Foley phones up trouble. Word is South Australian Treasurer Kevin Foley’s Labor colleagues are none too happy with him about his $22,000 mobile phone bill and the media coverage over the weekend. Labor backbenchers (left and right) are increasingly losing patience with Foley, who seems to be inebriated on arrogance and power. Some say the […]
October, 2010
Tips and rumours: Tips and rumours
Crikey Says: Gillard’s sick of the travel already?
It’s Julia Gillard’s first overseas trip as Prime Minister, Kerry O’Brien noted on The 7:30 Report last night. A sharp learning curve, he suggested: “Have you found your comfort zone yet?” Apparently not.
The fake national soccer team
It’s an odd tale: a “fake” team from the tiny African nation of Togo pretended to be the national soccer team and competed overseas. But it’s the underlying issues of political instability and violence that reveal the most about soccer in Africa, says Brian Phillips.
What’s life like without a bank?
A study published last year found roughly one in four US households dodge banks in favour of managing their own money. Candice Choi went cold turkey for a month, and discovered life without a bank isn’t what it’s cracked up to be.
Working on Abbott’s IR laws
How Tony Abbott deals with industrial relations could decide his political future, declares Peter van Onselen. Will Abbott ignore one of the foundations of the Liberal Party?
NZ PM joins the fight to keep Middle Earth in New Zealand
A spat between the New Zealand Actors’ Equity and filmmaker Peter Jackson could see the production of Jackson’s upcoming The Hobbit adaptations taken offshore. New Zealand PM John Key has weighed in, offering a government intervention to resolve the dispute.
Liberals worry about the Greens — and about themselves
With the rise of the Greens and a state election looming in Victoria, it’s time for more angst about preferences.
Tony and the Tories
Tony Abbott headed over to the Tory conference in Britain this week, just as the Tories were celebrating “green growth” day and pledging to be the greenest government ever. Was Abbott listening? asks Giles Parkinson.
It’s time for women to infiltrate Australian boards
In Australia’s top 200 listed companies, only one in 10 board positions are occupied by women. There are a number of reasons why and, whether women like to hear it or not, inertia is one of them, writes Elizabeth Knight.
The first beard in late night?
Conan O’Brien is set to launch his new late night chat show on Nov 8, 2011. He’s going where few late night TV hosts have gone before: he’s wearing a beard, warns Dan Barrett.
Would you have hired Hunter S. Thompson?
Check out this glorious cover letter from Hunter S. Thompson’s application for a journalist role back in 1958. “It’s a damned shame that a field as potentially dynamic and vital as journalism should be overrun with dullards, bums, and hacks..,” writes Thompson.
The roots of the “dumb-blonde”
When and how did blonde women get a reputation for being idiots? Juliet Lapidos traces the history of the “dumb-blonde” stereotype, which has been perpetuating hair colour prejudice since probably the late 19th century.
Hitchhiking is back – and net savvy
The legacy of Ivan Milat did the culture of hitchhiking no favours, but the old phenomenon of catching a ride from strangers is making a comeback thanks to websites and iPhone apps that pair drivers with passengers, writes Lisa Rosman.
Why bin Laden hasn’t joined Twitter
In today’s day and age of mass media and the 24 hour news cycle, jidadists have to vie for attention like everybody else. So why hasn’t bin Laden joined Twitter? Because politicians and commentators are doing his work for him, writes Christopher Dickey.
The differences between public servants and journalists
The controversy over the outing of the blogger Grog’s Gamut has now passed out of the hands of newspapers and the blogosphere and on to the desk of senior public servants, who have some interesting questions to wrestle with, writes Margaret Simons.
We need to make up our minds about Afghanistan
Australia is set to have a parliamentary debate before the year’s end about our involvement in Afghanistan. That debate can’t come soon enough, because soldiers need and deserve moral support, writes Paul Murray.
Hurtz hurts the future of old media
Washington Post stalwart Howard Kurtz is going digital: he’s ditched WaPo to work for the Daily Beast website. Need more proof that newspapers are dying?
How should Europe respond to terrorist threats?
It’s been almost two years since Mumbai was hit by terrorists and other countries have been lucky to avoid similar attacks. Increasing evidence suggests Europe may be targeted, which poses plenty of dilemmas about how governments should respond, writes Douglas Murray.
Sheepish sleepish Abbott
Crikey media wrap: As photos of PM Julia Gillard chatting with the Aussie troops in Afghanistan surfaced in the papers, Tony Abbott was M.I.A. Where was the Opposition Leader? Too sleepy to make it.
Why we can’t get enough of the politics of fear
People often criticize politicians for employing fear-inducing tactics. But the public embrace the politics of fear for the same reason people like horror movies: to experience the sensations of terror and euphoria, writes Brett Rutledge.
Albrechtsen: Bring the Tea to Australia
The rise of the Tea Party movement in America has propelled people off the couch, inspiring political activism from those who historically couldn’t give a damn. If only it could move across the Pacific Ocean, longs Janet Albrechtsen.
Gauging public perceptions of Gillard and Abbott
The so-called new paradigm will be just as gladiatorial and bloodthirsty as the last. Why? Because public perceptions of strengths and weakness matter a great deal in politics. Peter Lewis analyses how Gillard and Abbott are currently faring.
Film review: The Girl Who Played With Fire — long and windy Swedish grotesquery
Director Daniel Alfredson dabbles with the dark and grisly in the latest adaptation of author Stieg Larsson’s blockbuster novels. The Girl Who Played With Fire is a bold whodunit but its convoluted storyline lacks impact, writes Luke Buckmaster.
