October 5 – 11, 2024
News
Comment
Comment
Dr Tracy Westerman
This is how to close the gap
“Governments are supposed to be all about accountability. Yet the ‘gap’ widens each year, and the statistics provide stark evidence of this failure. Of child suicides – four times higher among Indigenous than non-Indigenous children. Of child removals – 11 times higher. Incarceration of children, 24 times higher. And on it goes.”
Comment
Paul Bongiorno
The Middle East and middle Australia
“Dutton said the prime minister was making ‘Australians less safe’ and called on any protesters who were on visas to be deported. This conveniently dovetailed with a recurring theme of the opposition leader – that migrants and refugees, particularly those from the Middle East, could be presumed to be security risks and were also making the housing crisis worse.”
Comment
John Hewson
What happened to the Liberal Party?
“A former senior Liberal asked me this week: whatever happened to the Liberal Party’s commitment to developing substantial policies? I had to admit the current Coalition seems to believe it doesn’t need such things, that it can win an election by just being critical and negative, by basically undermining the credibility of the government.”
Letters, Cartoon & Editorial
Culture
Profile
Musician Jamie xx
By the time dance music star Jamie xx had reached 30, he had burnt out. In Waves, his first album in a decade, shows he’s back.
Fiction
The rescue of Chidiock Tichborne
“ ‘Hurry. We must hurry.’ The jailer throws a cloak over Chidiock’s head, so now he looks like a limping girl, face hidden inside his hood. His weight falls into me as we make our way down the stairs. I think it must be God helping me get this far as I cannot surely do this on my own. It must be God helping me and Chidiock through the gate, God willing me on so I can help this broken man who is my son.”
Books
Life
Puzzles
Quotes
Leadership
“Ever found more air than chips in your chip packet?”
The prime minister explains his plans to address shrinkflation. He also offers a neat if unintended description of his government.
Entertainment
“For $130 I’m expecting a polished performance … It was basically karaoke.”
An audience member lodges a formal complaint after the “Taylor Made: A Celebration of Taylor Swift” tribute concert in Manly. Organisers regret not going with ‘The Errors Tour’.
Politics
“It’s safe, very good … I speak to my colleagues regularly. I’ve got no concerns in that area.”
The Victorian Liberal leader assures people his leadership is stable. At this point, you couldn’t give it away.
Travel
“They haven’t got the gumption to cancel me. So instead what they’re doing is just pretending that they haven’t processed it…”
The anti-trans activist complains she was not able to get a visa to attend the CPAC conference in Perth. In reality, she can’t bear the all-gender bathrooms that have literally always been on planes.
Elections
“Queensland can’t afford another Labor government, or worse, a minority Labor government that needs the Greens to hold power.”
The One Nation leader begins campaigning in the Queensland state election. She says the major parties are not tough enough on youth crime, which suggests she’s bringing back the stocks.
Education
“… I wholeheartedly apologise for any offence given.”
The ACT shadow attorney-general apologises for a 2002 student workbook he wrote that praised Christians’ treatment of First Nations people and didn’t mention the frontier massacres. In fairness, we’ve only known about them ever since they happened.
