Flat White

In-depth analysis of the day’s news, plus stories and gossip from Australian politics.

More hot days — or “purpose-designed” temperature sensors at play?

19 October 2017 7:28 am

I don’t believe in conspiracies of silence except when it comes to Harvey Weinstein and the Australian Bureau of Meteorology.…

Dangerous sex

18 October 2017 5:48 pm

It is safe to say, that nowadays, sexual gratification is fraught with danger. It’s probably always been that way for…

Don’t cry for Hillary, Australia

18 October 2017 3:17 pm

The ABC Four Corners is supposed to be a gutsy, fact-finding expose-type television program. Most of the time it is.…

“My family’s voting ‘Yes’!”

18 October 2017 12:37 pm

Last Saturday evening I had a curious encounter. I was busy running around LibertyFest making sure everything ran smoothly when…

18c, weaponised

18 October 2017 7:25 am

Who can forget the Beaconsfield Mine Disaster of 2006? For two weeks, the entire nation was gripped with the rescue…

Let the poor pay more for electricity

17 October 2017 6:10 pm

An outfit called the Victorian Council of Social Service, one supposes, would be concerned with the less well-off. Apparently not.…

Victoria’s euthanasia bill is not safe

17 October 2017 3:03 pm

The Parliament of Victoria is about to vote on a bill to legalise assisted suicide and euthanasia. Health Minister Jill…

End the renewables rorts now for cheap power

17 October 2017 11:01 am

The government’s abandonment of the expanded renewable energy target that the Finkel report recommended represents a careful compromise. The Prime…

Please welcome our new PM, Julie Bishop

17 October 2017 7:25 am

At this point, even Malcolm Turnbull knows he’s not a competent leader. He’s updating his CV, dry-cleaning his ties and…

No ticket, no start

16 October 2017 4:57 pm

What is the point of a Liberal government? Tomorrow the New South Wales parliament will debate the Fair Trading Amendment…

Domestic violence industry tries to tap into terrorism for cash

16 October 2017 1:00 pm

In July, Fairfax wrote that 46 per cent of Australians who think we should be spending more on anti-terrorism measures…

What do taxpayers get from UNESCO?

16 October 2017 7:31 am

Last week the United States withdrew from UNESCO, the UN’s Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, citing politicisation, after UNESCO designated…

The best (wo)man for the job…

15 October 2017 7:49 pm

It’s time to quit complaining about the supposedly terrible state of politics in Australia. If the perfect market is achieved…

The truly pathetic bias of Fairfax media

13 October 2017 5:26 pm

Clearly spurred on by Mark Powell’s excellent piece this morning on the decline of its Sydney sister, The Age has…

Drug decriminalisation: no pipe dream

13 October 2017 1:03 pm

In a time where government expenditure is a staggeringly high, the war on drugs needs to be tackled with more…

RIP, Mr Fairfax

13 October 2017 10:38 am

I really miss the Sydney Morning Herald. And I’m pretty sure I’m not alone. I miss those halcyon days where…

Some die, others appear on The Drum

12 October 2017 8:01 pm

Working as a journalist has always had its hazards. Follow the story and you may find yourself in some uncomfortable…

“No” campaign dad shows why we need school choice

12 October 2017 5:01 pm

Last week, Buzzfeed reported that Steve Tourloukis, a Canadian father prominent in advertising by the Coalition for Marriage, “asked for…

When France puts you to shame with IR reform, you’re in trouble

12 October 2017 2:01 pm

Australia needs politicians like Emmanuel Macron – politicians who are willing to take on powerful vested interests for the sake…

What happened at Fatima 100 years ago?

12 October 2017 12:00 pm

On Friday, 12 October 1917 many had walked barefooted to the Cova da Iria in Fatima, in central Portugal, to…

Why Labor should stop pretending and ditch same-sex marriage

12 October 2017 7:26 am

Labor voters are the most considerate, salt-of-the-earth people you’re ever likely to meet at a polling booth sausage sizzle. How…

Campaigning for cancer

11 October 2017 7:26 pm

If you were told that the Cancer Council along with the Australian Medical Association were campaigning for more cancer, you…

Casting couch conundrums

11 October 2017 3:00 pm

The casting couch is not the most comfortable seat in the room. You could say it is downright uncomfortable, especially…

Climate critics can’t keep up with Abbott

11 October 2017 12:17 pm

Sneers and insults were the response de rigeur from the uninformed to Tony Abbott’s speech a couple of days ago to the Global…

Same-sex marriage and the war on biology

11 October 2017 7:29 am

Maybe there are folks out there in plebiscite land who believe that there are no robust intellectual arguments against same-sex marriage or, if there are…