The British monarchy is self-funded and helps subsidise taxpayers

Constitutionalists should be wary of Janet Albrechtsen’s use of Prince Andrew’s interview to justify our moving to some unknown republic (“Tuning in to royals’ prime-time meltdown”, 20/11). The golden rule remains: comment is free but facts are sacred.

British taxpayers do not pay for “this mob”. The monarchy is self-funded, subsidising the taxpayers more generously than most.

David Flint, Bondi Beach, NSW

Usually, when a behaviour that is abhorrent or disgusting is revealed about a friend, you get to re-evaluate their statements and actions through the lens of hindsight.

This reflection usually creates a sense of guilt and self-flagellation for not realising, at the time, what was happening and taking steps to prevent it from continuing.

The earlier conviction of Jeffrey Epstein did not seem to have had this effect on Prince Andrew. He has not indicated in any way that the presence of many young girls at Epstein’s mansion should have rung alarm bells, nor that the subsequent conviction of Epstein didn’t prevent the prince from visiting Epstein in New York and spending a further three nights in the bedroom where these alleged crimes occurred.

Graham Hood, Green Point, NSW

Uncertain predictions

Science does not tell us that we are headed for disaster if we don’t control increasing global temperatures. Science tells us what is and what was; it cannot predict the future. If it could, I would be an avid student of the science of horse racing.

The damage done by our climate alarmists is that they are unnecessarily frightening young people by falsely claiming that their predictions are scientific and certain. A prediction, even on the basis of known science, is never certain and amounts to no more than an educated guess.

In respect to the present climatic aberrations, there is no evidence that fossil fuels or carbon dioxide play any part in their causation. And, by continuing to concentrate on this red herring, we are being deflected from dealing with the real problems.

D. A. Corbett, Albury, NSW

Naive on China

Paul Keating is naive in underplaying the Chinese threat because it has no clear ideological goals, just as Steve Bannon is astray in comparing China to Germany in the early 1930s. China is more like the less ideological Germany in the decades preceding World War II, an emerging superpower challenging the existing power centres and displaying the same signs of militarism and expansionism.

Like Wilhelmine Germany with its hubris of Nordic superiority and Prussian militarism, China is Sinocentric, mindful of its ancient hegemony as a suzerain state and bent on regional — if not world — domination.

Imperial Germany sought to disrupt Britain’s imperial routes to India, the Far East and Australasia through controlling the Persian Gulf with its Berlin to Baghdad railway and a naval arms race.

Now China is aiming to disrupt the US presence in Asia by expanding its navy and attempting to dominate regional sea lanes, cutting it off from us as a key ally with a string of military bases to our north.

Tom Drake-Brockman, Berrilee, NSW

Resilience lost

Some mental health issues can be related to a lack of resilience in a society where we wrap our children in cotton wool. Many parents over-compensate when their children do not achieve. They do not tell them that to sometimes fail is part of life.

Our sporting heroes are treated in the same manner. They are told to put their sporting lives first. Expectations are too high and many children and sporting personalities are asked to do too much on and off the field of life.

Peter D. Surkitt, Sandringham, Vic