A question of leadership in the age of the coronavirus

Niki Savva (“Pictures do not replace leadership in action”, 19/5) may overstate the case a little, but she is right in suggesting our Prime Minister should show more practical leadership. Australians have dodged the COVID bullet, it seems — either through luck or good management.

It is time for the national characteristic of a healthy lack of respect for authority to be shown towards our state leaders and their bureaucrats who would keep us tethered to internal border divisions. Scott Morrison should lead the way by demanding that our federation be restored and that Australians once again be free to travel wherever they wish within their own country.

Glenda Ellis, Bardon, Qld

The low uptake of the AstraZeneca vaccine is hardly surprising, given the commonwealth Department of Health’s rulings that the vaccinated person will be subject to the full range of personal travel and social restrictions as the unvaccinated person. They say the fully vaccinated person must be protected from infection by being subject to all the restrictions applying to the unvaccinated. Therefore, either these rulings are illogical or the vaccine is useless. If the latter applies, why take the 0.001 per cent chance of blood clotting? Meanwhile, vaccinated Americans, Danes, British and Europeans can travel. Are they wrong? Or is it really about politics?

Stan Yeaman, Scarborough, WA

Herd immunity is the carrot at the end of the stick. It’s also an ideal, as the current thinking among medical experts around the world is that herd immunity will never be achieved. Israel is 50 per cent vaccinated and the vaccination rollout is in free fall; many young people refuse to get the vaccine.

Brazil was thought to have achieved 60 per cent immunity through natural immunity, then it was struck by the P1 variant. Previous infection and antibodies, it is assumed, did not confer variant protection.

The other issue is that a vaccine would need to be 100 per cent effective to stop transmission, although 70 per cent is considered outstanding. Only 1 per cent of Australians have been vaccinated and their reluctance is palpable. Pandemics don’t go on forever and it’s time to accept this virus will become endemic. If Australians need anything through these testing tones, it’s the truth.

Christopher Woodley, Vaucluse, NSW

What a disappointment so many Australians are reluctant to get their jab to protect themselves and the community at large. It shows the selfishness and complacency that has been evident for more than a year when travelling on public transport.

It is not surprising, given the Coalition government’s negative attitude to science where religious views are given greater respect. Reductions in the CSIRO budget for years from Coalition governments in an attempt to balance the budget, which now is not important, show the anti-science attitude from a cabinet where STEM qualifications are sadly absent.

No credit to journalists either in their aim to get “good stories” by continually highlighting extreme situations. The anti-AstraZeneca attitudes of so many fail to recognise the relative benefits of inoculation when the potential deaths from this amazing Australian-produced product are around 25 but more than 1000 are killed on the roads annually.

Howard Brownscombe, Brighton, Vic

Who remembers 2011 when radical left Greenpeace activists broke into the CSIRO’s research farm at Ginninderra in Canberra and destroyed a crop of experimental genetically modified wheat? Those same radical left activists are lining up to get experimental, genetically modified chemical substances injected directly into their bloodstreams.

Peter Campion, Tolga, Qld

The coronavirus reports from male parliamentarians are getting tired. A fresh approach should employ champions such as Ash Barty, Sam Kerr and Lauren Jackson to promote vaccination.

Adrian Jackson, Middle Park, Vic

Very few people trust the media these days. So it is a bit rich of the media to think it can convince people to vaccinate. It should be left to the government to have an honest truthful campaign on the pros and cons of vaccination.

Tony Neal, Maryborough, Vic