Consultation does not come easily to this man

November 15, 2021 â€" 12.03am

The Age is trialling new cartoonists for our Monday editorial cartoon. Today’s cartoon is by Rachel Ang, an artist and writer living on the lands of the Boonwurrung and Woiwurrung peoples of the Kulin Nation.Credit:

To submit a letter to The Age, email letters@theage.com.au. Please include your home address and telephone number.LAW AND ORDER

Consultation does not come easily to this man
While not condoning some of the extreme actions we saw in Melbourne on Saturday, I’m at a loss to understand why the Andrews government has put us in this situation.

Jon Faine argues that the government’s refusal to consult with crucial stakeholders regarding the proposed new public health laws reflects the “crash through approach” of the government, describing it as the government’s Achilles heel (“The Andrews Achilles heel”, Opinion, 14/11).

But, as Faine argues, consultation does not come easily to Daniel Andrews. These proposed laws are crucial to reforming emergency health laws for whichever government is in power in years to come. They are a substantial improvement, but need to be amended â€" it’s time for Mr Andrews to come to the party.
Neil Hudson, East Melbourne

Why were these raids necessary?
The question isn’t why MPs were not arrested at the same time that “17 former Labor staffers were arrested in the early hours of the morning and taken in for questioning” (“Fraud squad in ‘red shirts’ probe wanted MPs arrested”, The Age, 12/11).

Rather, the question is why did Victoria Police conduct dawn raids to surprise, intimidate and arrest 17 people suspected only of committing non-violent offences? The suspects could simply have been asked at a reasonable hour to go to a police station to assist with police inquiries?

If offences were disclosed in the course of lawfully conducted interviews, they could then be charged and bailed or summoned to appear at court. The police in these cases weren’t investigating gangland murders.
Lawrie Bradly, Surrey Hills

Mob rule is not democracy in action
When protesters in Melbourne are carrying Trump flags and signs saying “Make Victoria great again” and threaten violence to MPs, there’s another agenda going on.

We don’t want to encourage these anti-democratic thugs here. The irony is they are complaining about tyranny and dictators but they are behaving like a lynch mob.

Mob rule is not democracy in action.

Who is encouraging these misguided thugs?
Margaret Ludowyk, Brunswick

Protecting us from a frightening future
If people were not intently online inside their own bubbles of bunkum, ignoring the science and hard facts, we would not need the new pandemic laws.

The Andrews government has learnt from experience and is trying to protect us from a frightening future with this bill.
Rilke Muir, Kensington

He’s going down the wrong path
Daniel Andrews has shown strong leadership over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, and most Victorians have accepted and supported the path he has taken them along in order to manage this outbreak, even accepting mandatory vaccination, if seemingly reluctantly.

However his latest decision to try to put laws in place that would give him the power to declare a pandemic and eliminating the maximum time for such a declaration is a step too far. Victorians would never be accepting of this because it would impinge on their human rights and liberties and could even place democracy in jeopardy.

He is certainly going down the wrong path if he persists in trying to implement such draconian legislation without having it properly scrutinised. Such a law would not result in a good outcome for him or for the Victorian public.
Glenise Michaelson, Montmorency

THE FORUM

Trouble at the top
In calling Scott Morrison and Anthony Albanese our two top federal politicians (“Seek common ground”, Letters, 14/11), your correspondent highlights the real problem we have in lifting this country out of the deep political rut it has dug itself into.

The factionalism that has captured both major parties has to be broken up if we are to move forward in the 21st century with objective and progressive ideals. The anti-corruption bodies in Victoria and NSW have exposed the malevolent outcomes that have become entrenched in our party politics.

We can play our part at the ballot box by voting in independents who will initially hold the balance of power and, hopefully, shift the political process from where we’ve allowed it to wallow back to where it’s supposed to be in a democratically elected Westminster system. A government based on ministerial responsibility and transparency.

The Zali Steggalls of our Parliament need and deserve all the support they can be given.
John Mosig, Kew

A pleasing development
While many aspects of the proposed pandemic legislation simply bring Victoria into line with existing powers in other states, there are some disquieting features.

It is pleasing that the government appears willing to amend the legislation to address most of these concerns without surrendering the essential aims of the legislation.

The street protests against the legislation may have been a bit overwrought, but appear to have been largely peaceful.

If they have convinced the government to reassess its somewhat intransigent approach, they have served a useful purpose.
Peter Barry, Marysville

It won’t go very far
The Prime Minister’s imaginative “plan” for net-zero emissions by 2050 has Australians $2000 better off by then.

I imagine we will be spending that and more in increased insurance premiums â€" always assuming we can actually still get insurance against bushfires, floods, tornadoes and hurricanes.
Miranda Jones, Drummond

Passing the buck
Scott Morrison’s rallying call for freedoms and his latest slogan of “can-do capitalism” may well increase his popularity (“Cry freedom: PM punts we want it”, Comment, 12/11). It is my hope, however, that with regard to addressing climate change, the people of Australia are more informed than Mr Morrison assumes.

Despite our frustrations, we know that evidence-based vaccines and lockdowns have worked and saved thousands of lives. We also understand the urgent need to address global heating.

“Can-do” capitalism is simply passing the buck and leaving Australian business to try to tackle climate change without governmental support. Industries and businesses need clear legislated policies to provide the required certainty that will assist the transformation to a decarbonised economy.

In “stepping back” under the facade of providing freedoms, Mr Morrison is again avoiding responsibility and leaving businesses floundering.

The notion that we can continue capitalist, consumerist, “business as usual” and expect that climate change threats such as extreme weather events, forced migration of climate refugees and ecosystem collapse will just go away is nothing but a fallacy.
Amy Hiller, Kew

Level the playing field
The only way to have “technology-led” decarbonisation and let “can-do capitalism” do what it does best is to have a level playing field, and the only way to enable this is to put a price on carbon and stop subsidies to the most costly and polluting technologies.

That will let the renewable technology (wind/solar/hydro/batteries/green hydrogen) compete with not fully renewable and less polluting technologies (carbon capture/blue hydrogen).

The government’s function would then be to re-educate and support the workers who will be left behind to be gainfully re-employed.
Lou Novak, Rosanna

There’s a lot a stake
The beginning and ending of Elizabeth Farrelly’s reflective analysis regarding the inhumane treatment of Julian Assange (is she being “naive” and “was Assange naive”) for “speaking the truth” about US war crimes in the public interest is telling (“Assange, the movie: his father and brother expose the human behind public enemy No. 1”, Comment online, 13/11). But, as Assange’s father, John Shipton, aptly says: “Expecting states to obey their own laws is hardly naive.”

Moreover, that a film (Ithaka) was made to tell Assange’s side of the story is significant in terms of humanising one of the most demonised journalist/political activists in recent history, because as John Shipton, aptly asserts “what’s at stake is far bigger” than one person.

It’s about whether public interest journalism “goes down” with Assange because of the legal and ethical incongruence in shooting the whistleblower. And, more importantly, that we would let it happen.
Jelena Rosic, Mornington

What might have been
Looking at the chart of growth of spending in Victoria from 2013 to 2019 (“Cuff love”, Insight, 13/11), makes me wonder how things might look if the bulk of spending was on education and health â€" particularly mental health â€" and whether the increased need for police and prisons would be redundant as aresult.
Norma Togneri, Heidelberg

Let’s make some noise
In 1992, a then 12-year-old Canadian, Severn Cullis-Suzuki, speaking at a UN world environment summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, declared that she spoke with no agenda when she dared world governments and prominent global businesses to declare their agendas and stop the advance of climate change.

Nearly 30 years later, the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow has shown the lack of dare and a lack of courage to phase out coal and start the desperately needed move to net zero emissions to save our planet.

Now a middle-aged environmental activist, Severn Cullis-Suzuki, realises that government and economic agendas are more powerful than an agenda that promises a world where clean water, fresh air and reliable climatic conditions can support the ongoing survival of mankind.

Greta Thunberg and Severn Cullis-Suzuki require an army of like-minded people of people to support their ideology. Five billion or so concerned citizens might just make enough noise to be heard.
Andrew Dowling, Torquay

Closing with a whimper
The roar of promise from the COP26 climate summit has closed with a whimper because of political pressures from India and other countries. The watering down of a phrase from agreeing to “phase out” coal use to “phase down” will have damaging consequences.

For a number of countries, especially Tuvalu, the watering down of climate change controls will lead to a rise in water levels and eventually the flooding of their land.

It’s time to listen to the children, especially Greta Thunberg, because the adults no longer have anything useful to say.
Dennis Fitzgerald, Box Hill

Where’s the local talent?
Zits has passed its use-by date. The Wizard of Id has nothing new to say, it’s not funny, and the drawing is execrable. Non Sequitur is too American to have much relevance here and is rarely funny. Dilbert on Saturday can sometimes amuse â€" but it’s American, too. They’ve all been appearing for far too long.

I know that people like Walt Kelly and Charles Schultz come along very rarely, but I’m sure there are people of that calibre here.

Please give our local artists a chance, so we can have something we can both laugh at and relate to.
Don Jordan, Mount Waverley

At odds with his life
I watched a beautiful and respectful tribute to Bert Newton on Friday. The service highlighted the many talents of Bert and was grand in its presentation. His life needed to be celebrated for the wonderful man he was and for what he gave all of us.

All went well until the congregation was told that only Catholics could receive communion, the others could receive a blessing.

How sad the division still exists, especially at such a honourable occasion. Surely the bread of life is meant to nourish all and I wonder how far the Catholic Church has come in embracing everyone.

Newton’s life was about spreading joy and reaching out with love and compassion to all he met. Sadly the Archbishop’s directive did not reflect the open-hearted life that was remembered. It makes me wonder, “is this what Jesus intended? What would he do?“
Julie Ottobre, Forest Hill

Why the rush?
Is the Andrews government strapped for cash. On Saturday I received an email from VicRoads advising me my rego was now due and inviting me to make a payment. Trouble is the same email indicated my rego expires January next year. Why the rush for payment?
Martin Newington, Aspendale

An unsettling ‘normal’
This is what COVID normal looked like at my local cinema on Friday night: Cursory checking of vaccination certificates, patrons, incapable of watching a movie without food or alcohol, eating throughout the movie, maskless of course. Groups of people, mainly men, maskless in the dark.

All in a theatre where every seat was full. Oh, and the man behind me coughed all night.
Loy Lichtman, Carnegie

It just won’t do
“Can do” capitalism goes hand in hand with “won’t do” government.

Luckily business is clever enough to see, and respond to, the blindingly obvious, in a way that our government is not.
Julian Guy, Mount Eliza

AND ANOTHER THING

Climate policy
Scott Morrison has put the Coalition’s climate policy through the quick wash and it’s now on the spin cycle. Unfortunately, the stubborn black stains are still there.
Paul Sands, Sunbury

Credit:

As an engineer, if I submitted a project justification like the government has done with climate modelling, I would be sacked.
David Werner, Brighton

Let’s give Scott Morrison’s can-do capitalism a fair chance and stop subsidising the fossil fuel industry.
Ralph Bohmer, St Kilda West

This so-called “modelling” to reach net zero by 2050 is as anti-climactic as it is anti-climate. It’s a model to make it look like they are doing something when, in fact, the procrastination continues.
Nick Toovey, Beaumaris

Politics
Two good reasons not to vote for the United Australia Party: Craig Kelly and Clive Palmer.
Alan Leitch, Austins Ferry, Tas.

China
Paul Keating doing what he does best â€" challenging us with his views and ideas and provoking discussion and debate.
Dan McGlade, Brunswick

Your correspondent’s comment comparing Taiwan with Poland (“A cynical approach to what is important”, Letters, 13/11), hit the nail right on the head.
Russell Brims, Bentleigh East

Life after lockdown
Noticeably fewer people carrying coffee cups in parks since the end of mandatory masks outdoors.
Kurt Langfelder, Melbourne

Furthermore
Australia awarded the “Colossal Fossil” award at COP26. Now that’s what I call a sledge.
Corrado Tavella, Rosslyn Park, SA

COP26 ... what did it really achieve? Just another junket for politicians.
Marie Nash, Balwyn

Finally
How can anyone think that taking a gallows to a protest is in any way acceptable?
Malcolm Fraser, Oakleigh South

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