Something to be said for Tall Poppy Syndrome
November 10, 2024 — 8.00pm
Credit: Illustration: Megan Herbert
To submit a letter to The Age, email [email protected]. Please include your home address and telephone number below your letter. No attachments. See here for our rules and tips on getting your letter published.
US POLITICS
Chip Le Grand’s article, “Why voters flocked to Trump, and why some might regret it,” 9/11, nailed it. If America really thinks that a tax-dodging, convicted felon born into wealth, backed by multi-billionaires, will somehow become the saviour of the working class, they’re delusional.However, I do feel for them. They were snookered, with the incumbent Democrats offering them little. Le Grand is right, the winners are the tech billionaires and the already wealthy. Trump needed only to push the “immigrant” button, and to espouse the falsehood that tariffs will protect jobs, to secure millions of votes.In an increasingly unequal and divisive nation such as America where billionaires are lauded, I feel strangely comforted by our tall poppy syndrome, our strong democratic, apolitical institutions such as the CSIRO and High Court, and that we will always get more people at a football game or a school fundraiser, than at any political ‘rally’.Craig Jory, Albury, NSW
The rarified air of the manosphereJacqueline Maley’s excellent article, “Ultimate revenge of the nerd as Musk rises to the king manosphere”, 10/11, reads as something like in a dystopian novel. It is hard to know how the next Trump presidency will play out except for “promises given, promises kept”. However, should the likes of Elon Musk (and his followers) prevail, then women may indeed lose more than their control over their reproductive rights.Judith Morrison, Nunawading
Power for the powerful, not the peoplePeter Dutton is correct when, referring to Trump’s victory. He said, “There’s an eerie parallel with what’s happening here” (“Voters here feel the same anger: Dutton”, 9/10).However, it’s the antics of Dutton’s Liberals following Trump’s playbook who are creating this eerie parallel. It is the politics of negativity, of division, of having no credible policies of your own. It is also the spreading of falsehoods.My sister in Ontario almost fell off her chair when I told how cheap her nuclear based electricity is in Canada.At the core, it is about achieving power for the sake of power itself, and not about bettering the lot of your fellow citizens.Barry Lizmore, Ocean Grove
Preparing for Dutton to speak his truthMost people decry the failure of politicians to speak the truth. Hillary Clinton provides the best example of why they don’t. Her reference to the “deplorables” probably cruelled her presidential aspirations. Her nemesis has gone from strength to strength on doing exactly what people claim they dislike about politicians.More than 70 million Americans voted for a person whose lack of integrity is writ large. Examples of his poor character abound in the public sphere, yet still he triumphed.Australia’s richest woman Gina Rinehart, sings his praises. I suspect her reasons for supporting him are much the same as Elon Musk - a reduction in government control over her business endeavours, to hell with integrity or valuesPolitical observers think that revenge is a big part of Trumps’ success. People who feel they have been left behind and not heard would rather trash the system than improve it.This does not explain why the wealthy retirees in Florida and elsewhere in gated communities would support him, unless it is the fear of foreign hordes storming the border barricades.The worrying thing for Australia is that Peter Dutton thinks Trump’s success is a blueprint for him to import the undesirable American experience here.Gina is a big supporter of Dutton, prepare for a similar ride.Geoff Brown, Wodonga
Voter angerYes, Peter Dutton, voters are angry (“Voters here feel the same anger: Dutton”, 9/11). We are angry not only with the current government, but with the majority of politicians who nowadays seem to lack any moral compass and are only in it for their own aggrandisement.Giuseppe Corda, Aspendale
Enough election coverageAs America is one of Australia’s strongest allies, we have to acknowledge its presidential election has an impact on us. However, as a keen watcher of the ABC, I am amazed at the level of coverage the election was given. Do Australian taxpayers need to fund such a blanket coverage? Do we need to know what percentage of black, Hispanic/Latino, women and other members of the US population turned out to vote for Trump and not Harris? Its Insiders program (10/11), beamed in from America, gave us an examination of the result with experts pontificating on the consequences. Fascinating as this may have been, the question is whether we needed to fund such coverage.Peter Roche, Carlton
Shun the USI am no economist or political expert, but I think the whole world should come together and just shun the US if we do not agree with Trump’s fascist-leaning moves. The world order has changed and it’s time we stopped tying our apron strings to the US. If Trump wants to pursue an isolationist agenda, we should assist him by refusing to deal with him – in the end, together, we will all be stronger for it.Vicki Jordan, Lower Plenty
Grandmother respectYour correspondent (Letters, 10/11) is “shocked” that Donald Trump’s chief of staff was described as a “Florida grandmother”.Those words could be interpreted as “Granny occupies one of the most responsible positions in US politics, and she’ll get us boys organised”, rather than a “lurch back to the 1930s”.The next president’s wording acknowledges the respect women are due for performing the miracle of bringing new life into the world – let alone nurturing sane, healthy children and grandchildren.If Republican policies support women who won’t need to apologise for desiring “homemaker mum above career”, many may wish to “follow suit”.Who knows? The “grandmothers may demand that only women are qualified to formulate legislation governing reproductive rights and abortion”.Ronald Elliott, Sandringham
Kennett hits and memoriesAs a public servant when Jeff Kennett won power in 1992, I can sympathise with how federal US bureaucrats would be feeling right now. First, there is the feeling of dread, knowing that you may no longer have a job after January 20, 2025. Then there is the reality of either losing your job or being redeployed if you are lucky.Kennett claims he sacked 16 permanent department heads before lunch on his first day. I can recall that only two survived. He went on to retrench 50,000 public servants, close 350 schools, amalgamate councils and privatise a host of government services. He privatised the SEC, claiming that it would make electricity cheaper, and we all know how that went.With Trump, federal public servants in the US can probably expect even worse.David Fry, Moonee Ponds
World controlJames Bond 007 is fiction, but after November 5 it is fast becoming reality. After reading Jacqueline Maley’s “How Musk helped rocket Trump back into the White House”, 10/11), the similarities between Trump/Musk and James Bond movies are too stark.Whether it be films from Dr No to Never Say Never Again, Trump and Musk fit the roles.Last week we saw Teena McQueen, Gina Rinehart and Nigel Farage gloating at the Trump function. This enhances the contrast between the low-paid workers and immigrants who voted for Trump, and the oligarchs who want to keep the status quo.Margaret Raffle, Keilor East
An affair to rememberJ.D Vance and Elon Musk together. For how long?Gerry Lonergan, Reservoir
THE FORUMAmsterdam riotThe report “More than 60 arrested after Israeli soccer fans attacked in Amsterdam” (10/11) gave only one side of what happened in the Netherlands. While attacking innocent people is never acceptable, this account was not complete. The aggression was not one-sided, it was preceded by acts of anti-Palestinian aggressiveness by soccer fans.Carol McCammon, Coburg
Rights v responsibilitiesYour correspondent Christos Tsiolkas refers to eroded public trust in institutions and the current political system (Letters, 10/11). This may or may not be true. But what is known, especially of social media, is the level of mis- and disinformation that pervades the medium.His fear of potential censorship, resulting from the proposed misinformation bill, is misplaced, as freedom of speech is not unlimited; it comes with responsibilities. Take, for example, the Voice to parliament, where Twitter debates fooled initial supporters of the Yes case into believing there was a better option. We know what happened next. Had this proposed bill been law then, the referendum would have been a simple proposition and nothing more.Anders Ross, Heidelberg
The kids will work it outI just tried the new Google AI, but got an error saying it “isn’t currently available in your location”, so I shifted my VPN to America and got full access. I am 71. The current generation has grown up with this technology and to think that they won’t get around anything that the government puts in place to stop them using social media is just pure fantasy.Graeme Doyle, Balwyn
Woolworths dystopiaThank you, Victoria Devine (“Woolworths’ ‘dystopian’ workplace might improve KPIs, but it demeans workers”, 10/11) for revealing the hair-raising workplace practices at Woolworths. I am now an ex-Woolworths customer, who will gladly give up the loyalty card and buy meat, fruit and vegetables elsewhere. I would be grateful for more information on how Coles workplace conditions compare with those at Woolworths, and for advice on where I could purchase household groceries without spending hours wandering from one shop to another.Mirna Cicioni, Brunswick East
Mountains best sharedParks Victoria has proposed widespread climbing bans in the Arapiles and Grampians in preference to a cultural experience. In New Zealand, Mt Cook National Park (Aoraki) is managed by the Department of Conservation and Ngai Tahu. This is a shared arrangement where use of the park is open to all. Areas of the park are seen as Tapu (sacred) and this is acknowledged and observed. One culture is not favoured over another. Climbers and Maori co-exist, respecting the land and its history and current use.Your climbing legacy is important. It is a huge global sport, an Olympic event, and Victoria has been a destination area for climbers everywhere.This would be a spectacular “own goal”, wiping out over 100 years of Australian climbing history and preventing future generations of Australians from experiencing it.Take the Kiwi experience of shared land use and respect for different cultures as a model for land care.Rod Kirkwood, Christchurch, NZ
Maths for allWhen I worked as a relief teacher after retiring, I was always asked to teach maths classes. It was pretty obvious that maths was a mystery to many of the teachers in the primary schools where I helped out. Place value, fractions, manipulation of equations and order of operations seem to puzzle many.It’s a shame because the possibility of maths is all around us. Tradies need it, as do people shopping in the supermarket. Farmers solve practical maths problems on a daily basis. The ability to compete with the rest of the world usually involves complex mathematical problem-solving.Paul Chivers, Box Hill North
Girls, boys, mathsThe report about Australia’s declining maths (and science) standards in our schools (“Students are shunning specialist maths, and it’s costing the economy billions, 9/11) is one of many in recent years.The question that researchers should ask but probably won’t, let alone answer, is to what extent has addressing female disadvantage contributed, given that boys are more likely to be interested, and to excel, in these subjects.The argument given for female absence in maths and science, which was included in the article, is that girls lack confidence. Perhaps another reason is that they’re just not that into it.This isn’t to suggest that girls shouldn’t be encouraged, along with boys, but trying to shepherd students into areas of less interest to them must not be done at the expense of students who are more invested.Paul Spinks, South Geelong
Silo art inspiresSince we were introduced to silo art on a tour from Yarrawonga a couple of years ago, I have made two further trips to see more of it covering north-central Victoria and north-western Victoria. The comments by your recent correspondents seem, for me, hard to relate to.We found nothing confronting; rather, the major themes were local cultural history and wildlife. Sadly, many of the north-western Victorian silos have faded badly, but even so the whole concept makes for something far better than a boring concrete cylinder.Laurie Comerford, Chelsea
AND ANOTHER THINGAmerican valuesJD Vance almost sent me into orbit when he agreed that the whole purpose of the post-menopausal female is to help raise grandkids. And now a silver lining; Trump appoints 67-year-old grandmother Susie Wiles to be his next chief of staff. Watch out JD, and pass me the popcorn kids.Janet Barr, Toorak
Federal election 2025. Look out for Gina Rinehart jumping on stage as Peter Dutton delivers his stump speech. It will be quite a sight.Jenny Smithers, Ashburton
The people of America have just voted for a second revolution.Tony O’Brien, South Melbourne
Re Dutton’s comments about eerie similarities between Australia and the USA (9/11). He’s correct for once. He and Trump are eerily similar in so many ways.Geoff Charles, Mt Waverley
A quote from Trump “global warming is a hoax”. I wonder if he’ll be of that opinion when the sea starts lapping at the front door of Mar-a-Lago.Greg Bardin, Altona North
I can’t believe there are women in the USA who voted for Trump.Michael Brinkman, Ventnor
Musk couldn’t be president of the United States because he was born in South Africa. It only cost him about $200 million to become defacto president. Bargain!Bev Haigh, Avondale Heights
FurthermoreThe state of world politics? Exactly why we need baby hippos, Peregrine falcon chicks on ledges, and Pesto the penguin on our news.David Cayzer, Clifton Hill
So sad to hear about the demise of Lume (“Immersive art experience The Lume to close its doors from 2026, 9/11). It was a truly amazing experience to visit its various shows over the years. Something very different and special.Marie Nash, Balwyn
I didn’t have social media to navigate as a kid, but I do remember surviving mum and dad singing ‘Slow Hand’ by the Pointer Sisters one hot summer evening.Simon Williamson, West Footscray
The opinion newsletter is a weekly wrap of views that will challenge, champion and inform your own. Sign up here.
Loading
