Commenting on the opinion piece: South Australia has become like a house with no books

Houses without individuality as well as no books. Twenty or so years of preparing homes for the market, makeovers and staging have dumbed us all down too.

Even if we are not selling soon we copy the “experts” in neutralising our own ones, white or grey… all over..  with white couches and white furniture and pale art.

There is a sameness about all of our homes in general. It used to be that our homes reflected us, our lifestyle was echoed in the style of interiors we lived in. Now we are pale and insipid, multiplying the sameness all around us.

Just a note to the writer of this article, I felt what you said about  lack of books in display homes, but I thought that was a poor example. One wouldn’t expect book in a show home where no one lives, but I took the point to our family homes. And people have got rid of books thinking they are clutter. And I guess reference books are all on Wikipedia. – Sheila Whittam

Great article and shows a populist government devoid of any vision. – Robert Mackay

Beautifully written, Rainer. To Rainer’s observation about “mind-numbing dependence on dumbed-down, click-baity digital media”, I observe my grandchildren with great concern. They are wallowing in that toxic media, and the shelves of books in my house are of zero interest to them, despite my efforts. – John Bridgland

Commenting on the story: Australia pays tribute to Vietnam veterans, 50 years on

InDaily’s Friday edition repeats the error made by most media outlets that same day by reporting that the 18th of August marked the 50th anniversary of the end of Australia’s official involvement in the Vietnamese War.

Veterans’ Affairs Minister Matt Keogh’s media release may have been vague when advising that his speech, at the Australian War Memorial, included this statement:

“This year we mark 50 years since the end of Australia’s official involvement in the Vietnam War. August 18 has long held special significance for our Vietnam Veteran Community.”

But his next sentence notes that “On this day in 1966, the men of the 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, alongside 3 New Zealanders from 161 Battery Royal New Zealand Artillery, encountered the Viet Cong in a rubber plantation outside the village of Long Tan.”

It’s why we have Vietnam Veterans Day on the 18th of August every year, to mark the day in 1966 when Australia suffered its heaviest loss of lives in the Vietnam War.

What is significant about this year, 2023, is that on 11 January it was 50 years since Australia’s official involvement ended by the Governor General’s proclamation and the withdrawal of advisors to the South Vietnamese army.

The other significant anniversary that year was a small group of troops guarding the Australian Embassy being withdrawn on 1 July, 1973.

The main withdrawal had begun in August 1971 when then Prime Minister Bill McMahon’s government decided to withdraw active operations with effect 16 October. By March 1972, only Australian advisors remained. Prime Minister Gough Whitlam ended conscription in December 1972. Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser approved settlement of Vietnamese refugees in 1975. Our nation’s relationship with the War had changed since it began in 1962.

Sadly for the veterans, our nation’s efforts to acknowledge them and assist them continues to hit hurdles. Getting the right dates for significant shifts in our long involvement would be the least we can do. – Kevin Naughton

Commenting on the opinion piece: Rent caps could make the housing crisis worse

The State Government might want to look at Airbnb as to why there is a rental crisis.

A huge amount of would be rental properties are being used for Airbnb, and for good reasons if you ask the property owners. Short stays at very high prices – one weekend of Airbnb rental can give property owners more rental income than a week’s worth from a tenant.

There is no problem with tenants behaving badly, they have reviews for both tenant and property owner. And it’s short-term with more waiting to rent.

Maybe if Airbnb was looked at more like a hotel service, with safety, hygiene and hazard checks by qualified people, we might have a few more rental places back on the market. – Annabel Stoodley