The end of race politics
Review: Coleman Hughes, The End of Race Politics: Arguments for a Colorblind America, Thesis (Penguin Random House), 2024 The topic…
What to do about crime? Papua New Guinea at 48
September 16, 2023, will mark 48 years of independence for Australia’s nearest neighbour – Papua New Guinea (PNG). And, by…
Staying the Liberal course: with wall-to-wall red, blue politics is on the ropes
It’s not difficult to determine that the Liberal Party appears in trouble. With wall-to-wall red states minus Tasmania, a popular…
American Diary: love of the game
Cramming recently into a freezing New York Jets game, I was surprised to learn that, despite the National Football League…
Australia and a Pacific ‘shape up’ in 2023
This year, the Pacific Islands clearly featured much more vividly in Australian politics. Near-state collapse in the Solomon Islands, matched…
The future of Australia’s monarchy
Sombre recent events have driven pause and reflection, not only upon a life of great service, but on Australia’s connection…
Duty, service, and change: vale Queen Elizabeth II
Prince Philip, it was said, had one duty above all others – to never let the Queen down. Her Majesty,…
Celebrating Australia’s National Flag
One of the truly unique stories of Australia’s National Flag is that it was designed by public competition. In 1901,…
What just happened in PNG?!
A troubling election in difficult times as Beijing creeps closer to the Pacific
Re-vamping the Pacific: will Australia ‘step up’ or ‘step out’?
In 2014, I wrote a short piece on the Pacific Islands that found its way, surprisingly, across the globe and into the Bangladeshi…
Australia stubbornly refuses to become a republic – with good reason
Back in high school days, a group of fellow students at a model United Nations conference rankled the organisers by…
A farewell to the Duke of Edinburgh
Prince Philip once said that his job – first, second and last – was ‘to never let the Queen down’.…
Aussie winds, republican kite-flying
Today, November 6, marks the twenty-first anniversary of the 1999 republic referendum. Two decades on, republican lobbyists are on the…
Sco Mo, Josh: this is what we need to hear tomorrow
Many Australians rightly look back on the Hawke-Keating-Howard-Costello era of the 1980s and 1990s as Australia’s golden era of reform. From the…
Not so accidental guerillas: how to counter the modern rioter
“They sayin’ Black Lives Matter and all this stuff,” he said. “But man, you’re hurting the black community.” These are the…
Republicans: time to accept the truth of the matter
With all the focus republican lobbyists have placed on the Palace Letters – a move that has backfired considerably –…
The ‘Palace letters’ should remind republicans: be careful what you wish for
Australian Republicans are excited by the High Court’s ruling to release the so-called ‘Palace letters’. The 200 or so letters, which contain…
A corona communique to Pirate Pete and pals: how about we fix federation before trying a republic?
It was former Labor Prime Minister Paul Keating who supposedly said ‘Never get between a Premier and a bag of…
Corona crisis cancelled my wedding, but may it never harm our long-term liberty
I was due to be married in Australia on May 9. But, even six weeks away, it is not to…
Built to last in the internet age
Peter Kirstein – a creator of the internet and the man who helped Queen Elizabeth hit ‘send’ on her first…
What would Winston do?
The end of the month marks 55 years since Winston Churchill’s death. With an estimated 10,000 books on the great man, one…
Ten reasons to stand tall on Australia Day – 10 reasons and one extra
As another Australia Day approaches and the inevitable wagons of shame begin to circle, it’s worth touching on the things…
Only our silliest republicans are excited by Megxit. Are the others wising up?
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s announcement to step back as “senior royals” has predictably drawn fierce speculation – former palace press secretary Dickie…
As Ronald Reagan said, it’s a time for choosing
“I have an uncomfortable feeling that this prosperity isn’t something on which we can base our hopes for the future,”…
Asylum – or arrogant entitlement?
The high-profile story of the deportation of the Sri Lankan Murugappan family has reminded us of the perennial tension between…
