Lili Marlene's idea re the Victorian bushfires

I was fascinated to see on a TV news story an explanation for why these fires have been so horribly destcructive; apparently it was not so much flames or embers that made homes and vehicles and trees catch fire, it was radiant heat from fire-storms. How could homes and settlements ever be protected from such a destructive force? With dirty great huge solid brick walls surrounding individual homes or surrounding residential areas, not your standard brick wall, but something like the Great Wall of China. I realize that such structures would be a challenge to aesthetics and would isolate many forms of wildlife, but clever architects can find solutions to such problems. Why is this not a good idea?

And another matter - would our members of federal parliament like to get back to work and stop wasting their time on pointless sentiment and condolences and hugging strangers for the benefit of TV journalists? A blubfest wont do anything to help rebuild infrastructure or ward off impending ecomonic and natural disasters. There's no point raising money in appeals if you don't have any smart ideas on how to spend it. We would have a great country if we all showed our patriotism by simply doing our regular jobs well and properly, and simply led law-abiding, safe, green, intelligent lives. Tearful politicians who like to take the day off and dickwit drivers who break the speed limit and overtake in front of oncoming traffic while driving a vehicle that has two Australian flags flying off of it are some types of Australians that we can certainly do without.