A future made in Australia: Can it work, what are the risks?
Claims that industry assistance comes at a cost to other industries and consumers are too often right. Industry policy s…
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Israel is holding more hostages than Hamas
Hamas is holding 132 hostages: 130 of them were taken captive on October 7 and two were taken hostage before then (one in 2014, the other in 2015). Continue reading »
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Not in my name
In this quiet hour, I summon words, a humble man amidst shadows long, To speak of wounds not my own, to voice a plea so loud and strong. For streets that haunt with harried silence, for whispers in the dark, For the women who carry nightmares in the hollows of their hearts, I say, not Continue reading »
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Weekly Roundup Saturday 27 April
The so-called “cost of living” crisis is a low-wage problem of the Coalition’s making, the dangerously simplified world of central bankers, spooks and cops on the threat from social media, democracy becomes collateral damage from fear campaigns. Read on for the weekly roundup of links to articles, podcasts, reports and other media on current economic Continue reading »
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Rhetoric and reality in technology visions
The complex interplay of vision, power, and governance in innovation districts, precincts, and hubs. Continue reading »
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War on Gaza: A cruel month of massacres for Palestinians as the US mask is ripped off
As tensions flare with Iran, the US continues to provide full support for Israel’s genocide in the Gaza Strip. Continue reading »
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Americans don’t understand: China is not afraid of the US
China knows that, if it has to, it can stand alone and that it can defend itself. It knows, too, that most nations of the world, other than America (which is, despite itself, somewhat conflicted), want to do business with it; to connect with its growing confidence and with its strengthening brand of non-threatening, non-coercive, Continue reading »
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Michael Pascoe: Negative gearing to change – it’s ‘the vibe’
“There is a tide in the affairs of men. Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune” Continue reading »
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Think-tanked
As a China-watching think tank winds up after Morrison-era cuts, a respected analyst reviews government funding for security-related research and education. Continue reading »
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The Israel dilemma
As a gentile with an historical association with Israel, I must admit to being greatly puzzled by the double standard that is evident in the destruction of Gaza. Continue reading »
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The court decides; doom to follow?
As predicted in Pearls & Irritations earlier this month, an appeal by the two losing candidates in the 14 February Indonesian presidential election has been trounced this week by the Constitutional Court. Continue reading »
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Worse than the Nakba: A wilful, deliberate, total genocide in Gaza
Lies and impunity paved the way for the worst time in the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Hanan Ashrawi says Gaza is “worse than even the Nakba, because it is a wilful, deliberate, total genocide”. Continue reading »
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UN rights chief demands international probe of mass graves near Gaza hospitals
“Hospitals are entitled to very special protection under international humanitarian law,” said Volker Türk, the United Nations high commissioner for human rights. Continue reading »
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Defence and Security, Politics, Top 5//=$this_post['view']?>
From imperial romance to practical security history
At the levels of public ritual and private observance, the ANZAC narrative is much about processing loss and assuaging grief. But let us recall here its nature as an imperial romance, and what that might mean for our place in the multi-polarity of the current world order? Continue reading »
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Defence and Security, Media//=$this_post['view']?>
ANZAC Day 2024: Better balanced assimilation or war reports fatigue?
Perhaps it is my imagination, but in the days immediately preceding Anzac Day 2024, there seems to be less media exhortation to observance than has been usual in recent years. Continue reading »
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Defence and Security, Government, Politics//=$this_post['view']?>
‘Impactful projection’, 1915 style: Lest we forget Anzac Cove
Anzac Day. We mark it respectfully. True respect demands that we also not forget the essential question about the first ‘Anzac Day’ – 25 April 1915. Why were Australian soldiers at Anzac Cove in the first place? Continue reading »
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Israel / Palestine, Politics, World Affairs//=$this_post['view']?>
Will the freedom flotilla sail to Gaza?
The non-violence training to join the Freedom Flotilla Coalition’s ships to Gaza has been intense. As hundreds of us from 32 countries gathered in Istanbul, we were briefed about what we might encounter on this voyage. “We have to be ready for every possibility,” our trainers insisted. Continue reading »
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China, Politics, Technology//=$this_post['view']?>
ASPI chief takes exception to being singled out by China
The director of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, a lobby group for big tech and foreign agencies, claims that China’s alleged targeting of the agency “should be of concern to all Australians”. Continue reading »