News
Comment
Comment
Barry Jones
The end of political complexity
“We are in a time of division. Information is selective and conditional. There are few agreed facts, few shared ideas. Silos are everywhere and for the cynical and opportunistic they are particularly useful. An essential starting point is to engage but not condescend.”
Comment
Paul Bongiorno
The aftermath of the stage three decision
“Dutton says you can no longer believe anything Albanese or Chalmers say on their future tax intentions. It hasn’t dawned on him that he lacks the clout of incumbency. Governments are in charge; oppositions can only promise and decry.”
Comment
John Hewson
Exporting Australia’s refugee policy
“While I am sure that many in the Coalition would arrogantly be proud that their asylum-seeker policy is now setting the pace in European and British discussions, I can’t help but feel some embarrassment for our nation about the fundamental inhumanity of the approach.”
Letters, Cartoon & Editorial
Culture
Profile
Musician and composer Arooj Aftab
The music of Grammy-winning singer and composer Arooj Aftab, who’s on the eve of her first Australian tour, has always broken convention.
The Influence
Filmmaker Madeleine Blackwell
For filmmaker Madeleine Blackwell, Eve Sussman and Rufus Corporation’s The Rape of the Sabine Women lays bare the originary violence of imperialism.
Fiction
Plants
“The moment I walked in, he said that’s what I was. That was before I even told him the sob-story of how shit went south with the government job. How the exec video-called us to say there was no need for a team of writers, that all our work could be done by some younger prick. Before my brother Leonard got drunk and jumped in front of the 351 and practically sawed himself in half. ‘It’s easy,’ he said to me at the time. ‘You just sit there in the crowd, they put the camera on you, and you do something that people will share online.’”
Books
Life
Puzzles
Quotes
Medicine
“My personal view is that people have three quadrants of their brain. They have academic intelligence, social intelligence and sporting intelligence.”
The former deputy prime minister explains his understanding of the brain. If only there were some kind of a fourth quadrant, for what words mean.
Media
“I am genuinely shocked to see Murpharoo take up a spot to now be officially running lines for Labor. The real outrage is David Crowe missed out.”
The opposition leader makes light of Guardian Australia’s political editor, Katharine Murphy, joining the prime minister’s office. Not a bad punchline, but then nor is he.
Law
“This is in the context of Ms Albrechtsen having, over a number of months, exhibited an attitude adverse to Mr Drumgold.”
The lawyer for Shane Drumgold explains that Walter Sofronoff spent more than seven hours on the phone to The Australian while holding an inquiry into his client. It’s not clear if he got through to the subscriptions department or not.
Politics
“Those kinds of views shouldn’t be welcomed into the Tasmanian parliament.”
Tasmania’s shadow attorney-general responds to news Eric Abetz has been endorsed as a candidate for the state election. Say what you will about the Tasmanian hospital system, there must be one hell of an iron lung there somewhere.
Colonialism
“We need the council to be a willing partner in restoring and repairing damaged monuments…”
The Victorian premier offers to assist Yarra City Council with repairs to a James Cook monument. Her party is more than happy to topple leaders, but only if they’re alive.
Education
“We want our 160-year-old school back.”
The Newington old boy protests against a decision to make the school co-educational. A number of men on the picket cried when they thought about what was happening – and in fairness, you don’t want girls to see that.
