Latest Articles
We are encouraged to rely more and more on government officials to do for us what we could equally well do for ourselves—and, maybe more importantly, not to do what might help us solve our own problems.
Sep 08 2024
10 mins
If we imagine a metric called the Pinocchio Scale, which measures the number of lies told by a politician as a percentage of his or her overall public statements, our current prime minister (for want of a better description), Airbus Albo, has moved well into uncharted territory.
Sep 06 2024
5 mins
The French and the Queen
For once, Emmanuel Macron found the right words—and they were in English. He addressed the “citizens of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth” to eulogise the late Queen Elizabeth II: “To you, she was your Queen. To us, she was the Queen. To us all, she will be with us forever … Her wisdom and empathy have helped us all to steer a path through the historic ups and downs of the last seven decades: with her passing, we all feel an emptiness.” His oration was uncharacteristically short—two and a half minutes altogether—heartfelt, and resonated with both the French and the British public, something that had hitherto never happened under his divisive presidency.
Like most French citizens, Emmanuel Macron has no personal recollection of a time when Elizabeth II wasn’t on the throne. Longevity counts for a lot in national affections; but the truly special relationship between France and the daughter of George VI was built on much more. The accretion of years,…
Madam: Archbishop Fisher (July-August 2024) does not resist the attacks on his church by the political, social or scientific atheists and those who insist on not being told what to do.
Aug 29 2024
6 mins
To claim Aborigines have the world's oldest continuous culture is to misunderstand the meaning of culture, which continuously changes over time and location. For a culture not to change over time would be a reproach and certainly not a cause for celebration, for it would indicate that there had been no capacity to adapt. Clearly this has not been the case
Aug 20 2024
23 mins
A friend and longtime supporter of Quadrant, Clive James sent us a poem in 2010, which we published in our December issue. Like the Taronga Park Aquarium he recalls in its 'mocked-up sandstone cave' it's not to be forgotten
Aug 16 2024
2 mins
