The background for this is President Bush’s comments trying to link Barack Obama to the notion of appeasement. As if the original comments weren’t stupid...
The background for this is President Bush’s comments trying to link Barack Obama to the notion of appeasement. As if the original comments weren’t stupid...
Our usual weekend open thread where you can discuss the topics we have missed or skipped over during the rest of the week. Keep it...
The threats have been lurking over California for years, with the risk always being that the western seaboard of the United States would simply drop...
Ever wondered just how big the business of growing opium poppies in Afghanistan is? The National Security Network (NSN), a US policy think tank, has...
When we first discussed the increased tax on alcopops, I said it seemed like a good idea and would tend to decrease demand for these...
The Coalition are allegedly thinking of using their numbers in the Senate to block the legislation to means test the baby bonus. Shrewd.
The failure of the Rudd Government to release Treasury information on modelling of their new IR laws makes a mockery of the new government’s commitment...
From comments in the post below, this link to a story that shows once again what a churlish and essentially unserious politician Peter Costello is. ...
The death toll in the China earthquake has risen to around 10,000: The quake, with a magnitude of 7.8, struck close to densely populated areas...
Speaking as a self-interested consumer, the news that Westpac and St George Banks are trying to merge into a single entity and thus become the...
What was that horror movie back in the 80s where a babysitter is getting threatening calls (Have you checked the children?) and the police end...
The content of Tuesday’s Budget seem to have had a pretty through airing, especially over the last week of so. Amongst other things we’ve had...
The movie Iron Man became one of the few movies in history to open in the US and take $100million in its first weekend. Nice...
Ever since the election, and even more so, ever since the Labor introduced its new IR legislation into the parliament, the Prime Minister and his...
Graham Young, a former vice-president and campaign chairman of the Queensland Liberal Party, was at Brendan Nelson’s speech to the Brisbane Club yesterday and he...
We’ll all be rooned, says Shanahan, in this article quoting some Treasury comments about aspects of Labor’s IR policy. The article begins: “LABOR’S industrial relations...
I liked this story out of Florida in the US: Substitute teacher Jim Piculas does a 30-second magic trick where a toothpick disappears then reappears. ...
There’s a story this morning about one of the schemes being put to the Productivity Commission as they look at the issue of paid paternity/maternity...
“Every mother loves her baby. Every baby is valued, and Mr Rudd should value all babies equally. We should not live in an Australia...
I’m sure the images from the NSW Labor Party Conference on the weekend didn’t play too well in the electorate, no matter where people stood...
Our usual weekend open thread where you can discuss the issues we’ve missed or skipped over during the rest of the week. Keep it civil...
Could Time Magazine have more perfectly designed an article to get a rise out of Australian conservatives? Like their “Person of the Year” shtick, Time’s...
If you thought sniffing a chair just vacated by a political staffer was not the best thing for an aspiring political leader to do, then...
The Prime Minister gave an extensive speech yesterday about changes to made to the way the public service operates. It’s had some coverage. This article...
The fighters against barbarity and medievalism win another round: GAY people will gain equality in a wide range of areas under news laws - but...
Our usual Wednesday open thread on which talk of politics is banned. Talk about something else. Like John From Cincinnati, which I’m unexpectedly enjoying (stars...
Just dump the stupid, politically motivated, shallow, ill-conceived thing: SOME migrants were too frightened to apply to become Australians because they feared they would be...
This is really just to flag an announcement on water strategy that Minister Penny Wong is due to make later in the day: Federal Water...
Afghanistan’s President escaped what looks an assassination attempt over the weekend. Unfortunately, Australian soldier “Lance Corporal Jason Marks, a 27-year-old married father of two and...
I know a number of you have been at dawn service and will be otherwise occupied today, but here is our usual weekend open thread...
Turn and face the strain.... Everyone, of course, has an opinion on climate change, even brave historians willing to martyr themselves for their beliefs. It...
It is a question I’ve asked before, but is it remotely possible for a government of any persuasion to change their mind about something—break an...
Slightly earlier than usual, here is our usual midweek open thread on which politics is banned. Talk about non-political stuff like, erm, Cate Blanchett or...
The latest head-to-head in the Presidential race is happening today in Pennsylvania and I’ll update here as the results come in. Once again, it looks...
Marcia Langton is in the paper today arguing that the priorities of many Aboriginal leaders is simply wrong: Amid criticism that an important opportunity to...
There has been much talk of late of the work of Lindsay Tanner’s razor gang and what will be cut in the name of fiscal...
I noticed in comments to one of the 2020 posts I linked below, this particular comment: Well, we had the Howard Haters, now we have...
We talked the other day about the government’s proposed review of the 457 visa (guest worker) scheme and I said I wasn’t overly hopeful that...
Don’t you just hate it when governments are all about big, symbolic announcements not backed up with any concrete plans that are spun in the...
Mark Bahnisch points to an article by conservative historian Tony Judt in which he (Judt) argues that the lack of a war on US soil...
Interesting bunch of articles popping up this morning attacking various schemes put forward by the Rudd Government. There is a good piece by Jessica Irvine...
I said in the post below that I’ll follow-up on the PM’s proposal for integrated early childhood centres later, but in reading through the speech...
Our usual open thread from which politics is banned. Talk about something else, would ya? Here’s a couple of articles you might find interesting. This...
I was down as a community cabinet sceptic when the new government first launched the practice, but yesterday I sat and watched the live coverage...
Well, there’s something you don’t hear every day: THE head of the Anglican Church in Australia has backed gay and lesbian students taking same-sex partners...
Lord Sedgwick reveals the true identity of our new Governor General. Or has he just used that software that ages people...?
A survey of internet usage in Europe shows Iceland and Scandinavia at the top of the pile. Iceland maxes out with 86 percent of people...
WorkChoices might have been defeated, probably even cost the last government power, but I’m sure this will be a bit of silver lining for the...
KEVIN Rudd has called on 1000 Australians to discuss the key problems facing the nation at the 2020 Summit on April 19 and 20. ...
It’s a bit early in the day for our WA readers to comment on this, but I’d be interested to hear their experiences (once they...
Justice Michael Kirby is gay and describes his religious faith as Christian Anglican. The Reverend Richard Lane is the Anglican Rector of St James’ Parish...
KEVIN Rudd has called on 1000 Australians to discuss the key problems facing the nation at the 2020 Summit on April 19 and 20. ...
The Australian Bureau of Statistics released its Labour Force figures yesterday and they showed a rise in the unemployment rate from 4 to 4.1%. The...
KEVIN Rudd has called on 1000 Australians to discuss the key problems facing the nation at the 2020 Summit on April 19 and 20. ...
I notice some more articles around this morning looking at various IMF forecasts for the world economy. David Uren, for example, notes their predictions for...
Well, having had a go at him yesterday for not speaking enough in public about human rights abuses by the Chinese Government, I should acknowledge...
It’s Wednesday and so we do our usual non-politics open thread. Talk about topics other than the usual political subjects. Keep it civil and keep...
Do you remember the song from Jackson Brown’s album, Running on Empty, that went, “Oh won’t you stay, just a little bit longer”?: Gen. David...
We’ve had a the dumping of past policies, the reinvention of the kinder, gentler Coalition, and we’ve had the magical listening tour. But alas: Labor...
Yesterday we looked at climate change and sustainability in Australia. Today we are going to be discussing the arts in Australia. Again, I’m interested to...
KEVIN Rudd has called on 1000 Australians to discuss the key problems facing the nation at the 2020 Summit on April 19 and 20. ...
I mentioned last week that Blogocracy would be doing some posts over the next few weeks looking at the topics that will be discussed at...
Our usual end-of-week open thread where you can discuss the issues we’ve missed or skipped over during the rest of the week. Keep it civil...
The Productivity Commission has released a report on the cost of tariffs and other restrictions on imported goods, and it also looks the cost of...
Brendan Nelson has been urging those on the Coalition backbench toying with retirement to make up their minds and Peter McGuaran has now taken his...
Something you might want to have a chat to Brendan Nelson about if you happen to be in the path of his current magical listening...
It’s Wednesday, even here in Adelaide, and so time for another politics-free open thread. Discuss anything except politics. Keep it civil and no long cut-and-paste...
Wow. Actual sustained heavy rain here in Adelaide. Started about 5am. I mean, it hasn’t been raining the whole time since then, but there have...
Justice Ted Mullighan unearths an appalling state of affairs amongst child welfare agencies here in South Australia: PRIESTS, doctors and teachers sexually abused foster children...
The conflict in Basra seems to be winding down, with an agreement being brokered by Iran: Iraqi lawmakers traveled to the Iranian holy city of...
2020 Summit participant Joshua Gans (and co-author Christopher Joye) pre-releases one of his ideas that the Federal Government could consider. Joshua wants to establish an...
The warm reception Kevin Rudd received in the United States from the failed Republican President, George W. Bush, (Katrina and Iraq are enough by themselves...
Will this be another issue on which the Coalition will backflip, or will they stick to their guns? Remember, it was they who only recently...
While the Coalition parties have generally held—and still hold—an electoral advantage amongst older voters, some research by Ian Watson, using an analysis of Newspoll data,...
David Kay was the guy President Bush put in charge of finding Saddam’s WMD once the dictator was removed from power. Kay headed the Iraq...
The usual Wednesday open thread in which you can talk about issues other than politics. And here’s a link to be going on with; not...
I’ve said before that a lot of the success or otherwise of the Rudd Government is going to depend on how well they can get...
The other day, Senator Barack Obama, in response to a media frenzy about comments made by the pastor of the Church he attends—gave a speech...
WE now know that in all likelihood the Rudd Government, on the advice of one of their climate change dudes, Ross Garnaut, will not be...
Most people accept—or have in the past—the legitimacy of the US-NATO-Coalition action in Afghanistan after the attacks of September 11, 2001. The links between the...
It’s good that the government has scrapped the temporary protection visas (TPV), though any credit is mitigated by the fact that, as Andrew Bartlett points...
The title could refer to the aftermath of the cyclone or the junta. The government’s latest moves will no doubt reignite the calls for some...
Brendan Nelson gave his Budget reply last night and as widely touted, committed the Opposition to block a few of the government’s measures from Tuesday...
It’s worth remembering that the US Presidential election in November will also include elections for their House of Representatives and one-third of their Senate. The...
We’ve talked before about the government’s stupid proposal to filter all internet content at the provider level and then demand that people opt-out of the...
The Coalition are allegedly thinking of using their numbers in the Senate to block the legislation to means test the baby bonus. Shrewd.
Our usual midweek open thread on which we discuss matters other than politics. Talk about something else. I want to thank those wise commenters...
President Bush tells of the personal sacrifice he has made on behalf of the military and their families: For the first time, Bush revealed a...
Okay, first up—here’s the whole Budget if you would like to go through it. Next up, here’s the key numbers: Inflation outlook: 4.2% (falling to...
The Republican Party has come up with a new campaign slogan—The Change You Deserve. Unfortunately for them, it is already the registered advertising slogan of...
Mr Abbott enters the fray and is to be congratulated for his sensible and humane approach. Not only does he recognise the legitimacy and sincerity...
People are dying, the threat of disease and extreme societal breakdown in the wake of Cyclone Nargis is real and growing, and yet the military...
Peter Martin wonders why, with its economy booming, not many people are moving to Western Australia.... W