ARSON CLAIM DOESN'T STACK UP
Tony Smith is right to challenge the claim that most of last season's fires were started by arsonists ("Fires traced to lightning", The Daily Advertiser, January 11).
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The NSW Royal Commission into the 2019-20 bushfires reported that the suspected arson cases "were a very small proportion of the area burnt". It found that the extreme weather conditions led to "pyro-convection conditions" causing fire-generated thunderstorms and lightning. These caused a rapid escalation of the fires lofting embers, starting new fires and creating "destructive wind gusts and tornadic vortices".
It also found that as conditions deteriorate, fuel reduction may have "no appreciable effect under extreme conditions".
Fire chiefs know that our increasingly ferocious bushfires are linked to climate change, and more action is needed to combat global warming.
Ray Peck, Hawthorn, Victoria
PARTY IN ITS 'DEATH THROES'
Watching the self-destruction of the National Party has been an entertaining reality TV substitute for not being able to gather in stadiums for sports over the last 11 months or so.
This week once again didn't disappoint as the federal Member for Riverina once again decided to use his acting Prime Minister role to pacify the hounds that lurk within his base, rather than uttering anything actually useful to this country or the world.
God forbid we upset the sycophants of Barnaby, Canavan, Kelly and that other 51st state citizen George Christensen.
Almost to the day last year it was "Little Lucifers" that came to his rescue. This time, not being hindered by the fires as a distraction, he was able to focus on the smorgasbord of dog whistle models on offer.
"Free speech", "Anti-China sentiment", "Black Lives Matter", "Both sides just as bad" and "Trump just had a bad day".
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It was hard to know which one to blow on first, so seeing that being acting PM is only going to last a few days, the Member for Riverina decided to test them all out at once on the first journo he encountered.
I'm surprised that people were shocked or surprised. We are witnessing the death throes of a party that is best represented by an old station home. It looks glorious from a distance, but as one gets closer and closer it becomes apparent that nothing has been spent on it for 50 years.
The paint is all flaky, the gutters are rusted out, the once stately garden is dead. And inside lives a little old lady and a little old man who still think it's 1958, still drive a clapped out 1924 Rolls Royce and still think that wool is a 'pound for a pound'.
All very sad really, I think I need a box of tissues.
Graham Strong, Boree Creek
ADVERTISING TACTICS REVEALED
Watching and listening to the media lately, (radio, TV), nearly everything for sale has been reduced in price - some items by up to 60 per cent.
I asked one of my mates, an ex-retail furniture salesman how, for example, they could reduce furniture prices by so much.
His explanation? For several months leading up to the sale retailers slowly increase the price, then on the sale day reduce the item to the original price. All you seniors out there - can you remember when we had honesty in advertising?
Peter Dolden, Wagga
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