I have never agreed with Joe Hockey before,but it does seem bizarre that the head of our intelligence service would accuse a former politician of espionage without naming them (“”,smh.com.au,February 29). It seems a bit devious,if not smug,to say,I know a secret but I can’t tell you what it is. Apart from anything else,it deprives the accused of the presumption of innocence.Philip Cooney,Wentworth Falls
Illustration:Matt Burgess
ASIO boss Mike Burgess has besmirched the reputation all former politicians with his pronouncement that an ex high-ranking MP “betrayed Australia to foreign spies”. Australians have a right to know the identity of this politician. Equally,the ex-MP has the right to defend themselves against the allegation. Burgess has an obligation to “name names”.Riley Brown,Bondi Beach
ASIO certainly has its headline,but what are the facts? Having read some of the files ASIO collected on my father and grandparents,all of whom were not very important members of the Communist Party of Australia,many,many decades ago,I’m more than a little wary of the reliability of ASIO’s stories about threats. That’s not to say that there aren’t nations that seek to malignly influence Australian institutions. Perhaps if ASIO’s claims caused our political leaders to consider all forms of outside influence undesirable,it would be a good thing. We could start with the fossil fuel lobby and the arms manufacturers,two sectors overseas owned,often with significant support from the government of their home country,and whose actions are invariably malign.Colin Hesse,Marrickville
The huge contrast of the extreme seriousness of the allegation,that a former politician “sold out” to a foreign government,with the lack of specifics and action,just persuades the rest of us that ASIO is a Cold War relic that is prone to sexing up the facts to justify its existence and its huge bias,and that perhaps it should be taken a lot less seriously by the government and ordinary Australians.Gordon Drennan,Burton (SA)
If there’s any substance to this extraordinary story,and if the person concerned is now retired on a parliamentary pension,can the government not simply cease paying that pension?Ian Jackson,Freshwater
When will the so called “poli-spy” go to trial? The government is currently prosecuting,by secret trial,a former Australian spy for leaking secret documents relating to possible war crimes. Another case of Canberra hypocrisy in operation.Ross Bray,Myocum
Julian Assange rots in jail while a former Australian politician remains unnamed after betraying Australia to a foreign power. Unbelievable.Stuart Davis,Coogee
Police are allies,not enemies
I am disappointed that the NSW Police Force has been barred from marching in uniform in the forthcoming Mardi Gras parade (“”,February 29). I think it is a retrograde step,given the enormous changes that have taken place in police-community relations since the late ’70s. NSW Police are to be commended for their openness to change and should be encouraged by the LGBTQI community. The world has changed dramatically in respect to the treatment of LGBTQI people,and it is ungenerous and counter-productive to cancel the police force’s participation and undervalue their past achievements and present value to us as a community.
As a gay man,I value the NSW Police Force and I thank them for their willingness to change an established culture,itself based on general social prejudices,and to embrace their own gay members. The tragic events of the past week have no relevance here and should be discounted in relation to this event.Peter Morgan,Forest Lodge
NSW Police march in the 2017 Mardi Gras parade.Dominic Lorrimer
Police allowed to march but not in uniform? I am at a loss to fathom how the actions of one man,who happens to have been a police officer,has anything to do with the larger community of police officers wishing to demonstrate solidarity with the LGBTQI community by marching at Mardi Gras. Are we now to be defined only by the group to which we belong? And if so,which of the myriad groups to which we belong shall take precedence?Joanna Auerbach,Kensington
It looks like our current NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb is being pilloried on the basis of the alleged random horrific acts committed by an unhinged individual,and for not choosing her words exactly correctly (“”,February 29). Surely we should let her get on with her job,to which she seems fairly committed. We really need to stop expecting perfection from public figures with difficult jobs as we comment from the sidelines.Ron McQuarrie,Budgewoi
Police have guns and they need them. When things go wrong we use police as a shield. There will always be a maverick,but this is the same in the population at large. The regulations governing storage apply equally to them,as to everyone. Please,support our police. It is a difficult and dangerous job.D’Arcy Hardy,North Turramurra
Shoppers are just meat in the supermarket sandwich
My head was in the salad spinner when I read Nick Bryant’s piece about working in the lettuce section of Britain’s Sainsbury’s (“”,February 29). It brought back memories of when I lived in Britain and had a real choice about where I shopped. Today as I enter my local supermarket,you know it is one of two,I feel I am going into battle. Firstly,I must find what I want on shelves that are often not stocked,then I need to check that I haven’t mistakenly selected the home brand which is made to look almost identical. Now,after filling my trolley with about $200 worth of groceries,I must endeavour to pay for it. Here is the tricky part:I don’t remember being consulted about the installation of automated checkout machines and I certainly missed the training sessions on how to use them. Never mind,there is a staff member watching over my shoulder. Oh no,I think that person is there to check I am not stealing anything. I could get irritated at this point,but there are signs telling me not to mistreat staff. Thankfully,there is only one more hurdle,to exit through the automatic gate in one piece. Should I change supermarkets? There is no choice.Jan Boyd,Sylvania
Illustration:Dionne
Bryant’s article gives yet more ammunition to the need for Coles and Woolworths to clean up their acts. There’s now ample evidence that our supermarket duopoly is making a major contribution to the cost of living crisis. The Labor government has shown it’s well aware of the supermarkets’ trickery,but the next step will be challenging – finding how to stop the Big Two’s myriad ways of fooling their customers with dodgy pricing practices. It won’t be easy,but I’m betting the government will win award points at the checkout and ballot box if they can convert the talk into action.Nick Franklin,Katoomba
The humble lettuce has been known to deliver a bonus or two. Over the years I’ve been gifted with grubs,spiders,frogs,slugs and beetles nestled discreetly between their leaves. But I never considered them to be a career option.Meredith Williams,Baulkham Hills
Art of corruption
It seems pork barrelling has turned corruption into an art form (“”,February 29).
This is the way:Privatise something,or cut a public service. Use this public money in a brazen attempt to buy votes for the party in the next election. When queried,say,“It was an election commitment”. If criticised,either defend it honestly – “The other major party does it too!” – or sell an outright lie – “It was the public servants’ fault!” There is also the attack option – “We always care more about the people than doing the right thing”. And repeat. Who cares if it’s bad value for the public when it’s such good value for the party? We need better integrity in our politics. We need all government grant decisions to follow a merit-based selection process.Peter Moore,Newport
Election risk
Much has been made recently about the use of tactical voting in the upcoming US election,whereby people don’t vote for their preferred candidate to achieve a broader outcome (“”,February 29). That outcome might not be what they ideally want,but they realise that voting for their first preference might be a wasted vote and might hand power to someone they really don’t like.
The uncommitted voters in Michigan should remember that. They might well have a grievance against Joe Biden,but if they stay home in November they may well hand the presidency to Donald Trump,thanks to the American system of voluntary and first-past-post voting. They need to be shrewd and remember that perfection is often the enemy of the good.David Rush,Lawson
Natural nuclear
The Coalition misses the elephant in the room when they demand winding back solar and wind energy and replacing them with nuclear energy (,February 29). What they fail to see is that we already have safe,secure nuclear energy without dangerous waste products,that is a constant source of energy. It’s called the Sun. It powers our solar panels and makes the wind blow. Stop reinventing the wheel guys.Simon Chance,Richmond Hill
Your correspondent provides a fair assessment with “they meekly pussyfoot around the real issue of fossil fuel export” in relation to the federal Labor government. It would be appropriate to add meaningful tax reform and addressing the housing disaster to this climate-change issue. The ALP and Coalition have swapped seats in our parliament,but “those denialist players” from both organisations will continue to imperil us by their inaction to suit their own selfish ends.
We are no closer to solving problems identified decades ago. The change of stewardship in 2022 is proving to be meaningless to real reform.John Kingsmill,Fairlight
Costly habit
No wonder they need what is still a big tax cut (“”,February 29).Sue Dyer,Downer (ACT)
It is not surprising that the latest National Drug Strategy Household Survey has revealed a surge in the country’s drug use. The frequent media references to using drugs,especially cocaine,by “high-profile personalities” and so-called “celebrities” has reduced the stigma attached to such activity,has normalised it in general society and made it more popular – especially for those who can afford it.Rob Phillips,North Epping
Bald is bliss
Apart from being neat,baldness relieves the stress of choosing between dry,regular,clarifying,purifying or moisturising shampoos (“”,smh.com.au,February 29).Mustafa Erem,Terrigal
Mighty Matildas
Scene:Matildas’ dressing sheds,Melbourne,pre-game,Wednesday night. Captain:“Can we thrash our opponents tonight”? Coach:“” Yousebetchacan” (“”,smh.com.au,February 29).Robert Baker,Chatswood
What an awe-inspiring display by the Matildas against an understandably dispirited Uzbekistan. However,what I loved most was the pure joy which lit up Michelle Heyward’s gorgeous face as her skill was repeatedly rewarded. That is a sportsperson who loves the beautiful game and who is revelling in being back! Bring on Paris.Janice Bryden,Cronulla
Well done Matildas! One player stood out in my mind:Mary Fowler. Always seeming to be unmarked,pinpoint passes,effortlessly dribbling through heavy traffic and firing from both feet with power and accuracy. What a find.David Stibbard,Singleton
Bob’s comeback
My favourite response from a PM is Bob Menzies,who,when asked to “Tell us all you know - it’ll only take a minute”,replied:“I’ll tell ’em what we both know - it won’t take any longer!”Ken Finlayson,East Corrimal
Margaret Whitlam certainly matched her husband’s wit. She explained the success of their long marriage to low expectations and inertia.Wendy Crew,Lane Cove North