PM was just having a laugh, but at whose expense?

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese undermines his own credibility with his attempts to be “one of the lads”. The latest gaff about Kylie Minogue showed an appalling lack of judgment (“PM apologises for crude Kylie Minogue remarks”, July 6). It wasn’t funny or in any way acceptable. I expect the PM to set a high standard of behaviour, and if he can’t see how inappropriate this is, he should not be in the job. Apologising after the fact does not excuse it. Thank you to Zali Steggall for calling it out. Hopefully, some in his own party will do the same. Bronwyn Lyons, Moss Vale

Anthony Albanese might be our PM, but he is also a very silly boy. Joy Division T-shirts, skintight duds, interviews with Kyle and Jackie O and partying with the “Cardboard King” all prove it. Now he has appeared on a childish podcast and declared his sexual attraction to Kylie Minogue. Like the saying goes, there’s no fool like an old fool. Julie Robinson, Cardiff

Albo, on a light-hearted and silly show, was just that – light-hearted and silly. By now he should have realised that going on such shows and to parties with Kyle Sandilands might appeal to some, but he often ends up looking like a goose, or a dad trying too hard to be cool. As for the horrified commentators; with all the other things worth whingeing about, get real. Tony Sullivan, Islington

Regular appearances on the Kyle and Jackie O show, swanning around at Sandilands’ wedding and now getting potty-mouthed in the Lodge, no less, with some comedic podcaster. I wonder if negotiations are under way for the PM to make another appearance on Karl Stefanovic’s podcast. Mike Kenneally, Manly

Poor old Albo. No matter what he does, it will never be right. Yes, his answer to Nikki Osborne was a little inappropriate, but he was “in the moment” and just playing along. No doubt if he had evaded the question, then the headline would be: “PM loses sense of humour”. Why don’t we all take a breath and enjoy a little levity? Tony Bennett, Broke

When trying too hard to be “a man of the people”, the prime minister forgot about half the population. Sue Dyer, Downer (ACT)

Social Services Minister Tanya Plibersek has declined to criticise the prime minister’s comment about Kylie Minogue. Just imagine the outburst if Angus Taylor had said something similar. Lawrie Yeomans, Oatley

One Notion: Not ALP

There’s more than a little exasperation in George Brandis’ plea to Opposition Leader Angus Taylor to tackle One Nation head-on (“Taylor must take the fight to One Nation – or look weak”, July 6). That’s not surprising given that the so-called broad church’s moderates have now gone, mostly as electoral casualties, leaving the ideologues to compete for votes against other extremists such as One Nation. The only distinguishing feature now is the colour of the T-shirts. With Liberal support dropping to dismal levels, it’s astonishing that the entire party, including so-called moderates such as Brandis, would still rather see Pauline Hanson’s clueless lot prosper than stomach the thought that Labor should do so by even a fraction. Zealotry in the Liberal Party clearly isn’t confined to the hard right. Adrian Connelly, Springwood

George Brandis tries to convince us that Angus Taylor struggles to attack One Nation because Taylor is a man of reasonableness and nuance. Is Brandis talking about the same Taylor who wants us to believe hyperbolic statements that the current government is the “worst ever” and that the CGT changes are an “assault on aspiration”? Contrary to Brandis’ opinion, Angus Taylor is not reasonable or nuanced, he simply won’t admit in straight language which parts of Hanson’s platform he agrees or disagrees with. Taylor lacks the simple honesty to tell us what he thinks. Steven Lee, Faulconbridge

Goad better? Best not

Jessica McSweeney’s report on Labor’s historic move to tackle poker machine harm leaves one question unanswered: what community benefit do poker machines actually provide (“‘Can’t keep looking the other way’: NSW Labor votes for historic pokies reforms”, July 6)? Horse racing supports an entire industry of breeders, trainers, jockeys, bookies, vets and rural communities. Even sports betting involves knowledge, analysis and waiting between events, arguably adding to the entertainment rather than encouraging continuous gambling. On the other hand, voracious poker machines create no industry, produce no goods or services and simply transfer billions of dollars from vulnerable Australians to clubs, pubs and machine manufacturers. Gaming Minister David Harris is right: the question is not whether reform is justified, but why we tolerate poker machines at all. If clubs need funding, governments should provide it directly rather than through machines designed to profit from addiction. Poker machines are not an inevitable feature of Australian life but a policy choice. Labor’s decision is historic because it finally asks whether that choice serves the community or one of Australia’s most powerful lobby groups. John Kempler, Rose Bay

The vast majority of the voting public want gambling ad reform because of the obvious harm it causes (“Labor’s streaming carve-out for gambling ads is a step backwards”, July 6). That a Labor government, in response, offers a reform that puffs loudly but actually appeases the gambling/clubs lobby is a travesty. It raises the question, who is our government representing: the people or the gambling lobby? The late Labor MP Peta Murphy’s legacy is at risk and her party’s disrespectful repudiation of her recommendations to phase out online gambling is a commentary on its current culture and principles. And the rebuttal of supporting free-to-air TV while giving streaming services a free-for-all is pure sophistry. Rowan Godwin, Rozelle

Prime Minister, can you please stand up for what is right and move forward with a full ban on gambling advertising? I am increasingly frustrated by ongoing attempts to water down the Murphy Report recommendations. It is well understood how harmful gambling promotion is to vulnerable people. Please prioritise public health and community wellbeing over vested interests. Suzy Bessell, Cremorne

Have AI, will use it

Can you really blame students for using AI to complete take-home HSC assessment tasks when it is so freely available (“AI behind steep spike in cheating HSC students”, July 6)? The obvious solution is fairly simple – replace these assessments with in-class tasks. That’s right, an old-fashioned, “low-tech”, handwritten test, just like it was before “experts” decided it was too stressful for students. In one fell swoop “cognitive offloading” is not possible, forcing students to think and produce under pressure – exactly as they will need to do in the work-post-education environment. The result may be that graduates are better equipped for their future endeavours. Max Redmayne, Drummoyne

Of course AI cheating is on the rise. It is tempting and accessible. What we are missing is to acknowledge that the HSC syllabus is so topic- and content-defined that it makes use of AI even easier. If you know the right question, you get the right answer. So long as HSC assessment tasks must conform to a set syllabus, it will be a dream run for students trying to cheat. The answer must be in testing students how to properly use AI to come to a conclusion that the generated responses are incorrect, partially correct or spot on. Only then can we move forward and embrace its capabilities. Michael Blissenden, Dural

The Herald article identifies that a significant part of a student’s marks is derived from take-home assignments. Stop the presses. Apparently, students will cheat when they are not being watched. Who would have thought it? It makes you wonder if the inmates are running the asylum. Joe Weller, Mittagong

Diversify, and flourish

Rob Harris has an interesting reflection on Senator David Pocock’s commitment to Australian politics (“‘People don’t like me’: How David Pocock still twists the government’s arm”, July 4). Australian author Donald Horne’s low assessment – “Australia is a lucky country, run mainly by second-rate people who share its luck” – is confirmed by many of today’s politicians, particularly among the main parties. Australians should be thankful we have a growing number of strongly committed and responsive independents such as Pocock, Zali Steggall, Allegra Spender and other teals to replace many politicians who have lost their effectiveness under the weight of the old-style parties. Rob Firth, Red Hill (ACT)

Giving full account

As a nurse caring for patients in the post-anaesthesia care unit (also known as “recovery”), I learnt to manage a patient’s pain according to what that patient said their level of pain was, not what my subjective opinion of what it should be (“Doctor survived a tough operation but bias nearly broke her”, July 6). Dismissing a patient’s experience of severe pain is unprofessional, lazy and cruel. A friend of mine who is undergoing rehab after knee replacement surgery told me he felt bad asking for pain relief after a nurse had remarked that his pain “shouldn’t be that bad” as her other patients weren’t complaining in the same way. It beggars belief that this passes for patient care. Kerrie Wehbe, Blacktown

Head’s role

One wonders if the Labor government’s incomprehensible decision to cut the funding for the profoundly disabled daughter of Professor Sandra O’Toole was made by an AI algorithm, as surely no intelligent human could possibly do such an inexcusable thing (Letters, July 6). Roz Millar, Moss Vale

Wake-up call

Following yet another alleged domestic violence murder, this time involving a four-year-old child, we must ask why child protection continues to be so underfunded (“Mother charged over four-year-old’s death”, July 5). As opposition families and communities spokeswoman Natasha Maclaren-Jones recently noted, thousands of at-risk children are going unseen due to a lack of caseworkers. Frontline staff do all they can, but understaffing and heavy workloads are pushing the system beyond its limits. Those living in vulnerable families deserve protection, monitoring and timely intervention. Instead, we are failing our children and the caseworkers trying to keep them safe. We can debate defence spending, sporting triumphs and property prices, but none of these matter more than the care, safety and wellbeing of our children. They are our greatest national asset. A society should be judged not by its wealth or military strength, but by how well it protects its most vulnerable – especially its children. Vivien Clark- Ferraino, Duckmaloi

It’s just not soccer

Belgium may be “astonished”, but most people are not (“FIFA lifts ban on USA star striker after Trump calls Infantino”, July 6). We thought the World Cup was out of Donald Trump’s grubby reach, but even the beautiful game can be manipulated, like oil futures or crypto. Until very recently, Folarin Balogun’s US citizenship has been under threat by Trump’s henchmen. If Balogun truly ascribes to the values of the United States, he would respect the rules and not play. Mark Paskal, Austinmer

So, will Jarell Quansah have his red card withdrawn now that England is through? Should King Charles call Trump and Infantino and request it, threaten off with their heads or detention in the Tower (of London, not Trump)? What about the other red carders from other teams? It’s impossible to have fair play when the rules are trampled on. It’s never a level playing field when inflated egos are involved. Pitiful behaviour. Merilyn McClung, Forestville

What do you expect when Donald Trump is trying to ingratiate himself with American soccer fans and the boss of FIFA is trying to ingratiate himself with Trump? And Infantino has done it before. Remember the presentation of the sickening peace prize? David Rush, Lawson

Is there nothing that the bully running America cannot leave alone? What a disgrace that even FIFA is bullied into overruling the red card rule in the World Cup. Jan Naughton, Wahroonga

How can Trump get the FIFA president to intervene and change what, according to the rules, should be an automatic suspension for a red card at the World Cup? It’s outrageous, unfair and sets a worrying precedent for future challenges. Denis Suttling, Newport Beach

Heads first

An Epping footballer is now in end-of-life care after a clash during a Melbourne game (“Young footballer receiving end-of-life care after head injury”, July 6). Surely, it is time for headgear to be made compulsory in all contact sports to prevent tragedies like this? Fay Jenkins, Balmain

Watson seconded

Thank you, Geoffrey Watson. You are a justice warrior, and NSW is so much fairer because of your constant vigilance, precision and integrity (“Justice not served when politicians oversee court issues”, June 6). The fact that you acknowledge your privilege as “an ageing white male” makes my gratitude all the sweeter. Stephanie Short, Woy Woy

Thrawn together

Thanks to the Herald letters pages, a wonderful new word has been added to my limited vocabulary via your correspondent Margaret Johnston (Letters, July 6). Professor Google explains that the word “thrawn” means perverse or ill-tempered, and I have several acquaintances for whom it seems highly appropriate. What is more concerning, however, are the pensive looks my wife is now casting my way over her bowl of breakfast muesli and the SMH app. Peter Scott, Killcare

Cats with a catch

According to Angus Dalton’s article, cat-linked toxoplasma can have a devastating effect on the health of some humans (“Experts plead for funding to slow threat of cat-linked brain parasite”, July 6). The article states that it is “essentially impossible to eradicate unless we fully remove cats”. The devastation cats cause to native wildlife has not been enough to get action to curb cats. Perhaps a threat to human health might be enough. Geoff Wannan, Dawes Point

Canine creed

People believe their dogs know stuff, but they don’t believe the stuff their dogs know. Keith Russell, Mayfield West

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