World
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Clearing the fog of ‘Unprovoked’ War
For the record: I was born in Ukraine, studied in Russia, and worked in America as a laser fusion researcher and Professor of Mathematics and Physics. I have relatives and friends in all three countries, and for the last 35 years, I have been trying to do my best to make them friends, partners, or even allies. Continue reading »
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The other form of abuse in the Catholic Church
When we hear the term “abuse” in relation to the Catholic Church, we immediately think of crimes of a sexual nature committed against children by the clergy. Continue reading »
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Hiroshima remembered: When will we ever learn?
To be here in Hiroshima, invited to perform at one of numerous peace concerts commemorating the destruction of the dropping on this city of the first atomic bomb, 6th August 1945, is somewhat special, though of course tinged with sadness that humanity could descend to such barbarism. Continue reading »
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The relentless march of militarism: When will it stop?
We are under constant bombardment. Hardly a day goes by without some news of a military nature. If it is not about sending more equipment to prolong the war in Ukraine, it is about Australian minerals being domesticated to serve Americas military interests. Continue reading »
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“Some of these people seek Armageddon”: An encounter with Norman Finkelstein
Like his mentor Noam Chomsky, Norman Finkelstein is effectively banned from entering the Palestinian territories by Israeli authorities. This constitutes a very exclusive club: Jews welcome in Ramallah but not in Tel Aviv. Continue reading »
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Crimea and conundrums
Over recent weeks Pearls and Irritations has published two pieces on Crimea. One by David Higginbottom reports his views of the situation in Crimea following a visit there, arguing that there is widespread acceptance of Russian rule. The second, by Jon Richardson, argues that Higginbottom is wrong, that any pro-Russian majority is a result of Continue reading »
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US post-9/11 wars caused 4.5 million deaths, displaced 38-60 million people, study shows
Wars the US waged in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, and Pakistan following September 11, 2001 caused at least 4.5 million deaths and displaced 38 to 60 million people, with 7.6 million children starving today, according to studies by Brown University. Continue reading »
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The trouble with telling history as it happens
In the Ukraine War, scholar Serhii Plokhy has his own biases, which can get in the way of his profession’s fidelity to evidence. Continue reading »
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Unlike Indonesia we are outsourcing our defence to a foreign power
Did colonialism ever die? Distant major powers are making life-and-death decisions that will impact Indonesia, ironically on the eve of the Republic’s 17 August national day celebrating Soekarno’s 1945 proclamation of independence from three centuries of Dutch rule. Continue reading »
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New research on when AMOC may go amok
There has been much research and speculation about whether the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC, or more popularly the Gulf Stream) may collapse and what the consequences might be. Now there is new 2023 research which firms up predictions as to when it might happen. The bad news – it might be earlier than previously Continue reading »
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Capitalism with a conscience? Social stock exchanges could be the answer
Instead of serving markets, we should have markets serving our needs for a fairer, greener world. Enter social stock exchanges – the institutionalisation of doing good. Continue reading »
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China’s “security through prosperity” undermines Western colonial hegemony
It was in 1982 in Calcutta, India, on my way to a conference in Bhubaneswar in Orissa state when I was confronted by the sight of homeless people sleeping on the pavement right in the heart of the city in the early nightfall. This morning (01/08/2023), I was confronted again by the sight of homelessness Continue reading »
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Electile dysfunction and the end of the world
The good news this week was the result of the Spanish elections, the bad was the news of global boiling, the takeover of artificial intelligence and Putin’s continuous threats of nuclear war. Continue reading »
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Australia should forge closer relations with China
Under the Labor party governments of Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard between 2007 and 2013, Australia succeeded in anchoring its relations with China on mutually beneficial grounds. Continue reading »
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Government on the slow coal train as world faces collapse
The Government’s draft Strategy on Health and Climate Change is vital to cope with the expected increase in deaths and illness from accelerating climate change. It fails in many respects and should be rewritten to reflect the views of medical experts. Continue reading »
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Compromised by vested interests: UNCOP culture doesn’t match reality
At the end of a Retreat together on “Spiritual Leadership in Difficult Times”, a German social scientist asked me to help her to organise a Retreat for decision-makers at the next UNCOP – the annual UN Conference of Parties focused on preventing catastrophic climate change in ways that are just. Just, yes, especially towards those Continue reading »
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UN Chief Proclaims ‘Era of Global Boiling’ as July set to be hottest month ever recorded
“We can still stop the worst,” U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres insisted. “But to do so we must turn a year of burning heat into a year of burning ambition.” Continue reading »
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China’s anti-Mario Draghi moment surprises markets
China is eschewing the former European Central Bank chief’s pledge to ‘do whatever it takes’ to stabilise via monetary easing. Continue reading »
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Stop dissembling: International Climate Emergency Mobilisation is essential – now
Whilst some incremental progress has been made following the 2022 change of Federal government, evidence confirms that both main political parties lack the imagination, courage and leadership to adequately address climate change. Continue reading »
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The long hand of history: Political Polarisation in the US – Part 2
“We need a national divorce. We need to separate by red states and blue states and shrink the federal government, everyone I talk to says this. From the sick and disgusting woke culture issues shoved down our throats to the Democrat’s traitorous America Last policies, we are done.” So said Marjorie Taylor Greene in a Continue reading »
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Political polarisation in the US – Part 1: How real is the problem?
America is our “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? Continue reading »
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The USS Canberra: A crass PR stunt
The commissioning of the new USS Canberra in Sydney amid accompanying fanfare and blanket Australian media coverage provided ample testimony to the extent that we are increasingly being taken for granted by the US civil and military leadership. Continue reading »
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The empire knows it’s pouring Ukrainian blood into an unwinnable proxy war
In a new article titled “Ukraine’s Lack of Weaponry and Training Risks Stalemate in Fight With Russia,” The Wall Street Journal’s Daniel Michaels reports that western officials knew Ukrainian forces didn’t have the weapons and training necessary to succeed in their highly touted counteroffensive which was launched last month. Continue reading »
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A most severe national security law you will have never heard of
When it comes to a ‘pivot state’ in Asia against China, the security apparatus of South Korea’s Yoon Suk-yeol is ignored or given a free pass by the West. Continue reading »
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We need an Earth System Treaty to save civilisation. And we need it now
The world stands in urgent need of a universal accord to ensure it remains a Planet that our children and grandchildren can inhabit and enjoy, far into the future. Continue reading »
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Australia may ban WeChat – but for many Chinese Australians, it’s their ‘lifeline’
One morning in February 2021, I was woken by a WeChat call from my brother in China. Mum had died the previous night, he told me. I wasn’t shocked to hear about Mum’s death – she had been very ill for a couple of years. Continue reading »
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Racism, the ‘No’ campaign and the Americanisation of Australian politics
There may be some Coalition politicians and Murdoch employers who are motivated by genuine racism to oppose the Voice to Parliament. Some might believe First Nations Australians are unworthy. Some probably believe in “reverse racism.” That, of course, is the belief that there is a correct direction for racism to travel. Continue reading »
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Ukraine: Putin’s war or proxy war?
The claim that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a proxy war is not borne out by recent history, nor supported by Russian democrats, Ukrainians of all stripes nor most Western Russia specialists. They mostly see its roots in an authoritarian Russian state and the revanchist views of Putin and his acolytes. Continue reading »
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The real history of the war in Ukraine: A chronology of events and case for diplomacy
The American people urgently need to know the true history of the war in Ukraine and its current prospects. Unfortunately, the mainstream media ––The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, MSNBC, and CNN –– have become mere mouthpieces of the government, repeating US President Joe Biden’s lies and hiding history from the public. Continue reading »
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Presidential candidate Ganjar Pranowo promises a strong lean toward China
The prior political experience of 2024 Indonesian presidential election candidate Ganjar Pranowo illustrates a strong pro-China lean for Indonesia if he is elected. Leading the largest party, his chances of success are considerable. Continue reading »
