Three days before Christmas, Treasury’s Centre for Population has without much fanfare issued its 2023 Population Statement. As this is only weeks after the ABS issued its population estimates for 2022-23 and its long-term population projections, and a week after the Government issued its new migration strategy (in conjunction with the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Continue reading »
politics
China looms large in the Australian psyche. On a practical level, what happens in China largely determines the success of global action to deal with climate change, the profitability of our rural economy and the financing of our universities. Our national leaders are concerned about rising tensions in our region and the interplay of US-China Continue reading »
Former U.S. Ambassador Charles Freeman questions the true intentions of Israel’s renewed bombing of Gaza. Charles “Chas” W. Freeman Jr. is an American retired diplomat and writer. He served in the United States Foreign Service, the State and Defence Departments in many different capacities over the course of thirty years. Most notably, he worked as the Continue reading »
Increasingly, organs of the state are used to harass critics of the government. Six months ago India was accused of involvement in the murder of a leader of the Khalistan movement in Canada and what followed was predictable: expulsion of diplomats from both countries, stalled trade talks and temporary stopping of visa services. But in Continue reading »
Five out of six major Australian media outlets have substantially imbalanced reporting when it comes to covering the Gaza conflict, new research claims. Dr Susan Carland of Monash University, examined Instagram posts made by ABC News, The Australian, The Daily Telegraph, 9News, news.com.au and The Daily Aus between October 7 and November 7 this year, and found most neglected the Palestinian side of Continue reading »
More than 9,000 children have been injured in the Gaza Strip, leaving them grappling with the loss of an arm or a leg. In the Gaza Strip, the life of any child could turn into a nightmare in the blink of an eye. Families try to keep their children safe, but this becomes harder and Continue reading »
That the Albanese government could further compromise Australia’s sovereignty, international integrity and national interests seemed inconceivable. Yet, intelligence, a vital government function inextricably connected with independence and protecting national interest, is being penetrated and colonised by the Americans. At the Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations (AUSMIN) 2023 the establishment of “a Combined Intelligence Centre – Australia” (CIC-A) Continue reading »
An award-winning livestock auctioneer went viral last year after selling a trucker cap on a Melbourne tram. Harry Cozens, a sheep and cattle auctioneer from Albury, was handed the cap by a fellow passenger and challenged to sell it, before launching into his call. First published by Guardian Australia December 13, 2023 Continue reading »
Catholic and independent schools had the biggest declines in the OECD’s Programme of Student Assessment (PISA) test results since 2009. Their students lost 1½ to nearly two years of learning in reading, mathematics and science. The falls in test scores were far bigger than for public schools. The learning loss in Catholic and independent schools Continue reading »