New data shows Australia’s renewable energy transition has passed a tipping point – with wind, solar and batteries now supplying half the national grid and rapidly expanding. (more…)
Category: Politics
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Board of Peace plans 5,000-person military base in southern Gaza
Leaked contracting documents detail plans by the Board of Peace to build a large military base in southern Gaza, including armoured towers, bunkers and a “Human Remains Protocol”.
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With more restrictive laws across the country, how can we protect the right to protest?
Recent state laws passed in the name of public safety are expanding police powers and narrowing the right to protest, with uneven safeguards for human rights across Australia.
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The three big challenges facing Angus Taylor
Angus Taylor has assembled his shadow ministry, but unresolved tensions with the Nationals, policy baggage from the last election and doubts about his own authority leave his leadership exposed. (more…)
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AI, productivity and the long stall in living standards
Artificial intelligence may offer the best chance to lift stagnant productivity and living standards – but without deliberate policy choices, its benefits will be uneven and limited. (more…)
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Reverend Jesse Jackson’s legacy on the Middle East
Tributes to Reverend Jesse Jackson rightly honour his civil rights leadership. Far fewer acknowledge his long, consistent support for Palestinian self-determination – and the political costs he paid for it. (more…)
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Shame hasn’t vanished. Care has
Public outrage fixates on the absence of shame among elites. But the deeper problem is cultural and structural – a political economy that has pushed care to the margins of public life. (more…)
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Universities expose racism’s scale – and the dangers of unequal responses
New national data shows racism is widespread across Australian universities. The challenge is responding fairly, without elevating one community’s suffering over another’s. (more…)
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Dual nationals in Israel’s military face growing legal scrutiny over Gaza
Newly released data shows that tens of thousands of Israeli soldiers hold foreign citizenship, placing Western nationals directly within the scope of international war crimes law over Gaza. (more…)
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Why Royal Commissions so often fail to deliver reform
Five years after the Royal Commission on Quality and Safety in Aged Care reported, its legacy offers hard-earned lessons about reform, funding, implementation and the limits of inquiry-led change. (more…)
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Scapegoating migrants is as old as history itself
Scapegoating migrants is designed to distract our attention from the truth and real issues – the abuse of corporate and media power and failure to tackle housing shortages for younger generations. (more…)
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How the United States built the world’s biggest military machine
Since 1945, one country has carried out a conventional military buildup unmatched in scale, cost and global reach. Claims about recent rivals distract from the historical record of how modern military dominance was built.
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Whistleblowers protect the public. Who protects them?
A former intelligence officer alleges preventable failures linked to the Bondi attack. His treatment highlights how weak protections silence whistleblowers in national security institutions.
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The ceasefire as a weapon: the genocide in Gaza continues in silence
Killings, arrests, displacement and aid restrictions have continued under the ceasefire. The violence has not ended – it has been reorganised and made less visible.
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What does Albo stand for?
With a commanding parliamentary position and no credible opposition, Labor has unprecedented room to lead. Instead, caution, foreign policy timidity and deference to powerful lobbies are defining its moment. (more…)
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The world is drifting back towards unconstrained nuclear danger
With the expiration of the New START treaty and the erosion of arms control agreements, the safeguards that once limited nuclear danger are rapidly disappearing – despite decades of evidence that restraint reduces catastrophic risk. (more…)
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Does Takaichi’s victory herald a new age for women in Japan’s politics?
Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party has secured its biggest electoral victory in decades under Sanae Takaichi. While her leadership marks a historic first, the result raises questions about whether symbolic change translates into broader political representation and reform. (more…)
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Will Japan’s remilitarisation drag us into a war?
Japan’s rapid rearmament marks a decisive break with its post-war pacifist stance. As regional tensions sharpen, Australia and New Zealand must decide whether alignment offers security or invites new risks.
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Australia is finally building more social housing – but it’s still not enough
Public investment will add tens of thousands of new social housing dwellings by 2030, reversing decades of decline. But new research shows the increase will only prevent further erosion of the sector, not reduce unmet need. (more…)
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US attitude towards Vietnam remains imperialist, not capitalist
Vietnam’s Communist Party leader To Lam has consolidated power and set ambitious growth targets for the country’s future. While reforms have unlocked momentum, centralisation, debt, corruption and geopolitical pressure raise questions about sustainability. (more…)
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The Apology sets the standard
The National Apology to the Stolen Generations modelled dignity, responsibility and mutual respect. Its spirit now stands in sharp contrast to the tone of Australian public life. (more…)
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Muslim women face violence, prejudice, exclusion
Reported Islamophobic attacks in Australia have surged dramatically, with Muslim women overwhelmingly targeted. The failure of political leaders and institutions to respond meaningfully is deepening fear, trauma and exclusion. (more…)
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Judge pushes back on Trump-style ‘Ministry of Truth’
A Republican-appointed federal judge has ordered the restoration of slavery exhibits at an historic US site, rejecting claims that the executive can decide what historical truth should be.
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How elite private schools distort Australia’s teaching workforce
Fees charged by elite private schools go on rising. But who is paying the price? (more…)
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Ley’s by-election to test Coalition
The looming by-election in Farrer is shaping as a four-cornered contest that could reveal how vulnerable the Coalition has become. (more…)
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‘It’s my government’: Robert Reich’s short note to Kristi Noem
To a current US cabinet secretary from a former one. (more…)
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A government without an effective opposition is a danger to democracy
The Coalition’s internal decay has left Australia without an effective opposition at a time when scrutiny, debate and accountability are more necessary than ever. The result is not just a party in trouble, but a democratic failure. (more…)
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UN defends Rapporteur after coordinated European pressure campaign
UN warns of attacks on independent experts after European states target rapporteur over disputed Gaza remarks and sanctions. (more…)
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Sobriety, friendship and the quiet power of Alcoholics Anonymous
Alcoholics Anonymous has helped millions of people stop drinking. Drawing on his long friendship with Barry Humphries and the experience of Anthony Hopkins, Ross Fitzgerald reflects on sobriety, friendship and what sustained recovery makes possible. (more…)
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How Iran’s current unrest can be traced back to the 1979 revolution
Repeated waves of protest show Iranians have lost faith in the promises of the 1979 revolution. But history suggests ideology can fail long before a regime does. (more…)