Credit: Cathy Wilcox
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POLITICS
We all know that the cost of living crisis is hurting the community, and voters are taking their ire out on the government (“Voters don’t trust Albanese to fix the cost of living crisis”, 9/12). For years the Coalition has traded on the idea that it is the better economic manager. Apparently if you repeat it often enough it is accepted as correct. An examination of the Coalition’s record will illustrate this is not the case. Labor has legislated universal tax cuts, provided energy relief and put forward solid proposals on migration numbers as real measures. The opposition has done nothing to indicate how it would do better, is vague on immigration numbers and has committed to a nuclear power proposal that in cost and efficacy doesn’t stand the scrutiny of respected organisations like the CSIRO. Perhaps this trust is not well-placed.
Bill Pimm, Mentone
Better for some
There is a cost of living crisis all over the world and Labor has done a reasonable job in trying circumstances. It is doubtful that the Liberal Party would have done any better had it still been in power during this turbulent time. Its claim of being the better financial manager cannot be tested. Although, it would certainly have been better for its wealthy constituents.
Marie Nash, Balwyn
Economical with the truth
Peter Dutton’s claim that “19 of the top 20 economies have nuclear power or have signed up to it” (“The Coalition told the CSIRO to redo its nuclear report”, 9/12) needs clarification. The third-largest economy, Germany, closed its last nuclear station last year. Spain and Switzerland, the 15th and 20th economies, are phasing it out. Brazil, No. 8, started to build its third station in 1981. Construction is currently suspended. China has dropped ambitious plans for nuclear and is building the renewable equivalent of five large nuclear plants per week. So, nations with experience of nuclear power are actually getting out of it.
Lesley Walker, Northcote
Facing reality
Some Australians seem to suffer from Dutton Derangement Syndrome (DDS). It is similar to Trump Derangement Syndrome (TDS) and can be defined as a dislike of Dutton so intense it impairs judgment. It results in a refusal to take Dutton seriously and mockery of people who do. Symptoms of DDS include intense opposition to Dutton’s policies such as nuclear energy and ad hominem comments about Dutton’s physical appearance. It also involves an inability to accurately evaluate the performance of the Albanese government. The headline that Dutton “could actually” be the next PM (The Age, 9/12) suggests a sense of incredulity that Dutton could ever lead the nation. Millions of Americans had similar thoughts about Donald Trump in 2016 and 2024.
Rod Wise, Surrey Hills
False energy claims
Peter Dutton claims repeatedly that his proposed nuclear power plants will provide cheap electricity. He says Australia pays some of the highest electricity prices in the world. This is simply not true. Of the 38 countries in the OECD, according to the Australian Energy Council, Australia has the 10th-lowest electricity prices. Even in France, home of many of Dutton’s beloved nuclear reactors, consumers pay more for electricity than we do in Australia. How can we believe anything else Dutton says?
Ross Hudson, Mount Martha
Pricey prejudice
Peter Dutton has advised that if he became PM his government would reject an offshore wind farm at Port Stephens on the NSW coast, but neglected to explain why. He talked up his preference for nuclear, but seems to be ignoring the cost. Nuclear energy can be produced for around $141-$233 per MWh with large-scale reactors. Dutton prefers the more expensive small modular reactors at about $230-$382 per MWh, but I’d like to know how he would persuade us to buy power from either when a combination of solar and wind would cost $73 to $128 a MWh hour.
Graham Parton, Beechworth
Power at all costs
Nuclear energy, with its exorbitant costs, decades-long timelines and inefficiencies, is no match for the economic and environmental benefits of renewables. Dutton knows this, yet persists – not to solve energy issues but to distract and divide.
Accusing the CSIRO of bias (“Dutton, Joyce accuse CSIRO of bias in nuclear cost findings”, 9/12) is laughable when Dutton and Barnaby’s own unwavering bias towards vested fossil fuel interests undermines trust in politics and stifles Australia’s progress towards a sustainable future. Australians are right to turn to community independents who stand for transparency, science, and public welfare.
Sue Barrett, Caulfield South
Lamentable veto
As an ageing Boomer, I can only applaud the rise of Gen Z, “the most progressive, climate-conscious generation yet” (“Albanese just drove potential Gen Z voters further away”, 9/12). I share its disillusionment at Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s intervention to derail the vital environmental legislation that Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek had worked so hard with the Greens to formulate. Whether driven by personal political rivalry or by fear of WA’s powerful mining lobby, his veto was lamentable. One can only hope it fires up all generations to vote for nature next year.
Tom Knowles, Parkville
Green preferences
Daniel Cash summarises the dilemma of the Labor government in attracting all voters, not just younger voters. One “big ticket issue” like climate change can sway any voter, young or old. Governments and oppositions have a dilemma, to balance their policy messages for the whole country and for all interest groups. Certain policies attract or alienate different people.
In Australia, preferential voting often helps minor parties and independents. Voters can usually put 1 against a candidate from one of them, knowing their preferences will flow on to their choice out of Labor or the LNP.
I often vote Green, mainly because of their environmental and climate policies. The cancellation of Tanya Plibersek’s deal with the Greens to introduce better environmental protection has rankled with me, but Labor is still way ahead of Peter Dutton on climate overall. Even if the LNP wins overall, I predict a small swing towards the Greens at the next election, with far greater support for teal independents.
John Hughes, Mentone
Big parties falling short
So many truths are packed into Professor Lesley Hughes’ excellent opinion piece (“Gas is burning our climate faster, and Australia’s part of the problem”, 9/12). Fossil gas is indeed methane gas, warming the planet, wreaking havoc on the environment and our health. Despite these facts, we have a Labor government with a Future Gas Strategy that extends beyond 2050 and an opposition using an expensive nuclear fantasy as a means of delaying the shift away from fossil fuels (“The Coalition told the CSIRO to redo its nuclear report. It’s bad news for Dutton”, 9/12). It now seems the only way Australia can possibly escape the fossil fuel juggernaut is to elect more independents and Greens into Parliament.
Sarah Brennan, Hawthorn
THE FORUM
Escalation of conflict
To your correspondents who are critical of Benjamin Netanyahu and the opposition’s responses to the arson attack on the synagogue (Letters, 9/12), it may be too far to directly link this outrage to one UN vote. However, it’s arguable that the government’s constant, unfair attacks on Israel as it fights its war of self-defence against terrorists embedded among and under a civilian population have contributed to the general spike in antisemitism — the context in which the attack took place.
Alan Shroot, St Kilda East
Stand strong together
We are in times where we need to stand strong together, not weak apart. There is already so much friction in our society threatening to spark a fire of dissonance between all of us. The recent attack on the synagogue in Melbourne should be condemned as an act attempting to divide our united Australian society. We have people from all walks of life in this beautiful country, some seeking refuge here due to being unable to practise their religion elsewhere.
We need to stand strong with the Jewish community and uphold the safety and dignity of all religious spaces as a means of safeguarding the freedom of religion.
Abdul Salam Danish Mohammed, Hallam
A political leader
Your correspondent is right to condemn Benjamin Netanyahu for linking the Addas synagogue arson attack to Australia’s recent vote (along with 156 other countries) at the United Nations (Letters, 9/12). But she is wrong to call Netanyahu “the leader of the Jewish people”. He is merely the prime minister of Israel, a country that has less than half of the world’s Jews; there are almost as many Jews in the US as in Israel.
Brian Glass, Montrose
Learning about Syria
Thank you Michael Bachelard and Hassan Hassan for informing us about Syria (The Age, 9/12). I was privileged to be invited to conferences at the Damascus University Higher Language Institute in the years before the civil war started in 2011. At that time it was possible to participate in intellectual exchange with colleagues and enjoy the wonderful hospitality offered. This contrasted starkly with the dire situation under the Assad regime and in the refugee camps.
It is to be hoped that we in the West can understand the new leaders of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, and that they can continue demonstrating pragmatic development with a relative orderly takeover. Syrians deserve to be able to go about their daily lives in peace rather than suffer the infighting and chaos that has occurred in other regions.
Judith Hudson, Elwood
The right kind of housing
Thank you, Dr Kate Shaw, for highlighting “it was a scandal that a state-led pilot project would seek to build 60,000 new homes without stipulating one new affordable home”. As Shaw added: “We are in an affordable housing crisis – the city is not short of high-end houses and apartments, it’s the low-cost end we need to focus on”, (“‘Like gold’: Allan government urged to set affordable housing targets,” 8/12.)
Research from Homelessness Australia finds the number of people at risk of homelessness in Victoria has surged 67 per cent to close to 1 million people. People who could have afforded private rentals just a few years ago are now resorting to couch surfing, sleeping in cars or pitching a tent. Homes Victoria states more than 58,000 households are on the waiting list for public housing.
We are a wealthy country, it is unconscionable that we cannot house our own people.
I urge the state government to pause the pilot activity centre program and genuinely look to solve the housing crisis.
Yvonne Bowyer, Surrey Hills
Monday positives
Three positive takeaways from Monday’s Age: Notre Dame cathedral, symbol of beauty, hope and human endeavour, has reopened after an extraordinary restoration program. Anh Do and his successful WeirDo books are a reminder that joyful, meaningful stories are a source of hope.
And your correspondent sings the praises of an arts degree which gave him “everything he could have wanted from a university experience”. Halleluja!
Susan Mahar, Fitzroy North
A blow to the peace
I concur wholeheartedly with Meg Washington in her wish to ban leaf blowers from suburbia (GW, 7/12). I’ve developed sensitive ears and if I detect one within 200 metres of my home, I’m reluctant to step outside. The noise they make is quite excruciating.
Furthermore, they do a poor job. Most leaves and grass end up either on the road or in the gutter, where they surely clog up our drainage.
Overall, they are a useless and abominable creation. We should all be encouraged to use brooms – much better for the environment and good exercise for the user.
Peter Cahill, Berwick
Embracing the arts
Regarding the NDIS cuts to music and art therapies, a time is coming when arts-based therapies, including music, art, dance, and drama, will be primary modalities for both rehabilitation and psychotherapy. We will continue to learn more through advances in neuroscience and clinical research, demonstrating how engaging multiple brain systems through rhythm, melody, sensory input, and interpersonal connection unlocks our full potential for brain plasticity and healing.
In the future, this knowledge of arts-based therapies will seem self-evident. We will likely look back and ask: “Why was there so much resistance to adopting these transformative approaches?”
The answer may lie in a deep-seated cultural bias against the arts. While society celebrates elite artists and performers, we undervalue everyday arts professionals (teachers, therapists and performers) viewing their contributions as less legitimate. Perhaps this bias stems from a discomfort with addressing the whole person: body, mind, and emotions.
Can we acknowledge these biases and fears, paving the way for a cultural shift? Let us embrace the potential of the arts in healing and growth. Let’s ensure this vision becomes reality. The time to embrace the healing power of the arts is now.
Jason Kenner, Brunswick
Paw protection
Dog owners, walking your dog on asphalt on a 30 degree-plus sunny day with no shade after midday is tantamount to placing your dog’s paws on a stove on medium heat. They don’t wear footwear like we do to protect our feet, so their paws burn on that hot surface and they will not enjoy their walk. It’s cruel. Just don’t do it!
Matthew Heale, Caulfield South
AND ANOTHER THING
In defence of dogs
A recent US study found 99.12per cent of dogs have behavioural issues (“Why there is no such thing as a well-behaved dog”, 9/12). This compares with humans of whom 100 per cent have the same issues.
John Guy, Elsternwick
I’d like to see a comparative study that interrogates the behaviours of owners. Dogs are dogs – there are no inherently “bad” dogs.
Michelle Goldsmith, Eaglehawk
Syria
Another so-called “strong man” flees in the face of his regime being overthrown.
Bryan Fraser, St Kilda West
Ousted Syrian president Bashar al-Assad joins the long list of tyrants who send others to the front line and then run for their lives when the enemy comes knocking.
John Rawson, Mernda
As one tyrant is toppled in Syria, another wannabe tyrant is preparing to enter the White House. Never a dull moment in this world.
George Djoneff, Mitcham
Politics
David Crowe says Peter Dutton is in an electable position – imagine how prospects might change if any of his policies were released. Then again maybe not.
Francis Bainbridge, Fitzroy North
At last, I’ve discerned the outline of a policy from Peter Dutton: keep criticising the CSIRO until it gives you the findings you want.
Jane Edwards, Peterhead
Wouldn’t it be great if every utterance from the federal opposition was heartfelt and genuine, rather than just aimed at diminishing the government?
Dale Crisp, Brighton
Furthermore
Deputy Premier Ben Carroll “displayed rare courage” by challenging Dan Andrews’ succession plans (“Minister who knows his ‘true north’,” 8/12). This understudy seems like a leader.
Joan Reilly, Surrey Hills
After recently driving on country highways and secondary roads, I suggest our number plates be changed to Victoria: the Pothole State.
Heather Barker, Albert Park
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To submit a letter to The Age, email letters@theage.com.au. Please include your home address and telephone number below your letter. No attachments. See here for our rules and tips on getting your letter published.