December 12-18, 2015

News

Lucy Turnbull’s innovation push

“The German government has had a very strong industry policy which is much more interfering with the markets than what we have in Australia.”

Sophie Morris A strong connection with Germany and investment in emerging technologies have seen Lucy Turnbull drive the innovation debate.

News

Coal seam gas leaks a climate debacle

“Methane is the second biggest contributor to climate change, reckoned to be responsible for about 20 per cent of global warming. ”

Mike Seccombe Hundreds of uncapped bores have for decades been leaking methane, a gas more polluting than CO 2 – and the government knows almost nothing about them.

Ashley Dyball, at left, also known as Mitchell Scott, poses for a photograph with Reece Harding, who had fought with Kurdish forces until his death midyear.

News

The law and Australian anti-Daesh fighter Ashley Dyball

Michaela McGuire The decision not to charge ‘freedom fighter’ Ashley Dyball is part of a larger question about the right of Australian citizens to join YPG’s war against Daesh.

William Bourke, of the Sustainable Population Party.

News

Using climate change to question immigration

Max Opray Right-wing populists aren’t the only ones arguing to lower Australia’s immigration rate – some environmentalists worry it will doom efforts to cut carbon emissions.

News

Inside the Royal Commission into Trade Union Governance and Corruption

“Unions are all good or all bad – ennobling or parasitic. It’s an inadequate base for debate, but it’s what we have … Things, of course, are a little more complicated. ”

Martin McKenzie-Murray The trade union royal commission has been haunted by politicisation since it began, ranging from the Gillard–AWU claims, to the attempted ousting of Commissioner Dyson Heydon, to last weekend’s arrests. But with all the drama, are we missing the point?

French National Front president Marine Le Pen acknowledges supporters at a rally last month.

World

Terrorism helps France’s National Front leader Marine Le Pen

Hamish McDonald Our dynamic duo in Washington; mine shakedown claims rock Jakarta; Japan-China rail battle gains speed.

Comment

Richard Ackland
Indigenous peoples locked into disadvantage

“Indigenous Australians make up about 2.5 per cent of the population, yet comprise 28 per cent of the nation’s prison inmates and 20 per cent of the deaths in custody. ”

Comment

Paul Bongiorno
Ian Macfarlane’s power play

“Many Liberals are furious about Macfarlane’s venality and Joyce’s overreach. It spells humiliation for Turnbull if he caves in.”

Gadfly

Richard Ackland
Gadfly: To Mitchell and back

Letters, Cartoon & Editorial

Cartoon

Read

Editorial
Rank and vile

Letters

Language on suicide must change

Martin McKenzie-Murray’s excellent article “Ending the silence” (December 5-11) goes only part of the way in dealing with the stigma of suicide. Few words in the English language cover …

Show restraint on terrorism coverage

Thanks, Martin McKenzie-Murray. It was astonishing to read that the media’s general reluctance to report on this issue stems from a fear of exacerbating the problem due to the supposed …

Culture

Profile

Aaron Sorkin on writing Jobs

Paola Totaro Family man and Hollywood screenwriter Aaron Sorkin made Steve Jobs’ daughter the crux of his forthcoming film about Apple’s co-founder.

Music

Benjamin Clementine’s ‘At Least For Now’

Dave Faulkner Once homeless in Paris, Benjamin Clementine has taken influences from Orwell to Satie to deliver a startling blend of fitful piano and voice.

Portrait

Painter Ann Thomson: driven to abstraction

Charlotte Wood What lies behind the broad brushstrokes of eightysomething artist Ann Thomson.

Food

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Food

Raspberry cordial and raspberry and Lillet Rouge jelly

Andrew McConnell Grown-up raspberry recipes for the young at heart.

Books

Image for article: The Little Red Chairs

Edna O’Brien
The Little Red Chairs

Image for article: A Woman on the Edge of Time

Jeremy Gavron
A Woman on the Edge of Time

Anna North
The Life and Death of Sophie Stark

Life

Architecture

Radical urban planning at the Shenzhen Biennale

Andrew Mackenzie The Shenzhen biennale perhaps surprisingly highlights the benefits of informal urban planning over centralised control.

Health

Non-invasive prenatal screening tests

Megan Howe A blood test early in pregnancy to screen for foetal genetic abnormalities raises as many questions as it answers.

Sport

Trials and tribulations: Clint Kimmins, 31, ironman triathlete

Jack Kerr How athlete Clint Kimmins rebuilt his life – and career – after a stint in jail.

The Quiz

1. Walter White is the lead character of which 21st-century television series?

2. Which city is home to the Hermitage Museum?

3. Is the length of the day on Mars longer or shorter than on Earth?

4. The Battle of the Little Bighorn took place in which US state?

5. Who was the first woman to win a Nobel prize?

6. In Hinduism, who is the first member of the Hindu Trinity and “the Creator”?

7. Which Melbourne-born singer was this year’s inductee into the ARIA Hall of Fame?

8. Lemurs are endemic to which island?

9. In which city was the first day-night cricket Test played? (Bonus points for naming the opposing teams.)

10. Numero Zero is the latest novel from which best-selling author of The Name of the Rose?

Click through for answers.

Quotes

BARGAINS

“Tony was just a regular dude in a baseball cap.”

Emily HastingsThe Newport Beach resident reports selling a three-year-old fridge to Tony Abbott on Gumtree. Which is weird, because onions are better kept under the sink.

POLITICS

“If I was going to stay it’d have to be, it’d be overwhelmingly about getting even with people that brought me down.”

Joe HockeyThe former treasurer explains why he didn’t stay in politics. Becoming ambassador to the United States is a better revenge.

MEDIA

“I think my worst mistake was to persuade Rupert Murdoch – and it really was me persuading him – that we should back Kevin Rudd in 2007.”

Chris MitchellThe outgoing editor-in-chief of The Australian gives a “valedictory interview” to his own paper.

ISLAM

“Where this hatred comes from and why, we will have to determine.”

Donald TrumpThe Republican frontrunner talks about Muslim Americans. Or himself. It’s hard to tell.

CULTURE

“I am more than ready to assert the superiority of a culture that is decent and humane, and welcoming, over a culture that thinks it’s right to kill in the name of God."

Tony AbbottThe former prime minister finally condemns the Crusades. Kidding – he was just stirring up cheap anti-Muslim sentiment.

CHARACTER

“I don’t know if he’s Australia’s version of Donald Trump but he’s a very unusual man, Tony Abbott.”

Bill ShortenThe opposition leader confirms that he would much rather be facing Tony Abbott in the polls. Or better, Donald Trump.