'An echidna is no threat to anything other than ants and termites, so cannot induce fear among larger creatures. But by its sharp quills, it does warn them to keep their distance. It does signal to them that, should they decide to attack, the costs are likely to exceed the benefits. The echidna is the oldest surviving mammal on the planet, which speaks to its endurance and resilience. But the echidna has a friendly image. Echidnas are undeniably endearing, even if you wouldn't want to pat one.'
The "Tyranny of Distance", so eloquently described by Geoffrey Blainey in his book of the same name, may finally be paying off because, as Sam Roggeveen wrote in his book "The Echidna Strategy", "Put simply, distance is Australia's single biggest defence asset. Beijing is closer to London than to Sydney. That ought to provide some comfort ..." except that "China would attack Australia if the US were using Australia as a base to attack" which is exactly what the Australian government has done by allowing American bombers to be based at RAAF Tindal and US and UK nuclear-powered submarines operating from HMAS Stirling. Read a preview here.
ABC Radio National broadcast this podcast more than a year ago. How could I have missed it? However, I found Sam Roggeveen's book at the Uniting Church's op-shop in Ulladulla right on my 80th birthday, which means that I shouldn't really be worried about what may happen long after I have gone, but to ignore it just because it won't happen in my lifetime would be like acting our politicians who are only interested in collecting their exorbitant pay cheques and drawing on their huge expense accounts.
Mind you, they are only doing what the voters want them to do: bread and circuses! More than half of all Australians are now dependent on the government for their income, be it the dole, the age pension, and a myriad of other welfare supports which have morphed from a necessary safety net into a lazy man's hammock, or as public servants, the police force and the armed services. More than half!!! And at the end of a hard day's leisure, there's always the footy! I can already see the day when the Chinese lob their first intercontinental ballistic missile into Australia, and our only response will be to turn up the volume on the latest footy broadcast.
