In-depth analysis of the day’s news, plus stories and gossip from Australian politics.
How to turn cheap power back on
Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg claims that renewable energy is a disruptive force in the energy market in the same way as the…
Section 44 solved in six easy steps
Malcolm Turnbull has a heck of a political problem on his hands. For once, it’s not entirely of his own…
Does China have a claim on Penny Wong?
The dual citizenship issues that have now entangled so many of our Parliamentarians have thrown up many issues, and one…
You want marriage equality? Here’s the starting point
I have a niece who is an out and proud lesbian, and I love her dearly, and I also love…
The Christian case for assisted dying
Before and after photos of Frenchwoman Chantal Sebire motivated me, in 2009, to become public in advocating, as a Christian,…
With Bannon gone, it’s civil war
At its most coherent, Trumpism has always been a heretical offshoot of Bannonism: the same populist-nationalist spirit without its conservative,…
Rotten pollies, rotten media, the chicken and the egg
There’s general agreement nowadays. Our politics stinks. So does the media. What’s less clear, however, is if one begat the…
How to deal with Pauline Hanson’s political stunts
Before Trump or Farage, before Wilders or Marine Le Pen, there was Pauline. Pauline Hanson was the original rabble-rouser who…
The monarchists’ best friend
You’d quite rightly be suspicious if someone came knocking on your door every few months asking you to move to…
Water thieves steal from us all
Stealing in Australia is serious. The consequences are severe. That does not seem to be the case when the property…
Ban the Burqa stunts
Pauline Hanson walked into the Senate yesterday all covered up, which no doubt improved the aesthetics of the place, but…
Corporations don’t have views on same-sex marriage, people do
After the news that Australia will proceed with a postal plebiscite on same sex marriage, Qantas, a long time supporter…
Funeral crashers: how antifa became the new Westboro Baptist Church
No, liberals, the ends do not justify the means. There is no vindication for violence, despite your cause. The heartbreaking…
A message to Victorians on euthanasia
Liz Carr is a UK actor, comedian and disability rights activist perhaps best known as forensic examiner Clarissa Mullery in…
What a burqua!
Just when you thought Canberra couldn’t turn into more of a circus, Pauline Hanson turned it into a fancy-dress party.…
In defense of the same-sex marriage plebiscite (or the next best option)
The late great Harvard professor John Rawls famously said that a diversity of opinions on issues relating to morality, religion,…
The great plain packaging swindle
Newly released government data has confirmed that more people smoke in Australia than they did in 2013. This is despite…
Barnaby, the beat-up — and the blunder
Since when have Australian-born citizens with one foreign-born parent but permanently resident here been automatically obligated to the laws of…
Rainbow repression
In a gutsy move, Sky News anchor and Daily Telegraph columnist Caroline Marcus has penned an article unapologetically denouncing the…
Throw another flag on the barbie
For once, Malcolm Turnbull appears to be in tune with the nation. He spoke up this morning to criticise a…
North and South
The events at Charlottesville, Virginia, occur in the context of rapid changes in the South. Having just travelled through sections…
The Age: proud to be a global joke
It’s official. The Age is an international joke. And no. I’m not talking about that “Is this the most Melbourne…
Do they just want it all to be over?
Late this afternoon, the Turnbull government lost a vote on the floor of the House of Representatives, 61 to 69.…
It ain’t choice, Joyce
In 1995, I was there when, one question time, John Howard’s reinvigorated opposition so niggled prime minister Paul Keating that…
Behind Bill
David Marr appropriately titled his Quarterly Essay on Bill Shorten, ‘Faction Man’, for the Labor leader was shaped by the…
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