March 8 – 14, 2025
News
Comment
Comment
Hugh White
Trump’s conduct on Ukraine prompts strategic reckoning
“This week, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese reassured us he has complete faith in America’s security guarantee. That is not a big surprise. In recent years, as China has challenged the familiar and agreeable American-led order in Asia, both sides of politics have lazily assumed we could depend on the United States to defend that order.”
Comment
Paul Bongiorno
Albanese tracks storms in Queensland and Washington
“Federal cabinet concluded its wide-ranging discussion on the government’s electoral prospects on Monday with the consensus that the most opportune time for the prime minister to call the election would be this Sunday, for April 12. There was, however, one big caveat: the gathering menace of Cyclone Alfred.”
Comment
John Hewson
Power of the climate vote
“Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has been waxing eloquent about his strategy to reclaim seats lost in the last election and to prevent the loss of more. Yet he has consistently failed to address any of the Coalition policy failings behind those losses – principally the issues of integrity in government, gender equality and the need for urgent and substantive climate action.”
Letters, Cartoon & Editorial
Culture
Profile
French filmmaker Jessica Palud
In Being Maria, French director Jessica Palud revisits one of the most notorious scenes in cinema history to return the power of the gaze to the woman it violated.
Books
Life
Puzzles
Quotes
Opinion
“I don’t think the people in the Oval Office are listening to a sub-jurisdictional CEO in Western Australia.”
The WA premier offers context for a comment made during an interview in which he described United States Vice President J. D. Vance as a “knob”. The wit really flows when your target is the other side of the world and not Gina Rinehart.
Oratory
“Washington has become Nero’s court, with an incendiary emperor, submissive courtiers and a jester high on ketamine.”
In a speech affirming European support for Ukraine, the French senator offers his opinion of the current US administration. We can’t all have Roger Cook’s lyrical turn of phrase.
Meteorology
“We apologise for the mistake and hope everyone stays safe.”
A spokeswoman for the social media giant apologises for temporarily banning search results for “Cyclone Alfred” on Facebook. Now we know what Zuckerberg’s OnlyFans handle is.
Health
“We’re delivering vitamin A. Also cod liver oil, which has high, high concentrations of vitamin A.”
The US health secretary details the federal government’s response to an outbreak of measles in Texas. In these enlightened days it’s easy to forget a president once advised drinking bleach to treat Covid.
Policy
“No. We’ve been clear on that.”
The shadow treasurer denies any plan to penalise insurance companies for not bringing down premiums, two weeks after Peter Dutton announced it. Proving that the Coalition’s proposed divestiture powers are limited to supermarkets and stupid commitments by the party leader.
Artificial intelligence
“75-85% likelihood ... leaning toward the higher end.”
Elon Musk’s “maximally truth-seeking AI” chatbot calculates the likelihood that Donald Trump is a Russian asset, based on publicly available information since 1980. Its next trick will be to beat former US Department of Justice special counsel Robert Mueller at chess.
