Writer
John Menadue
This post kindly provided to us by one of our many occasional contributors.
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Adrian Lipscomb: Aspirational ethics – the trojan horse of benchmarks?
I want to apologise for my actions. I’ve let my team down. I’ve let my family down. I’ve let the country down!” Continue reading »
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Caitlin Johnstone: When will foreign leaders like Xi and Putin start asking to speak to America’s REAL Government and not Joe Biden?
Australia is becoming functionally just a US military base with kangaroos. Continue reading »
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Keith Mitchelson: What is wrong with western governments?
The imposition of neoliberalism as the theology of state has created a world-wide orthodoxy of government. Political leaders fear excommunication, or worse. Continue reading »
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Paul Nicoll: Uncertainty and confidence in the Brazilian election
At this stage, it appears most probable that most will opt for Lula. Continue reading »
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Moon of Alabama – How Pelosi’s visit hurts Taiwan
When Nancy Pelosi made her ‘woke’ flight to Taiwan the U.S. seemed to hope for a Chinese military reaction to it. It positioned an aircraft carrier and two amphibious landing ships in the region. It also shipped additional fighter planes to Japan and South Korea. Continue reading »
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Sameed Basha: Australia needs better terms with China, yet refuses to meet Beijing halfway
Australia’s government has rejected China’s proposals for improving ties, claiming to be looking out for its own national interests. In reality, Canberra still views Beijing through the lens of the US-China great power game, which can only hurt its economy while boosting America’s. Continue reading »
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Gary Highland: Changing the parliament and changing the country
Kerrynne Liddle had to wait a nail biting 25 days to be confirmed as the final Aboriginal person elected to the Federal Parliament at the May 21 election. Continue reading »
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Kishore Mahbubani: The G-7, G-20 paradox
The G-7 countries are democratic domestically but are dictatorial globally. By contrast, the G-20 group, which has many autocratic regimes, represents a more democratic forum for governance. Continue reading »
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Koide Hiroaki: The shooting of Mr. Abe
Translated and introduced by Norma Field (Professor Emerita, University of Chicago). In the days and months following the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster, Koide Hiroaki, for some 40-years a nuclear engineer at the Kyoto University Reactor Research Institute, became Japan’s preeminent scientific critic of nuclear power and of Abe government policy. On July 9, the day Continue reading »
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In the US you can’t witness an execution if your skirt is too revealing
Joe Nathan James Jr was executed by lethal injection on Thursday, against the wishes of his victim’s family. He was the eighth person to be put to death in the US so far this year, and the second from Alabama. Continue reading »
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Peter Brooks and Peter Lewis-Hughes: A possible roadmap for a national pandemic plan
The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted weaknesses and disconnections within Australian Health systems which significantly impacted on our ability to reliably detect and respond to this outbreak in a timely, effective and efficient manner. Continue reading »
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C.K Yeung: The Pelosi penalty
What penalty will China mete out to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for a Taiwan visit? The key word here is “penalty”. Anything that could remotely benefit Pelosi is off the table. Continue reading »
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Keith Mitchelson: The thievery of British Petroleum started in Australia
Global oil companies like to be thought of positively. British Petroleum was initiated by a colonial Australian conman, and there is virtually no evidence of any improvement in its business culture since then. Continue reading »
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Gerald Sussman – Russia-Ukraine conflict: The propaganda war
“We must remember that in time of war what is said on the enemy’s side of the front is always propaganda, and what is said on our side of the front is truth and righteousness, the cause of humanity and a crusade for peace” – Walter Lippmann, cited in Shah 2005 Continue reading »
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John Quelch: When will Australia break the habit of sucking its thumb whilst clutching the imperial coat tail?
We need to develop the habit of thinking independently in our own national interests. Continue reading »
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Bob Ellis: The Duchessing of our PM
“Duchessing” as a term and the concept it embraces, derives from the early experiences of the British Labour Party. Continue reading »
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Richard Falk: When the centre does not hold in America
I find the prospect of civil wars less disheartening than the related drift toward fascism or the torments of anarchy. Continue reading »
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Richard Falk: Biden’s blurred vision of Human Rights – China, Saudi Arabia and Israel
When the U.S. Government at the highest level criticised Michelle Bachelet, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, because she went to China on a mission to develop opportunities for cooperation with respect to the protection of human rights. Continue reading »
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Martin Kwan: Another anti China media furphy on Kiribati’s withdrawal from Pacific Islands Forum
Some speculate that Kiribati’s exit from the Pacific Islands Forum was a decision influenced by China. However, the more tenable view is that this has nothing to do with China. Offloading the blame on China will unhelpfully distract focus from the inner regional issues. Continue reading »
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Robert Hunziker: Chomsky and the United Nations warn of collapse
It’s entirely possible that doomsayers of the world, though widely ridiculed, could be on target about the prospects for global societal collapse. But, of course, when? According to a recent Noam Chomsky interview, it’s an ongoing grind that will end with a thud. Continue reading »
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Jonathan Holmes: Pressing for freedom
An open letter to Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus QC. Continue reading »
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Raymond Newland: What ever happened to the casino control authority?
The Bergin Inquiry in NSW has recommended the creation of an “Independent Casino Commission” after allegations that high rollers which Crown Casino knew had a history of money laundering, lost $1.1 billion dollars to the casino since 2016, some of which was carried in plastic bags and shoeboxes. How did we get here? Continue reading »
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Geraldine Doogue – Catholic Church’s council moved by the spirit of progress
Death-and-resurrection moments might be the most accurate way to describe the scale of what unfolded at a rare high-level Catholic meeting of almost 300 representatives last week in Sydney. Continue reading »
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Climate emergency actions are needed not just promises
Labor didn’t so much win the election gaining only 32% of the primary vote – they just didn’t lose it quite as badly as the Coalition, scraping into government because they were not as reprehensible on climate and integrity. Continue reading »
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Peter Drysdale and Shiro Armstrong: Australia must find common purpose with China
Both nations depend heavily on a multilateral trading system. Strengthening it together is a way of managing their troubled bilateral relationship. Continue reading »
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Samuel Yang: Chinese investors fast abandoning Australia but still hold vast amounts of infrastructure, land and water
Chinese investors are fast abandoning Australia as a frosty bilateral relationship dampens trade, with a report showing Chinese investment in Australia nosedived by almost 70 per cent last year to the lowest level since 2007. Continue reading »
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John Brennan: UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, East Jerusalem & Israel
The United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel, issues first report – June, 2022……..A WAY FORWARD. “The question, I believe, is not to devise a means for persisting on trying to separate them, but to see whether it is possible for them to live together Continue reading »
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Dr Chris Brook: Courts getting science wrong: Again
Should forensic science be scientific? Seemingly not, if you ask the Victorian Court of Appeal. Continue reading »
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African youths make it clear they prefer China over US
The 2022 African Youth Survey released on Monday has sent shock waves across the world. China has surpassed the United States as having the biggest positive influence among African youths. Continue reading »
