I love how the forensic probe by the Liberals into their disastrous election loss was largely blamed on the “Trump” effect (“Secret Liberal probe blames Trump for ruining Dutton’s election”, December 3). This is the sort of prehistoric thinking that will continue their march to irrelevance. No mention of their lack of policies, their obstructionist and aggressive style of opposition, and their devotion to coal and nuclear power. Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr got it right when he wrote “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” Andrew Moody, Forster

Denial of reality continues unabated in Liberal Party. Blaming Donald Trump for Peter Dutton’s failings before and during the last election is just the latest in a long history of the Liberals not seeing or understanding the changes going on around them. Trump may have contributed to Dutton’s woes, but his failures were of his own making and of those around him. The Coalition failed to read the mood of an electorate that was thoroughly tired of the vacuous offerings of a party out of touch with modern Australia. It appears they have learnt nothing. Tony Heathwood, Kiama Downs

So now the Libs want to blame Trump for their failure? Very funny. They lost because of awful policies, an appalling record in government and because Dutton was not an appealing person. If Trump did have any effect it would only be that people saw characteristics in both of them that they didn’t like. The right wing of the Liberal Party is still dragging it down. And the party still rejects any criticism of its performance in government. Hopefully, they’ll have learnt something by the next election. David Ashton, Katoomba

The Liberal Party likes to pretend they were led into their historical election defeat by importing the politics of Donald Trump, but the rest of us would do well to remember that he merely emboldened the Coalition to propose policies they have wanted to all along. Colin Stokes, Camperdown

Taxpayers taken for a ride

I know parliamentarians and senior staff need to travel, but the costs here appear excessive (“Minister’s New York dash to spruik social media ban cost more than $100,000”, December 3). The airfares far exceed anything reasonable or even available and the ground transport, the same for all, is around the same as a return economy airfare. Someone really needs to explain how these costs were reasonably accrued. Kenneth Graham, Newington

Lead by example

With the social media account ban coming in soon for under-16s, perhaps the federal parliamentarians could set an example by banning mobile phone use when parliament is in session in the chamber, particularly during question time. This would demonstrate that they are making sacrifices as well as teenagers. It would be a welcome gesture (“As teens flee to new apps to avoid social media ban, Wells says she’ll ban those too”, December 3). Dale Bailey, St Leonards

Contempt for travellers

I am frankly appalled at federal Transport Minister Catherine King’s statement that the EU’s compensation system won’t suit Australia because of the smaller size of our industry (“EU compo model not for Australia”, says minister”, December 3). The various lobby groups have obviously won again in convincing the government to do nothing. Australian travellers have been treated with contempt by the industry leaders for years, and the government is showing their support for such inconsiderate behaviour. Aidan Cuddington, Umina Beach

Women in the firing line

Trump’s open attack on the rights of women is now in full view. There’s no skirting around it with claims of “fake news” or “TDS”. As Liz Gooch states in her article (“America in time warp on abortion”, December 3), Republican lawmakers are pushing for the death penalty for women seeking abortion. Recently, high-level Trump officials posted support for removing the right to vote from women, and virtually all DV support systems have been gutted. This comes as no surprise for convicted sex offender Donald Trump, but what is so shocking about his Handmaid’s Tale agenda is that it’s supported by Christians, specifically evangelical Christians, who seem to swallow holus-bolus Trump’s pretend Christian credentials. The same goes for those religious hypocrites who support him here. Phil Bradshaw, Naremburn

E-bike clampdown

Premier Chris Minns’ proposed new law to cap the power of e-bikes to 250 watts makes sense but comes nowhere close to protecting pedestrians (“New 500-watt e-bike ban won’t improve safety, critics say”, December 3). The issue is not just speed and helmets. As I witness daily on northern beaches streets, it is school-aged children “having fun” among the traffic on vehicles capable of knocking pedestrians over. I watched with heart in mouth last week as five sub-teens on e-bikes sped, the wrong way, up a narrow one-way street (two no-entry signs at one end), throwing in a couple of jumps over the speed bumps for good measure. Right then, some elderly pedestrians stepped off the footpath to cross the road. The pedestrians all checked for traffic, but weren’t looking for e-bikes coming from the wrong direction. It was a close call. Teens hopefully grow out of this type of behaviour but, in the meantime, I can think of only two deterrents. All e-bikes should be registered in an adult’s name, as are all other powered road vehicles. All riders should be licensed after passing a written road rules test. Impound bikes after two infractions, with licences cancelled for six months at a minimum. How the road rules could be policed is an old problem, but action is imperative. I don’t want “Told you!” on my memorial or anyone else’s. Susan Newman, Mona Vale

It was disappointing to discover Premier Chris Minns on his favourite AM radio program was so ill-informed about his government’s existing e-bike rules (“E-bike power limits to be halved after rider dies in Sydney crash”, December 2). The motor on a legal e-bike must cut out at 25kmh, must activate only when pedalling and the usual riding rules on roads and footpaths prevail including wearing of helmets.If you see an e-bike zipping along and not being pedalled, the bike is an illegal import. Responsible e-bike riders are easy to spot. They wear a helmet, follow the road rules and are wary of traffic and pedestrians.I’m sure police have better things to do with their time but some policing of existing laws wouldn’t go astray. David Farrell, Erskineville

I am a long-time rider of an e-bike, though mine is an older, slower variety, and I do appreciate the convenience. While I strongly support the widespread uptake of e-bikes for reducing road congestion and promoting an environmentally friendly transport alternative, I am concerned by the proliferation of high-powered, unregulated “black e-bikes”, especially when operated by minors (“We need to rethink the use of e-bikes, especially by children”, December 3). These machines pose a serious public safety hazard due to reckless and illegal riding. To ensure accountability and public safety, urgent regulatory measures are needed. All e-bikes must be registered, even if the cost is nominal. Anyone caught breaking traffic laws should be fined and an unregistered bike should be immediately confiscated, with the owner able to repurchase it only at a government auction. Also, the rule for wearing a helmet must be strictly enforced. The financial burden on the health sector from even a single severe brain injury can run into millions over time. Fines and registration revenue could be used to subsidise the cost of council rangers enforcing these regulations rather than wasting police time. John Kempler, Rose Bay

As an e-bike rider myself and a concerned observer of the kamikaze fat-tyre bikes barrelling around the northern beaches, my simple suggestion to bring this under control would be to ban the twist throttle. Twist throttles make it far too easy to wind up the speed without pedalling. Without the throttle, riders would be forced to pedal and bring e-bike riding much more in line with ordinary cycling without sacrificing the benefits. Speeds would be reduced and the quasi-motorbike nature of e-bikes removed. Alan Phillips, Mosman

Surely e-bikes need to be registered with an identification plate. Most importantly, there needs to be third party insurance green slip if they hit a pedestrian. This is mandatory for cars and motorbikes but at present there is no recourse whatsoever. This is gross negligence on behalf the government, RTA and other regulatory bodies. It’s a no-brainer. John Partridge, Mosman

Excessive force

The present US administration is renowned for pushing the boundaries of its authority, but recent US military strikes on alleged Venezuelan drug smuggling vessels in the Caribbean are worse than most (“Scrutiny on ‘narco-terrorist’ strikes”, December 3) There are grave, unanswered questions about legality and presidential authority that Congress must address much more strongly. The administration has offered no evidence that these vessels posed any threat that justified lethal force. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and others have condemned the attacks as potential extrajudicial killings, stressing that drug interdiction is law enforcement, not war. Furthermore, the use of lethal force in this manner, without explicit congressional approval, is apparently an unlawful assertion of power under US’s own law. The chain of command apparently ignores the duty to disobey manifestly unlawful orders in all these strikes, not to mention the disputed follow-up strikes on helpless survivors (if they actually occurred). Australians ought to be concerned because illegal and unauthorised US belligerence erodes maritime law, which affects all trading nations. Failing to hold offenders accountable is a wedge we definitely want to pull out lest it influences our own politicians. Mike Salon, Darlinghurst

Live and let live

My wife and I have lived in and owned several strata properties (“Strata property disputes on the rise”, December 2). We have found some buildings are just “happier” than others. By this I mean everyone says “good morning”, “good afternoon”, “nice day”, the same sort of things you say to people at work. It’s polite chit-chat. It breaks the ice and establishes a relationship on a basic level. It means if you have to have a conversation about an issue, the groundwork has already been laid. But we found other buildings cannot even get past first base on basic manners and pleasantries, so it’s hardly a surprise they cannot deal with the bigger issues. Charles Lloyd Jones, Cabarita

Labor introduced private certification in 1996, and it has been a disaster and the government has deserted its duty of care to home buyers. Our building is less than 20 years old. When it was just built a private certifier signed off for compliance with fire safety regulations, but we have since had to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to achieve compliance. I would have thought fire safety compliance was one of the most important requirements, perhaps a matter of life and death. And we had to fix it quietly; if we complained to the authorities they would have made us move out until it was fixed. On top of this, the balconies and rooftop terraces leak, and the balcony ceilings are falling down because instead of being glued and screwed into place, as the standards require, they were just glued. Fortunately, nobody was standing on any of the balconies when the ceilings fell down. Even the roofing sheets were non-standard and had to be replaced. So far, we have spent more than $4 million just doing the things that were supposed to have been done when the building was constructed. So don’t bother to complain that your dream home was signed off without proper compliance, that’s your problem. Buyer beware. Michael McMullan, Avoca Beach

Boats and vans clutter

Allowing Australians to subdivide their properties may increase the amount of available housing, but it would also increase the number of cars in suburban streets (“Subdivision would ease crisis: report”, December 2). We already have a shortage of places to park, made worse by the number of boats and caravans that sit in the streets, sometimes not moving for months. How simple would it be for the government or councils to pass a law that only vehicles with a motor are allowed to park in the street? The owners of non-motorised vehicles would be forced to pay for storage or store their vehicles on their own properties. Jill King, Lane Cove

Humans far from vital

Tim Egan questions why sharks and crocodiles aren’t culled (Letters, December 3). He obviously doesn’t realise that humans aren’t special in the scheme of the natural world. Both sharks and crocs have been around for millions of years longer than us. As apex predators, they are vital in their ecosystems. Negative effects on tourism are way down the list– we humans are cursed with a very inflated idea of our importance, but if we vanished from the planet, we would not be missed. Life would just keep on keeping on. Kristina Mckeon, Goonellabah

Ten million years of evolution have taught sharks that coastal waters provide the richest pickings in terms of food, Tim Egan. So, good luck in persuading them to go elsewhere. John Christie, Oatley

Small mercies

AI is disturbing to many (Letters, December 3) but it gave me a laugh when I asked it the difference between a prawn and a shrimp. The answer from AI was “a prawn is a marine crustacean, and a shrimp is a short person”. Fred Strassberg, Belrose

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