April 10, 2023

Albanese should take the Voice to the people

The gutsy thing for Anthony Albanese to do in the wake of the coalitions decision to vote no in the Voice referendum would be to carry on virtuously with the ballot, taking such advantage as he can from the Liberals decision to break the heart of more than half the country. But the inspired response would be to announce an election in which Liberal hostility to the voice would be only one of a hundred examples of where Peter Dutton and his party are out of step with the public mood, and almost adamantly determined to infuriate it.

September 26, 2022

Dealing with the China threat: An Asian perspective

_Forcing Asian countries to choose between the USA and China is unlikely to work. Even close Asian allies of the US have shown that they prefer to go their own way in geopolitics.

January 17, 2021

Joe Biden's Catholicism

With the exception of Jimmy Carter and George W. Bush, religion has not been a big deal for recent US presidents who were, at best, nominal Christians. For Joe Biden faith is central to who he is.

June 18, 2024

Why has the Australian Parliament failed to debate the tragedy of Gaza?

A majority of Australians want a ceasefire in Gaza, but the Australian Parliament seems more preoccupied with political brinkmanship than recognition of this tragedy.

September 4, 2022

On Ukraine and Taiwan we are not using diplomacy; we are using weaponry

We are taking exactly the same tactics in East Asia that led to the war in Ukraine. Were organisingalliances, building up weaponry, trash-talking China, having Speaker Pelosi fly to Taiwan, when the Chinese government said, Please, lower the temperature, lower the tensions. We say, No, we do what we want, and now send more arms. This is a recipe for yet another war. And to my mind, its terrifying.

A new database that Tufts is maintaining has just shown that there have been more than 100 military interventions by the United States since 1991. Its really unbelievable.

May 29, 2021

Sunday environmental round up.

Only a quarter of Earths land was wild 12,000 years ago. Tropical deforestation increases despite international agreements to stop it by 2030. Plans to save Australias 50 most threatened plants, six unburnt forests on the east coast, and WAs native vegetation.

January 24, 2021

An 'ugly plot' by the 'Democrats' in Hong Kong

The arrest of 53 persons on January 6-7 this year in Hong Kong on suspicion of subversion has, once again, raised a frenzy of condemnation by western leaders and the media.

August 28, 2024

Global population growth is now slowing rapidly. Will a falling population be better for the environment?

Right now, human population growth is doing something long thought impossible – it’s wavering. It’s now possible global population could peak much earlier than expected, topping 10 billion in the 2060s. Then, it would begin to fall.

June 1, 2024

To Israel’s ‘Tragic Mistakes’, the world’s response is pathetic

Israeli forces’ slaughters of Gazans, journalists, doctors, humanitarian aid workers are described by military spokespersons and by Prime minister Netanyahu as tragic mistakes. In retrospect, killings appear an intention conducted by an alleged accident, in which well rehearsed explanations are part of a familiar two faced process of speaking with double tongues.

June 1, 2023

The inconvenient truths in the rise of China

In charting the way ahead for Australia-China relations, Canberra needs to present the risks posed by increasing Chinese military power in realistic rather than hawkish terms, writes Colin Heseltine.

May 12, 2022

Albanese and minimum wages. Should the government support a 5.1% increase ?

There has never been a better time to increase minimum wages than now. And there has never been a bigger need.

February 28, 2021

Obituary: Grand Chief Sir Michael Somare

With the death of Grand Chief Sir Michael Somare the man who led Papua New Guinea to independence in 1975 and became Papua New Guineas longest-serving member of parliament the Pacific has lost one of its most prominent and respected leaders.

September 5, 2024

Israeli hostages, Palestinian prisoners: the worthy and unworthy

Israeli citizens’ demand to bring home an estimated 100 Israeli hostages still held captive by Hamas is assumed to depend on a Gaza ceasefire which would include a Palestinian prisoner release.

July 6, 2024

Payman shatters the shackles of political amorality

The essential difference between Senator Fatima Payman and the rest of the federal Labor caucus – and the Coalition caucus as well – is that she opposes genocide and wants the federal parliament to take effective action against it. She is a minority of one in the federal Labor-Coalition political class.

May 9, 2024

Israel is carrying out a horrific ground invasion of Rafah

Israel has begun a ground assault on Rafah, where 1.5 million Palestinians have sought refuge from the brutal war on Gaza. International observers say the attack on Rafah, now the most densely populated place on Earth, will mean mass killings of civilians, writes Seraj Assi in the Jacobin.

August 23, 2022

Moves began in 2018 for Morrison's secret government

Scott Morrison and/or his officials prepared the way for the Prime Minister or a Minister to secretly administer a government department in August 2018, just four days after Morrison took power after disposing of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

September 27, 2021

AUKUS and submarines: Just what are we doing?

There has been so much commentary on the new AUKUS arrangements, especially the cancellation of the long-running submarine contract with the French. It’s timely to strip back all the hype and examine more closely what it all means.

February 14, 2021

US government changes hands but Assange approach will stay the same

The Australian government’s unwillingness to protect one of its own, coupled with Biden’s contradictory remarks about WikiLeaks, means nothing is likely to stop the wheels of British and American justice grinding towards the predictable result.

October 21, 2020

Why Labor should scrap the Stage 3 tax cuts

The Governments stage 3 tax cuts due to come into operation in 2024-25 should be scrapped. They are too costly and too biased in favour of the highest incomes. Instead, there are other better ways to support economic growth using the money, such as Labors recently announced policy of increased subsidies for childcare.

September 4, 2024

Record numbers of temporary graduates in immigration limbo

Temporary graduate visas are for overseas students who complete their study and wish to undertake work in Australia, often as a pathway to permanent residence. These visas work best when the bulk of temporary graduates seeking permanent residence are able to secure skilled work and eventually a permanent residence employer sponsored (or other) permanent visa.

August 20, 2023

Albanese and the ALP, running scared

Hard core supporters of Australias alliance with America in Australia, the USA, and in the UK were no doubt thrilled by Anthony Albaneses full-throated defence of the AUKUS deal at the ALPs national conference in Brisbane. It was as much playing to them that his speech was directed as it was to the conference delegates and Labor supporters at home.

May 18, 2023

Australias real status as a submissive ally

Like the occasional failure of a president to pronounce the name of our prime minister, US President Joe Biden cancelling his attendance at the QUAD is a reminder that America needs to balance bilateral relationships with 192 nation states and that up to 20 flatter themselves that their relationship is a special one.

August 7, 2022

Theres no escaping a hothouse earth

_A couple of months ago I set off with my partner to the northern hemisphere for a prolonged stint in Canada. Ill admit I was excited and relieved to be getting away from the rain-soaked Northern Rivers. The region had been robbed of sunlight for months on end and the trauma of the floods earlier in the year was deeply ingrained, even though I was among the lucky few whose house was spared.

July 5, 2022

What is Anthony Albanese up to!

_Anthony Albanese has shown during his recent trip to Europe that he is a prime minister addicted to hyperbole and oblivious to how countries can change in unexpected ways.

July 8, 2021

Acting on health advice

In the absence of corroborating evidence, I do not believe Scott Morrison.

January 20, 2021

Despite appearances, this government isnt really Keynesian, as its budget update shows

It is tempting to think the Australian governments decision to spend big an unprecedented 33% of GDP this financial year according to the budget update marks an embrace of Keynesian economics after decades in which authorities have looked the other way.

November 26, 2020

Biden and South East Asia (Asialink Nov 24, 2020

Three weeks after the election, there is plenty of evidence that Biden and the emerging Democrat foreign policy team -in-waiting appreciate the strategic challenges facing President Elect Biden both in Europe and the Indo-Pacific.

September 11, 2024

Australia's collaboration with Israel's genocide

Republished from DECLASSIFIED AUSTRALIA, September 03, 2024

FOI document releases show that behind the press releases and statements of concern, lie the facts of the Australian Government’s knowing support for some of the gravest human rights crimes of the century.

June 10, 2024

Four rescued Israels equals over two hundred dead Palestinians whilst we continue to support a rogue state

To rescue four Israeli hostages Israel massacred two hundred and ten or more innocent Palestinian souls to prove that the War on Gaza was worth it, just to prove their machismo.

September 5, 2021

Provoking China to please the US.

The Morrison government is pushing Australia towards a confrontation with Beijing, mainly to be seen as a fawning acolyte in Washington.

December 29, 2020

Medicare Review: professional mobbing and cartel behaviour against nurses

The long-awaited Medicare Benefits Scheme Taskforce Review (MBSTR) Report has been released but brought little joy for those seeking contemporary health care delivery, improved consumer choice, and outcome-based care.

September 30, 2024

Israel and the culture of denial

_There will be no peace and security for Israelis until Palestinians enjoy freedom, justice and equality from the river to the sea.

September 17, 2024

How to ensure a Gaza ceasefire

We are all appalled by the scale of the deaths and destruction in Gaza. Every day brings more terrible news.

August 12, 2022

What to do about the Treasure Island of Taiwan

_Sir, with no intention to take offence, I deny your right to put words into my mouth, Captain Smollett said in Stevensons classic _Treasure Island.

July 31, 2022

Teetering on a tightrope: Labor, the Teals, and tactics

_The rise of the Teals and Greens represents a structural shift in Australias political landscape. This shift reflects deep-seated electoral disaffection with both major parties. In 2022 around 33 percent of the primary vote went to minor parties and independents rather than Labor and the Coalition. Yet Labor continues to behave as if the last election was a business as usual change of government. This is a misreading that leaves it teetering on a tightrope.

July 19, 2021

Scott Morrison-No compassion, and no marketing skill either?

When Scott Morrison became prime minister, two dimensions of his persona seemed potentially positive: a Christian faith that might have illuminated his leadership with kindness and compassion, to say nothing of integrity, and a widely-touted marketing background (Scotty from Marketing) that might have lifted the standard of political communication and inspired some brilliance in government advertising. Whatever hopes might thus have been raised have long since been dashed.

June 29, 2021

Why cant we agree on the powers needed for a Commonwealth Integrity Commission?

Ministerial discretion under the Westminster system as it is applied in Australia is a useful but corruptible power.

June 16, 2021

Unsettled - seeing First Nations histories represented in the Australian Museum

Museums, libraries and archives are traditionally not culturally safe spaces for First Nations peoples. As state institutions, they have supported the colonial process and they have privileged certain histories over others. The collections that they hold often position Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as objects or specimens of scientific and anthropological study. The historically biased nature of collecting institutions compounds the level of distrust they can raise for First Nations people, and access to them can cause significant discomfort when the materials deny or misrepresent First Nations peoples’ lived cultures and experiences.

January 17, 2021

Conspiracy Theorists, Free Speech and Australian Politicians

No need to be a wowser to insist that respect for truth cements civil society and that personal relationships, conduct in organizations and the implementation of governments policies depend on claims based on proven facts.

October 20, 2020

Abetz fearlessly proclaims he is not a Fascist by birth

Likely, none of the three distinguished Australians of Chinese ethnicity appearing a Senate committee hearing expected to be comprehensively done over by two ideologues from the Australian right Senators Eric Abetz and Concetta Fierravanti-Wells.

October 15, 2020

Why are the loyalties of Chinese- Australians questioned constantly in the public arena?

In my opening statement to the Senate Committee, I talked about the toxic environment for Chinese-Australians who engage in public policy debates right now. In particular, I mentioned that one of the reasons Chinese-Australians are choosing to remain silent is because they don’t want their loyalties to be questioned constantly in the public arena.

March 29, 2020

HENRY REYNOLDS.- When will we see a cost-benefit of our meddling in the Middle East?

By the end of this year Australia will have begun the process of removing our armed forces from the Iraq and Afghanistan or at least be considering what can fairly be termed a retreat after a series of engagements lasting almost twenty years.

June 17, 2024

Who can make the call on anti-semitism?

The Holocaust was racist genocide of an unprecedented scale of industrial organisation. The ensuing term Never Again applies to all humankind and resonates with Jewish conceptions of justice. This moral value is now in jeopardy, impacting on Australians of conscience.

August 31, 2023

A compelling voice for rethinking Australias national security

Sam Roggeveens Echidna Strategy rightly challenges Australia to act as a diplomatic powerhouse, not a military one.

September 28, 2021

Brian Toohey: Australia's nuclear submarine deal won't make us any safer

Despite what some commentators say, China does not pose a nuclear threat to Australia: its submarines and other nuclear weapons systems are much inferior to those of the US.

June 22, 2021

The misuse of Covid app data by police and others.

_There ought also to be heavy penalties and sanctions for the leadership of the police, law enforcement and security agencies when they facilitate or turn a blind eye to, the unlawful gathering of data such as Covid tracing app data.

October 19, 2020

Part 1: From CES to Job Network

The best way to assess Australias controversial system of contracted employment services is to track where it came from, how it affected services, and how and why successive governments have adjusted it. For, despite a widely expressed view that the policy was a complete failure it has endured for 23 years.

May 25, 2020

PETER WILKINSON AND GAIL GROSSMAN FREYNE. Historic Church Governance Report locked down by Australian Bishops

On 4 May 2020 the Project Team commissioned by the Australian bishops and religious superiors to review the Catholic Churchs governance and management structures, presented its 200-page final report. Its 86 recommendations include the need for greater transparency and co-responsibility. The decision of the bishops to withhold the report from public view for at least 6 months has shocked many Catholics.

September 22, 2024

These are the things I’ve learnt you can’t ask about Israel

In recent years, I have been asked to comment on the Middle East “impasse”, though I am no foreign policy expert. I am merely one of many humanists who mourn this tragic history and rail against the failure of the international community to exert the great influence it has to bring peace and justice to innocent civilians in this area of the world.

Pearls and Irritations

John Menadue's Public Policy Journal