February 8, 2026

On the emails between Jeffrey Epstein and Noam Chomsky

Vijay Prashad reflects on the Jeffrey Epstein revelations, his personal history, and the profound sense of betrayal and moral shock they have provoked.

January 24, 2026

Linklater and Hawke turn a broken partnership into riveting cinema

Richard Linklater’s Blue Moon uses Ethan Hawke’s portrayal of Lorenz Hart to explore the grief, jealousy and loneliness that can follow a fractured creative partnership. Patricia Edgar argues it is a sharp, claustrophobic film about talent, loss and the human cost of being left behind.

December 17, 2025

The long consequences of forgetting

As climate breakdown, war and institutional failure converge, the comforts of forgetting no longer shield us from the consequences of our own history.

February 2, 2026

Why ‘salvage logging’ undermines a promise to end native forest logging

Despite announcing an end to native forest logging, destructive logging practices continue in Victoria under the guise of firebreaks and post-storm debris removal – with serious consequences for biodiversity, fire risk and public trust.

October 22, 2025

The Pope, the media and the 'normalisation' of Trump

As world media and leaders normalise US President Donald Trump’s erratic behaviour, Pope Leo XIV must resist and keep his distance.

February 24, 2026

Australia’s moral failure over women and children in Syria

Australian citizens and their children remain stranded in Syrian camps as political fear eclipses care, responsibility and legal obligation – with damaging consequences for public decency.

January 12, 2026

Best of 2025 - Who are 'Advance' and what are they doing to our politics?

Launched in 2018 as a conservative answer to GetUp!, the group Advance likes to style itself as the voice of the average person against “the elite"._

November 21, 2025

Assessing the Liberal Party's policy-making capacity

Good policy should be evidence-based. But this is not the case with the Liberals energy policy and seems unlikely with their migration policy.

March 17, 2026

Frank Brennan on the fog of war

As conflict spreads across the Middle East, the moral test of war returns to first principles – legality, justification and the danger of acting in blindness.

March 14, 2026

Robodebt report is still not the end of the road

The National Anti-Corruption Commission’s Robodebt report provides transparency and some accountability, but key findings and the lack of public detail on APS code breaches leave troubling questions unresolved.

March 1, 2026

Lord of the Flies in the age of Trump

William Golding’s Lord of the Flies remains a bleak meditation on power, fear and civilisation. In today’s politics, its allegory feels newly unsettling.

January 17, 2026

Best of 2025 - Five reasons Trump’s economy stinks and 10 things the Dems should do about It

The Trump economy is truly awful for most Americans. Democrats need to show America that they can be better trusted to bring prices down and real wages up.

November 30, 2025

Led Zeppelin, my band that never ‘made it’, and the lost art of failure

Our culture treats success as virtue and failure as personal flaw. Older traditions – from Greek tragedy to Christian thought – saw failure as meaningful. Recovering that wisdom may be essential to living with dignity in an age of burnout.

November 12, 2025

The debate about net zero ignores the evidence

Those in the Coalition who are opposed to targeting net zero carbon emissions, argue that it will cost too much. But that claim is false and not supported by the evidence. How can they get away with it?

October 11, 2025

Almost no Australians study Chinese any more. That’s a problem

Fewer than five Australians per year are graduating from honours programs in Chinese studies with language, raising fears the nation is losing the expertise needed to navigate its most complex foreign relationship.

February 10, 2026

Giving billionaires a voice: 2025 election donations

New donation data shows how wealthy individuals and well-funded campaigning organisations sought to shape Australia’s 2025 election through money, messaging and pressure politics.

January 14, 2026

Best of 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.

November 29, 2025

Gaza’s true death toll could be 126,000 or even higher

New research suggests Gaza’s death toll may be far higher than widely reported, with devastating implications for life expectancy, poverty and accountability.

October 28, 2025

It's no longer possible to be a Palestinian in the West Bank

In the West Bank, no one has heard about the ceasefire in Gaza: not the army, not the settlers, not the Civil Administration and, of course, not the three million Palestinians who live under their tyranny. They do not feel the end of the war in the slightest.

October 8, 2025

Trump’s Gaza peace plan: Today, tomorrow and the day after

Back in January last year, my Toda Policy Brief 182 was published with the title “Israel and Gaza: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow”.

February 9, 2026

Why sanctions have entrenched conflict with North Korea, not resolved it

Sanctions on North Korea have neither halted its nuclear program nor produced stability, while imposing heavy costs on civilians and regional security.

January 31, 2026

As Marmite Morrissey returns, let’s talk about the actual music

When news broke of a new Morrissey single and album (both titled Make-Up is a Lie), one thing was assured: it was going to get people talking.

December 19, 2025

MYEFO leaves the hard work on inflation, debt and budget repair undone

The latest MYEFO shows only marginal improvement in the budget outlook, while deficits persist and fiscal settings continue to complicate the Reserve Bank’s task.

October 18, 2025

One more betrayal of the Palestinians

The history of the Palestinians is a history of betrayal. In the wake of World War I, Britain and France redrew the map of the Middle East to suit their own ends.

March 5, 2026

Why I risked prison to add a 'Losing Sound' to poker machines

Poker machines are designed to celebrate wins but stay silent on losses. A new project aims to disrupt that psychological design by introducing a simple losing sound – and to push for legislative reform.

January 28, 2026

Female-only swimming saves lives: the overlooked gap in Australia’s drowning prevention

Female-only swimming sessions are not a cultural luxury. They are a proven, evidence-based public safety measure that too many Australian women still cannot access.

December 2, 2025

We’re not about to go full Trump no matter what the culture warriors say

Strains on social cohesion cannot be dismissed as the embrace of multiculturalism has made the task of defining what holds the community together more challenging.

October 26, 2025

Living with schizophrenia

The title of this book is emblematic. It gets to the heart of the problem of schizophrenia, indeed within the authors’ preface.

March 12, 2026

A mosque, a meal and the strength of Australian community

A shared Ramadan meal in Canberra shows how everyday encounters and neighbourly goodwill quietly build social cohesion in multicultural Australia.

February 11, 2026

The Coalition decision that locks the Liberals out of the cities

By returning to Coalition with a declining National Party, the Liberals have doubled down on policies and demographics that alienate urban voters and younger Australians.

January 26, 2026

Beyond the ruptured alliance: an outline for Plan B

Australia’s alliance with the United States is no longer reliable, and clinging to it now risks Australia’s interests and values. The case for a deliberate, staged Plan B begins with strategic autonomy – and an overdue reckoning with extended nuclear deterrence.

January 5, 2026

Best of 2025 - Chasing a chimera: The political dream of AUKUS that consumes reality

For the sake of taxpayers, let’s hope that the Audit Office is inspecting the AUKUS books closely.

November 3, 2025

‘No restrictions’ and a secret ‘wink’: Inside Israel’s deal with Google, Amazon

To secure the lucrative Project Nimbus contract, the tech giants agreed to disregard their own terms of service and sidestep legal orders by tipping Israel off if a foreign court demands its data, a joint investigation reveals.

November 1, 2025

Understanding Australia-China research mobility

Australia’s research partnership with China is a significant component of its scientific output, particularly in engineering, technology and applied sciences.

November 6, 2025

New York, 1975: New York, 2025

Zoran Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist Muslim, has won his bid to become Mayor of New York. David Rosen looks at how the city he will run has changed in 50 years.

October 31, 2025

The leader most capable of governing a future Palestinian state is languishing in an Israeli jail

As the future of Gaza hangs in the balance, the Palestinian Authority needs renewal if it’s to eventually govern the Strip and play a key role in making the two-state solution a reality.

October 9, 2025

Journos as heroes and villains - 'The Hack' reviewed - Part 1

In films and on the small screen, journalists are portrayed as heroes or villains. In The Hack they are both. Does this reflect the diminished, benighted standing journalists hold in society today or is it a step forward in showing the complexities of the work?

November 28, 2025

Trump is melting down: Is this the beginning of the end?

Mental health professionals are warning that Donald Trump’s behaviour poses serious risks to democratic governance and international security – yet the media largely looks away.

October 16, 2025

Reuniting families: reforming Australia’s approach

Saffron Williams is one of six talented young Australians who will travel to the UN General Assembly in New York next week as part of the Global Voices project.

January 20, 2026

The Royal Commission must put social cohesion first

Social cohesion should be the starting point – not an afterthought – if we want to reduce racism, resentment and extremism.

December 10, 2025

Too many states, too little nation: time to fix the federation

Australia’s federal system was designed for the nineteenth century. Today it produces duplication, dysfunction and state parochialism that frustrate national governance and reform.

October 25, 2025

Misinformation was rife during the 2025 election. New research shows many people were unable to identify it

Misinformation has become a routine part of daily life, shaping public discourse and distorting perceptions. A new report reveals that in the two weeks prior to the 2025 federal election, almost two-thirds (60%) of adults reported coming across election misinformation. Only 19% didn’t come across it and 21% were unsure.

October 17, 2025

Climate change causing oceans to decline at alarming rate

Climate change and human activity are causing the health of the world’s oceans to decline at an alarming rate, the UN has warned.

February 14, 2026

How did the Liberals’ first female leader find herself on the mat in under a year?

Sussan Ley’s rapid collapse as Liberal leader reflects her own limitations – but also a party struggling with factional dominance, ideological fracture and relentless polling panic.

January 19, 2026

Best of 2025 - Australia’s immigration 'debate' is rhetoric, not policy

Australia is awash with immigration rhetoric, but little of it is grounded in evidence, clear definitions or serious policy alternatives. Rather than an informed public debate, Australians are being offered slogans, blame and ambiguity.

December 3, 2025

Coalition’s Australian values test is the ultimate dog whistle

Sussan Ley’s so-called “values test” exposes the Coalition’s desperation to court the far-Right under the guise of patriotism.

November 24, 2025

US foreign policy and Sudan: hypocrisy, incoherence and self-interest

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s recent remarks on Sudan appear empathetic – but they may reveal more about strategic positioning than genuine concern.

November 19, 2025

Breaking free of media group-think is a scary, lonely journey. I know. I was forced to do it

The western media’s failure to report the reality of Gaza didn’t start on 7 October 2023. It’s always been like this. Here’s why journalists won’t tell you the truth about Palestine.

October 15, 2025

Embedding free, prior and informed consent in Australia’s legal framework

Tiarna Williams is one of six talented young Australians who will travel to the UN General Assembly in New York next week as part of the Global Voices project.

Pearls and Irritations

John Menadue's Public Policy Journal