Hi All, A interesting discussion , you just have to filter out the halfwits. During the 2nd world war the presence of the USA kept us free . Since we have sheltered under that umbrella. It has come at a cost. Our foreign policy has been subordinate to US interests. Our soldiers have largely fought in wars which really didn't have much benefit or relevance to us. Our military has been structured more for overseas deployment than for national defence. It was the price we paid for protection .
The probable unreliability of the US means we should be changing our defence capability to focus much more on direct defense of continental Australia and Tassie of course. This will also give us the capability to have a foreign policy more attuned to our needs.
This will not be cheap , but an overdue move by Australia. On the whole , the ALP changes fit with that philosophy.
Before anyone starts complaining about subs , they are an important defensive weapon against sea-borne invasion , I would have preferred French nuclears rather than the US ones , but too bad now.
