Credit: Matt Golding
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GLOBAL ALLIANCES
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has suggested that he would consider sending peacekeeping troops to Ukraine (“Dutton rejects Albanese’s turnaround on peacekeepers for Ukraine”, 4/3). While the idea is noble, I would like to express my horror that Albanese would actually enact such a proposal. Have we not learnt from history? In World War I and World War II Australian forces fought nobly in Europe for European values. Under no circumstances should Australian soldiers be sent to Europe to fight European wars. War in Europe should be dealt with by the Europeans. Let the English, the French, the Germans, the Italians, the Spanish and the Scandinavian countries look after the Ukrainians.
Joe Di Pietro, Wheelers Hill
Trust has been broken
Trump’s isolation of the US from the rest of the world has brought Europe’s nations closer together. Trump may claim later that this was his intention, but at the very least it is a warning to Australia and its neighbours that we can longer assume long-term protection by America in our corner of the globe and that now is the time to communicate for the future of our region.
Kevan Porter, Alphington
Finding our own way in the region
As the global mayhem created by Donald Trump continues, two opinion pieces in The Age by Cory Alpert and Emma Shortis (“US no longer defender of the free world” and “Albanese’s new headache: belief in America”, 5/3) should be compulsory reading for the prime minister and opposition leader. Already in decline, America is bitterly divided as Trump continues to belittle, berate and bully (and these are some of his less offensive behaviours and traits). It will take many years, if ever, to recover from his presidency, especially as traditional allies shun the US, tariff wars continue and prejudicial behaviours proliferate. In 20 years the two major superpowers will be India and China. It is in our interests to build on existing trade relationships and engage in positive diplomacy. China, in particular, does not have to be an enemy and we should make every effort to ensure that it isn’t one. As in the case of Japan and Germany during World War II, yesterday’s enemies can become close allies.
Australia cannot afford to have our leaders play political games and in these times of turmoil our country needs a bipartisan approach to international affairs to ensure longer-term security and prosperity.
James Young, Mt Eliza
Wrong route
Some people are being heard to say that the silver lining in Trump’s current actions is that the Europeans are finally being fiscally responsible for their own defence. Maybe the EU should cough up more money for defence, but this should not be conflated with throwing the Ukrainians under the bus as Trump has shamefully done to appease Vladimir.
Russell Brims, Bentleigh East
What values?
Disrupter, dealmaker, bully, sycophant, convicted felon; take your pick, but Republicans should be wondering about their choice of leader when they see their now president siding with leftist, totalitarian leadership and acknowledging that “it is the deal” that really matters to him. Don’t worry about trivial things like values, decency, morals, justice or all those things that the US professed for decades in the name of democracy and so-called Western values.
Charles Griss, Balwyn
A new force for good
The Vance/Trump ambush of Zelensky has resulted in unifying Europe and triggered NATO into funding its own military expansion and ability to defend Europe against future Russian attacks. This is the last consequence Putin wanted. A united Europe that includes Ukraine, with the military strength and moral fortitude to ensure the downfall of both despots, Trump and Putin, in the future.
Rob Kalkman, South Melbourne
THE FORUM
Power protections
Kieran Rooney’s article “Power bills forecast to soar in Victoria” (The Age, 4/3) highlights the need to ramp up the development of renewable power and the necessary infrastructure to ensure a smooth transition from our dirty, carbon emitting coal-fired power stations.
He also touched on the urgent need to have protection for consumers from blatant price gauging by large energy companies. The financial books of these companies should be thrown open for public scrutiny so that the long-suffering consumer can judge whether price rises are justified. This would include any details of obscene mega salaries paid to the CEOs of these companies. The ACCC will need to play a major role in the energy pricing process rather than letting energy companies set their own rates.
Yes, there may be some increased costs during the transition from fossil fuel energy generation to renewables but consumers, particularly low-income earners, need strong protection from energy price rorting.
Graeme Lechte, Pascoe Vale
Greenery squeezed out
Like Ian Hundley, I bought a house in the eastern suburbs back in the 1980s (“My suburb was a spacious garden until residents built over their backyards”, 5/3). While I was attracted to buy my late Edwardian house in Surrey Hills because of its three glorious big trees in the front garden, as important was the fact the suburb was made up of similar heritage homes imbued with local history and timeless ambience. What a joy to live here.
Fast forward 40 years and what I now sadly see is the demolition of these heritage homes with developers flattening every tree on the block to build massive, architecturally inappropriate “mini-mansions” as Hundley calls them. Some are simply jaw-droppingly out of place, with their Greek and Roman style columns and facades. Totally incongruous with the style of houses in Surrey hills.
Why can’t the Boroondara council have stricter guidelines as to what style and size homes can be?
Further, why can’t the council make it mandatory for all new homes to have a designated surround of green trees and shrubs — not allowing new homes to take up all of the block? We are losing our green buffer too.
Yes, change is inevitable, but more can be done to stop the destruction of the beauty of our suburbs, and preserving our big trees and bird life.
Julia Donnelly, Surrey Hills
Factory built
In criticising bureaucrats, Ross Gittins (“Our housing industry’s going nowhere fast. It’s not just red tape”, 5/3) misses what should be the real target on housing affordability and efficiency. That is the “horse and buggy” building practices still employed for house construction. Cars are no longer hand-built. Prefabricated building and assembly on-site should be a much more widely employed practice to improve productivity.
Constructing in a factory reduces waste and construction time, and maximises quality. All our “McMansions” are standard design, so what is the problem with using carbon capture and storage in all our new houses by using cross-laminated timber or other methods of prefabricated insulated panels?
David Hassett, Noble Park
The third rail
As a retired transport and town planner I was pleased to read the about Infrastructure Victoria’s 30-year plan (“Here’s what Melbourne needs and where”, 4/3). The plans for transport projects in the western suburbs are the most necessary. I was, however, disappointed that the report gave no particular priority for two key projects, the Melbourne Airport Rail link and Metro 2.
Much has been said of the airport link over decades but it seems to have some political momentum once again. Hopefully this is not just upcoming election huff and puff.
The Metro 2 project is crucial. It will provide a link between Wyndham Vale and Newport, tunnels to Fisherman’s Bend and the CBD then on to Clifton Hill where it would connect to the line to Mernda in the north.
These projects must have a higher priority than the Suburban Rail Loop, which should be put on hold or slowed to better manage the extremely expensive flow of funds for this long-term project to avoid competition for funds for the plan put forward by Infrastructure Victoria.
Bob Evans, Glen Iris
Drivers have choices
The Victorian government’s plan to reduce car parking requirements for apartments near transport connections (The Age, 28/2) recognises the fact that we cannot keep accommodating more cars in inner city areas, despite the complaints of your correspondents (Letters, 5/3). While some people still require access to cars, many living in inner city areas do not need access to a car and should not have to pay for parking they don’t need. As a former resident of inner Sydney, I know that properties with off street parking sell for more than properties that don’t.
If you need access to a car it’s very simple, don’t buy an apartment that doesn’t have car parking.
James Proctor, Maiden Gully
Speed the wrong focus
After 40 years of downsizing and outsourcing of government skills, and slicing and dicing VicRoads out of existence, Infrastructure Victoria highlights the dire condition of state governance with its the simplistic solution to our road safety problems – very low speed limits on “local” streets (“Push for 30km/h speed limit on all local streets to improve safety”, 4/3). As a road safety engineer I can assure you that road safety is complex, but state agencies no longer have the capacity to think beyond tired, simplistic solutions that haven’t worked.
Lower speed limits around schools and kindergartens solve a problem that does not exist. Meanwhile, real road safety problems and trends receive no attention. The two recent fatal crashes on arterial roads in Bulleen were in 40 km/h zones, due to North East Link works. So many road safety problems have nothing to do with speed limits.
Rob Morgan, Bulleen
Degrading an asset
Buses and trams share the road, a war on cars is also a war on public transport. It’s cheap to destroy the roads, but it costs billions to build alternatives, with a population bubble we can’t afford to sacrifice the infrastructure we’ve got.
David Barry, Mitcham
Frontline staff
The government is axing 73 fisheries officer positions at the same time as Treasurer Jaclyn Symes says (The Age, 21/2) that public service job cuts will focus on executives with average salaries of $255,000 and exclude “frontline services”. Until recently, fisheries “law enforcement” officers carried sidearms, reflecting the risks associated with approaching offenders at all hours of day and night. How much more frontline can you get? Somehow the Victorian Fisheries Authority’s “review” is exempt from the treasurer’s constraints.
The government will replace the fisheries law enforcers with 36 “engagement officers”, even though officers already officially inspect 50,000 anglers annually, and engage with thousands more through fishing clubs, community events and school visits. Is highly visible on-water compliance work now to be replaced by community events and social media? Who will be out on the water to protect our fish stocks and marine sanctuaries from being looted?
Ross Winstanley, Highton, former Victorian director of fisheries research and manager of recreational fisheries
Balance eschewed
Peter Dutton has signalled that a Coalition government would sack 36,000 public servants and demand all work be performed in office (“Union vows to fight Dutton’s five-days-in-office edict at the tribunal”, 4/3). That work from home has been good for productivity and work/life balance is to be ignored. Presumably the cuts to the public service will be a boon to “consultants” despite the fact that consultants do not provide the frank advice necessary for good governance for fear contracts will not be renewed. Have the LNP learnt nothing?
Ken Rivett, Ferntree Gully
Midnight alarm silenced
Re the issue of waking in the dead of night, my own struggles with disrupted sleep, due to constant regurgitation of regrets, faux pas, ex-lovers, and the trials of my children were greatly mitigated once I bought an iPad, and realised I could download a digital version of The Age at around 3.30am. I could read the entire paper, do a couple of Sudokus, and even write a letter to the editor before getting back to sleep for a couple more hours. My wife also appreciates the lack of paper rustling, and the lack of ink smudges on the bed clothes.
Mike Pantzopoulos, Ashburton
Lost dogs
ABC television’s Muster Dogs is a howling success, but there is something missing. With all those collies and kelpies that inhabit the show, where is the doyen of Australian working dogs? I speak of the Australian Cattle Dog breed, popularly known as heelers. For personality, intelligence and strength they run rings around their rivals. In the case of the ABC, this omission can only be described as ingratitude.
After all, the Bluey cartoon series is the greatest international success they have had in living memory. My resident bluey refuses to watch Muster Dogs until this wrong is redressed.
John Morrissey, Hawthorn
AFL coverage
I read that there will be no free-to-air Saturday night football this year. It’s all about money now, so the poorest or the ones that can’t afford pay TV ... well, they miss out.
Mind you, even if I could afford Foxtel, I wouldn’t pay a single drachma to Fox, considering its ties to Fox News, that has been a close ally and supporter of President Trump.
Bill Proctor, Launching Place
AND ANOTHER THING
Credit: Matt Golding
Speed limits
Is there any point in having a 30km/h limit when speedsters break the 50km/h limit? Better education of children and better policing of the speed limits are the answer.
Doris LeRoy, Altona
Given the increasing size and power of four-wheel drive vehicles and their numbers on the road, a reduction of speed limits to 30km/h in built-up areas was inevitable.
Bruce Watson, Clifton Springs
The proposed 30km/h speed limit will ensure drivers can safely navigate the horrendous condition of our roads.
Mark Hulls, Sandringham
I’d be mightily surprised if the average speed of a car trip around inner city Melbourne currently exceeded 30km/h anyway.
Mark Morrison, Kew
Trump and Zelensky
One country has a comic figure who became a leader; the other has a leader who has become a comic figure.
Simon Costello, Main Ridge
Zelensky, or his handlers, has got it right this time. Trump likes nothing more than a win. All Zelensky has to do is sign the big contract favouring Trump’s side of the deal.
Tony Haydon, Springvale
The Ukrainian president says his meeting with Trump in the White House was regrettable. What is regrettable is that he was dealing with a narcissist who had a hissy fit when he did not get his own way.
Edward Lithgow, Maryborough
The free world gets expensive.
Stuart Gluth, Northcote
A massive own goal by Trump with his tariffs risking economic turmoil. And fentanyl will keep pouring in.
Reg Murray, Glen Iris
It is easy to understand Trump. Just ask yourself what Putin would do.
Diana Taylor, Inverloch
Finally
Turned on the commercial TV news for an update on Trump pausing aid to Ukraine and the cyclone off Brisbane. The lead story was “storms in Brisbane cause footy chaos”. Yep, I live in Melbourne.
John Page, Glenroy
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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.