The child-brides of YemenOver half of girls in Yemen are married off by their fathers before they’re 18, usually to men at least a decade older than them, with girls as young as 10 becoming mothers — and that’s if they’re lucky enough to survive the pregnancy.
March, 2010
Republicans: a bunch of swearing, slack frat boys
Obnoxious outbursts, arrogant behaviour: the Republicans were a bunch of troublesome teens determined to pester every step of the way on health reform. But does confrontational politics divide or unite? asks Reihan Salam.
How spam filters damned The Beaver
Canadian history magazine The Beaver has been around for almost a century — but the unintentionally naughty name has been killing its web traffic.
Battlefield Earth screenwriter: I’m sorry
Screenwriter J.D. Shapiro apologises for penning “the suckiest film ever”, the big-screen version of L. Ron Hubbard’s Battlefield Earth — he only hung out with Scientologists to meet chicks.
PHOTO GALLERY: Drunkards of Edwardian England
A fascinating collection of vintage mugshots of men and women arrested for public drunkenness in Birmingham, England, in the early 20th century — including “Pock-pitted” Harry Davies and old “Dirty Dick” Flemming.
The photo that Airbus doesn’t want you to see
The aviation world is aflutter with photos of a Swiss Air Force FA18 Hornet flying the Swiss Alps extremely closely with an Airbus A380. Are the photos showing Airbus breaking safety rules? asks Ben Sandilands.
The Pentagon’s war on WikiLeaks
WikiLeaks has long been pissing off governments by obtaining and publishing their secret and sensitive documents online. And as this secret Pentagon report [PDF] reveals, it hasn’t gone un-noticed.
Want to end poverty in India? Stop giving jobs to the poor
India’s economy has been growing at a tremendous rate. But focusing on job creation and inclusive growth — ie. helping the poor — is holding India back, writes Rajeev Mantri.
Preselection-palooza
With more state elections looming, William Bowe wraps all the latest preselection news from battles around the country.
The London 2012 Olympic logo: still ugly
The organisers of the London 2012 London Olympic Games promised their widely-panned logo would grow on us. It hasn’t, says design critic Alice Rawsthorn.
How about pollies shaping nations not headlines?
Our politicians are in campaigning mode, which means that everything they say or do is about nice media sound bites. Let’s have policy over politics, pleads Tigtog.
Christian militias on the rise in America
The FBI raid and subsequent arrests of a “Christian warrior” militia known as Hutaree in Michigan yesterday is part of a larger rise in US militia groups since the election of Barack Obama in 2008.
Hudson: Abbott’s in for the long run
Yes, the media is obsessed with ‘Abbott the athlete’ and the ‘Rudd runs the country, not marathons’ stories. How can Abbott balance the fitness freak with policy making? asks Phillip Hudson.
Bartholomeusz: Murdoch isn’t building a wall — he’s building a fortress
News Corp has decided has decided on a very thick and crude pay-wall model for its UK paper The Times, says Stephen Bartholomeusz: no bundling, no micro-payments, no tiered access. It’s all or nothing with Rupe.
Savva: Abracadabra, it’s Howard’s magic disappearing health policy!
It’s obvious that Tony Abbott is in desperate need of a health policy. Could John Howard’s never-fully-announced 2007 policy help lift the Liberals’ curse on health? asks Nikka Savva.
Gottliebsen: Hu is just the rope in China’s leadership tug-of-war
The trial of Stern Hu and the Rio Tinto Four is part of a much bigger battle in China, explains Robert Gottliebsen: a 35-year-old power struggle between supporters of Hu Jintao and Jiang Zemin.
Flitton: Australia is China’s lapdog
Australia may be China’s quarry, but, as the Rio Tinto trial proves, the power relationship doesn’t cut both ways, says Daniel Flitton.
Corruption is just business as usual in China
In the wake of the Rio Tinto Four trial, the BBC looks at how accurate accusations of dodgy dealings by foreign companies in China are: pretty credible, actually, but they’re just playing by the local rules.
Why Rio is to blame for Hu’s jailing
The verdict is in: Australian Rio Tinto executive Stern Hu has been sentenced to 10-years’ prison in China for bribery. Yes, the Chinese justice system is unfair and corrupt, says Hugo Restall, the blame lays squarely with Rio.
Newspoll: Labor’s best all year
This fortnight’s Newspoll sees Labor lift out of its recent slump to record a 56-44 lead, up from 52-48, while yesterday’s Essential results are echoed in a hit to Tony Abbott’s satisfaction ratings. Possum Comitatus has all the numbers.
Cats see red (and gold) over Gold Coast advertisement
A poster in the Gold Coast Bulletin that featured a photoshopped Gary Ablett in the 17th AFL franchise club’s colours has the Cats seeing red.
PHOTO GALLERY: Obsolete occupations
Remember the days of lift operators and copy boys? Well, then you’re obviously fairly old, because they’re extinct professions these days. But NPR recalls the days of lamplighters and milkmen.
Essential: Abbott’s approval ratings run, swim and cycle downwards
The latest Essential Report comes in at 54-46 — a 2-point increase to the Coalition, but Tony Abbott’s approval ratings have not fared so well, reports Possum Comitatus.
Fishing for a new diet
Japan’s love of sashimi may be healthy, but it’s making the environment sick. Overfishing of seafood like Atlantic tuna has become such a serious global issue that some estimates say there will be no commercial seafood left in just 38 years.
Why Murdoch’s paywall may not be so mad
If The Australian follows the recently revealed online paywall model for the UK’s Times, it will only need 50,000-odd subscribers to make it worthwhile, according to Tim Burrowes’ maths.
