Top 5
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Malcolm Fraser would have agreed with Paul Keating on AUKUS
Like so many Australians, I am very worried by our commitment to AUKUS. I agree strongly with many other critics that we have been placed in peril by our government’s submarine agreement with the US and the UK. Continue reading »
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Australia’s changed climate: The Bureau’s yearly reminder
Is climate change a myth? To use a little old-fashioned English slang, not on your nelly. Continue reading »
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Genocide in Gaza
Most of the human rights mavens in the liberal mainstream have said little about Israel’s savage actions in Gaza or the genocidal rhetoric of its leaders. Hopefully, they will explain their disturbing silence at some point. Regardless, history will not be kind to them. Continue reading »
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Political polarisation in the United States: The series
America is Australia’s “great and powerful friend” so it matters a great deal how reliable our firmest strategic partner is. Is the US heading for a degree of political dysfunction that could blow back into its steadfastness as a leading player and an Australian ally in a multipolar Indo-Pacific? In this series, Roger Beale explores Continue reading »
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John Menadue on Rupert Murdoch, the Last Mogul
We have a major problem with the damage that Rupert Murdoch has done to newspapers in Australia, and any self-respecting government should take steps to correct that as soon as possible. Continue reading »
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On private health insurance, a timely call to look beyond self-interest
Following the release of the 2022-23 Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) report on private health insurers, I wrote in mid-November that the financial health of the sector was so robust there was no case for the Minister to approve a premium increase. Continue reading »
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Amidst horror, the screeching metal of turnstiles haunts our conscience
We tramped along streets of rubble and twisted girders of metal in Gaza – these had been a home, a school and even a hospital. From one heap of rubble, a sobbing Granny ran up to me – it was winter and bitterly cold. She was camped in a hollow in the bombed out ruin Continue reading »
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Israel is ‘rotten to its core’
Israeli President Isaac Herzog, presumably the moral arbiter of his nation, was photographed signing a bomb as a gift for Gaza. Continue reading »
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New Year’s resolution for Minister Keogh: refresh the War Memorial Council
The Minister for Veterans’ Affairs, Matt Keogh, should refresh the Council of the Australian War Memorial, which at present looks like a cosy club of well-connected conservatives and ex-military types. He can do this by replacing up to five Council members when their terms expire between February and April 2024. Continue reading »
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China: Perspectives beyond the mainstream media
China looms large in the Australian psyche. On a practical level, what happens in China largely determines the success of global action to deal with climate change, the profitability of our rural economy and the financing of our universities. Our national leaders are concerned about rising tensions in our region and the interplay of US-China Continue reading »
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Vale John Pilger
A bright star in the firmament of justice has gone out. One of the greatest journalists of our era has passed away. Continue reading »
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Abandoned sovereignty: Australia’s intelligence function colonised by US
That the Albanese government could further compromise Australia’s sovereignty, international integrity and national interests seemed inconceivable. Yet, intelligence, a vital government function inextricably connected with independence and protecting national interest, is being penetrated and colonised by the Americans. Continue reading »
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The future will be decided by economic influence, not military dominance
America is falling into a trap. It thinks the future will be decided by military dominance, despite losing one war after another. China, on the other hand, recognises that the future will be decided by economics. (A repost from October 2023). Continue reading »
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Private schools had biggest decline in PISA results
Catholic and independent schools had the biggest declines in the OECD’s Programme of Student Assessment (PISA) test results since 2009. Their students lost 1½ to nearly two years of learning in reading, mathematics and science. The falls in test scores were far bigger than for public schools. Continue reading »
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In the Australia-China relationship, Australia will always follow the US-A repost from October 16,2023
From China’s perspective, Australia will always follow the US no matter what. And the US is out to contain China – there is nothing that China could do to change that. Australia has made relatively little effort to change this perception. This means for China, there is little point in putting much effort into dealing Continue reading »
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Hopeful pearls for peace
In these sad, anxious times, pearls of hope are rare and truly valuable. Thankfully, here are a couple to contemplate… Continue reading »
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Australia continues to passively abuse disadvantaged students
The recent Senate Interim Report on ‘The issue of increasing disruption in Australian school classrooms’ has attracted the usual short-term media indignation followed by the ever-present indifference from our education leaders and politicians. Continue reading »
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Gloves fall from the blood soaked hands
If the gloves are off from the blood-soaked hands of Israel and the United States, then the gloves should come off for the rest of the world to tell them what they think of their genocidal actions and brutality. Continue reading »
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Time for Australia to admit it’s a petrostate
The first step in fixing any problem is acknowledging it. And for Australia on climate change, that means admitting we are a petrostate. Continue reading »
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The prosecution of David McBride and the Australian Constitution
In the wake of the prosecution of David McBride something has emerged about our Constitution that should give every Australian cause for serious concern, this being that the oath taken by both our armed forces and our parliamentarians is one which obliges them solely to be loyal to a foreign monarch, not to the Australian Continue reading »
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The false equivalence of the colonised and coloniser
Following Hamas’ October 7 attacks on Israel that caused more than 1,200 fatalities, there was a barrage of injunctions from Western mainstream media, politicians, and pundits insisting that anybody wishing to express an opinion on the events and the ensuing Israeli war crimes and genocide in Gaza, first denounce Hamas before expressing any other view. Continue reading »
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Christmas 2024: Why is peace so elusive?
With apologies to Charles Dickens and a Christmas Carol. Continue reading »
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America: a rogue state in the twilight of imperial age
For most of the post-WW2 period, Washington’s strength rested on its ability to convince other nations that it was in their vital interests to see the United States prevail in its role as the global leader. Continue reading »
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The Albanese Government’s economic management and the cost-of-living crisis
The Albanese Government’s economic management has been very competent, but unfortunately also marked by a lack of ambition in tackling the challenges facing Australia. Continue reading »
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Psychological torture to children in Gaza is genocide priming
Is there is a tipping point in Gaza when genocide will be unstoppable? The answer is tied to how long massacres run amok, and how deeply torture saturates children’s minds and imaginations. Each day nations pontificate over a permanent ceasefire is a massacre-torture day in Gaza. Continue reading »
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How to stop a Gaza apocalypse
Why Gaza urgently needs a plan B. Continue reading »
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Ukraine: what did the government know and when?
As Australia’s expands its support to the NATO proxy war against Russia it is critical that the Parliament plays a role in determining when we become involved in overseas conflicts. Continue reading »
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Usman Khawaja for humanity, Australian MPs for Israel
In contrast to cricketer Usman Khawaja’s principled stand for human rights, the Liberal’s Simon Birmingham and Labor’s Josh Burns broadcast their judgements that the time is not right for a ceasefire. Commentary from these Australian MPs in response to slaughter in Gaza, both of whom are in Israel to show support for that country, shows Continue reading »
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Hamas, Gaza and the continuing Zionist project
Hamas is the excuse for the Israeli attack on Gaza. It is not the reason. Continue reading »
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Agreeing and disagreeing: Australia’s critical deficit in China knowledge
The recent Beyond the Mainstream Media essay series spells out the urgency for Australia to come to grips with our deficit in China knowledge. China is not going to decline or disappear, and the frictions and problems that remain in our bilateral relationship impact all of us in many different ways. We must find ways Continue reading »