It would be a real pity if Barry O’Farrell’s agenda for the City of Sydney ends up compromising the council’s vision for improving transportation, writes Alan Davies.
Politics / Australia / NSW
Behind the Seams: who’s asking questions about coal seam gas and health?
Almost a quarter of the disease burden and deaths in the world can be attributed to environmental factors, writes David Shearman and Marion Carey, of Doctors for the Environment Australia.
Behind the Seams: cockies, blockies, croppers and greenies — a movement emerges
The alliance of farmers and greenies has already chalked up some good wins with its policy of keeping resource activity away from inappropriate areas, writes Drew Hutton, Friends of the Earth spokesperson and Lock the Gate Alliance president.
John Connolly: the spinner at the centre of the Star sex scandal
The sex scandal engulfing Sydney’s recently re-opened Star casino and the NSW Government just keeps getting murkier – and more incestuous, writes Matthew Knott.
Floods force thousands to evacuate
Crikey media wrap: Floods in NSW and Victoria continue to threaten homes, with thousands of people evacuated from Wagga Wagga overnight after concerns that levees may break today and inundate the town.
Quiggin: the bigger picture on coal seam gas
A striking feature of the debate over coal seam gas (CSG) is that most of the key issues involved are not unique to CSG, but arise to a greater or lesser extent with all kinds of mining, writes John Quiggin.
Behind the Seams: confessions of a blockade virgin
Something is very wrong when a quiet, conservative Queensland farming community turns to civil disobedience, forcing a dramatic 10-day showdown with police, writes Heidi Ross, organiser of the Kerry Blockade.
Can Bob Carr make a smooth leap from small to big pond?
Successful state premiers are often tempted to make the leap to federal politics. Few make a smooth progression but early signs suggest Bob Carr will be an exception, writes Norman Abjorensen.
Sydney Conservatorium of Music dean: 8yr war of words in one explosive doc
A whistleblower complaint laying bare an ALP-style factional war waged by enemies of dumped Sydney Conservatorium of Music Dean Kim Walker is being assessed by the NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption.
$50k in a paper bag: Medich at ICAC, a bread and butter tale
Millionaire Sydney property developer Ron Medich put in a celebrity appearance at the latest NSW ICAC hearing this week, saying that he had never heard the term “butter up”.
aviation industry 
Sydney’s second airport site emerges from the flood
It’s been obvious for a long time that Badgery’s Creek or the adjacent Nepean site has long been unofficially recognised as the only answer to its urgent need for a second major airport, writes Ben Sandilands.
ICAC, Medich and the Aboriginal Land Council
You’ve gotta love Lucky Gattellari. Faced with the possibility of being banged up in the big house for a long time, the former boxer is now singing like a canary.
New think tank for regions fulfils hung parliament promise
It seems appropriate during the ALP leadership squabble that one of those hung parliament initiatives that sealed Julia Gillard’s prime ministership, a new think tank dedicated to regional issues is set to launch next week.
NSW law changes: a case of sheriff O’Farrell shooting from the hip
The media’s attention towards shootings in Sydney has spawned a political by-product. Barry O’Farrell and Greg Smith have changed criminal law in NSW, but for what purpose? asks Mr Tiedt.
Mackerras: and the winner in Queensland will be …
This is a tale of two Australian states, each holding two recent general elections, writes Malcolm Mackerras.
Why we need to talk about COAG
The process has been hampered by a breakdown in trust between the Commonwealth and the states, writes Paul Kildea on Inside Story.
Melbourne dreams of new airport but Sydney’s still stuck in gridlock
For Premier Barry O’Farrell, the economic consequences of the weekend announcement by Victoria’s peak business body of its enthusiasm for a third Melbourne airport is probably under acute analysis
aviation industry Little Sydney and Mega-Melbourne: comparing airport ambitions
It speaks much for the centre of growth and vision in this country to compare the political difficulties that arise over plans for a 2nd Sydney Airport, and the general enthusiasm for a 3rd Melbourne Airport, writes Ben Sandilands.
Sydney: where people play Russian roulette with their health
The city of Sydney’s s-x industry is awash with unsafe s-x practices and no one is doing a thing about it, writes Chris Seage, tax consultant, former ATO audit manager and owner of Brothel Busters.
The year in elections: the 10 polls that mattered in 2011
It hasn’t been a big year for elections in Australia, but worldwide it’s been quite interesting. Crikey counts down the 10 elections that mattered in 2011.
Housing report shines light on undersupply crisis in NSW
The National Housing Supply Council has produced extensive data on the nature of our housing undersupply. And the big problem is in NSW.
How could you sack this great man, Sydney University?
If a wealthy sandstone institution such as Sydney University cannot find a way to retain exceptional talent, who will step into the breach?, writes Catriona Menzies-Pike, an English PhD, teacher and editor.
Gloucester landowners blockade AGL coal seam gas project
Residents of Gloucester are grappling with a now widespread problem: “how can we stop our most beautiful and productive farmlands becoming an industrial wasteland at the hands of the mining industry?”
