The essential difference between Senator Fatima Payman and the rest of the federal Labor caucus – and the Coalition caucus as well – is that she opposes genocide and wants the federal parliament to take effective action against it. She is a minority of one in the federal Labor-Coalition political class. Everything that has occurred Continue reading »
Government
The purpose of this paper is to help promote discussion about the ways in which the efficiency, effectiveness and capability of the Australian Public Service (APS) and its integrity can be improved, and the standing of the APS as a key institution in Australia’s democratic system can be restored. Competent democratic government in the public Continue reading »
Last month New York Times conservative columnist David Brooks interviewed self-described MAGA (Make America Great Again) War Room street fighter Steve Bannon about the rise of right-wing populism. Among the takeaways were Bannon’s view that the MAGA movement is moving further and faster to the right than Donald Trump, that the battles they’re fighting are Continue reading »
Instead of concern about continuing slaughter in Gaza and the West Bank, the major controversy surrounding Senator Payman’s support for a Palestinian state and for Palestinians’ lives has focused on her non-compliance with rules and discipline in the Labor caucus. That seems astounding. When observing end of time massacres by the Israeli state, why does Continue reading »
In response to the question, ‘Do you despair over the slaughters in Gaza’, a close friend responded, ‘When I hear the news, I’m angry and permanently pissed off. I also recognise that anger can lead to despair.’ Her personal reaction mirrors a national malaise, a Gaza frustration coupled to powerlessness which like a Covid pandemic Continue reading »
While Australia and China have very different approaches in PNG, both are in working primarily with political elites, while alienating the New Guinean public. Two recent financial deals that seemingly benefit Papua New Guinea indicate the problems at the heart of the country’s political and economic outlook. The separate agreements between PNG and two rival Continue reading »
Let’s not goad the Reserve Bank to fight higher underlying inflation that can be corrected by disciplined fiscal policy and a more open and competitive economy. Polls show cost of living is the overriding issue on voters’ minds. One reason is that lowering the annual inflation rate has stalled at around 4% since last December. Continue reading »
Labor’s cowardice on the world stage stems from a deep-rooted fear that to do anything other than slavishly follow American policy would be to hand government over to a Coalition which has always done exactly that. The trouble being that, as the cringe of Labor perceives it, many if not most Australians are comfortable with Continue reading »
If a future Prime Minister Dutton was able to get the fuel for a HALEU power station, would you be absolutely confident that he might not want to also dabble in some nuclear weapons procurement as well? A recent Science paper (7/6) highlights one of the potentially disastrous risks the Dutton nuclear plan raises. Recently Continue reading »
Instead of churning more taxpayer money through Private Health Insurance funds to private hospitals, the Commonwealth Government should establish a Hospital Benefits Fund (HBF), similar to the Medical Benefits Fund (MBF), with benefits going directly to patients for payments to a hospital of their choice. Many “private” hospitals are pleading for more government subsidies. In Continue reading »