Top 5
Used for weekly email
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The United States-the Pacific bully
The US dominates the Pacific Islands to an extent China can never hope to achieve. With Australia’s support, the US is now engaged in an arms build-up in its Pacific territories and de-facto colonies in a little known boost to its containment of China. Continue reading »
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New Heads of Departments in Canberra
The appointments announced by the Prime Minister on Wednesday 22 June seem mostly sensible, offering the APS a more professional leadership which can both provide strong support for the Government and demonstrate its impartiality in its policy advising and management of programs. Continue reading »
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Reflections on Criminal Justice in Hong Kong since 1997
The judiciary, the prosecutions division and the police force have all faced great challenges since 1997, and they have all learnt from their experiences and emerged stronger.That is not what the anti-China media have told us. Continue reading »
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Tripartite bargain on Immigration Policy
Given current skill shortages and how gummed up the visa processing system has become, the new Government will need a focussed strategy on what needs to be fixed first. Continue reading »
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If Albanese asks for Assange’s freedom, Biden has every reason to agree: Bob Carr
Two years ago at my local ALP branch, I moved a motion urging the party to support dropping extradition proceedings against Julian Assange. Maroubra ALP is not inner city. It might be regarded as a bastion of the right. The motion was carried, near unanimously. After the debate, one member came up and said: “I Continue reading »
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Paul Collins: Pope Francis keeps them guessing
For a week or so the Vatican rumour mill has been in overdrive. How sick is Pope Francis? Will he resign? Where next for the papacy? Continue reading »
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Alfred de Zayas and Richard Falk: The unjustified criticism of High Commissioner Michelle Bachelet’s visit to Xinjiang.
An artificial atmosphere of hostility, sustained by geopolitical agendas, double standards, fake news and skewed narratives has made it difficult to tackle specific human rights problems particularly in Xinjiang. Continue reading »
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China’s peace keeping soft power and its new MOOTW regulations
On 15 June President Xi Jinping signed into force new regulations regarding China’s Military Operations Other Than War usually abbreviated as MOOTW. Eryk Bagshaw of the Sydney Morning Herald immediately declared them to be “an expansion of his country’s military capabilities, giving the defence forces the power to protect its interests abroad”. The Herald offers Continue reading »
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The minimum wage decision, inflation and the low paid
The Real Unit Labour Cost is presently 20 per cent lower than it was in 1986 meaning the growth in productivity gains to employers has been substantially higher than the growth in real wages. Continue reading »
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Will the Greens be smarter this time
The Greens will have more seats in both houses of Parliament. That is welcome. But in the past they have not used their power wisely. The perfect became the enemy of the good. Continue reading »
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The American sophist: Blinken weaves a Bidenesque fantasy
In a time of multiple crises the sophistry of our leaders is more than dangerous. The narratives their words weave might advance their personal agendas but will leave the world ill-equipped to handle pandemics, wars, social upheaval, and climate disruption. Continue reading »
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Environment: Global climate report and watery things
The global climate in 2021 was not looking good, nor were dams, rivers, the Reef or seagrass. Continue reading »
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Tolerance of intolerance threatens Indonesia’s image
The LGBTIQA+ community in Australia is cautiously expecting an acceleration of acceptance now the Albanese government has the steering wheel. But in the nation next door which boasts it runs with moderation, human rights is going in reverse. Continue reading »
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The problems with mandates – or lacking one
Within days of the election, the Greens were setting out the ‘mandates’ they claim to have won. In particular, according to their leader, Adam Bandt, his party had a mandate to stop new coal and gas mines. He said it would introduce legislation in the Senate to block any new mines. Continue reading »
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The whole idea of Home Affairs and its constituent parts needs revisiting
A government wanting to get rid of Pezzullo or determined to undo his expensive and not very efficient empire, would not necessarily have to be involved in a public argument about human rights for refugees. Home Affairs has been repeatedly criticised by bodies such as the Australian National Audit Office for waste and mismanagement of Continue reading »
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The Great Barrier Reef: the ultimate test of an ambitious climate policy
France’s Ambassador to Australia Jean-Pierre Thébault has called the Albanese Government’s climate position ambitious. But is it enough for the survival of the Great Barrier Reef? Continue reading »
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Neil Westbury: The Albanese Labor Government needs to act urgently to protect women and children in remote NT communities
“The Panel recognises that the negative impacts that arise from the over consumption of liquor in the NT, laid out in detail in this report, are off the scale, not just by Australian but by international standards. The resulting costs in terms of human suffering and social and economic costs cut right across the NT Continue reading »
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What Scott did, and what Labor needs to undo: How to retain the Chinese-Australian Vote
‘Is there anything that you specifically think Anthony Albanese would do better?’ a journalist in the National Press Club asked Grace Tame, the 2021 Australian of the Year, and a fearless champion for women in Australia. Tame answered, ‘All Anthony would have to do is none of the things that Scott’s done.’ Continue reading »
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Mike Gilligan: AUKUS is not about defending Australia but a possible US attack on China
The hidden legacy of AUKUS is that Australia is on a path to attract thermonuclear attack from China, against which it is defenceless. In April I could only wonder about the illogicality of AUKUS, that peculiar agreement struck in September last year with the US and Britain, for Australia to build nuclear submarines to save Continue reading »
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Michael Edwards-The unfortunate irrelevance of the arts in Australia
Objective and anecdotal evidence shows that activity in the Australian arts sector declined significantly during the pandemic. Performances closed, venues shut, exhibitions were cancelled and many artists were forced to abandon their artistic careers — hopefully temporarily. The sector’s demise produced the occasional news item, but otherwise it has aroused little reaction from the public Continue reading »
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Bachelet in China: Insights into Human Rights and Xinjiang
UN Human Rights Commissioner Michelle Bachelet’s recent visit to China did not impress an international press that has made the treatment of the mainly Muslim Uighur people of Xinjiang province a major ground for the West’s political attacks on China. Their negative comments have missed the main point of the visit, which has opened a Continue reading »
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‘Vehicle or destination?’ Parties down, policy up
The major parties, with the possible exception of The Greens, are in serious, probably terminal, decline, with habitual supporters largely disengaged, with a third of voters moving in a new direction. Continue reading »
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Getting the Australia-China Relationship back on track
While we should not yet abandon hope for a more realistic, nuanced and sophisticated China policy under the Labor government, Prime Minister Albanese’s initial statements from Tokyo in response to an overture from PRC Prime Minister Li Keqiang are not encouraging. Continue reading »
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Brutality, cynicism and unequivocal incompetence
On 21 May Anthony Albanese led the Australian Labor Party to a historic victory, winning government from opposition at an election for just the fourth time since the second world war. Labor appears set to form majority government with at least 76 seats and several seats still in doubt, taking 10 seats from the Liberal Continue reading »
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On back of urgency on climate, Australia is tipping centre-left
The American Civil War had more than one cause. But it would not have happened without slavery. Saturday’s route of Scott Morrison’s Liberals has several explanations but would not have happened without climate. Continue reading »
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The Teal tsunami and the entitled princelings
The teal tsunami has marked a fascinating moment in Australian politics. Not only has it put integrity and real climate action at the forefront of our civic conversation, it has sent a collection of strong and accomplished women into federal parliament. Continue reading »
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The Dominoes are falling fast. We face a climate emergency
The belated release of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority’s “Reef snapshot: summer 2021-22” has exposed the Federal government’s insistence that the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) is not endangered as the lie it has always been. Continue reading »
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Low wages are a deliberate design feature
Wages are depressed by several forces. Workers bargaining power has been reduced by declining union density and changing industrial laws. There is growing pressures on firms to sell products at cheap, non-negotiable prices. And there are tight public sector salary caps. Continue reading »
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Peter Dutton urging war with China
Last week Defence Minister Peter Dutton announced that, what he called a Chinese spy ship, had been discovered off the Western Australian coast farther south than any similar vessel had ever previously been seen. He didn’t inform his public that it had been observed 250 kilometres offshore and therefore 50 kilometres outside Australia’s Exclusive Economic Continue reading »
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If I were the Minister for Health
I would progressively wind back and eliminate the $14b pa taxpayer subsidy for Private Health Insurance and use that very large sum to fund the inclusion of dental care within Medicare and increase the funding to the states for expanded specialist services in outpatient clinics at public hospitals. Continue reading »
Top 5 most read
- The United States-the Pacific bully
The US dominates the Pacific Islands to an extent China… - New Heads of Departments in Canberra
The appointments announced by the Prime Minister on Wednesday 22… - Stepping back already from the integrity election?
Labor won government promising more accountability, so why disempower the… - Strategists admit West is goading China into war
US military experts say a war over Taiwan is desirable,… - If growing US-China rivalry leads to ‘the worst war…
Should Australia join the United States in a war against…
