The vilification of academia

BEING rather fond of a good old-fashioned rant myself, I was intrigued by Don Scott’s in the Bulletin on February 9 ('Don't vilify our history').

Having failed to finish fourth year at the Collie High School in 1967, I have foolishly tended to believe the millions of people in the world with a vastly superior education than myself. People with degrees in apparently worthless things like climate science, oceanography, conservation, biology and even epidemiology.

I blindly followed the utterances of the likes of David Attenborough, David Suzuki, Tim Flannery, Dr Norman Swan and many others who I realise now are just evil, lying dunderklumpens similar to those who were advising Hitler, Stalin, and others.

I even believed the dire warnings of the elders of Indigenous nations here and around the world.

How gullible am I?

However, I may still need some convincing that the explosion of the human population from just 1.3 billion after 1800 years, to eight billion after the last 222 years since the industrial revolution, is a wondrous thing for our precious little livable planet.

But thanks for giving me another perspective on these important, vexing questions, Don.

I would be fascinated to know which degrees you have attained and from which universities.

Rob Walton Collie

Crime, punishment and police

I CAN understand why some members of the police force are resigning, and unfortunately some are even taking their own lives.

I went to boarding school back in the 1960s. House rules and school rules were not to be disobeyed. If I did, and on many occasions I did, I was given the appropriate punishment - six of the best!

No problem with that. My mother agreed that I should be brought up according to what was at that time acceptable and appropriate punishment.

There was no “we will suspend the sentence”, “we will let him off on bail if mum pays the school an appropriate fee, so he could probably do the same thing again”, or “we will let him off on parole and only give him four of the six of the best instead of the full amount”.

Back then, you got what you deserved if you broke the rules.

There were no questions - do as you are told or accept the consequence.