WUHAN'S PLACE IN OUR HISTORY
The Chinese city of Wuhan has rightly been on everybody's lips since the outbreak of the deadly COVID-19 epidemic. But this is not the first time Wuhan has been significant in the last 100 years.
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After the Marco Polo Bridge incident in July 1937, war erupted on a huge scale in China between their forces and those of the Japanese.
The Japanese overran all opposition (that included the Rape of Nanking) until Chiang Kai-Shek's Kuomintang (Nationalist) forces decided to make a determined and heroic stand in Wuhan.
What happened after that sowed the seeds for Japan's ultimate defeat. This stand bought time for Mao Tse-tung's Communist forces and other Nationalist forces to re-group for the momentous fight to the death they were confronted with.
From the very beginning of the struggle, the Americans were outraged with Japan. The Americans were the promoters behind the League of Nations Declaration not to recognise the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo.
Eventually Pearl Harbour and the invasion of Indo China and other parts of Asia, including Burma, followed.
So what was the significance of the heroic stand in Wuhan? It sowed the seeds that saw 22 Imperial divisions tied down in China, 13 in Manchuria and two in Korea.
This left only 10 divisions to fight in the south against the British Commonwealth (and Empire) and American forces mainly in Burma (there were numerous other fields of conflict). To put it in perspective the AIF had four divisions - the 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th (with the 8th being captured in Singapore). Imagine if the Allies were faced with say 30 divisions, rather than 10?
So, Wuhan has its place in modern history. Some would say the ultimate Allied victory in World War II was lead by two atomic bombs and the fighting of the Soviet and Chinese forces. That is a debate that could be with us for some time.
Graham Burmeister, Wantabadgery
RETHINK THIS 'RIDICULOUS' RULE
This way of life of having to show a proof of vaccinated status in businesses big and small is nothing more than double standards and, to put it simply, it's also discrimination.
Why should any customer who enters a business have to show a piece of paper regarding how many vaccines they've had before entering a premises? This also happens to be an invasion of privacy.
Everyone should have the right to enter a business without having to show any health status; we're all equal and deserve to be treated equally.
It's OK to buy food from a supermarket or pick up a prescription from a chemist, but not OK to go into clothing stores and hair salons to buy clothes and to get a haircut.
This is incorrect and there needs to be a review on this issue.
The real losers here are not only valuable customers, but businesses themselves.
Double standards are nothing more than a kick in the guts and, at the end of the day, there are no winners for anyone trying to earn a living or for anyone trying to buy everyday items from businesses.
Now with these new vaccine rules we, the customers, should do one thing and that's boycott any business who ask for vaccine papers then, who knows, there may be a rethink on this ridiculous rule.
Peter Smith, Wagga
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