those of us here in the sunshine state. A sense of proportion all round is indeed needed, maybe, Don?
Unfortunately, the inferior vaccination rates in Queensland are not attributable to supply issues as often claimed, but rather to attitudes. Way too many Queenslanders who should know better remain complacent, hesitant or both.
Nevertheless, as I sit fully vaccinated, and wait for COVID-19 to invade the north as Annastacia is warning us on a daily basis, I sit writing during a regular visit to a local café, just before I head off to pick my wife up from a hair salon and then take her for a manicure.
Keith Hill, Clifton Beach, Qld
Fine is excessive
I have joined the many drivers caught by the 40 km/h speed zone in Civic. A sudden drop from 60 to 40 for no obvious change in road conditions needs to be much more prominently displayed.
But the biggest shock of all was the size of the fine; $301 for doing 47km/hr! Ridiculous and excessive.
COVID-19 has incurred enough pain in our city without this fleecing by the ACT Government on dubious safety grounds (especially now with barely a pedestrian in sight).
Jon Real, Watson
Fix the earth first
"Moon race to fuel covid recovery" said The Canberra Times on October 13, parroting Mr Morrison's line concerning a grant of $50 million of taxpayers' money to develop a "semi-autonomous rover" to try and extract oxygen from lunar soils as part of a "plan to establish a sustainable presence on the moon".
If this isn't a great example of human idiocy then what is? We cannot live sustainably on planet earth as we face the extinction of a million species of life and the world potentially heats to unliveable temperatures.
If we were really going to have a post-COVID recovery the world would be embarking on measures to ensure a sustainable and equitable world for all. We are certainly not seeing this from the Morrison government.
Roderick Holesgrove, Crace
Rank hypocrisy on ICAC
I see the federal government wringing their hands over the recent resignation of Gladys Berejiklian and loudly declaiming the NSW ICAC as being "too powerful". I don't recall them having the same objections when it investigated Eddie Obeid. I do remember Aunty Gladys cutting the NSW ICAC's funding over the last couple of years.
I wonder if Scotty, Bridget, and the others responsible for the sports rorts, the car park rorts, and all the other blatant pork barrelling might be just a teeny bit sensitive?
Paul Wayper, Cook
Roll out the (pork) barrel
Colour-coded lists for regional handouts worth $300 million were seen by beady Coalition eyes only and used by government MPs to lobby for projects that did not meet approval criteria ("Government colour codes for regional grants", canberratimes.com.au, October 13).
The race was on to outdo Bridget McKenzie's brazen distribution of sports grants when the second-in-charge of this country barefacedly defended such practices.
A compliant PM turns a blind eye since he is busy visiting Sydney and polishing the plate which will deliver to the Nationals even more pre-election largesse, dressed with a side serve of mumbo jumbo about 2030 and 2050.
Sue Dyer, Downer
Vaping risks
Chief Medical Officer Dr Kerryn Coleman has stated that four to eight cases of COVID-19 per day are caused by vaping, or at least the sharing of the mouthpiece.
This is yet another danger of a product that the marketeers claim is a "safer alternative" to tobacco.
I wonder how many cases of COVID-19 are caused by smoking cigarettes. Even with a mask and 1.5 metres distance the effect of thousands of chemicals transmitted by saliva must be significant.
I don't know if any work has been done on this topic or whether smokers have a higher rate of COVID-19.
What about it Dr Coleman?
Dr Alan Shroot, president
Canberra ASH, Forrest
TO THE POINT
NEGATIVE ART
People in the western arts community create works that are steeped in negativity. Then we morons accept it, and lap it up.
Rod Matthews, Fairfield, Vic
PRISONER OF HIS OWN DEVICE
The PM is continually falling into pits of his own making as with the subs scenario. This involved invoking Machiavellian pragmatism to conjure up AUKUS to wedge Labor while failing to anticipate the toxic diplomatic outcomes and stalled trade negotiations.
Albert M White, Queanbeyan, NSW
LOW EXPECTATIONS
Tony Falla is confusing oranges with lemons (Lacklustre PMs, Letters, October 8). Those familiar with them had great expectations of John Gorton, Malcolm Turnbull and indeed, Kevin Rudd. Each, in his own way, disappointed. But few harboured illusions about Billy McMahon. He and Tony Abbott were, as Scott Morrison is, all alumni of the Artie Fadden class of whom little was expected and who did not disappoint.
P O'Keeffe, Hughes
CONSISTENCY PLEASE
P O'Keeffe (Letters, September 9) invokes cosmic morality to protest the slaughter of Australia's wild alpine horses as an invasive species. Consistency demands the same plea on behalf of foxes, rabbits, feral pigs, donkeys and camels, and perhaps the animals P. O'Keeffe may eat.
Paul Feldman, Macquarie
DEFENCE MATTERS
I have only one thing to say to Will Neilson (Letters, October 7) on better uses for money. That is that a country can have the best health, education and social security systems in the world but they are useless if it can't defend itself.
Bill Stefaniak, Narrabundah
EDITORIALS EXCELLENT
Amidst the flush of exaggeration and self-congratulation about "freedom day" across the border The Canberra Times is to be commended for its editorials reminding readers that "we have a responsibility ... to continue to be cautious and not take unnecessary risks". Communities may yet regret their leaders putting politics ahead of prudence.
Peter Fuller, Chifley
SPOTTED TIGER
It was reported that Tony Abbott was "spotted" arriving at the airport in Taiwan, as a private citizen. It is hoped that being spotted in no way reduces his role as Australia's Asian tiger.
Peter Baskett, Murrumbateman, NSW
TO THE ROOFTOPS
It's great news that the government is actively encouraging more outdoor dining and other activities post lockdown. It would be great to see a focus on encouraging rooftop bars and other creative uses of the tops of our buildings.
Danny Corvini, Deakin
PERIPAPETIC FLATULENCE
Once again, we have a writer being unnecessarily coy over a famous saying (Letters, October 12). The expression wasn't about "walking and chewing gum at the same time". It's originator, Lyndon Johnson, accused his Congressional colleague, Gerald Ford, of being so dumb "He can't fart and chew gum at the same time".