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
What a Supine Conservatism has Wrought
The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again while expecting a different result. As that has been the approach of Australia’s conservatives for far too long, we are in deep trouble that is about to get worse unless … well, read on.
What conservatives have been doing for at least the past 40 years no longer works, but this realisation has yet to dawn on most. We all know the world has changed. People over 60 can remember leaving money out with the milk bottles, for instance, or doors unlocked at night because the push-in robberies that are now nightly events were so rare they warranted front-page attention. Public institutions could be trusted to uphold rational and conservative values, and the lobbying of politicians and bureaucrats usually brought about sensible change. Sure, it wasn’t perfect, but at least it enabled a cohesive, well-functioning, largely democratic society which mostly acted in the best interests of the population. Not so today.
The…
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 proportions of Aboriginal children and young people placed in a relative or kin placement or with an Aboriginal foster carer have decreased, and the proportion of Aboriginal children who were reunified with their families has declined.
Aug 29 2024
17 mins
