Is it good for Australian society if schools compete for students on the basis of academic performance and standardised exams? asks James Farrell. Will parents actually be more informed, or just more obsessed with test scores?
Life / Society
Has Texas accidentally banned marriage?
A constitutional amendment in Texas designed to ban gay marriages may have inadvertently banned all marriages in the state, according to a lawyer and Democratic attorney general candidate.
The long road to balance in the breast screening debate
Many women’s support and information groups are still encouraging women to disbelieve good evidence of over-diagnosis and over-treatment for breast cancer prevention, writes Hazel Thornton.
Rich home free, ASIC in the dock
One.Tel executives Jodee Rich and Mark Silbermann may have escaped their legal battle with ASIC intact, but One.Tel was still a colossal failure, says Stephen Bartholomeusz.
Xenophon didn’t go far enough: no religion should be tax free
Nick Xenophon’s attack on the tax free status Church of Scientology last night was laudable, and long overdue, but did not go nearly far enough, writes Jane Shaw.
Beenie man is a product of entrenched homophobia in Jamaica
Beenie, the Jamaican DJ just dropped from the Big Day Out, may be a phenomenal talent. But he has, at various times, been openly, flagrantly — almost murderously — homophobic.
Xenophon: Scientology is a criminal
organisation
Independent Senator Nick Xenophon hit out against the Church of Scientology in a speech to Parliament yesterday, accusing the organisation of widespread abuse and criminal conduct. Read his full speech here.
Would calorie-counting menus help bust Australia’s big bellies?
There is a weight-busting move afoot in the US to introduce calorie-counting menus in chain restaurants. Would such a move be useful and welcomed in Australia? Health experts weigh-in.
Work hard for permanent residency? Why bother?
An anonymous reader lets exposes the second-rate hospitality training given to international students hoping to gain permanent residency in Australia.
Fruit juice: a nutritious way to get extremely fat
A glass of apple juice is no better for you than a glass of Coke — the average soft drink is 10% sugar and so is the average juice. Drinking fruit juice is just a nutritious way to get extremely fat.
America opens its first pot cafe
America’s first “pot cafe” has opened its doors in Portland, Oregon. Certified medical marijuana can get their dose of Mary Jane from the “budtenders”, as well as food, should the munchies strike. Trippy.
Melbourne Muddle: elite students turning away from law in droves
Elite students are turning away from the once-prestigious Melbourne University law school in droves, shunning the Melbourne Model in favour of not only long-time rival Monash, but also RMIT and Deakin University.
Gay marriage: an issue of both the legal and the spiritual
If there is a God, surely she wouldn’t have intended for Australia to let gay and lesbian people and their families to feel so ostracised from the church, writes Steve Dow.
How many calories would you like with that order?
Croakey’s North American correspondent, Dr Lesley Russell, investigates the effectiveness of “calorie-counting” menus, while a local obesity policy expert, Jane Martin, looks at whether such an option might be useful in Australia.
New warning on the risks of surgery on your lady bits
Research published in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology says women are undergoing Labioplasty amid a “shocking” lack of information on the potential risks. The report also questions the idea of aesthetically pleasing genitals.
Rev. Sun Myung Moon and the crisis at the Washington Times
Everything is breaking down at US paper the Washington Times: top execs have been fired, one has disappeared, armed guards are patrolling the offices — and it’s all thanks to cultists the Moonies.
The cannabis classification wars spark up in the US
The real dangers (or lack thereof) of cannabis use are being hotly debated in the UK, and now the issue has hit the US, with the American Medical Association pushing for a review into the drug’s status as a Schedule I drug.
Why question defence force loyalty because of religion?
Our troops have a job to do. We should allow them to do it and not waste their or our own time with moronic speculations based on isolated incidents.
Can prisoners on death row really request anything for their last meal?
Ever pondered what your final meal would be if you were facing the noose? Contrary to popular belief, prisoners on Death Row in the US don’t always get what they ask for. In fact, many just get something slapped together by a fellow inmate.
Why do good boys do bad things?
One of the big questions that underlies all the debates on university colleges, male sports teams and other forms of hooliganism, is: why do some groupings encourage thuggery? Eva Cox explores.
Too big for Japan
Are you too fat for Japan? Concerned about the prospect of an aging nation afflicted with cardiovascular disease and diabetes, Japanese lawmakers have set a maximum waistline size for anyone age 40 and older.
Illegal: SMH breaks school league table ban
The Sydney Morning Herald says it’s breaching NSW state law today and risking a $55,000 fine by publishing this article comparing the test results of three Sydney high schools, challenging what it says is an “absurd” ban on giving parents information about the schools childrens’ schools. Subversive or sensationalism?
Porsche sues Crocs
Car maker Porsche is suing ugly-shoe-maker Crocs over the its use of the name “Cayman”, which both companies have named a product. Just in-case people can’t tell the difference between a $51k luxury car and a $30 plastic sandle.
Nookie in your nineties: when are you too old for sex?
At age 71, Jane Fonda declared her sex life ‘better than ever’. But admit it: plenty of people in their 60s actually find sex rather a bore. All those positions? With arthritis? No thanks.
Late-night missive fuels fight over faculty finances at Melbourne
The former dean of arts at The University of Melbourne, Professor Stuart Macintyre, has launched an extraordinary attack on his predecessor, Professor Mark Considine, accusing him of deliberately misrepresenting the state of the faculty’s finances, writes Andrew Crook.
