how long can I stay drunk on fear out in the wilderness?

Amnesty International has published its annual report, and it’s not pretty reading for Australia. New Holland comes in for criticism in relation to a range of areas, but in particular our approach to terrorism, women’s rights, and the…

al gore: rationalist politician?

Whether you’re left or right in a conventional sense, it’s worth paying attention to what Al Gore has been saying lately about the state of American – and by extension, Australian – politics. His new book, The Assault On Reason,…

those who fail to learn the lessons of history

Is the government doomed to repeat the lesson Paul Keating and the ALP received in 1996? This article is certainly cause for reflection: a summary of the major newspapers’ views on the parties leading into the 96 election.…

it had to be howled on the streets by newsboys to bus conductors

Seemingly out of the blue, Australia’s main media outlets have actually agreed on something other than money and their desire for more money, and have got together to launch a campaign called “Australia’s Right to Know.” The focus of the…

great moments in on-line publishing history

For a glorious, and no doubt brief, moment today, the International Herald Tribune displayed this uncannily accurate headline on one of it’s lead stories:

The article is/was on-line here. Don’t…

going through all these things twice

Looks like I wasn’t the only one to notice The Australian‘s little effort yesterday: Crikey ran a similar piece here.

a standing army of newswriters – today’s australian

Australia’s only national broadsheet, The Australian, is one of the best sources of real news and analysis in the country. Unfortunately it is also utterly biased, not only in its editorial section but also its news and features.…

but I would not be convicted by a jury of my peers

Two people are detained in a war zone. Both are alleged by the military force which detains them to have been somewhere they shouldn’t have. Both are held captive, without proper charges or any prospect of genuine legal process. Both…

a good man is hard to find

Just when Mr Rudd looked to have Labor in the perfect position for the Federal election later this year, a report in the Australian today contains ominous signs that, far from being the long awaited anti-Howard many people…

water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink: the great urban water conservation myth

As anyone who lives in Australia is acutely aware, water is a big issue at the moment – it tends to be when you found a country in a massive desert – and we’re all being

i offered up my innocence and got repaid with scorn

Attorney-General Phillip Ruddock recently appeared on the SBS program ‘Insight’ along with David Hicks’ military lawyer, military prosecutor, and his father Terry Hicks (link to the transcript here).

That Ruddock would even venture onto the program is surprising,…

Australian and US elections: ridiculous media feeding frenzy season commences

Ah, elections. Such an exciting time, when the smallest mis-statement or mistake can lead to all kinds of media hysteria. Two examples have emerged in the last couple of days.

In the US, John McCain – senator, 2008 presidential candidate,…

you have not been paying attention

Tuesday, 9 March 2004, Alexander Downer:

CATHERINE MCGRATH: ... You’d be very keen to see George W. Bush back wouldn’t you?

ALEXANDER DOWNER: Look, in the end this isn’t a matter for Australia. We don’t have a vote

…

freedom just around the corner for you

There is an interesting post on Samizdata (a UK blog best described as libertarian or individualist in philosophy) about the complicity of Western companies such as Google in the crimes of totalitarian regimes, and particularly China :

…one

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church and state: cult directed members to support PM

It’s come out in recent days that the Exclusive Brethren cult, which in the past has claimed to be not just politically neutral but to actually forbid participation in political activities, in fact instructed its Australian members to…