Why has Australia signed up for a pricey and security-diminishing nuclear sub deal?
politics
The 2003 Iraq war led to huge numbers of civilian deaths, and continuing insurgencies in the Middle East and Africa
But if we could communicate with the mosquito, then we would learn that he floats through the air with the same self-importance, feeling within itself the flying centre of the world. On Wednesday at the National Press Club (NPC), former Labor prime minister, Paul Keating, was invited to speak about the AUKUS submarine deal, and Continue reading »
Crikey sets its sights on “human rights abuse” of China’s LGBTQI+ community relying on a single source for its investigation – the Australian Strategic Policy Institute. The recent Nine Newspapers “Red Alert” series was lambasted from many quarters, including Crikey whose David Hardaker called the report “alarmist” and an “insight into the kind of pompous, Continue reading »
Little that was distinctive about Penny Wong’s foreign policy has survived the signing of the AUKUS agreement. In her first speech to DFAT staff she observed that the department had lost influence under the outgoing coalition administrations and she intended to bring it back to the centre of government. And here we are now with Continue reading »
Lest we forget the consequences, today we recall the great lie of ‘Weapons of Mass Destruction’ in Iraq which led to the smashing of that country and the slaughter of hundreds of thousand of innocent men, women and children. Peace Rally – Address, 18 March 2023 When the lie was revealed, our precious alliance with Continue reading »
I was recently sent an interesting article titled “Who Stands for Freedom” by the Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph E. Stiglitz. The article is a review of the book “The Big Myth” by Naomi Oreskes and Erik M. Conway. It raised a fundamental question: Does China have more true freedom than the United States? Stiglitz’s message Continue reading »
Don’t cut spending, raise taxes; what’s wrong with the government’s carbon credit proposal?; and Stan Grant on the wounds of history. Read on for the weekly roundup of links to articles, reports, podcasts and other media on current political and economic issues in public policy. Don’t cut spending, raise taxes Even before AUKUS, and before Continue reading »
In the Canberra press gallery, policy analysis takes second place to ephemeral politics, as highlighted by the response to Paul Keating’s criticisms of the AUKUS submarine deal. The former PM’s blistering National Press Club attack on AUKUS – and on journalists for the quality of their questions – provoked a curious Twitter response from Anna Continue reading »
What are the budgetary implications of the AUKUS nuclear-powered submarine deal? Here are some numbers provided by a Defence spokesman to select journalists. It is expressed in today’s dollars so does not include future inflation. Since it was a background briefing not an official communique it’s not clear who takes responsibility should these costings prove Continue reading »