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SOCIAL DIVISION
Re “An orange wave is breaking over Victoria. Can Labor hold back the populist tide?” (14/6). While the thought of an “Orange Crush” in Victoria as detailed by Chip Le Grand and Kieran Rooney presents something of a doomsday scenario for this state, perhaps its electoral success may be necessary to save Australia.
Portraying herself as the outsider, Pauline Hanson seeks to replicate the electoral success of Donald Trump. With a track record of denying climate change, dog whistling, opposing wage increases, seeking to remove women’s rights, supporting billionaire backers and having no detailed policies on a host of state responsibilities, One Nation would find it almost impossible to govern. Conflicting beliefs and competing priorities have led to previous groupings of elected One Nation MPs finding it impossible to successfully work together.
In the unlikely event that One Nation does become part of a coalition government in Victoria, Australians would be able to quickly make up its mind as to whether Pauline Hanson could be seen as a credible prime minister. It would not take long.
James Young, Mount Eliza
Whither the social democratic Left?
Waleed Aly (″Why One Nation can win the next federal election″, 12/6) makes some very good observations on the rise of One Nation. Especially significant is the finding that One Nation is attracting young, tertiary educated, inner-city voters. What is also interesting is the absence in Australia of a social democratic Left. The Labor Party gave up that space around the time of Paul Keating, embracing ″the global economy″. The Greens have tried to fill it but have not yet succeeded.
Big thinkers such as French economist Thomas Piketty, and other scholars have laid the conceptual foundations for democratic ″ecological socialism″. There are signs that a Left political practice is emerging at local level with Zohran Mamdani, the Mayor of New York, and Andy Burnham the Mayor of Greater Manchester.
The global economy is now facing a major crisis, courtesy of Trump and his war with Iran. One Nation is a party of protest and has no answer to the seismic political crunch we will soon be facing. We know our young people are interested in fairness and saving the planet. We need them to think about more constructive alternatives to the vacuous politics of One Nation.
Nicholas Low, Cape Paterson
Allan comes out swinging
Premier Jacinta Allan is well and truly coming out swinging when she declares to Chip Le Grand that the National Party risks being wiped out in Victoria (I hope she’s correct), considering she is facing a cashed up and ferocious challenge by the National Party in her own seat of Bendigo East, where she is likely to be forced to rely on Greens preferences to remain in parliament.
Michelle Goldsmith, Eaglehawk
Wait until Hanson discovers height limits
″Any union secretary worth their salt knows the mood on the factory floor, in the smoko room, around the teachers’ staff room. They weren’t picking up what Samaras was telling them … like it could be 30 seats,” write Chip Le Grand and Kieran Rooney (14/6).
Weren’t picking up! Has anyone noticed people scared of revealing (changed) voting intentions? Imagine telling a union official parking the Harley outside Trades Hall … ″I’m switching to One Nation″.
Alternatively, the virtuous, cashed up and educated elite radiating their thinly veiled disgust should anyone utter that odious word ″Pauline″.
Should One Nation address ″pushing through 10- to 20-storey developments in low-rise suburban landscapes against the wishes of residents and local councils″ (Letters, 14/6), the retribution will be a landslide.
Ronald Elliott, Sandringham
THE FORUM
Wealth creation
Since 2010, the number of US billionaires has trebled. They can now also claim the world’s first trillionaire (“Musk becomes first trillionaire as SpaceX soars after spectacular Wall Street offering”, 14/6).
In Australia, the billionaire increase has been more than 14-fold; from 13 in 2010 to 188 last year. Meanwhile, ACOSS finds the percentage of Australians living below the poverty line was 12.8 in 2010 and 14.2 in 2025. Now 15.6 per cent of our children live in poverty.
It seems our systems are even more conducive to collecting excessive wealth, and maybe stripping the poor, than the so-called land of opportunity. This should be a source of shame.
Lesley Walker, Northcote
Stop your squabbling
So, Musk has made his first trillion dollars, a figure that dwarfs the GDP of many countries.
It is worth recalling what Franklin D. Roosevelt wrote on April 29, 1938: ″The first truth is that the liberty of a democracy is not safe if the people tolerate the growth of private power to a point where it becomes stronger than their democratic state itself. That, in its essence, is fascism – ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power.″
But is what we’re seeing here somewhat different from fascism of the mid 20th century which fitted neatly into left-right, progressive-reactionary, nation state view of the world? What we seem to be seeing is the emergence of something even more sinister, where a very few obscenely wealthy individuals, with no allegiance to any particular nation, exercise world-wide economic and hence political power solely for their own benefit. The trajectory of this trend is clear. We, democrats of the left and right, need to stop squabbling among ourselves over trivia and start addressing this existential threat.
Barry Miskin, Essendon West
Trump out of step
Donald Trump again demonstrates he is totally out of touch with the rest of the world. On the opening weekend of the soccer World Cup, he holds a birthday bash featuring cage fighting. A cage match of unfettered violence in front of the White House does not align with most American values, and it certainly does not reflect the skills and athleticism of the World Cup, bringing together nations from across the world.
To add to his chaotic thinking he has imposed additional tariffs on Mexico and Canada, co-partners of the US in staging the event.
The US president had the opportunity to be the leader of a global event that could have brought him great credit. Instead, he chooses to selfishly stage an event that will confirm to many that Trump does not share their values at home or abroad.
Mike Reece, Doncaster
Local, not global
While “Australia banned under-16s from social media …” (14/6), we missed an important carrot to go with the “floppy stick” designed to hit the problem. The ABC would be a great provider of a monitored social media site that children could be encouraged to join, while maintaining the ban for uncontrolled sites. Parents who want their children to have a social media account could feel confident that this site was “fit for purpose” without all the dangers of the “free-for-all/ survival of the fittest” melee that the kids (and adults) face using current available sites.
An Australian media platform would have the added advantage that our governments: local, state and federal, along with myriad social groups, could make announcements on Australian sites rather than those owned by billionaires with no interest other than increasing their billions such as Facebook and X.
I abandoned those sites long ago but recognise that in doing so I miss out on some positives that social media offers and would gladly re-enter the “social media scene” if a sensible, moderated, Australian brand existed.
Michael Langford, Flinders
Extinction realisation
How true that ″the biggest risks to human existence are actually made by us: nuclear weapons, climate change and deadly diseases engineered by people″ (″We’re spending bucket loads on the things that could kill us – here’s why″, 13/6). But we must not forget other life forms with less adaptive capability.
We are living through the sixth mass extinction which, unlike previous events caused by natural catastrophes, is driven entirely by human activity– specifically land clearing, climate change, overconsumption, and pollution. The current rate of species loss is hundreds of times faster than normal background extinction rates.
So what can we do? We can reduce the extinction rate through policy changes that increase conservation efforts, change our patterns of land use, and curb our production of greenhouse gases to slow climate change. We can also introduce legislation to combat misinformation and disinformation, consistently identified on recent Global Risk Surveys as a major threat.
In Australia, such legislation championed by independent senator David Pocock, would be especially timely given the rise of the champion disinformation party, One Nation. Let’s give more airtime to Pocock, one of the few parliamentarians with the intelligence, courage, conviction, and ability to cut through.
Ray Peck, Hawthorn
Global Wind Day 1
June 15 is Global Wind Day, yet it appears we’re falling behind in the quest to harness the power of wind over our country and transmit it to our cities and regions. We have a government that wants more renewables but we have organisations and media who sow uncertainty and misinformation about its feasibility and its risks. We also have private companies trying to develop wind farms and transmission lines whose interactions with stakeholders seem to leave many rural communities angry and fearful.
How is it we’re in this predicament? An abundant resource, wind power is very common on the land and waters of many European countries with far denser populations than ours. Wind turbines use far less agricultural land than solar farms to generate the same amount of electricity, leaving almost all the land within their boundaries for grazing and farming.
Why don’t we hear more from farmers who enjoy the financial rewards from using their waste land to future-proof their incomes and our energy security. Why can people who live nowhere near the affected areas be able to make objections which slow these projects for years?
Helen Hook, Black Rock
Global Wind Day 2
Those of us who live in the cities and support wind farms should be wondering how farmers feel about renewables. With a sister who lives in regional Victoria, I can say that the process is not going well.
While meetings have been organised to discuss the proposals, communities have not actually been consulted. How hard is it to listen to farmers’ concerns? Well, clearly too hard, as locals are coming out of these meetings very frustrated and angry. It’s time governments and renewable energy companies really listened and engaged farmers in the process. Otherwise, there will be no point in celebrating Global Wind Day.
Marisa Di Giacomo, Beaumaris
Domestic violence
Zali Steggall (″Domestic violence royal commission ’should examine family law system‴ (13/6) is right – the system works against individuals, mostly women and children, who are trapped in violent relationships with no money or resources to get out of traumatic domestic situations.
The government can talk about how much money it is spending but until men recognise their own controlling behaviour – psychological, emotional and financial as well as physical – has a long history, sometimes called ″male privilege″, nothing will change.
Most men will say that they are not part of the problem because they are in favour of equality and share domestic chores and child support, but for many this is optional. It is also superficial in cases where the ATO does not pursue owed money and child support agencies do nothing more than advise the woman to take the matter to court – with no financial support.
Robert Semmens, Queenscliff
Defining elite
The Age must stop once and for all referring to expensive schools as ″elite″ or our ″best″ schools. Our truly elite schools are the underfunded public schools that provide both a quality education and life support to our young people with the most complex needs. It’s time to celebrate our best schools – not the ones that charge the most.
Paula O’Brien, St Kilda
Save in strained times
In these strained economic times, there is still potential to save. I have just renewed my car insurance and received quotes from the big five insurance companies. I found the quotes ranged from $1100 to $2600 with my current insurer quoting $1360, a rise of $250 from last year. As they were all offering the same product, I will accept the cheapest. The resultant saving is $260.
Phil Mackenzie, Eaglemont
Turn the dial
Why all the hand-wringing and alarm when ABC radio 774 fails yet again to reach its anticipated audience share of Melbourne listeners?
As your correspondent demonstrates (Letters, 13/6), the ABC offers a breadth of radio services, so disenchanted 774 listeners may simply select from other ABC services on offer, such as ABC FM Classical; ABC News; Radio National, and Triple J.
It would be more informative and balanced if The Age published the ratings of all ABC services, so listeners may appreciate the range and variety of ABC broadcasting. I suggest all print media share this information.
James Watt, North Geelong
AND ANOTHER THING
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Elon Musk
How can we compare 35.9 million Americans living on or below the US poverty line of about $15,000 per year with one person receiving more than a trillion dollars per year? Any ideas?
Suzanne Palmer-Holton, Seaford
So trillionaire Elon Musk thinks everyone should have a chance to travel in space. I’m thinking millions of people around the world would rather secure food and water supplies along with shelter, a good education and health services and an absence of war.
Graeme Lechte, Pascoe Vale
How is it that the world’s first trillionaire can so easily make leather look like vinyl?
Harold Scruby, Neutral Bay, NSW
Elon Musk is obscenely wealthy. It’s a shame that he evidently sees no reason to share a couple of million dollars salary with the desperately poor.
Juliet Flesch, Kew
Politics
Does anyone think for a moment that Benjamin Netanyahu will agree to a genuine ceasefire in Lebanon to facilitate a peace agreement in Iran?
Reg Murray, Glen Iris
After months of bombing and killing, it appears that Donald Trump has managed to emulate the agreement negotiated during the Obama administration. A deal he ridiculed.
Richard Wilson, Croydon
What next for AUKUS? Buy one, get one free? (″How AUKUS submerged the truth″, 14/6)
Chris Burgess, Port Melbourne
When Pauline Hanson is questioned at the National Press Club, I expect her to walk out early.
Marg Welsh, Preston
World Cup
What a joy to see our Socceroos sing the Australian anthem with such fervour. And what a shame our AFL footballers can’t learn the words and sing our anthem with as much pride.
Vivienne Fry, Beaumaris
Yet again, we’re talking up the chances of the Socceroos, and yet again we’ll be disappointed.
Alan Eason, Miami, Qld
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