Don’t stir Semar – He seeks harmony
Duncan Graham

Don’t stir Semar – He seeks harmony

Ancient Javanese mythology, often inherited from India and adapted to fit local culture, is rich with striking characters in the wayang kulit shadow puppet theatre. The fat-gut wise clown Semar is charged with maintaining stability.

An open letter to Penny Wong seeking action on Palestine
Sue Wareham

An open letter to Penny Wong seeking action on Palestine

Dear Minister, Responding to war crimes committed against the Palestinian people Congratulations on Labor’s achievement of another term of government. We hope this term will be one in which everything possible is done to promote, support and invest in peace, without which Australians - and others - cannot be secure.

Ferocity, fitness and fast bowling: how Virat Kohli revolutionised Indian cricket
Vaughan Cruickshank,  Brendon Hyndman

Ferocity, fitness and fast bowling: how Virat Kohli revolutionised Indian cricket

Virat Kohli announced his retirement from Test cricket on Monday.

John Menadue's book on Israel's war against Gaza

Israel's war against Gaza

Media coverage of the war in Gaza since October 2023 has spread a series of lies propagated by Israel and the United States. This publication presents information, analysis, clarification, views and perspectives largely unavailable in mainstream media in Australia and elsewhere.

Download the PDF
Judge orders release of Georgetown scholar Badar Khan Suri from ICE detention
Eloise Goldsmith

Judge orders release of Georgetown scholar Badar Khan Suri from ICE detention

My only 'crimes' making me a 'national security threat' are my marriage to a United States citizen of Palestinian origin and my support for the Palestinian cause, wrote Badar Khan Suri in an op-ed published on 13 May.

Our humanity is lost under the rubble in Gaza
Amin Abbas

Our humanity is lost under the rubble in Gaza

It is a Sunday evening, and I am shopping online. But there is a difference.

Still waiting for the Asian Century? The world-system has moved on
Stewart Sweeney

Still waiting for the Asian Century? The world-system has moved on

Dr Allan Patience’s recent essay, Australia’s misunderstanding of the Asian Century, is a wake-up call we can no longer afford to ignore.

Water is a vital part of population policy
Peter Cook

Water is a vital part of population policy

If ecological sustainability must be the basis for population policy, as argued by Jenny Goldie, then a vital ingredient for sustainability is water – the essence of life.

Sussan Ley and gender politics
Stephanie Dowrick

Sussan Ley and gender politics

Apart from a slight uptick of hope when Malcolm Turnbull gained the leadership of the Liberal Party in September 2015, promising to bring “emotional intelligence” to the role, I have never wished the LNP anything but defeat and oblivion.

Fear, censorship and repression are keeping Israelis in the dark about Gaza
Haaretz Editorial

Fear, censorship and repression are keeping Israelis in the dark about Gaza

The public's indifference to what Israel is doing in the Gaza Strip is not just the result of a lack of care, but the result of the war Israel is waging against the possibility of knowing.

Political parties can recover after a devastating election loss. But the Liberals will need to think differently
Frank Bongiorno

Political parties can recover after a devastating election loss. But the Liberals will need to think differently

Australia has just had its second landslide election in a row. In 2022, there was a landslide against the Liberals, but not to Labor, which fell over the line (as a majority government) by three seats and with just more than 32% of the primary vote.

Cartoon commentary
Geoff Pryor

Cartoon commentary

Latest on Palestine and Israel

Judge orders release of Georgetown scholar Badar Khan Suri from ICE detention
Eloise Goldsmith

Judge orders release of Georgetown scholar Badar Khan Suri from ICE detention

My only 'crimes' making me a 'national security threat' are my marriage to a United States citizen of Palestinian origin and my support for the Palestinian cause, wrote Badar Khan Suri in an op-ed published on 13 May.

Our humanity is lost under the rubble in Gaza
Amin Abbas

Our humanity is lost under the rubble in Gaza

It is a Sunday evening, and I am shopping online. But there is a difference.

Fear, censorship and repression are keeping Israelis in the dark about Gaza
Haaretz Editorial

Fear, censorship and repression are keeping Israelis in the dark about Gaza

The public's indifference to what Israel is doing in the Gaza Strip is not just the result of a lack of care, but the result of the war Israel is waging against the possibility of knowing.

Multiple Western press outlets have suddenly pivoted hard against Israel
Caitlin Johnstone

Multiple Western press outlets have suddenly pivoted hard against Israel

After a year and a half of genocidal atrocities, the editorial boards of numerous British press outlets have suddenly come out hard against Israel’s genocidal onslaught in Gaza.

The first-ever historic agreement between the US and Hamas – with Netanyahu in a secondary role
Refaat Ibrahim

The first-ever historic agreement between the US and Hamas – with Netanyahu in a secondary role

The direct talks between the United States and Hamas took Israel by surprise and led to an agreement that resulted in the release of the Israeli-American captive Edan Alexander.

An open letter to the Australian PM from a child of Holocaust survivors
John-Janusz Ebel

An open letter to the Australian PM from a child of Holocaust survivors

Dear Anthony Albanese, I am a child of Holocaust survivors. More than 95% of my extended family perished during World War II in Nazi extermination camps while others were killed by mobile death squads or through starvation in a number of ghettoes.

Samah Sabawi – Cactus Pear for My Beloved
Tony Smith.

Samah Sabawi – Cactus Pear for My Beloved

This 2024 Penguin publication is a highly personal account of the history of Palestinian dispossession.

Mark Leibler on his lobbying power
Pearls and Irritations

Mark Leibler on his lobbying power

In a speech he delivered back in 2018, Mark Leibler lays out how he exerts influence, from trying to block Bob Carr's efforts on recognition of a Palestinian State to watching ABC correspondent Sophie McNeill in order to change her coverage of the Middle East.

John Menadue

Support our independent media with your donation

Pearls and Irritations leads the way in raising and analysing vital issues often neglected in mainstream media. Your contribution supports our independence and quality commentary on matters importance to Australia and our region.

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Latest on China

China and renewable energy: Dawn of the Fourth Industrial Revolution
Derek Woolner,  David Glynne Jones

China and renewable energy: Dawn of the Fourth Industrial Revolution

China’s deployment of renewable energy technologies is spectacular and globally dominant, but is not its primary focus.

Trump’s USAID cuts only accelerate the West’s miserly convergence with China
Shahar Hameiri,  Lee Jones

Trump’s USAID cuts only accelerate the West’s miserly convergence with China

Critics of the Trump administration’s assault on foreign aid warn that it will undermine the United States’ capacity to compete with China.

Shell-shocked voters of US allies choose stability over disruption
Alex Lo

Shell-shocked voters of US allies choose stability over disruption

Rather than left- or right-leaning political parties, citizens in Singapore, Australia and Canada chose steady hands to navigate geopolitical turbulence.

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China and renewable energy: Dawn of the Fourth Industrial Revolution
Derek Woolner,  David Glynne Jones

China and renewable energy: Dawn of the Fourth Industrial Revolution

As costs rise, poll shows most Americans blame Trump
Brett Wilkins

As costs rise, poll shows most Americans blame Trump

Support at Home: Immediate risks and urgent issues
Roland Naufal,  Paul Sadler

Support at Home: Immediate risks and urgent issues

Multiple Western press outlets have suddenly pivoted hard against Israel
Caitlin Johnstone

Multiple Western press outlets have suddenly pivoted hard against Israel

It was supposed to be the cost-of-living election. But then Dutton showed up
Ross Gittins

It was supposed to be the cost-of-living election. But then Dutton showed up

From nuclear to nature laws, here’s where Ley stands on four energy and environment flashpoints
Justine Bell-James,  Samantha Hepburn

From nuclear to nature laws, here’s where Ley stands on four energy and environment flashpoints

'A brazen, unprecedented power grab': Trump fires copyright office head
Eloise Goldsmith

'A brazen, unprecedented power grab': Trump fires copyright office head

The first-ever historic agreement between the US and Hamas – with Netanyahu in a secondary role
Refaat Ibrahim

The first-ever historic agreement between the US and Hamas – with Netanyahu in a secondary role

An open letter to the Australian PM from a child of Holocaust survivors
John-Janusz Ebel

An open letter to the Australian PM from a child of Holocaust survivors

Is government a good 'parent' to foster kids?
Paul McDonald

Is government a good 'parent' to foster kids?

Australia’s misunderstanding of the Asian Century
Allan Patience

Australia in Our Region

Australia’s misunderstanding of the Asian Century

Bowen confirmed as climate and energy minister, Watt gets environment
Giles Parkinson

Bowen confirmed as climate and energy minister, Watt gets environment

Latest letters to the editor

Australia leads the way. Which way?

Bob Pearce — Adelaide SA

It was a young John Howard who announced light rail connecting the east coast. While some in the know bought land in the proposed rail corridor, his idea has remained just that – an idea. Given the politically-led resurgence of inefficient hybrid vehicles, as the article points out, why add a 50% efficient internal combustion engine to an electric motor as your mode of transport? All the indications from the last election are that one side is still arguing whether women should remain barefoot and pregnant or be sacrificed as witches, while the other side is timid about...
Why add more years of governmental failure?

Maggie Woodhead — Perth. W.A

The evidence is out there that government makes a really deficient, and sometimes outright harmful, substitute parent. Children brought up in the foster system need the best parenting in order to live with and hopefully overcome early childhood trauma. Instead of which they receive some of the worst, usually not the fault of the foster carer. An average of seven, yes seven, placements in their first year in care, the focus on reunification when parents never get the support they need in order to become good enough parents. The lack of vital background information to foster carers about the...
We need people like Sawsan Madina in media

Alyssa Aleksanian — Hazelbrook

Sawsan Madina – I wish, oh how I wish, you were still head of SBS Television. Your open letter to The Greens was superb. Instead, in the television and radio space, we have propaganda puppets, ex-CEOs of Newscorp and advertisers pretending to be journalists. As consumers, we must demand more of our media. Call them to account, via feedback on social media, via email, via whatever channel you can. The only way we can change the system is to demand better.
A gift of nuclear waste for our descendants

Alyssa Aleksanian — Hazelbrook

In 2021, the Federal Court found Sussan Ley, as environment minister, owed a duty of care to future generations to avoid causing climate harm through her decisions. And here she is stating nuclear is a zero-emission option. Who is Sussan Ley kidding? Let’s debunk this myth once and for all. Nuclear is the most toxic form of energy. We will be leaving our descendants with a poison cocktail which has no answer. The Coalition’s implied stance of , Oh, we’ll let the future generations work that out is pure negligence. Kicking the can down the road has been...

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Employment 31 Finance 2 Health 1468 History 44 Immigration 944 Indigenous Affairs 367 Israel Palestine 1039
Media 1718 Podcast 43 Policy 122 Politics 16952 Racism 15 Religion 1203 Review 16
The Human Future 39 Our Top Five Each Week 1950 USA 387 World 1105

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