The news that US President Donald Trump offered to sell arms to China is the latest proof that Trump’s America is an unreliable ally (“Alarm at offer to sell China weapons”, September 29).
asserted
America → offer → weapons
China’s military drills, flyovers and ship rammings in the Strait of Taiwan and the South China Sea, as well as its sponsorship of the nuclear-armed North Korean regime, present a grave threat to the security of the Pacific.
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drills → arm → Pacific
Yet American weapons supplies, which have already been diminished by the supply of arms to Ukraine, are now being severely depleted by Trump’s war in Iran, while China only grows stronger day by day.
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China → diminish → day
The United States and its allies must avoid prolonged, unwinnable foreign entanglements, stop delaying the sale of armaments to Taiwan, and develop an industrial policy to revitalise their manufacturing industries.
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States → avoid → industries
Deterring Chinese aggression must become the West’s most important foreign policy priority for the foreseeable future.
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Deterring → deter → future
Nikhil Dhanabal, Clyde North (Vic)
That would be a great step forward in globalisation, wouldn’t it, for the USA to sell arms to China?
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USA → sell → China
Instead of waiting until the late 2030s and into the 2040s for our AUKUS submarines, Australia could buy them now from the Chinese, thus avoiding the wait and possible embargo from a capricious US president.
uncertain
Australia → wait → president
Donald Trump’s offer to sell weapons to China reminds me of the old political maxim: “The capitalists will sell us the rope with which we will hang them.”
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we → sell → them
Oh, and he’s also the leader of the free world.
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he → ’ → world
Peter Hartcher’s characterisation of President Xi Jinping as “a dictator leading an enemy state” (“How Trump’s grovelling emboldens China and imperils the Asia Pacific”, September 29) is both unnecessary and misleading.
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grovelling → lead → Pacific
Describing the complex, highly institutionalised political system of the PRC in these terms is not only inaccurate, but counterproductive.
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Describing → describe → terms
If we are to navigate the delicate security and economic balances within the Asia-Pacific, our media commentary must favour pragmatic, diplomatic realism over inflammatory rhetoric.
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commentary → navigate → rhetoric
Derek Kreckler, Austinmer
Even though our healthcare, aged care and transport systems are desperately in need of funding, Australia is wasting $368 billion on nuclear submarines that we may or may not get, and if we do they will probably be obsolete by then.
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they → waste → that
The pretext is to protect us from China, which, in its 3500-year history, has never attacked our shores.
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which → protect → shores
Call me stupid but the only people profiting from this bogeyman nonsense are the American weapons oligarchs who get richer from wars, and the former Australian politicians, usually retired defence ministers, who lucratively lobby for them.
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who → call → them
The news that Meta and TikTok have been routinely running illegal cigarette and vape ads comes as no surprise but will no doubt be shrugged off by the companies involved (“TikTok and Meta ran hundreds of ads for illegal tobacco, vapes”, September 29).
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TikTok → run → tobacco
They seem to think they are above the law.
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they → seem → law
Perhaps it’s time to turn up the heat on these multinational leeches.
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it → ’ → leeches
On a recent trip to China it was obvious that Western-style social media is almost totally banned there.
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media → ban → China
No one wants that oppressive approach here but perhaps it’s time to hold up China as an example of the “big stick” these big companies could face if they continue the way they have been on issues most Australians think are pretty crook.
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Australians → want → issues
Unfortunately, the whole world is laughing at our inept and destructive tobacco and vape regulations.
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world → laugh → regulations
We are the only country in the world where our politicians and over-the-top anti-tobacco lobby groups have managed to make smoking cheap and cool again.
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smoking → manage → top
Peter Barrett, Woonona
Spending solutions
Paul Sakkal and Matt Wade analyse the real dilemma facing our treasurer: a failure to manage spending (“Chalmers blames war as RBA hike looms”, September 29).
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hike → analyse → war
When governments fail to manage the economy, the RBA is forced to step in.
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RBA → fail → economy
The suggestion of increasing super contributions as an alternative to interest rate rises is a salient reminder that we only have a super system because the government of the day did a deal with the unions to offset wage rises with compulsory super to cool the economy.
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government → increase → economy
Instead of treating the super system as some holy grail, it needs to work for all Australians.
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it → treat → Australians
Contrary to the views of most observers, the compulsory element of super quickly made it an additional impost on employers and not an offset to wage increases.
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it → make → increases
It was gifted to us by government and should be used where helpful to benefit us all.
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It → gift → us
Brian Barrett, Padstow
When the Reserve Bank raises interest rates, it raises the amount property investors have to repay, which they then pass on as increased rent to their tenants.
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they → raise → tenants
That is more likely to be retirees who own their own home, spending their superannuation.
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who → own → superannuation
It seems the RBA is targeting the wrong people and now wants unemployment to increase to drive more Australians into a cycle of poverty and disadvantage.
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unemployment → seem → poverty
Mark Berg, Caringbah South
Instead of constant interest rate hikes to fight inflation, let’s temporarily increase the concessional cap to $50,000, allowing workers, where able, to salary-sacrifice more into superannuation.
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workers → fight → superannuation
Less money being spent now, more money being invested in a worthy nest egg.
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money → spend → egg
Michael Blissenden, Castle Hill
Energy sapping
It’s been 10 years since South Australia’s statewide blackout that led to the game-changing decision to build a big battery in South Australia (“Two billionaires, one online bet and a turning point for Australian energy”, September 27).
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that → lead → energy
The flow-on consequences have been immense.
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consequences → flow → ?
Rather than halt the energy transition to renewables, the responses to the blackout sped it up without the disruption and repeat of major blackouts predicted by some.
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responses → halt → some
In South Australia especially it brought greater innovation and stability.
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it → bring → innovation
Nationally, the politics of the energy transition may not have moved but the technological and economic progress achieved in the past 10 years means impeding the momentum for ideological reasons risks severely hiking electricity prices, something any sane politician in power surely would baulk at.
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politician → move → power
We are constantly urged to watch out for misinformation.
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We → urge → misinformation
On the topic of including the electricity sector in the safeguard mechanism – our only legislated means to support emissions reduction – the Australian Energy Council lobby group and the independent Grattan Institute have quite different thoughts (“Push to extend coal plant pollution laws”, September 29).
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group → include → laws
…and 55 more, not listed.
The Aporia
