Top 5
-
Defending the U.S. from the Israel Lobby
Ultimately, this is the story of how the Israel lobby undermined America, wrecked the Middle East, and set a series of international crimes against humanity in motion. Continue reading »
-
“A nation based on mercantilist plunder”
Australia has a reputation for egalitarianism. It is not deserved. Continue reading »
-
America, We are out of your China fight
Australia must leave the China debacle, constructively. In withdrawing from America’s aggression against China, we should offer our diplomacy as a patient bridge between China and the US. That will take time. America will become even more extreme before it considers peaceful coexistence with China. Meanwhile our action will be a moderating influence, as we Continue reading »
-
The Labor Government is morally moribund and scornful of international law
To mark the anniversary of the beginning of Israel’s genocide in the Gaza Strip, Jews Against the Occupation ’48 wrote to Prime Minister Albanese, Foreign Minister Wong, and Defence Minister Marles. We have received no reply. Continue reading »
-
The US political system and its capitalist, imperialist agenda has failed
Trump’s victory has exposed, for a second time, the failings of the entire US political system and its pursuit of a capitalist, imperialist agenda. Continue reading »
-
“Disingenuous theatre dressed up as major news”: Why the ABC is losing credibility
ABC supporters across the country are dismayed and angry with the national broadcaster. The biggest threat to the ABC today is its craven and distorted performance in television current affairs reporting. Continue reading »
-
Fighting coercive control: Why we can’t police our way to safety
Last week the state of South Australia moved another step closer to criminalising coercive control, with the bill passing through the House of Assembly on its way to the Legislative Council. Continue reading »
-
Detaching Australia from the death grip of the United States
Our challenge now is to detach Australia from the death grip of the United States and to pursue an independent future, which we are quite capable of doing. To do so we will need not only to remove the old sycophantic parties but also to root out the US ‘security’ zealots from our own secretive Continue reading »
-
Are we locked in a dangerous illusion?
Two weeks ago, I was at a public event in Northern NSW listening to five speakers reflect on the state of the climate and what we might do about it – that, at least, was how it was pitched. Continue reading »
-
Sado-populism: the political trap that could end human civilisation
Every time a fascist-flirting regime is defeated in an election, more column inches and podcast minutes are devoted to the sense that the moral arc of the universe bends towards justice. When Trump, Bolsonaro, Sunak’s Tories or the Law and Justice Party in Poland lose elections, the centrist commentariat breathes a sigh of relief, believing Continue reading »
-
Act now: The case for UN membership for Palestine is overwhelming
John Whitbeck’s plea for sanity – UN Membership for Palestine Now, 14 November 2024, should not be put into the too hard basket. At present, of course, the State of Palestine has only non-member observer status, having failed in an application for full member status in 2011. Continue reading »
-
Putting the mouth back into Medicare
How would it be to walk into a general practice with a toothache and be triaged to see the oral health therapist, who assesses and then develops an oral health care plan? They are then qualified to provide dental treatment but may also involve a GP or dentist across the corridor for further assessment. It Continue reading »
-
AUKUS, the China threat and Chinese-Australian communities
The recent election of Donald Trump to the US presidency has cast further doubt on the feasibility of the AUKUS trilateral security partnership, particularly Australia’s acquisition of nuclear submarines under Pillar I. Yet the AUKUS trilateral security partnership has become a fait accompli without the Australian public having expressed much in the way of opposition, or even a Continue reading »
-
Australia’s school system has lost its moorings
Lack of leadership by successive Australian governments has created a rift between rhetoric and reality that has played a part in eroding public confidence and trust in our school system and generating anxiety for families, teachers and students. Continue reading »
-
Whatever Dutton wants, Albanese makes sure he gets
The Albanese Government’s obsessive enthusiasm for matching Coalition and News Corp demands with policy responses was on show twice last week. On both occasions it was enshrined in legislation, the first on immigration detention and the other on laws to restrict social media access. Continue reading »
-
Australians pierce the foreign policy propaganda of both major parties
A Resolve Political Monitor poll published in today’s Sydney Morning Herald makes clear that the Australian community at large possesses a contrary view to the foreign policy priorities of the Albanese government and its predecessor under Scott Morrison. Continue reading »
-
B-2 Bomber Strikes in Yemen and their significance for Australia
Australian territory has been used in supporting US B-2 bombers en route and in return from strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen on October 17, and highlights the profound strategic significance of this event for the future role Australia may play in US strategic bomber operations against China, in the Asia Pacific and beyond. Continue reading »
-
America first, Earth last: Australia’s security now needs a climate focus
There’s a new, stark reality we must face: Donald Trump’s victory will push the Earth system further down a perilous path towards three degrees Celsius of global warming or more, with catastrophic consequences for human civilisation and the environment. Continue reading »
-
Grinding the axis
Axis is a four-letter word that should be banned or at least binned for the time being. The US uses the term in a distinctly hostile way, and now Andrew Shearer, Australia’s chief security adviser, has adopted the same language. Continue reading »
-
BBC goes full Goebbels in support of Israeli soccer hooligans
“IDF will fuck the Arabs!”, “Why is school out in Gaza? There are no children left there!” Maccabi Tel Aviv football fans chanting on 8 November, as reported by The Times of Israel. Yet the BBC just compared them to Jewish victims of the Nazi pogroms. Why this story matters is because of the outsized Continue reading »
-
“Be prepared”: The US of Trump 02 is a foreign country
We must recognise that over 50% of US voters have now elected Trump. The almost cult-like MAGA can no longer be regarded as an aberration. Countries like Australia now have to recognise just how this new US increasingly is becoming a “foreign” country. Continue reading »
-
Trumping Australia
John Menadue asked me what I thought Trump 2.0 could mean for Australia, but there are two similar, easier questions: what should and what will Trump mean for Australia? Continue reading »
-
In failing to act, Australia shirks international law and enables genocide
Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong’s response to Israel’s genocide in Palestine is an insult to Palestinians living under occupation, bombardment, and relentless oppression. It’s a shirking of Australia’s international obligations, and an affront to people of good conscience across this continent who, for 57 weeks, have rallied, protested, and pleaded for Australia to take a Continue reading »
-
The China Threat has now become the Chussia Anxiety
The West need not fear a Chussia aligned against it. It instead needs to develop geopolitical strategies to deal with China as the dominant power in Eurasia. For like the United States at the end of the nineteenth century when it consolidated its borders and established hegemony in the Western Hemisphere, China has consolidated its Continue reading »
-
Changes to tertiary education funding fail to remedy “stupid inequity” of Morrison era
The changes to Tertiary Education funding announced by the Prime Minister last weekend, mostly benefit former students. Arguably there are other higher priorities to restore the funding of higher education and remove anomalies in the fees charged. Continue reading »
-
Why Israel and the IDF meet the criteria for proscription under Australian Anti-Terror laws
If Australian anti-terror laws are to be considered principled and fair, they must apply equally to all organisations that meet the criteria, including state military forces where appropriate. Continue reading »
-
To save the planet: Disable this global consumer-corporate machine
The global consumer-capitalist machine is well-programmed to consume the planet in its quest to produce ever-more stuff. Avoiding pollution is incompatible with its present functioning. If we want to actually reduce greenhouse gas emissions we need to know how to get inside the machine and turn it off, or transform it. Continue reading »
-
I have nothing left to give. I need your help
“I need your help… I have taken this whistleblowing as far as I can. This has been going for eight long years for me. Louise Beaston and I are at breaking point. Correction, we broke some time ago”, writes ATO whistleblower Richard Boyle. Can you help? Show your support for Richard Boyle at the Adelaide Continue reading »
-
The United States empire is almost always at war
The US empire is addicted to a belief in its exceptionalism, grounded in aggression both at home and abroad, and finding it hard to admit mistakes. Continue reading »
-
Recall Rudd
The Foreign minister Penny Wong should recall Kevin Rudd as Australia’s ambassador to Washington. Continue reading »