Conviction is what’s needed to revive the ‘Lucky Country’

Conviction is what’s needed to revive idea of the ‘Lucky Country’

Peter van Onselen succinctly voiced my reservations about the future of Australia (“Without innovation in Australia’s economy, political system and policies, our luck will run out”, 1-2/7). Renewal is essential, but we seem doomed to the attitude: “She’ll be right, mate.” The lack of imaginative tax reform, investment in education and provision of a sovereign wealth fund are all “on the back burner”. Plus, a rising division in all classes of our society with short-term political ambitions overriding a clear path to reform. As he so clearly stated: “Our luck may well run out.”

Heather Shiels, East Brighton, Vic

Peter van Onselen rightly addresses the need for our political parties to rise above the pack, show true leadership and allow Australia to demonstrate that it hasn’t wasted its abundance of resources. Sadly, the union movement’s stranglehold on Labor means it’s unlikely that workforce productivity will increase during its stay in government. Our best hope is a Coalition government led by a PM with both conviction and sufficient backbone to withstand the inevitable media barrage as vested-interest groups dig in.

Bob Miller, Leederville, WA

Integrity in politics

One can empathise with the experience of a middle-aged single woman, Gladys Berejiklian, falling deeply in love and that the experience could drive her heart as well as her head. One can also understand residents in Victoria and some in NSW comparing her management of the Covid pandemic positively against that of Daniel Andrews, though he did set the bar exceptionally low. That’s not relevant to the issues being dealt with by the Independent Commission Against Corruption. Whether she was “seriously corrupt” or just “corrupt” or deceptive, and whether it was fair and just that the ICAC took 18 months to publish their findings, is for the lawyers to debate. These issues don’t, however, exonerate her from the opprobrium of the ICAC. The bigger issue is that we have come to accept that politicians lie and that’s “what politicians do”, if not all of them. Recently a man accused of rape has been denied the assumption of innocence, without a fair trial proving him guilty, by Senator Katy Gallagher, when she declared in parliament in effect that she believed the accuser and so the accused was guilty. Where is the public outrage and dismay about actions like these, as well as Berejiklian’s? One of our foremost public intellectuals and esteemed columnists, Henry Ergas, quoted in a recent article Benjamin Constant, the great French liberal: “Truth is the most fundamental of the rights of man, because it’s the earth between our feet, the only solid ground on which freedom can build.” To maintain a democracy truth is of the essence, even if it seems at times it can only be an aspiration.

We do need a federal ICAC. If its purpose is to maintain lawful behaviour of politicians and public service, it needs to also hold these people to the truth. It’s only a lost cause if people don’t recognise the dangers and we don’t hold to these values.

Rachel Falk, St Leonards, NSW

Double standards

It appears that double standards are now a part of Australia as far as faith and beliefs are concerned. On the one hand we have a mountain on the east coast of Australia that the state government has allowed to be declared “out of bounds” to people who wish to appreciate its beauty. The assumption is it will not be respected as a sacred Indigenous site. On the other hand, we have the ACT government taking over the property of a religious organisation. This organisation provides high-quality essential health services and is open to all Canberrans and any others who show respect for its beliefs.

Noelle Oke, Albury, NSW

Russian riddle

Paul Monk put forward a propitious argument regarding the Russia-Ukraine conflict in The Weekend Australian (“Imperial ambition: history puts Putin in his place”, 1-2/7): NATO would help reform and transform Russian geopolitics, benignly leading the country, and possibly Putin, home to Europe.

This ideal solution infers nostalgia for the pacts of the Second World War and Gorbachev’s hope of unity with the West 40 years ago. Russia is in lock-step with China and in fact now dependent on Xi Jinping, we are told.

The political ethos of these nations and Western democracy is best described as polarised. Nor are the West and Eastern bloc nations likely to trust, let alone forgive, Russian provocation and atrocities. If justice is to prevail, war criminals will be brought to account. Australian strategists need to view this conflict, not through European eyes, but with an Asian perspective.

To date, China’s observation of the outcome in Ukraine has paused action to annex Taiwan, giving us breathing space to establish critical relations in the Asian sphere.

Roslyn Smith, Middle Park, Qld