At dawn, on 7 October 2023, Hamas fighters blast over 100 holes in the walls and fences that separate the Gaza Strip from Israel. (more…)
Category: Politics
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Message from the editor
If you do a Google search for the US federal health department (Health and Human Services) site, as I did this week, a big red banner pops up (over a homepage filled with happy snaps of Trump and Kennedy, and the Make America Healthy Again slogan). (more…)
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Chris Hedges – Statement by the National Press Club ( 4 October 2025)
Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Chris Hedges’ forthcoming address to Australia’s National Press Club on Gaza has been cancelled, as revealed in an article published during the weekend. The National Press Club has responded in a media statement. (more…)
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South Korea’s anti-China protests
This week, South Korean authorities expressed concern regarding the potential impact of anti-China protests during APEC. (more…)
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This is not a drill: Bravery as strategy in the face of American tragedy
In recent memory, the prospect of a president preventing Congressional elections from taking effect has been unimaginable. But today, it is not at all hard to imagine that this could happen. (more…)
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Palestinians out by 7 October?
No wonder Israel’s prime minister was grinning. He had his fourth meeting this year with President Trump. He also got what he came for: permission to “finish the job”. (more…)
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The malignant minds taking over the American health sector
“He enjoyed showing people how he put baby chickens and mice in the blender to feed his hawks.” It was a striking description of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., written by his cousin, Ambassador Caroline Kennedy. (more…)
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Individualism and desire – are we really in control?
In an age of influencers and online echo chambers, the French literary theorist and anthropologist René Girard (1923-2015) feels strikingly relevant. (more…)
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Nation’s innovation surge continues a long tradition
Many in the West mistakenly think that China lacks innovation, but this view is outdated. (more…)
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Orwell foresees the 21st century
George Orwell completed his most famous novel 1984 in 1948, shortly before his early death at 46. A few years earlier, in a remarkable short 1945 essay, Orwell foresaw a future world order overseen by America, Russia and China. (more…)
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Dementia president: Could it be that Trump has truly lost his mind?
Given his behaviour, it could very well be that the president of the United States is going nuts. (more…)
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Hedges Report: NPC Australia caves to Israel Lobby, cancels talk on our betrayal of Palestinian journalists
The National Press Club of Australia cancelled my talk on how the media, by amplifying Israeli lies, have betrayed Palestinian journalists, 278 of whom have been assassinated by Israel. (more…)
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A fresh perspective on climate
The climate wars rage on interminably. A new perspective might help us see the way forward more clearly. (more…)
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When cricket turns political: The Asia Cup Final and a missing handshake
On 28 September 2025, the Dubai International Cricket Stadium hosted a tense Asia Cup final in which India defeated Pakistan, with young batsman Tilak Varma scoring a calm, unbeaten 69. (more…)
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Exposing the language of oppression: Debra Dank’s ‘Terraglossia’
At demonstrations about the genocide in Gaza, it has been encouraging to see that speakers have acknowledged the traditional owners of unceded sovereign lands. (more…)
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No justice or peace for Palestinians in Trump’s Plan
The Trump Plan is designed to reframe the issues in favour of Israel. Palestinians have been betrayed again. (more…)
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Bernie and AOC explain how Trump and GOP are about to double insurance premiums for millions of Americans
“This messaging is approximately 142 times better,” said one political observer, “than Democrats are getting from leadership.” (more…)
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Israel’s interception of the Gaza aid flotilla is a clear violation of international law
The Israel Defence Force has intercepted a flotilla of humanitarian vessels seeking to deliver aid to Gaza, taking control of multiple vessels and arresting activists, including Greta Thunberg. (more…)
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China’s youth: Between collectivism and the new individualism
On a recent trip through China, I was struck by the contrast between its classrooms and its city streets. (more…)
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States increase pressure on Commonwealth to address hospital cost increases
Hark back to December 2023. National Cabinet endorsed a historic agreement setting the parameters for future Commonwealth-state sharing of public hospital costs over the next decade. (more…)
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What do Palestinian Australians think of the Trump peace plan?
Irrespective of what Hamas’ decides, Trump’s peace plan is a bitter pill to swallow. Damned if you do and damned if you don’t. (more…)
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‘They need to get cracking’: Bowen on renewable targets and LNP’s ‘poor decisions’ in Queensland
Federal Energy and Climate Minister Chris Bowen says he is not ready to give up on the country’s ambitious renewable energy targets for 2030, but concedes that energy companies “need to get cracking” to ensure enough wind and solar projects are delivered on time. (more…)
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Erasing Gaza’s ecosystem
Israel is rightly known for its technological prowess, not least when it comes to making war. (more…)
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Sanctions: Sanitised, silent killing
Many will remember the terrible effects of the crippling UN sanctions applied against Iraq, from the time of its invasion of Kuwait in 1990, to the fall of the government of Saddam Hussein, following the loss of the second Iraq war (2003). (more…)
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Ben Saul on Palestinian recognition and the Trump plan
At the National Press Club this week, Ben Saul argued that Australia is more than a “modest middle power” and must step up on Palestine. (more…)
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Chris Sidoti’s prescription for action on Palestine
At the National Press Club this week with Ben Saul, Chris Sidoti argues that recognition of Palestine is important, but that Australia must also comply with international law obligations, including acting on arrest warrants from the International Criminal Court. (more…)
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We killed our car industry and now we’re drafted to fight against Chinese EVs (again?)
The call is getting louder and louder: Australia needs to join allies in restricting Chinese electric vehicles. (more…)
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Jane Goodall, the gentle disrupter whose research on chimpanzees redefined what it meant to be human
Anyone proposing to offer a master class on changing the world for the better, without becoming negative, cynical, angry or narrow-minded in the process, could model their advice on the life and work of pioneering animal behaviour scholar Jane Goodall. (more…)
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Israel intercepts Gaza Sumud Flotilla vessels: What we know so far
Despite carrying only a symbolic amount of humanitarian aid, the flotilla had pressed forward with its mission to establish a maritime corridor into Gaza. (more…)
