February 13 – 19, 2021
News
Comment
Comment
Paul Bongiorno
Nationals still hot on coal
“On Monday Scott Morrison walked into RAAF Base Williamtown near Newcastle to the soundtrack of the movie Top Gun. It may have been appropriate to his mission that day – lauding the progress of the Joint Strike Fighter program – but it was a parody of his helplessness in the endless climate war.”
Letters, Cartoon & Editorial
Culture
Profile
Choreographer Garry Stewart
Choreographer Garry Stewart’s new work Supernature opens at the Adelaide Festival next month, marking his final year as artistic director of Australian Dance Theatre.
In Progress
Nardi Simpson
For Yuwaalaraay singer and writer Nardi Simpson, author of Song of the Crocodile, a sense of place is fundamental to all her work.
Fiction
Two begging stories
“When he made his first billion, Samir bought the top half of the mountain. Once his grandparents had lived at its foot but now he had a view to the sea and the mountains beyond. His first point of business was the road. Bulldozers, excavators, trucks and workers battled a road to the top. He liked the appearance of dust but not how it clung to his clothes. They layered the gravel and then sprayed the asphalt. He thought, Now I can build my house. He flew in an architect, he flew in consultants recommended by his friends. The design would be Mediterranean: white walls, orange tiles, a palace equal to his life. The first night he spent in his palace, he lit up every light. He imagined people below looking up. Yes, the mountain has a king at its top. His sole regret was he could not be in two places at once: to see the mountain being lit for the first time while being the one who flicked the switch. Tomorrow he’d ask and his people could give him a detailed report. He thought to live at the top.”
Books
Life
Puzzles
Quotes
Justice
“I’m here live. I’m not a cat.”
The Texas lawyer struggles to switch off a filter that made him appear as a cat during a trial conducted via Zoom. The New Yorker’s staff likely wish Jeffrey Toobin had used a filter.
Accountability
“The Liberals treat taxpayer money as if it is Liberal Party money.”
The Labor MP lashes Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton over $880,000 awarded to the National Retail Association. To be fair, since the grant came after the NRA made a donation to the LNP explicitly for Dutton, wouldn’t it have been a bit rude not to?
Family
“Tell your girlfriend to get out of my box.”
The tennis player appears to instruct his brother to eject his world champion bodybuilder girlfriend, Alicia Gowans, from his player’s box at the Australian Open. Christmas dinner with the Kyrgios family should be fun.
Sport
“I don’t listen to women that much.”
The former Japanese president announces his resignation from the Tokyo Olympics organising committee after saying women shouldn’t be on committees because they talk too much. Always good to go down swinging.
Mea culpa
“I try my best and I don’t always get it right, but I don’t stop trying.”
The Millionaire Hot Seat host steps down as Collingwood president after 22 years in the job. Former player Héritier Lumumba described this speech as “somehow even worse than his last press conference”, which is fairly generous.
Freedom
“Fox cannot be held liable for fairly reporting and commenting on competing allegations in a hotly contested and actively litigated election.”
The media conglomerate hits back at a $US2.8 billion lawsuit from electoral voting machine manufacturers Smartmatic. Relying on the integrity of its newsroom for its defence, the broadcaster’s mission is clear: make QAnon seem relatively sane.
