By Jim McIntosh
In an earlier missive, last month, I lamented that our PM had managed to leave our Navy short of effective submarine capacity. I think what he’s done deserves to be highlighted further.
Setting aside for the moment the blisteringly stupid behaviour of Morrison over the lying allegation made against him by French PM Macron and the obvious lies Morrison propagated about French ‘sledging’ against Australia and Australians (it wasn’t aimed at anyone other than Morrison), the real seriousness of the matter lies in what he has done to the RAN, and Defence overall.
The French submarines might have been overpriced; they might have been low technology, up against the superior forces of other nations in our region; we might still have had to extend the life of some of the Collins Class subs for a while. But, at least we would have had submarines. Now, the possibility that we’ll have any subs aside from those old Collins units is basically nil. All Scotty’s smirking blather about ‘going nuclear’, the grandstanding in front of the UK and US leaders, the latter of whom seemed to even forget Morrison’s name, well, it was purely for show. It holds virtually no substance at all.
So what Morrison has done in effect is to remove most of the submarine capability from the ADF at a time when tensions are on the increase. That much of the tension has actually been ratcheted up by Morrison himself, as he bangs the drums of war for what surely must be domestic audiences in a dangerous escalation of dog-whistling to the Australian electorate, doesn’t make it any less disconcerting. In essence, what Morrison has done is to put Australia at further military disadvantage for the sake of his perceived electoral survival, and he has left a hole in our defence capability that will not be repaired in this or even the next decade.
Haven’t we suffered enough? How much more of this incompetence and stupid arrogance do we have to endure before we can finally get a government in this country that works for the benefit of the nation, and not just to the advantage of its tin-pot leader?
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Morrison has sickness, possibly many shades, of the inner self, mind, personality (in disorder) , delusions, serious afflictions, as indicated by a brainless submission to superstitions and fixed, dogmatic inner voices. He should not be in public life at all, but is a refugee from unemployment due to laziness, inability, past failure at many gifted advertising jobs. It is a dangerous and disgraceful time…
Thanks, Jim.
Particular thanks for highlighting the fact that we have been left very close to undefended at sea for the foreseeable future. This point has been largely overlooked in all the talk about Macron, Morrison and the subs.
Just a little quibble. It wasn’t a ‘lying accusation’ – It was an allegation of lying.
How much more of this incompetence and stupid arrogance do we have to endure?
Expecting a RW authoritarian government to change it’s attitude is a pipe dream, amounts to putting the cart before the horse.
Australia must curtail the power of media barons, Murdoch, Costello, etc.. Without truth in media Australia will remain duped.
MSM ownership laws are corrupted, broken, totally partisan, biased only in favour of L/NP RW BS propaganda & blatant lies.
Not until Australia has truthful egalitarian non partisan news, information, will Australia have informed citizens at the ballot box!
Expecting any substantial change for the better before we have truth and trust back in mainstream society is a forlorn hope!
That’s the harsh sad and awful reality!
Morrison will never change, he will bluster and bully, hide behind Jen, and then piss off for another holiday in Hawaii…..etc!
The very best outcome that Australia can expect from morrisons ineptitude re the submarine fiasco is maybe a few leased and/ or “loaned” obsolete nuclear subs from the U.S. and U.K., with “training crews”. And of course for morrison to be replaced, quickly. Australia will never build subs, nuclear or otherwise, What country would be prepared to subject itself to the “amateur hour” of Australian (lnp) politics? morrison and joyce? God help us.
BB… Couldn’t have highlighted the issues any better and can’t add any more crap on this idiot’s head.
The braindead, brainwashed, brainless voters will be on a christmas shopping spree and will just sleep walk their way into another coalition government, and the MSM will be cackling away like smug arseholes once more.
David, Yes, you’re right.
And now, who will want to do deals with Australia when we clearly can’t be trusted not to renege on any deals that might be made? It’ll take more than time and a change of government to generate trust again.
Why in 20 years, one would need manned subs at all? Drones already do much of the work in the air.
@JIm McIntosh: The Scummo COALition misgovernment is a self-inflicted wound that will be with us until Australian voters put an end to the corruption, policy free, self-serving idiots at the 2022 feral elections ….. provided that enough Australian voters can be dragged away from watching sport, surfing and the pub.
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Perhaps the solution lies in our own hands; join a progressive political party likely to run candidate(s) in your electorate and work to remove the Liarbral and Nazional$ from your electorate.
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In the NSW Parliament, there are 4/8 electorates west of the Great Dividing Range that if lost would sink the Nazional$ and their proposals for allowing floodplain harvesting of N MDB water.
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At a feral level remember Scummo hangs on with a one seat majority while all members are present, so taking two or three seats without loss would clean up the Parliament.
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When voting remember .
IN CITY ELECTORATES VOTE ANYONE BUT LIARBRAL
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IN COUNTRY ELECTORATES VOTE CREDIBLE INDEPENDENT OR SFF
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AND IN ALL ELECTORATES
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VOTE BELOW THE LINE FOR THE CANDIDATES I WANT RATHER THAN ALLOW THE COALition TO BENEFIT FROM ANY FLOW OF PREFERENCES.
@PP: Idiots are put into positions of political power so that they are dependent upon their patrons who want to control government policy for their own pecuniary interests.
Still being pessimistic: Another three years after the Deliverance banjo players vote them back in again. Will Scummo still be PM? That’s another wait and see question.
Well said Jim
Really good points, and yes I agree
Thank you
Agreeing with Florence Howarth. Remind me, when did we last make use of a submarine to protect ourselves?
Maybe Morrison has been very clever. He has diverted all attention from climate change with a sprat with Macron. This imbroglio will soon be forgotten. Most will not be noticed he has promised nothing when it comes to dealing with carbon emissions.
Morrison’s modus operandi ever since he became a minister, long before he became PM. Act the idiot, promise much, deliver the opposite. Examples among many, Robodebt, indue card, cuts to essential programmes. The list is endless.
Another quickly replaced each disaster, and none had time to sink into public consciousness.
As usual, the Greens get my vote….
The Greens have been slammed by all sides of politics for releasing a “wacky” defence policy that would cancel AUKUS and cut military spending by 50 per cent.
“But, at least we would have had submarines.” A load of drivel, jim, the diesel sub plans were to be made from a nuclear sub, unlikely to have been built for 5 years, Pynenut never intended to have subs till the SA unions were done and the frogs expected to build them in france first. In 2015 I expected that we would just buy the nuclear barracuda and drop the diesel sub. If we want to spend on subs the scaled down frogshit is a waste so buy nuclear is the right option but to trust the USUK not a ^#^^&# inch more than the french is risky as we have always been ‘screwed’ by USUK military purchases.
ps beauty consomme light, the loonies will get a few quid out of sugared policies that attract flies.
Florence Howarth,
a very sensible comment. And this claim about war with China is from a very narrow militaristic perspective. The Dr Binoy Kampmark article here on AIMN is very sobering.
And Wikipedia has an article on British Royal Navy submarines, the cost of decommissioning them, and replacing them.
Comments on US submarine decommissioning at that site are also interesting.
Whereas comments in the Murdoch media assigning blame in various directions and urging a rapid plan of nuclear submarine building or leasing seem to be rather antique, belligerent dreamings.
Remember how the British, who had not fought a war in Europe for 100 years, tried to charge over open ground against machine guns.
The AUKUS pact has little to do about Australia buying nuclear subs in the distant future, but more to do about making Australia a naval base for US and UK’s nuclear ships in the near future .
The Aukus pact has little to do about the possiblity of australia buying nuclear subs in the distant future but more to do about Australia becoming a naval base for Uk and Usa’s nuclear ships in the very near future .
king1394
“Agreeing with Florence Howarth. Remind me, when did we last make use of a submarine to protect ourselves?”
Why does a dog, of a certain size, allow for a discount on home insurance….?
Silly. Is it not….?