Flat White

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

Trump’s broken promises

22 May 2017 7:35 am

BOSTON, UNITED STATES — It wasn’t even a year ago the American people were assured Saudi Arabia would finally be…

The new religion

21 May 2017 7:35 am

Let us progress through a number of concepts. The institution described in the following lines should quickly become apparent. Apostasy…

The first casualty of euthanasia

20 May 2017 4:38 pm

The Victorian Ministerial Advisory Panel charged by Premier Daniel Andrews with the task of developing a safe way to kill…

We warn the Tsar

20 May 2017 9:31 am

If there’s been a hot topic of late in media, it’s been the future of Fairfax. Sackings, strikes, Senate hearing…

EXCLUSIVE: Forgotten People speech draft discovered

19 May 2017 12:16 pm

On Monday, 22 May, Liberal party grandees, MPs and supporters will gather at a gala dinner in Canberra to mark the seventy-fifth anniversary of…

One impact of the budget: sales of white flags are booming

19 May 2017 7:24 am

Sales of white flags are going gangbusters, with the Coalition buying out supplies. It isn’t surprising, as they’ve found so…

Women shouldn’t breastfeed in parliament

18 May 2017 5:14 pm

We need to go back to the drawing board and clarify what “equality” stands for. It does not mean female…

The blunt, brutal truth about house prices

18 May 2017 1:31 pm

I feel for the Gen Y and the Millennials, I really do. I know that I often mock them for…

Fact: the patriarchy causes climate change

18 May 2017 7:16 am

Climate change is caused by the patriarchy. That’s the view of feminist author and activist, Gloria Steinem. Asked about the…

Julia Gillard: because I’m worth it

17 May 2017 1:10 pm

Picture this: you were prime minister. You made friends and enemies. You left politics with plenty of money in the…

Budget 2017: placing politics over principle always fails

17 May 2017 7:37 am

When I signed up as a member of my university’s Liberal club, it was for good reason. It was 2011…

Where’s a drug test for hypocrisy when you need one?

16 May 2017 5:00 pm

I love the smell of hypocrisy in the morning, and Twitter always is pungent with its bitter almond aroma. Today…

Why we need a Theresa May

16 May 2017 12:42 pm

Theresa May is doing counter-populism right. The Tories have just released their manifesto for the June election, and it has every strength the Liberals’ depressing,…

Why are feminists being allowed to hijack domestic violence funding?

16 May 2017 7:42 am

A report just released this week shines a shocking, fierce and heartbreaking light on where domestic violence thrives in Australia. The statistics make difficult reading – and…

What happens next in Jakarta?

15 May 2017 1:10 pm

Midnight in Jakarta but shops are still open, people meeting up and I’m sitting at a pavement café with three…

Budget 2017: pseudopulism fails to sway the polls

15 May 2017 7:49 am

Theresa May is headed for a triple-digit majority in parliament, just two years after the Tories cobbled together a government…

We need to talk about Julie…

13 May 2017 8:39 am

There is a news picture of Foreign Minister Julie Bishop that sticks in my mind. Bishop, lithe, agile (that word again!)…

Budget 2017: energy policy’s gushing wounds won’t be fixed with a mop and bucket

12 May 2017 11:48 am

If you had a wound that was gushing blood onto the floor and your doctor prescribed a mop and bucket,…

Triggser warning

12 May 2017 7:28 am

The Australian Human Rights Commission president Gillian Triggs has finally found freedom of speech she would like to defend – Yassmin…

Can we please let kids be kids… for once?

11 May 2017 7:15 pm

Just when I thought Daniel Andrew’s socialist government’s mind-boggling insanity in Victoria couldn’t get any worse, we’re now hearing reports…

When political correctness matters more than common sense

11 May 2017 5:12 pm

“Welcome to the New South Wales education system,” said Liberal Legislative Councillor Peter Phelps, “where students can be told ‘it’s OK…

Budget 2017: a housing policy shambles

11 May 2017 2:50 pm

The housing measures in the 2017 Budget present a great case study in how expectations can be mismanaged. The government…

Trump and Comey: the G-Man goes

11 May 2017 8:03 am

BOSTON, United States — Even if the president and his staff are completely innocent of collusion with Russia, Trump’s done…

Budget 2017: the Inigo Montoya game

11 May 2017 7:14 am

During the Treasurer’s Budget speech, some of my friends like to play the Budget Bingo, downing a shot for an…

Rejoice, rejoice: Fairfax are back

10 May 2017 8:53 pm

Rejoice, yes rejoice, all good people. The strike at Fairfax is over. The journos we so missed are back at…