Illustration by John Shakespeare.Credit:Sydney Morning Herald
The downfall of Putin may come from overconfidence
Dave Sharma’s claim that threatening to drag Vladimir Putin and his inner circle before the International Criminal Court and challenging Russia’s status as a permanent member of the Security Council would focus their attention is little more than dreaming (“How to raise the stakes on Russia’s aggression”, March 1). As Sharma points out, the ICC is restricted on investigating actions by non-signatories to the Rome Statute, such as Russia. And what mechanisms could be deployed to expel Russia from the Security Council, where it has been a member since the collapse of the USSR? Sharma does not explain how this could be achieved. – Maurice Critchley, Mangrove Mountain
The history of power in Russia has been underpinned by who has the support of the army. While large, the current army has high numbers of conscripts and lower level officers notorious for corruption and bad treatment of their own soldiers. To this, add Putin’s new musings about the use of nuclear weapons and the prospect of entrenched fighting in Ukraine. It opens a door to undermining Putin’s control. Will the armed forces launch nuclear missiles because other countries are imposing sanctions? Putin may well control the security services, but that has never saved a tsar, nor a president. To his peril, Putin both underestimates and overestimates the army and his relationship with them. – Samantha Massey, Sans Souci
Like most Australians, I deplore the military incursion into another sovereign and independent country, Ukraine. I support the strongest economic sanctions to be brought against the perpetrator. But I equally deplore other military incursions that have taken place since World War II. The list is a long one: North Korea, Vietnam, Panama, Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Libya, Serbia, to name but a few. I wanted the international rules-based order (IRBO) to apply in those circumstances too. But it seems this IRBO is not universal. It should be. – Gary Hare, Narrabeen
How beneficial would it have been for Putin to have Donald Trump as Commander in Chief of the American military right now? Many Americans, especially Republicans, do not appreciate the bullet they dodged. However, it looks like the gun is being readied for another shot. – Bob Macfarlane, Mirrabooka
We see BP, Shell and now the Australian Future Fund are selling off assets in Russian enterprises (“Investors moving funds from Russia”, March 1). All well and good, but is it naive to ask what we investors were doing investing in things that helped maintain the rule of Putin? I hate the idea that we, as Australian taxpayers, have been guilty of propping up a dictator. – David Ashton, Katoomba
My dream headline is “Moscow coup. Only one casualty.” – William S Lloyd, Denistone
Aged care food debacle hard to swallow
With this parliamentary term coming to an end, Aged Care Services Minister Richard Colbeck must be working hard at squirrelling away any real insights into the Coalition’s failure to attach meaningful monitoring and reporting rules to the hundreds of millions shovelled out for improved nutrition in aged care facilities (“Little to show for $460m aged care food supplement”, March 1). No doubt the report that is eventually concocted for public consumption by the end of March would have the minister tied up in knots again at subsequent senate estimates hearings. But luckily for him, though no one else, the election will be called, and he can forget about being publicly accountable as the chief custodian of taxpayers’ massive contributions to this sector. – Sue Dyer, Downer (ACT)
Of the many issues that will stain John Howard’s legacy, allowing “for-profit” aged care providers into the market will be at the top. Experience has shown that some aged care operators have trousered far too much of the taxpayers’ money, given to them to look after elderly Australians. Having learnt nothing, the federal government – through the astonishingly inept ministers Richard Colbeck and Greg Hunt – implemented a half a billion dollar handout to providers to spend on better food. Amazingly, the government has not put in place any mechanism to check how providers actually spent the money. Surprise, surprise the money doesn’t appear to be being spent on food. Is it stupidity or just pig-headed stubbornness, or both? The only thing that is certain is that aged care residents continue to miss out. – Ross Hudson, Mount Martha (Vic)
Your article states: “In November, a spokesman for Senator Colbeck said ‘early indications’ were that the average expenditure on food per aged care resident was higher than $6.08 a day, but could not definitely say if this was the case.” Minister Colbeck would know that you can’t even get a pie and a pint at the cricket for $6.08. – Mark Paskal, Austinmer
Cruel joke
As Peter Davidson clearly states, we abandoned full employment in the 1970s to counter inflation (“Crucial chance to lift all Australians up”, March 1). A pool of unemployed is government policy. That makes the well-below-poverty payments for the unemployed, to encourage them to get a job, a cruel joke. – Graeme Finn, Summer Hill
Opera uproar
Yellowface! White-splaining! Wow. The Sydney Opera House must be loving this. So much free publicity and so controversial (Letters, March 1). I think this is what the tabloids call “woke”. If you want to do something positive about racism in Australia, start with the Uluru Statement, then move on to refugees, maybe some genuine anti-religious discrimination laws. Leave opera alone. The biggest crime of an early departure at Turandot is missing Nessun Dorma. – Phil Bradshaw, Naremburn
Critics concerned that Turandot composer Puccini had never visited China reminded me on an anecdote involving the lyricist EY (Yip) Harburg, who won the Oscar for his work on The Wizard Of Oz. After he wrote the beautiful April in Paris in 1932 an interviewer said to him: “But I understand you’ve never been to Paris”. Harburg replied, “I’ve never been over the rainbow either”. – Hugh O’Keefe, Elizabeth Bay
Actor Sanjeev Bhaskar, who plays DI Sunny Khan in the TV show Unforgotten, believes the time was ripe for more diversity in TV and film casting. Shows such as Bridgerton and The Personal History of David Copperfield show that a diverse cast did not make them less enjoyable, he said. But, he added, “if historical accuracy is the point of the film … that also means you don’t cast Elizabeth Taylor as Cleopatra” (“Standing out for playing DI Normal”, The Guide, February 28). – Alicia Dawson, Balmain
Set them free
The story about Arifa Hakimi finally receiving her visa was indeed heartening (Letters, March 1). Perhaps Bob Carr could make another call to Graham Richardson, who could make another call to the Prime Minister’s chief of staff so that the visa applications from the Murugappan family from Biloela and the men in indefinite detention in Melbourne’s Park Royal Hotel – some who have spent eight or nine years within Australia’s immigration detention regimes – can receive similar positive intervention from Immigration Minister Alex Hawke. – Liz Stephenson, Elderslie
If political veterans can “reach across the aisle and make a good thing happen” in this case, it begs the question why the same largesse cannot be dispensed to the Murugappan family to end their inhumane four-year detention saga, or to end the heartless treatment of the Park Hotel refugees. Clearly, Immigration Minister Hawke has immense powers, which appear to be wielded on a whim. – Joy Nason, Mona Vale
Kangaroo court
With an ex-Labor MP now found corrupt by ICAC, no doubt Scott Morrison will be telling us what “awful disgraceful treatment” they have suffered from this “kangaroo court” (“Ex-Labor MP is found corrupt”, March 1)? – Mark Pearce, Richmond
Thanks for the news
My partner and I are both 80 years old. We’ve been married for 58 years. We don’t remember World War II. We grew up in relatively comfortable circumstances, raised two children, who are now married with their own children. We have never experienced floods, bushfires, droughts, excessive heatwaves, earthquakes, severe accidents, long-term illness or financial hardship. We must be like millions of others who have been similarly fortunate. We have both served in community-oriented professions and done our fair amount of volunteering and protesting against injustice. Our hearts go out to those who have suffered and are suffering. We read and watch the struggle of others with fear, apprehension and sympathy. We know that without the dedication and hard work of journalists and the efforts of publications and broadcasters who bring us the face of tragedy, we would remain ignorant and unaware. So thank you all those people who work in media who bring us the news, both bad and good. – William and Irene Turner, Port Macquarie
Comic opera
I am indeed indebted to all correspondents who have warned about overt racial stereotyping in the current production of Turandot at the Sydney Opera House (Letters, March 1). By feigning moral outrage I have successfully avoided having to accompany my wife to witness another display of comically dressed men and women randomly breaking into a five-minute aria that 10 seconds of dialogue could better describe. – Col Burns, Lugarno
Tea o’clock
It would seem that Lahore was not unique (Letters, March 1). In the late ’90s, as a new recruit at an international school in Ajman in the UAE, first pay day we headed for a local Chinese restaurant to enjoy their special pot of “tea”. – Brian Collins, Cronulla
Ash’s big day
Is Ash Wednesday the day we celebrate awesome Aussie tennis players (“It’s the heartbeat of our nation”, March 1)? – Peter Fyfe, Enmore
Thirsty work
I just witnessed the best use for an e-scooter (Letters, March 1). A middle-aged man placed his slab of beer on the scooter while he walked alongside. He maintained that pace so that the slab did not slide. – Alan Parkinson, Weetangera (ACT)
Born leader
Looks as though Ukraine has a president who holds a hose. – Greg Thompson, Bega
The digital view
Online comment from one of the stories that attracted the most reader feedback yesterday on smh.com.au
“‘Disgusting’ food served to aged care residents despite $460 million handout”
From centaur: “This is what happens when the profit motive is allowed to control anything. Services are pared back to the minimum to maximise profits. In the case of aged care, there are no limits to how far services can be wound back because they have a highly dependent customer base. There are some things that private enterprise should run but aged care is not one of them unless heavily regulated to maintain standards.”
- To submit a letter to The Sydney Morning Herald, email letters@smh.com.au. Click here for tips on how to submit letters.
Fire and flood: Climate change emergency should be top priority
Source: Philippines Alive
