Credit: Cathy Wilcox
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With the upcoming federal election I would like to know who is donating to the major political parties. Historically, about 85 per cent of donations go to Labor and the Coalition. Very few are made for altruistic reasons; donors expect something in return. Under current rules, it takes at least seven months for large federal donations to be made public. Many government decisions – contracts, consultancies, grants and projects – could be awarded before we find out who made the donations. At state level, political donations must be made public within a month during campaigns, which is a more transparent system. This is why, federally, we need to know in real time, not seven months down the track, who is footing the campaign bill. We must not be left in the dark.
Jack Coffey, Camberwell
Please, can the independents merge?
Is it politically naive to suggest independents combine to form a new party, say the Central Party, to give us disaffected voters who don’t want left-wing Labor or right-wing Liberal elected. As it stands now, my vote for any independent ends up with either Labor or Liberal, despite my antipathy towards both of them. How is that democratic?
Margaret Summers, Carnegie
Will it be the return of the good old days?
Many business people today are probably too young to remember the glorious days when Australia last had tax deductibility for ″entertainment″ expenses as now promised by Peter Dutton. It was an era of long lunches, multiple receipts and expensive bottles of wine. Everyone knew the system was being rorted but we were all having too much fun to worry. The only real restraint was that if it was a very long lunch you couldn’t go back to the office to sleep it off. Probably Dutton’s plan won’t usher in quite the same anything goes approach which applied back then as modern employers generally frown on alcohol consumption during office hours. No doubt, however, if the Dutton system ever came to pass some sectors of the economy would work out a way to bring back the glorious days of the past. Most would probably stick to more modest entertainment but there would be others who see it as a great opportunity.
Noel Turnbull, Port Melbourne
Cutting the public service is not progress
Peter Dutton claims he will reduce the number of public servants by 36,000 if elected. That will mean a return to the situation we had under the previous Coalition government where the backlog of veterans’ claims reached over 42,000 in September 2022 (National Audit Office), due to low levels of staffing. After the current government increased staffing we now have around 4000 claims pending. These are not just numbers in a computer. There is a human being needing assistance in some form behind each claim. Veterans’ claims are just one example. Think about claims for Centrelink, NDIS, Medicare, the list is long. An efficient public service, with ongoing ″corporate memory″ is a basic requirement of a democracy. Replacing the public service with consultants has been shown to be more expensive, less accountable and less efficient. Remember robo-debt?
Jenny Callaghan, Hawthorn
Memo Albanese, this is how to stay in touch
Recent opinion polling has found Anthony Albanese is more ″out of touch″ with voters than Peter Dutton. If Albanese stopped tinkering with a ban on gambling ads and put his name to effective legislation to end gambling ads this year relating to sports he’d be a legend. It might seem to be only a small step for the PM to have a gambling ads ban but if he and his political advisers care to read the room they would be getting ″in touch″ with voters.
Des Files, Brunswick
THE FORUM
Two-leader solution
It looks increasingly like Donald Trump’s only motivation behind declaring that Gaza is a ″demolition site″ and should be cleansed of Palestinians is its real estate value to American investors. The only conclusion that can be drawn from the press conference between Benjamin Netanyahu and Trump in Washington is that a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinian people is dead. If the Palestinians are relocated to other Arab countries, there will be no Palestine. That appears to be the Trump-Netanyahu two-leader solution.
Nick Toovey, Beaumaris
Homeland identity
A year ago, pro-Palestinian protesters were widely criticised for using the expression “from the river to the sea” as it hinted strongly at the elimination of Israel. With Trump’s plan to cleanse Gaza of Palestinians, Israel, with the help of the US, is on the cusp of seizing control of the area from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea.
Of all people, Israelis must realise how important a homeland is for identity, the preservation of culture and the unique feeling that you are “home”. One advantage for the Trump family is that Jared Kushner may soon be able to build his luxury waterfront property in the west of Gaza once the local population has been cleared out.
Tony Devereux, Nunawading
Develop for Palestinians
Donald Trump’s proposal to clear out 2 million Palestinians from their ancient homeland in Gaza is a truly shocking US foreign policy proposal. If Trump wants peace, he should be forcing Israel to end their brutal occupation of Palestine. And Gaza must be redeveloped for the Palestinians, not anyone else.
Bill O’Connor, Beechworth
Stay clear, Australia
And we’ve got a $350 billion submarine deal with these people. Pull out immediately. Peter Dutton may think Trump’s policies are for us but I hope Australia would be better than this insanity.
Chris Verso, Albury, NSW
Fact v fiction
In physical nature consequences of actions take the path of least resistance, and so, it seems, does humankind when processing information. For example, in conflicts, pre-dispositions and prejudices provide a path of least resistance, as observed in correspondents’ letters, and the lies spurted by deranged world leaders that are believed to be the truth. Fundamentally, humanity is all too ready to accept fiction over fact. As Francois Voltaire warned, if we believe absurdities we can commit atrocities: And all protected under the banner of freedom of speech.
Henry Herzog, St Kilda East
Voters’ revenge
All political advertising sent to homes should be printed on glass bottles because, like political promises, they can shatter and become empty quickly. The best thing is that voters can enjoy smashing them into tiny pieces, or put a note in them and throw them into the sea knowing that no one, especially politicians, will ever read their cries for help.
Greg Tuck, Warragul
Big yellow taxi has arrived
It is proposed that the untouched bushland of Royal Park should be replaced with ″more sports ovals, another tennis court, mini-golf, a disc-golf Frisbee area, five multipurpose games areas, more paved paths and increased lighting″. Once more, Joni Mitchell’s prophetic song Big Yellow Taxi comes to mind: ″They paved paradise/And put up a parking lot./With a pink hotel, a boutique and a swinging hot spot./Don’t it always seem to go,/That you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone...″
James Goding, Princes Hill
Eve of destruction
One of the major drivers of biodiversity loss is human population growth. This can be clearly illustrated by the proposal to develop further natural areas of Royal Park into sporting facilities due to the demands of a growing population.
As the continual loss of biodiversity also accelerates global warming, we are on a path to destruction unless we can rethink the value of growth for its own sake.
Jennie Epstein, Little River
Not good outcomes
Ross Gittins has described the change in economics teaching today (Comment, 3/2). It seems economics is no longer appealing to critical thinkers and those interested in global issues. Instead, there is an obsession with maths.
This parallels literacy teaching where it is all about measurable outcomes – an overly mechanistic approach to reading instruction means too many kids miss the point of it all. In both cases, it seems computer-generated graphics are an essential distraction.
Susan Mahar, Fitzroy North
Three lost years
Peter Dutton and the Liberals have wasted three years in opposition. Instead of developing comprehensive and visionary policies to benefit all, the best they have come up with is a nuclear thought bubble (which has no chance of eventuating according to their own Christopher Pyne) and free lunches of dubious benefit for businesses, which can probably afford to pay, which sounds like snouts in the trough to me.
Ralph Frank, Malvern East
Promote political diversity
Well done Jenna Price (″Labor and the Coalition are poised to launch a major attack on our democracy″, 4/2) for calling out the major parties for their cynical moves to change our political donation laws in a manner that benefits only them. The independents have breathed fresh air into our political system, challenged the established parties, providing an alternative for the many voters who feel disenfranchised and as Don Chipp famously put it ″kept the bastards honest″. We need a system that enables and promotes different views not one that locks in an uninspiring and self-serving duopoly.
David Brophy, Beaumaris
Who is getting greater?
As an economics graduate at the University of Pennsylvania Donald Trump would have been exposed to the law of comparative advantage which explains why free trade benefits all countries involved. He would also be aware that imposing tariffs on imports domestically only benefits the government collecting them from importers (his) or producers who can sell to consumers at their previously uncompetitive higher price. Presumably, his threatened trade war is part of the Make America Great Again strategy. The question which might increasingly be asked is, who for?
Bill King, Camberwell
Not just Dutton
A correspondent (Letters, 5/2) criticises Peter Dutton and quotes Bertrand Russell’s ″The fundamental cause of the trouble in the modern world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt″. Fair point. But I immediately thought of Chris Bowen.
Michael Doyle, Ashburton
Aged care costs
Amy Bainbridge, the author of the article ″Anxious retirees aren’t spending their nest egg″ (5/2) perhaps needs to consider the very long lives many people now have.
If retirees are considering their financial future, one source of anxiety could be the need, possibly soon, hopefully a long way off, to fund some aged care or nursing home care, the costs of which we are often told need to rise in the future. It is very hard to know whether this will be needed and, if so, how much it will cost. We could all spend like crazy, hope we never need to pay high care costs or take some care with our money in the hope we can buy the level of care we need when and if that time arises.
Ruth Hudnott, Canterbury
Calling all Westies
I was born in Yarraville and can relate to the experiences of Age letter writers living there. During my time in working class Yarraville, most people voted Labor.
Regarding boys selling newspapers, I was involved in a strike of Yarraville paper boys wanting threepence a dozen from the paper shop owner; I can’t remember the result of the dispute.
I must say though, that in all my experience of Yarraville, later Footscray, and then North Altona, I cannot ever remember people referring to each other as “Westies”.
Malcolm McDonald, Burwood
Theory in practice
Richard Nixon was famous for his ″Madman Theory″, whereby he hoped to extract concessions from adversaries out of their fear that he might just be insane enough to start a nuclear war.
Donald Trump appears to be working on the ″Simpleton Theory″, whereby he hopes to extract concessions from allies on the basis that he might just be economically illiterate enough to spark a global depression.
John Barker, Cremorne
Keeping the faith
So climate scientists still see hope for future of the planet (″As hope slips away, climate scientists keep faith″, 1/2) – believing that people will turn things around despite leaders who drop the ball. As Emeritus Professor Lesley Hughes says, what is the alternative? You’ve got to believe it or you would go nuts.
For us community believers, we put ourselves out there, form groups of like-minded people and just do stuff. Can’t over-think it because we all know it’s not enough. We lighten our own footprint and help others to do so and, we find there is a groundswell of wanting practical help. They want to get off gas and power their own house and car from the sun. It’s a growing quiet force against the odds, and if we keep the faith, it might even turn out to be the way the planet is saved.
Carolyn Ingvarson, Canterbury
Credit: Matt Golding
AND ANOTHER THING
Trump
Will Donald Trump take over Australia before or after he takes over New Zealand?
John Walsh, Watsonia
The Panama Canal, Canada, Gaza: what does Trump plan on taking over next?
Gretel Lamont, Aireys Inlet
After seeing Rupert Murdoch in Donald Trump’s office, can Grace Tame tell us where she got her T-shirt. We need a bulk order.
Julie Perry, Highton
If Trump threatens to impose tariffs on Australia, Tony Abbott should be wheeled out to shirtfront him.
Alistair Davies, Thornbury
That’s the end of Christopher Pyne being taken seriously (″Trump’s Greenland talk has logic″, 4/2)
Steve Melzer, Hughesdale
If the Palestinians refuse to leave Gaza will Trump hit them with huge tariffs?
Tommy Puckett, Ashgrove
From the Gaza Strip to the Trump Real Estate Strip.
Julie Conquest, Brighton
Furthermore
Could the federal government please stop mulling and start considering.
Jim Pilmer, Camberwell
Angus Taylor should remember that people who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.
Marie Nash, Balwyn
It is clear to me that free speech is sanctioned by its proponents as long as it is what they want to hear.
John Rawson, Mernda
Perhaps if we all considered ourselves part of the human race and didn’t delineate, there might be less racist slurs to worry about.
Vivienne Whitehead, Paynesville
Finally
I bet if the fossil fuel industry somehow managed to buy the sun so that it had exclusive rights to sell solar energy then Peter Dutton and the Coalition would become converts to renewable energy post-haste.
Phil Alexander, Eltham