December 22, 2025

What Australia’s teen social media ban could mean for reading

As under-16s are locked out of major social media platforms, online book communities that helped many teens discover reading are disappearing too. What’s being lost, and what might replace it?

November 24, 2025

Will AI kill the middle class?

When the creators of a new technology warn that it could destroy the primary engine of global growth of the past half a century, it’s worth paying attention

January 14, 2026

Best of 2025 - Gunboat hypocrisy in the Caribbean

Even as Donald Trump crisscrosses the globe, bringing his purported peacemaking skills to parts of the world that did not even know they were at war, his administration has openly been preparing for militarised regime change in Venezuela. Neighbouring Colombia too isn’t safe.

October 13, 2025

How anti-China witch hunts in Canada and the UK ruin lives

Security services such as London’s MI5 and Ottawa’s RCMP appear to be going after individuals and organisations out of pure antagonism and distrust against Beijing rather than having actual evidence.

January 14, 2025

Best of 2025 - Gunboat hypocrisy in the Caribbean

December 17, 2025

Prabowo’s first year: all power, no accountability

A year after Prabowo Subianto’s election, Indonesia’s democracy is under strain as power centralises, dissent is curtailed and the military’s influence grows.

October 23, 2025

Islamophobia in Australian schools: What the Special Envoy’s report means for education

Australia’s Special Envoy to Combat Islamophobia, Aftab Malik, recently released his landmark report: A National Response to Islamophobia: A Strategic Framework for Inclusion, Safety and Prosperity.

January 14, 2026

Best of 2025 - Getting away with murder

What happens in Australia if Israel gets away with genocide?

November 27, 2025

How Trump tried to sell Ukraine a diplomatic debacle

Two rival peace proposals for Ukraine have emerged – one from the US, echoing long-standing Russian demands, and another from Europe. Kyiv has rejected the US plan as written, insisting its sovereignty cannot be bargained away.

November 21, 2025

Denouement: trapped between empires - Part 6

“What you in Australia must understand is that you are more to blame than the CIA. You want this to happen, you want a certain administration in control, and you don’t want another administration in control. Do the loyalties of your intelligence services lie with your country as a whole or with the establishment in your country? In most instances, the answer you find is with the establishment.” Victor Marchetti, former CIA officer and deputy director at Pine Gap.

November 11, 2025

The black work of big oil

Now is the sinister time of year when the Barons of Big Oil gather together, under the auspices of the United Nations and with the blessing of most world leaders, to celebrate the 350 million needless deaths they plan to cause between now and 2050 in the name of profit.

November 3, 2025

Will the US do to Venezuela’s Maduro what they did to Gaddafi?

Something truly horrific is being planned for Venezuela. Generals are being bought and paid for, death squads are being organised and a major regime change operation is slowly gathering steam that, if executed, will have catastrophic consequences for the people of Venezuela and possibly the region beyond.

January 7, 2026

Best of 2025 - Best of 2025 - Who is a terrorist?

Since 7 October 2023 there has been a growth of the use of the allegation of terrorism for propaganda purposes.

December 8, 2025

Australia’s trust deficit is a failure of governance

Public trust in Australian politics is wearing dangerously thin. Restoring it will require clear standards, real accountability and decisions that can be traced, justified and owned.

November 22, 2025

Root canals and conspiracies

Social media misinformation is creating a public health problem of lost teeth, prolonged dental pain, unnecessary costs, and worsening inequalities in oral health.

October 19, 2025

Savvy politicians know how to ‘perform’ authenticity – the Jacinda Ardern doco offers a masterclass

There’s a telling moment in the documentary film Prime Minister when Jacinda Ardern reflects on her rapid rise from Labour leader to prime minister, saying she had “no time to redesign myself […] I could only be myself”.

November 12, 2025

Looking back on Remembrance Day

Remembrance Day should be one on which thoughts turn to peace. Instead it tends to lead us in the opposite direction.

October 12, 2025

Omar Yaghi: Refugee from Gaza wins 2025 Nobel Prize in chemistry

Born in a one-room home on the outskirts of Amman, the son of illiterate Palestinian refugees from Gaza, Professor Omar Yaghi has risen from the hardships of displacement to the highest pinnacle of scientific achievement by winning the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

January 16, 2026

Best of 2025 - Burn it all down movements

When a 34-year-old democratic socialist defeats a political dynasty in the nation’s largest city, we’re witnessing more than another electoral upset.

December 10, 2025

Nationalists play to the crowd in Japan–China relations

A warning from Japan’s prime minister about Taiwan has triggered a sharp exchange with Beijing, revealing how nationalism is reshaping diplomacy.

October 6, 2025

Palestinians out by 7 October?

No wonder Israel’s prime minister was grinning. He had his fourth meeting this year with President Trump. He also got what he came for: permission to “finish the job”.

October 9, 2025

Japan's likely new leader is a surprise, and not just because she is a woman

In the recent election held by Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party to find a new leader following the assassination of former prime minister, Shinzo Abe, an unlikely name to emerge was that of Sanae Takaichi.

November 15, 2025

China-phobia in Australia is endangering the country’s security

The toxic roots of China-phobia are deeply embedded in modern Australia’s cultural history. It has a firm grip on the minds of many of Australia’s policy wonks, politicians, media commentators, and the general public.

November 13, 2025

Burn it all down movements

When a 34-year-old democratic socialist defeats a political dynasty in the nation’s largest city, we’re witnessing more than another electoral upset.

November 5, 2025

Zombie multilateralism: The undead world of APEC

After 20 years, APEC returned to Korea, but it feels different.

December 18, 2025

Cutting the Internet in Afghanistan is gender-based violence

The Taliban’s September Internet blackouts were not a technical disruption but a deliberate act of control. By cutting digital access, Afghan women were stripped of education, income, connection and voice – extending gender apartheid into the online realm.

November 24, 2025

A rare win-win for climate, farming and biodiversity – if policymakers act

Restoring Australia’s farm dams could slash emissions, improve water quality, boost livestock productivity, and enhance biodiversity – all at low cost.

November 6, 2025

Lancet study shows more than 3m years of human life lost in Israeli assault on Gaza

“To speak of three million years of human life erased is to confront the true scale of this atrocity – generations of children, parents, and families wiped out,” said the head of a US advocacy group.

November 28, 2025

Trying teenagers as adults won’t fix youth crime

Victoria’s proposal to send 14–17 year olds into adult courts ignores international law, expert evidence and decades of failed policy. Rehabilitation, not punishment, is what reduces future harm.

October 31, 2025

Open letter to David Marr on his interview with Chris Hedges

Well-known journalist Chris Hedges, whose talk scheduled to be delivered at the National Press Club was suddenly cancelled, was confronted by the ABC’s Late Night Live host David Marr in an unexpectedly ferocious interview. One reader took exception to this.

December 6, 2025

Refugees aren’t politically progressive by default – and policy needs to catch up

Australian settlement policy often assumes refugees will embrace progressive politics. Research and community experience show refugee political identities are far more diverse – with important implications for law and policy.

November 25, 2025

The ceasefire that isn’t: 400 violations in 40 days

Israel has violated the ceasefire in Gaza hundreds of times since October, using vague or unverified justifications to carry out strike in a recurring pattern of escalation and impunity.

December 9, 2025

‘This will be my dream project’: How we got Frank Gehry to design the UTS ‘paper bag’

“I’m up for it” was the response of arguably the most famous architect in the world to our hesitant inquiry. “This will be my dream project,” he said.

October 21, 2025

'We can do this': Rio Tinto’s rapid switch to renewables shows path for quick exit from coal

You might be able to imagine the scene: An Australia sporting minister stands up in front of a vast audience to announce that something is simply not possible – it might be running 100 metres in 10 seconds, kicking a drop goal from 50 metres, or a swimming relay team beating a world record.

December 15, 2025

Book Review: Merlinda Bobis explores four generations of colonialism and violence in the Phillipines

Merlinda Bobis’ In the Name of the Trees weaves four generations of Bikol women into a powerful exploration of colonial violence, language, land and survival.

October 25, 2025

Indonesia’s security depends on educating the minds behind its machines

Indonesia is investing in its regional influence — purchasing new fighters, drones, frigates and billions in defence contracts — while allowing its classrooms to deteriorate.

December 2, 2025

Indonesia’s Gaza peacekeeping bid raises more questions than answers

Indonesia has offered to send up to 20,000 troops to Gaza as part of an international peacekeeping force. The proposal highlights shifting regional politics – and unresolved concerns about military power, credibility and human rights.

January 12, 2026

Best of 2025 - Israel’s response to the International Court of Justice

The ceasefire plan in Gaza has dominated our news in recent days and weeks. One aspect of the plan is the obligation of Israel in the first phase to release a number — a large number — of Palestinian prisoners.

January 8, 2026

Best of 2025 - A smart productivity play: Stop subsidising loss-making native forest logging

On 7 September 2025, NSW set the proposed 476,000-hectare boundary for the Great Koala National Park and halted native-forest logging within it (plantation harvesting continues), with formal gazettal slated for 2026.

December 5, 2025

Is the focus on NAPLAN’s ‘top’ schools a good idea?

This year’s NAPLAN results reveal encouraging stories of student progress, but headlines about ’top’ schools risk oversimplifying how improvement really happens – and what parents should take from the data.

October 29, 2025

The unvanquished will: Gaza’s triumph of spirit against the architecture of genocide

For the last two years, my social media algorithm has been relentlessly dominated by Gaza, particularly by the voices of ordinary Gazans, displaying a blend of emotions that centres on two core principles: grief and defiance.

December 2, 2025

AI and the news: how it helps, fails, and why that matters

AI is reshaping the news ecosystem in the fields of search, fact-checking and personalised feeds. If used well, it can support journalism and strengthen democracy.

December 1, 2025

Trade and tariffs: how reciprocity turned into retaliation

Tariff powers once tightly constrained by Congress have steadily migrated to the US presidency. That shift is reshaping global trade – and exposing countries like Australia to greater economic coercion.

October 13, 2025

Fifty years of political economics at Sydney University – what has it meant for us?

Earlier this year The Journal of Australian Political Economy published a _special issue_ devoted to recollections and implications of 50 years of Political Economy courses at Sydney University.

November 8, 2025

Computer still says no to Queenslanders wearing seatbelts

The ACT Government has just announced that from 3 November, “ACT traffic cameras will detect and issue infringements for seatbelt offences".

October 7, 2025

7 October 2023: shocking yes, surprising no

A new book on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Road to October 7 - a brief history of Palestinian Islamism, by Erik Skare, shows how the seeds of the Gaza war were sown over decades.

December 3, 2025

Global campaign amplifies call for the release of jailed Palestinian leader Barghouti

An international campaign is calling for the release of Palestinian political figure Marwan Barghouti, arguing his freedom could reshape Palestinian politics and revive peace efforts.

December 22, 2025

Vulnerability at the heart of Christmas

Christmas begins with fragility rather than power. The story of Jesus’ birth places vulnerability, dependence and shared humanity at its centre.

January 15, 2026

Best of 2025 - The new political economy of innovation: Why Australian policymakers need better tools

When the Commonwealth Government reorganised its innovation responsibilities for the fourth time in a decade, public servants made jokes about updating their email signatures again.

Pearls and Irritations

John Menadue's Public Policy Journal