Scenes of utter panic were broadcast around the world with people clinging to the bottom of moving aircraft in a desperate but futile attempt to flee.

Thousands of Afghans used any means possible to escape Kabul as the Taliban moved in.

The Taliban represent an extreme form of Islam and have distorted and manipulated the teachings of the Koran. They are a brutal, primitive, and largely uneducated movement who instill their beliefs by force.

As a long-term observer and supporter of Afghanistan I was deeply saddened by these recent developments.

So why my heading Liberals Afghan shame? Most Australians would be aware that we have had troops in Afghanistan for almost 20 years.

Following the 1979 Russian invasion and the ensuing destruction of infrastructure, these troops were involved in building new schools, roads and clinics and keeping the peace.

During these years our troops were assisted and supported by many Afghans who acted as translators and interpreters and in other important roles.

For months now the Australian government has been warned by various military experts that the impending rise of the Taliban would put these people in extreme peril.

The Morrison government has largely ignored these repeated warnings. Now, for many of those who helped us, it is too late. Some of those trying to escape are those who worked alongside us.

I watched Scott Morrison on television saying he was "terribly concerned" for these Afghan comrades of ours, how the government was making great efforts to extract them and so on.

This PM, who calls himself a Christian, has again shown such shameful behavior that again, I feel ashamed to call myself an Australian. This appears to be Morrison's version of Aussie Christian mateship. How good is that?

Morrison is not and has never been a real leader.

Leaders are people who we can look up to, who have earned our respect, who do what they say they will do. He stands for nothing, except clinging desperately to power. An entirely shameful leader. Bring on the next Federal election.

The insidious spread of COVID-19, in particular the Delta strain, is now obvious to all. Or at least should be.

However we have people in our communities who continue to deny the reality of our situation through ignorance or a false sense of superiority over the rest of us.

It is human nature to believe that we are smarter than the average person but our actions will always reveal that is not the case.

The spread of the virus can only happen if people move around and/or fail to take the appropriate measures yet time and again we see people who believe the guidelines apply to others and not themselves.

Restricting travel, wearing a mask, checking in to premises and above all getting vaccinated are all simple things to accomodate yet there are people in our communities who think they are above it all.

Egotistic? Maybe. Ignorant? Possibly. Uncaring? Most certainly.

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