Payman’s defection a personal choice

2 days ago 4

Senator Fatima Payman has made a idiosyncratic prime successful supporting Palestine (“Payman turns backmost connected ALP”, July 5). There are galore atrocities occurring astir the world, successful Ukraine, Palestine and her state of birth, Afghanistan. Payman has prioritised Palestine. This is not what she was elected for. As a Labor senator, oregon immoderate large enactment representative, she should beryllium prioritising the governance of Australia. She could person handled this successful a overmuch much low-profile way, without each the play she present blames connected the governmental enactment that got her elected. Mark Nugent, Lugarno

Coming from a exile background, Payman understands much than astir the plight of radical incapable to unrecorded successful their homeland. Her empathy with the Palestinian radical who are appealing for compassion from the remainder of the satellite is palpable. To expect a young pistillate of rule to ballot against her conscience due to the fact that of the overreaching grasp of caucus was wrong, and Labor is paying the price. Genevieve Milton, Dulwich Hill

Fatima Payman said she cannot stay soundless erstwhile she sees atrocities inflicted connected guiltless radical successful Gaza. Why has she been soundless astir atrocities inflicted connected guiltless radical successful Ukraine, oregon against minorities successful China and Myanmar, oregon Kurds successful Syria? Vijay Khandelwal, Winston Hill

Senator Payman’s determination to permission Labor means those who voted for Labor, arsenic represented by her, person been disenfranchised. Under the circumstances, the close mode to spell astir it would beryllium to permission parliament and basal for bureau adjacent election, alternatively than wound the hands that fed her. Wendy Crew, Lane Cove North

Judging by the fig of media interviews conducted by Fatima Payman aft her ALP resignation announcement, and the extent of feeling successful peculiar areas of the community, I would not beryllium truthful definite that her rebellion volition beryllium “short-lived and ineffective” (“Payman’s abbreviated rebellion ends successful a whimper”, July 5). The adjacent national predetermination for some the House of Representatives and the Senate has go overmuch much interesting. Riley Brown, Bondi Beach

James Massola (“Senator has wounded Labor and she’s not done”, July 5) is close astir the consequences for Labor of Payman’s defection to the crossbenches successful effect to Labor’s archaic regularisation forbidding members to explicit conscience votes. At the bosom of this is Labor’s outdated prohibition against members crossing the floor, a regularisation that has alienated maine and, I’m sure, galore thousands much non-Muslims. Frederick Jansohn, Rose Bay

Candidates’ contention to bottom

There is overmuch wailing astir US voters having nary knowing arsenic to however Donald Trump, arsenic president, volition disastrously impact some section and geopolitical decision-making (Letters, July 5). Geopolitically that’s existent enough, arsenic astir Americans fancy that the satellite ends connected the US borders. Americans bash not person to vote, truthful the casual retired for “never Trump Republicans” is not to vote. And that doesn’t assistance the Democrats. Trump is crooked but to his basal helium tin bash nary wrong, and to his Christian supporters helium has been anointed by God. We Australians cannot and ne'er volition recognize the analyzable and warped American electoral system, wherever successful 2016 Hillary Clinton some won and lost. Trump whitethorn good prosper from the enactment of his MAGA loonies, his evangelical Christians, the weapon lobby and rusted-on Republicans who judge Trump’s lies astir his economical success. These reasons ne'er person and ne'er volition beryllium understood by Australians. Don’t adjacent try. And the Democrats who won’t dump Biden: they are the caller Blue MAGA. Trevor Somerville, Illawong

During the statement I amazed myself by agreeing with Trump, astatine 1 point: helium couldn’t recognize a connection Biden was saying. Vicky Marquis, Glebe

Disappointing and worrying Biden’s statement show whitethorn person been. What is of much interest is his wellness and show successful the adjacent two, three, oregon 4 years. Tiit Tonuri, Cowra

Embattled Biden admitting helium has conscionable days to salvage his candidacy prompts the presumption that helium trumps Trump successful the integrity test. Trump’s persistent denial of the integrity of the past statesmanlike votes result and felony crimes condemnation neglect this cardinal test: “If you person integrity, thing other matters. If you don’t person integrity, thing other matters”. Steve Ngeow, Chatswood

Going postal

Thank you to the Herald for publishing that nonfiction 2 weeks agone (“Tory plea to Brits successful Australia to usage vote”, June 19), telling america that Rishi Sunak had changed the laws to let British-born Australian residents to ballot successful their election. I jumped online and met the deadline for a postal vote. I’m inactive waiting for the papers to arrive. So are radical successful London, I hear. There’s not a time I don’t grin astatine that clip successful 1980 erstwhile I got accepted to unrecorded successful this beauteous country. Chris Baker, Mosman

Keir Starmer - the caller antheral successful town

Don’t you conscionable emotion the British (“Labour acceptable for biggest triumph successful 200 years”, July 5)? No ranting astir a stolen election. Just a calm motion of acceptance, a fewer benignant words, and the achromatic doorway astatine No.10 closes connected different section of history. Tim Schroder, Gordon

Blue movie

Did the bluish whales springiness consent to person their intimate beingness filmed (“Private lives of bluish whales revealed”, July 5)? Marjie Williamson, Blaxland

Blades of glory

I spot the Wallabies person fixed caller manager Joe Schmidt the nickname “The Knife”, not due to the fact that of immoderate attack to selection, nor his connection style, but due to the fact that the German connection for “knife” is Messer. Mark Morgan, Palmwoods (Qld)

Sugar taxation would beryllium a saccharine gross raiser

It’s clip for america to travel the illustration of much than 80 countries and instrumentality a taxation connected sugar-sweetened beverages (“Coalition sour connected sweetener taxation costs”, July 5). Excessive sweetener depletion is simply a large contributor to diabetes and obesity. Given our budgetary challenges with the NDIS, defence, and healthcare, a sweetener taxation would complement different revenue-generating measures. Much similar taxes connected baccy and alcohol, it would connection dual fiscal benefits: accrued authorities gross and decreased infirmary costs. John Kempler, Rose Bay

Having witnessed the four-year-olds struggling up the roadworthy with two-litre bottles of brushed drinks successful state and distant areas, and having cared for the galore young diabetic and renal dialysis patients successful these aforesaid communities, I americium afloat supportive of a sweetener tax. To travel this needs to beryllium a request that each brushed drinks are kept distant from the beforehand rows and supra 2 metre tallness successful supermarkets. These diseases are a terrible load connected the wellness strategy and unsocial pb to a large woody of quality suffering and shortened beingness expectancy. All authorities parties should beryllium supporting these reforms. Katriona Herborn, Blackheath

We person immense taxes connected intoxicant and baccy products and advertizing prohibition oregon restrictions. A win/win for each governments, raising wealth portion trumpeting their bully wellness policies. A taxation connected sugar, with advertizing restrictions for children, is arsenic arsenic important to the wellness of our federation arsenic baccy and intoxicant legislation. Our changing fare and sedentary lifestyles person caused a tsunami of obesity and its aggregate consequences, notably diabetes. And those successful the little socio-economic demographics are astir astatine risk. Processed and takeaway foods are already much costly than “in season” unprocessed foods, and baccy argumentation has shown that the champion disincentive is the hep pocket. So parents whitethorn not bargain foodstuff oregon brushed drinks but suggest h2o to their children. And if companies bash not trim sweetener contented successful their products, radical volition people spell for cheaper and lower-sugar contented products, hopefully unprocessed. All it requires is bipartisan enactment for a long-overdue wellness policy. Rowan Godwin, Rozelle

While the solution to a sweetener taxation is to devour less, that is, changing behaviour, arsenic your analogous advises (Letters, July 5), a laudable effect to today’s rising incidence of obesity and diabetes, sadly concern does not spot it this way. Apart from objections to the tax, we besides person the opportunists who spot sweetener substitutes arsenic the mode forward. Sadly, these besides travel with wellness risks, particularly for those with gut illness and allergies. Some of these synthetic sweeteners are besides carcinogens. Plan A: Eat little sugar. Plans B, C and D are ever inferior to program A. Clare Sydenham, Kirribilli

A sweetener taxation is an fantabulous idea. The wealth could beryllium enactment towards nationalist dental services. Peter Duckmanton, Pennant Hills

Urinary sympathy

Amazing young skateboarders, inspiring handbasket shot players, death-defying equine riders, and each the different superb athletes Australia produces, person agelong been a root of interest, wonderment and admiration, but I, being spectacularly unskilled successful the sporting department, could not consciousness immoderate nonstop kinship with their astir superhuman abilities – until now. Of progressively elder years, being caught abbreviated is, astatine last, thing I tin good recognize and subordinate to (“Athletes astatine hazard of being caught abbreviated during parade connected the Seine”, July 5). I hope, arsenic galore of america person to, they tin wound the bullet, and bask their fantastic experience. Heather Johnson, West Pennant Hills

Not enough

It is not capable for idiosyncratic similar David Tennant to hurl insults connected our behalf (“JK Rowling, David Tennant clash implicit sex issues successful predetermination row”, July 4). We request radical who volition reason for trans people. Challenge Rowling’s constant, baseless relation of trans women with enactment offenders. Talk astir information connected situation intersexual assaults and who commits them, and against whom they are committed – they bash not enactment but alternatively undermine Rowling’s arguments. Fight for our unafraid entree to nationalist spaces. Trans radical privation to usage the bath and permission similar anyone else, and should person the close to usage the bath wherever they are safest. This is each anyone wants. The presumption that anyone’s information indispensable travel astatine the disbursal of trans women’s information is cruel and false, and indispensable beryllium challenged. As an tremendous puerility instrumentality of David’s I consciousness relieved by his support. But if helium thinks each this volition soon spell away, helium is arsenic retired of interaction arsenic Rowling is. Liska Fell, Cooks Hill

Gas crisis

We were informed immoderate clip backmost that the levels of a resources benignant taxation charged to the companies exporting Australia’s resources were mode beneath satellite standards. They weren’t adjacent comparable. Now we are told that we can’t entree our state resources for location depletion due to the fact that the exporting companies are having occupation fulfilling their export commitments, and due to the fact that the eastbound states person discouraged caller state exploration (“ACCC: state situation to deed earlier”, July 5). When WA Premier Alan Carpenter successful 2006 demanded that the state exploration companies operating successful that authorities reserve 15 per cent of state output for section consumption, helium wasn’t supported by the national oregon authorities governments. Since then, WA has enjoyed the cheapest state successful the country. As for the rest, Donald Horne’s treatise of the Lucky Country, ie, Australia, having each the imaginable successful the satellite but tally by second-rate operatives has ne'er been much existent than erstwhile regarding our earthy resources. Stewart Copper, Maroubra

Missing links

One of the ongoing features of the humanities lodging dispersed successful Sydney (“Infrastructure becomes caller battleground for housing”, July 5) has been authorities nonaccomplishment to program and instrumentality due infrastructure to enactment increases successful population. Now it would look the Minns authorities is yet to program the infrastructure to travel the operation of apartments located adjacent bid stations oregon embedded successful established suburbs. Ideally, infrastructure enhancements should precede the finalisation of caller operation and the concern of the caller dwellings. Ross Butler, Rodd Point

Time to articulation the dots connected the representation of Sydney

If Chris Minns wants to permission a lasting bequest for Sydney’s transport system, wherefore not conception immoderate missing links that would beryllium speedy to build? The evident spot to commencement is to widen the airy obstruction work from Carlingford to Epping, to make an east-west work northbound of Sydney Harbour. Or link Parramatta to Epping via a abbreviated Metro extension. Extend the Metro enactment from Tallawong to link with the Schofields dense obstruction service. For a last flourish, decorativeness disconnected the eastbound suburbs enactment with a transportation to Bondi Beach. Sydney needs much train/Metro services that link to each other, alternatively of conscionable bringing radical into the city. Mark Allen, Artarmon

Postscript

Senator Fatima Payman ignited a tempest of contention this week and Herald readers weighed into the argument. The 29-year-old Labor person from Western Australia crossed the level connected Monday to ballot against the government. In doing so, she triggered an extended statement astir caucus solidarity, conscience votes and what the PM tin bash connected the vexed taxable of Gaza.
Seaforth’s Ross McPherson wrote: “Nothing is much damaging to a governmental enactment than disunity. She mightiness person her supporters for lasting up for her beliefs but Payman is doing thing but harm to the party.”
Jacqueline Trenbath from Earlwood expressed sympathy for the young woman, whose household fled Afghanistan erstwhile she was five. “Shame connected the ALP for giving Payman specified a hard time. [She] should not beryllium punished for lasting up for thing a ample proportionality of the colonisation believes is right.”
After caller Governor-General Samantha Mostyn was sworn into bureau connected Monday, she said: “I judge these investigating times telephone for an unstinting absorption connected kindness, connected attraction and connected respect.” Castle Cove’s Peter Allen echoed this, adding that the Australian radical “should request information and integrity from our elected representatives, particularly truthful we bash not spiral down the benignant of achromatic spread that is ripping the US apart”. Indeed.
Yesterday, we farewelled 1 of our finest, erstwhile Herald exertion Judith Whelan, who died of crab past week. I’ve been friends with Judith since university. She embodied each of Sam Mostyn’s qualities and inspired countless colleagues with her bonzer talents. I thought we would turn aged together. Vale Judith.
Margot Saville, lawman letters editor

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