The most important outcome from the Jobs and Skills Summit must be some federal government leadership. Our Vocational Education and Training system, including TAFE, is in urgent need of a major reset. (more…)
What power always does is reveal. (more…)
“The prime minister was spotted at the media empire’s Holt Street offices on Wednesday, when, we’re told, Albo, Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles and Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong met News Corp cochairman Lachlan Murdoch and senior editors of the media empire’s Australian mastheads”.(SMH 26 August 2022) (more…)
To many Americans who view Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as an unprovoked war that must be opposed, Indonesia’s high levels of public support for Russia may be perplexing. But divergent US and Indonesian views should not come as a surprise. The United States and Indonesia tend to perceive international events — and one another — through distinct ideological and normative frameworks due to their different international positions and historical experiences. (more…)
The Pentagon does not know how many bases it has around the world so it relies on academics to tell it. The US bases are gated communities which replicate US suburbs, shops and amenities to the exclusion of local people. (more…)
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February has met with opprobrium in most quarters. At the same time, commentators of diverse stripes still argue that Western policies, particularly NATO expansion, should bear part or much of the blame for these events. (more…)
Military contracting “obscures where and how taxpayer money flows,” and “makes it difficult to know how many people are employed, injured, and killed,” said the Costs of War Project report’s author. (more…)
The calls mount for the Russian leader to be dragged before a War Crimes Tribunal, while everyone from international sporting bodies to businesses and banks is busy sanctioning Russia. Yet, the three world leaders responsible for the illegal Iraq war of 2003 have still not been held to account (more…)
One of the few uplifting political trends of the past decade has been the growing strength of movements for gender equality and, even more surprisingly, the demand for racial justice. But a higher-level structure of discrimination governs both racism and sexism: The global dominance of a white power elite in virtually every arena of human activity. (more…)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in the Philippines to meet the newly elected President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. just as the Rim of the Pacific exercise, or RIMPAC, ends. As the world’s largest maritime military exercises, RIMPAC has intensified the militarisation of the Asia-Pacific region since 1971 and has further strengthened the alignment of the newly-minted Marcos Jr. regime with U.S. military interests. (more…)
With more than 90,000 views, this interview that Jordan from the Friendly Jordies conducted with John Menadue in 2020 was received with much praise from viewers. “This dude is like 70 and he gets the current landscape more than people half his age”, writes one, “This man is a primary source, if I ever have to write a history essay on Aussie politics in the 70’s I have this interview right here I can quote”, writes another”. (more…)
So many empire apologist arguments depend on pretending the US empire doesn’t exist; pretending the US is just a normal country sitting there minding its own business. (more…)
We are living through a change of era on planet earth. Huge changes are ongoing. There is no doubt that the recent federal election gave a mandate to the incoming Government to RESET the way we do business at many levels. (more…)
Julia Gillard delivered a gushing speech to the American Congress in March 2011. Then eight months later she agreed to US Marines in Darwin. (more…)
Israel’s hatred of the Palestinians is shaped and driven by three basic sentiments. (more…)
I want to apologise for my actions. I’ve let my team down. I’ve let my family down. I’ve let the country down!” (more…)
Australia is becoming functionally just a US military base with kangaroos. (more…)
The States should stick to their knitting and stop deluding themselves about their overseas role. (more…)
The use of PFM-1 explosives against civilians is prohibited by the Geneva Conventions—but this evidently isn’t stopping Ukraine. (more…)
The imposition of neoliberalism as the theology of state has created a world-wide orthodoxy of government. Political leaders fear excommunication, or worse. (more…)
At this stage, it appears most probable that most will opt for Lula. (more…)
Election May 2022 – a new beginning for climate and energy policy? (more…)
Amnesty International has just released a report that drew attention to Ukrainian violations of International Law in its war with Russia. It quickly became a footnote in the propaganda war. (more…)
Is Dutton also preparing to shift ground? (more…)
Most political colonies have come to an end. But a colonial mind set continues in the media. (more…)
When Nancy Pelosi made her ‘woke’ flight to Taiwan the U.S. seemed to hope for a Chinese military reaction to it. It positioned an aircraft carrier and two amphibious landing ships in the region. It also shipped additional fighter planes to Japan and South Korea. (more…)
‘Republicans and Democrats disagree today on many issues, but they are united in their resolve that the United States must remain the world’s greatest military power. In its most benign form, the consensus finds expression in extravagant and unremitting displays of affection for those who wear the uniform. Considerably less benign is a pronounced enthusiasm for putting our soldiers to work “keeping America safe.” This tendency finds the United States more or less permanently engaged in hostilities abroad, even as presidents from both parties take turns reiterating the nation’s enduring commitment to peace.’
Australia’s government has rejected China’s proposals for improving ties, claiming to be looking out for its own national interests. In reality, Canberra still views Beijing through the lens of the US-China great power game, which can only hurt its economy while boosting America’s. (more…)
The UK is preparing to transfer the sovereignty of Diego Garcia to the US and we are preparing Cocus Keeling for US military use.
Kerrynne Liddle had to wait a nail biting 25 days to be confirmed as the final Aboriginal person elected to the Federal Parliament at the May 21 election. (more…)