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Airport chaos: How the airline industry's greed is wrecking the holidays
In the pursuit of maximising profit, airlines sacked thousands of workers and holidaymakers are now paying the price for their greed, writes Terina Hine
Lenin on party and class - video
To wrap up Counterfire's series on Leninism in the 21st century, Michael Lavalette discusses Lenin's concept of a revolutionary organisation and its relation to the working class
No babies should be born behind bars: Why mothers and babies will be protesting at the Ministry of Justice
Parents and their babies will be staging a feed-in protest outside the Ministry of Justice to demand the law is changed to stop pregnant women being incarcerated, writes Mel Evans
America introduces strict new background checks for buying doors
Saying it was the only way to stop the senseless school shootings, Texas Senator Ted Cruz has introduced a bill that would require Americans over 18 to undertake an extensive background check before purchasing a new door, or other entrance-way facilities.
Cruz, who blamed last week’s shooting in Uvalde on the abundance of doors at the school, said the number of doors in the US had been allowed to increase unchecked.
“Do you know how many doors we have in this country? Over 1.8 billion. More than six doors for every man, woman and child in America. That’s 1.8 billion opportunities for a crazed killer to commit one of these massacres, and it’s time we stand up to Big Door and other vested interests and say ‘enough!’”
Under the proposal, Americans wanting to buy a door would have to undergo a background check, wait four weeks before receiving delivery of the door and then keep the door locked at all times, with the key kept in a separate area. Larger doors will require a licence and those with a history of mental health problems will not be allowed to access doors at all.
A spokesperson for Mom’s Against Doors (MAD) – a Republican-aligned lobby group – said background checks for doors was the only way America was going to see a reduction in the number of school masacres. “When my son goes for a playdate at his friend’s house, I have to ask the parents if they have any doors and, if so, where they’re kept. I don’t want my kid growing up in a country like that”.
Cruz denied claims that gun ownership may be partly responsible for shootings, saying “Guns don’t kill people, doors kill people”.
UPDATE: The anti-door legislation now looks unlikely to pass Congress after door manufacturers provided multi-million donations to key Republican senators.
Johnson creates his own ministerial code of misconduct
The rule-breaking Prime Minister has rewritten the rules to suit himself, writes Sean Ledwith
Dutton Blasts Albanese: ‘How Dare You Do What You Said You Would Do!’
SATIRE Incoming Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has blasted Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for doing what he said he would do, as well as going back on an LNP policy. ‘How dare you do what you said you would do? That’s not what a government does’ he said. ‘That’s not what a government does’ he said.…
The post Dutton Blasts Albanese: ‘How Dare You Do What You Said You Would Do!’ appeared first on The AIM Network.
RMT are striking for all of us: let’s get behind them - News from the Frontline
Counterfire’s weekly digest with the latest on strikes and workplace struggles
So long, and thanks for all the pish
Here’s your hat. What’s your hurry? And so we bid farewell to inarguably Australia’s worst ever Prime Minister. A shameless liar, a humbug, a serial failure, a belligerent bully, a duplicitous toad oozing smarm from every pore. A pig who appealed to worst instincts, who saw opportunity in the dogma of a prosperity cult to…
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The day Australia “woke” up
For the last few years, a strange phenomenon has pervaded political discussion in Australia, mainly led by middle-aged, often religious, white men. The term “woke” became the conservative pejorative of choice. Action on climate change was “woke”. Protection of the rights of the rainbow community was “woke”. Indigenous recognition was “woke”. Addressing inequality, corruption, women’s…
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What Britain Did to Nigeria - book review
Max Siollun’s What Britain Did to Nigeria is a careful history which demonstrates unequivocally that the imperial past should be reviled, finds Dominic Alexander