January 1, 2018

MICHAEL McKINLEY. Australia and the wars of the alliance: fragments for a coronial inquiry - Part 1: History and politics. A REPOST

Australias alliance wars their respective causes, conduct, and consequences - are overdetermined by the politics and strategies of the United States. In general, though they consist of few battlefield successes, the overall record is one of failed campaigns informed by repeatedly failed indeed, dead - ideas that for various reasons maintain their currency. The purpose of this and the subsequent posts Parts 2, 3, and 4 - is to conduct a coronial inquiry that is, to establish where, when and how the death occurred.

October 28, 2018

NASSIM KHADEM. Why Australian company directors have started caring about climate change.

For the first time Australian company directors have nominated climate change as the number one issue they want the federal government to address in the long term, according to a survey of more than 1,200 company directors.

October 30, 2017

LESLEY RUSSELL . How knee replacement surgery highlights issues of access, affordability and best practice in Australias two-tiered healthcare system - Part 2

Part 2 Best practice and improved surgery outcomes

As the population ages, total knee replacement surgery is becoming commonplace. It is one of the most expensive surgical procedures. Most replacements are performed as elective surgery in private hospitals. Those patients who must rely on the public system are waiting longer than ever.

In Part 1 of this paper, the variations in frequency of knee replacement were considered. Given that most such procedures are cnducted in the private sector, the dependence on private health insurance creates disparities in access. Little information is available on preferred prostheses.

Part 2 considers patient satisfaction with knee surgery, access to rehabilitation after surgery and the broader consequences of knee surgery for national productivity.

December 9, 2018

MICHAEL McKINLEY. The Occupation of the Australian Mind.

Fear and apathy have taken up residence in the collective political consciousness of Australia. Indeed, it may be that they have achieved that most desirable of states for governments seeking to remain in power, or oppositions sensing their imminent ascendency to it: a state of collective unconsciousness that consents to its own increasing subservience and essential irrelevance while believing that it is being kept safe.

November 2, 2017

RAMESH THAKUR. Heading over the nuclear cliff.

The answer to growing regional uncertainty isnt to build up nuclear arsenals.

February 12, 2018

BERNARD KEANE. Joyce has always been a dud and should never have been deputy PM.

It was Tony Abbott who bestowed the appellation best retail politician in the country on Barnaby Joyce. Even now, some continue to preface their comments about him by claiming he is possessed of some form of political genius. It is true that Joyce has been successful at the time-honoured Nationals tactic of demanding handouts for farmers despite a complete lack of policy rationale (beyond Joyces personal and, given recent events, now ironic vision of Australian agriculture as a rural idyll of white heterosexual families). Hundreds of millions of dollars have been wasted on irrigation infrastructure and concessional loans to farmers at Joyces behest. But a quick check of Joyces other career highlights suggests he has serially been a problem for his own side of politics.

December 10, 2019

DUNCAN GRAHAM . Can young voices get into elders ears?

Indonesian President Joko Widodos Cabinet selection has been met with widespread dismay by liberal progressives. There have been some weird choices noted here https://publish.pearlsandirritations.com/duncan-graham-dont-cry-for-me-indonesia/

The most disturbing was making Widodos bitter and brutal rival Prabowo Subianto, 68, Defence Minister, even though the former general with a suspect human rights record had been decisively rejected by the electorate.

December 6, 2018

CHRIS BURGESS. Genuine immigration reform still alien to Japan.

On 14 October 2018, a number of marches were held across Japan to mark what the organiser the Japan First Party labelled anti-migrant day. The target of the protestors wrath was the governments proposal to revise the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act to introduce two new types of residence status for foreign workers in industries currently undergoing labour shortages.

May 30, 2019

REG LITTLE: Confucian thought: pervasive, unstoppable but largely invisible

China is taking over the world is a cry not uncommonly heard these days. Reasons expressed for this takeover are often Chinese wealth and the many Chinese spreading their influence across the globe, and the uncertainty of the US and Europes futures. While these are reasons on one level, they fail to capture the fact that thought cultures of the Chinese and the West are fundamentally different, and this is driving the shift in global dynamics.

November 10, 2019

RICHARD WHITINGTON. What will Weatherill, Emerson and the willy-wag-tails teach the wombats?

Here we have two wombats, Lofty and Rorty. Theyre stranded on the median strip in the middle of a busy freeway, on their way home from a meeting where, against most expectations, they were outflanked in their bid to take over the Association of Australian Native Animals (AANA).

October 15, 2019

JAMES O'NEILL. Iran: Ancient History, New Modern Role

Iran has an ancient history but a very modern present and future. Despite the best (or worst) of some European nations and others such as the United States and Australia, Iran has powerful friends and bright prospects.

October 21, 2018

ROGER SCOTT. Wentworth byelection tale of two (other) cities.

Events in Canberra over the past weeks call into question the quality of governance which Australians can reasonably expect from our politicians. By contrast the Queensland political system and its parliamentary processes can be seen to offer the Westminster model functioning in optimal fashion. Could this be attributed to the relative significance of female politicians at the core of decision-making?

October 23, 2019

GEORGE BROWNING. Please Leave.Please Come Back

In his speech at last weeks Sydney synod, Archbishop Glenn Davies made it clear he wished those who support the blessing of same sex marriage unions to leave the Church because you cannot bless sin. Subsequently he attempted to clarify his statement which had caused enormous anguish and resentment by saying he intended the message only for Bishops who did so.

November 1, 2018

DAVID STEPHENS. A grandiose commemorative project for Canberra raises lots of questions

There has been for some time an air of inevitability about the extensions to the Australian War Memorial, a project announced on Thursday by the Prime Minister and Memorial Director, Dr Brendan Nelson. Serious questions remain, however, about this grandiose undertaking, which is known irreverently to some observers as the Brendanbunker and could be seen as a legacy of Dr Nelsons term.

October 13, 2019

JOHN CARLIN. The Universal Sin

The rich countries of the world sometimes go over the top about racism, and in doing so, cheapen examples of real racism. The latest example involves the Portuguese football player with Manchester City, Bernardo Silva.

May 17, 2020

MUNGO MACCALLUM. Vale Comrade Jack Mundey

It is impossible to overstate the legacy of Jack Mundey.

December 6, 2018

MICHAEL McKINLEY. The ascendancy of the age of Thorby (PART 1 - the state's justification for requiring passive citizens)

Contrary to popular belief, modern democracy does not welcome an active, engaged citizenry especially between election campaigns because its interventions would hinder the operations of the state. The preferred condition is one of citizen passivity in which the authorities go about their business of securing the national interest as defined by themselves through an ever-increasing array of national security arrangements contrary to any robust definition of accountable and responsible democracy. In Australia this is justified by fiat and pseudo theory, and practised in plain sight.

May 12, 2020

HAL SWERISSEN. The New Normal: how well live with Covid-19

The Covid-19 restrictions are painful, but they have worked. Some restrictions will soon be lifted. But what will the new normal look like?

February 24, 2016

Mark Gregory. Stone-walling on a second rate NBN network.

In responding to questions at the Senate Estimates hearing held on 9 February 2016, NBN Co CEO Bill Morrow admitted he did not know the number of nodes being built during the Fibre to the Node (FTTN) rollout and he went on to say that any information about what is being rolled out by NBN Co would be commercial-in-confidence, meaning that he would very selectively answer questions put to him by Senators. By the end of the session, Morrow had answered very few questions.

July 13, 2020

Australia's national security laws leave us on a similar path to Hong Kong

Hong Kongs new national security laws are attracting well-deserved condemnation. Its a pity that there hasnt been greater recognition that Australias own national security laws share some common features with those in Hong Kong.

April 23, 2019

SCOTT BURCHILL: There are leaks and then there are leaks

The arrest of Julian Assange in London for his activities as head of WikiLeaks has renewed the publics focus on the role of whistleblowers, and the prosecution of journalists who embarrass governments by exposing their lies, corruption and crimes.

June 26, 2019

MARY-LOUISE O'CALLAGHAN. Stepping out and up in the hot mess of the Pacific (Lowy Institute)

Personal connections matter, and Scott Morrisons ties to the Pacific run deeper than many realise.

September 13, 2020

It's too late for Juukan Gorge but Warragamba dam is on the horizon

Shakepeare said: Tis the sport to have the engineer hoist with his own petard.

And indeed, there is some satisfaction in seeing the petard that hoisted the Juukan Gorge also sending some of Rio Tintos top brass flying out of the executive wing.

December 12, 2018

LYNDSAY CONNORS, JIM McMORROW. Gonski Will Still Feature on the Federal Election Menu.

Labor and the Coalition both appear to be poised to go to next years federal election brandishing their contrasting versions of Gonski. Key features of the original 2011 Gonski model for funding the nations schools generated broad consensus. Given that it relates to an issue that has been persistently fraught in Australian politics, this should not be dismissed lightly.

November 16, 2018

LAURIE PATTON. Time to ditch our dud NBN beaten by the All Blacks of Broadband

The contrast could not be any starker. As warnings emerged that Australias telcos are seeing their profits squeezed by the end of NBN Cos short-lived wholesale price discount (with thelikelihood that retail prices will rise), across the ditch came word that New Zealanders are about so see their broadband speeds greatly increase while the price of connecting to the Internet comes down. How could this be?

October 28, 2018

CHRIS MILLS. Mobile Workers Stampede from the City to the Bush.

Remember when Australia was a nation of makers? As in: the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the Snowy Mountains Scheme, Holdens and the Opera House? Imagine the productivity increase if Australia had a mobile army who would deploy across the country to provide skilled workers where, when and for as long is required. Fruit pickers, mobile phone tower erectors, wind and solar renewable generator constructors, road and rail builders, mine developers are examples. When the work is done, the mobile workforce moves to the next location needing their services. Many people struggling to find affordable housing and employment in overcrowded cities would find work and accommodation across Australia, and the drudgery of city commuting would be eliminated.

February 21, 2017

CHARLES LIVINGSTONE. South Australia's gambling tax highlights the regulatory mess of online betting.

The South Australian government will introduce from July a point-of-consumption tax to claw back some of the gambling tax revenue it is seeing disappear over the border.The new tax is a reasonable response to a growing problem, and probably wont send bookmakers to the wall. But it does highlight the current regulatory mess surrounding how we tax internet wagering in Australia.

May 11, 2020

Why IR reform is not the answer to our problems

Making predictions about the future of the economy has never been more difficult. In the midst of so much uncertainty, however, one development has been absolutely predictable: Calls for major reform to Australias industrial relations (IR) system. IR reform is again being proposed as a policy-making priority; as being fundamental to achieving high rates of economic growth over the long-term.

December 9, 2018

MUNGO MacCALLUM. Protecting buffoons.

According to at least one member of the New South Wales Liberal executive, Sally Betts, the member of Hughes, Craig Kelly, is a bully, a thug and a disgrace.

July 29, 2020

Out of sight, out of mind. Whats happened to Trade?

Trade does not get the attention it requires as all external issues are viewed through the prism of the defence/intelligence agencies, subordinating the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade itself. This has become worse since trade was integrated into that department.

February 19, 2019

GARY McLAREN Is an NBN quick fix possible?

The National Broadband Network went from a nation building project to political football after the 2013 election. Is it now too late to save? How much of the billions spent can be salvaged? How much needs to be spent to remedy the fundamental flaws?

October 21, 2018

KIM WINGEREI. An Australian Spring

The Wentworth by-election was not just a resounding loss for the Liberal Party, but also the clearest message yet that the people have had enough of party politics. Fielding an impressive and like-able candidate who did (almost) nothing wrong in his campaign, the Labor Party lost, too.

October 19, 2019

PETER SAINSBURY. Sunday environmental round up, 20 October 2019

Investments in renewables are increasing but not fast enough. Oil and gas companies continue investing to produce yet more greenhouse gases, including burning coal underground to produce gas in SA. On current trends Australias economy is going to take a big hit from climate change, particularly the property and agricultural sectors. Rising sea level is one among multiple threats to Pacific islands. Dont come back as a tiger in Laos.

November 20, 2019

WANNING SUN. New research shows Chinese migrants dont always side with China and are ha ppy to promote Australia

The Australian government has indicated that diaspora communities are crucial to Australias public diplomacy mission to promote the country abroad. It has also identified online and social media as essential public diplomacy tools.

December 6, 2018

MICHAEL McKINLEY. The age of Thorby (PART 2 - The addictive denial of transparency and the protection of malfeasance)

Where matters defined under the rubric of national security are concerned, the intelligence agencies of the state demand nothing less than the indulgence to act with unwarranted secrecy secrecy beyond that which is absolutely essential. Over the last 80 years, as detailed in Part 1, this arrogation and its putative rationale have been explicit especially in the politicised legal casuistry of the Attorney-General. We, the people should understand our place as unknowledgeable actors in the drama of governance and desist from dissent; indeed, against an abundance of evidence, we should trust the state - it is the repository of secret information and our guardian. A spelling revision of citizen is required: sitizen.

January 2, 2019

KIM WINGEREI. The Politics of Media Power.

Much has been said and will continue to be said about the power that Rupert Murdoch wields in our very concentrated media landscape. It is a landscape that continues to change and the ACCC just released the preliminary report on Digital Platforms. New regulations may be needed, but the issues goes to the core of our political discourse which no regulation will remedy.

November 18, 2019

ROB STEWART. Everything but the Elephant - Labor s Election Campaign Report

Labor has taken Government from Conservatives only 3 times in the past 70 years. It must start representing those who have no effective power the majority if it wants to be taken seriously.

May 14, 2018

MANDY FREUND, BEN HENLEY, KATHRYN ALLEN, PATRICK BAKER. Recent Australian droughts may be the worst in 800 years.

Australia is a continent defined by extremes, and recent decades have seen some extraordinary climate events. But droughts, floods, heatwaves, and fires have battered Australia for millennia. Are recent extreme events really worse than those in the past?

In a recent pa per, we reconstructed 800 years of seasonal rainfall patterns across the Australian continent. Our new records show that parts of Northern Australia are wetter than ever before, and that major droughts of the late 20th and early 21st centuries in southern Australia are likely without precedent over the past 400 years.

May 24, 2020

JOSEPH A. CAMILLERI. Can we rescue the China relationship from the abyss?

_For some time now we have been routinely mishandling our relations with China. Our petulant demand for an international Covid-19 inquiry, whose thinly veiled purpose was to point the finger at Beijings misdeeds, is the latest in a long series of missteps.

July 29, 2020

Lessons from the Cambodian genocide: 45 years on

Learning the biggest lesson of all from the Cambodian genocide the need to make Responsibility to Protect (R2P) genuinely effective means above all mobilizing the political will to make something actually happen when it must.

February 12, 2018

PETER BUCKSKIN. Closing the gap on Indigenous education must start with commitment and respect.

T_here were angry rumblings atlast weeks meetingof Indigenous leaders and the Prime Minister and in theClose the Gap Campaign Steering Committee Report. They will get significantly louder with todays release of the 10th Annual Closing the Gap Report._

January 24, 2018

IAN McAULEY. Reframing public ideas Part 8: Choice

Market-based capitalism, we are told, brings us choice. But often “choice” is within a limited range of similar products and services. In the name of supporting markets we can be denied the choice of being able to share services with one another, and the choice of opting out of markets.

August 9, 2016

MARIE SEGRAVE. Exploitation of foreign workers.

On Tuesday night, SBS Insight program aired concerns about temporary migrant labour exploitation. These issues tend to come to national attention when a particular case is exposed, but mostly they are not seen as national priorities and, as such, the response is generally reactive rather than proactive.

The exploitation to have attracted attention most recently often involves student-visa holders, working-holiday-visa holders and 457-visa holders.

Just a little under ten years ago, many of these situations would more immediately have been framed as issues of labour trafficking. But, since then, there has been a shift away from identifying and responding to these cases as potential slavery or trafficking offences, and instead focusing on labour exploitation as an issue for the Fair Work Ombudsman to review and/or redress.

September 5, 2019

IVAN LEVINGSTON, DAVID WAINER. The Most Undiplomatic of Diplomats Is Trumps Man in Middle East (Bloomberg 30-8-19)

David Friedman has upended Americanpolicy in theunstableregion.

May 31, 2020

MUNGO MACALLUM. Thanks to Jenny Hocking's indefatigable efforts, national pride has been salvaged.

It has taken more than 40 years, but Australian social democracy has prevailed over British hereditary privilege.

July 15, 2020

Looking to the past for an East Asia (China) Policy

_We need a policy not of belligerence or appeasement, but of self-confident intelligence and guile; one that tolerates open debate and keeps the intimidation of the security services at bay, deriding the loyalty tests for bureaucrat and academics implied in much of the commentary.

July 10, 2019

KIM WINGEREI The Religion of Sports

Israel Folau is a sad case of a sports star failing to understand his own religion, his role and his contractual obligations all at once.

September 17, 2020

A Tale of Two Prosthetic Legs: Panel Beating History at the Australian War Memorial

Visitors to the Afghanistan: The Australian Story exhibition are offered a theme park experience. Symbols, slogans, and sensations. Hop on an emotional rollercoaster and spin round corners to vicariously witness an ambush.

April 5, 2017

DAVID PEETZ. How tax minimisation affects CEO pay

_Firms whose executives behave unethically, as proxied by not paying any company tax, are also likely to pay their CEOs an average of around a fifth more than firms of similar size and circumstances who do pay compan_y tax.

Pearls and Irritations

John Menadue's Public Policy Journal